There's a old saying about politics that goes: "Washington is Hollywood for ugly people". I'd like to add sports to that too.
It just seems that more and more politics is about rooting for your team to win. And worse, that the other team not only lose, but lose badly.
I've pointed out that some of the dumbest people ever to walk the earth post on Topix. They are not alone in their idiocy. All over the comments of most any site on Facebook you will see people vehemently supporting their candidates, mostly by viciously opposing the other candidates. It's typically bandwagon jumping as seen in sports, particularly around playoff time. You've got your regular fans that are born and raised to follow a team and that's just the way it is, and you've got your issue-orientated fans that, since they don't have a favorite, they'll like a particular player on one or dislike one on another. And, of course, there are gamblers only in it for the money. That's sports!
That's politics too.
The perception among a lot of people is that you make more money with republicans. They're the first ones to tell you that. That's just so much sad bullshit that it pains me to live in this country at times. Recently at one of the debates, JEB! Bush smiled and said: "America needs more millionaires." Really? Do you want to live in a country where being a millionaire is the measure of success? Where millionaires are the new middle class? They reset the bar while you were watching sports or The Kardashians and evidently, you didn't mind because you're not complaining.
It's not that there is anything wrong with being a millionaire. I'd like the chance even if it meant joining the the most persecuted minority to ever ride around the earth in imported, luxury vehicles. Yep, the rich. If you're a republican fan, you know this is true. If you're a democrat fan, you want their wealth redistributed to you. Well, that's what I keep hearing.
They keep saying that because slow-witted people keep believing it. Most of life these days is about people trying to redistribute wealth. That's what capitalism is! DUH! You'd be surprised how many people don't grasp that. John Steinbeck noted that socialism would never take hold here because every American sees himself as a temporarily embarrassed millionaire. How many people do you know, including the man or woman in the mirror, are sure that they are going to win the lottery someday? People think this way. It's easy to tell people who do think this way that when they do become lottery winners, don't they want favorable tax laws in place to keep the gol-durned gubmint from getting their money? Interesting but, any lottery jackpot gets pretty much halved by gubmint in taxes and not a single politician says a word about that. Golly, I wonder why...
They don't care about your taxes whether you're a lotto winner or the 99.999% who aren't lotto winners. When the uber-wealthy don't pay taxes, who does? Not the poor. They are poor! Kochsuckers on the internet can preach about everyone having skin in the game but, who has more skin than big, fat people? No, they want the middle class to pay the taxes. Not that new millionaire middle class either. The other one that is military, firemen, plumbers and such. These are the people that they are having pretty good luck convincing that it's wrong to punish success and reward indolence. You give nearly-free fresh water to Nestle because they are hardworking, job-creating, winners. You charge residents of Flint, Michigan for filthy, poisoned water though because you don't want to encourage sloth and pigmented skin. You reward success to encourage it. You must punish failure, even if it were your own doing. Hell, especially if it were your own doing.
How do you explain the popularity of a billionaire among the poor and working class? In a sense he is the ideal republican candidate. He's the richest of them all and can stand up and say you can be just like me. Except for Ben Carson, all the others made whatever money they have in politics. JEB! was born into money and politics. Trump touts himself as a self-made man but he got at least a million dollar head start from his daddy. He's bombastic as all get out. He says out loud whatever pops into his head and some people hear him "telling it like it is". We're used to politicians lying to us so, when a non-politician like Trump comes along and says he's going to do something as ridiculous as building an unnecessary wall along the southern border and making the Mexicans pay for it...some dull types believe him. They might believe him because, unlike a typical politician, he's got a pretty good day job to fall back on if the campaign doesn't pan out.
This political process is worse than the two weeks of hype before The Super Bowl. But, you got to keep the fans rooting and spending money, I reckon. But, politically, it's pathetic who we side with and how we pick them. Too many people look in the mirror and see the candidate they want to be. For too many that candidate is a Trump or a Cruz. Makes me frightened for the country. Neither one may have enough to win but, add them together and it's frightening how many gullible, malevolent people walk among us.
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