"Mad at the Internet" - a/k/a My Psychotherapy Sessions

Col said:
t is just a dumb take in my opinion. It would be like making a stance of "Stop praying for things to get better!" like okay even if you believe prayers do absolutely nothing, it takes such a minuscule amount of time while you are doing other things to make things better then, there is no reason not to. If the choice is go vote or take your grandma to the hospital, sure. But if the choice is go vote or watch an episode of anime, then you ought to go vote.
Click to expand...
This take is an unfortunate consequence of the nationalization of all issues. The truth is that who is president or congressman is unlikely to mean anything to your everyday life. But what are of importance to your life are the judges, prosecutors, school board members, local councillors, etc. Those elections are local and are usually much closer. As one of our greatest Supreme Court Justices, Robert Jackson, said:

The prosecutor has more control over life, liberty, and reputation than any other person in America. His discretion is tremendous. He can have citizens investigated and, if he is that kind of person, he can have this done to the tune of public statements and veiled or unveiled intimations. Or the prosecutor may choose a more subtle course and simply have a citizen's friends interviewed. The prosecutor can order arrests, present cases to the grand jury in secret session, and on the basis of his one-sided presentation of the facts, can cause the citizen to be indicted and held for trial. He may dismiss the case before trial, in which case the defense never has a chance to be heard. Or he may go on with a public trial. If he obtains a conviction, the prosecutor can still make recommendations as to sentence, as to whether the prisoner should get probation or a suspended sentence, and after he is put away, as to whether he is a fit subject for parole. While the prosecutor at his best is one of the most beneficent forces in our society, when he acts from malice or other base motives, he is one of the worst.
Click to expand...

If you think voting for president or senators is bullshit, then that's one thing. If you think voting for your local prosecutor or judge is bullshit, you're a retard. It is directly in your personal self interest to not have prosecutors or judges who campaign on fucking you, and outside urban areas occupied by baboons these elections can actually be impacted by relatively few voters. You will get no tears from me if you live in a place with competitive prosecutorial and judicial elections, refuse to vote for those positions, and then get fucked.
 
  • Agree
  • Like
  • Optimistic
Reactions: byuuWasTaken, quaawaa, Nonconsentual Pronouns and 4 others
he who has thus come/gone said:
If you think voting for president or senators is bullshit, then that's one thing. If you think voting for your local prosecutor or judge is bullshit, you're a retard. It is directly in your personal self interest to not have prosecutors or judges who campaign on fucking you, and outside urban areas occupied by baboons these elections can actually be impacted by relatively few voters. You will get no tears from me if you live in a place with competitive prosecutorial and judicial elections, refuse to vote for those positions, and then get fucked.
Click to expand...
1718664672422.png

A lot of states have elections for prosecutors, but the one that actually matters the most and is the most politicized and weaponized is a direct appointment.
 
  • Informative
  • Thunk-Provoking
  • Like
Reactions: byuuWasTaken, Marsh Rabbit, ⠠⠠⠅⠑⠋⠋⠁⠇⠎ ⠠⠠⠊⠎ ⠠⠠⠁ ⠠⠠⠋⠁⠛ and 4 others
  • Informative
Reactions: byuuWasTaken and clipartfan92
OMG why does our entire civilization revolve around old people? Our politicians are old. Almost every civic policy benefits old people to the point where the entire 1st world is just one glorified retirement home.

I wonder if there’s any correlative behavior among old people and them always getting what they want from the federal government?

Anyway, I also plan not to vote this year because voting is gay. What does an Attorney General do anyway? Probably nothing.
 
  • Winner
  • Late
  • Agree
Reactions: byuuWasTaken, Coal Burner Account, Marsh Rabbit and 4 others
keep voting then retard. they expect me to believe that voter turnout for biden was the highest it's been in the US since the 1900 election. More voter turnout than Bush's 2nd term, the war in Vietnam, JFK, any of FDR's terms, the great depression, the first world war. Everyone wanted to ride with Biden.

i got better shit to do, like nothing. at least you can do nothing comfortably. at least then you're exercising some control.
 
  • Agree
  • Like
  • Winner
Reactions: Billy Bong, Uncle Ted's Cabin, byuuWasTaken and 14 others
Null said:
A lot of states have elections for prosecutors, but the one that actually matters the most and is the most politicized and weaponized is a direct appointment.
Click to expand...
The distribution of crime prosecution between states and feds is overwhelmingly titled towards the states. Yes, the US Attorney is a political appointment. But I think it's laughable to say the federal prosecutor matters most when 99 times out of 100 the prosecution will be in a state court. Given that many crimes prosecuted by the federal government are also prosecutable by the states, having a non-hostile state prosecutor is far more important than having a non-hostile federal prosecutor. And the crimes prosecuted in federal court are mostly drug crimes, immigration crimes, firearms crimes, certain financial crimes, and child pornography.

I do understand what you're saying, but there were about twice as many crimes being prosecuted in just Ohio in 2023 than there were prosecutions resulting in sentencing in the entire federal system in 2021. If you're a FFL, commit armed robberies, or traffic drugs/children, I would agree that the US Attorney is very relevant. But for most people, it's far more important who your local prosecutor (and judge) is. And in much of the country, you can have an actual say in who your local judges and prosecutors are via elections.
 
  • Thunk-Provoking
Reactions: byuuWasTaken
BULLY HUNTER_78 said:
What does an Attorney General do anyway? Probably nothing.
Click to expand...
Correct, the Attorney General of Washington state does nothing to help Joshua Moon and Lolcow LLC when Hurricane Electric denies them service, contrary to existing Net Neutrality laws on the books in Washington state.
How do I change this by voting?
 
  • Agree
  • Feels
Reactions: byuuWasTaken, Peace Or Love, PhoBingas and 2 others
BULLY HUNTER_78 said:
OMG why does our entire civilization revolve around old people? Our politicians are old. Almost every civic policy benefits old people to the point where the entire 1st world is just one glorified retirement home.

I wonder if there’s any correlative behavior among old people and them always getting what they want from the federal government?

Anyway, I also plan not to vote this year because voting is gay. What does an Attorney General do anyway? Probably nothing.
Click to expand...
btw, these three factors lean you closer to a 75% chance to vote in the US:
  • Age
  • Education
  • Wealth
Why do you think older, more educated, wealthier people vote? Do you think it is that these people are just so much smarter and wiser, or do you think that people who succeed the most in our society are the most likely to participate in it?

You're looking this at this like it's just that society is the way it is because only old people vote, but what if it's just that the people who happen to benefit the most from society tend to believe in it more? If government is wiping your ass for you, and you're living well above the poverty line, you're probably the kind of person who will expect that everything is working as it should and the best way to effectuate change is to VOOOOOOT!

But if you're struggling, you're going to recognize that everything is fucking retarded and you're not going to bother. It's like gambling. A person winning at the slots think they've got it figured out, but an ordinary person just sees it as a pit to sink money. It's pure confirmation bias.

Seafarer said:
@Null thoughts on democratic systems with compulsory voting?
Click to expand...
Australia has it and it's one of the most politically fucked up countries on Earth.
 
Last edited:
  • Thunk-Provoking
  • Like
  • Agree
Reactions: Uncle Ted's Cabin, byuuWasTaken, PhoBingas and 14 others
Null said:
keep voting then retard. they expect me to believe that voter turnout for biden was the highest it's been in the US since the 1900 election. More voter turnout than Bush's 2nd term, the war in Vietnam, JFK, any of FDR's terms, the great depression, the first world war. Everyone wanted to ride with Biden.
Click to expand...
No reason for the graveyard vote to materialize for local elections because Americans already don’t vote incorrectly in them. The incumbent almost always wins and usually runs unopposed.

Voter turnout is something like 18% of registered voters. Most people don’t care because they think tomorrow is going to be like today and today is going to be like yesterday.
Wodanaz said:
How do I change this by voting?
Click to expand...
Maybe try looking at your ballot and googling (with Bing) the names you see to see if there are any you support. As the nation fractures, the AG of another state on the other side of the country will matter less and less to you.

I also like how this 15 minute activity is inspiring so much debate. It took me 5 minutes to figure out who which politicians can go fuck themselves and 10 minutes to drive the ballot to the post office because I live in a state that’s actually capable of counting the mail.
 
  • Like
  • Dumb
  • Thunk-Provoking
Reactions: byuuWasTaken, Unique User Name, trash cat and 1 other person
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back