What the Hell Happened?

For anyone wondering, as I have, what the hell happened during the American November election, I think I’ve finally figured it out.?

Last week while surfing YouTube I ended up going down a YouTube worm hole that dealt with the American public's general knowledge. The interviewer asked students and people on the street a series of questions like: “How many weeks in a year”? “How long is a quarter of an hour”? “Name 3 countries other than America”? “What’s 3x3x3”? “How many dimes in a dollar”? You would be surprised if not dismayed at the absolutely stupid answers that were given. ……and believe it or not these intellectual genius’s vote.

Now let’s move on to the American election. In the 2024 U.S. presidential election, education level continued to be a significant factor influencing voting behavior.

1. Education Level

• Non-College-Educated Voters: Donald Trump maintained strong support among voters without a college degree, securing 56% of their votes. This demographic has historically aligned with Trump's populist messaging, emphasizing economic protectionism and job creation.
• College-Educated Voters: Kamala Harris garnered more support from college graduates, leading Trump by 13 percentage points among this group.

2. Race and Ethnicity

• Hispanic Voters: That outcome surprised the hell out of me since Trump wanted to deport over 10 million migrants. Trump achieved a notable 14-percentage-point increase among Hispanic voters compared to previous elections.
• Black Voters: While Harris maintained majority support among Black voters, Trump made inroads, particularly among Black men, with 24% supporting him compared to 9% of Black women.
• Young Voters: Trump increased his share among younger voters, (I’m not surprised since the questions asked on YouTube were put to “young students”) capturing 43% of those aged 18 to 29, ?
• Gender Gap: A pronounced gender gap existed, with men favoring Trump by 11 percentage points (54% to Harris's 43%), while women showed more support for Harris. Which suggests to me women have more common sense than men.

The simple fact is Trump’s “Make America Great Again” resonated with less educated, working-class voters across racial lines, reflecting a shift where class considerations outweighed traditional racial voting patterns. ?The 2024 election underscored the shifting ?of the American electorate, where education, race, age, gender, and economic class intersect to influence voting behavior. Trump's ability to broaden his appeal across these demographics was instrumental in his electoral success.?

When it comes to an Educated Population the US ranks #22, although the US is second only to Luxemburg in terms of investment in education, which suggest a rather poor return on the dollars invested.

Donald Trump, the current President of the USA, has been called a liar, a cheat, a fraud, a criminal, a felon and by many psychologists "as exhibiting the characteristics of a narcissistic malignant sociopath" His free wielding tariff strategy has been called an "Act of war" by Warren Buffett: One American publication wrote "Donald Trump Just Proved He’s an Economic Idiot. Again".

What does all this tell you about the state of the political system in the USA?

Donald Trump is either the world's best modern snake oil salesman or the collective IQ of the American public that put him in a position of power has sunk to a new low. In either case the possible consequences for the US, Canada and the rest of the world can be quiet sobering.

Carl Sagan once wrote: “The dumbing down of American is most evident in the slow decay of substantive content in the enormously influential media, the 30 second sound bites (now down to 10 seconds or less), lowest common denominator programming, credulous presentations on pseudoscience and superstition, but especially a kind of celebration of ignorance”

Something to think about.

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