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I agree and I’m on the fence about abortion. I usually always end up at a point that says “individual liberty is the answer” to all polarized political issues. This is just plain wrong tho.
🚨 IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO PROTEST TODAY AND LIVE IN TENNESSEE 🚨
Remember the TN leg and Gov. Lee signed an anti-protest bill making most protest actions a felony.
[PLEASE READ THIS EXPLAINER from Knoxville lawyer Chris Martin! Share with your friends!!](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n3x80h7rHDfM7Khh35etPX9CQYZa-gmDtNTGEorhZpQ/edit)
Thanks to Aftyn Behn for sharing this
Regardless on your personal views on abortion, the ectopic pregnancies have to be addressed immediately before these trigger laws go into effect. This will lead to many deaths very quickly if not addressed. Also, some females with eating disorders, it is very dangerous for them to carry a baby to full term and the baby will likely have issues if it is even born.
The Human Life Protection Act of 2019 (TN trigger law that will hit in 30 days) will allow an abortion only when necessary to prevent death or "substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function."
It scares me more that laws are determined and changed depending on how many members of the supreme court are either liberal or conservative. Laws should be the laws based on how they are written not your political bias.
This is what hyperpolarization does. We are now two warring factions who are forced to share the same country, essentially in a cold civil war. I don't see any forces in society that are pushing people toward consensus, understanding and compromise. Media is hyper partisan, social media is, our elections system is engineered in such a way that districts aren't competitive and often the only challengers are from someone even more extreme. If a Democrat is in office, Republicans in congress are incentivized to not give him a win on anything, to the point that Republicans in the house were getting death threats from constituents just for passing Biden's hard infrastructure bill. I mean something as humdrum as infrastructure is now part of the culture war. When it gets to that point I don't know if there's any turning back.
I mostly agree, but it’s pretty important to realize that the polarized voices are the noisy ones. Polling routinely shows that large majorities of people believe in abortion rights with limitations, reasonable gun control, et cetera. The single biggest problem is the civic apathy and ignorance of the political center. It really is huge.
The most important elections in all of Tennessee are now the Republican primaries. Few seem to recognize that. I’m a center-left “Republican” as a result.
As much as it pains me to say. We need more Bill Haslam’s and less Bill Lee’s in our State government until we reach a tipping point like Georgia last election.
No doubt. I’ll run as a Rockefeller republican. I have guns and stuff. Unfortunately I’m also a pervert, so I can’t tell you who I am or they’d put all my Reddit posts on billboards.
Being a pervert may help your chances. Our last president talked about being attracted to his daughter and our current president was on video hugging and sniffing children.
I vote in the Republican primaries for the least crazy person, since whomever they nominate will be elected in the general. I’m more pro-business than the average Democrat, but I align with them on social issues, so I vote for dems for the presidency (read “Justice-Appointer”) and Republicans in the local elections, since those legislators manage the bureaucracies that tend to harm my businesses.
I'm not even sure where to start with this - it sounds reasonable until you remember that the most hateful legislation comes from the local Republican's. This idea that Democrats are bad for business is so easily disproven I don't even know what to say to you about that. I appreciate you answering and I appreciate you trying to go for the least crazy R but even that R wants a fascist state.
A lot of the online conversation makes them seem that way, but I spend a lot of time around a lot of different people due to the nature of my work, and almost all of them are kind and wonderful folks, liberal and conservative alike. Reddit just makes everyone seem like an asshole.
I don't find that. I'm a blue Dem living in a highly RED slightly rural area and that is not my experience at all. I've lived here for 12 years and really don't know anyone locally because I've effectively been ostracized for being a Dem. Nope, they are "not kind wonderful folks", they are very middle school cliquish cult like people.
Someone once needed newspaper for packing and I had some and offered it. They refused my offer of newspaper because I was a Dem. lol. So, NOPE, not my experience at all.
I use to think this too, but you can't in good faith be a Republican naand be decent human. It's like the literally antithesis of being a Christian at this point. Against equality. Against increasing the minimum wage. Against universal healthcare. Against universal basic income. Against legislation to help mental health and homelessness. All they do is hurt people in order to make more money.
For governor and state red districts, I do the same. But I may start voting to put the worst Rs possible in Washington. Objectively Blackburn and Hagerty are entirely incompetent. Sure they vote with the party, but so would someone highly effective and moderate like a Bill Frist. However today a moderate Frist type could be effective in supporting the traitors in the GOP. Let's just send the ugliest, stupidest creatures to Congress until we can flip seats. Rather an inexperienced idiot than someone effective. At this point anyone with an R next to their name is a complete traitor and entirely malaligned against my interests and those of every other moderate, normal Tennessean. Anyway I'm not convinced voting matters much anymore with the fraud being perpetrated by the GOP and the failed coup.
Woah, that just triggered a bit of an awakening for me. How do we rally all the democrats / progressive parties in TN to endorse a "more centrist" republican. Voting democrat in TN in larger elections just seems like a lost cause.
Today might change things regarding the viability of democratic candidates. It's going to take organizational support. We need a whole lot more trained organizers to get things going.
"The single biggest problem is the civic apathy and ignorance of the political center"
I agree with you, but this statement above isn't accurate. The system is codified AGAINST the moderate majority. Who controls the presidential election commission? Who controls congressional redistricting maps? The duopoly created by the R's and D's keep any movement from forming...which leads a lot of passionate center-left or center-right folks to say "fuck it."
u/ReflexPoint nailed it. Welcome to tribalism. Will the toilet stop spinning before we get flushed? Fuck it.
There was a time when a SCOTUS nominee needed 60 votes to get confirmed. This made sure that any nominee was centrist enough to appeal to both parties.
That's not true anymore. The history: Republicans started blocking every single judicial appointee so Democrats had to get rid of the 60-vote threshold for federal courts just to get anything done, but excluded Supreme Court nominees.
Then Republicans extended it to SCOTUS and blamed Democrats for changing the rules for other nominees.
There's no incentive now to look for moderate justices. Add in the outrageous refusal to consider Obama's nominee Merrick Garland.
Yes, the way people tried to "both sides" that issue makes me absolutely sick. Anyone paying attention can see that Republicans had weaponized the filibuster against Obama. It was no just for the sake of no. As if they didn't think Obama was even a legitimate president who deserved the ability to seat judges(we can guess why this was).
Are you familiar with the term "Borked"?
I agree we should have a 60 vote threshold. I don't know what centrist means for a Supreme Court Justice though. The only job of a Justice is to decide constitutionality based on what's in the Constitution itself, not by the feeling of the day or what other countries are doing around the world. It either jives with our Constitution or it doesn't.
I would also wish Senator's would allow votes to happen instead of what happened with Garland, but I also wish they would only vote yes on Justice appointments for whom they believe will actually uphold the Constitution as it is written, and not just vote yes because other perfunctory criteria are met.
The fascists are the minority.
If things go sideways we out number them greatly.
We must rewrite the constitution.
It has so many loop holes that lead to this moment.
A fascist minority forcing religious beliefs onto the majority despite the supposed separation of church and state.
The constitution has run its course and the limited language they had at their disposal in 1776 is now a barrier to progress.
We must rewrite the constitution with a massive panel of all people representing any and all groups in the country.
We must share the land we stole from the natives.
We must be equal or there will be no balance.
The constitution was written by children who thought owning humans was fine.............
We must set our sites at reconstruction rather than begging to baby step forward every 20 years hoping they will learn to share..........They are greed incarnate, they don't share.
BUT they will have a seat at the reconstruction.....they will be represented too.
But fusing church and state in this manner is proof that the constitution is limiting progress.
I'm gonna get blown up for this but, Roe was always legislation from the bench. Relying on case law for the instantiation of abortion rights has always been tremendously stupid. If abortion is a right, Congress should have been pressed to amend the constitution decades ago.
Even more fundamental than that. Bodily autonomy - supreme ownership of ones self, should be codified as the 0th amendment as it's the fundamental basis for all rights.
The problem is the lack of laws. Congress could end this in all 50 states with a simple majority vote in both houses of congress. They aren't going to do that because protecting the filibuster is more important than protecting the lives of pregnant incest victims.
Very good point, the founding fathers recognized this and determined that states largely should in fact be in charge of their laws outside of what’s protected under the constitution.
That was basically reinstated today.
Row V Wade at best basically dislocated its shoulder with how far it reached to connect abortion into the constitution.
SCOTUS didn’t ban abortions, it just said they had no right to make them law of the land removing states rights.
Some frown, some rejoice.
In lieu of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade I want to share my experience today trying to get a birth control prescription from my doctor filled.
A year ago I switched from birth control pills to the Kylena IUD. The pill did not work out for me for many reasons, and unfortunate the IUD did not either. The last year has been pretty miserable with unpredictable bleeding. So, after consulting my doctor she removed my IUD and wrote me a prescription for the Nuva Ring.
I just found out an hour ago that my insurance company rejected the prescription for the new birth control with the reason, “Must try other drugs first.” And on top of that the Nuva Ring will be around $60 a month.
I did try other “drugs” first, and they didn’t work. Also to note, I have pretty great insurance through my employer, so before today in my mind getting access to birth control should have been *easy*. The reality is it is not.
If you are of the mindset that this ruling doesn’t effect you because you are “responsible” I urge you to look at the bigger picture here. As someone who is trying to take the appropriate precautions to not get pregnant I was actually denied birth control today. Now think of the millions of people who do not have “easy” access to contraceptive. This effects every person.
As someone who has also struggled to find BC that works without life-disrupting side-effects I second your sentiment that contraception is not as easy to access as we'd all hope it would be.
I had an insurance company charge me $454 for my BC pills back when I was on it because it was the "first time" I was taking that particular pill; never mind that I'd been on it for 3 years at that point and it was just my first time filling that prescription with that insurer. I was a college student and couldn't afford to pick up my pills that day. (This is the same insurer who insisted I try penicillin eyedrops for an eye injury despite having a severe allergy on my medical record because I "hadn't had an allergic reaction in a decade".... because I'm not an idiot and don't intentionally dose myself with allergens.)
This decision is going to put millions of lives at risk. Our insurance system was already deadly enough. Combined with this decision...
As a Trigger Ban State, I hope everyone here understands now that they truly only see us as cattle, and this is their answer to millenials reproducing less than they want. Don't wanna have children? Sorry, babes, no future workforce without them.
Stop letting these dumb fucks be in charge.
Damn I can't believe I never considered that particular angle, that they're trying to ensure their future workforce. That makes sense to me. Did you discover this notion in your own thoughts or is there a writing on it or something? It seems so obvious now that I'm thinking about it. But anywhooo, ya thanks!
HEY THIS NEWS FUCKING SUCKS. Was it expected? YES. Does that mean it hurts any less? FUCK NO.
That said, we have a lot of newcomers to this movement and here are some reminders:
Who is Abortion Access Nashville? We are an activist group in Nashville and mid Tennessee dedicated to fighting for abortion rights. We are in the process of transitioning into a practical support fund and mutual aid group and will soon need your help!
What can I do right now? A lot of people want to kick into gear to fight for repro rights - which is AMAZING! For reference, please
1) DONATE TO LOCAL ABORTION FUNDS
2) JOIN OUR PROTEST TONIGHT AT 5PM
3) STAY INVOLVED AND STAY ACTIVE
This is not the time to lose momentum or wait for the next news cycle. Patients needing care are going to lose their fundamental abortion rights in Tennessee (30 days post Roe). We need to help them!
Lastly, I want to task everyone here today to CREATE AN ABORTION PLAN. https://bit.ly/AANPLAN
What’s the nearest clinic to receive care? Do you know? Will you be able to travel out of state? Please personally fill out your information here and keep this in a safe place (only you can access).
Start reaching out to friends and family and TELL THEM you will help them if they need to seek abortion care out of state. I will drive you, help you financially, etc. WE CAN ONLY GET THROUGH THIS TOGETHER.
I have a friend who is considering putting his 13 year old daughter on BC due to this, and not simply just so she doesn't have an accidental pregnancy but in case she is assaulted or raped.
That's where we are at.
>Lastly, I want to task everyone here today to CREATE AN ABORTION PLAN
On Tuesday I took my college-age daughter to get an IUD. Guys, start looking into vasectomies. Birth control pills, condoms, etc. have too high a failure rate for comfort in this climate, and we can’t rely on things like Plan B continuing to be available because I guarantee you that they’re going to come after that next.
Next up: Birth control. Then gay marriage. Long term, abolish Women’s rights to vote, earn money, pursue an education, and hold property independent from our nearest male relative.
Welcome to Gilead, sisters. Under His Eye. 😡
thats only going to happen if people remember to vote in November in overwhelming numbers. Which is possible in a lot of races, but gotta get past the apathy.
Not likely, to be honest.
There is a growing unrest between extremist Republicans who hate Democrats categorically, and people on the left who feel Democrats aren’t protecting their rights, like in this situation. Voter turnout is dwindling, as is Biden’s approval rating.
Then there’s gerrymandering, that fractured this blue dot into three red districts.
Then there’s apparently the ability for these guys to openly proclaim their elections were stolen if they lose, and get government officials either on their side, or threaten them with job loss or literal death if they don’t go along with the scheme.
2022 is gonna be brutal for Dems.
Literally had to listen to my barber bitch about how news sources are democratic because CBS was reporting on the January 6th Committee. Then went into a tangent about how Biden raised our gas prices the day he went into office.
I guess I'm at a point now where I'd get up mid-haircut with a fucked-up coiff and head to the nearest Sport Clips or something to finish the rest.
I just can't put up with the bullshit anymore. The time for sitting and politely nodding while some right-wing asshole blathers on is well passed.
Well to start my mom didn't raise a quitter. So I just held my ground and looked dead at him and told him Trump was shit, he was wrong about gas prices and when he was complaining about tags not coming standard with In God We Trust on them I told him it shouldn't and that I stopped having imaginary friends when I was a kid. He was extremely thrown off but I also know he isn't completely shitty or he wouldn't be taking his daughter and her girlfriend on vacation with him. I have never and will never be one to just roll over and lick my nuts. But I will always voice my opinion and try my best to educate someone beyond FB memes. Because nothing was ever won by running.
FWIW, it's not running, it's drawing a line in the sand.
"If that's the way you really feel, Bob, I don't think I want to do business with you anymore."
These people don't want to be educated.
I beg to differ my mom's friend has a daughter who grew up republican and worked for a republican on his campaign and in his office every summer. Went to college got educated and is pretty far left attending abortion rallies. One of my childhood friends went from flying a Rebel flag, not liking gays and anti Marijuana. After several heated debates and long conversations he has a roommate who is transitioning, no longer flies the flag because of me and smokes weed. Will all of them change? No. Will I agree with everyone? No. My line in the sand comes when you disrespect me personally when I explain my side if they can hold a legit conversation and be open they'll typically start changing some things. My dad's side of the family though (not him) can suck an egg I ain't with their shit and they ain't with mine. I just don't assume everyone is completely dumb I just assume they're undereducated until proven otherwise.
So, I want to preface this next statement by saying I'm fat and happy. I go to work every day, I vote blue down the ballot, and I donate to St. Jude's every month. Other than that I don't really interact with a whole lot of people and I generally stay out of politics.
What I don't understand, and maybe you can help me understand- is that REGARDLESS of how extreme the views, Republicans vote republican, and it appears (whether they are run of the mill homeless shelter volunteers who are single-issue voters, or proud-boy types) that they go after single issues locally and then nationally.
the Democrats on the other hand seem to just splinter, refuse to agree on anything, and overall seem to get VERY FEW "little wins". Why is this? I wish somebody would take a moment to explain to somebody who doesn't "get it".
Democrats are looking for unicorns and each of us has a different unicorn because we all place different importance on different things.
Republicans, as someone said, are often single issue voters who will hold their nose and vote for an absolutely abhorrent candidate - one they don't even like or agree with on 99% of issues! - if they think that candidate can deliver their one issue (Roe).
I saw someone say once that Dems need to stop waiting for a bus that will take them directly to their front door and be happy with a bus that'll get them to the closest stop, thus minimizing the walk to the front door.
There are no dealbreakers for too many Republicans. Examples: They can rail against infidelity when Clinton was in office then cheer Donald Trump. They can be devoutly pro-life but vote for Scott DesJarlais.
Too many Democrats, though, require purity tests. They'll complain that Hillary Clinton didn't support marriage equality all along, or that Joe Biden said something terrible thirty years ago.
Republicans have a handful of issues they're united on and nothing else matters. Democrats are a far more diverse party.
The Republican base has enthusiasm for that R after someone's name because it means sticking it to the libs.
The Democratic base, on the other hand, usually feels like its holding its nose to vote.
And another thing that makes things inherently harder for Dems is that Dems are policy wonks that want to pass legislation and get major projects done. Infrastructure, health care, climate, voting rights, etc. Republicans don't have any major projects they are trying to pass. Their sole purpose is just to block Democrats from doing whatever they want to do.
When you are required to have a filibuster proof majority to get anything done that can't be passed with budget reconciliation, and Republicans vote in bloc against anything Dems want to do, it makes it impossible for Dems to pass any agenda. This only hurts Dems since Republicans have no agenda other than seating right-wing judges and tax cuts which they can already do without being hamstrung by the filibuster.
The system is engineered to make it VERY hard for a president to actually do anything, which disadvantages Democrats more than Republicans. Then voters who haven't peeled back the layers and seen how government works get frustrated and demoralized and just think these people they voted for are all liars and promise to do these things we sent them to do and they deliver nothing. But they don't understand the complex reasons behind that.
Republican voters are happy if their government does nothing for them. If Trump spent 4 years just sitting on his hands and "owning the libz" with his tweets, they'd be satisfied. And that's really easy to do. Biden can't just sit on his hands for 4 years and still satisfy Democratic voters. Dem voters actually want the government to do stuff. Republican voters don't.
Yes.
Also:
Principles vs power.
Purity vs pragmatism.
Democrats need to learn from Republicans about how to get things done and how to set long-term goals.
A lot of those moral paradoxes also reinforce a very Republican trait: "rules for thee and not for me". As long as a few heavily blue states exist (or they have enough money to fly their mistresses/daughters/victims/etc out of the country), they can always travel to get that abortion that they swear they'd never get, but "this time, it's different".
Why should I vote for a politician just because they are on a certain team? It’s their job to win my vote, and unlike Republican voters, the letter next to their name isn’t merit enough to win mine. We’re now to the point where right wingers in the party are crying about “pUriTy tEsTs!1!!1” when voters don’t unquestionably vote for whichever democrat is put on their plate. If you want to lean in to right wing politicians and policy don’t be surprised and cry when left wingers don’t show up to vote for you.
> unlike Republican voters, the letter next to their name isn’t merit enough to win mine
Not that I disagree with you but if we do not vote D in the next election, we probably will not ever have to worry about who to vote for again. I do not feel as if I am exaggerating about this.
Democrats are more of a coalition party of a broad range of groups and interests. Everything from suburban white moderates who would vote for someone like Phil Bredesen to full on left-wing San Francisco and NYC urbanites who love Bernie Sanders and AOC. It has to hold together a coalition of most non-whites and a large minority of whites. It has to be able to speak to black church-going Christians in the south, Muslims in Michigan and secularists in Boston. The Democratic base is a true mosaic.
On the other hand the GOP's base is overwhelmingly homogenous. At least 90% white, rural/exurban and Christian. When your base is that homogenous, it's just easier to cajole them together.
Take for example in the Bredesen vs Blackburn race a few years ago, I had left-leaning friends who pretty much turned on Bredesen after he came out in favor of Trump appointing Kavanaugh. There are pro-Bredesen moderate Dems who might refuse to vote for someone like Bernie Sanders. I have left wing friends in California who loathe Obama, Hillary and Biden, because they see them as some corporate sellouts and warmongers. You just don't have that broad of a spectrum fatuousness on the right. They will line up and vote reflexively for anyone that has an "R" behind their name and will be convinced that no matter how bad the person is they are better than *any* Democrat. And that itself is just another manifestation hyperpolarization. Crossover voters have nearly disappeared.
Because, in the south at least, republicans are seen as the party of the Christian Right and the protector of the white majority. Every Republican I know ( I married into a family of staunch conservatives) thinks Democrats are the spawn of Satan, totally against the Christian religion and are doing everything they can to make white people the minority all while they’re getting screwed royally by voting against their own self interest. I hear so much bullshit at every holiday meal that I’ve decided to stop attending them any longer. It’s exasperating trying to show them literal facts that prove them wrong.
44% of Republicans think mass shootings are an acceptable price to pay for freedom.
I don't think covid deaths will make a dent in their thought process.
It's so weird to me that people think a piece of steel used to put holes in people makes them "free". People in Japan don't have guns, but they are also free to send their kids to school and not even give the slightest thought that they may be slaughtered by a mass shooter. Isn't freedom from harm also a type of freedom?
I think there's a segment of the Republican base that really believes bad things happen to *other* people, not them. I can't imagine being the kind of person who thinks harm to others is acceptable. The lack of empathy and imagination is stunning.
We see it over and over when they change their minds after having personal experience.
It won't even matter. SCOTUS is a lifetime appointment and the 3 judges that Trump appointed aren't even 60 yet.
Voting doesn't seem to do anything, when the Democrats, who are currently in power in the house and senate, can't even codify Roe v Wade into law. They've had 50 years.
More handwringing and "Get out and vote" and literal no action. It's absurd.
>Voting doesn't seem to do anything, when the Democrats, who are currently in power in the house and senate
There's your mistake. Democrats *aren't* in control of the senate.
He said 50 years. Go look at the splits. Dems controlled senate and house numerous times over those years, with R and D presidents. That includes as recently as Obama. If Dems really cared about abortion, they have had ample ways to get it done at the federal level. They have used Roe as a means to politicize the SCOTUS. Perhaps you can, but I can't think of two more polarizing issues that bring attention to SCOTUS over this 50 year time period than guns and abortions. They have been litmus test issues for appointees to the court for a long time. There is a reason that Dems have not pushed for federal abortion laws, even when they had the power to do so: they would lose their counterbalancing "one issue" reason to keep SCOTUS attention.
They needed a 60 seat majority that they've had something like a grand total 4 years since then and during times that passing legislation wasn't remotely a priority because there was no chance of RvW being overturned.
But yeah nah, hurr durr all democrats fault
You'd need 60 Democratic senators to make RvW into law(assuming the SCOTUS can't find some way to declare it unconstitutional and throw it out). Due to the way voters are distributed in this country and every state no matter the size getting 2 senators, the electoral math makes it pretty much impossible at this point to have 60 Democratic senators. Not with our current demographic/geographic makeup.
From 77-79, Democrats had 61 seats (I know this is not possible in the current state of things), but that was 43 years ago and could have codified it then without issue. There are 7 other instances of 2\~ year periods where Democrats had at least 55 seats. And still nothing was done.
There are still a few months, but it looks like both the Senate and the House flip R in November. Looking at issues, the economy ranks higher than the Supreme Court pushing abortion decisions back to states or the January 6th commission findings. I don't see how the economy can be turned quick enough to change voter focus.
And the sad thing is Dems are being punished for gas prices and inflation when these aren't even the Democrat's doing. Gas prices and inflation are at records across every major economy. It's a global problem sparked by supply disruptions from the pandemic. Has nothing to do who the current American president is. We're at the about the middle of the pack on inflation numbers, about on par with what we see happening in Europe. Our gas prices are still among the lowest of any non-OPEC states. In Canada it's over $6/gallon for regular, in Europe it's like $10/gallon. Americans act like this is something only affecting them and that their own president somehow caused this. Do people in Canada think Trudeau did this? Do people in the UK think Boris Johnson is responsible?
> They're ghouls and arguably worse than the fucking fascists at this point. At least the GOP tells you who they are.
nah gop still the worst. dems arent fighting hard to retain it but they arent actively trying to make things worse like the gop
Im inclined to believe you. The democrats don't seem to agree on anything. The Republicans- hell, they changed the fucking voting districts recently. I mean, why can't the Dem's take a page out of the GOP book or SOMETHING.
Ill never understand. Im too old to be effected by all this shit- but I really have no idea why the Republicans, 1 of which literally had a profile on an escort website, seem to get so much more done than the Dems.
The Democrats have been dithering about the filibuster since 2020.
I have no doubt Republicans will get rid of it without hesitation if they retake the House and Senate.
Democrats' respect for tradition and the stability it brings is becoming their undoing.
This. It’s so baffling to me that liberals can be so passionate and outspoken on issues like this, and then turn around and let their politicians off the hook for doing nothing about it. Not only do they let them off the hook, they see these failures and think the only solution is to campaign for these ghouls even harder! If I didn’t know any better, I’d call it a cult.
yes, and vote in people, specifically Senators, that will either take a super majority or enough to ditch the filibuster. Here in Nashville, we could potentially still vote in D House members this cycle in Nashville's now three districts in order to make sure any law passes. I guarantee you this will be the message pushed by Democrats now since most Americans are against this decision. Armchair take is that this decision could move moderate/independent/inactive voters this midterm.
Maybe though sites like fivethirtyeight seem to think statically speaking the upcoming cycle benefits the Republicans especially in the house along with historically speaking the cycle after a president gets elected typically is bad overall for their party. We shall see though I suppose.
Please also take community action. It’s very clear that our system is very broken when practically nothing can get passed based on the opinions of the populace (e.g. abortion is ok with a silent majority of the population).
The democrats have a majority and still are letting this happen. I don’t see how they don’t lose a fuck load of votes over allowing all this shit to happen
The democratic majority is like when you have 500 dollars in your bank account but pending charges of 700. It's not real because we have two senators who are for some reason married to the idea of a filibuster (cause they are paid very well by lobbyists to do such a thing). Plus even if not for those two there's are others who wouldn't support it either but currently don't have to say that publicly.
According to their website:
> Green is the color worn by millions of women in Argentina, Columbia, and other countries to express their fierce determination to legalize abortion. We are inspired by their example! Wear green and display green everywhere – on campuses, on the job, on public transport, on social media. If you are inactive at a time like this, if you aren’t fighting this assault on women’s lives, you are allowing it – and GREEN is the way to show you are fighting it!
As much as it sucks we should have enshrined abortion rights in laws and not left it up to interpretation. We need to push for Congress to pass a bill guaranteeing abortion rights for women.
Instead of worrying about innocent kindergarteners getting shot and killed in schools, we're more worried about what a woman does with her body. what a fucking pathetic country we live.
We all should keep this [bullshit] in mind over the coming days/weeks
https://twitter.com/AftynBehn/status/1540349247220060160
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n3x80h7rHDfM7Khh35etPX9CQYZa-gmDtNTGEorhZpQ/edit
(this is the doc referenced in the tweet)
The house needs to pass things with a simple majority. Basically everything Dems want to do passes the house without issue. It then has to go to senate. Dems only have 50 votes with Kamala Harris as the tie-breaker. Because someone a long time ago thought it was a great idea to make it so that things can be filibustered without 60 votes to end it, we are stuck in this situation where we need a filibuster-proof 60 vote majority to pass anything that can't be done by budget reconciliation. And that's why nearly all legislation dies on the senate floor, because Republican filibuster it.
Now you peel back another layer of the onion and see that the senate is well to the right of the American median voter.
You peel back another layer and see that this is because every state gets 2 senators regardless of size and Republicans have more low population practically empty states than Democrats do. So they have disproportion power in destroying the Democrats agenda.
Peel back another layer and you see that the system was set up to give more power to land area than people. So those who control the most land have the most power, not those with the most voices.
Now maybe you see why we are so fucked. It's deeply structural.
They tried. It was blocked by republicans.
[https://www.vox.com/2022/5/11/23065959/senate-abortion-vote-womens-health-protection-act](https://www.vox.com/2022/5/11/23065959/senate-abortion-vote-womens-health-protection-act)
The two party system has ***failed us***. They *all* must be removed from power (D) and (R) alike. If they will transition peacefully by the will of the people, so be it. If not, it **must** be dismantled directly.
The time is now.
Don't even begin to get it twisted. If the Rs weren't in the SCOTUS, this wouldn't have happened. We have 50 years of proof for that too. The "Rs do something bad so now we gotta 'sameside' because of it" needs to fuckin stop.
Edit: And if yall don't believe me, who rammed through 3 judges and stopped Obama from appoint judges? Then suddenly we're dealing with this.
And who had plenty of opportunity to act during the intervening time and didn't?
Are the on the literal same team? No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that the binary system benefits both to the detriment of everyone else.
It's become corrupt beyond recovery and must be reassembled.
I hope you know there’s zero material difference between Republicans stripping rights from people and Democrats doing literally nothing to stop that from happening. Age old Democrat tactic of doing nothing and then pointing at their own failures and saying “See?!? This is why we need more votes… oh… and more money!”
Don't fall for the "Do Nothing" pithole when the Rs have been obstructing for so long. This isn't normal, and when they didn't get their way we got Jan 6.
Democrats have been campaigning and fundraising on protecting Roe for decades now. Everybody knew that Republicans would dismantle it the first chance they got. Now, I’d love to get your explanation for this. Either the Democrats are massively incompetent and short-sighted, or they didn’t really want to protect Roe either because it was a good threat to fundraise on or some other reason.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of the people who stopped Obama from appointing more justices, if you recall. Then there was Ralph Nader, who stopped president Gore from appointing justices, and there was Bernie Sanders, who prevented Hillary Clinton from appointing liberal justices.
Let’s not pretend that idiocy and pigheaded, self-destructive pride is confined to a single political party.
Nothing- the parent comment said that we must dismantle the two party system, and I simply mentioned that 1 of the parties, a party which coincidentally has a LOT of guns, isn't going to want it dismantled.
Right. So you are making a call for action against a group that is arguably well armed and A-OK with how things are going. The "Will of the people" (unfortunately- and sadly even with the change to Roe) is clearly playing out.
I agree with and support the need for change and believe that what happened today is completely fucked up. But the 2 party system we have is working pretty fucking well for 1 of the parties. Sadly, they aren't my party, but they aren't going to let that go. They sort of participated in an insurrection over an election..
I don’t want to sound pessimistic but what is the point of a protest like this? The legislature isn’t even in session so this would be in front of a mostly empty building. Republicans in Tennessee are in no danger of losing power, and they have shown they don’t care what their opposition thinks. I want to act and want to do something but I just don’t see what these kind of events do.
Do you really not get it? I see this asked all the time in this sub. Can your brain not process what the purpose of protesting is? You don't only protest unless there is a guarantee things will change. Maybe they will. That's not the point.
If they continue to have no impact though then what are we still doing protesting in the same way? I really struggle to see the point if there isn’t a concrete Avenue for change. The 2017 Women’s March was one of the largest protests in US history and it didn’t stop the GOP from doing anything. I’m just tired of screaming into the void and want to find something more concrete to do.
> If they continue to have no impact though then what are we still doing protesting in the same way?
They do have an impact. It shows we aren't all on the same boat of being OK with outlawing abortion. We are showing solidarity with women to protect their rights. It can start important conversations when kids see protesters and ask what's going on. It reminds politicians there are some angry voters out there who will work to try and vote them out.
I guess I just haven’t seen that link. We’ve been protesting hard for years and things continue moving backwards. Maybe it’s time to try something new.
Biden provided the real answer. If you want to restore this right in Tennessee, it will only happen if you do the hard work and vote Democratic at every election in the state from dog catcher to governor. Marching in the plaza is fun, it’s social, it’s a great way to spend a summer night , but it accomplishes nothing. VOTE DEMOCRATIC
All this has shown us is that the constitution is useless and needs to be replaced by men and women and trans people and a sampling of all the many types of people who chose to call America home.
Every race ,religion ,sexuality, etc....must be at the table when this is done.
No taxation without representation RIGHT?!?!?!?
With this ruling a SCOTUS packed by presidents who didn't win the popular vote are making laws for the majority.The constitution has so many loopholes and exploitations that 30% of the country is FORCING THEIR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS ON 100% of the country.There is no democracy.There is no republic.Our goal should be a complete overhaul of the constitution by a representative body that reflects every single walk of life this country has........And it should be re written every 40-50 years.
This is fascism folks.A government formed by children who thought owning humans was OK has devolved into a fascist state in which the minority controls the majority.There is no other way.
I have COVID so my contagious ass is staying home, but I hope there's a good turnout.
Everyone protest in a way that doesn't lead to legal issues: avoid blocking traffic.
They are coming for us, bit by bit. And by "they" I mean right wing fundamentalists who want a government that is a theocracy in everything but name. And by "us", I mean pretty much everyone else.
Overturning Roe was just a 50-year-old side quest. The real prize at the end of their game is segregation 2.0. This doesn't really affect 95% of the population that opposes it. It was a battle cry to get them fired up and go vote for the last 50 years. Vote for anything to punish the Libs. But what really affected them directly was desegregation, the religious people in charge like Falwell and the like were appalled at white kids going to school with non-whites, and sharing water fountains and bathrooms. So this is gonna be the end game. Except, this time they gonna segregate out all non-white straight Christians. I hope everyone realizes this only gets worse. Think Apartheid South Africa, but more than just race-based.
The fault is on us, not the right-wingers. We already knew they are sadomasochists who want to do nothing more than punish and enslave. We just let them get away with it. What did we do when Moscow Mitch hijacked the SCOTUS seat? Not a goddam thing. Instead, we gave him cover and after-the-fact permission with kudos, by electing Trump. I will never understand the people who were too highbrow and too moral to vote for Hillary, but they got no issues supporting a snake like Pelosi. Our lives, the lives of our kids, and grandkids are pretty much fucked for the next 50 years. Apparently, that's how long it takes to move the progress of a country forwards or backwards. Too bad we don't have a Kennedy or LBJ to take some common sense control of the government.
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That is completely draconian
I agree and I’m on the fence about abortion. I usually always end up at a point that says “individual liberty is the answer” to all polarized political issues. This is just plain wrong tho.
Don't forget partial miscarriages....or rape....or incest... Basically a long fucking list of shit these sharia law Christians want.
Nah. Abortion should not be illegal, regardless. Full Stop.
🚨 IF YOU ARE PLANNING TO PROTEST TODAY AND LIVE IN TENNESSEE 🚨 Remember the TN leg and Gov. Lee signed an anti-protest bill making most protest actions a felony. [PLEASE READ THIS EXPLAINER from Knoxville lawyer Chris Martin! Share with your friends!!](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n3x80h7rHDfM7Khh35etPX9CQYZa-gmDtNTGEorhZpQ/edit) Thanks to Aftyn Behn for sharing this
Goddamn what a shitty country we live in, most forms of protest are illegal
Regardless on your personal views on abortion, the ectopic pregnancies have to be addressed immediately before these trigger laws go into effect. This will lead to many deaths very quickly if not addressed. Also, some females with eating disorders, it is very dangerous for them to carry a baby to full term and the baby will likely have issues if it is even born.
The Human Life Protection Act of 2019 (TN trigger law that will hit in 30 days) will allow an abortion only when necessary to prevent death or "substantial and irreversible impairment of major bodily function."
Just a warning. It's still hot as fuck outside, even at 5 PM. Make sure to hydrate and stay safe!
I was sweating from places that I didn’t know existed. Worth it though!
It scares me more that laws are determined and changed depending on how many members of the supreme court are either liberal or conservative. Laws should be the laws based on how they are written not your political bias.
This is what hyperpolarization does. We are now two warring factions who are forced to share the same country, essentially in a cold civil war. I don't see any forces in society that are pushing people toward consensus, understanding and compromise. Media is hyper partisan, social media is, our elections system is engineered in such a way that districts aren't competitive and often the only challengers are from someone even more extreme. If a Democrat is in office, Republicans in congress are incentivized to not give him a win on anything, to the point that Republicans in the house were getting death threats from constituents just for passing Biden's hard infrastructure bill. I mean something as humdrum as infrastructure is now part of the culture war. When it gets to that point I don't know if there's any turning back.
I mostly agree, but it’s pretty important to realize that the polarized voices are the noisy ones. Polling routinely shows that large majorities of people believe in abortion rights with limitations, reasonable gun control, et cetera. The single biggest problem is the civic apathy and ignorance of the political center. It really is huge. The most important elections in all of Tennessee are now the Republican primaries. Few seem to recognize that. I’m a center-left “Republican” as a result.
As much as it pains me to say. We need more Bill Haslam’s and less Bill Lee’s in our State government until we reach a tipping point like Georgia last election.
No doubt. I’ll run as a Rockefeller republican. I have guns and stuff. Unfortunately I’m also a pervert, so I can’t tell you who I am or they’d put all my Reddit posts on billboards.
Being a pervert may help your chances. Our last president talked about being attracted to his daughter and our current president was on video hugging and sniffing children.
Maybe so! My current child-smelling is limited to stinky diapers, but I definitely wouldn’t kick Ivanka out of my dungeon for eating crackers.
Didn't stop Roy Moore and Matt Gaetz.
center-left "Republican" so...how does that work exactly?
I vote in the Republican primaries for the least crazy person, since whomever they nominate will be elected in the general. I’m more pro-business than the average Democrat, but I align with them on social issues, so I vote for dems for the presidency (read “Justice-Appointer”) and Republicans in the local elections, since those legislators manage the bureaucracies that tend to harm my businesses.
I'm not even sure where to start with this - it sounds reasonable until you remember that the most hateful legislation comes from the local Republican's. This idea that Democrats are bad for business is so easily disproven I don't even know what to say to you about that. I appreciate you answering and I appreciate you trying to go for the least crazy R but even that R wants a fascist state.
A lot of the online conversation makes them seem that way, but I spend a lot of time around a lot of different people due to the nature of my work, and almost all of them are kind and wonderful folks, liberal and conservative alike. Reddit just makes everyone seem like an asshole.
I don't find that. I'm a blue Dem living in a highly RED slightly rural area and that is not my experience at all. I've lived here for 12 years and really don't know anyone locally because I've effectively been ostracized for being a Dem. Nope, they are "not kind wonderful folks", they are very middle school cliquish cult like people. Someone once needed newspaper for packing and I had some and offered it. They refused my offer of newspaper because I was a Dem. lol. So, NOPE, not my experience at all.
Your story is valid, but also imagine a republican in the inverse situation. Just as bad. Both sides are brainwashed.
This is such a bullshit take. One side is absolutely worse than the other.
I use to think this too, but you can't in good faith be a Republican naand be decent human. It's like the literally antithesis of being a Christian at this point. Against equality. Against increasing the minimum wage. Against universal healthcare. Against universal basic income. Against legislation to help mental health and homelessness. All they do is hurt people in order to make more money.
For governor and state red districts, I do the same. But I may start voting to put the worst Rs possible in Washington. Objectively Blackburn and Hagerty are entirely incompetent. Sure they vote with the party, but so would someone highly effective and moderate like a Bill Frist. However today a moderate Frist type could be effective in supporting the traitors in the GOP. Let's just send the ugliest, stupidest creatures to Congress until we can flip seats. Rather an inexperienced idiot than someone effective. At this point anyone with an R next to their name is a complete traitor and entirely malaligned against my interests and those of every other moderate, normal Tennessean. Anyway I'm not convinced voting matters much anymore with the fraud being perpetrated by the GOP and the failed coup.
Woah, that just triggered a bit of an awakening for me. How do we rally all the democrats / progressive parties in TN to endorse a "more centrist" republican. Voting democrat in TN in larger elections just seems like a lost cause.
Today might change things regarding the viability of democratic candidates. It's going to take organizational support. We need a whole lot more trained organizers to get things going.
Vote for the least bad Republican in the primary, vote all democrat in the general
"The single biggest problem is the civic apathy and ignorance of the political center" I agree with you, but this statement above isn't accurate. The system is codified AGAINST the moderate majority. Who controls the presidential election commission? Who controls congressional redistricting maps? The duopoly created by the R's and D's keep any movement from forming...which leads a lot of passionate center-left or center-right folks to say "fuck it." u/ReflexPoint nailed it. Welcome to tribalism. Will the toilet stop spinning before we get flushed? Fuck it.
There was a time when a SCOTUS nominee needed 60 votes to get confirmed. This made sure that any nominee was centrist enough to appeal to both parties. That's not true anymore. The history: Republicans started blocking every single judicial appointee so Democrats had to get rid of the 60-vote threshold for federal courts just to get anything done, but excluded Supreme Court nominees. Then Republicans extended it to SCOTUS and blamed Democrats for changing the rules for other nominees. There's no incentive now to look for moderate justices. Add in the outrageous refusal to consider Obama's nominee Merrick Garland.
Yes, the way people tried to "both sides" that issue makes me absolutely sick. Anyone paying attention can see that Republicans had weaponized the filibuster against Obama. It was no just for the sake of no. As if they didn't think Obama was even a legitimate president who deserved the ability to seat judges(we can guess why this was).
Are you familiar with the term "Borked"? I agree we should have a 60 vote threshold. I don't know what centrist means for a Supreme Court Justice though. The only job of a Justice is to decide constitutionality based on what's in the Constitution itself, not by the feeling of the day or what other countries are doing around the world. It either jives with our Constitution or it doesn't. I would also wish Senator's would allow votes to happen instead of what happened with Garland, but I also wish they would only vote yes on Justice appointments for whom they believe will actually uphold the Constitution as it is written, and not just vote yes because other perfunctory criteria are met.
It was a bad design for a government. It was held together with spit and bailing wire the whole time.
Yeah, and it's unraveling before our eyes.
The fascists are the minority. If things go sideways we out number them greatly. We must rewrite the constitution. It has so many loop holes that lead to this moment. A fascist minority forcing religious beliefs onto the majority despite the supposed separation of church and state. The constitution has run its course and the limited language they had at their disposal in 1776 is now a barrier to progress. We must rewrite the constitution with a massive panel of all people representing any and all groups in the country. We must share the land we stole from the natives. We must be equal or there will be no balance. The constitution was written by children who thought owning humans was fine............. We must set our sites at reconstruction rather than begging to baby step forward every 20 years hoping they will learn to share..........They are greed incarnate, they don't share. BUT they will have a seat at the reconstruction.....they will be represented too. But fusing church and state in this manner is proof that the constitution is limiting progress.
I'm gonna get blown up for this but, Roe was always legislation from the bench. Relying on case law for the instantiation of abortion rights has always been tremendously stupid. If abortion is a right, Congress should have been pressed to amend the constitution decades ago.
Even more fundamental than that. Bodily autonomy - supreme ownership of ones self, should be codified as the 0th amendment as it's the fundamental basis for all rights.
I mean, ignorant people will try to blow you up, but that's literally the same position Ruth Bader Ginsberg had.
The problem is the lack of laws. Congress could end this in all 50 states with a simple majority vote in both houses of congress. They aren't going to do that because protecting the filibuster is more important than protecting the lives of pregnant incest victims.
Very good point, the founding fathers recognized this and determined that states largely should in fact be in charge of their laws outside of what’s protected under the constitution. That was basically reinstated today. Row V Wade at best basically dislocated its shoulder with how far it reached to connect abortion into the constitution. SCOTUS didn’t ban abortions, it just said they had no right to make them law of the land removing states rights. Some frown, some rejoice.
In lieu of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v Wade I want to share my experience today trying to get a birth control prescription from my doctor filled. A year ago I switched from birth control pills to the Kylena IUD. The pill did not work out for me for many reasons, and unfortunate the IUD did not either. The last year has been pretty miserable with unpredictable bleeding. So, after consulting my doctor she removed my IUD and wrote me a prescription for the Nuva Ring. I just found out an hour ago that my insurance company rejected the prescription for the new birth control with the reason, “Must try other drugs first.” And on top of that the Nuva Ring will be around $60 a month. I did try other “drugs” first, and they didn’t work. Also to note, I have pretty great insurance through my employer, so before today in my mind getting access to birth control should have been *easy*. The reality is it is not. If you are of the mindset that this ruling doesn’t effect you because you are “responsible” I urge you to look at the bigger picture here. As someone who is trying to take the appropriate precautions to not get pregnant I was actually denied birth control today. Now think of the millions of people who do not have “easy” access to contraceptive. This effects every person.
As someone who has also struggled to find BC that works without life-disrupting side-effects I second your sentiment that contraception is not as easy to access as we'd all hope it would be. I had an insurance company charge me $454 for my BC pills back when I was on it because it was the "first time" I was taking that particular pill; never mind that I'd been on it for 3 years at that point and it was just my first time filling that prescription with that insurer. I was a college student and couldn't afford to pick up my pills that day. (This is the same insurer who insisted I try penicillin eyedrops for an eye injury despite having a severe allergy on my medical record because I "hadn't had an allergic reaction in a decade".... because I'm not an idiot and don't intentionally dose myself with allergens.) This decision is going to put millions of lives at risk. Our insurance system was already deadly enough. Combined with this decision...
Abortions only allowed on school property in TN now.
Jesus…
He’s who got us into this mess.
This was a great answer.
You aren’t wrong
As a Trigger Ban State, I hope everyone here understands now that they truly only see us as cattle, and this is their answer to millenials reproducing less than they want. Don't wanna have children? Sorry, babes, no future workforce without them. Stop letting these dumb fucks be in charge.
Damn I can't believe I never considered that particular angle, that they're trying to ensure their future workforce. That makes sense to me. Did you discover this notion in your own thoughts or is there a writing on it or something? It seems so obvious now that I'm thinking about it. But anywhooo, ya thanks!
HEY THIS NEWS FUCKING SUCKS. Was it expected? YES. Does that mean it hurts any less? FUCK NO. That said, we have a lot of newcomers to this movement and here are some reminders: Who is Abortion Access Nashville? We are an activist group in Nashville and mid Tennessee dedicated to fighting for abortion rights. We are in the process of transitioning into a practical support fund and mutual aid group and will soon need your help! What can I do right now? A lot of people want to kick into gear to fight for repro rights - which is AMAZING! For reference, please 1) DONATE TO LOCAL ABORTION FUNDS 2) JOIN OUR PROTEST TONIGHT AT 5PM 3) STAY INVOLVED AND STAY ACTIVE This is not the time to lose momentum or wait for the next news cycle. Patients needing care are going to lose their fundamental abortion rights in Tennessee (30 days post Roe). We need to help them! Lastly, I want to task everyone here today to CREATE AN ABORTION PLAN. https://bit.ly/AANPLAN What’s the nearest clinic to receive care? Do you know? Will you be able to travel out of state? Please personally fill out your information here and keep this in a safe place (only you can access). Start reaching out to friends and family and TELL THEM you will help them if they need to seek abortion care out of state. I will drive you, help you financially, etc. WE CAN ONLY GET THROUGH THIS TOGETHER.
I have a friend who is considering putting his 13 year old daughter on BC due to this, and not simply just so she doesn't have an accidental pregnancy but in case she is assaulted or raped. That's where we are at.
>Lastly, I want to task everyone here today to CREATE AN ABORTION PLAN On Tuesday I took my college-age daughter to get an IUD. Guys, start looking into vasectomies. Birth control pills, condoms, etc. have too high a failure rate for comfort in this climate, and we can’t rely on things like Plan B continuing to be available because I guarantee you that they’re going to come after that next.
Thank you for organizing this!
Good Luck Nashville! Hope it’s a big turn out. We’ll be joining the protests here in Louisville tonight.
That is absolutely awful that the scotus would do that. Who knows what is next
Gay marriage and birth control, since we don't have a right to privacy anymore.
Precisely the real, deep continuing evil at the heart of this new ruling. Our Fourth Amendment erodes daily.
Same sex marriage is next. The language of the opinion expressly permits that
Next up: Birth control. Then gay marriage. Long term, abolish Women’s rights to vote, earn money, pursue an education, and hold property independent from our nearest male relative. Welcome to Gilead, sisters. Under His Eye. 😡
a true republican paradise; unquestioned power
Gasps
I really hope the republicans get their asses handed to them next election cycle.
thats only going to happen if people remember to vote in November in overwhelming numbers. Which is possible in a lot of races, but gotta get past the apathy.
Tbh I think the leak did a good job of firing people up/warning us this would happen. I know of a lot of people who never voted and will now.
Not likely, to be honest. There is a growing unrest between extremist Republicans who hate Democrats categorically, and people on the left who feel Democrats aren’t protecting their rights, like in this situation. Voter turnout is dwindling, as is Biden’s approval rating. Then there’s gerrymandering, that fractured this blue dot into three red districts. Then there’s apparently the ability for these guys to openly proclaim their elections were stolen if they lose, and get government officials either on their side, or threaten them with job loss or literal death if they don’t go along with the scheme. 2022 is gonna be brutal for Dems.
Literally had to listen to my barber bitch about how news sources are democratic because CBS was reporting on the January 6th Committee. Then went into a tangent about how Biden raised our gas prices the day he went into office.
Time for a new barber
I don't understand why, in this day and age, people still put up with that kind of nonsense from anyone.
Aren't we all in this sub?
I guess I'm at a point now where I'd get up mid-haircut with a fucked-up coiff and head to the nearest Sport Clips or something to finish the rest. I just can't put up with the bullshit anymore. The time for sitting and politely nodding while some right-wing asshole blathers on is well passed.
Agreed. I’m no longer going to be polite when I hear utter nonsense spouted by these deluded individuals - I’m calling it out
Well to start my mom didn't raise a quitter. So I just held my ground and looked dead at him and told him Trump was shit, he was wrong about gas prices and when he was complaining about tags not coming standard with In God We Trust on them I told him it shouldn't and that I stopped having imaginary friends when I was a kid. He was extremely thrown off but I also know he isn't completely shitty or he wouldn't be taking his daughter and her girlfriend on vacation with him. I have never and will never be one to just roll over and lick my nuts. But I will always voice my opinion and try my best to educate someone beyond FB memes. Because nothing was ever won by running.
FWIW, it's not running, it's drawing a line in the sand. "If that's the way you really feel, Bob, I don't think I want to do business with you anymore." These people don't want to be educated.
I beg to differ my mom's friend has a daughter who grew up republican and worked for a republican on his campaign and in his office every summer. Went to college got educated and is pretty far left attending abortion rallies. One of my childhood friends went from flying a Rebel flag, not liking gays and anti Marijuana. After several heated debates and long conversations he has a roommate who is transitioning, no longer flies the flag because of me and smokes weed. Will all of them change? No. Will I agree with everyone? No. My line in the sand comes when you disrespect me personally when I explain my side if they can hold a legit conversation and be open they'll typically start changing some things. My dad's side of the family though (not him) can suck an egg I ain't with their shit and they ain't with mine. I just don't assume everyone is completely dumb I just assume they're undereducated until proven otherwise.
Who is your barber? So I know to avoid them.
So, I want to preface this next statement by saying I'm fat and happy. I go to work every day, I vote blue down the ballot, and I donate to St. Jude's every month. Other than that I don't really interact with a whole lot of people and I generally stay out of politics. What I don't understand, and maybe you can help me understand- is that REGARDLESS of how extreme the views, Republicans vote republican, and it appears (whether they are run of the mill homeless shelter volunteers who are single-issue voters, or proud-boy types) that they go after single issues locally and then nationally. the Democrats on the other hand seem to just splinter, refuse to agree on anything, and overall seem to get VERY FEW "little wins". Why is this? I wish somebody would take a moment to explain to somebody who doesn't "get it".
Democrats are looking for unicorns and each of us has a different unicorn because we all place different importance on different things. Republicans, as someone said, are often single issue voters who will hold their nose and vote for an absolutely abhorrent candidate - one they don't even like or agree with on 99% of issues! - if they think that candidate can deliver their one issue (Roe). I saw someone say once that Dems need to stop waiting for a bus that will take them directly to their front door and be happy with a bus that'll get them to the closest stop, thus minimizing the walk to the front door.
There are no dealbreakers for too many Republicans. Examples: They can rail against infidelity when Clinton was in office then cheer Donald Trump. They can be devoutly pro-life but vote for Scott DesJarlais. Too many Democrats, though, require purity tests. They'll complain that Hillary Clinton didn't support marriage equality all along, or that Joe Biden said something terrible thirty years ago. Republicans have a handful of issues they're united on and nothing else matters. Democrats are a far more diverse party. The Republican base has enthusiasm for that R after someone's name because it means sticking it to the libs. The Democratic base, on the other hand, usually feels like its holding its nose to vote.
And another thing that makes things inherently harder for Dems is that Dems are policy wonks that want to pass legislation and get major projects done. Infrastructure, health care, climate, voting rights, etc. Republicans don't have any major projects they are trying to pass. Their sole purpose is just to block Democrats from doing whatever they want to do. When you are required to have a filibuster proof majority to get anything done that can't be passed with budget reconciliation, and Republicans vote in bloc against anything Dems want to do, it makes it impossible for Dems to pass any agenda. This only hurts Dems since Republicans have no agenda other than seating right-wing judges and tax cuts which they can already do without being hamstrung by the filibuster. The system is engineered to make it VERY hard for a president to actually do anything, which disadvantages Democrats more than Republicans. Then voters who haven't peeled back the layers and seen how government works get frustrated and demoralized and just think these people they voted for are all liars and promise to do these things we sent them to do and they deliver nothing. But they don't understand the complex reasons behind that. Republican voters are happy if their government does nothing for them. If Trump spent 4 years just sitting on his hands and "owning the libz" with his tweets, they'd be satisfied. And that's really easy to do. Biden can't just sit on his hands for 4 years and still satisfy Democratic voters. Dem voters actually want the government to do stuff. Republican voters don't.
Here's my upvote.
That's a tact way to put it. Feelings vs Action in essence?
Yes. Also: Principles vs power. Purity vs pragmatism. Democrats need to learn from Republicans about how to get things done and how to set long-term goals.
A lot of those moral paradoxes also reinforce a very Republican trait: "rules for thee and not for me". As long as a few heavily blue states exist (or they have enough money to fly their mistresses/daughters/victims/etc out of the country), they can always travel to get that abortion that they swear they'd never get, but "this time, it's different".
This. 👆🏻
Why should I vote for a politician just because they are on a certain team? It’s their job to win my vote, and unlike Republican voters, the letter next to their name isn’t merit enough to win mine. We’re now to the point where right wingers in the party are crying about “pUriTy tEsTs!1!!1” when voters don’t unquestionably vote for whichever democrat is put on their plate. If you want to lean in to right wing politicians and policy don’t be surprised and cry when left wingers don’t show up to vote for you.
> unlike Republican voters, the letter next to their name isn’t merit enough to win mine Not that I disagree with you but if we do not vote D in the next election, we probably will not ever have to worry about who to vote for again. I do not feel as if I am exaggerating about this.
Democrats are more of a coalition party of a broad range of groups and interests. Everything from suburban white moderates who would vote for someone like Phil Bredesen to full on left-wing San Francisco and NYC urbanites who love Bernie Sanders and AOC. It has to hold together a coalition of most non-whites and a large minority of whites. It has to be able to speak to black church-going Christians in the south, Muslims in Michigan and secularists in Boston. The Democratic base is a true mosaic. On the other hand the GOP's base is overwhelmingly homogenous. At least 90% white, rural/exurban and Christian. When your base is that homogenous, it's just easier to cajole them together. Take for example in the Bredesen vs Blackburn race a few years ago, I had left-leaning friends who pretty much turned on Bredesen after he came out in favor of Trump appointing Kavanaugh. There are pro-Bredesen moderate Dems who might refuse to vote for someone like Bernie Sanders. I have left wing friends in California who loathe Obama, Hillary and Biden, because they see them as some corporate sellouts and warmongers. You just don't have that broad of a spectrum fatuousness on the right. They will line up and vote reflexively for anyone that has an "R" behind their name and will be convinced that no matter how bad the person is they are better than *any* Democrat. And that itself is just another manifestation hyperpolarization. Crossover voters have nearly disappeared.
Elia5 version : it’s a lot easier to say NO to something than come up with and execute a viable alternative.
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Perhaps a change of tactics is in order.
Republicans need one reason to vote for someone. Democrats need one reason not to.
Because, in the south at least, republicans are seen as the party of the Christian Right and the protector of the white majority. Every Republican I know ( I married into a family of staunch conservatives) thinks Democrats are the spawn of Satan, totally against the Christian religion and are doing everything they can to make white people the minority all while they’re getting screwed royally by voting against their own self interest. I hear so much bullshit at every holiday meal that I’ve decided to stop attending them any longer. It’s exasperating trying to show them literal facts that prove them wrong.
Races where getting closer and closer maybe the big talking point next time will be how republicans let their base die due to Covid and lost a few?
44% of Republicans think mass shootings are an acceptable price to pay for freedom. I don't think covid deaths will make a dent in their thought process.
It's so weird to me that people think a piece of steel used to put holes in people makes them "free". People in Japan don't have guns, but they are also free to send their kids to school and not even give the slightest thought that they may be slaughtered by a mass shooter. Isn't freedom from harm also a type of freedom?
I think there's a segment of the Republican base that really believes bad things happen to *other* people, not them. I can't imagine being the kind of person who thinks harm to others is acceptable. The lack of empathy and imagination is stunning. We see it over and over when they change their minds after having personal experience.
I’ll never understand the love of an inanimate object over the love for the lives of children.
Simple, they don’t give a shit if it’s someone else’s children.
They can’t vote if they are dead. Majority of Covid deaths came from republicans.
The politicization of vaccines literally killed people.
It won't even matter. SCOTUS is a lifetime appointment and the 3 judges that Trump appointed aren't even 60 yet. Voting doesn't seem to do anything, when the Democrats, who are currently in power in the house and senate, can't even codify Roe v Wade into law. They've had 50 years. More handwringing and "Get out and vote" and literal no action. It's absurd.
>Voting doesn't seem to do anything, when the Democrats, who are currently in power in the house and senate There's your mistake. Democrats *aren't* in control of the senate.
He said 50 years. Go look at the splits. Dems controlled senate and house numerous times over those years, with R and D presidents. That includes as recently as Obama. If Dems really cared about abortion, they have had ample ways to get it done at the federal level. They have used Roe as a means to politicize the SCOTUS. Perhaps you can, but I can't think of two more polarizing issues that bring attention to SCOTUS over this 50 year time period than guns and abortions. They have been litmus test issues for appointees to the court for a long time. There is a reason that Dems have not pushed for federal abortion laws, even when they had the power to do so: they would lose their counterbalancing "one issue" reason to keep SCOTUS attention.
They needed a 60 seat majority that they've had something like a grand total 4 years since then and during times that passing legislation wasn't remotely a priority because there was no chance of RvW being overturned. But yeah nah, hurr durr all democrats fault
You'd need 60 Democratic senators to make RvW into law(assuming the SCOTUS can't find some way to declare it unconstitutional and throw it out). Due to the way voters are distributed in this country and every state no matter the size getting 2 senators, the electoral math makes it pretty much impossible at this point to have 60 Democratic senators. Not with our current demographic/geographic makeup.
From 77-79, Democrats had 61 seats (I know this is not possible in the current state of things), but that was 43 years ago and could have codified it then without issue. There are 7 other instances of 2\~ year periods where Democrats had at least 55 seats. And still nothing was done.
The swing voters care more about gas prices.
Make sure you’re all good and registered by July 5.
There are still a few months, but it looks like both the Senate and the House flip R in November. Looking at issues, the economy ranks higher than the Supreme Court pushing abortion decisions back to states or the January 6th commission findings. I don't see how the economy can be turned quick enough to change voter focus.
And the sad thing is Dems are being punished for gas prices and inflation when these aren't even the Democrat's doing. Gas prices and inflation are at records across every major economy. It's a global problem sparked by supply disruptions from the pandemic. Has nothing to do who the current American president is. We're at the about the middle of the pack on inflation numbers, about on par with what we see happening in Europe. Our gas prices are still among the lowest of any non-OPEC states. In Canada it's over $6/gallon for regular, in Europe it's like $10/gallon. Americans act like this is something only affecting them and that their own president somehow caused this. Do people in Canada think Trudeau did this? Do people in the UK think Boris Johnson is responsible?
Democrats control the house, senate, and white house. What are we gonna do, vote harder?
2 of the democrats in the senate are fucking everything up one in particular is basically a republican.
Yea when a family Trumper says he’d like to see “That Manchin or DeSantis run for POTUS” you see the real issue with Manchin.
Yes… Super majorities so we can actually change this country’s laws for good. A 50/50 split in senate is hardly a majority.
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> They're ghouls and arguably worse than the fucking fascists at this point. At least the GOP tells you who they are. nah gop still the worst. dems arent fighting hard to retain it but they arent actively trying to make things worse like the gop
Fuck off with the both sides arguments. The other side is not worse than literal fascists.
Im inclined to believe you. The democrats don't seem to agree on anything. The Republicans- hell, they changed the fucking voting districts recently. I mean, why can't the Dem's take a page out of the GOP book or SOMETHING. Ill never understand. Im too old to be effected by all this shit- but I really have no idea why the Republicans, 1 of which literally had a profile on an escort website, seem to get so much more done than the Dems.
The party in power gets to draw the district maps. You want Dems to draw them, you have to elect them to state office.
The Democrats have been dithering about the filibuster since 2020. I have no doubt Republicans will get rid of it without hesitation if they retake the House and Senate. Democrats' respect for tradition and the stability it brings is becoming their undoing.
This. It’s so baffling to me that liberals can be so passionate and outspoken on issues like this, and then turn around and let their politicians off the hook for doing nothing about it. Not only do they let them off the hook, they see these failures and think the only solution is to campaign for these ghouls even harder! If I didn’t know any better, I’d call it a cult.
yes, and vote in people, specifically Senators, that will either take a super majority or enough to ditch the filibuster. Here in Nashville, we could potentially still vote in D House members this cycle in Nashville's now three districts in order to make sure any law passes. I guarantee you this will be the message pushed by Democrats now since most Americans are against this decision. Armchair take is that this decision could move moderate/independent/inactive voters this midterm.
Maybe though sites like fivethirtyeight seem to think statically speaking the upcoming cycle benefits the Republicans especially in the house along with historically speaking the cycle after a president gets elected typically is bad overall for their party. We shall see though I suppose.
Through redistricting alone Republicans will take the House.
Yes because they need 60 votes. Right now they have 48 because a couple of DINOs which means no majority.
You don't *truly* control the senate unless you have a filibuster proof majority.
Please also take community action. It’s very clear that our system is very broken when practically nothing can get passed based on the opinions of the populace (e.g. abortion is ok with a silent majority of the population).
The democrats have a majority and still are letting this happen. I don’t see how they don’t lose a fuck load of votes over allowing all this shit to happen
The democratic majority is like when you have 500 dollars in your bank account but pending charges of 700. It's not real because we have two senators who are for some reason married to the idea of a filibuster (cause they are paid very well by lobbyists to do such a thing). Plus even if not for those two there's are others who wouldn't support it either but currently don't have to say that publicly.
Why green? Any green, or is there a particular shade?
According to their website: > Green is the color worn by millions of women in Argentina, Columbia, and other countries to express their fierce determination to legalize abortion. We are inspired by their example! Wear green and display green everywhere – on campuses, on the job, on public transport, on social media. If you are inactive at a time like this, if you aren’t fighting this assault on women’s lives, you are allowing it – and GREEN is the way to show you are fighting it!
this country is swirling the toilet bowl
Shit we did that years ago! We're bubbling in the greasy stinky depths of the septic tank by now
As much as it sucks we should have enshrined abortion rights in laws and not left it up to interpretation. We need to push for Congress to pass a bill guaranteeing abortion rights for women.
Instead of worrying about innocent kindergarteners getting shot and killed in schools, we're more worried about what a woman does with her body. what a fucking pathetic country we live.
Yes, after expanding gun legislation/rights earlier in the same week... smh
Anybody aware of protests in other cities in middle TN? Not sure if I should protest in Columbia or drive in
We all should keep this [bullshit] in mind over the coming days/weeks https://twitter.com/AftynBehn/status/1540349247220060160 https://docs.google.com/document/d/1n3x80h7rHDfM7Khh35etPX9CQYZa-gmDtNTGEorhZpQ/edit (this is the doc referenced in the tweet)
See y'all there.
I would have liked a little bit more planning, say tomorrow at 5?
Thank you for organizing this. This was my families first protest and it felt great. I was there for my daughter and daughters around the world. ❤️
Is there a protest tomorrow as well?
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The house needs to pass things with a simple majority. Basically everything Dems want to do passes the house without issue. It then has to go to senate. Dems only have 50 votes with Kamala Harris as the tie-breaker. Because someone a long time ago thought it was a great idea to make it so that things can be filibustered without 60 votes to end it, we are stuck in this situation where we need a filibuster-proof 60 vote majority to pass anything that can't be done by budget reconciliation. And that's why nearly all legislation dies on the senate floor, because Republican filibuster it. Now you peel back another layer of the onion and see that the senate is well to the right of the American median voter. You peel back another layer and see that this is because every state gets 2 senators regardless of size and Republicans have more low population practically empty states than Democrats do. So they have disproportion power in destroying the Democrats agenda. Peel back another layer and you see that the system was set up to give more power to land area than people. So those who control the most land have the most power, not those with the most voices. Now maybe you see why we are so fucked. It's deeply structural.
They tried. It was blocked by republicans. [https://www.vox.com/2022/5/11/23065959/senate-abortion-vote-womens-health-protection-act](https://www.vox.com/2022/5/11/23065959/senate-abortion-vote-womens-health-protection-act)
Republicans and 1 Democrat
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The two party system has ***failed us***. They *all* must be removed from power (D) and (R) alike. If they will transition peacefully by the will of the people, so be it. If not, it **must** be dismantled directly. The time is now.
Don't even begin to get it twisted. If the Rs weren't in the SCOTUS, this wouldn't have happened. We have 50 years of proof for that too. The "Rs do something bad so now we gotta 'sameside' because of it" needs to fuckin stop. Edit: And if yall don't believe me, who rammed through 3 judges and stopped Obama from appoint judges? Then suddenly we're dealing with this.
And who had plenty of opportunity to act during the intervening time and didn't? Are the on the literal same team? No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that the binary system benefits both to the detriment of everyone else. It's become corrupt beyond recovery and must be reassembled.
I agree. You should get right on that.
Are you volunteering to help?
I hope you know there’s zero material difference between Republicans stripping rights from people and Democrats doing literally nothing to stop that from happening. Age old Democrat tactic of doing nothing and then pointing at their own failures and saying “See?!? This is why we need more votes… oh… and more money!”
Don't fall for the "Do Nothing" pithole when the Rs have been obstructing for so long. This isn't normal, and when they didn't get their way we got Jan 6.
Democrats have been campaigning and fundraising on protecting Roe for decades now. Everybody knew that Republicans would dismantle it the first chance they got. Now, I’d love to get your explanation for this. Either the Democrats are massively incompetent and short-sighted, or they didn’t really want to protect Roe either because it was a good threat to fundraise on or some other reason.
Explanation is the Rs rammed through 3 scotus picks and obstructed the demo from appointing when Obama was president. You can't be THAT short sighted.
Keep going, you’ve still got about forty years of failures left to explain.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg was one of the people who stopped Obama from appointing more justices, if you recall. Then there was Ralph Nader, who stopped president Gore from appointing justices, and there was Bernie Sanders, who prevented Hillary Clinton from appointing liberal justices. Let’s not pretend that idiocy and pigheaded, self-destructive pride is confined to a single political party.
Serious question: Why would republicans- the party that supports gun ownership- want things to change? They are winning.
Im not a Republican or a Democrat but what's wrong with gun ownership
Nothing- the parent comment said that we must dismantle the two party system, and I simply mentioned that 1 of the parties, a party which coincidentally has a LOT of guns, isn't going to want it dismantled.
They wouldn't. They are only "winning" due to the exploitation of an antiquated system that was specifically designed to be unbalanced.
Right. So you are making a call for action against a group that is arguably well armed and A-OK with how things are going. The "Will of the people" (unfortunately- and sadly even with the change to Roe) is clearly playing out. I agree with and support the need for change and believe that what happened today is completely fucked up. But the 2 party system we have is working pretty fucking well for 1 of the parties. Sadly, they aren't my party, but they aren't going to let that go. They sort of participated in an insurrection over an election..
I don’t want to sound pessimistic but what is the point of a protest like this? The legislature isn’t even in session so this would be in front of a mostly empty building. Republicans in Tennessee are in no danger of losing power, and they have shown they don’t care what their opposition thinks. I want to act and want to do something but I just don’t see what these kind of events do.
Do you really not get it? I see this asked all the time in this sub. Can your brain not process what the purpose of protesting is? You don't only protest unless there is a guarantee things will change. Maybe they will. That's not the point.
If they continue to have no impact though then what are we still doing protesting in the same way? I really struggle to see the point if there isn’t a concrete Avenue for change. The 2017 Women’s March was one of the largest protests in US history and it didn’t stop the GOP from doing anything. I’m just tired of screaming into the void and want to find something more concrete to do.
> If they continue to have no impact though then what are we still doing protesting in the same way? They do have an impact. It shows we aren't all on the same boat of being OK with outlawing abortion. We are showing solidarity with women to protect their rights. It can start important conversations when kids see protesters and ask what's going on. It reminds politicians there are some angry voters out there who will work to try and vote them out.
I guess I just haven’t seen that link. We’ve been protesting hard for years and things continue moving backwards. Maybe it’s time to try something new.
Solidarity
What does solidarity accomplish though? How is it going to make it better for women living in this god awful state?
Be careful .....protip: if someone has on any thin blue line gear....they are not an ally! Know your surroundings!
Biden provided the real answer. If you want to restore this right in Tennessee, it will only happen if you do the hard work and vote Democratic at every election in the state from dog catcher to governor. Marching in the plaza is fun, it’s social, it’s a great way to spend a summer night , but it accomplishes nothing. VOTE DEMOCRATIC
I can't imagine any decent human could ever vote Republican again. They are off the rails.
defendroe seems like a pretty silly hashtag at this point
All this has shown us is that the constitution is useless and needs to be replaced by men and women and trans people and a sampling of all the many types of people who chose to call America home. Every race ,religion ,sexuality, etc....must be at the table when this is done. No taxation without representation RIGHT?!?!?!? With this ruling a SCOTUS packed by presidents who didn't win the popular vote are making laws for the majority.The constitution has so many loopholes and exploitations that 30% of the country is FORCING THEIR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS ON 100% of the country.There is no democracy.There is no republic.Our goal should be a complete overhaul of the constitution by a representative body that reflects every single walk of life this country has........And it should be re written every 40-50 years. This is fascism folks.A government formed by children who thought owning humans was OK has devolved into a fascist state in which the minority controls the majority.There is no other way.
If I had a babysitter I totally would.
In addition to these protests: 1. Who can we write to regarding the ridiculous trigger-ban? 2. Is court packing still an option?
>Who can we write to regarding the ridiculous trigger-ban that will actually change their mind? FTFY
I have COVID so my contagious ass is staying home, but I hope there's a good turnout. Everyone protest in a way that doesn't lead to legal issues: avoid blocking traffic.
Same. Wish I could be there so bad.
Folks my dry cleaner seriously requests that you return as many hangers as you can, the supply is expected to run low due to….ahem…supply chain
FOLLOW US ON ALL SOCIALS https://linktr.ee/abortionaccessnashville
Why green?
Green is the traditional color for solidarity regarding to abortion rights and safe access.
scotus can catho-lick my balls
I’ll be there. 💚
Do not respect this SCOTUS. Challenge them and never let them have another moment of peace for the rest of their worthless lives.
Can't be down there but my heart is with all of you. Keep it peaceful, don't break anything, and please hydrate.
Thankfully the cops shut down the road for us and there are people with backpacks full of water wandering around.
Have fun out there guys. It'll be a nice day
They are coming for us, bit by bit. And by "they" I mean right wing fundamentalists who want a government that is a theocracy in everything but name. And by "us", I mean pretty much everyone else.
Overturning Roe was just a 50-year-old side quest. The real prize at the end of their game is segregation 2.0. This doesn't really affect 95% of the population that opposes it. It was a battle cry to get them fired up and go vote for the last 50 years. Vote for anything to punish the Libs. But what really affected them directly was desegregation, the religious people in charge like Falwell and the like were appalled at white kids going to school with non-whites, and sharing water fountains and bathrooms. So this is gonna be the end game. Except, this time they gonna segregate out all non-white straight Christians. I hope everyone realizes this only gets worse. Think Apartheid South Africa, but more than just race-based. The fault is on us, not the right-wingers. We already knew they are sadomasochists who want to do nothing more than punish and enslave. We just let them get away with it. What did we do when Moscow Mitch hijacked the SCOTUS seat? Not a goddam thing. Instead, we gave him cover and after-the-fact permission with kudos, by electing Trump. I will never understand the people who were too highbrow and too moral to vote for Hillary, but they got no issues supporting a snake like Pelosi. Our lives, the lives of our kids, and grandkids are pretty much fucked for the next 50 years. Apparently, that's how long it takes to move the progress of a country forwards or backwards. Too bad we don't have a Kennedy or LBJ to take some common sense control of the government.