If you’re discouraged about the election results
Don’t be. You’re hearing media do what it does: harp on one person’s lack of enthusiasm and make it seem that that one opinion is held by thousands.
This race went precisely as I thought it would. Precisely.
And it was absolutely a massive success.
So let me tell you why, so that you feel better and can easily put down the annoying crowing that republicans are going to do, because they managed to cling to a few things.
If the votes fall as I believe they will, the democrats will have retaken the house by some 30 seats. This is impressive and somewhat unique in our country’s history. The GOP, upon taking the house originally, jerrimandered these districts in impressively screwball ways. Wherever that rigging has been overturned, the districts have gone blue. Which is, of course, why they did it. Democrats have the house now, 30ish flips in republican rugged districts. 15 of those being female candidates.
That is absolutely impressive.
A few key candidates to whom many people were paying close attention did not perform as people desired. Abrams, O’Rourke, Gillum. Well…I’m not surprised. Abrams faces absolute state wide fraud. Her opponent being the person also in charge of voter registration, withholding some 50k votes of which 70% were black. Voter intimidation. This is blatant corruption. And yet still…her race was very close. So too with Beto. Ted Crews was a presidential candidate! When he took Texas, he did so with a wide margin. Last night in Texas he was fighting tooth and nail. Gillum’s goobenatorial race for Florida was a figurative dead heat. 99% of the vote in—49% Gillum, 49.7% DeSantis. These are CLASSICALLY and FULLY republican regions in which Trump took the presidency by huge margins. That these races, with all those challenges, were as close as they were PROVES that something unprecedented happened.
3-400% voter turnout increases for a midterm election. Mostly with the youth.
But let’s talk about what it means to have the house.
Now I know you’re probably concerned about the federal judgeships that are about to pop up for consideration, and it’s true that the Senate was needed to stop approvals of those candidates, but…
Control of the house means that Democrats now take hold of some critical committees. These committees are the very ones that will be overseeing corruption allegations. Ways and Means, energy and Commerce, Financial Services, Intelligence, appropriations, foreign affairs, armed services, judiciary, transportation and infrastructure, and…government reform.
How do you feel now?
The worst political fallout of a GOP controlled government, the worst sound bites that weren’t Trump’s, the worst slaps across the face? All came from footage of those very same committees. Those committees now belong to Democrats.
Massive policy shifts also occurred in many classically conservative states—legalizing marijuana votes, Florida giving the vote back to former criminals who’ve served their time thus giving the vote back to a HUGE portion of the African-American Community that has been held in check by a racist and classicist policing method, then there were upsets in many small ways too.
I promise you…this is all excellent and it will have truly important and forceful impact. In 2020, if we can keep that same enthusiasm and rage, the entire government will shift. But that can only happen if we keep moving forward, if the candidates who won keep their noses to the grindstone and push back hard, if you and I and everyone on the ground continues to talk about this and force out bigots and greed.
Do not be discouraged. I promise you…this was an amazing election. Don’t focus on a few bright stars and think that all is lost because they fell. There is a great deal happening here, and one thing I know from being at sea—when a wave is building, there is first a terrifying shift, as the water level begins to build. The ship will begin to dip and then of a sudden, the swell will begin. The ship raises and passengers suddenly realize that the were much higher than before, with an incredible view. Then the wave crests and destroys what’s in its path.
We didn’t see a wave crest tonight. So what. That means it’s a much larger wave than we realized. It will crest in the future. But only if that fluid pressure is maintained.
This is good. It is. So long as everyone keeps working. This is good.
Calm down. Have a glass of champagne. A cup of tea. When they Trumpet all their noise…say nothing. Nothing needs to be said. You’re higher than you were with an excellent view of the ending. So relax. Don’t fret.
Listen to Simon, y’all. Simon is wise.
Awww, thank you dear! That means so much! I hope you’re well too! I miss being on here all the time. I keep trying to work back up to it, but I haven’t quite managed it yet. I think about you guys often and I’m glad you’re all on here still! <3 <3 <3
Hi there. I have been gone a long time, I know. I’ve been trying to be present for my life and trying to keep my head above water, and that unfortunately led to pretty much everything social online but insta going by the wayside (and I’m only on that all the time because I always have my stupid phone because technology is sometimes inescapable) I am really sorry and I love you guys and I miss you. And I am here to beg everyone in the States to vote tomorrow. Please. It does matter. Your one vote matters. We don’t have a lock on anything; we all need to show up to get our country back. We need to all show up for inclusiveness and acceptance and openness and care and we all need to show up to fight against racism and sexism and tyranny and everything else that goes with it. The people in charge have gone right past aiming for a return of the Gilded Age and are now attempting to revert us to a feudal state. If we’re going to stop it we all have to show up. So please vote tomorrow. It absolutely matters.
Outfit by “I did too much yesterday and forgot to eat dinner and didn’t sleep.” #alsoits5AM #outfit #outfitgram #selfie #atthispointeveryoneisluckyIrememberedtoputpantson
i hope youre all lying and hyping your cv/resume’s up
i have never gotten an interview and not been offered a job position after it
I mean lets be honest if everyone else is gassing theirs up like no tomorrow and you’re being as honest as you can who th are the recruitment team going to be more interested in
There’s people working in my banks head office with me WITH MUCH MORE EXPERIENCE than me BUT ARE GETTING PAID LESS
we’re doing the exact same job role
the point I’m trying to make here is if you’ve handled finances for a company you’re now what i would call a treasurer my g, if you’ve done admin work you are now a secretary (or as I’ve put Management secretary)
you help some kid with his homework? you’re a private tutor.
keep your bullets points for the job role as concise and important sounding as possible AND ALWAYS EMPHASIS THAT YOURE A TEAM PLAYER IF YOURE GOING TO WORK IN A TEAM.
go into that interview room and get your story straight the night before and remember that interviews are two way conversatons yes they might be grilling you but at the end of it make sure to grill them BACK. do you have any hesitations about my qualifications? my suitability for the job? any feedback on my cv? how long have you been working at this company? do you like it here? whats the work environment like?
I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS GET THE SAME FEEDBACK WHEN THEY GET BACK IN TOUCH WITH ME
“ive never been asked those questions before” / “you were one of the strongest candidates”
throughout the interview emphasise that youre about progression, that you want more responsibilities than you did at your previous job, tell them the hours here are more suitable for me than my last ones were, AND WHEN IT COMES TO SALARY NEGOTIATION its all about continuity. tell them again that it boils down to progression. make up a reasonable figure for how much you were paid in your last role (do your research for how much the industry youre applying to or the role youre applying for pays, base it on that) tell them you expect more than you were previously paid. do not give them a figure. progression is your primary focus, tell them if youre progressing youre happy. leave it at that.
LIE THROUGH YOUR TEETH AND GET THAT MONEY
I had an interview yesterday, at the place I’ve been temping, where I busted out the “is there anything about my skills or background that makes you concerned about my fit for this job” question for the first time.
Neither of my supervisors had never gotten it before either. They had to think for a while, and then it turned into them telling me how great I am and what they love about me.
This stuff is real. I would also say: none of it is lying. This is taking experience that you normally downplay and write off, and putting it in accurate words they’ll understand.
It’s hacking the capitalist system. Why ISN’T helping a kid with homework “tutoring”, when the only thing missing is a paycheck?
It’s especially important for anyone who isn’t a cis white man, because many of us are so thoroughly trained to feel like we are not good enough.
Privilege tells people they can fake it, and that they’re good enough just as people and can learn the skills on the job. Abuse and oppression tell people they aren’t good enough as people and that even their high skills are probably below average, and that unless they had the specific job title or were using certain skills officially, nobody will think it counts.
The goal is to at least fake the confidence of a privileged person, to give the employer a chance at seeing the skills that you’ve been trained to undervalue.
I would also say to answer any query of “Have you done [X small task] before?” with “I have, but it’s been a while.” Or, “I have, but it was a slightly different program.”
100% THEY WILL GLADLY WALK YOU THROUGH EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW, and I stress ‘gladly’ because claiming prior knowledge boosts their confidence in your abilities and any slips you make are already covered by your caveat.
blackstoic may have deactivated their account but this advice is fucking gold and all y’all looking for jobs or who think you might one day need to look for a new job PRINT THIS SHIT OUT AND STAPLE IT TO THE WALL.
it’s #BlackOutDay, so lemme spit some facts:
Flint, MI still doesn’t have clean water. 56.6% of the residents are black. 41.2% of the residents are in poverty. It’s great to show our blackness off (and trust me, y'all are beautiful), but it’s even more beautiful to help out black people in need.
this morning i made a GoFundMe for water and supplies for Flint. we love to reblog things to show we care, but i think it’s time to actually try to help. i’m not sure why it’s on my heart so much at the moment, but it is. let’s do some good for those people. 100% of the funds go to water for Flint. i’m actually gonna visit and try to help out however i possibly can. if you can’t donate, please share this. ❤️
y'all have already helped to raise $365 for Flint. I’m so fucking proud, man! Keep sharing. We’re gonna help these people out.
it’s almost at $500 in 12 hours. Y'all are fucking beautiful, man. Thank y'all! Keep sharing. This is gonna help so many. 🌊💓
Hello there!
I know I haven’t been on much in quite a while, and I apologize for that. We’ve been dealing with a lot of stuff; money woes, job difficulties, and I’ve been through a couple of different medications for my depression. Obviously the State of the Union is maddening and saddening all at once, and that hasn’t been helping either. But I think that- personally at least- things are looking up in our travails. And I wanted to say that even when I’m not on here much you can always get me at duamuteffe at yahoo dot com, and if you want to see what we’re up to there’s my instagram account at https://www.instagram.com/duamuteffe/ It gets updated a lot because I’ve always got my stupid phone with me. Anyway, we love you guys and we’re thinking of you! <3
Like, I have to disclose here that I am white as snow, but please PLEASE PLEASE pay attention to the gentrification of rural areas
PLEASE pay attention to white hipsters buying up land and pushing out latinx subsistence farmers and stealing their water rights so they can’t irrigate their own fucking farms
PLEASE understand that Corporate Farming deals a much larger blow to PoC than it does to the poor ol’ white farmer selling his land for millions of dollars
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE think about the underpaid, frequently undocumented laborers showing up to work at the ass crack of dawn underneath the 50 foot tall TRUMP sign their boss paid them to install.
PLEASE acknowledge how your image of the White Trash Cowboy enables things like the systematic harassment of and discrimination against Muslim dairy and feedlot and slaughterhouse workers, because LOL all the country folk is just white trash, right????
PLEASE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE RURAL US IS NOT WHITE. PLEASE DO NOT FORGET YOUR LATINX AND BLACK AND INDIGENOUS BROTHERS AND SISTERS WHO GROW YOUR FOOD. YOUR JOKES ARE NOT MORE IMPORTANT THAN THEIR LIVES.
Like….you need to realize I went to school in a slaughterhouse town, and half that town was Muslim, and 20% of it was Latinx
And the white pieces of shit who ran that town got to do whatever they wanted, because they got everyone in the state believing in their pretty picture of Rural White Cow Town America
And white liberals love that picture just as much as the fascists do, it’s true, yall like to pretend that everyone in Rural USA is a degenerate nazi fuckass molesting his sisters (bc incest is super funny and hilarious when it’s rural women being victimized), and people like Ken Buck get to have their way because in yall’s minds, PoC only live in the ~~enlightened cities~~ far away from all our dirty menial agricultural work, and it MUST just be white people getting the short end of the stick here
But I guess “lol just leave you stupid hillbillies???” is enough Good Marksist Praksis for yall ain’t it????
Like, to go further
the White Lie that rural america is white is what enables neo-nazis to tell each others they are the producers and the keepers of our national sustenance when that is so fucking far removed from the truth
like, as a white person I sure as shit hope that I can speak to the lies that white supremacists tell each other, and “we grow their food!!!11!1″ is a FUCKING BIG ONE
As in I have witnessed white men come to the bar after a long day of bossing around their latinx workers, and complain to the other white bosses about how WE’RE THE PRODUCERS IN THIS COUNTRY THE BROWN FOLK DON’T DO SHIT, and you tell them “hey what about the guys in your fields who actually do the work” and they can just ignore you and say “well they’re the EXCEPTION” and guess why
It’s bc nobody in the white media has ever fucking contradicted them, bc yall wanna have your lil Duck Dynasty controversies and debate about “how we lost rural america to the nazis” without ever actually venturing out into rural america and LOOKING AT THE PEOPLE WHO FUCKING LIVE HERE, who, NEWSFLASH ASSHOLES, are largely not fucking white
so you wanna fuckin talk about “oh it staaarts in the ruuuural areas” holding your lil flashlight under your liberal city dwelling chin, think for a second about WHY white supremacy is so quick to take hold in the places you’ve fucking abandoned and labeled as irredeemably backwards
think about why there is no help for LGBT folk and PoC being targeted by fascists in areas you have labeled as FASCIST TERRITORY on your little mental map
is it fucking funny now
is it FUCKING FUNNY NOW, ASSHOLE
So, it happened. And all sensible people in this country are pretty shaken up about it. One of my friends had crying fits first thing in the morning so hard her husband thought someone had died. One of my friends had to call his psychologist because he couldn’t make himself get out of bed. Shit’s real.
But honestly if I look to the future and I think what the actual presidency of this walking trash pile will actually be like, I don’t think it will be a fraction of the shit show his campaign was. The reality of being a president is very different from the fantasy, as we all learned with our last president, no matter how much we love him, we are not all holding hands and singing songs under the rainbow flags and flying dolphins like we thought we’d be.
We who are disgusted are now almost in the same position the racist rednecks must have been in when Obama was elected – if you can imagine it, which is a strain – that same kind of horror, that same “how could this have happened in my America?” mentality – and that expectation that this new asshole is going to come in and fuck up the country fore and aft. And those racist rednecks started celebrating pretty quickly when Obama was not able to deliver on every single promise he made – now granted he did a lot of the things he wanted to do, the health care reform and lowered unemployment rate and lowered deficit – but he had more than just one group of people to please so, like any president, he had to play to the middle.
Trump got on the board for being a big loud racist sexist ugly piece of shit. The scary thing is that this is why half our country picked him, and sadly there is no fixing that. But he will not be able to be a president with that platform. He’ll have to actually make people happy and not just treat the country like a corporation and start firing everyone and doing everything his way. He has to answer to people and be liked and he’ll have to go middle of the road too. As much as those racist rednecks started celebrating when Obama didn’t get to have it all his way, things might stop looking so bleak for us too when Trump starts hearing no and starts having to look for real solutions.
And if not, four years goes by pretty quickly. Hang in there, my babies. Onward!
