This year the most talked about subject matter has to be the U.S. Election, and I suppose in some way it’s refreshing for someone other than a celebrity being the topic around the water cooler – anything to stop the incessant chatter about the Kardashians I guess. But, that being said, Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, the two candidates up for this years election have more in common with entertainment than politics, in fact their persona is very much akin to a celebrity feud with cheap shots and superficial support being garnered by both sides.
I guess it would be apt for this generation to vote for the host of ‘The Apprentice’. Very similar to the raised-on-TV Generation X voting for the actor Ronald Reagan, for people raised amidst ‘American Idol’ and ‘The Kardashians‘ to elect someone who has been among other things, a Reality TV star, is quite befitting for a post-noughties election. Either that or elect the wife of a previously impeached President – because what more can you ask from a favouritism-supporting, celebrity-obsessed generation than a vote for nepotism?
Regardless of the outcome of these elections, it has to be recognised that the upcoming American President will be either the least popular or the second least popular candidate in electoral history, and that takes some doing. The choice for this election really is the definition of a catch-22, it’s like choosing between a dagger being plunged into your heart or a knife slitting your throat. In fact, from the look of the two candidates, it’s more like choosing between Greg Stillson from ‘The Dead Zone’ and Eleanor Shaw from ‘The Manchurian Candidate’. Whatever you choose, Martin Sheen or Meryl Streep, the end result will most likely be an unwanted orgy of power, corruption, debt, death, and destruction.
For decades now I’ve witnessed both sides of the alleged political divide gain power and yet over the years I’ve seen no real change. By now I’d hoped that the older folk would no longer be fooled by yet another false political paradigm, I thought that once people had been through umpteen elections with almost the same outcome, they’d realise that voting has never and will never change anything. It’s different if you’re young, when everything is new and fresh, voting might seem like actual democracy. But if you’re over, let’s say forty years of age, haven’t you seen four years after four years of the same political, hierarchical, corrupt bullshit? Left or right, Democrat or Republican, have you ever seen any change once the votes have been tabulated? Did Bush Senior make things better? Did Mr. Clinton make things better? Did Bush Junior make things better? Did Obama make things better? So why would you think that either of these two cunts on offer in 2016 will create change or “Make America Great Again”?
Knowing this history of sameness, people still can’t be stopped from voting, even though not voting is just as valid and is as much a choice as voting. It’s very telling that a ballot paper never has the option of “none of the above” so that voters who disapprove of both choices are also counted. Instead we call people who don’t vote “apathetic” like all of them just didn’t bother to show up. In a real democracy there would be an option to state your objection, but instead people are offered a choice of the lesser of two evils or are derided and labelled as uninterested or uncaring. This lose-lose situation or “lesser of two evils” choice really is obvious in this year’s election, and for all the people who think that they’re choosing from a concrete left vs. right option, they really need to look closely at the two candidates.
Firstly to all the Democrats out there, it has to be recognised that Hillary Clinton grew up a Republican; she volunteered to campaign for the Republicans in the ’60s and she was President of the Young Republicans at her college. Her supporters of course state that all that was in her youth – something that occurred long ago, but they fail to acknowledge that she also voted for George Bush and the Neocon’s Patriot Act after 9/11, and she supported both the Afghan and Iraq wars – are we to believe that a person with this type of right-wing history is the best choice for the left? It’s pretty telling that even Hillary’s campaign logo has the arrow within the “H” pointing to the right, this is either unintentional or foretelling of her future as President – very similar to Tony Blair in Britain, a vote for an apparent liberal can and will result in the most right-wing decisions from a supposed left-wing candidate.
On the other side of the so-called political divide is billionaire, one-time-Democrat, and grandson of a brothel owner Donald Trump, the tit that’s somehow become the people’s champion – the choice for the average Joe, the candidate for the everyday, working-class, poor people who say they hate rich politicians. That to me is the most idiotic thing I’ve ever heard, take a closer look and it’s obvious that Trump is anything but “for the people” – he’s a politician in all but name.
As the Republican’s nominee, Donald Trump loves to talk tough but he fails to mention his convenient deferments which meant that he himself avoided war in the ’60s. Now what could be more like a politician than continually warmongering without sacrificing his own life and limbs for his cause? This John Wayne-style, pro-military hypocrite brings up the Army, Navy, and Air-Force like Rudy Giuliani brings up 9/11 – to deflect from the fact that he’s really a puss-weed who likes to hide behind the pretence of gung-ho nationalistic conflict without getting his own hands dirty. Trump is so obsessed with war that he even brought up ISIS as an answer to Anderson Cooper’s question about sexual assault during the debates …dodging questions, how atypically non-political he is… not
As a teenager, Donald because of behavioural problems was placed into a private boarding-school-slash-Military-Academy where he was known for being a bully. Maybe his enrolment into a military school went to his fuzzy, fly-away head, because in recent years he’s been bringing up the U.S. Military like he was a recruiter loitering in a minority school’s car park. The fact that he bullies anyone who opposes him just goes to show that he hasn’t really progressed from the mindset of a high-schooler.
Trump’s bullying and antagonising of various demographics has now become so ingrained with his persona that everybody around him including the Secret Service isn’t sure which of the various groups, ethnicities, sexes, or religions that he’s offended hates him the most. Even when a non-Muslim, non-Mexican, white Republican protester like Austyn Crites shows up to his rally and holds up an anti-Trump sign, the overreaction by his security agents shows the atmosphere that surrounds him – Donald J. Trump has pissed off so many people that both the media, the public, and his entourage has lost count – nobody really knows who his enemies are any more. Almost everybody from every walk of life hates the man, what a great start for a potential President.
There is a small part of me that wants Donald Trump to win, just so that in four years, after a trail of broken promises and u-turns, I can say “I told you so” to the idiotic people who were apparently “oh so sick of politicians”. The option of a disappointing Trump rather than a disappointing Clinton is a much better prospect, especially since with the former option, the middle-American working class white folk can’t complain about their selection once things start going tits-up. But having said that, if you think that a billionaire, tax-avoiding, sexist, xenophobic, orange-skinned, fluff-ball-haired prick is any better than the ex-Republican, fake-minority-pandering, wife of a cheating, cigar-poking, saxophone-sucking disgrace, then you’ve been hoodwinked. Like I said before – this election is the very definition of a catch-22.
So let’s recap; you want a liberal President, then why choose someone who supported an illegal war? You want a President that will take America out of debt, then why choose someone who’s businesses have been declared bankrupt several times? With two illogical choices and two candidates with dubious pasts, isn’t that the definition of a swindle? Regardless who wins, there’s no need to rig an election when both options offer nothing but bullshit or cloaked bullshit.
It’s funny that Trump and his supporters feel that the election is rigged only if he loses, that has to be the most ironic, nonsensical thing I’ve ever heard. If the elections are rigged (which I and many other people have been saying for years) don’t you think that regardless of the result, the next President, even if it’s President Trump will also be in the pocket or under the thumb of the elite? I guess supporters of someone who appeared in an interview with Alex Jones obviously can’t tell straight and scrupulous from sham and shill.
Judging from either side’s bullshit hyperboles and political rhetoric, we have many years of liberty-destroying crap to come. You’re either voting for a giant Berlin or Israeli-style border wall and possibly an unconstitutional ban of certain religions entering the United States, or you’re voting for a supporter of the Patriot Act and possibly an unconstitutional banning of firearms. But in a post-9/11, post-Boston-Bombing, anti-due-process, witch-hunting America where imbeciles chant “Lock her up!” when referring to Hillary, the masses will only have themselves to blame for any bondage they find themselves in.
People who don’t wholeheartedly approve of Hillary Clinton will vote for her just to keep Donald Trump out of the oval office and vice versa. That’s democracy in action folks, forget abstaining and forget voting for a third party, just choose between these two obvious tossers. So instead of saying “fuck you” to both options, people will vote for one of the candidates just to stop the other from becoming President – what a great example of western democracy. I’d love it if people actually stood up and said “no” for once, it would be a historical moment if the people as one refused to vote, imagine if this election had a 0% turn out – that would be a huge statement to the corrupt establishment. But alas, that’ll never happen, the public will always rush to pick sides even if they don’t like either one. People are anything but forthright, year upon year they’ll choose between a prick and a dick, knowing full well that either way they’re gonna get fucked.
Democrazy.
WHAT WENT WRONG WITH...? 
Perfect summary of the shit storm. The majority American people have the choice of terrible or worse. There will never be a zero turn out as there are cretins on both side who actually believe they have a good candidate and not just a foil to the opposition.
If I was being harsh I would say the American people are going to get the president they deserve, but as I live outside the USA I can only hope a Trump presidency leads to a period of isolationism.
You hit the nail on the head! The 2016 US election is a circus and it’s even worse than the EU Referendum. Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are both unqualified for the role as the Leader of the Free World. There is Jill Stein and Gary Johnson, but they are less likely to win and if they did, they will struggle to get anything done because the Senate and House of Representatives will be filled with Republicans and Democrats. Thus, the better option is to not vote.
In every election, you will find condescending self righteous idiots shaming anyone who doesn’t vote. They will say “people died for the right to vote” or “if you don’t vote, you can’t complain or have any say”. There was a campaign advert for Hillary featuring the cast of Empire and at one point Lee Daniels pompously said not voting will “dishonor their sacrifices”.
Let me set things straight! Voting is a right, not an obligation. If people feel the candidates are inadequate, then they have the right not to the ballot paper and vote. This is a free country and a democracy. Forcing people to vote is similar to fascism.
This two-party system in America is a failure. 15 years of Obama and Bush Administrations is concrete proof. George Bush was a miserable president, but Barack Obama continued many of Bush’s policies despite the slogan “Change We Can”. There should be more parties so people can have more choices, but there is a risk that it could end up just like UK’s party system (the government being either of the two big parties).
This video perfectly sums up the situation with voting in this election…
Generation X did not vote for Reagan. Wasn’t old enough. A few of us voted for Bush but mainly voted for Clinton and then Gore.
Generation X were born between 1961 – 1981 approximately, therefore the first wave voted for Reagan (1981-1989) and were definitely old enough. Obviously the Baby Boomers voted Reagan/Bush too but Generation X’s who turned 18 in 1980 and 1984 were also responsible.
Trump has become the president of United States of America. Yes! The guy from The Apprentice, who repeated the empty slogan “Make America Great Again!” and spewed nothing but bullshit, has become the most powerful man in the world. Yes it is a shock, but it was coming. Trump becoming the President is a product of neoliberalism, political correctness, and celebrity culture. Let’s start with neoliberalism. The ideology pushed forward by Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher had a massive impact on politics and society. Deregulation of industries and emphasis on the free market has led to a decline in wages, massive inequality, increase in house prices, loss of jobs, exploitation of foreign labour, and greed of the highest order. The economic crisis in late 2000s is the only end result. Despite neoliberalism being a right wing ideology, it was embraced by the Labour Party and the Democratic Party in the 90s and 2000s. The EU does impose freedom of movement and have a semblance of democracy (the European Parliament has gained a lot of powers through multiple treaties), but it focused way too much on neoliberalism. The middle class and working class have been screwed over, but the working class have been affected the most. The stage was almost tailor made for politicians like Trump and Farage. History has shown that when there is an economic crisis, the politicians and the public tend to blame ethnic minorities. Politicians like Trump stoke hatred and fear among the public by pointing the finger to immigrants and Muslims. In reality, the blame should be placed with the governments and multinational corporations. The governments destroy houses and kill civilians through drone airstrikes. Corporations hire foreign labour because they are cheap. Greedy property developers build houses and raise prices specifically to sell to rich foreign investors. You see, you can’t really blame mass immigration for this because it is the product, not the cause. It is the product of neoliberalism. Instead, the public blames black and brown people as if they had a negative effect on their lives. The most obvious example of this is Nazi Germany. Germany was in a miserable state after the First World War due to the Treaty of Versailles. The treaty forced the country to pay huge amounts of compensation to Belgium and France. The economy tanked and morale reached lows. Then Adolf Hitler came around and blamed Jews and the rest is history. As I said before, when there is an economic crisis, racism comes next. Is it any surprise that far-right parties have gained momentum in recent years? These far-right politicians then present themselves as “anti-establishment” even though they are the exact opposite. Let’s look at Trump, he was presented as the President for everyday man and promised to “drain the swamp”(referring to lobbyists). But some research and common sense suggests otherwise. He inherited his wealth and real estate empire from his father, had numerous bankruptcies and debt, and switched party allegiances numerous times. He lies constantly and flip flops a lot. He lives in a penthouse in Manhattan and brags about his wealth. Is he really anti-establishment? Same goes for Nigel Farage. He constantly talks about representing the little man, but this guy is an ex-Tory, former city banker, and privately educated. But people were desperate for an alternative that they did not look closely at what they really represent. Just looking at his future administration means that Trump supporters will be disappointed in the near future.
Now that we got neoliberalism out of way, let’s move on to political correctness. If there is proof that political correctness has failed, then President Trump is it. I understand its noble intentions. It attempted to change the world for the better by trying to tell people of the power of their words. But the problem with political correctness is that it made people censure themselves and created a false image of equality. The idea of a post-racial America pushed by the media after Obama became President is firmly rooted in political correctness. Because it is concerned with image, all political correctness did was hide racism rather than combat it. Everyone who offered an alternative point of view was considered “racist” or “sexist”. This is why we can call for safe spaces, but the Prison-Industrial Complex and Anti-Terrorism laws, which hurt black and brown people the most, are never discussed. Anyone who pointed this hypocrisy was “pulling the race card” or “social justice warrior”. The media have also promoted anyone who made ethnic minorities and liberals look bad. Why do you think Anjum Choudary was given constant media appearances despite his bigotry? As a result, the bigots have become empowered and presented themselves as “martyrs” and “opponents of political correctness”. Instead of combating prejudice, political correctness has become an excuse. That’s why Milo Yiannopoulous considers himself to be a victim despite his trolling and bullying. That’s why we ended up getting Donald Trump as a serious candidate and eventually president. You have to blame liberals for this one. So entrenched in this idea of a post racial world, they completely overlooked the years of subtle and institutional racism. A corrupt criminal justice system, private prison pipeline, white supremacist media, a miserable education system. Trump becoming President exposed Americans’ true feelings about racism. White people predominantly voted for Trump. Young and Old, Men and Women, rich, middle class and poor, educated and uneducated. Either they believe the racist rhetoric or they knew Trump is racist but did not give a fuck about it. Political Correctness is to blame because all it did was hide racism rather than tackle it. The only way racism can be really tackled is through honest dialogue and debate.
Finally, there is celebrity culture. Ever since the 90s, people have being idolising celebrities to the point where they are treated like Gods. Reality TV has infected every single aspect of society. No wonder the Kardashians are treated like Royalty. No wonder Kanye West is the egomaniac that he is today. We have seen the rise of Instragram thots due to all the simps. Then there is Donald Trump. He was the presenter and executive producer of the Apprentice. I knew that celebrity culture will come back to bite us. I actually thought that Americans were wise enough not to allow this kind of candidate to end up getting power, but I was wrong. Say what you will about Ronald Reagan, but he was governor before he became president. Trump had no experience whatsoever. Now that he became president, Kanye West 2020 does not seem so unrealistic. God help us all!