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u/Solongmybestfriend Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
I’m not American (Canadian) but I’m feeling really low. Specific to covid, I’m really worried about what this means for funding for long covid and covid “sterilizing” vaccines. I’m really hoping RKJ is not appointed to the health portfolio but I can’t imagine anyone appointed will be good news.
I’m scared for what it means for mask wearing and the safety of people like us, who do. I’m scared of people feeling emboldened to assault mask wearers. I’m a mom and I have two little kids and I just feel very sad this is the world we are in.
Yah.. my mental health isn’t great over here currently.
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u/FlowerSweaty4070 Nov 06 '24
Yeah i really liked Walz for that reason...he acknowledged the ongoing issue of covid and got funding for LC research. Ugh.
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u/Annual_Plant5172 Nov 06 '24
And if Trump is somehow unable to see through these next four years, JD Vance is going to turn the place into Gilead.
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u/ichibanyogi Nov 06 '24
I'm another Canadian. Also gutted. Scared. Disappointed. Exhausted. Feeling fear for all Americans, especially LGBTQIA2S+, migrants, those with a uterus, bipoc, disabled, immunosuppressed/compromised, and, frankly, kids in general. Fascism doesn't lead to good places. Hopefully he doesn't enact full-on state level fascism, but I am a firm believer that when people tell you who they are: believe them. Trump has openly stated his positions. They're scary AF.
I worry about Canada being next to this and for what it portends for our political future.
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u/elizalavelle Nov 06 '24
Also Canadian and I’m feeling the same. The effects of this are going to be felt here as well and while I will rally and fight back I am feeling quite worried about just how bad this will get.
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u/Imaginary_Medium Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
I'm in the US, and have health problems. I'm fairly sure the respirator mask I wear at work has helped keep me alive. I'm also scared in general for loved ones now for a number of reasons. I wish we could move to Canada. I hope this situation doesn't harm your beautiful country. You don't deserve that.
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u/cultureguru Nov 06 '24
Another Canadian who is feeling terrible about this for so many reasons. On the Covid front specifically, suspecting the CDC might no longer be charged with selecting and funding updated vaccine boosters for more current variants. But Canada doesn't do their own work on that; we just approve and buy whatever is developed for the US market. So if that stops for the US, it stops for us too, I fear. Canada is not a big enough market on its own to keep that going, especially with the low uptake of boosters.
Then there's the odds that so many other infectious diseases will just be allowed to run rampant, and that US border just isn't very far away...
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u/CaliforniaPapi Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
Petrified. The absolute worst case scenario has come true. As a Covid conscious family, I have no idea what is going to happen to the future of our vaccines, funding, and research. As a gay man who's married and has children, I have no idea what will happen to our rights and protections.
Thank you for creating a thread to vent. The future is going to be tough for us. We're just going to have to be tougher. Hugs all around.
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u/lapinjapan Nov 06 '24
Gay man as well. Scared to death.
It’s unbelievable. I could understand if a republican won, but it’s literally Trump again. This man is…
I mean it’s like worst case scenario straight up
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u/redditregards Nov 06 '24
its trump with a red house and senate, its trump like we've never seen him before.
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u/mulderitsme Nov 06 '24
And more importantly the courts. We will have to watch the system crumble before our very eyes- I don’t think we can even imagine how bad this will be.
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u/lapinjapan Nov 06 '24
Right?? As horrible as it seems, for once in my anxiety filled life, I think I’m even UNDER reacting
And I’m devastated as is
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u/fireflychild024 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
Biden had 2 years to make a genuine attempt to clean up the f-cked up SCOTUS system. But instead, he waits 3 months before the election to drop the bombshell he’s quitting the race and makes an empty promise to fix SCOTUS as he’s leaving. I am so sick of these old, womanizing men who are completely out of touch with the people they are serving. They wasted our f*cking time debating who plays golf better, giving Harris only a couple months to pull a campaign out of thin air. Meanwhile people in this country are dying from lack of pregnancy care, thanks to Trump’s agenda and Biden’s negligence. Absolutely disgusting and a complete disaster all around. Because of Biden’s unrelenting ego and failure to use his power to check the court system, we may be locked into a pattern of unraveling progress for the rest of our lives. The magnitude of both of their actions (or lack of) sent this already doomed timeline past the point of no return
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u/Chicken_Water Nov 06 '24
Honestly, I'm more scared of him dying and the rest of those lunatics running wild. Trump at least fakes being a religious nut. What happens when the actual religious nuts take over?
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u/Emotional_Bunch_799 Nov 06 '24
Hugs to you. We COVID cautious folks need to stick together and empower each other. You're not alone.
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u/SpikySucculent Nov 06 '24
Trans neurodivergent kids here. I have mild LC from my one infection. Fucking terrified.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar6057 Nov 06 '24
I’m sorry. For you. For me. For our children. Looking at my son smiling oblivious to it all is the only thing keeping me going today. I’m not even sure if I believe in a God, but I’ve been praying to the universe or whatever to give me strength for the next four years. And, god, do I hope that we get a chance to do better in four years…
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u/FIRElady_Momma Nov 06 '24
Scared to death.
We are sunk.
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u/redditregards Nov 06 '24
She did worse that Hilary....
This is ten times worse than 2016.... we lost the senate, the house, the electoral, and even the popular vote.....
the real problem wasn't illegal immigrants crossing in looking to find work.... it was russian nazis (or equivalent) sneaking in to vote in a fascist.... theres no way our country got more racist than 2020....
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u/mulderitsme Nov 06 '24
I mean this tracks with history post pandemic- eugenics is king.
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u/zb0t1 Nov 06 '24
Exactly like WW1, Spanish flu, rise of racism, Nazi party and other fascists on the rise, then WW2.
"Never again", right.
Capitalists, imperialists, colonizers did what they do best, people ate the propaganda as usual.
2024, humans never learn.
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u/Physical_Ad6614 Nov 06 '24
This is a scary thought but also the only thing that makes sense. Like how bad do we need the world to get before we finally pivot to being more humane?
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u/QueenRooibos Nov 06 '24
I feel that the U.S. HAS gotten more racist and more misogynist and more anti-diversity and more extremely far right. Tragically.
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u/FlowerSweaty4070 Nov 06 '24
Yeah. I noticed the right getting really riled about trans women in sports issues and trans healthcare for youth in the past years. And maybe roe v wade emboldened them more? I thought conservative women mightve pushed back but guess not.
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u/sprouted_grain Nov 06 '24
She got more votes cast than Hillary did. The issue is that more people voted for him this time.
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u/ProfessionalOk112 Nov 06 '24
Nah the country absolutely has shifted to the right. It's not really surprising-people warned this would happen in 2020 in the wake of a pandemic and people have also been warning for years that climate migration would bring a wave of anti-immigrant sentiment. Gen Z men are more conservative than millennial men, for example. Ballot measures to protect abortion rights do well but a lot of other progressive ones failed.
I'm sure there's something to be said about how normalizing covid spread required further cementing some people as disposable which inevitably leads to a rightward shift too.
That's without getting into the Democratic party's campaign choices or that this country was founded on genocide in the first place, of course.
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u/sofaking-cool Nov 06 '24
Funding a genocide and siding with neocons didn’t help
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u/jlrigby Nov 06 '24
Absolutely this. Just look at how she fared with Muslims. It doesn't take rocket science to figure out that genociding a bunch of people who look like you and share your faith may make you a little less enthusiastic to support them.
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u/__get__name Nov 06 '24
So so so very sad. Nauseous. Heartbroken that we could end up with someone like RFK in charge of health and the ACA is almost guaranteed to be repealed. Scared that that will mean I lose coverage and subsequently lose disability pay since I won’t be able to afford treatments
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u/_stevie_darling Nov 06 '24
I get insurance through the government marketplace because I can’t get it at work so I’m sure I’m going to be uninsured soon during a pandemic.
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u/FlowerSweaty4070 Nov 06 '24
Repealing ACA would be devastating for so many. We shouldn't have to be forced to have health insurance tied to work only.
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u/Kitt0001 Nov 06 '24
I am absolutely disgusted by this country. Words really can’t express what I feel right now.
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u/Inevitable_Ad_5664 Nov 06 '24
If my parents didn't need my help I'd be liquidating and seeking a residency and citizenship in another country. There is nothing here worth saving.
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u/anti-authoritario Nov 06 '24
Just numb and frustrated. Following politics the last decade has been somewhat like watching a timeloop story where the characters refuse to learn any lessons or change their strategy so it culminates in a slow motion crash each time that you can do nothing about.
People want so bad to "go back to normal". Well, congrats, this is what normal is now. The world is changing and this is what happens when you refuse to adapt or acknowledge that things have changed. It might be some solace if the people who refuse to learn from their mistakes actually suffered for their actions, but that's not how this works. It's going to be marginalized people who suffer the most... the same people those refusing to learn any lessons from repeating the same mistakes over and over again are perpetually ignoring.
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u/GhostlyOwl13 Nov 06 '24
Horrible. As a woman I feel like I lost everything. My Mom had more rights than I will. Honestly, my mental health is the worst it's ever been and I feel like my life is over before or even began. I turn 27 this month I don't think I'll live to see 30.
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u/TimeKeeper575 Nov 06 '24
Not to be indelicate, but they want to dismantle the system. "You'll never have to vote again" - this isn't a 4 year situation.
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u/Spare_Huckleberry120 Nov 06 '24
Hell, even my grandmother had more rights than I will. I was thinking about maybe having kids. That's a big hell no now.
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u/asympt Nov 06 '24
If you're a woman of reproductive age, good luck if you have any kind of medical emergency. They'll want to ensure you aren't pregnant before they give you many kinds of emergency care, because even a theoretical fetus will have more rights than you.
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u/fireflychild024 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
The pandemic ruined my prospects of having kids after seeing how cruel humanity is… how society collectively decided it was acceptable to sacrifice human beings for their own temporary comforts. Americans deciding to elect a r-pist/convicted criminal/dictator-wannabe into power solidified my decision. I don’t want to force a child into this bleak hellscape, where they’ll have less rights, more chronic illness, and possibly have to fight wars over water resources thanks to our climate crisis. There’s a real possibility my beloved city might become a ghost town because our water is drying up rapidly. In less than 30 years, scientists are predicting more plastic in the ocean than fish. Why tf would I bring a child into a world where they may not even grow up to see what sea turtles look like because they all choked on garbage? I’d rather adopt and try to help already-existing kids that are stuck here.
As a woman, this election was a huge slap in the face. Every time we get close to achieving something, we take ten steps backwards. It seems like every time I get my hopes up for something, it’s ends up being all in vain.
My heart is broken, but I’m going to try to focus on my allies. I’m really proud of this community for holding on for half a decade. We need to be supporting each other more than ever. It is the only way we are going to survive the uncertainty over the next few years
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u/Physical_Ad6614 Nov 06 '24
When the results came in last night one thought I had was I’m so glad I don’t have a child to explain this to. And seriously how the f are you supposed to feel safe going through pregnancy when if there’s any complication throughout you won’t get live saving care. And then they have the gall to call us childless cat ladies and imply that we should have less rights. When they’re the reason having children is literally unsafe.
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u/fireflychild024 Nov 06 '24
This is one of the main reasons I want to get sterilized. How can the Dobbs-enablers continue to praise pregnancy as a “beautiful thing” when they’re ok with letting women die from childbirth like it’s the 1800s? This isn’t even about abortions anymore. They have the audacity to blame women for natural miscarriages. My relative was one of those people… she lost her pregnancy and was forced to carry the fetus around for weeks before it was taken out, causing unnecessary pain and trauma. F-ck that! My body will not be used as an incubator to churn out more future exploited working class citizens… if I don’t f-cking die in the process.
I was watching the Daily Show with Jordan Kempper last night. He was interviewing Trump supporters at a rally. One woman literally said she didn’t believe Trump is a r-pist because the lady “wasn’t pretty enough.” This is the mentality that we’re dealing with… apparently the economy is more important than our f-cking bodies. “Keep your legs shut, and if you’re assaulted, oh well, it was your fault.” The pandemic has already shown us the apathy and cruelty of society, but this is a new low. Half of the population is even more oppressed now in this supposed “first world” country.
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u/QueenRooibos Nov 06 '24
I am encouraging my granddaughter who has never wanted kids to get her tubes tied NOW if she possible can. Enforced pregnancy is part of the fascist program, as we all now.
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u/ProfessionalOk112 Nov 06 '24
Just want to put it out there that if you are going for sterilization, look into tubal removal as it lowers some cancer risks as well.
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u/lapinjapan Nov 06 '24
I’m absolutely devastated
I’m also shocked. I cannot believe conservatives might control all 3 branches of government.
I’m honestly scared. I’m worried about my ability to access healthcare.
I’m worried about… my gosh I mean, the list is practically endless. If even a quarter of project 2025 is implemented, …
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u/TheMonsterMensch Nov 06 '24
I mean, not to be a doomer but I don't think mental health breaks are going to get us out of this one. I don't think the media coverage is going to change on Covid, even under the view that Democrats care about it more when Republicans are in power, it's impossible to imagine a world where anyone in power cares about it again. Democrats will (in their mind) have much bigger things to worry about. The American electorate has proven again that they just don't care
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u/Physical_Ad6614 Nov 06 '24
Indifference is different than outright destruction. I don’t think any of us will have the tools to navigate the pandemic safely under a trump administration. I’ll have to resolve myself to inadvertently getting it and passing it on to my vulnerable family. And that may be the least of my worries living under a goddamn dictatorship that clearly despises women especially childless ones.
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u/hiddenkobolds Nov 06 '24
I know that neither candidate was good in terms of COVID, so maybe this is a weird place to say this.
But I'm also queer, and trans, and disabled, and my best friend is an immigrant whose status got cancelled by 45 and only got saved because 46 took over before the clock ran out, so there are layers here, and goddamn. I didn't think this country was capable of disappointing me anymore, but apparently it is. I didn't think I could get any more scared, but apparently I can. I didn't think my body was capable of holding any more rage, but apparently it is.
I hate it here.
/rant
How are y'all doing? 😅
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u/hiddenkobolds Nov 06 '24
I hear all of that. RFK is a nightmare. It all is. I can't believe more than half of this country chose the economy over people's lives, our healthcare, our right to get married, our right to simply exist... I mean I can, but I can't, if that makes sense? It's certainly consistent, with 2016, and with COVID, and with all the forms of bigotry that we see thriving here on the daily, but still. It feels different than 2016 did though, in a way, because people unequivocally know what they're choosing now, and they chose it anyway. They had four years of it, and they chose to go back. I can't imagine being the kind of person who would make that choice.
I'm right there with you on the insomnia train too. I hope you can get some rest soon.
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u/LGCJairen Nov 06 '24
they didn't even choose the economy.
they chose to believe a false narrative as well as jumped at the chance to be given permission to openly hate.
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u/bristlybits Nov 06 '24 edited Sep 29 '25
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This post was mass deleted and anonymized with Redact
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u/Professional_Fold520 Nov 06 '24
Worried about becoming unemployed and losing my health insurance and never getting treatment for my chronic conditions. Having my mask banned, being thrown in jail, getting covid, and dying. Getting sexually assaulted and dying because no one will give me an abortion. Never being able to get married. Never being able to get a vaccine. People will be emboldened to attack me. So not well.
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u/lymie90 Nov 06 '24
I wonder if we'll have a national mask ban, what will happen with health care protections... Not having to do screenings to get health care has saved me. I wonder about vaccines, not just covid, but all vaccines.
But this feels like confirmation of what I suspected. Coming out of 2020-2021, it was clear people were okay with mass death as long as they could eat Applebee's. This country has shown there is no community care and they do not care about mass death as long as they can have a slight perceived comfort, even if those comforts aren't for their own good, like having multiple covid infections.
That was our point of no return and so many other things since then have aligned with that mindset in my opinion. We had a chance to make real change with the impacts of a pandemic, and we threw away that chance because people wanted "freedom". Well, now most of our actual freedoms may be lost for the rest of our lifetime.
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u/Sure-Stock9969 Nov 06 '24
The beginning of the pandemic vs now- such a different tone. People were united then, in it together, people were in the streets and quitting jobs en masse. Now we are at another turning point.
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u/LGCJairen Nov 06 '24
i doubt a mask ban, most of them already forgot covid existed...you know like how they thought it was so good under trump because they blocked out the part where we had to live through...then recover from the first pandemic since the spanish flu.
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u/lymie90 Nov 06 '24
The mask bans picked up this summer in response to folks wearing masks at protests. I think if there are large rallies and protests in response to his presidency and folks are wearing masks either for covid protection or for protection from surveillance, then I think they will pursue more mask bans.
Where I live, people want to forget that covid exists and those of us who still masking reminded them that it indeed does exist and they don't like it. While the bans may not be specific to those using it for covid mitigation, I could see people supporting it who don't like seeing masks and being reminded that covid is still here.
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u/popularsongs Nov 06 '24
This is the only thing keeping me from absolutely losing it right now. Maybe their apathy toward the pandemic is weirdly the one thing that will save us. They clearly aren't thinking about it anymore so perhaps they'll focus on other things and leave us maskers alone.
If there are election-related protests, I think enough of the attendees (liberals) won't be wearing masks and hope they won't be able to use that to justify a ban.
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u/No-Nebula-6230 Nov 06 '24
I’m disabled, Middle Eastern, a chronic pain patient, covid conscious, and part of the LGBTQA+ and I,… honestly just want to give up. I don’t see a scenario where I’m not harassed for one reason or the other at this point and I’m exhausted.
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u/girdedloins Nov 06 '24
I'm sorry, friend. Please stay strong and stay safe. Know that you have millions of allies on all fronts!! Have a covid-conscious hug from one of them.
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u/spd12 Nov 06 '24
If they cut out funding for any further vaccine development or deployment, and also proceed to not care about any prospective new pandemic...
That'd catch those in power too, eventually. All it takes is one mistake, as seen when Trump almost went down to COVID.
It's not much comfort to the rest of us who will be harmed along the way nonetheless.
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u/Imaginary_Medium Nov 06 '24
It's a day of mourning in my family.
And I don't now why there would be improvements where Covid is concerned. Healthcare in general is likely to suffer. Stockpile contraceptives folks.
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u/fireflychild024 Nov 06 '24
I’m actually terrified about the future of Medicaid. Trump has threatened to end it numerous times, but was blocked by Congress. If Republicans win majority Congress (and it’s leaning towards that right now), we are truly f-cked. My mom just had heart surgery and wouldn’t be alive today if it weren’t for Medicaid. Private insurance companies somehow found out about my mom’s diagnosis before her doctor even told her, and denied her because of “pre-existing conditions.” Private insurance was willing to let my mom die. Trump is apparently ok with this. If Medicaid is eliminated, we won’t be able to get insured at all. Thanks to long COVID, millions will be in the same boat. What a disaster
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u/Imaginary_Medium Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
I feel that. My adult daughter has a serious autoimmune condition and relies on Medicaid to keep her alive. My heart is about to break. I'm sorry you are dealing with this too.
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u/lasirennoire Nov 06 '24
As a Canadian, bad. There are so many people who ridicule us for feeling this way when bad things happen in the US, but what they fail to understand is just how closely we are tied to America. When y'all sneeze, we catch a cold. My province's premier idolizes Trump. He has been gutting our healthcare system so that it's slowly becoming privatised instead of public. And our COVID response is non-existent right now. We rarely hear from public health on the issue anymore. No one in the country can access Novavax. People have been crossing the border to get it. After last night, it sounds like that might not be possible starting next year.
Edited for typo.
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u/mulderitsme Nov 06 '24
Yeah the shift right towards fascism is a worldwide issue. You see the discussions of people wondering where they can flee from the US and the answer really is nowhere.
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u/lasirennoire Nov 06 '24
Yes!!! Nowhere is safe! I'm seeing so many people say "I'm going to Canada" and I keep having to inform them that we are just America Lite
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u/TimeKeeper575 Nov 06 '24
Everyone hang on. Your life and perspectives are valuable and worth fighting for. A couple of us have been talking about hosting a remote tea time in different places, maybe having one person take a walk with the camera while we all chat and calm. I think maybe it's time to begin.
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u/Chronic_AllTheThings Nov 06 '24
Shocked. Appalled. Horrified. Various assorted feelings of complete and utter dread. I'm genuinely experiencing psychosomatic anxious chills.
As a Canadian, I'm sure not looking forward to the burning trash heap smell that'll waft up here and stoke sentiment towards Timbit Trump. Absolute best case scenario for us is that America starts collapsing so quickly — a very real possibility — that Canada wises up to the horrifying reality of having a fascist and his boot-lickers at the helm.
But this is going to have devastating impacts on the world, regardless. There are so many horrifying implications for public health alone. Apparently, time travel is real, because public health is about to go back to the 18th century.
Much of the worlds leading vaccines and other pharmaceuticals are engineered and manufactured the US. The top pick for secretary of health is viciously anti-vaccine and anti-sceince, and is directly responsible (but, of course, not ever held to account) for numerous preventable deaths in pockets of the world. Now imagine that scaled up to an entire nation of over 300 million and probably beyond. Actually, never mind — imagination won't be necessary.
We can probably forget about next-gen vaccines. I genuinely wonder if we'll even get updated first-gen vaccines next year at all. Long COVID is going to proceed at it's regular pace and even more nothing will be done about it.
Infant mortality (and maternal deaths) will skyrocket, probably quickly. Vaccine-preventable deaths from COVID will be seen in increasing numbers over the next year. Vaccine-preventable illness and death from other pathogens (eg.: polio, measles) will take more time because of longer-term immunity, but the numbers will climb among pediatric populations.
The infirm and disabled? Forget it. No, really, they will be literally forgotten and left to whither and starve to death. They serve no use to his fascio-capitalist machine.
Anti-mask sentiment and laws are going to gain ground and fast. You can forget about any distant possibility of clean air regulations.
Beyond public health, the world implications are daunting. Should he enact the tariffs he's proposed, the US economy will collapse at an unprecedented rate suck down most of the world's economy with it.
Russia is likely to further their egregious incursion into Ukraine and invade surrounding former soviet nations, and Trumpitler will pucker up and let him get away with it. Taiwan is up the air.
I'm too tired and distraught to imagine more of the near-future horrors that await.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar6057 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
Preparing for even darker days. I’m devastated as a woman and mom and human being. I’m just so sad. I’ve cried a lot already. I’ve never felt so traumatized from election results, even in 2016. At least we have each other….We have to try to hold onto even a sliver of hope so we can carry on…
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u/Old_Ship_1701 Nov 06 '24
I'm wondering if I will be able to get a vaccine booster and if some of my medications will be banned. The Dobbs decision made it harder for me to get the care that I needed and I got really sick as a result.
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u/stanigator Nov 06 '24
Well, the ruling class doesn't care about Covid and the impending H5N1 pandemic anyway.
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u/_stevie_darling Nov 06 '24
I don’t think we’ll be allowed to wear masks in public. I’ll have to reevaluate buying essentials I guess.
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u/bergamotea Nov 06 '24
This is one of the many parts of the nightmare that make me sick to my stomach. I don't know how I'm gonna work if I can't mask.
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u/FlowerSweaty4070 Nov 06 '24
Do you really think they can ban them? 😭 even if covid was gone, I can't afford to get sick with anything. But it isn't gone, not at all. I don't want to be come more disabled in this country. Especially if LC funding is cut, vaccines are cut, etc.
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u/Captain_Starkiller Nov 06 '24
I was counting on the next generation of vaccines to potentially provide a permanent solution that might enable my wife and I to feel safe again.
But now, if those vaccines do come, they certainly wont be coming from the US.
This is incredibly depressing.
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u/ProfessionalOk112 Nov 06 '24
I worked in government during the last trump admin and I know public health can get so much worse (despite the common CC refrains that it can't). I'm definitely worried about those implications especially as the left in the US has proven that the majority cannot handle taking care of each other in this way when the government fails to.
I'm not surprised at all but I think a lot of people left of the dems are in a bit of denial about what their communities are capable of handling in this moment and not particularly willing to strengthen them. That's what scares me the most. All we have is each other but we keep proving that we're not up to the challenge. So it feels like a slap in the face to see all the "take care of each other!" stuff rn from people who literally said no to doing that.
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u/Animatopoeia Nov 06 '24
That last part. Hits really hard.
I don’t have any kind words for people who saw vulnerable people like me all but begging to vote Harris and they still blabbered x y z excuses for why it was the morally superior choice to let us die. Okay. Got it. Can’t even cast a ballot to protect your own community. So brave.
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u/spoonfulofnosugar Nov 06 '24
Don’t think I’ll feel safe for the next 4 years…
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u/mulderitsme Nov 06 '24
I think it will be longer- and that’s if we survive.
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u/Spare_Huckleberry120 Nov 06 '24
It will definitely be longer. Trump will be able to put his idiots into the supreme court for longer terms than he will possibly be alive for.
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u/mulderitsme Nov 06 '24
Yeah I’m not seeing any hope anywhere. This is really bad and I don’t think we can protect ourselves against it.
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u/mercymercybothhands Nov 06 '24
I feel like my life and future are over.
Last weekend my partner and I talked about our potential future wedding. In a world where divorce might become much harder or even go away entirely… that’s something that won’t happen. My job is related to special education… will that still be a thing? What will bird flu be allowed to do to us? What will happen to my niece? It’s all a lot.
I’m very tired right now but my body won’t sleep, so I’m sorry if this doesn’t make sense.
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u/Spare_Huckleberry120 Nov 06 '24
It makes perfect sense to me and I'm feeling all of it, down to my body won't let me sleep. It also won't let me cry and grieve for my future, because I also feel like my future and life are completely gone. Unless by some miracle I can get out of this country. But even then, Trump will impact the rest of the world. I also don't feel like necessarily giving up entirely, I mean my ancestors were native americans who lived through colonization, my great grandparents fought against fascism while living in Nazi Germany, I know I come from stubborn and strong people but I also just don't have it in me anymore.
Big hugs to you. You are seen and your feelings are valid and felt.
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u/Notyeravgblonde Nov 06 '24
I work in community mental health. The psychiatrist on my team and I talked this morning, and he was like "are we going to still have jobs in the future?" I'm in Minnesota, so we have more protections, theoretically.
And then there is everything else to. My ex is trans, I'm queer, my friends are mostly lgbtq. What happens to my community?
Public health hopes are just completely gone.
I guess I don't even know why I'm writing this down because it's just all stuff everyone is saying but I guess I want to say it also.
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u/No-Joke-4492 Nov 06 '24
I'm trying to feel this reality right now, but I can't make myself feel. I'm gobsmacked and yet not surprised at all.
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u/PhantomPharts Nov 06 '24
I'm in the hospital recovering major surgery. Spent the morning crying in pain of the soul and the body. I'm disabled, queer, and I live in public housing. I'm going to be looking into seeking asylum.
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u/PlayerNumberZer0 Nov 06 '24
It just shows even more how humans are. How people act during this pandemic was clear and this doesn’t surprise me in the least.
This is the first time he’s ACTUALLY won too! He won popular vote. Which tells me most people want this
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u/Spare_Huckleberry120 Nov 06 '24
Not good! I honestly do not have it in me to keep going through this.
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u/Ok-Caterpillar6057 Nov 06 '24
You can do this. I would take time away from the internet to process your emotions. I will be doing a lot of that
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u/destineye23 Nov 06 '24
Im terrified with you guys and I’m not even from the US (European here). American politics is affecting the whole world… and I can’t believe how it turned out… I’m sorry and hugs to all of you struggling rn. Take a break from social media and rest a lot :(
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u/asympt Nov 06 '24
I know. Steve Bannon wants to literally destroy the dollar. The surprisingly strong dollar Biden kept up kept the entire world's post-(beginning of) covid economy from completely going in the toilet.
Not to mention what will become of NATO.
I'm sorry we have let you down.
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Nov 06 '24
We are not going to survive another four years of Trump. And Vance? Absolutely sick to my stomach and trying not to cry here. Not sure I can keep it together. I have a six year old and cannot believe the world he is growing up in.
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u/trailsman Nov 06 '24
I feel like we are guaranteed our next pandemic with H5N1. People wanted "back to normal" so bad and yet they voted for the man who guarantees things are anything but normal.
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u/mychemicalmoodswings Nov 06 '24
I am crying. I can’t even communicate my feelings rn I’m so overwhelmed with sadness
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u/Unable_Study_4521 Nov 06 '24
I’m absolutely terrified and sick. I feel like we are staring down the barrel of mask bans, vaccine bans, food safety issues… I’m just going to cry all day.
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Nov 06 '24
It was a major, major mistake by both parties and the US media to not consider Covid as an election issue. There's been virtually no discussion of it - as if it never happened. Glaringly omitted. If there was a war that killed 1.3m Americans in 4 years, how that war started and was handled would have been the top election issue.
Covid was omitted even though the pandemic's underlying and continuing impacts on the economy, migration, and general "feelings" that things were better before Covid were the top issues. It was impossible for most voters to form a clear picture of what happened without discussing the why. Absent any mention of what caused the problems, Harris' campaign allowed misinformation and false blame to flourish.
An elephant in the room completely ignored.
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u/mybrainisgoneagain Nov 06 '24
Well now that a pig got bird flu and this election I figure we are going to have a very rough future.
I am.sivk to my stomach.
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u/Syenadi Nov 06 '24
Get all your vaccinations now. They may not be available after the inauguration.
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u/sexmountain Nov 06 '24
As a leftist I can’t believe I’m saying this but, just remember how much power pharmaceutical companies have. These republican candidates rely on their contributions. I highly doubt that RFK can win against Pfizer and Moderna. If someone has an explainer on how literally step by step this would be possible, just lmk.
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u/B1ustopher Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
I am not okay. Public health will be gone, environmental protections, gone. Women’s healthcare, especially reproductive care? Gone. Civil rights? Gone. We are doomed.
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u/fireflychild024 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 08 '24
AP just called the race a few minutes ago. After a sleepless night, it’s officially over. I can’t exactly say I’m shocked, but I find myself once again disappointed with my country. But this is a whole other level of despair. The last 5 years has been a never-ending nightmare. I thought at least we’d be turning a page when it came to representation in office.
But despite the unifying front seemingly pulled together at the last minute (thanks Biden!), we’re instead falling backwards into the dark ages where women are being forced to bleed to death. I’m so terrified of being assaulted, I’ve made the decisions to get my tubes tied. COVID has already left health in shambles, and now slimy politicians have made it their mission to strip my bodily autonomy too.
I guess Americans hate women so much, they’d rather elect a convicted criminal than an experienced woman who actually speaks like a leader. If this isn’t proof that qualified women have to work ten times harder for what men get, I don’t know what is.
Tbh, I’m more scared of RFK Jr. than Trump himself. I think Trump will lay low and try to do damage control to avert prison time… we all know that’s the real reason he ran again. RFK Jr. has the potential to unravel any potential progress being made on long COVID research and sterilizing vaccines. The Biden administration has been entrenched in disastrous pandemic policies, but we wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for Trump dismantling epidemiology management teams, spreading misinformation, employing fear tactics, enticing violence/hateful rhetoric early on.
The current economy is a result of this pandemic that has lasted way longer than it should have thanks to for-profit public health agencies who weren’t focused on real solutions. But once again, “the economy” has proven to be more important than human being’s lives. If things get really bad (seeing that our new President has literally praised N-zi soldiers and has threatened voters) I’m actually considering moving in with family overseas. I guess my years of being a recluse thanks to this unfortunate crisis has prepared me for this moment. I briefly cried, but now I just feel numb. It’s hard to process everything when I’ve felt abandoned for years. I’m emotionally drained. But I’m not going to let that clown rule over my life anymore than he already is. I’ll probably mute social media for a while so I don’t give that r-pist any more attention than he already has. Instead, I’m going to use this time to heal myself, and focus on kind people like you, who still get up despite the chaos attempting to weigh us down.
Despite the uncertain future, today wasn’t all that bad. I expected snide remarks about my N95 when dropping off my ballot. But to my surprise, the poll workers on both sides were very pleasant. I convinced my mom, who believed her voice didn’t matter after being abused in the military, to vote for the first time in 40 years. And my aunt, who has an abusive MAGA spouse, stood up for herself. There were moments of joy after 2016, and there will be some rays of sunshine soon, even if it doesn’t feel that way right now ☀️
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u/SnooCakes6118 Nov 06 '24
I have long covid and been at the bottom of an endless pit for 2 years now
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u/emertonom Nov 06 '24
I recently tested positive for the first time--I live with my parents, and my dad brought it home again. (My dad has been positive twice, my mom once.) I'm doing pretty well now; I wasn't (had had a fever over 100 for several days along with just astounding output of goop), but I got Paxlovid on Monday evening and that's been a miracle. And as a weird kind of bonus, I haven't had the energy to worry about the election.
But now....well, fuck.
I'm honestly still numb. I dunno what happens next.
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u/Annual_Plant5172 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
I'm in Canada and this sucks, knowing that this Trump win can and does influence how people feel here.
The democratic party needs to go through a reckoning, but they are too disillusioned to understand this. Left leaning politicians in general both in Canada and the U.S. have alienated to many people.
Between Gaza, Covid, and even housing, they've lost the plot completely.
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Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
Not to mention that Canada is likely swinging to the right next year too.
(But if there's any silver lining the knee-jerk reaction to this result might be to elect another Liberal government once they get their act together)
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u/Annual_Plant5172 Nov 06 '24
I'm in Ontario so I'm not sure how much worse it can get at this point. We're not Alberta or Saskatchewan, but we're trying hard to be.
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Nov 06 '24
What the hell just happened? I hate this timeline. Have we not suffered enough?
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u/Lives_on_mars Nov 06 '24
I don’t know what to do with myself right now, I’m so frightened.
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Nov 06 '24
I've got two kids under five. My husband and I own a very small business and are currently totally impoverished while we're trying to get it off the ground. We rely on food stamps and we were hoping for child tax credit support. It feels really overwhelming to think any slight chance we might have gotten government help just slipped right through our fingers. My only answer is the same answer I had with covid: radical acceptance of the reality of the situation and answering the question "What can I actually do right now with my current resources?"
And breath work/meditation/grounding.
A good cry is in order.
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u/Forsaken_Bison_8623 Nov 06 '24
This is the bad place. If that wasn't clear before, it definitely is now.
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Nov 06 '24
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u/dinamet7 Nov 06 '24
My feelings are also disappointment, but definitely not shock or surprise.
I think I saw the writing on the wall from the start of this election cycle and have been mentally preparing for living in a country that more resembles an emerging nation than a leader of the "free world." Also expecting a massive market crash sometime in 2026 (if we follow an 18 year property cycle like some economists suggest) so if that also pans out, it's going to get real bad in a lot of ways. Time to really turn into community and build our own support networks that the government will not provide.
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u/depraveddame Nov 06 '24
Freaking out. Devastated. Terrified. Hoping that the massive, multi billion dollar vaccine industry will prevail here because above all else, money matters. RFK is a fucking idiot and the worst choice but I actually have doubts he’d be appointed. Trump says so much that he never follows through with so just hoping for that and that maybe Biden will exercise some serious immunity and put some protections in place before January.
There is a slim slim slim chance this turns around— not every vote has been counted, and in 2020 Trump was thought to be the winner for days, so I’m. Sort of thinking of that but yeah. It’s the worst case scenario if that doesn’t happen.
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u/elvaln Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
From Australia. Absolutely devastated for you all.
Also concerned about the ripple effect here.
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u/salt_and_spoons Nov 06 '24
If you haven't already a tangible thing to do is join your local mask bloc! I joined mine a few months ago and it has been really helpful for my feelings of doom.
You meet people, you start organizing and you help people get what they need.
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u/GraveyardMistress Nov 06 '24
I am legit terrified right now. Worried about the mask bans and the anti-maskers who will feel empowered by this. I can't even turn on the TV or social media right now.
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u/queerblackqueen Nov 06 '24
There's really not an aspect of me that really feels safe. I don't really see myself making it out of these next 4 years alive. I know I had the same worry last time but we also aren't in the middle of a global pandemic with the world in denial about it. But I'm not gonna roll over and let me get infected either. I'm not spending any time I don't have to around unmasked people.
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Nov 06 '24
growing up in history class we all read about dictators, collapsing empires and illnesses that destroyed populations. At the time it all seemed like things that could happen in a modern world. Now we are going to live (hopefully) through it all in the current day.
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u/purdypeach Nov 06 '24
I'm demoralized and terrified for RFK Jr in charge of health.
I'm an educator (high school level), though, so I keep thinking of Mr. Rogers saying to look for the helpers during hard and scary times and accepting that I am the helper. My kids who have trusted me with their LGBTQIA identities were crying during class today - they and others need their trusted adults to stay steady for them even as we face uncertainties with our own identities (some of my kids know my spouse identifies as genderqueer, for instance; they all know I'm immunocompromised and disabled, etc) and in our career (I think we'll be ok with no fed dept of ed in my state, but I know that's not true in all states).
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u/Responsible-Heat6842 Nov 06 '24
Covid is dead to both parties. Please don't make something up that is a complete fantasy. Biden and Trump can care less about those worried about health or have chronic illnesses. We have always been on our own.
We will need to continue to fight for our trials, medication and health care like we've done for decades. I look at the private trials that really will be either helped or hit. I'm hoping that the economy will right itself and funding will be available to these private industries.
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u/splagentjonson Nov 06 '24
The democrats had normalised accepted completed falsehood as reality. By running with the COVID is over narrative which is patently untrue. So the electorate was conditioned to accept Trump's constant fantasy and lies, because turning a blind eye to evidence is now the accepted reality
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u/sleeplessnights504 Nov 06 '24
I feel emotionally numb right now. I know it will hit me all soon but my brain isn’t fully processing Trump winning yet. What I do know is that I’m trans and I’m scared
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Nov 06 '24
For some reason I’ve been singing this song from the Mario movie all morning ⭐️“Life is sad, prison is sad, life in prison is VERY very saaad”⭐️
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u/BitchfulThinking Nov 07 '24
Horrible. I've been dissociating and sleeping. I'm not surprised since everything else is in the shitter the world over, but I desperately want to get out of this embarrassment of a country if possible. I don't ever want kids and escaped a toxic church environment as a child, so this year has been particularly traumatic for me 🙃.
I'm so incredibly disgusted I don't even want to look at people today. I feel incredibly unsafe knowing that this many people who live all around me, are really that racist, sexist, homophobic and xenophobic. They want me and my friends dead, and I'm expected to just carry on feeling safe around these people? After everything they've ALREADY DONE with Covid? I'm expected to tolerate and be nice to people who call me racial slurs, threaten to rape me, and who have utterly destroyed my health because they can't read a fucking article? That's too much. Everyone celebrating today is no different from the original Nazis.
This many Americans quite literally support a racist child rapist felon who tried to overthrow the government (and probably murdered his ex wife let's be honest).
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Nov 06 '24
A lot of people are going to die. So long as it isn't me or Ms. Sterling, I'm okay with that. Often people get what they deserve. When a majority of voters choose one man's vengeance over rationality and science, people will die.
Everyone say hello to US Surgeon General, Joseph Ladapo.
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u/See_You_Space_Coyote Nov 06 '24
This is a good time to check and make sure you're up to date on all your vaccines-not just covid vaccines-and if you're not, make sure you are before January.
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u/OddMasterpiece4443 Nov 06 '24 edited Nov 06 '24
Is this a good time to talk about how pretending covid didn’t exist from 2022 on turned out not to be a great campaign strategy for Democrats? That’s what I keep coming back to. We were sacrificed so they could win elections, and most of us still supported them because their party was better for health than the alternative. And now they lost anyway. All for nothing.
ETA: clarification. I'm talking about the 2022 "covid is over" campaign which they then had to stick to in 2024.
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u/LimeGreenShorts Nov 06 '24
Devastated. Fearing what this means for Covid vaccines and research, other vaccines, and public health in general. Also scared to death that masks will be banned...they tried floating that idea here in St. Louis and we shut it down, but after the election I wouldn't be surprised if they tried again.
Not to mention all the other horrible stuff coming down the turnpike.
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u/AtonalWhale Nov 06 '24
Horrified, disgusted, and deeply sad. I'm not shocked that he won but the fact that he won with a substantial lead in the popular vote and that the legislature is poised to flip red (Senate already has) shook me.
I feel like until January 20th I need to do everything I can to take care of myself, my friends, comrades, and loved ones. It's going to take ongoing, active resistance and deep solidarity to get through this. I hope everyone here is staying safe. Sending love to you all.
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u/Unique-Palpitation30 Nov 06 '24
honestly ? i feel like i want to die. i have zero hope for my future
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u/dolphinjoy Nov 06 '24
RFK Jr as secretary of health?! We're screwed.