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Erich Bloodaxe BSN

(14,733 posts)
Sat Mar 7, 2015, 07:51 PM Mar 2015

Pizza Politics.

In view of the recent posts on how pizza company political donations go almost exclusively to Republicans, I'd like to offer up another pizza-based observation.

So you've got a group of people, roughly half of whom want to eat nothing but the most unhealthy of foods, and the other half or so of whom want to eat pizza. Everyone in each of the subgroups has been somewhat peer pressured by others in their group, such that no one in either group really dares to suggest that once in a while they try to get together for salads, say.

So one group goes off and eats all sorts of sugary, fatty, horribly unhealthy stuff.

And the other group goes off and eats pizza. Maybe not all THAT much better, but certainly far better in some ways.

But there's still internal tension. Because even in the pizza group, the people in the majority demand that toppings must be chosen by voting among the group, and that the votes have to be binding, and everyone must eat pizza with the toppings chosen by the majority. And time and again, the majority votes for the exact same sorts of toppings, and everyone is always forced to eat what they want. But they declare it's all perfectly fair to everyone, because it's majority rules. So every single time, it's anchovies and olives.

Over time, fewer and fewer people bother to vote, because they don't see the point. The outcome is basically predetermined. No matter how many times the votes are cast, the ham and pineapple people never win. And if they complain, they're mocked and told that if they don't want to eat anchovy and olive pizzas, they probably are just junk food eaters in disguise. And that if they want to eat ham and pineapple pizza, they just need to get more people to vote for ham and pineapple.

And heaven forbid they even suggest a salad. Cause somehow that's even worse than junk food.

It's a rough little analogy, and no doubt needs work, but just an observation.

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Pizza Politics. (Original Post) Erich Bloodaxe BSN Mar 2015 OP
I want a ham & pineapple pizza, damnit!! RiverLover Mar 2015 #1
This. F4lconF16 Mar 2015 #2
The secondary problem is aspirant Mar 2015 #3

RiverLover

(7,830 posts)
1. I want a ham & pineapple pizza, damnit!!
Sat Mar 7, 2015, 08:28 PM
Mar 2015

And I'm NO junk food eater...but saying that makes me look guilty...LOL

Great post.

Leads me more to believe though we need our own party for that ham & pineapple. Though we may not get it, at least we're not doing the same thing over & over & over & just being thankful we're not as bad as the horribly unhealthy people...

F4lconF16

(3,747 posts)
2. This.
Sat Mar 7, 2015, 09:33 PM
Mar 2015
Leads me more to believe though we need our own party for that ham & pineapple. Though we may not get it, at least we're not doing the same thing over & over & over & just being thankful we're not as bad as the horribly unhealthy people...

I think it won't be too much longer before the Democratic Party shifts so far righward that there will have to be a split. You're seeing the beginnings of the split at the moment. Actually, I'd argue that a huge number of people already have: the non-voters. While I do believe that a third part split is coming and necessary, I won't advocate it here for obvious reasons.

(And actually, I believe the whole dang system's going to need to come down before we can fix this mess. TPTB have entrenched themselves in power so thoroughly that I don't think it's possible to effect any change without a revolution, peaceful or otherwise.)

aspirant

(3,533 posts)
3. The secondary problem is
Sat Mar 7, 2015, 10:34 PM
Mar 2015

the majority eat the anchovy and olives pizza while a select elite group go off and eat caviar. They set the menu, provide and count the required seating (votes) and ignore requests for a healthier selection that could be a new majority.

The select few sit at the big people's table and have appetites that are to big to jail or fail. The little people just humbly eat specified pizza or shamefully fight for the elite's buffet crumbs.

The big food tent will always have the big and little people's tables along with the privatized catering militia squads to insure obedience to the menu

Maybe we should retire the tent and all sit equally, picnic style, in the bright, transparent sunshine.

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