How are you feeling about democracy?: Today So Far

• Have you heard folks talking about a second civil war? The state of our democracy is on a lot of minds these days.
• Taylor Swift just shined a spotlight on a Bellevue company.

This post originally appeared in KUOW's Today So Far newsletter for October 27, 2022.

For a while now, we've been hearing murmurs from people who either are predicting a second civil war, or just really want one.

KUOW's Kim Malcom focused on the state of our democracy recently, and pointed to a poll conducted by the Associated Press. It states that 9% of us feel our democracy is working "extremely" or "very well." About 52% say it's not working well at all.

Our democracy is on a lot of minds, especially in the wake of Jan. 6, and as we head into the midterm elections next month, and look to the 2024 presidential election. It's safe to say that there are a lot of people who just can't get along these days. Divides are widening, and our Twitter feeds have become less about cats and more about culture wars.

I've thought about this for a while now. Personally, I feel that if some folks really want to duke it out, we should let them resolve it some type of regulated Thunderdome scenario. We can go on with our lives in the meantime. Or if a group of people truly want to secede, just let them have, like, half of one of the Dakotas, or maybe just that panhandle stretch of Oklahoma. They can choose, but that's what they get. However, they don't get things like our American cars, or trips to the moon, or Washington apples, or Apple computers, or the Geek Squad to fix their computers. We keep our beer, too. If the USA is feeling charitable, we can send them what is leftover at the corner store — most likely that Budweiser Clamato drink. We keep our movies and music. They don't get "Independence Day," Marvel movies, Wes Anderson, Spike Lee, or Quentin Tarantino. And we keep Prince, Garth Brooks, Hendrix, Lady Gaga, and the like ... I'm sure they can have Ted Nugent.

The above mentioned (immature) ideas are a big reason why I'm not allowed to make any major decisions, or sought out for rational commentary. If I'm being honest, however, I believe there are more good-natured folks out there who don't want to demonize and rush into a fight over differences. I believe we can be better. I have to believe that, because I'm not sure how well I'd do in the Thunderdome.

Luckily, we have people like Jake Grumbach who can offer a more educated and reasonable lens on the situation throughout the United States. Grumbach is an associate professor of political science at the University of Washington. He also wrote a book on tribalism, "Laboratories Against Democracy," which discusses how national parties and activist groups target state-level politics.

While talking with KUOW, Grumbach notes that American democracy is "under strain these days." On one hand, you have states like Washington that endeavor to increase access to democracy. On the other, there are those aiming to draw unfair district lines, and groups promoting conspiracy theories. This could hurt us in the 2024 election, Grumbach notes, with a lot of GOP candidates leaning into stolen election conspiracies. The party has also been replacing local officials with those who put conspiracy over country.

Which brings us back to all that talk about a second civil war in the USA. Grumbach doesn't think the United States is in nearly as bad of shape as in previous tough times. But that doesn't mean we don't have challenges to address.

"I would say the problems in American democracy are not as severe as those leading up to the Civil War, over a conflict like slavery, or in the Jim Crow era which had mass disenfranchisement, or the long history before the 19th Amendment that allowed all women to vote in the U.S. Right now, we're not in that deep of a hole, compared to the past, but the signs are extremely troubling. One unique danger is the national scope of threats to democracy. This is going to be a long-term struggle.

"I think there are some signs of revitalization and hope. It's still a small number, but many individuals are now more engaged in thinking about democracy, and how to change the rules of the game, and protect the rules of democracy to keep them fair for all, rather than just pursuing the rules that would make your party win. So, I think there's some hope, but we're in quite a troubling time."

Check out Grumbach's full conversation with KUOW's Kim Malcolm here.

Let's not talk about politics anymore. Let's talk about Taylor Swift. I'm not well versed on Swift fandom. I mean, aside from some pretty great pop tunes, I know that people really like her scarves. And after the third or fourth time she sang "ever," I truly believed that she would never get back together with that guy — like, ever.

And now, I know there is a local connection to Swift's latest music video, thanks to KUOW's Mike Davis who reports that a casket company got an unexpected surprise when owners viewed Swift's latest music video.

Bellevue-based Titan Casket received an order back in July from an entertainment company. Beyond that, they didn't really know what it was for. They found out about halfway through the video for "Anti-Hero" that was released last Friday. The song is interrupted in the middle of the video for a sketch that takes place at a funeral. Swift is hiding in a casket — Titan's casket, the Orion model to be exact. And just like that, a little Bellevue company got some prime-time exposure.

Josh and Liz Siegel, who own Titan Caskets, are using this moment to spread word about something that you probably haven't thought much about. Did you know there are regulations on the books that protect your casket consumer rights? Yep. Special rules had to be crafted at the federal level to make sure that funeral homes weren't taking advantage of you or your loved ones. Read more about that here.

AS SEEN ON KUOW

The transition to electric vehicles is underway for homeowners who can power up in their own garage, but for millions of renters, access to charging remains a significant barrier. Now, cities across the U.S. are trying to come up with innovative public charging solutions as drivers string power cords across sidewalks, erect private charging stations on city right-of-ways and queue at public facilities. (Associated Press)

DID YOU KNOW

You're going to get an extra long "Did You Know" section today. I'm sorry about yesterday's segment, which didn't send correctly. Long story short, you were supposed to read about the worst Halloween candies, but instead got a write up about the best Halloween candies, and still, it didn't list any candy.

Candystore.com dove into its customer survey data to come up with the best and worst Halloween candies. I've also previously mentioned that the most popular candy in Washington state is Tootsie Pops. Here are the lists of best and worst.

According to Candystore.com's customer survey, the 10 best Halloween candies are:

1. Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
2. M&Ms
3. Snickers
4. Skittles
5. Sour Patch Kids
6. Hershey Bar
7. Hot Tamales
8. Kit Kat
9. Twix Butterfinger

If you have any of the following candy in your bowl, you're probably better off handing out raisins. These are the worst.

1. Circus Peanuts
2. Candy Corn
3. Peanut Butter Kisses
4. Necco Wafers
5. Wax Coke Bottles
6. Smarties
7. Mary Janes
8. Tootsie Rolls
9. Black Licorice (sorry Poulsbo)
10. Good and Plenty

ALSO ON OUR MINDS

Greenhouse gases reach a new record as nations fall behind on climate pledges

The three main greenhouse gases hit record high levels in the atmosphere last year, the U.N. weather agency said Wednesday, calling it an "ominous" sign as war in Ukraine, rising costs of food and fuel, and other worries have elbowed in on longtime concerns about global warming in recent months.

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