(November 9, 2016 at 5:04 pm)Pandæmonium Wrote: But other than that I would be in a broader agreement with you. Alas the US is too alien a political beast for me to form a proper narrative. This election shows that, to a large degree of people, central and perhaps 'left' leaning liberalism isn't important to them.
According to polls at least the younger generations lean to liberalism. At least on social matters. The outcome of this election, while not entirely surprising as far as I am concerned, is rather down to the democrats not taking advantage of the situation they were presented with by nominating a total corporate shill as an alternative to a loudmouth. It also points to a general problem, which doesn't make American politics seem that alien. It's an anti establishment sentiment on a global level. The problem with that, the extreme right has conquered that field - also on a near global level.
History is repeating itself in the wake of the big crash in 2008. We find ourselves in the same situation as our grandparents in the 30ies. Many people have little hope for the future. They also have little hope for their children building a better life for themselves. Populous politicians take advantage of that very real problem and channel the already existing resentments in their desired direction.
I hope for a better outcome than our ancestors had to deal with, but these days I remember what my parents told me about the times when they were teens. The events leading up to the rise of the fascists all over Europe. Such as the cops suddenly being the first to wear a swastika on their arms, shortly before Hitler crossed the borders. They were his fifth column already and even now hardly a day goes by without another cop being revealed to be a neo nazi or belonging to some other far right fringe group. In Germany as well as Austria.
No, the political left is dead for a long time. The right has taken the field. Unopposed and mostly unquestioned. People don't ask what benefits a rightwing government could possibly bring them. But we already see the results. In Hungary as well as Poland where they cracked down on freedom of the press as well as the checks and balances installed by the particular constitutions.
I had some hopes when Obama was elected in 2008, but for the first time in living memory, American politics doesn't look like an alien beast to me. The continents are coming together in a shared wave of resentments and negativity. In short in the most undesirable but not totally unexpected way.