Friday, December 26, 2025

Our Mess Is the Fault of the Voters

Republican pollster Kristen Soltis Anderson runs focus groups and talks to voters all the time. She has noted a peculiarity with respect to voting. What the voters say they want and how they vote are often in conflict.

Posted by A_Friend at 11:30 AM | 12 COMMENTS | permalink

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whoops www.washingtonpost.com/health/2025/ ...

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-- Adam Serwer (@adamserwer.bsky.social) Dec 8, 2025 at 9:48 AM

Comments

snip ...

n the focus groups, voters tell her over and over how they hate how divided the country has become and how nasty politics now is. They want to change it. They really do. In the 13 federal elections from 2000 onward, 11 times either at least one chamber of Congress or the White House changed hands. Only in 2004 and 2012 did nothing change.

Why do we keep ratcheting up the toxicity when most people hate it? In marketing, this divide is known as "stated preferences" vs. "revealed preferences." It is the difference between what people say they want and what they actually want. For example, people say they hate how the airlines cram them in like sardines, give them a small packet of pretzels for dinner, and nickel and dime them on everything (didn't bring your own seat belt? Fine. We can rent you ours for $10). But the people actually buy the cheapest tickets, which pushes the airlines to reduce services in order to offer the lowest fares.

#1 | Posted by A_Friend at 2025-12-25 11:08 AM

snip ...

When it comes to elections, people in focus groups say they want honest, truthful, and caring leaders who will bring the country together. Then they vote for the most extreme candidate their party offers. Politicians know this, so in many primaries, the candidates compete to be the most extreme. Both sides do it. Republicans are legendary for doing this, and take their extremes to particularly extreme places, but the blue team does it as well. Just watch the primary for NY-12, which stretches from Union Square to the northern end of Central Park in midtown Manhattan. There Republican-turned-temporary-Democrat George Conway and JFK's grandson, Jack Schlossberg, will spend the next 6 months each claiming they HATE Donald Trump with the heat of 100 suns, no 1,000 suns, no make that 10,000 suns, no, I bid 100,000 suns. Working together with him for the good of the country? Are you out of your mind?

Many voters actually feel that unity is a luxury good. When the other side comes to its senses, we can try it, but first they have to be crushed into submission. Then we can talk unity. When Texas drew a new congressional map, did Christians in California turn the other cheek? Are you kidding? When Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA) mocked Trump on eX-Twitter and made him look like a fool, did Democrats scold him? No, they made him the (temporary) frontrunner for 2028. This is a revealed preference. Yet when polled, 87% of Democrats and 85% of Republicans say the country is near a breaking point. But when they vote, they choose to make it worse. (V)

#2 | Posted by A_Friend at 2025-12-25 11:09 AM

If people didn't vote against theirs self interests there would be no Republican party

#3 | Posted by LegallyYourDead at 2025-12-26 12:55 AM

One day my son asked how this could have happened. "He must have cheated," He said. I said if the past is prologue then he probably did. But not enough to win or someone would have noticed.

Americans made this choice. And we have to live with it for four (only 2 more!) years. And then spend decades recovering. This is why elections matter. I do hope America has learned her lesson. But we'll see!

Gratz America on choosing the Great FAFO.

History will probably not be kind to us for it. Instead of the Greatest Generation we will be referred to as the FAFO Generation.

#4 | Posted by donnerboy at 2025-12-26 11:58 AM

Talking about choice, in Okiehomie voters can still check a box to vote straight party ballot. A few years ago that's how they elected Ryan Walter's as superintendent of education, knowing little about him. Once elected Walters ran roughshod over education in the Sooner or Later State, sending educational achievement from #48 to #50 in three years. A few months ago he was finally forced from office, leaving public education in the state a generation behind the rest of the nation.

Voters in Oklahoma wonder why their state is such a backward place, yet they keep voting for leaders who keep the transmission of the state in neutral, when they cannot force it into reverse ...

#5 | Posted by catdog at 2025-12-26 12:58 PM

makes perfect sense that legallysuxdix is first to respond to Curly Howard ( HANS )

it was the dnc screaming about threat to democracy as they forced biden out and went into a backroom

and selected an illiterate ---- because the money said to....

and not giving a F about women and children raped and murdered by animals allowed in by the brain

dead ------.....and men in dresses covering a penis and ------- and all that stuff "you people"

love...

and can't leave out running a pansy arse twinkled toe closet tampon salesman who let the biggest

city in state burn so as not to upset supporters of a drug running/ drug addict/ thief-rapist.

---and then lying from beginning to end...from Russia to 60 mins to ....well you know the rest

and you know I"m right.....you're just too stupid or dishonest to admit it

AND WHY DID DEMS BLOCK THE BIG REPORT ON 2024.....BWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

#6 | Posted by shrimptacodan at 2025-12-26 04:13 PM

George Carlin went over this 30 years ago.
www.youtube.com

#7 | Posted by morris at 2025-12-26 06:09 PM

The Worst Generation

#8 | Posted by hamburglar at 2025-12-26 08:52 PM

This is both-sidesism on steroids.

#9 | Posted by zarnon at 2025-12-26 09:23 PM

Shrimpdork is saving up for a MAGAT helmet to protect the (rather large) soft spot on his noggin.

#10 | Posted by LegallyYourDead at 2025-12-27 03:13 PM

And we have to live with it for four (only 2 more!) years. And then spend decades recovering.

I mean, I admire your optimism that we'll actually have legitimate elections to depose these fools. I don't personally expect to.

But let's say, for the sake of argument, that we do have legit elections that boot these clowns.

I love that you still think we'd have decades of clear thinking follow up elections to fix the messes being made now.

I give it one, two elections tops before the long-standing consequences of this idiocy are pointed to as reasons to not vote Dem and the idiot voters will believe it.

#11 | Posted by jpw at 2025-12-28 12:12 AM

@#11 ... I mean, I admire your optimism that we'll actually have legitimate elections to depose these fools. I don't personally expect to. ...

Pres Trump seems to be actively, and vocally, working to prevent future elections from mattering.

Trump tells Christians they won't have to vote after this election (July 2024)
www.reuters.com

... Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told Christians on Friday that if they vote for him this November, "in four years, you don't have to vote again.

We'll have it fixed so good, you're not gonna have to vote." ...

[emphasi mine]

#12 | Posted by LampLighter at 2025-12-28 12:36 AM

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