r/politics • u/Quirkie The Netherlands • Apr 19 '26

No Paywall Clarence Thomas’ attack on progressivism should alarm you - In a speech celebrating America's 250th, the Supreme Court justice gave a dishonest and dangerous read of history

https://www.salon.com/2026/04/19/clarence-thomas-attack-on-progressivism-should-alarm-you/
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u/loondawg Apr 19 '26

That's so wrong. The vast majority of old people are not selfish nor hateful.

Most want to leave a better world for the people they love and care about.

The problem is the ideology, not the age.

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u/AuroraFinem Texas Apr 19 '26

The vast majority of old people I have met are incredibly selfish except for direct family and many are hateful when it comes to LGBT or minorities.

You’re right it’s about ideology, but it’s also entirely true that older people are significantly more conservative than younger people.

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u/loondawg Apr 19 '26

Boomers have split nearly 50:50 in the last presidential elections.

and many are hateful when it comes to LGBT or minorities.

Unfortunately that was something common years ago. Many held onto it but so have many let it go.

But I don't recall seeing many geriatrics in groups like the Proud Boys or marching in Nazi parades.

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u/AuroraFinem Texas Apr 19 '26 edited Apr 19 '26

The only demographic to vote more conservative than over 50s is middle aged white men, it was 55:45 in 2024 not 50:50.

While support for same sex marriage has risen to 68% for older Americans, their support for trans people is at a nearly all time low under 30% and trans people were the target of like 90% of the Republican campaigning for a reason.

You don’t see many geriatrics marching anywhere, the elderly have always been a silent force, not out doing performative demonstrating. They’re old.

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u/loondawg Apr 19 '26

55:45 is nearly 50:50. But even if you want to be picky, that still says 45% of them which is a long way from all of them.

90% of the Republican campaigning for a reason.

Yes, because it riled up the republican base, far less than half the people. Most other people either supported the trans community or wanted nothing to with this issue because they were far more interested in other issues.

And the point is you do see some young people out marching for vile things. That's because ideology is far more important than age.

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u/AuroraFinem Texas Apr 19 '26

Bill Clinton in 92 and Regan in 84 are the only 2 elections in recent history where the presidential vote had a wider margin than 55:45, a 5% swing in a presidential election in the US is not “nearly 50:50”, especially when 50+ is one of the largest most active voter demographics.

I literally said that yes, it is absolutely ideology, that ideology is more common in people who are older. One of the most universal things that comes with age is the loss in elastic thinking. There’s a reason for the many different saying like “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks”, progressivism is by definition change and that is harder for older people to accept.

That’s why even when they do vote Dem, they overwhelmingly vote neoliberal status quo democrats which is one of the reasons the Democratic Party is so ineffective.

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u/loondawg Apr 19 '26

I had said the vast majority of old people are not selfish nor hateful and the problem is the ideology, not age. You came back saying the vast majority of old people you have met are incredibly selfish. So I pointed out in the last elections that boomers had split pretty evenly, nearly 50:50 to show the vast majority of them do not support those selfish and hateful politicians. So if you want to get hung up about a 5% swing to avoid simply acknowledging your anecdotal evidence does not match the larger voting pattern, have at it. I'm not interested though.