# Are you doing anything in your life differently because of the new President? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 25, 2017, 7:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126 "2017-01-25T07:14:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2017, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/141 "2017-02-03T19:58:34Z")
Seriously considering getting a gun and a conceal and carry license. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/142 "2017-02-06T01:00:10Z")
Sorry, I’ve been out sick. Traced the image back to a tweet by Jessica Duboff that has now been deleted. Then I went through my FB timeline and spent a ton of time when I should just have Snopesed as they have now caught up with this photo. (They had not when I posted about it.). > **[Does a Photograph Depict a 5-Year-Old Syrian Girl Handcuffed at Dulles Airport?](https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/syrian-girl-handcuffed-airport/)** > > What's true and what's false about a widely shared and infrequently explained image taken of foreign visitors at Dulles Airport. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/143 "2017-02-06T15:25:32Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > The electoral college is an undemocratic remnant of a bygone era. You can stop right there, actually. The United States is not a democracy, therefore it is not “shameful;” that some decisions are made by methods other than majority rule. In fact, majority rule is a horrible form of government. If you wish to argue that statement, please provide a cite of any society where it was successful. Ancient Athens was probably the closest example but they excluded women and slaves from the process. As I said before, majority rule is a lousy form of Federal government except possibly when the participants are homogenous. That is far from the case in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Bibliothecarius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b2d939/32.png) [@Bibliothecarius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bibliothecarius)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 8:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/144 "2017-02-08T08:28:11Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > In a novel I am writing, Hillary Clinton won the 2016 election. That now has changed and I have had to amend my fictional history timeline to account for a Trump presidency. I don’t really see why? It’s fiction anyway, you can set it in an alternate history in which she won. We already have enough dystopian novels and now a dystopian reality to deal with… ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c57346/32.png) [@Little\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Pig)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/145 "2017-02-08T08:38:59Z")
> [@steronz](#): > > I deactivated my Facebook account and stopped talking to my family as much. Ya know **steronz** , I was initially thinking of killing my Facebook and Twitter accounts, which I have never used, because I read that visa holders were being asked about their social media profiles when trying to enter the country (I don’t have a cite, sorry). Spooky. I never felt the urge to do something like that based upon my government’s actions. In the end I decided, “Fuck 'em”, and made a healthy donation to the [ACLU](https://www.aclu.org/). ---
**Author:** ![RandMcnally](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b782af/32.png) [@RandMcnally](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandMcnally)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/146 "2017-02-08T13:13:18Z")
I was supposed to go into the military but really having second thoughts. I honestly don’t trust this administration. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/147 "2017-02-08T13:28:09Z")
I’ve pretty much stopped watching my diet and health in general because I don’t expect to live long; and if I do, I expect to wish I was dead anyway. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/148 "2017-02-08T14:04:57Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > You can stop right there, actually. The United States is not a democracy… Speaking of stopping right there, your opening statement is just utter nonsense. The United States is a republic, which is a type of democracy. Again, some people are approaching our system of government through shamanism, where saying the right magic words makes the problems go away. It’s why you have people who are obsessed about whether a flag in a courtroom has a gold fringe or not. The US is a democracy. Albeit a pretty rickety one. > [@](#): > > I often hear people argue that the United States is a republic, not a democracy. But that’s a false dichotomy. A common definition of “republic” is, to quote the American Heritage Dictionary, “A political order in which the supreme power lies in a body of citizens who are entitled to vote for officers and representatives responsible to them” — we are that. A common definition of “democracy” is, “Government by the people, exercised either directly or through elected representatives” — we are that, too. > > The United States is not a direct democracy, in the sense of a country in which laws (and other government decisions) are made predominantly by majority vote. Some lawmaking is done this way, on the state and local levels, but it’s only a tiny fraction of all lawmaking. But we are a representative democracy, which is a form of democracy. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2015/05/13/is-the-united-states-of-america-a-republic-or-a-democracy/?utm\_term=.74deee9f14ff](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/volokh-conspiracy/wp/2015/05/13/is-the-united-states-of-america-a-republic-or-a-democracy/?utm_term=.74deee9f14ff) ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/149 "2017-02-08T17:57:19Z")
I continue to call my Congresscritters with great regularity. > [@madmonk28](#): > > The electoral college is an undemocratic remnant of a bygone era. It was written when women voting was inconceivable and when multitudes of people were owned as property. It is because of the electoral college that we have red America and blue America. Politicians running for national office do not even bother mounting serious campaigns in “red” or “blue” states because if the lopsided winner take all feature of the electoral college; it is why we have swing states that receive disproportionate attention during elections and disproportionate federal resources. It is why 80% of the votes cast in a national election do not count. People like to fetishize this anachronistic, undemocratic mechanism because they find it comforting that the founding fathers were some quasi-divine body instead of just men who had good ideas and bad ideas. Taking comfort in the fact that the electoral college prevents the will of the people from being accurately reflected in the outcome of our elections is to look at elections as shamanism whereby as long as we say the magic words and use the totems of the ballot box we have fulfilled the wishes of the founding fathers in the sky. :applause: ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/150 "2017-02-08T19:05:56Z")
> [@madmonk28](#): > > Speaking of stopping right there, your opening statement is just utter nonsense. The United States is a republic, which is a type of democracy. Mea culpa. Everywhere but here I specified “direct democracy”, AKA “majority rules”, which you seem to be advocating by, among other things, abolishing the EC. But thanks for spotting the one place I neglected to type “direct” and building a strawman around that omission. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2017, 7:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/151 "2017-02-08T19:21:36Z")
I watch the news a lot less, and forward through any news coming from the White House. About the only political commentary I watch is from Rachel or Lawrence. I’m more argumentative on Facebook and have unfriended and blocked two brothers-in-law, who I believe have attached posters of Cheetoh to their bedroom ceiling and masturbate like motherfuckers to his face every morning and every night. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2017, 4:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/152 "2017-02-09T04:46:59Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > Mea culpa. Everywhere but here I specified “direct democracy”, AKA “majority rules”, which you seem to be advocating by, among other things, abolishing the EC. But thanks for spotting the one place I neglected to type “direct” and building a strawman around that omission. Since I never used the word direct democracy in my writing you were responding to, I guess your mad that I responded to your poorly written straw man. I guess one thing I’m doing differently since the Trump election is explaining what basic words mean to people on the internet. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2017, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/153 "2017-02-09T15:17:09Z")
It is possible to argue the perceived Trump pro-business agenda has been priced into the market since November. I’m not sure how repealing Dodd helps investors, exactly. A general trade war would be bad, a war with China or Mexico worse. These would only happen under Trump if he was unreasonable or did not listen to advice. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2017, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/154 "2017-02-09T16:17:57Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > Mea culpa. Everywhere but here I specified “direct democracy”, AKA “majority rules”, which you seem to be advocating by, among other things, abolishing the EC. But thanks for spotting the one place I neglected to type “direct” and building a strawman around that omission. OK, so what distinction are you drawing between ‘republic’ and ‘representative democracy’? And given that for every other elected office, it’s a straight ‘whoever has the most votes, wins’ business, how the devil is some critical principle of republican government either upheld or undermined by keeping or abolishing the EC? ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2017, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/155 "2017-02-10T16:26:44Z")
I only said that, since the EC in some form has been around since the creation of the country and it fits within the framework of a republic, it isn’t “shameful”. If the US were a direct democracy and POTUS was the only exception, then sure. That is not the case. No shame in setting up a republic to act like a republic, one of which is that majority rules is not always in the best interest of the country. You want to eliminate the EC? I think that’s a bad idea and will disagree, but that’s all opinion. If you want to call it out as shameful I’m going to argue that it is not, especially given that the vast majority of countries do not elect their Head of State by direct majority vote. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [February 14, 2017, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/156 "2017-02-14T16:28:51Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > I only said that, since the EC in some form has been around since the creation of the country and it fits within the framework of a republic, it isn’t “shameful”. OK, so the EC is neither here nor there with respect to republican government. > [@](#): > > No shame in setting up a republic to act like a republic, one of which is that majority rules is not always in the best interest of the country. Even if we assume that is true, that doesn’t say anything about whether the EC is likely to be more in the interests of the country than majority rule, in those cases where their outcomes diverge. Especially given that the EC does not in any way serve its original purpose, there is no good argument that the way it is used today somehow reflects the Founders’ special wisdom. > [@](#): > > You want to eliminate the EC? I think that’s a bad idea and will disagree, but that’s all opinion. We’ll have to disagree. I’m OK with that, and I’m sure you are too. > [@](#): > > If you want to call it out as shameful I’m going to argue that it is not, especially given that the vast majority of countries do not elect their Head of State by direct majority vote. I do not call it shameful; I just call it _stupid_. And _dangerous_. Parliamentary democracies do not elect their head of state by direct majority vote, either, but they do it by the vote of the elected representatives who do the legislating. I have no problem with that. But doing it by the votes of some people that nobody’s ever heard of, or simply using them as proxies in an odd sort of scorekeeping, makes no sense at all. It’s also eminently hackable, which is what makes it dangerous. One of these days, someone is going to persuade enough actual electors to reverse the outcome of an election. And of course, since the states are free to select the electors any which way they please, state legislatures controlled by one party could easily overrule the vote of the people of that state. Or, as has almost happened already, we could have a state’s EVs determined by gerrymandered Congressional districts. What I don’t see from you is any statement of republican principles diverging from the principles of representative democracy that are served by the EC. It’s fine if it’s JYHO that the EC is better than direct election of the President, but unless you can give reasons _why_ you’re of that opinion, it’s hard to see why you’re going on about it. I have lots of irrational preferences and dislikes, but once I’ve stated them, that’s really it: if there’s no reason behind them, I’ve said all I can say. I don’t like Brussels sprouts; I can’t tell you why. Lots of people I know do like them. Nothing to discuss, just a difference in tastes. ---
**Author:** ![Deeko](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Deeko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Deeko)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2017, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/157 "2017-02-16T16:02:53Z")
We had hoped to retire at 62, buy insurance through the affordable care act until 65. Now it looks like this is postponed indefinitely. He is already 62, i will be later in the year. We have no confidence this administration will keep a decent healthcare option for people like my husband that has a few health issues. I find this whole scenario bizarre and don’t know what to do. Talked about pulling money out of stocks into money markets, etc. Totally worried for the entire world and the effects he will have. A man more concerned about himself/ his image than the country is beyond troubling. Uncertain ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2017, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/158 "2017-02-17T20:23:55Z")
> [@RTFirefly](#): > > I do not call it shameful; I just call it _stupid_. And _dangerous_. **madmonk** did call it “shameful”, and it was that specifically to what I replied. > [@RTFirefly](#): > > Parliamentary democracies do not elect their head of state by direct majority vote, either, but they do it by the vote of the elected representatives who do the legislating. I have no problem with that. Selection of the Head of State by vote of previously elected representatives vs. by the public electing special representatives to select the HoS is, in theory, the same thing. I suspect at the root of it you’re not opposed to the EC, per se, but more to the way states allot their electors. I could certainly be wrong in that suspicion, though. > [@RTFirefly](#): > > What I don’t see from you is any statement of republican principles diverging from the principles of representative democracy that are served by the EC. It’s fine if it’s JYHO that the EC is better than direct election of the President, but unless you can give reasons _why_ you’re of that opinion, it’s hard to see why you’re going on about it. You’re reading way too much into my statement. I never said the EC was the best or only method for electing a HoS in a republic. I only said that it is not a “shameful” way. It is one way of selecting a leader in a republic. My opinion is that, in a confederation of states of varying sizes and demographics, direct election of the POTUS is a bad idea. It concentrates power in a few coastal states. I can see the argument that the current system gives too much power to smaller states. I don’t have an equitable answer. But I do love Brussels sprouts. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2017, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/159 "2017-02-17T20:44:44Z")
I have tripled the amount of time I spend on social media making fun of the president and his supporters. Oh, and I may have to work an additional year or two beyond what I had planned if Congress makes procuring health insurance more difficult for my wife. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2017, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126/160 "2017-02-18T14:53:24Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > **madmonk** did call it “shameful”, and it was that specifically to what I replied. > Selection of the Head of State by vote of previously elected representatives vs. by the public electing special representatives to select the HoS is, in theory, the same thing. I suspect at the root of it you’re not opposed to the EC, per se, but more to the way states allot their electors. I could certainly be wrong in that suspicion, though. > You’re reading way too much into my statement. I never said the EC was the best or only method for electing a HoS in a republic. I only said that it is not a “shameful” way. It is one way of selecting a leader in a republic. > > My opinion is that, in a confederation of states of varying sizes and demographics, direct election of the POTUS is a bad idea. It concentrates power in a few coastal states. I can see the argument that the current system gives too much power to smaller states. I don’t have an equitable answer. But I do love Brussels sprouts. Actually, I called it one of many shameful aspects of America, and it’s madmonk **28** , I didn’t kill 27 other madmonks to be called just madmonk. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-doing-anything-in-your-life-differently-because-of-the-new-president/778126.md?page=9)