Hardkill

I know that most single men in their 40s usually don’t go to bars, clubs, chaos-driven parties, or wild places like Vegas or Cancun to meet women—at least not the way younger guys do. Either they’re just not interested anymore, or they have a harder time relating to those environments, especially when most of the women there are in their late teens to 20s. So, do you still meet girls in any of those kinds of places, Leo? Or not so much anymore? I’m asking because I only have a couple of years left before I turn 40, and I know I won’t be ready—at least for another year—to fully commit to consistently cold approaching, especially in nightlife settings. I still need to focus on finishing my doctoral degree in physical therapy, figuring out how to get my own place, and getting other parts of my life in order. I don't see meeting women just through social circle ever working for me unless I get really lucky.

Oh... Yeah, I hear you. Are you just preoccupied with other areas in your life right now or just had your fill with socializing, dating, and like you used to? But honestly, I really want—and need—to get good with people, especially women. I know I’ve got a limited window before I hit 40, and even though I’m still deep in school and figuring out my living situation, I don’t want to keep putting this part of life off. Social skills, connection, confidence—it all matters. That doesn’t mean I should be discouraged from practicing socializing and interacting with a lot of people—including women—in bars, clubs, big chaotic parties, and similar settings, even in my late 30s or early 40s, right?

1. The Democratic Party lost horrifically to Trump/MAGA. 2024 was winnable. But Democrats blew it — paralyzed between loyalty to Biden and fear of change. Now the far right controls the narrative and the government. 2. Biden’s exit cost them big. Yes, he was aging. But forcing him out late meant: Losing the incumbency effect Losing party unity Gaining confusion, infighting, and scrambled messaging 3. The DNC under Ken Martin is a slow implosion. He promised modernization and unity. Instead: Mismanaged 2024’s transition Alienated progressives and youth Failed to build long-term infrastructure 4. David Hogg got pushed out as DNC Vice-Chair. A young, energized activist removed for being too vocal. The message? "Sit down, fall in line, or get out." Great way to keep the next generation engaged, right? 5. And now? The DNC is facing a funding crisis. Donors are pulling out Grassroots enthusiasm is dead No vision, no inspiration — and it shows 6. The “Big Betrayal” bill gutted Biden’s biggest win. The Inflation Reduction Act — climate investments, tax reform — rolled back. Meanwhile, Trump-era tax cuts were extended. So… what did Democrats actually defend? 7. Trump owns the narrative. He speaks in emotion and clarity. Democrats speak in half-apologies and policy memos.You can’t beat propaganda with bullet points. 8. Right-wing media is a war machine. Fox, YouTube, TikTok, podcasts — cultural dominance. Democrats? Still living in the MSNBC bubble, clinging to legacy media. This isn’t just bad strategy. It’s suicide. 9. The courts are fully captured. SCOTUS has shredded: Voting rights Student debt relief Climate authority Executive power And Dems still won’t touch court reform. They act like the rules are fair. 10. Economic populism was the one unifying message — and they ran from it. The working class wants bold action. Democrats gave them donor-tested slogans. Trump moved into the anti-elite lane. Again. 11. Now they’re terrified of Zohran Mamdani. He won NYC’s mayoral primary on rent control, public goods, and worker-first messaging. The DNC is panicking. Why? Because he connects. Because he exposes their timidity. 12. I don’t think Gavin Newsom can save them either. I like some of what he’s done. I respect his pushback against Trump. But right now, he governs safely within the donor bubble. He hasn’t shown bold economic vision. Could he be pushed left like Biden was? Maybe. But I’m skeptical. 13. And I’m not just focused on him. There are leaders I respect: Josh Shapiro Tim Walz Andy Beshear Wes Moore But even the best of them can’t fix a party this broken — not alone. It’s the system that’s collapsing. 14. The party’s approval rating is at a historic low. That’s not about “messaging.” It’s about people giving up — on leadership, on vision, on a party that talks equity but won't confront power. And I’m starting to feel that too. 15. I’m not feeling optimistic right now. I want to believe we can turn this around. I want to believe someone will rise to the moment. But watching the same mistakes play out again — while the right consolidates power — is exhausting. This doesn’t feel like a crossroads anymore. It feels like decline. 16. Still, I believe in the people — not the institution. Maybe the Democratic Party can change. Maybe it has to be rebuilt from the ground up. Either way, it won’t be saved from the top. It starts with those of us refusing to settle. The party needs an exorcism. Or it needs to be replaced. * Sorry if I bolded too many words.

Well, going to war with China isn't happening for the foreseeable future, not to mention how truly catastrophic that would be for our economy and the rest of the global economy. Having all of NATO really join Ukraine in the war against Russia would be suicidal. So, do you think that the US should wage an all-out war in the Middle East against Iran?

As damaging as the radical right-wing propaganda machine and the extreme anti-mainstream propaganda machine have been to the United States, the pervasive and deeply ingrained Communist propaganda that permeated every aspect of life in the Soviet Union was far more destructive. This propaganda apparatus systematically manipulated public opinion, employing a range of tactics – from outright disinformation to subtle psychological manipulation – to indoctrinate Soviet citizens with the idea that authoritarianism, if not totalitarianism, was essential to achieving communist ideals. As a result, the Soviet people were left with deeply entrenched beliefs that were resistant to change, even in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. 1. Control of media: Communist regimes tightly controlled all forms of media, including newspapers, radio, television, and film, to ensure that only approved messages were disseminated. The Soviet government jammed foreign radio broadcasts to prevent the spread of dissenting ideas. 2. Censorship: Strict censorship was enforced to suppress any dissenting voices, opposition views, or sensitive information that could undermine the regime. Books deemed counter-revolutionary or anti-Soviet were censored, confiscated, or burned. 3. Ideological indoctrination: Communist ideology was deeply ingrained in education, from primary schools to universities, to shape young minds and ensure loyalty to the regime. 4. Public events and rituals: Communist regimes organized public events, parades, and rituals to promote their ideology, showcase their power, and foster a sense of community and shared values. Sports events and achievements were used to promote communist ideology and Soviet patriotism. 5. Propaganda through science: Scientific achievements and discoveries were promoted as evidence of the Soviet Union's superiority and the power of communist ideology. 6. Personality cults: Communist leaders often created personality cults, presenting themselves as infallible, wise, and benevolent leaders, to consolidate their power and authority. 7. Agitation and Propaganda (Agitprop) Agitprop trains and ships: Special trains and ships traveled throughout the Soviet Union, spreading propaganda and promoting communist ideology. Agitprop brigades: Mobile teams of agitators and propagandists performed plays, songs, and other cultural events to promote communist values. 8. Symbolic Propaganda Red flags and banners: Red flags and banners with communist symbols were displayed prominently in public spaces. Monuments and memorials: Monuments and memorials were erected to honor communist leaders, events, and ideals. 9. Repression and Intimidation Show trials: Public trials were staged to demonstrate the Soviet government's power and to intimidate potential dissenters. Forced labor camps: Millions of people were imprisoned in forced labor camps, often for perceived counter-revolutionary activities or thoughts. Despite being subjected to intense Communist propaganda throughout their lives, enough people in the USSR ultimately resisted its influence. They demanded an end to communist rule and successfully advocated for the independence of every Soviet republic. I've searched extensively for explanations online of how this happened, but none of the sources I've found provide a clear answer. It still is unclear to me how people were able to overcome the extremely intense and pervasive propaganda and groupthink that had shaped their worldview for so long.

So, why are the Democrats, particularly the Democratic leadership, still struggling to come up with an effective message strategy right now? So far, I fear that the only way they’ll be able to present a united front with a strong message grounded in social moderation and economic populism is if they’re pressured into it by an extreme economic crisis—or some other unprecedented threat we haven’t seen in our lifetimes, like another Great Depression or even World War III.

Polls more than a year out generally don't mean much, but so far, the Democrats are off to a bad start for the midterms.

Yeah, it’s pretty much what everyone has already said as why there’s always been so much hate for the Jews. We’ve been seen as fringe people who have never represented any part of the world.

I would think that it's a mix of both. They obviously want their land back, but also many of them (not all of them) have always hated the Jews because of how ethnocentric they are.

Independent voters will hate it too if it gets too revolting. Moreover, if this angers enough Democratic voters, then it probably will fire up the Democratic base. Also, how are they really going to know which ones are Democratic voters? Even though Democratic candidates win about 85-90% of black voters and the majority of Latino voters in elections, many black and brown people in America are conservative leaning because of how traditional their backgrounds are. In fact, almost half of Latino voters in America voted for Trump in 2024. So, we'll see.

I honestly don't know if I should still be proud to be an American anymore.

Some of you on here may hate me for saying this, but now that I've looked into this One Big Betrayal Bill more in-depth, there's actually ONE other good thing that came from it besides the extension of the middle class tax cuts, and that is the historic funding for updating our immigration enforcement and border security. I didn't think that Trump and enough Republicans in Congress were serious about that. I thought they were all bark and no bite on that matter because they never really addressed it during Trump's first term despite all of their blustering about it back then, the small amount of legislative accomplishments even when the Trump and his party had both Congress and the presidency from 2017-2019, and Trump's incompetence. To be clear, this bill went from one extreme to another. The amount of funding the bill will provide to ICE was definitely overdone. More likely than not more people in America including many immigrants, are going to suffer such unimaginable horrors and such inhumane treatment. If such negative effects occur from the bill pertaining to immigration and border security, which again, is probably is going to happen, then I really hope that Trump and his party all pay a truly major political price for it this year, 2026, 2027, and 2028. However, a lot of the border-related stuff that was in the bill was needed given how outdated the infrastructure for our border security and immigrant enforcement was almost 2 decades.

Yeah, but we don't even know for certain if Elon is really serious about this third party idea of his. He says a lot of crazy things.

Yeah, but the fear and anger of the declining percentage of white people as the percentage of black and brown people is growing in our country has now been greater than ever before. The fear and anger of Christianity in America dying in this country has now been greater than ever before. Also, Democrats should try to win back the majority of white people in this country after not having ever won the majority of whites at the presidential level for decades.

Yeah, I really think the Democrats may have no choice, but to also sound like white Judeo-Christian Nationalists as they promote more left-wing economic populism.

He's going to need to really prove himself to have a broad enough appeal for the country and be a true fighter for the working class. Even then, it's not clear that he will be able to overcome the smears made on him by the right-wing and anti-mainstream media in this day and age.

That's the kind of false equivalency that plays right into the hands of authoritarians like Trump.

Good Question. To me, the No Kings protests far outshining Trump’s humiliating parade, liberals maintaining control of the Wisconsin State Supreme Court, and Omaha, Nebraska electing the first Black mayor in the city’s history (and the first Democrat to win the mayoralty since 2009) are probably the only things to be proud of so far in America in 2025.

I get what you guys are saying. America is still better than most countries on the planet, including every least developed country and every developing country in the world. However, I don't think the USA is necessarily better than other developed countries in the world like Canada, UK, France, Australia, Scandinivia, Japan, or Israel, and other developed countries out there in the world. Also, I worry that America may no longer become a great country.

DId you vote for Trump?

I hope so. Although, like Leo said before, the right-wing much more easily unites their party nominee in an election, regardless of the circumstances, than the left-wing does.

@Ulax You’re right about how idealistic and naive Green can be. Though we need a healthy amount of green to keep pushing societies towards greater progress. What do you suggest those in stage Green should do?

Oh, cool. Our country could definitely use graphic designers like you to help clearly illustrate American politics. For someone who isn’t an activist, pundit, or professional political expert, your Substack—and your writing on U.S. politics—seems really impressive!