Thanks for doing this series with Julie, it feels like a respectful reach across some sort of aisle. I find it interesting that some of the most vicious attacks on women, or at least on you Meghan, come from other women, particularly feminists. Of course, when you go into why, it makes sense (in a backwards sort of way). One of my biggest worries is that the two party system and the polarization it fosters cannot be allowed to continue if we hope for a healthy society, and I just want to say that I appreciate how you highlight the insidious problems with it.
I promise to try and make this the last thing I say/ask but is "a sane and nuanced middle, wherein conversation, listening, and debate is encouraged" even possible, or are we going to need some sort of rewrite of the whole system, where us vs them isnt really a part of the conversation? I know this is super meta but it's an idea I toy with a lot; can we fix what we have or do we need to restart from some earlier "save point" as my gamer friends might call it.
Ugh. I don't know. I mean, I feel like Andrew made a good effort, though one always wonders if these new middle grounds can get the kind of funding needed to run a successful campaign... I'm not a huge fan of the idea of 'revolution' — it seems as though 'tearing things down' tends to make things worse/not resolve the problem. In Canada, for example, I see more hope in a sort of 'liberal' Conservative Party, seeing as the Conservatives in Canada are already not very right wing. In the US, the abortion divide between left and right seems massive, which is troubling. I'm hoping we can support some good middle-ish candidates and create something decent, though I suspect those types would have to be on the Republican side, as clearly the Tulsi's can't get anywhere with the Democrats. I am not an expert on American politics, of course, so I'm sure there are people better equipped to discuss those kinds of specifics than I.
Thanks for doing this series with Julie, it feels like a respectful reach across some sort of aisle. I find it interesting that some of the most vicious attacks on women, or at least on you Meghan, come from other women, particularly feminists. Of course, when you go into why, it makes sense (in a backwards sort of way). One of my biggest worries is that the two party system and the polarization it fosters cannot be allowed to continue if we hope for a healthy society, and I just want to say that I appreciate how you highlight the insidious problems with it.
I promise to try and make this the last thing I say/ask but is "a sane and nuanced middle, wherein conversation, listening, and debate is encouraged" even possible, or are we going to need some sort of rewrite of the whole system, where us vs them isnt really a part of the conversation? I know this is super meta but it's an idea I toy with a lot; can we fix what we have or do we need to restart from some earlier "save point" as my gamer friends might call it.
Ugh. I don't know. I mean, I feel like Andrew made a good effort, though one always wonders if these new middle grounds can get the kind of funding needed to run a successful campaign... I'm not a huge fan of the idea of 'revolution' — it seems as though 'tearing things down' tends to make things worse/not resolve the problem. In Canada, for example, I see more hope in a sort of 'liberal' Conservative Party, seeing as the Conservatives in Canada are already not very right wing. In the US, the abortion divide between left and right seems massive, which is troubling. I'm hoping we can support some good middle-ish candidates and create something decent, though I suspect those types would have to be on the Republican side, as clearly the Tulsi's can't get anywhere with the Democrats. I am not an expert on American politics, of course, so I'm sure there are people better equipped to discuss those kinds of specifics than I.