"Groagun" (groagun)
03/01/2016 at 15:02 • Filed to: None
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"Groagun" (groagun)
03/01/2016 at 15:02 • Filed to: None | 4
| 18 |
If you read the first OPPOlitics article I put up, then it was obvious that I have a certain dislike for the individuals running for the soon to be vacant job at the White House.
OPPOlitics: America 2016 or 1816?
Individuals Like Rubio, Cruz, Trump and even Clinton, although I will openly admit to liking the Dems better, are all easy targets for ire from someone like me.
The truth is however, the real problem that has emerged is the ‘fully on display’ hatred shown by ‘way more Americans than I thought’ towards minority communities and immigrants.
Lady Liberty in trying, but better days.
This is a photo from around 1900 and it shows immigrants entering the harbors of NYC, seeing the Statue of Liberty and knowing they have reached the promised land: what a feeling that must have been!
These people most definitely were met with hostility, resentment and hatred that always seems to accompany the migration of any group to another area of the world.
America by no means is alone in it’s anti-immigrant stance. Take a close look at some of the EU countries and their current practices. It should disgust just about everyone how certain countries, I’m looking at you Hungary, are treating the current migration of Syrian refugees.
The geopolitical considerations of the day, in the day, are the determining factors that make all of this so hard. Syrians, middle easterners, people of brown or non white skin, and openly non christian faiths are today suffering the worst.
Add to that, Mexican or Spanish descendant peoples, Chinese or any Asian peoples mistaken as Chinese, and any host of other non white christian peoples today in America. I’m not sure it’s the place for you or the once only true place for freedom and security like it once was.
There once was a time when my ancestors, the Irish were unwelcome. We are the whitest people on Earth, next to the Scots! Again the days geopolitical concerns are what determine who you hate and want to keep out.
The symbol of America to all new peoples: those who make it to the shore and those who just dream or have dreamt. Along with the nice big statue that France gave as a gift are those words by Emma Lazarus.
All of us know that phrase:
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be breathe free,”
America has such a wealth of history and you can be so proud of it. Yet there are some nasty parts and they still live on today. America as a whole, all of you, need to come to terms with the race question in general.
Much of what I’m hearing out of the campaign for the Presidency of the United States is so disappointing and so disheartening. America is much better than any of this and all of you need to stand up and do something about it.
I understand why the candidates say what they do, they have a vested interest in doing so. They only say what they do however if it falls on receptive ears and willing votes.
America is at it’s best when both parties are strong and fighting for what they want and believe in. I’m fairly clear on what one side wants and believes in but the other? What is a Republican now? What do you stand for? What do you want? How far are you willing to go?
I really do not get just what a conservative is anymore. I’m not sure what you want. There are the old stand buys like smaller gov and reduced taxes but after that, it’s a complete and udder cluster fuck.
I like America very much, I love Americans even more. They have always proved to me to be a very good and welcoming people to be around. I expect more out of America and Americans than just about anyone else on Earth.
These people, from once you came: the immigrants, the ones who built America one brick at a time and in the face of petty old world prejudices and hatred: these are the ones to be proud of and the lesson for today’s American.
Once described as “The Great Unwashed” by Edward Bulwer-Lytton in his novel Paul Clifford in 1830, these are your ‘tired, poor huddled masses’ that built your country.
The lessons of yesterday are seemingly being ignored and a once proud nation is falling into bad old habits.
And why, you may be asking did I write this Part Deux? Well it was this, my fellow Jalops and OPPOnaughts:
I expect a slice of any population to be racist or anti-immigrant or just plain nasty towards other humans period. What has me alarmed is the seemingly larger number of Americans that fall into that category.
I do not believe there are that many but time will tell. The real killer will be apathy. Those who choose to do or say nothing in defense of what America stands for.
Apathy is what kills and enables bad men to rule the roost.
d15b
> Groagun
03/01/2016 at 15:16 |
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Let’s see here.
The Trump constituency is willing to destroy government programs in order to deny minorities of the benefits, even though they themselves participate in those programs. Then, they turn to the GOP and demand a special case be made for them in exchange for their vote in the past 30-35 years.
crowmolly
> Groagun
03/01/2016 at 15:20 |
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The country is extremely polarized right now and it will take both time and a good group of leaders to pull us back together. I don’t see anybody willing to do that.
Jonee
> Groagun
03/01/2016 at 15:22 |
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The crazy thing is that this has been going on since the birth of this country. You can read anti-immigrant screeds from as far back as the 18th century, which is pretty ironic. And there’s always been a particular group folks have felt threatened by. From the Chinese to the Irish to Italians to the Japanese, Jews, Mexicans, Middle-Easterners. It’s a never ending cycle.
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d15b
> crowmolly
03/01/2016 at 15:22 |
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Quite honestly, Americans as a whole are raised to believe “you gotta do it yourself it you want it done right” attitude.
We got together in World War 2, what is to stop us from doing the same to accomplish a true sense of shared destiny?
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crowmolly
> d15b
03/01/2016 at 15:25 |
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Lot of cult of personality stuff going on, a lot of fan flaming. Torpedoing of good leaders for trivial things. Selfishness vs. community.
All kinds of things.
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d15b
> Jonee
03/01/2016 at 15:26 |
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If you take a look at cities, old, ethnic neighborhoods (think “Little Italy, etc.) are being displaced by newcomers to the city.
The point is that the times change, with that the people, language and culture as well.
The good thing about immigration? We won’t ever have a problem like China/Japan, where the population is starting to skew older and there are less younger people.
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d15b
> crowmolly
03/01/2016 at 15:26 |
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Agreed. The GOP is morphing into something entirely new.
Mercedes Streeter
> Groagun
03/01/2016 at 15:34 |
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America today seems split in half: Those at the top who want to continue making money/rights/privileges for themselves...and those of us at the bottom who get knocked down then kicked while we’re still trying to get up.
Take this screenshot from a job website I was at today...I can’t believe I work for a place that does this on poor unsuspecting job-seekers. All of these boxes were checked by default...
Our partner sites don’t even give you a choice to uncheck a box...signing up for these “offers” is a requirement to search for a job.
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Jonee
> crowmolly
03/01/2016 at 15:37 |
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It’s actually always been pretty polarized. We did fight a civil war. I think with this media centric, always connected society we’ve built, the polarization is much more in our face all the time. FDR was really the last president with universal appeal. And, before him, you probably have to go back to Washington.
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crowmolly
> Jonee
03/01/2016 at 15:38 |
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That’s a good point. It’s much more in-your-face now.
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d15b
> Jonee
03/01/2016 at 15:54 |
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Just to speak on that note, the country itself is HUGE. Regionalism is a part of it.
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Groagun
> Mercedes Streeter
03/01/2016 at 16:01 |
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Sort of a ‘pay to work’ concept it seems. Even I occasionally fondly remember the good old days of simplicity.
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Groagun
> d15b
03/01/2016 at 16:04 |
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That’ s an excellent point and one that most people never hear about. I could write a whole other article on such dynamics and places like Japan who have openly practiced and feel such contempt for foreigners.
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Groagun
> crowmolly
03/01/2016 at 16:05 |
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Sadly, at this point in history I think you are right
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Groagun
> d15b
03/01/2016 at 16:06 |
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The irony is so thick, don’t you think?
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d15b
> Groagun
03/01/2016 at 16:10 |
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Exactly.
What you don’t hear from “small business owners” is that they love the cheap labor that have access to here. If they were to pay market-correct wages, they would go under.
It is complicated, no doubt.
pip bip - choose Corrour
> Groagun
03/02/2016 at 02:59 |
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Trump for the win
*dons flamesuit*
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Groagun
> pip bip - choose Corrour
03/02/2016 at 13:16 |
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May the apocalypse be good to you and yours!