# Democracy in Danger? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [January 7, 2021, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973 "2021-01-07T22:36:11Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2021, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/21 "2021-01-08T17:20:36Z")
This is America! Don’t you know baseless rumors are better sources of information than careful journalism? ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2021, 7:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/22 "2021-01-08T19:07:21Z")
The individual act of storming the capitol didn’t put Democracy in danger (provided they didn’t actually succeed in their ambition to execute Mike Pence). Its what it represents and how it is being perceived by the country that demonstrates the danger. It’s that this insurgency wasn’t made up of some single militia or terrorist cell it was made up of a random collection of US citizens. So its not an isolated group of whackos but a systemic issue. It’s that [21% of Americans support (14% strongly)](https://www.thechicagocouncil.org/commentary-and-analysis/blogs/what-americans-make-january-6-chaos-capitol) support the storming of the Capitol. It’s that [38% of Americans believe that the election was unfair with 17% thinking that Trump probably won. (10% sure he won)](https://news.northeastern.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/COVID19-CONSORTIUM-REPORT-29-ELECTION-DEC-2020.pdf). End result you have a substantial portion of the United States that thinks that the current government is illegitimate, and that violent uprising is the correct response, and this view is being encouraged by a substantial portion of elected officials and news media. That is the danger to Democracy. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2021, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/23 "2021-01-08T19:49:09Z")
> [@ethelbert](#): > > I would prefer to see Trump serve out his term because as soon as Pence is President, he will pardon Trump. Maybe not now. Pence was apparently astonished to find that the leopard’s also quite willing to eat his face; but he does seem to have figured it out. > [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > 3 out of, how many? 1,000? 10,000? dying of a heart attack in a single evening? Not only in one evening, but in one incident. Seems odd to me too – in particular since they haven’t said what they mean by “medical issues”. I’m not even sure whether, say, falling off a building one’s trying to climb would be under “medical issues”, as long as it wasn’t the result of a deliberate push. (I don’t know that anybody did die that way; it’s just that “medical issues” seems so vague to me that it could cover nearly anything.) ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2021, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/24 "2021-01-08T19:58:43Z")
> [@Pardel-Lux](#): > > Or maybe it’s a sign of a particularly unhealthy following. I can’t find the thread where they asked for collective nouns (like murder of crows, amalgam of dentists and pulpit of preachers), so I’ll post my new coined collective noun here, as this is the Pit anyway: a **turd of trumpists**. Ha! Getting that one plump out feels much better! :flush! what a relief! /:unflush! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2021, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/25 "2021-01-08T20:13:40Z")
> [@thorny\_locust](#): > > Not only in one evening, but in one incident. Seems odd to me too – in particular since they haven’t said what they mean by “medical issues”. I’m not even sure whether, say, falling off a building one’s trying to climb would be under “medical issues”, as long as it wasn’t the result of a deliberate push. (I don’t know that anybody did die that way; it’s just that “medical issues” seems so vague to me that it could cover nearly anything.) Reportedly two heart attacks – one prompted by being trampled – and one stroke. ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2021, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/26 "2021-01-09T00:14:38Z")
One trumpist is a turd. A gathering is a toilet. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2021, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/27 "2021-01-09T00:29:29Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Reportedly two heart attacks – one prompted by being trampled – and one stroke. Thanks for info – where did you see it? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2021, 1:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973/28 "2021-01-09T01:07:59Z")
A link to an article about the woman who had the heart attack after being trampled is in one of these threads; family members of the other two have been talking to the press but none of them are in one concise article. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/democracy-in-danger/929973.md?page=1)