I am in despair over the world

[WYWA]

71 million Ameucans voting for a rapist misogynist, spineless sycophants like Starmer congratulating above mentioned abuser, go into work and it's all just the same talk of photocopiers, sport and trivilaiitoes as the world goes to hell. I'm genuinely in despair and have never ever felt this isolated

I don't like Keir. I don't like Trump. But what would you rather? That Keir bites his tongue and maintains a good relationship with America until he's served his term? Or that he tells the world what a twat he thinks Trump is and makes us one of Trump's 'enemies' as he puts it? I much prefer the former.

Quite a naive response given the role that the US plays in the wider world. His plans for tariffs, foreign policy and environmental regulation will impact the rest of the world.
in addition it is quite understandable to empathise with women and minorities who will also suffer as a result of his policies.

Demonstrating an astonishing level of ignorance of international politics kind of reinforces the OP 🙄.

Just stop watching the news and concentrate on your own circle.

Not much else you can do really.

Volunteer if you can. It gives me an illusion of control and usefulness!

Trump is loathesome but he was democratically elected, and is the legitimate President Elect. It's protocol to send congratulations, that's all. Of course Keir thinks the guy's a totall bellend, but the nature of international diplomacy requires him to say the empty words.

Trump-alikes are going to continue to be elected forever until progressive parties / the “left” stop castigating the people who voted for him as idiots, racists, and misogynists, and start trying to understand what concerns led them to do so.

It’s quite clear a lot of people voted Republican in spite of Trump, not because of him. Why did they put their dislike of him personally to one side? The inability to see things from their perspective or to put forward a convincing progressive vision to address those concerns, and instead resort to name calling, is truly depressing.

I say this as someone who hates Trump and his brand of politics.

Yesterday I stopped using all Social Media bar Insta. I didn’t look at The Mail, The Telegraph, The Guardian or anything else. The only things to concern me where things I actually interacted with.

I’ve not felt as peaceful in a very long time.

US politics is out of your control. It would be better to focus on your own life and what you can do to feel better - such as go into greenery.

Twitter is unbearable. I have utter idiots on my timeline going on about liberal tears etc and revelling in Trumps victory. I think I must have followed them in the past because they were gender critical. I've hit the unfollow button over and over.

I think this is good advice.

We are not designed to be able to cope with this amount of information, especially when the information is predominantly negative.

Only at this point in time do we have to deal with knowing about the difficulties in our own lives, our immediate community, our country and also in countries far from our own generally fuelled by a hand held device which accompanies us throughout the day.

If the information were of an uplifting nature then that's one thing, but because we are not being informed with individual's best interests at heart but for a whole variety of other reasons, most likely for financial gain and power, then this onslaught of information is not always beneficial.

I too like to be informed, and I understand that up to a point getting news out there is essential, but when change doesn't come, and atrocities keep happening in full view of the world I start to wonder whether psychologically speaking we wouldn't be better off knowing less.

Quite ... if Starmer had said what I am sure he really thinks, he would have put in jeopardy our safety and economic stability, and wiped out any chance of the UK having any influence at all, however minor.
I am fed up with people slagging Starmer off for doing his duty when it must have stuck in his throat and made him want to vomit.

Calm your nerves by watching relaxing YouTube videos such as this one

He’s been in power before. The world didn’t stop. In fact I can’t remember much of American politics at that time, so I’m guessing he didn’t do anything major to the detriment of his country, although of course Covid was around at that time too. I’m far more worried about our own government, and what’s round the corner. Maybe invest some of that negative energy and angst into what’s happening here. That would be my advice.

So, on a practical level, what can we do?
The answer is nothing.

Starmer’s and Lammy’s (going to include Raynor in that too) past comments and references on Trump were so stupid, as to be negligent. One thing in politics surely is that you never publicly give out your own opinion on individuals who are potentially going to be running their country. Because it will come back to bite you on the arse. Embarrassing that Lammy, to save his own political career, has offered up his congratulations to Trump, when clearly Trump will know just how fake it is. People would think more of Lammy and his ilk if he had the balls to own what he has said in the past, and just refrain from making himself, and his party by association, look like complete idiots, by making such comments.

Well possibly, but the man he appointed Vice President called him a nazi so he's hardly new to getting over past slurs.

Exactly this.

The problem is that it was up to the Americans to vote and they have and voted in Trump again. That was their decision to make and nothing can be done about that. We can't influence how another country votes.

Of course there will be wider global impacts for the fact he's been voted in to serve another term but there is simply nothing that you or I can do about that.

Of course our PM had to congratulate him and show diplomacy on a political level, irrespective of what he personally thinks. It was highly unprofessional for KS and Lammy to have said some of the things they voiced about Trump prior to the election as they can come back to bite you.

I also think that many in the UK doing the hand wringing that Trump got in do not recognise sufficiently the dynamics of why and it's too easy to make assumptions based on what we may think as another country, rather than what the country casting their votes think.

He has promised his country a better future and a change from the last four years they have experienced. (The Democrats really did foul this up big time.) That doesn't mean at all that Trump will deliver all his great promises, and I certainly am no supporter of his whatsoever.

But this was not our vote to cast. Step away from the media for a while and concentrate on things in your own life that you can control and influence.

I've had enough of step away. I've had enough of get out and look at the fields. I do those things anyway.
I am so so so angry. I'm well aware it was the decision of the American electorate and frankly I'm disgusted with them.

What exactly WOULD. a progressive, non patronising alternative to the far right actually look like? Do you have to say "oh yes you're right all immigrants are rapists, abortion should be illegal and it doesn't matter if someone is an abuser, a racist, maybe even a paedophile, as long as they're white and rich?

@friendlycat - you are far too sensible to be on MN* *😅Great post.

I can't stand Trump either but watching the news gave me an insight on why people did vote for him, many don't like him on a personal level but like his politics. And felt they were better off under his Government
So people are putting themselves first ,that happens every where
By all accounts neither were great options and I would have though KH was the least worse option but I'm not American and I don't live there .

I am just so deeply deeply shocked, saddened and appalled that the majority of American voters think this man cares a jot about them, and even if they were right, that it is acceptable to elect an adjudicated rapist and racist who mocks the disabled. I hate Starmer, the Tory party are a disaster. I am appalled at Israels mass murder financed by Britain and America. I am disgusted at Brexit and the rise of the Far Right. Trump is going to pull America out of all climate change restraints, the world will continue to burn and sooner or later we will all be dead either in a nuclear war or because the planet is utterly destroyed as a human habitat.

I am saddened but not in the least bit shocked.

Trump is the anti-woke vote. The anti establishment vote. The anti Obama style war mongering hyper capitalism vote.

I am actually perfectly comfortable that Trump won. The downside is minimal compared with the alternative, being the Democrats.