And They're Off! The Democratic Candidates for 2020

[dissily Mordentroge]

They have, and have concluded it's outweighed by the savings of having most of the poorest people die before they can start collecting social security paychecks or any other government benefits, plus the benefit of having a working class that's too poor and sick (or dependent on employer-provided insurance) to go on strike or organise for its own interests—thereby keeping wages low and profits high. The healthcare situation in the USA is not a mistake; it's entirely calculated. It just so happens that the wealthiest 10% or so of Americans are all utter sociopaths.

Totally agree with your diagnosis of 'sociopaths' but suggest the accounting they've indulged in focuses on what they imagine to be their selfish benefit, not the economic cost to the entire nation of having so many capable citizens unable to work or work below their full capacity.
I find it somewhat jarring to read '. . . . . . . the benefit of having a working class that's too poor and sick'  . . . . . when the US system can very quickly demote middle class citizens status ( if that's what it is) to that of working class or 'unable to work class'. Essentially I suspect we have a similar view of all this it's just our understanding of the details is different. I admit too it's very difficult for me to get my head around the American 'system' of healthcare.

[amw]

I find it somewhat jarring to read '. . . . . . . the benefit of having a working class that's too poor and sick'  . . . . . when the US system can very quickly demote middle class citizens status ( if that's what it is) to that of working class or 'unable to work class'.

Apologies for the lack of clarity—I don't think there is such thing as a "middle class" because of my political views (currently the forum's only communist) but it is common parlance & I should be better at adjusting the way I speak to social setting. (Nonetheless I still recommend everyone read Capital.) I think we agree otherwise.

[Todd]

It just so happens that the wealthiest 10% or so of Americans are all utter sociopaths.

What differentiates utter sociopaths from regular sociopaths?  And are any psychopaths mixed in the top decile?  Inquiring minds.

[amw]

What differentiates utter sociopaths from regular sociopaths?  And are any psychopaths mixed in the top decile?  Inquiring minds.

An utter sociopath is someone in the top 10% (every single member of which is probably a pedophile, war criminal, corporate shareholder, #MeToo accusee, cop, and/or perennial bootlicker). A regular sociopath is someone in the next 10% down who aspires to become part of the top 10%, and a psychopath is anyone from the bottom 80% who acts like people in the top 10% but doesn't have the privilege to stay out of jail for it. Technical psychology terms.

[Todd]

An utter sociopath is someone in the top 10% (every single member of which is probably a pedophile, war criminal, corporate shareholder, #MeToo accusee, cop, and/or perennial bootlicker). A regular sociopath is someone in the next 10% down who aspires to become part of the top 10%, and a psychopath is anyone from the bottom 80% who acts like people in the top 10% but doesn't have the privilege to stay out of jail for it. Technical psychology terms.

Thanks for clearing that up.  It will help when visiting less intellectually rigorous sites than this one.

[amw]

No problem, always happy to raise the intellectual level with all my very true and correct takes.

[dissily Mordentroge]

Apologies for the lack of clarity—I don't think there is such thing as a "middle class" because of my political views (currently the forum's only communist) but it is common parlance & I should be better at adjusting the way I speak to social setting. (Nonetheless I still recommend everyone read Capital.) I think we agree otherwise.

'Forums only communist' could cover a multitude of sins. I was briefly under the spell of Marxism in my early teens . My view in my dottage is that no single ideology can protect our species from it's advancing self distruction until and unless the central core of human nature is admitted to and altered.
( Arthur Koestler's 'The Ghost in The Machine' refers )The chances of that happening are sadly worse than minimal. I lost track of Marxism around the time I read Émile Durkheim having been diverted by, of all things, Ayn Rand's 'Objectivism' whose political philosophy I now reject. I still hold to the central tenets of her epistemology though in that I believe we are capable of knowing reality. Problem is we find that far too challenging especially in the context of what we are as a species. You may disagree I suspect but I claim the worst aspect of this is manifest in our collective behavior, especially when mindless tribalism mixes with either nationalism, religion & rigid ideologies or any combination of those.

I appreciate your clarification of the middle class/working class classification. In Australia and other 'advanced ' nations class snobbery has seen the working class re-classify themselves as middle class only to discover the resultant castration of trade unions etc has seen them pushed further down the economic ladder.

This discussion, although taking place in the context of a US election thread, should I suspect be undertaken elsewhere.

[dissily Mordentroge]

Thanks for clearing that up.  It will help when visiting less intellectually rigorous sites than this one.

Very tempting to throw a brick in the wasp's nest with that one but I desist.

Can I politely suggest more intellectual rigour would be attained by a brief reading of https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-intropsychmaster/chapter/diagnosing-and-classifying-psychological-disorders/ ?

[SimonNZ]

Bernie Sanders' message increasingly resonates with Latino voters
As growing numbers of Latinos are voting, Sanders has gained their support in California simply by outworking the competition

[...]"Latino turnout has historically lagged behind other voting groups, but that appears to be changing under Trump. Latino turnout in the 2018 midterms hit 11.7m, nearly doubling from 2014, according to figures from Pew Research. A statewide poll released by LCF and Latino Decisions, which conducts research on political opinions, found that a historic 74% of registered Latino voters said they were certain they were going to vote in the 3 March presidential primary.

Organizers and political observers say Sanders has taken the lead simply by outworking the competition – putting boots on the ground and opening five offices across the state since June, with plans to open 10 to 15 more by the year's end.

"We are knocking on doors others haven't knocked on before. The campaign has focused on really meeting people where they're at," said Anna Bahr, California press secretary for Bernie Sanders 2020. "We've got an office in the Central Valley, where no one else has really touched."

The stakes are high for Democratic candidates. California has 400 pledged delegates, more than any other state, which means that any candidate who wins California is boosted toward winning the nomination to represent the Democratic party. The fact the state now votes early in the process amplifies the spoils, setting them in a leadership position for the remainder of the primary.

Sanders narrowly lost the state to Hillary Clinton in 2016, but political observers say the fact that he ran once before will help Sanders' name recognition this time around.

And with a record share of the 7.7 million eligible Latino voters expected to turn out for the 3 March election, the largest share of those votes already expected to go to Sanders, the Vermont senator sits in a coveted spot.

Latinos in California have a long history of organizing social and political movements that have made real change, uniting around the rights of farm workers and pushing for civil rights.

In Sanders, Latinos see the grit and scrappiness that's propelled their own causes, said Bahr, the campaign press secretary. "They've seen the black and white photos of Bernie and I think they recognize someone who's an organizer and someone who's been on the picket lines. His campaign has always been about mobilizing working class people. He appeals to people who want to see real change against a system that's worked against them."

Bahr said the campaign has 40 staffers pounding the pavement in the state, has held more than 3,000 events and made contact with more than eight million potential voters. She estimates Sanders' California operation is two or three times bigger than that of any other candidates'.

Latinos make up 80 of the 400 staffers Sanders' campaign has on the ground nationally, according to the New York Times. And that represetation keeps issues relevant to Latinos in focus says Christain Arana, LCF policy director.

"If you're hiring Latinos on your staff, if you're talking about the issues we care about, and you're talking directly to us, of course you're going to rise to the top of the polls – and you just might win the primary," Arana said.

Talking about the issues that matter to Latinos means not focusing exclusively on immigration, Arana says."[...]

[Todd]

Very tempting to throw a brick in the wasp's nest with that one but I desist.

Can I politely suggest more intellectual rigour would be attained by a brief reading of https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-intropsychmaster/chapter/diagnosing-and-classifying-psychological-disorders/ ?

Whiff.

[Karl Henning]

Bernie Sanders' message increasingly resonates with Latino voters
As growing numbers of Latinos are voting, Sanders has gained their support in California simply by outworking the competition

[...]"Latino turnout has historically lagged behind other voting groups, but that appears to be changing under Trump. Latino turnout in the 2018 midterms hit 11.7m, nearly doubling from 2014, according to figures from Pew Research. A statewide poll released by LCF and Latino Decisions, which conducts research on political opinions, found that a historic 74% of registered Latino voters said they were certain they were going to vote in the 3 March presidential primary.

Organizers and political observers say Sanders has taken the lead simply by outworking the competition – putting boots on the ground and opening five offices across the state since June, with plans to open 10 to 15 more by the year's end.

"We are knocking on doors others haven't knocked on before. The campaign has focused on really meeting people where they're at," said Anna Bahr, California press secretary for Bernie Sanders 2020. "We've got an office in the Central Valley, where no one else has really touched."

The stakes are high for Democratic candidates. California has 400 pledged delegates, more than any other state, which means that any candidate who wins California is boosted toward winning the nomination to represent the Democratic party. The fact the state now votes early in the process amplifies the spoils, setting them in a leadership position for the remainder of the primary.

Sanders narrowly lost the state to Hillary Clinton in 2016, but political observers say the fact that he ran once before will help Sanders' name recognition this time around.

And with a record share of the 7.7 million eligible Latino voters expected to turn out for the 3 March election, the largest share of those votes already expected to go to Sanders, the Vermont senator sits in a coveted spot.

Latinos in California have a long history of organizing social and political movements that have made real change, uniting around the rights of farm workers and pushing for civil rights.

In Sanders, Latinos see the grit and scrappiness that's propelled their own causes, said Bahr, the campaign press secretary. "They've seen the black and white photos of Bernie and I think they recognize someone who's an organizer and someone who's been on the picket lines. His campaign has always been about mobilizing working class people. He appeals to people who want to see real change against a system that's worked against them."

Bahr said the campaign has 40 staffers pounding the pavement in the state, has held more than 3,000 events and made contact with more than eight million potential voters. She estimates Sanders' California operation is two or three times bigger than that of any other candidates'.

Latinos make up 80 of the 400 staffers Sanders' campaign has on the ground nationally, according to the New York Times. And that represetation keeps issues relevant to Latinos in focus says Christain Arana, LCF policy director.

"If you're hiring Latinos on your staff, if you're talking about the issues we care about, and you're talking directly to us, of course you're going to rise to the top of the polls – and you just might win the primary," Arana said.

Talking about the issues that matter to Latinos means not focusing exclusively on immigration, Arana says."[...]

Most interesting. Good on him.

[JBS]

What's your point? That can be said of each and every candidate.

There are actually very few of whom I think I  would say that.

[SimonNZ]

Really? Which ones would you not let babysit your kids?

[dissily Mordentroge]

Whiff.

Not being a citizen of the Land of the Brave and the Free I had to look that up as I have no knowledge of baseball terminology which I presume is the meaning you intended.

[JBS]

Really? Which ones would you not let babysit your kids?

Most of them give me the vibe that they would feel too busy or too important to actually watch the kids:  Harris, Warren, Sanders, Gabbard, Beto, Steyer would fail.  Booker would okay by this test, so would Yang. Williamson would obviously be too loopy.  Most of the others are too insubstantial for me to form a usable impression.

[dissily Mordentroge]

Most of them give me the vibe that they would feel too busy or too important to actually watch the kids:  Harris, Warren, Sanders, Gabbard, Beto, Steyer would fail.  Booker would okay by this test, so would Yang. Williamson would obviously be too loopy.  Most of the others are too insubstantial for me to form a usable impression.

Buttigieg insubstantial? Maybe the common delusion all gays are pedophiles is in operation here despite the fact the majority of child sex abuse happens to be inflicted by male family members within the home. Granted I doubt Mayor Pete would think he had time to take on baby sitting for some time but his husband could step in or would he too be subject to the usual delusion all male homosexuals are potential pedophiles?
Me, I'd take Chasten or Pete as baby sitters anytime, they could even bring their dogs along so long as they didn't start reading scripture to the little ones.

[JBS]

Buttigieg insubstantial? Maybe the common delusion all gays are pedophiles is in operation here despite the fact the majority of child sex abuse happens to be inflicted by male family members within the home. Granted I doubt Mayor Pete would think he had time to take on baby sitting for some time but his husband could step in or would he too be subject to the usual delusion all male homosexuals are potential pedophiles?
Me, I'd take Chasten or Pete as baby sitters anytime, they could even bring their dogs along so long as they didn't start reading scripture to the little ones.

No, no, you may remember the original comment was that Buttigieg was one of the few  whom  I would trust to watch my kids!  That's why I didn't mention him in this comment.

[greg]

An utter sociopath is someone in the top 10% (every single member of which is probably a pedophile, war criminal, corporate shareholder, #MeToo accusee, cop, and/or perennial bootlicker). A regular sociopath is someone in the next 10% down who aspires to become part of the top 10%, and a psychopath is anyone from the bottom 80% who acts like people in the top 10% but doesn't have the privilege to stay out of jail for it. Technical psychology terms.

If that's the case then perhaps the just thing is to burn down all of civilization.

Once we do that and start living in tribes and small villages, we might notice that the sociopaths will pop up again. In the case, we should all burn down our own villages and wipe out humanity.

Especially bad are the #MeToo accusees, they are all guilty by default, for sure. Hashtags are a magical connection to the truth of the universe, after all.

[Florestan]

currently the forum's only communist apologist for mass-murderers such as Stalin, Mao, Castro and Hamas.

Fixed.

[Madiel]

Fixed.

LOL. Hamas is not communist.  The original Hamas Charter blames Jews for communism.