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I think the biggest disconnect between the media and Trump supporters is that Journalism has always been precarious employment.
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It's shitty that Trump supporters are mad because they, while still having it better than many, are seeing life get worse...
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... but the idea of an economic life and place moving from a sure thing to a precarious proposition is a different thing
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I think the fear of moving from a sure economic future to a precarious one is being vastly underestimated.
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This is what worries me the most. The vast rapid widening of the precariat and the fear they feel as they enter that state is a vote driver
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And almost certainly accounts for the 'well-off' Trump supporters phenomenon, which is often dismissed as racism. (That is a factor tho.)
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People who would never condone Trump aren't just coming to him now out of fear.
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I think a lot of people who could never stand Trump's talk will consider him in the booth as they see retirement running away from them.
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The teachers who would have had pensions 20 yrs ago. The workers who thought they'd retire 5 yrs ago. Couples who can't afford children.
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Many of these people support Hillary more out of traditional loyalty than anything else. Maybe that's enough for her to win...
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... But these people and these problems aren't going to go away and they're going to get worse before they get better. And...
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The truth is that Hillary isn't really talking to them. Bernie supporters talk about revolution because it's hard to see how she could...
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Hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of ex-Middle-class workers are facing a future that has no jobs and no retirement for them...
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How exactly does one solve that? They can't even sell their homes for a decent amount anymore.
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The most terrifying thing about American Politics isn't Trump, it is what comes after Trump.
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B/c the precariat gets bigger & people get more afraid of the One Thing that will cause them to Lose It All. That fear is power for someone.
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An incompetent, incoherent, Trump is the best case scenario for someone who sees that and rides it to power. It could be a lot worse.
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That's what worries me. Because for all the shift in the Democrats' platform it isn't covering the problems well enough.
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Even if they win this time... how could they possibly fix all of this in four years well enough to win the next time?
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My worry is that the precariously employed & living is a group that is going to grow They stare into the abyss & what comes out of it next?
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I mean, just think about the increasingly precarious employed professions, they are often bastions of the left.
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Higher Ed academics on food stamps. Doctors who have to end independence & join big companies because insurance/paperwork is going up.
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Teachers who are now never going to get tenure. Civil workers who face shrinking pensions. College Educated who can't save for retirement.
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And more and more. Think about all the jobs that used to be "tickets to the good life" and realize that they are mostly not anymore.
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Having a College degree, of any level, isn't guaranteed to get you to 65, or even 75 with the resources to retire any more.
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It isn't about unemployment or salaries. It is about the pernicious fear that you live in an economic state where it could All Fall Apart.
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There's a rising group of Millennials' parents suddenly having to come to terms with working their whole lives and not having anything.
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Millennials. We were *born* into that. It is Normal for us. But for them? How attractive is the idea of someone who will Keep It Together?
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I have worked full time for ~decade and with the exception of 8 months, I have never had anything but contingent employment.
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That precariousness: The idea of constantly working in a state where I could be fired for no reason at any time. Normal for me & my peers...
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But how the hell are our parents going to deal with that? Not well.
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And it is just starting. The process of moving 40-80 year olds into the precariat is just beginning. Next election there will be more.
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Next election it will be worse.
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We, our media, our politicians, our communities, we are entirely unprepared.
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As nicoleindc noted this is pretty heavy for Sat, so here's a cute cat. Go do something fun.