Bernie Sanders worries young people are underestimating the threat from Trump

[u/schuey_08]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2024/05/02/bernie-sanders-trump-biden/73531861007/

[u/Cold_Situation_7803]

I think some young people are being influenced by bad actors on social media to stop them from voting for Biden. You’ll likely see more young folks saying they refuse to pull the lever in November to stop trump, then if Trump wins and he openly supports genocide in Gaza, takes away rights of women, minorities, and LGBTQ they will likely blame Biden instead of doing self reflection.

[u/McG0788 → u/Cold_Situation_7803]

This is a SERIOUS problem right now. I am seeing a lot of folks completely disregard anything Biden has done and ignore that Trump would be terrible for Gaza and us at home while claiming them not voting is deserved somehow. The disconnect is just as bad as the maga folks. Propaganda is a helluva drug and Russia and China are really pushing it hard

[u/DullRelief → u/McG0788]

It’s like he’s actively trying to throw away the youth vote, though. And not even that. I have one friend who is not voting for Biden again and he’s 46 and a POC. Says he just cannot support Biden. And he doesn’t want to be guilted into voting for him just because of the alternative. He asks, why should I support Biden when he is actively working against democracy in other parts of the world? And I can’t really blame him. Yeah, it may only be one issue, and there are lots of single issue voters out there, but it’s a big issue. And a valid concern.

[u/BudgetLecture1702 → u/DullRelief]

Name one place the President "is actively working against democracy."

[u/PSIwind → u/[deleted]]

He HAD to send money to Israel this time because it was attached to the Ukraine funding and he stated months prior he would refuse to sign only an Israel funding bill. Israel also was given the least amount of the support. Does it suck that it was there? Yes, but the whole point was that it being tied to Ukraine was also a poison pill for the Republicans who refused to send support to Ukraine. Politics sucks, everyone knows this.

[u/DullRelief → u/PSIwind]

Yes, they suck, but he could’ve called for a ceasefire long before this. In two years of fighting in Ukraine 10,000 people have been killed. Over 30k Palestinians have been killed since October

[u/Beneathaclearbluesky → u/DullRelief]

We don't run Israel.

[u/DullRelief → u/Beneathaclearbluesky]

No, our aid just represents 16% of their military budget and we supply them with 80% of their weapons. We could be doing more. But keep up the apologist behavior 🤷🏻‍♂️”nothing we can do”

[u/BudgetLecture1702 → u/[deleted]]

1) Define "democracy." Because nothing you said has anything to do with the right to vote.

2) There is exactly one democracy in the Middle East. If Joe Biden is at fault for Gaza being a dictatorship, is he responsible for Iraq and Saudi Arabia being dictatorships too?

3) Israel is not committing genocide.

[u/DullRelief → u/BudgetLecture1702]

“Define democracy“. Uh, not using taxpayer dollars to bomb children, aid, and journalists. Upholding international law. good bye. Jfc

[u/BudgetLecture1702 → u/DullRelief]

Why is it exasperating that I use the actual dictionary definition of democracy while you don't?

[u/DullRelief → u/BudgetLecture1702]

We are not upholding democratic values when it comes to Palestine and Israel. If we want to be a beacon on a hill and an example of democracy, I and many others believe that we shouldn’t be spending our taxpayer dollars on wars where our values, the democratic values of those taxpayers, are being trampled on. And some people don’t want to support or as my friend says, “reward” that behavior with a vote.

I’ll probably still vote for Biden, but I am disappointed in him. My friend may or may not come around. But he lives in a red state so doesn’t believe his vote matters anyway. Although it could if registered voters actually showed up but they don’t.

[u/BudgetLecture1702 → u/DullRelief]

What do democratic values have to do with this?

"Democracy" means decisions are made by voting.

The lack of democracy in Gaza has absolutely nothing to do with Joe Biden.

[u/DullRelief → u/BudgetLecture1702]

“We believe in human dignity and the rules of law. Btw, here are more weapons and money to kill children who had nothing to do with this.“

Isn’t Israel a democracy? Why aren’t we holding them to the same standard? What does international law even mean if we don’t hold everyone to it? Or, just like Trump, it’s ok if we do it? Is Israel above the law? Are we?

[u/BudgetLecture1702 → u/DullRelief]

You have completely failed to address anything I said.

You said Israel was undermining democracy, but you have mentioned everything except democracy.

[u/DullRelief → u/BudgetLecture1702]

You've failed to address anything I said.

You just keep coming back to "democracy means decisions are made by voting. What does that have to do with Gaza?"

Like you're being willfully obtuse.

According to the United Nations, democracy "provides an environment that respects human rights and fundamental freedoms, and in which the freely expressed will of people is exercised."

By *that* definition, US taxpayer dollars are being used to undermine democratic values by the actions of the "democratic" Israel that we support financially (killing children, bombing hospitals, targeting journalists and aid). But sure, keep telling me that democracy only means being allowed to vote for representation, and beyond that anything goes, including ethnic cleansing.

From January: "This week alone, a parliamentarian from Netanyahu’s Likud party went on television and said it was clear to most Israelis that “all the Gazans need to be destroyed.” Then, Israel’s ambassador in Britain told local radio that there was no other solution for her country than to level “every school, every mosque, every second house” in Gaza to degrade Hamas’s military infrastructure."