Shutdown over. Republicans blinked.

[Felch]

It's a peculiarity of American politics that we hate Congress, but they always manage to have reelection rates above 90%.

[Guynemer]

Everyone hates Congress, but very few people hate their own Congressman or Congresswoman. "It's all those other *******s ****ing everything up, MY representative is one of the good ones."

This ****ing country.

[kentonio]

So ****ing what?

The election is over a year away.

So what do you think is going to change in the relationship between the different GOP factions between now and then? Is this experience going to bring the TP to heel?

Everyone is such a goddamned prisoner of the moment. What is the trend now will not continue forever. Those numbers will change, because our country has the collective attention span of a 6-year-old playing GTA, and because of the large structural advantage the GOP has in the House, they aren't going anywhere, and will likely pick up seats in the Senate.

To pickup senate seats they need much broader support and from outside their hardcore. I.E. the very people they just pissed off royally during this debacle. Why exactly do you think that the Senate Republicans were so terrified by what just happened? Unless there is a massive shift back in polling, they have roughly zero chance of picking up senate seats right now. As we get towards January, you can expect the GOP senators to be incredibly vocal about how this cannot be allowed to happen again, because they know it's their seats on the line if it does.

Jesus tap dancing Christ, it's like you people have no goddamned memory at all.

I respect you dude, but you don't seem to be able to get past this idea that there's a status quo that never shifts. This is not 1996, it's far worse for the GOP. Unlike last time, instead of learning from their mistakes they are so deeply divided right now that half the party just wants to double down and go for broke.

I actually do believe sanity will prevail at some point, but it's not going to be until after they follow this madness to its logical conclusion and suffer a really hard electoral defeat. If they were going to learn it would have been after they threw away 2012, but instead they convinced themselves that they just needed to push harder right. Until that idiocy is put to the test and found to fail, the Republican civil war is not going to end.

[Guynemer]

Ahhh, the halcyon days of 2008, when the GOP was declared dead, a regional rump party of no further consequence to American politics...


You're right, this isn't 1996. NO ONE PAYS ATTENTION TO THIS **** AT ALL ANYMORE. Everyone is gonna go back to their regular tribe and regular *****ing and moaning and complaining, shut up, that Taylor Swift lady in on the teevee looky box, this is important.

[kentonio]

Well I guess we'll find out in just a few short months.

[DinoDoc]

Just to clarify, I agree with Sava pretty much exactly on the 2014 prediction, although I'm a little more optimistic about the outside chance of the house going.

I'm taking bets. I'll need something more specific of course though. I'm sure I could find a Ted Cruz or George W Bush avatar somewhere.

[Lorizael]

Ahhh, the halcyon days of 2008, when the GOP was declared dead, a regional rump party of no further consequence to American politics...


You're right, this isn't 1996. NO ONE PAYS ATTENTION TO THIS **** AT ALL ANYMORE. Everyone is gonna go back to their regular tribe and regular *****ing and moaning and complaining, shut up, that Taylor Swift lady in on the teevee looky box, this is important.

She is? What channel?

[Guynemer]

I'm taking bets. I'll need something more specific of course though.

Likewise.

[kentonio]

I'd be up for a bet at some point, but not until the end of January. The Dems are too good at stabbing themselves in the eye with their fork while trying to eat to make bets this early.

[MikeH]

Er... that's exactly Guy's point? (that it's too early for predictions)

[kentonio]

Er... that's exactly Guy's point? (that it's too early for predictions)

It's not too early for predictions, it's just too early to make unwise bets that could come back and kick you in the face.

[MikeH]

Because "The election is over a year away.

Everyone is such a goddamned prisoner of the moment. What is the trend now will not continue forever. Those numbers will change, because our country has the collective attention span of a 6-year-old playing GTA"

?

[kentonio]

I read it as 'this doesn't matter because in the end it always goes back to normal anyway because people are stupid faces #GrumpyOldMan'

Anyway **** it, I'll take an avatar bet now then if Guy and DD are game? How about a bet on senate seats?

[OneFootInTheGrave]

Next pres will be a republican, and I am soo looking forward to that.

[Guynemer]

I read it as 'this doesn't matter because in the end it always goes back to normal anyway because people are stupid faces #GrumpyOldMan'

I might be a grumpy old man, but I'm not wrong.

Anyway **** it, I'll take an avatar bet now then if Guy and DD are game? How about a bet on senate seats?

Name your terms.