Forum - View topicThe ANN Aftershow - A Letter from the Executive Editor
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dm
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Lovely messages. Thanks.
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Big Kahuna
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Bravo! Your sincerity and deep concern about the state of our nation, even within the context of what's essentially a website for cartoons, is deeply felt. Thank you. I don't post much, very few in fact, but I've in the past used strong language because of world events (i.e. Gaza genocide, Ukraine, etc.). Whatever my position was, it was no excuse to use any dividing language and now I feel ashamed. Your editorial piece really make me self reflect. Please accept my apologies.
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nyaa
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I'm liberal left wing and proud of it and as such am totally disgusted with everything Trump and his lackeys and stooges and followers etc. stand for and are trying to cram down everyone's throats. They're trying to roll back many years of advances in civil rights, women's rights, lgbt rights-basically EVERYBODY's rights. Then there's the little matter of project 2025 which involves dismantling most of the federal government and turning this country in to a dictatorship.
When I heard that the supreme court killed Roe vs. Wade 2 years ago I was shocked! Same for all the other bs decisions they've made. Can anything be done about the almost total takeover of our country by a small group of extremely loud mouthed religious zealots and all the white men who don't have any college or education more advanced than high school? According to some extensive research I've done in the weeks since the election there are lots of things that can be done such as getting involved in various rights organizations, talking and writing letters to senators, congress people and lots more activities. Just remember that no matter how depressed, disgusted and hopeless you feel there is hope. |
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TheOriginalGangsta121
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I'm very much pro-Trump and believe that there's more than enough hypocrisy and problems with neoliberalism and leftist-focused approaches and their thought process regarding economics, solving the world's problems, etc. to fill enough books to pile up to the Moon. And Lord knows I have plenty of things to point to.
But just to give one example...I highly doubt ANN's staff knows that the Biden-Harris administration wasted over 1 trillion in taxpayer revenue according to the Government Accountability Office....which is like 60% more than Trump ever did even taking all of 2020 and his Covid-19 spending into account. To me, that's pretty damning in a way Trump's conduct is not. Because the numbers always tell the real story, and the real story is ultimately a bad one for the Democrats once you actually see the full scope of their failure laid out in hard numbers. To put it bluntly...it's pretty brutal. You are all entitled to your opinions, but please think about what I just outlined and actually do your research before you gaslight me and others over social issues and try to lecture people who are struggling to pay for groceries. Not to be rude here, but you guys clearly don't have all the facts or just don't care about the economic situations of most people. If you want Democrats to win elections, you should actually try doing a good job on the issues that have the most impact on the most people. You guys and the Party you voted for lost the plot, and that's why you also lost in a landslide electorally and also the popular vote. And with those acknowledgements out of the way...focus on moving toward the future and making your case better next time. This aside, I personally don't think it does us any good to be divisive in our wonderful anime community, so I appreciate the Aftershow and everyone having an opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings. I may foundationally disagree with a lot of what you guys say and why you feel the way you do, but I will always defend your right to say it. Keep up the great work. Last edited by TheOriginalGangsta121 on Tue Dec 03, 2024 5:10 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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Gem-Bug
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Maybe just save everyone else the nausea and leave it at this, hm? 
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TheOriginalGangsta121
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Spare me the whining, please. I've saliently made the points I wanted to make. I'm not judging people for who they vote for - I'm just pointing out there are plenty of reasons why they lost. Looking away from the failures of neoliberalism is why you got Trump in the first place, and the sheer incompetency of them is why he's back again. This isn't hard to understand. Last edited by TheOriginalGangsta121 on Tue Dec 03, 2024 5:16 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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ANN_Lynzee
ANN Executive Editor
 Posts: 3053 Location: Email for assistance only |
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We (as in you and I) value different things. I am not a wealthy person, although I am fortunate that a series of decisions I made occurred under fortuitous timing that I had no way of expecting when they happened. I am a dual-income household. My husband and I make comparable wages that put us firmly in the "middle class" tax bracket. Thanks to that aforementioned timing, we were able to purchase a home in 2017 (before the housing market went through the roof, we're both 37 now). We have minimal debt because we consolidated our loans after refinancing for an even lower mortgage rate. We're not struggling, but we aren't wealthy, and thankfully, we can absorb most of the inflation costs that are occurring on everyday goods right now. But I've been much poorer, and had far less financial stability. I've been a single parent, and I've used government assistance programs. I do not have any reason to believe that Trump would in anyway benefit those who are financially struggling nor that he is motivated by any sort of empathy for those people. I don't even see a clear connection between the statement you make about poor financial accountability by the previous administration being a direct correlation of the actual financial burden placed on lower-income families. I do know the financial cost of the proposed mass deportation and tariffs being promised right now. But my letter was not about the financial aspects of the election. Because we value different things. |
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Tempest
 I Run this place.ANN Publisher  Posts: 10468 Location: Do not message me for support. |
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I don't really want to get involved in this debate. I'm not comfortable with politics on ANN, but I feel that standing up for human rights is not politics, so when my staff want to do so, or want to console people who have lost their rights or are in danger of doing so, I allow it. But I do want to point out that a significant portion of the modern progressive movement abhor neoliberalism. It's basically seen as "liberalism for conservatives," and that yes, neoliberalism has lost the plot. It's why a lot of would-be left wing voters simply don't vote (which imho is a huge mistake), because there are no options that represent them. So when you critique "neoliberalism," please understand that you are not critiquing the beliefs of the left, you are critiquing the beliefs of centrists and conservatives who want to believe that they are "liberal." That said I do agree with you that the sheer incompetency of the neoliberals that make up the majority of the democratic party is indeed why many people on the left don't want to vote for them and that is indeed why he is back again.
-t Last edited by Tempest on Tue Dec 03, 2024 5:57 pm; edited 2 times in total |
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 24225 |
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@ The OriginalGangsta121: You are correct that the main reason Harris lost was the hyper inflation that hit the US (and virtually every other developed country) thanks to Covid-19. However, the US recovered better than any other country and did so without going into recession which, of course, the Biden Administration gets no credit for given that the high prices caused by hyper inflation are still around. Biden didn't cause the issue but gets blamed for it and his administration dealt with it extremely well but gets no credit for that. That's life. Thanks to the US's two party system, the Dems can look forward to regaining power in the future because some future economic downturn (which always comes) will spoil the national mood and a "throw the bums out" sentiment will prevail. And since there will only be one option... rinse and repeat.
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dm
Subscriber Posts: 1480 |
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Here’s the Government Accounting Office report in question: https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-24-106927 It shows $281 billion in the COVID year of 2021, followed by decreasing amounts in subsequent years, such that in 2023 the amount had decreased to near trend-line of the preceding decade. Annoyingly, the GAO does not appear to have used constant dollars (accounting for inflation) in their charts. You have to click through to the 14-page PDF report to get the full story. Last edited by dm on Tue Dec 03, 2024 5:45 pm; edited 3 times in total |
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NeverConvex
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The 'improper payments' thing is kind of a weird issue to focus on IMO. There's nothing really specific to the Biden administration in it; improper payments increased at roughly the same trend as under the past few administrations, outside of a small outlier in 2021. It's a real problem that's been growing at least since the early 2000s, but it's not a problem specific to either party or any administration.
The sentiment in the ANN Letter is a nice one, although I'm not sure how much I believe avoiding divisive language is really possible (as a few posts above commented on), given how increasingly existential the issues on which people seem to disagree are. I guess we'll see, though. I certainly share the ANN staff's anxiety about the next four years. |
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TheOriginalGangsta121
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A few minor points. 1. This is not a debate about values. This is about accountability from people who are supposed to be the wonderful "alternative" to Trump, AKA the pseudo-progressive/neoliberal normal. We're talking about over a trillion dollars in literal fraud that comes out of you and I's bottom line. And I didn't even add up all the other money Biden spent on Ukraine and other things. The incompetence is stagging to the point I can't even begin to express how sad it is. https://thehill.com/opinion/4933701-biden-harris-deficit-spending/ 2. Historically, Trump only passed a small amount of the total tariffs he proposed. He seems to believe they are more useful as a negotiating tactic rather than actual policy. So the jury is out on the ones you are concerned about. For instance, he threatened tariffs on Mexico back in 2019 and didn't do it. Last edited by TheOriginalGangsta121 on Tue Dec 03, 2024 5:55 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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ANN_Lynzee
ANN Executive Editor
Posts: 3053 Location: Email for assistance only |
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No, it is a debate about values, and it isn't a minor thing. This is why we can't find a middle ground. Have a good evening. |
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TheOriginalGangsta121
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From The Hill:
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Tempest
I Run this place. ANN Publisher Posts: 10468 Location: Do not message me for support. |
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Only because you decided it was about that. The podcast was very much about values, and I believe this is a talkback thread about that podcast, so we should probably stick to the topic of the values discussed in the video ? -t |
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