I had no idea how the midterms would play out and, it seems, neither did very many Americans.
All the reporting and all the poll-watching notwithstanding, no one predicted that; “Ho hum, same ol’, same ol’ result. We’s gonna get us the status quo is all!”
Change was definitely in the air and violence even loomed in the background, that’s for sure. Bellicose bullies and ignorant bigots together with an atmosphere thick with personal attacks suggested something big was gonna happen. Hell, some Republicans campaigned with ads portraying them as ‘quick-shootin’, heavily armed, wild pig-killers and Swat team wannabes. Herschel Walker even showed off a fake police badge. I half-expected a shoot-out at all the polling stations in Arizona.
Typically, the party in power (this time it is the Democrats) lose big in the midterms but this time they did not. They held a much-feared GOP resurgence to, well, the same numbers they had…give or take a seat or two. And no Dems, libs, or wild pigs were shot (on the voting days, anyway). In fact, there was only ONE mass shooting on November 7th and no one was killed (4 wounded) in Texas, no less. Practically a boring day……………………….
Bloomberg reported that over $16B was spent on the 2022 midterms and over $14B was spent on the 2020 election meaning that the US spent $30B in the last two plus years on elections and for what? Nada! There are more than half the countries in the world that do not have an annual Gross Domestic Product to match what the US spent on those two elections. The highest GDP of that lower half is Estonia with almost exactly that amount as their total country’s annual economic output.
Of course there is something radically wrong there…but, where to start? Democracy itself? The locked-in two-party system? Corrupt ‘fiddling’ by way of gerrymandering and voter disqualifications? Too frequent elections? Could it just be….nah….all that money involved? Could all the money involved mean that it is possibly a totally corrupt system right from the get-go?
Whether it is or not is not quite the point (mostly it is, tho) The point is that the USA spent $30 Billion dollars achieving nothing while people are starving and hundreds of thousands of ‘Mericans go bankrupt every year due to health care costs. That is sheer bloody madness from that collective bunch o’ leaders.
And worse, by achieving nothing, the debacle will just continue. “Step right up! Git yer tickets here! It is the reds against the blues…..”
OMG that is stupid as hell!
Our Off the Grid Home 
30 BILLION dollars spent to achieve gridlock in the Senate…..incredible.
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Yeah. What they and perhaps all the Democracies need is a radical reformation to make corruption more difficult. Cheats will cheat, liars will lie and greed will still show up but, right now, our electoral systems are openly being exploited by money. Too easily. One quick way is to legislate one term only for all elected officials. That would have deterred Mitch McConnel and Trudumb. In fact, one term only would ENCOURAGE me (one is all I could stand). Jus’ sayin’….
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Total agreement in the “one term” for all elected officials.
One other suggestion.
Deficit budgets should be illegal.
No deficits.
That would focus a politicians’ pea sized brain on the issues at hand rather than blowing billions of taxpayer dollars on areas of Lobbyist greed.
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But guess what, exactly the same will happen in 2 years with the presidential election. And Biden might go for a second term??? The guy will be in his eighties by then. In my opinion, now he already seems most of the times a bit confused, mixing up things, not knowing how to get of stage…so what will he be like in 2 years? In a wheelchair leading the biggest and most pwerful nation in the world? Or give the White House again to a lunatic like Trump? Can’t the Democrats find a better candidate then Biden? So again 30 billion dollars lost in 2 years for an election that will put them an us even further back?
Money lost, they might as well give it to me so I can retire peacefully on Read Island, now THAT would be money wisely spent! I will even throw in a big BBQ then
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yes.
The choices for “leaders” in most “Democracies” seem to be shallow, greedy, wavering populists.
But Trump is an entirely new level of shallow, greedy and populist.
A foreboding time.
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It would definitely be timely for a younger, honest, intelligent, charismatic-type who has a track record (a real one) of compassion and strength and accomplishment to emerge as a Democratic candidate.
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Hello wim, “by then” is just a few days away, joe bidens 80 th
Given the times l think Biden has done a pretty good job.
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I agree. He has. And, further, I make allowances for old guys who stumble a bit, forget why they went in to a room and and can’t find the glasses they have on their head. I am rather extra nice that way. And, anyway, just because you forget your pants one day does not mean that you don’t know how to run the world. I hope.
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He has, I agree, but I am afraid we will need a much stronger candidate to win the next election against Trump.
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