25 replies to this topic

[Stevphfeniey]

See thread title. If you're not American or are a child who would you have voted for and why?

 

Discuss in small groups. 

[Bradimir]

Alex Jones of Austin, Texas, our Lord and Savior. Subscribe to INFOWARS.COM today to become a rare breed of enlightened individual. 

 

[Zacca]

Well, as a Brazilian is hard to get information about US candidates based on our media because on one side we have Globo Group, the largest media group of Latin America, is totally anti-Trump, they treat him like Hitler; of course, I know most things he do and say aren't things you would expect from a president, so Trump wouldn't be my vote.

On the other hand, all other media says Hillary would be the worst thing that could happen to the United States, and that she's the same as Dilma Rousseff in Brazil, and they put Trump as an example of the perfect president.

There's no middle ground, so for the lack of consistent information, I wouldn't vote for both. (I know this kind of things and news are even worse in the US, but as US citizens, you can have plenty more information than me )

About the other candidates, well, they were barely mentioned.

But thank god there is the internet and I don't have to depend on Brazilian television to get all my information. So I read about the other candidates and talked to some American friends and Brazilian friends who live in the United States and from what I've seen, I think Bernie Sanders would take my vote. I like his ideas and most of what he says agree with my ideologies. Also, I study at an Adventist School and I remember them saying Ben Carson would be a good president just because he's Adventist, but I still think Bernie Sanders is the one I would pick. Hope you don't judge me, but if you want to, remember that I'm Brazilian and I tried hard to get rid of all fake news and that kind of stuff I found

 

(By the way, I would like to ironically thanks to the United States of America for choosing Trump as your president. Now more and more the popularity of our far-right racist candidate is increasing)

[FearofFlying]

Well, as a Brazilian is hard to get information about US candidates based on our media because on one side we have Globo Group, the largest media group of Latin America, is totally anti-Trump, they treat him like Hitler; of course, I know most things he do and say aren't things you would expect from a president, so Trump wouldn't be my vote.

On the other hand, all other media says Hillary would be the worst thing that could happen to the United States, and that she's the same as Dilma Rousseff in Brazil, and they put Trump as an example of the perfect president.

There's no middle ground, so for the lack of consistent information, I wouldn't vote for both. (I know this kind of things and news are even worse in the US, but as US citizens, you can have plenty more information than me )

About the other candidates, well, they were barely mentioned.

But thank god there is the internet and I don't have to depend on Brazilian television to get all my information. So I read about the other candidates and talked to some American friends and Brazilian friends who live in the United States and from what I've seen, I think Bernie Sanders would take my vote. I like his ideas and most of what he says agree with my ideologies. Also, I study at an Adventist School and I remember them saying Ben Carson would be a good president just because he's Adventist, but I still think Bernie Sanders is the one I would pick. Hope you don't judge me, but if you want to, remember that I'm Brazilian and I tried hard to get rid of all fake news and that kind of stuff I found

 

(By the way, I would like to ironically thanks to the United States of America for choosing Trump as your president. Now more and more the popularity of our far-right racist candidate is increasing)

 

Our system of governance is based loosely on the theory of the golden mean. It was always meant to over-correct, as nature does, in what is mathematically assumed is the most stable form of long term growth. Meaning our electoral college assures there will never really be a popular, "middle" option, like most European methods. Middle options tend to mean nothing actually gets done, whereas our method of organizing tends to have an effect of doing and undoing that in the long run outperforms one that is ineffective at doing anything at all.

 

 

For the record I think politics is a subject that tends to devolve into ugliness and disrespect on message boards, but I do appreciate reading your Brazilian perspective and found it honest and refreshingly accurate.  

[EthansInControl]

I knew early on that the election favored Donald Trump. 

[PingPong]

Didn’t vote because I’m Argentine-British but I would have gone Green because Trump and the GOP are awful, I don’t trust Hillary, and the Libertarian party are a load of idiots, IMO. I vote Green or Labour (Democrats but more left) in the UK. Argentina is a bit more difficult. For president, it’s the right or the third position, so I support Justicialist, who are third position. For congress (both houses), I support FPV, technically a section of the Justicialists, but there’s a bit of drama to do with the Kirchners, so they run seperately for congress and are centre-left.

[bAnderson]

I know my family voted for our President and I would have too. Hillary was out of touch with what we Western New Yorkers needed. We don't care about increasing healthcare, I lived 16 years of my life without insurance and the only reason we have it now is because my mother got a job as a teacher. We definitely don't care about gun control, many of us have guns, know how to use them safely, and know that it's a good way to prevent crime. As for other parties, green party goes against our ideals, not because it's eco-friendly but because it imposes restrictions that cost more in a place that's already having a failing economy. Libertarians, in my opinion, are clueless as a party, we did a project on them and I found many humorous policies on their site. Besides, third parties would not have won in this election. Trump, however, was the first decent GOP candidate since Obama ran. He planned on changing things and helping out the rural areas like mine, which is evidenced by any election map. So far we haven't received much help from the government but we haven't been negatively affected like we were during the Obama administration. Our economy as a town, county, and even part of the state is failing and the only thing that can really help us is for the State to get out of the way. New York City and Western New York are opposites in every way, and there are hundreds of thousands of western New Yorkers fighting for thousands of jobs. What we really need from the president, or any president, is someone who will influence business to bring jobs to our area. Amazon was close to putting their HQ2 in Buffalo, and we need more companies to actually move here and help the economy rebound. Basically the reason we voted for Trump is because he promised to help out people like us and was not going to introduce policies that would make our economy even worse.

[Stevphfeniey]

I voted for Jill Stein because I like wasting people's time with asinine garbage

[Pineair]

The rest of the world, that is all countries that do not participate in the World Series, found it difficult to understand how it came about that Clinton & Trump were the best two candidates for the presidency of The USA.

Your electoral process is flawed but you will never change it. Had you, for example, applied the system used in France then the final two candidates would have included Bernie and he would now be President.

You could of course always give up your independence and become part of the United Kingdom. There will of course be conditions. You will have to start driving on the left hand side of the road, and learn to spell correctly such words as 'colour' and to pronounce words such as 'aluminium'correctly. Oh and give up your right to bear arms

[PingPong]

Tbh they haven't done very well out of the right to bear arms, have they?

[Jamesthomeson]

Lol, I remember some guy gave me a card in a subway station about the green party. I went to their website and their policies seemed okay, and at the time they sounded much better than the asses and pachyderms so I would've went with Jill Stein.

[FearofFlying]

You could of course always give up your independence and become part of the United Kingdom. There will of course be conditions. You will have to start driving on the left hand side of the road, and learn to spell correctly such words as 'colour' and to pronounce words such as 'aluminium'correctly. Oh and give up your right to bear arms

 

I would suggest that you dispose of your Monarchy once and for all, God save the Queen, and join us as new oh say... 5 new states?

[G.J.]

I wasn't able to vote last election, I was too young. I would've had to vote for Hillary and hope she got impeached right away, because the person she chose as Vice President would've made a decent president. If Bernie Sanders was to become the democratic candidate, I would've voted for Trump without any second thoughts. Bernie's ideas like raising minimum wage and giving a payout to those losers that are capable of working (yet they don't) is terrible. Taxes would be WAY too high - it'd send more people into poverty, and it wouldn't be a fair system because it'd force hard workers like my parents to basically pay a basement dweller for doing nothing. In other words, Bernie Sanders is basically a communist. As far as other republican candidates though, I would've had to choose Marco Rubio simply because as far as I remember I agreed with his points the most and he didn't act like a toddler (Trump). 

 

Ugh, if it were possible, I would've voted a dog into office over either Trump or Clinton.

[PingPong]

I wasn't able to vote last election, I was too young. I would've had to vote for Hillary and hope she got impeached right away, because the person she chose as Vice President would've made a decent president. If Bernie Sanders was to become the democratic candidate, I would've voted for Trump without any second thoughts. Bernie's ideas like raising minimum wage and giving a payout to those losers that are capable of working (yet they don't) is terrible. Taxes would be WAY too high - it'd send more people into poverty, and it wouldn't be a fair system because it'd force hard workers like my parents to basically pay a basement dweller for doing nothing. In other words, Bernie Sanders is basically a communist. As far as other republican candidates though, I would've had to choose Marco Rubio simply because as far as I remember I agreed with his points the most and he didn't act like a toddler (Trump).

Ugh, if it were possible, I would've voted a dog into office over either Trump or Clinton.

The welfare state does pretty well, actually, because even working people get money back for various things, and healthcare is free.

[PingPong]

I would suggest that you dispose of your Monarchy once and for all, God save the Queen, and join us as new oh say... 5 new states?

Considering the UK is officially the 3 countries which make up GB and the province of NI, I'm interested to hear what state #5 would be. You didn't think that the ROI was a part of the UK, did you?

[FearofFlying]

Considering the UK is officially the 3 countries which make up GB and the province of NI, I'm interested to hear what state #5 would be. You didn't think that the ROI was a part of the UK, did you?

 

 

 

I was counting the 4 countries of the UK, but England should be split into 2 states... which would give you 5 total. Do you really expect Wales, Scotland, and NI to have the same say in things

 

 

Interestingly enough... I think this has actually been discussed. Long term, like 100+ years timescale... we would all be better off back together again under the same government. 

[PingPong]

I was counting the 4 countries of the UK, but England should be split into 2 states... which would give you 5 total. Do you really expect Wales, Scotland, and NI to have the same say in things
 
 
Interestingly enough... I think this has actually been discussed. Long term, like 100+ years timescale... we would all be better off back together again under the same government.

Issues:
1.) We hate Trump.
2.) The 50 fatter states would dominate us in politics.
3.) You are speaking colonially about diving England. Explain exactly how you’d divide it without causing mass protests.
4.) Your electoral system is messed up.
5.) You haven’t even given the vote to Puerto Rico or DC, so why would we get it?
6.) Both if your parties are “right-wing”. By UK standards, the Dems are “centre to centre-right”, with some left leaning members. The GOP is “right-wing to far-right” with emphasis on the far-right. Our equivalent of the GOP, UKIP, is a joke here.
7.) We like having the welfare state, something which the USA has yet to grasp.
8.) Most Americans have no clue about the layout of the UK, or who the PM is.

I hope you have enjoyed my totally pointless list of reasons why we would never join the USA, even though it would never have happened anyway.

[FearofFlying]

Issues:
1.) We hate Trump.
2.) The 50 fatter states would dominate us in politics.
3.) You are speaking colonially about diving England. Explain exactly how you’d divide it without causing mass protests.
4.) Your electoral system is messed up.
5.) You haven’t even given the vote to Puerto Rico or DC, so why would we get it?
6.) Both if your parties are “right-wing”. By UK standards, the Dems are “centre to centre-right”, with some left leaning members. The GOP is “right-wing to far-right” with emphasis on the far-right. Our equivalent of the GOP, UKIP, is a joke here.
7.) We like having the welfare state, something which the USA has yet to grasp.
8.) Most Americans have no clue about the layout of the UK, or who the PM is.

I hope you have enjoyed my totally pointless list of reasons why we would never join the USA, even though it would never have happened anyway.

 

1. The liberal nature of the UK would swing the whole system to the left being that we are basically 50/50 as it is.

 

2. Germany & France did not dominate you in the EU ... and while yes you would less say so on national policy than the lower 48, States are basically countries. The real power is not in DC, it just appears that way from across the pond. Most things that matter in our daily lives get decided by State governments. 

 

3. People will protest over anything.

 

4. EC is beautiful. It's based on a classical math theory and is one of the main reasons our country is as prosperous as it is. It seems unfair, but the result is longer periods of stability with a majority able to pass legislation. It swings back and forth on who is in charge, but once they get there we typically don't experience gridlock like European systems.

 

5. PR just recently voted to become a state, it's always been up to them. Congress just needs to approve it now, but it's a formality that should be complete in the not so distant future. DC will never have a vote. It's tiny and practically everyone who lives there has a main residence elsewhere because they work in the government. What you see on tv being called "DC" is actually Maryland most of the time.

 

6. Your country could use a correction back to the right imo.

 

7. Welfare states are currently unsustainable long term without oil or another source of natural resource to export, but as AI and robotics put all of us out of work, the world will slowly transition to a welfare planet.

 

8. Why should we? If Britain were a single U.S. state, it would be the second-poorest, behind Alabama and before Mississippi. Do you know the governor of Mississippi is? Not to be disrespectful, but England is just way down on the list of leaders who matter. Which is why you all would be better of as states in America. 

[PingPong]

1. The liberal nature of the UK would swing the whole system to the left being that we are basically 50/50 as it is.
 
2. Germany & France did not dominate you in the EU ... and while yes you would less say so on national policy than the lower 48, States are basically countries. The real power is not in DC, it just appears that way from across the pond. Most things that matter in our daily lives get decided by State governments. 
 
3. People will protest over anything.
 
4. EC is beautiful. It's based on a classical math theory and is one of the main reasons our country is as prosperous as it is. It seems unfair, but the result is longer periods of stability with a majority able to pass legislation. It swings back and forth on who is in charge, but once they get there we typically don't experience gridlock like European systems.
 
5. PR just recently voted to become a state, it's always been up to them. Congress just needs to approve it now, but it's a formality that should be complete in the not so distant future. DC will never have a vote. It's tiny and practically everyone who lives there has a main residence elsewhere because they work in the government. What you see on tv being called "DC" is actually Maryland most of the time.
 
6. Your country could use a correction back to the right imo.
 
7. Welfare states are currently unsustainable long term without oil or another source of natural resource to export, but as AI and robotics put all of us out of work, the world will slowly transition to a welfare planet.
 
8. Why should we? If Britain were a single U.S. state, it would be the second-poorest, behind Alabama and before Mississippi. Do you know the governor of Mississippi is? Not to be disrespectful, but England is just way down on the list of leaders who matter. Which is why you all would be better of as states in America.

On point 8, I don’t know where your info came from. Our GDP PPP is $43,620 per capita, between Arizona and South Carolina, but our PPP GDP is $2.82 trillion. Not bad for a small country in North-Western Europe. However, you fail to account for the welfare state, which is working just fine, thank you. We get free healthcare from our taxes, with equates to paying about 1/3 of what an American pays per year in health insurance, but it’s flexible because it’s all on tax. We also get a state pension, and employers generally provide very good-quality private pensions, as well.

With regards to your comments on welfare states, the welfare state is not just about people who can’t be bothered to work, that’s why we have a benefit cap for non-workers who are judged to be able to work, and to not have other constraints, such as a single parent with small children who would not be able to afford enough childcare, even though many jobs give vouchers to get some of it for free.

The welfare state helps those who cannot work, due to reasons such as disabilities. It improves the quality of life for all. We pay more tax, but it’s apportioned back to make life much better than in the cut-throat economy of the USA.

The Electoral College is an awful idea, and can give you a powerless president, whereas in the UK almost all power rests with parties. The PM has very little power, none of it executive. The House of COmmons makes decisions by majority vote. The unelected House of Lords has little power, it can make suggestions to improve a law, but can only return it 3 times, or hold it back for a year and a day. If either condition is met, it cgoes straight through. Also, we don’t like the far-right here, we have more empathy than that, and we protest a lot less. If we protest we’re really annoyed about something.

The USA is far from 50/50, many of your “left” has swung right since Trump’s idiotic proposals make a lot of normal conservative USA views seem more liberal.

Finally, and most importantly, you put the @ and “ the wrong way around on the keyboard, don’t have a £ symbol, putting the # there instead, and use this § abomination.