MIGNAL":w1ikd69m said:
Trumps support amongst the wealthier educated white population was much better than predicted, so it wasn't just the poor underclass that voted for him. That also could be a reflection on Clinton being somewhat of a flawed candidate though.
I also have a sneaking suspicion that we've entered another world. It's what I term the anti science. Gove's comment summed it up brilliantly, we are fed up of experts. Youtube is full of conspiracy theories, many of which are frighteningly ridiculous. There seems to be a small but unhealthy number of people who are rejecting science and reasoning, whilst sat in their warm centrally heated rooms, sat in front of their technologically advanced computers and iphones. They would rather put their faith in Trump though. Strange world.
But also don't forget that a fair chunk of wealthy and educated are just going to vote republican regardless the (idiocy) candidate. It's the party they believe gives them the greatest benefit. I must say I did have a rather surreal conversation with two very close friends of mine (Americans) who stayed with us for a week just 4 weeks ago. Every night over dinner it came up and every time they supported trump! These are well off, middle class, well educated white people working in IT with well paid white collar jobs. I was a little flabbergasted at first, just naturally assuming they would condemn him after the misogyny scandal broke. But they kept "selling" him to me and the more they sold, the more obsessed I became with trying to understand what was driving the thinking. In the end I think there were two distinct drivers:
First, they really quite seriously don't like Hilary. I've rarely seen hate for a person that someone has never actually met but boy oh boy I saw it then! Clinton seemed to illicit a very passionate response that was interlaced with a great many conspiracy theories but underneath which the "crook" accusation was the heart of it.
Second and this was the one that I couldn't help but argue about: They were hacked off with the democrats giving away what they call "free stuff". By this they meant all the tax dollars that fund various social and welfare programs for various disadvantaged and/or minority groups. I pointed out politely that surely they must realise that a civil society has a duty to deliver some form of social justice but they countered with....if we keep giving them free stuff....they become dependent on the state, fat, lazy, spongers, dole bludgers etc etc.....sound familiar???
In the end I had to stop because my mate started to go to bed early in a huff! But what that series of debates left me with is an understanding that the binary nature of American society, the winners and losers culture is very much still alive. As a nation I don't believe their culture is any where near as tolerant or charitable as ours is in Britain.
So I was a little shocked and a little disappointed but then it's not my hard earned dollars that the private sector has just had to pony up to pay for Obama care. Anybody with their own small business is
really upset about that. I pointed out that if someone went into business with so little profit that they couldn't really afford to fund their workforce properly, then they were in error, not the administration, and suddenly I was alone at the dinner table!!!
So, it's not just the great unwashed that vote for Mr Looney...some people with an O level did too!
