Administrators rawTOP Posted October 9, 2020 Administrators Report Posted October 9, 2020 This is one of the most important elections of our lifetime. When you look at the first 4 years of Hitler and compare it to the first 4 years of Trump the parallels are uncanny. Intense xenophobia. Rallies with a ranting leader attended by followers who exhibit cult-like devotion. Followers causing havoc and the leader blaming the chaos on other groups and saying he's the only one who can stop those other groups (when it's actually his group causing the havoc). Chaos rather than calm in international relationships. (And the list goes on and on…) When I was growing up I often wondered how average Germans allowed Hitler to rise to power. My mom's first husband was killed fighting the Nazis in WW2 during the Battle of the Bulge and my dad was wounded (he was on the same plane). The events of that war were a silent undercurrent in our family – so I gave it a decent amount of thought. I thought it couldn't happen here. But it is. And sadly I'm pretty sure my mother (who was so affected by Hitler) voted for Trump. So even people who lived through Hitler are supporting his 21st century equal. It's sad really. Our community in particular needs to remember what happened under Hitler. Gay men actually held many of the senior positions in the SA, but then there was "The Night of the Long Knives" aka the Röhm Purge or Operation Hummingbird when the SS assassinated the leadership of the SA while the SA were on a rather decadent retreat (that was essentially a big gay party/orgy). The seeds of what's about to happen to us have been planted and are easy to see. There are constant attacks against the rights of our trans brothers and sisters – affecting what bathroom they have to use, whether they can get medical care, whether they can serve in the military, etc. And now it looks like gay marriage may be rolled back allowing states to refuse to marry gay folks and allowing people who claim to be "religious" to treat us differently than straight married couples. We're very quickly going back to being second-class citizens. I'm NOT OK with that, are you? The backwards movement on those issues is all due to the Republicans. Never forget that in the German concentration camps the lowest level of prisoners were gay men with pink triangles. Gay guys would steal yellow stars off dead Jewish bodies to improve their treatment. We can't let this happen again. Now is the moment when we have to stand up. Unfortunately most of us choose to live in solidly blue states where we're "safe" (I know that's a big reason why I live in NYC). But if you live in one of the states listed below, your vote is really critical. Ditto for your friends who live in these states – vote, and get others out to vote! Texas - Trump is ahead by 3.5% Iowa – Trump is ahead by 1.1% Georgia – Trump is ahead by 0.4% Ohio – Biden is ahead by 0.4% North Carolina – Biden is ahead by 1.7% Arizona – Biden is ahead by 3.1% Florida – Biden is ahead by 3.4% Other states are close and it's important to vote there as well (NC, AK, MO, PA, WI, NV, MN, MI, NH), but those seven are the states that will probably determine the election. And a word about 3rd party candidates… Simply put, we don't have a parliamentary system where 3rd party votes make sense. We have a winner-take-all system. And ranked choice voting (where you rank the candidates in order of preference allowing you to safely show your support for a 3rd party candidate) is basically unheard of in the US. Voting for a 3rd party candidate is only slightly better than not voting at all. If you voted for Bernie in 2016, and you were in a purple state – you basically voted for Trump and the last 4 years are on you. The point is, Biden isn't perfect, but this election isn't about Biden – it's about stopping the rising tide of totalitarianism that's ruined our country the past 4 years. We need to end the horror of the past 4 years. Now is the time. Your vote matters. VOTE! Your friend's vote matters. Get them to vote! And if you're outside the US – it's happening to you as well. Look at the anti-gay sentiment in Poland. Or the anti-porn laws in places like the UK. Or the fight for marriage equality in some of the British Overseas Territories… 6 2
tighthole64 Posted October 9, 2020 Report Posted October 9, 2020 Couldn't have said it better myself! Just one additional comment. Check to see if there is a ballot drop box. Sadly the mail in system can't be trusted!
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