“The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter” no evidence who actually said this although often attributed to Churchill.
However, perusing X, Threads and Facebook makes it very clear there are many uniformed, easily manipulated voters who are willing to believe anything that reinforces what they want to believe.
It is also apparent the willingness to believe overshadows any effort to seek out the truth, but rather these people simply pass along the misinformation.
I have also found that if you present the facts, the truth, you may be told that’s just your “opinion.”
Mr Trump didn’t create the sorry state of too many human beings, but he sure understands it and uses it to his advantage by creating false problems, scapegoats and playing off fears and prejudices.
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
I am always amazed at the lack of appreciation so many Americans have for the privilege of citizenship – just how good we have it.
I am also amazed how so many Americans can’t seem to find the strength to simply ignore idiots like Trump, AOC, Crockett, Newsome, MTG and the rest of the members of the clown car. Why let those idiots influence your everyday life.. Why do so many think our republic is so flimsy – we survived worse than the idiot Trump or the enfeebled Biden or the clueless Obama.
And, when someone says something truly idiotic, like: “Has it ever been worse? I don’t think so”
I say, “think again”.
America’s struggles aren’t even as bad as the worst periods in my life, such as the 60’s with its challenges of Vietnam (58,000 American dead), Kennedy, Kennedy, MLK, civil rights strife, or the 70’s with stagflation, Nixon, Carter, hostages.
Over the last 45 years, we’ve had regular success as a nation – yes, there have been stumbles, but we’ve seen the end of the cold war, we’ve have continued economic growth for all but the year or two of the Great Recession, we survived 9/11, and COVID, and shades of Vietnam, we’ve even survived embarrassing international retreats like Obama (ISIS), and Biden (Afghanistan).
Today, Smerconish’s lead comment on his Saturday morning CNN show was: “Will the “Great Wealth Transfer” trigger a Millennial civil war?” He was worried about the challenge of an uneven intergenerational transfer of the $124 Trillion in wealth currently held by the Silent Generation and Baby Boomers … where folks in Gen X will get a windfall, but the inter-vivos and testamentary transfers would only go to some Millennials – leaving others without a legacy/inheritance.
“Civil War” – My, how far some Americans have fallen!
https://fortune.com/2025/12/06/great-wealth-transfer-inheritance-gen-z-millennials-boomers-entrepreneurs-self-made-billionaires/
https://www.cnn.com/audio/podcasts/smerconish-on-cnn/episodes/47fbc1e0-2cca-11ef-88f0-53f01a868a36
Hell yes, we have real issues – an ever growing welfare dependency (a dramatic reversal from President Clinton’s vision), failing public K-12 schools (thank your teacher unions), ever increasing numbers of single parent families (the percentage of US children living in single-parent households is higher than every other developed country in the world (and nearly all of other nations too!) because it has nearly tripled between 1960 and 2023, increasing from 9% to 25%). We have had dramatic failures of immigration policy enforcement, dramatic failures of crime enforcement, tens of thousands of Americans dying in the streets each year from illegal drug abuse, and dramatic levela of entitlement/welfare fraud.
But, “Has it ever been worse?” Hell yes! If you are talking about political challenges, both the 60’s and 70’s were worse. But, politics isn’t everything – don’t make it so. Hug your kids, grandkids. Go to church. Go to a movie. Take a walk. Read a book. Join the Y, or the American Legion, or volunteer at a foodbank. Watch some football – even you Cleveland Browns fans.
Too many Americans give too much weight to political differences and disputes. And, as a result, we see people taking shots at Trump, others celebrating evil people like Mangioni, some who agree with the assassination of Charlie Kirk because he had opinions that he was willing to engage in debate, discussion, conversation with others who disagreed. So many on the left believe that words are violence and that it is OK to commit violence to shut up people you don’t agree with. https://www.thefire.org/news/student-acceptance-violence-response-speech-hits-record-high That is obviously worse compared to free speech as intended. See Skokie.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Socialist_Party_of_America_v._Village_of_Skokie
And, while the 60’s and 70’s had lots of political strife and loss, in terms of the risk to American democracy, our republic, hey pale in comparison to periods when the nation was at war, and everything was at stake – the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Civil War WWI, WWII.
The difference today? Most Americans have never “worn the green” – they have never been called to defend America. Too many are willing to let “someone else’s Alex” pick up a weapon and risk his life. Not me, not my child. https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/23/opinion/23kristol.html
https://jonathanturley.org/2022/03/13/poll-almost-half-of-american-say-that-they-would-rather-flee-than-defend-the-united-states/
We are all lucky to be here as American citizens.
Quit your bitchin, stop your moaning and groaning. Buck up. Grow up.
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Al Lindquist:
great read–keep up the good work–yes, “grow up” is what so many should do–bitch, moan, complain that’s all they do since January.
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The “worse” was not about our country as clearly things have been much worse. The “worse” is about the people, their hate, division, their willingness to complain, their envy, their unwillingness to check facts and to believe lies and misinformation.
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AL LINDQUIST
Agree with you 100%–the lefty loons in NYC–Chicago–and San Francisco believe whatever garbage they are fed by the universities–media–and podcasts–same folks who believed the border was closed (include yourself)–the corpse was not demented (include yourself)–Russian collusion (include yourself)–Hunter’s laptop was Russian disinformation (include yourself)–the Affordable Care Act would be affordable (include yourself)–men could have babies thus now called a “birthing person” (maybe you haven’t gone that loony yet).
You lefties are a hoot–we are misinformed –believe what we want to believe–and easily manipulated. But not you!! As my father would say– “some folks think their sh– doesn’t stink.”–“They are just better than the rest–just ask them.”
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And yet…
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And yet…
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You give Trump too much credit. In less than a year on the job, he has lost the narrative and lost a good bit of his support. His changing his mind from one day to the next doesn’t fly.
What has happened in this country is a permanent case of agitation created by various elected people including some in Congress all the way down the state and local levels. Add in various “influencers” from online and the media and there is dissatisfaction created everywhere. Trump doesn’t have nearly the voice now that you give him credit for.
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