my friends are almost entirely avowed liberals, so theres something of an echo chamber effect going on, but all I have heard in the wake of this election is how appalled they are that there’s enough racism, sexism, and xenophobia in this country to get Trump elected. I’ve seen that attitude in Jezebel’s coverage as…

again, I’m not proposing that the Democratic Party start condoning bigotry. I’m proposing that they dig deeper into the reasons why so many people voted for Trump rather than assuming it must be because they’re hateful. I come from a family of Trump supporters, so I’ve seen the psychology develop over the years.…

If the Democratic Party keeps rolling with it’s strategy of calling Trump supporters names it will continue to lose the white vote. it needs to find a way to bring these folks into the fold, however loathsome we may think them right now. Racists and misogynists all voted for Trump, to be sure, but they did not win him…

OK... so we accept that every Trump voter is a racist, mysoginistic moron. where does that get us? and what does it say about the millions of Democratic voters who just didn’t show up? should we make a character judgment on them too or could it be the candidate fronted by their party left them underwhelmed?

unfriending and blocking people creates echo chambers, and social media echo chambers were at least part of the reason why so many people were caught off-guard by the election. putting your head in the sand is counterproductive. Unfriending those people won’t change their minds or make them go away, it just limits…

My dad drinks barleywine in the summer. I’ve been a southerner for a long time but sometimes I miss that rust belt culture.

Like I said you can make good money and still be working class. Across the board (YMMV when it comes to individuals) they have very different lifestyles than the middle class, even if their incomes are equal. They are more likely to spend their money on status symbols rather than saving or investing it, for example.…

you’ve described the modern incarnation of the working class: tradesmen without college degrees. It’s not so much an income designation (although they *generally* trend lower and, more importantly, don’t have fixed salaries) as it is a cultural designation. A plumber or cosmetologist can make good, albeit fluctuating,…

as a native clevelander, I giggled

not a beer drinker myself, but people rave about their Christmas beer. a local cleveland-backer bar in my city got a few kegs of it for game 6 of the world series and sold out in a half hour.

I live here and have friends among the protesters... believe me when I say it was never intended to be a nonviolent demonstration. There were appreciable threats early yesterday afternoon and we were sent home from work. This is intended to be politically visible (#charlotteuprising is the protest hashtag) and of…

Nobody living in Charlotte right now (howdy neighbor) believes the “peaceful protest” bullshit. These were never intended to be peaceful protests, there were threats of violence even early yesterday afternoon. The police took the proper precaution in this case. I have friends who are among the protesters and the…

“Not a bad difference?” Why are we sticking out heads in the sand and pretending that majority black areas don’t tend to be generationally poor and crime-ridden? We can discuss the historical reasons all day but that doesn’t change the current reality. Denying the facts because white people feel guilty and don’t…

Lord, Nashville is already way too trendy and crowded with tourists and newcomers. At least build some infrastructure and housing before you invite even more people.

Most toy guns have orange nibs on them so that they don’t get confused with real guns, and this is what police typically look for. It’s common, though-- and this was the case in Tamir Rice’s case-- to paint it black to look more realistic.

If the police approach you and you are innocent, why the fuck would you run? If the police approach you and you’re not innocent, why the fuck would you run into an alley and then pull a realistic-looking fake firearm on them? None of this kid’s behavior, even under duress, makes any sense. It would never in a million…

I think there are a lot of people who are unaware of just how much opiates have ravaged certain parts of the country. This isn’t something that only happens on skid row, it’s going down in middle America. I live in a place that has been profoundly affected and the public awareness is surprisingly minimal. Hillbillies…

A *lot* of polygamous marriages involve some kind of religious or familial coercion and male ownership/exchange of young women (the father gives his daughter to her new husband and she has been raised to feel she has no choice in the matter) these types of situations are notoriously difficult to suss out, so from a…

A friend of mine did the DC tour after college. She was an organizer for some nonprofit organization, and came replete with an impressive title, an awesome business casual wardrobe, and endless anecdotes about meeting government figureheads at parties. But she got burned out. She moved back home (to Iowa of all…

Igo into men’s rooms all the time and I live in NC. When you gotta go you gotta go. I’ve yet to get arrested or see anyone give a shit.