5 Comments

I'm not sure it's solvable within the current generation of people who predominantly vote. At least in America, where the left would love to deliver economic benefits that would measurably improve the lives of all citizens, including those on the right (build back better).

The left can't and shouldn't deliver what the conservatives really want, which is restoring them to their place of dominance in society even at the expense of vast numbers of the left-leaning coalition (non-whites).

Where exactly are you supposed to compromise your principles - and your own supporters' rights - when reaching out to a group that contains a large number of racists?

The only solution I can see is outlasting them. Enduring another decade or so, I'm guessing, until the continuing depopulation of non-urban areas and the dying of older voters robs them of enough base that even manipulation of the democratic process can no longer save them.

At which point they'll finally be forced to give up on dominance in exchange for receiving better health care, access to child care and elder care, free community college, etc. In other words, their lives will measurably improve (but they'll still complain about it).

I would love to see an analysis of what voting patterns will look like in a decade as the non-white, educated, increasingly urbanized, citizenry continues to age into the voting population.

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Insightful comment. And on projections, that's something we can do!

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This article will provide some fascinating clues about nonwhite voters and about voting by gender and by education level. https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/what-if-only-men-voted-only-women-only-nonwhite-voters/.

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It was Ronald Reagan who began the policy of defunding public education, substituting public funding for private schools. And I am convinced that both restoring high quality public education and countering the Fox and talk radio propaganda are keys. But primarily the probability is that "civilization" will not survive our destruction of the planet, within 20 years this will all be moot.

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I disagree on the horizon of humanity, but that is another matter. On civic education I think you're on to something! (Both my mother and my wife are school teachers.)

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