Best I could tell, we were already there. DJT is simply a symptom. He’s what results after too many years of misrepresentation.

He gets blamed for being the cause because those who actually led us into the decline don’t want to own their role in the mess. The fact that he got reelected is proof the status quo had lost the plot.

Sure, he’s a scoundrel, but ultimately he’s a scapegoat.

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BLKNSLVR 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Agree and disagree.

The US has been on a downward spiral towards 'this' for a long time, but Trump literally self-selected to be the face of the intentional rapid acceleration of it.

Calling Trump a scapegoat is incredibly kind to his intentional destruction and, to still put it far too kindly, "vindictive nastiness in attempt to profit" (which, I think, also depressingly describes what has become of the US tech sector).

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whatisthiseven 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Odd, why can't Trump be both cause and symptom?

Surely, he has made things uniquely worse, and in ways that would not have happened without him.

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timschmidt 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

The undercurrent of dissatisfaction which led to his popularity was already there. And has been for decades. Do you blame the drought, the dry kindling, or the match?

You don't get the wildfire without all three, and anyone paying attention can observe the looming danger and the inevitability of ignition. Who lights the match matters. But is only a small part of the contributing circumstances.

	▲	BLKNSLVR 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		I assign a fair portion of the blame to a consciously self-serving, opportunistic match, yes.
	▲	fzeroracer 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Trump is at least in part directly responsible for said undercurrent of dissatisfaction. He's been part of the wealthy scammer class for decades, providing the drought, kindling and matches. The fact that he's the most visible of the bunch and popular thanks to being on TV doesn't remove his deep connections to the root cause. The wealthy have been manufacturing these issues for decades now by buying up the entire media apparatus and gutting systems to the bone so that they can squeeze out a bit more blood to drink.

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chiefalchemist 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

Do what you gotta do to feel good. But giving a free pass to all the other contributors - the ones loudest about who is to blame - is foolish, at best. To each their own.

Put another way, in terms of the political status quo, what changed between his two term? Hint: not a damn thing. That ain’t his fault. Your bias has blinded you

	▲	XorNot 2 hours ago \| parent \| next [-]
		The American voter openly and obviously said "wow. Despite the numerous management failures, more of that please?" People didn't vote for change, they voted for the same thing they had 4 years ago that changed absolutely nothing. To quote Vaas from Far Cry 3: Do you know what the definition of insanity is?
	▲	BLKNSLVR 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		Yes, Trump is a figurehead for 'everything wing with the US' but he's become that figurehead by being incredibly and publicly active in the promotion of 'everything wrong with the US'. He deserves blame well above those who voted for him.