aqquai

[aqquai]

Sorry for not posting much of anything recently. I’ve been busy with the new job. I will say having my own office with a mini fridge is starting to soften me up a bit faster. What do yall think?

If you listen carefully you can hear my tummy growl. I’ve made sure to stock my mini fridge with sodas and nutritional shakes. Have to pack on pounds some how 😜

[aqquai]

The electorate and the Democratic party establishment are so increasingly out of sync its funny. A number of voters I meet think that "Kamala Harris is too far left," and that she should be "more moderate, like Bernie Sanders."

It shows that economic policy is boadly appealing, and so is a strong anti-corruption/ anti-corporate economic messaging.

[aqquai]

The Democratic party needs drastic changes in messaging to win the next election. The party is seen as old, affulent, and out of touch with middle America.

Harris did, in part, what she attempted to: make gains in white, college educated suburbs while minimizing losses everywhere else. She did the first part relatively well.

The Democrats believed that by moving to the right on specific issues, they could win moderate suburban (generally wealthier) voters. Harris portrayed herself as tough on crime, strong on border control, and put forth means tested welfare policies. She did her best to portray herself as an extension of the status quo, and Trump as a radical.

Democrats made gains they desired: in the suburbs of Atlanta and Dallas, and shifts to the right were minimized in wealthy suburbs outside cities like Milwalkee and Austin, even as those states made hard turns to the right. In 2024, more than any other election year in recent history, voters for the Democratic candidate were comparitively wealthier and older.

It is clear that voters wanted a change to the status quo. If the Democrats want to get back the voters they lost: Hispanic and Black voters in high cost of living cities, working class voters in the rust belt, young voters, they need to acknowledge that the issues they are facing are real.

Globalization and neoliberal economic policy have led to a loss in manufacturing jobs. Poor planning has made large cities too expensive to live in. Inequality and midde class flights have led to poverty concentration in urban centers and increased crime. Job growth is strong, but most of this growth has been in lower paid service sector work: underemployement is a real issue for young voters, and they are generally worse off than previous generations. And politicians, wealthier than ever, seem more bothered by fundraising and corporate interests.

And Republicans have been able to make these issues stick to Biden-Harris.

Workers feel screwed over and overworked, and Trump is telling people that they are. He says immigrants and "coastal elites" are bringing crime and taking jobs, while Americans are being left behind. Trump, to the working class voters who left the Democrats behind, was seen authentically pointing out issues "everyones thinking about:" job loss, crime, immigration, war, and inflation. Trump's platform is short and to the point, while Harris's takes 600 words to answer one policy question.

Elections are based on vibes, and the "Vibe" of the Democratic party is that it's dominated by liberal intellectuals and party machine candidates. Policy such as student loan forgiveness, tax cuts for first-time homebuyers, etc, mean nothing to voters who never went to college and can't imagine buying a home in this economy.

If the Democrats want to move to the right on issues like crime and immigration--if they think this will better reach voters--they cannot simply just take a page out of the Republican's playbook and start talking about border security and being tough on crime. Using Republican framing will fail and will just legitimize Republican talking points.

If they want to move right on issues of immigration and crime, Democrats need to frame the issues in "Democrat" ways. Talk about the potential depressing effect immigrants have on wages. Talk about how big agribusiness loves illegal immigration because they can exploit that labor more, and this is why nothing is done. Talk about inequality and its relation to crime. Talk about how large chains have eaten away at small businesses in middle America, killing downtowns and a small town middle-class.

Democrats also must talk about issues that are generally relatable to voters and motivate their base. Issues like expensive health insurance, strong union rights, high housing costs, stagnant real wages, and money in politics.

A Republican would tell you that it was DEI, abortion, and lgbt issues that caused voters to leave the Democratic party, but I would disagree. Harris, more than Hillary, minimized her gender and focused on policy. Voters broadly agree with the democratic party on issues of abortion and lgbt, but those issues are simply not as important as the core economic issues that bring people to the polls.

I voted for Harris, but I could see her loss coming before the election started. I work with people on the ground, and they feel unheard.

[aqquai]

Being gay is lowkey really difficult. I should have thought about this beforehand

[aqquai]

This election might be the end of the 6th party system and the start of a 7th, which is extremely fascinating to me. For context:

A party system is a concept within political science concerning the system of government by political parties. In American politics, it concerns who dominates the federal government and who comprises the coalitions within the major two parties. Since about 1980, we've been in the 6th American party system. As per wikipedia:

Sixth Party System: The transition to this system appears to have begun with the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with the Democrats subsequently losing their long dominance of the South in the late 1960s, with the GOP adopting the southern strategy leading to Republican dominance as evidenced by election results.

This led to a Republican party comprised of conservative southerners, wealthy suburbanites, and small businesses, while the Democrats had a coalition of urban liberals, minority voters, and working class voters. Both were trending right on economic policy (it was the 80s and 90s), but the Republicans embraced social conservatives as part of the southern strategy.

Then, 2016 happened. Non-college educated white voters became a distinct demographic from college educated voters, moving to the Republicans and giving the election to the right-wing populist, Trump. Democrats are now not doing as well with minority voters than they did historically. In turn, Democrats have made massive ground with suburban voters and college educated white voters, historically part of the Republican coalition.

Both parties are now increasingly protectionist, especially the Republicans, and far more spendthrift.

We're entering new eras for both parties.

[aqquai]

The #1 depressing thing about this election cycle is the number of young men, both online and in person, that I have met who have decided not to vote for harris because "the Democratic Party only represets the interests of women." Somehow, one of the most milquetoast institutions in our democratic process is part of a marxist plot to end gender and attack men. If you ask them to prove this, you get a link to some Twitter profile with 2 followers who somehow represent the opinions of the entire democratic party and every woman ever.

The terrifying thing is that you can't prove these men wrong in a way they will accept. You could point such men to the Democratic Party Platform, explaining how Democrats intend to address housing prices and mental health care, and the Republicans very much do not care, but they dont care. You could explain how Republican obstructionism has made Congress incapable of doing anything, and that's why we're in this mess. No help.

Their media diet is too chock full of manosphere influences in the same way boomers will consume only Fox News and call it balanced. They like how trump upsets people. It's all aesthetics. Trump is an NFT. Truth doesn't matter.

There's a clear number of men who are angry. The Republicans will not help them.

[aqquai]

Why is it that "I dont like pancakes, so delete ur video" is the default state of the universe. Why dont people understand that if something doesnt apply to them its not about them

[aqquai]

Commission to the amazing @summericedcoffee
She asked me on Reddit to do an icon with the bi pride flag of the hottie Skylar of lovelink! So here it is!! 
I hope you like it!!

[aqquai]

you all wanted more of the sk8r grl au, but none of u expected me giving suki & zuko a ska band called “skause & effect”. i am icarus. (also i ran out of room for katara & aang, just know theyre prelaw and veterinary care respectively) 

[aqquai]

[aqquai]

[aqquai]

so I got into grad school today with my shitty 2.8 gpa and the moral of the story is reblog those good luck posts for the love of god

[aqquai]

wip kitchen

[aqquai]

~ happy bb enjoying her kitchen ~

[aqquai]

Imagine being this fucking privileged.

Here's something to understand: Biden is an unlikable, cold, tarnished candidate. He either stands for nothing, or, given his segregationist and homophobic history, on the side of conservativism. Either way, he stands against real progress.

The material conditions of my immediate circle, of Queer, struggling, POC will not be improved by electing a deteriorating segregationist to any office. We do not trust him to put forth anti-racist policy to directly attack the inequalities that caused trump, and that perpetuate suffering. Trying to guilt voters into voting for a rapist is not an campaign strategy. All this candidate has stood for was opportunism, "civility," and conservativism. He supported the iraq war. He put forth the 1996 crime bill. He defended DOMA and don't ask don't tell.

What people like me NEED is to be liberated. We need healthcare. We need housing. People are fucking dying, and this p a n d e m i c, like all things in this hell country, will hit people like me, poorer POC, the hardest.

[aqquai]

[aqquai]

You usually play better than that. 

New year, new update for Paper Trail! Seems like this puzzle wasn’t quite as successful as the previous one, unfortunately!

Thanks for sticking with this comic as it continues into 2020! A new part will be along soon!

- Paper Trail -

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