Voters did not actually vote on food prices, which had been basically flat for a year by election time. They voted on inchoate discontent transmitted through social media - ThreadSky

whstancil.bsky.social • 6 days ago

Voters did not actually vote on food prices, which had been basically flat for a year by election time. They voted on inchoate discontent transmitted through social media

Reposted from Jane Coaston

I mean the problem is that Democrats are like “we did talk about the threat of fascism” and voters were like “but my eggs”

Comments

wisepeanut.bsky.social•5 days ago

Tell me without telling me you didn't subscribe to President Biden's tiktok account

cdpositive.bsky.social•6 days ago

Oh, come on, Will... stop trying to rewrite history!

https://news.gallup.com/poll/651719/economy-important-issue-2024-presidential-vote.aspx

pjmeow.bsky.social•6 days ago

Did you happen to visit any airport before the election? They were PACKED! All my neighbors have brand new SUVs. Did you go to the grocery store? I did, people's carts were FULL of food! It was NOT about the cost of f'ckn EGGS! Eggs were under $3 a doz. Gasoline was less than $3.50 gal. Economy? NO.

cdpositive.bsky.social•6 days ago

Well, talk to all the polls (& 34-felon & Republicans) because that's what they said, not me!

If you didn't hear people saying Biden should bring down the cost of eggs, you're lucky. I did (as I was trying to explain controlling bird flu on this app!).

fixie.bsky.social•6 days ago

People saying they are mad about the economy does not mean that real economic conditions are bad and are motivating them. It means they believe the economy to be bad.

Those are very different things, often with little relation to each other

cdpositive.bsky.social•6 days ago

Agree! And people will vote on that perception rather than on their personal lived experience.

fixie.bsky.social•6 days ago

Then I’m confused why you’re disagreeing with Stancil. He is saying essentially exactly that. People were not motivated by the economy, or food prices, they were motivated by the perception of these things as transmitted through social media

jessjessjessjessf.bsky.social•6 days ago

Right, and perceptions are driven by media and what you hear from peers. Republicans and wrecker leftists were driving those perceptions more effectively than loyalist dems, and that's why we lost.

politicsreader.bsky.social•6 days ago

coaston is not someone who will ever provide an interesting thought, common to basically everyone that has ever self described as a libertarian

sophronia.bsky.social•5 days ago

The Republicans have such a hold on the media that they can use it to create the impression of constant crises and problems which they tirelessly blame on Democrats. And most people just absorb the feeling that something is terribly wrong and blame it on whoever is in power.

meow142.bsky.social•6 days ago

Dems need to understand the power of the spectacle. They should be willing to experiment with getting attention. I honestly think they should hold rallies in deep red districts and appeal by making a fair like atmosphere. Just throw shit on the wall see what engages voters.

pjmeow.bsky.social•6 days ago

No. We're not the spectacle party. We're not here for the TV reality show like Trump. The people in this country have become very shallow, very "surface." They don't look below the surface to understand the real issues and solutions. Americans have become lazy. They want to be told how to think.

meow142.bsky.social•6 days ago

Have a festivale paid for by Dems where their candidates attend. Pay for firework displays. Have a constant presence in communities. Dems need to be your neighbor not your professor

meow142.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yea but you have to be. You can't just cede voters because that's who they are unless a line has been crossed. All I'm saying is experiment with how you interact with the american people. Dems need to find a way to reach these people without lying.

teeklin.bsky.social•6 days ago

"Your real grocery prices being 38% higher than what they were in 2019 isn't actually a thing, it's just inchoate discontent!"

Voters being too dumb to understand why things raised, that they won't ever go back down, and that Trump isn't interested in helping doesn't change their real struggle.

seejayone.bsky.social•5 days ago

We all know they voted for eggs, Will. And only eggs.

Of the egg, by the egg, for the egg.

Jeffries and Schumer saw “coup” but read it as “coop.”

tilmane.bsky.social•6 days ago

Yes that is the biggest challenge:

The success of Media plattforms which promote false claims and accusations, exaggerations and hate speech

obsidiancr0w.bsky.social•6 days ago

Right on the money.

thesarahrose.bsky.social•6 days ago

📌

snowwhitesagent.bsky.social•5 days ago

Correct

whstancil.bsky.social•6 days ago

They reported that discontent as being mad about inflation, crime, immigration - things that weren’t bad during the election but had been provided as excuses to be angry

meow142.bsky.social•6 days ago

They're chasing polls like dogs chasing cars. They need to find a way to get attention without alienating large swath of voters who hate liars and extremists which are important tools for the right

bartolomeo76.bsky.social•6 days ago

Most don't see it as an excuse but truly believe it, unfortunately.

ruthbecker.bsky.social•6 days ago

It's almost as if voters have been subject to a relentless years- long campaign of disinformation and psychological warfare meant to sow social division & weaponize social networks in service of a cult-like ideology hellbent on tanking the US dollar & overthrowing our democracy

Weird, right??

ruthbecker.bsky.social•6 days ago

So we get stories scapegoating both in-groups & out-groups, so voters might account for their sense of powerlessness & disquiet

Take QAnon, the story of a small group of extremely powerful individuals, so morally depraved they would exploit even children in their quest for power & pleasure

ruthbecker.bsky.social•6 days ago

The impulses are correct & like all good lies, there's a lot of truth there. A small group of depraved individuals HAS been exploiting us all. The barbarians HAVE been at the gates. Our fellow citizens HAVE sold us out. A drumbeat of fear, an avalanche of distractions &... here we are

ruthbecker.bsky.social•6 days ago

Personally I wish dems liberals left & progressives would accept that Trump voters were lied to, manipulated, infiltrated & victimized -- instead of sneering at those idiot MAGA bigots (which hardly builds needed bridges & trust)

PS Maybe ppl just vote for those that best conceal their contempt? 🤷‍♀️

defaultuserhandle.bsky.social•6 days ago

Every American I know seems to hate their government. So it makes sense to me that a man running on destroying it would win.

I don't think the media could have stopped this election result.

aekellner.bsky.social•6 days ago

My opinion, the election was never about the price of eggs. White men voted 60% for trump while 53% of white women voted trump. Harris was doomed from the start as she could not over come 2 huge obstacles…being black and female. The only Dem that beat trump was a white male.

aekellner.bsky.social•6 days ago

I never trusted exit polls. Ppl will never say to a pollster, or focus group that they didn’t vote Harris because of her race or sex. They used the economy, immigration or you name it as an excuse. Not saying this applies to all voters but it does to more voters than we think.

andreastocco.com•6 days ago

As a cognitive psychologist, I 100% agree. Polls cannot be taken at face value. When voters say they support a candidate "because of the economy", they are just providing the most socially acceptable replacement for an option that either (a) is not listed or (b) they are ashamed to admit.

fixie.bsky.social•6 days ago

I think that’s ascribing more malice than is there. The average person might have an idea that someone is good for the economy while having no idea what that means

andreastocco.com•6 days ago

Yes, that would be what I mean as option (a). I believe that most people fall into this category. When offering options, people might make comparative judgments using the closest proxy. They might not think that X is bad for the economy; just that Y, being a businessman, would be better.

jbraund13.bsky.social•6 days ago

People wanted to return to the Trump years before COVID as a way of forgetting the trauma they went through.

Trump gave them the best shot at that.

cesarferraro.bsky.social•6 days ago

Republicans have had an advantage in being perceived as better at managing the economy for many years, long before the rise of social media. The post-Covid inflation spike has made more people prioritize the management of the economy, and that worked in Republicans’ favor.

cesarferraro.bsky.social•6 days ago

The fact that inflation had gone down by November doesn’t change the fact that there was a giant spike in inflation that led people to have negative feelings about the economy. Even now under Trump, people are still saying that prices are too high.

amazondelivery.bsky.social•5 days ago

you’re definitely underplaying how bad inflation was. Just because the inflation cooled doesn’t mean that it stopped having an effect on people. Those high prices stayed and people wanted them down. not flat, down.

rkolozsvari.bsky.social•5 days ago

listen, i like paying less for things as much as anyone else, but the reality of deflation is recession, or even full on economic depression. if i get laid off, those lower prices won't do much good.

ofc, Trump is pushing towards both inflation and recession, so maybe we just all get fucked!

Comments

Posting Rules

Reply