i hope everyone stays safe and strong. <3

We really were all screwed from the beginning. And even if a 3rd party candidate had won, Johnson wanted to defund public education, and Stein believed that healing crystals are the only healing we need, and that there are still questions about vaccines and autism. There was just really not a good way out of this. And no matter who voted for what, everyone is angry.

Heh, yeah. Though I've seen some pretty funny things, too, so it's not all bad at least. :P

Okay, let's excuse the third party candidates. This election was between Hillary and Trump, so I will not involve my previous support of any other candidate. I also had a huge response created, but alas, I'm using Internet Explorer, and it froze. Just my luck. So, I will try to include all of my reasons again.

Okay, so here it goes:

1.) I do not support any form of illegal immigration. Those who are here illegally are breaking American law and shouldn't be here. I'm not sure how much clearer that can be. I am accepting of all immigrants who go through the legal processes just like my ancestors did. I support Donald Trump for his plans on more strict immigration laws and the strengthening of our borders. Looking at Germany right now shows how bad uncontrolled mass immigration can be. I believe his "wall" is a metaphor for this strengthening. However, if he wishes to build a physical barrier, then Mexico isn't directly going to pay for it as many believe. But, the money we save from cracking down on abused government programs and fixing the Mexican trade deficits will go to its construction.

2.) I do not want a reform of Obamacare, but its abolishment. Bring private health insurance back and allow competition across state lines. However, regulations should be in place to prevent discrimination against past health problems. For the middle class, or those making over 55K, our premiums have continued to climb and our coverage has declined. I am paying 600 dollars more per month for less coverage than I had with my private insurance company pre-Obamacare. It is the cheapest package I can get with my family's income. [P] 3.) War mongering. This may have to be one of my biggest reasons. Hillary is dead set on a "No-fly zone" for Syria which could provoke war with Russia. U.S. Generals have declared this a terrible move and have stated that 100,000 troops would possibly be needed to carry this action out. I'm all for peace and anti-war. Trust me, I do not consider myself a Republican or Democrat. However, I would support a party candidate that is willing to work with Russia instead of being set on stiring conflict.

4.) WikiLeaks. Hillary is quick to blame Russia, but not as quick to determine these releases as fake. In fact, investigations have already gotten many government officials fired based on their truth. From cheating Bernie Sanders out of the race, getting debate questions ahead of time, and accepting illegal donations, I saw her as a selfish politician and not one for the people. Every move she made seemed like an attempt to fit in with the crowd she was visiting. From putting on a fake southern accent to her involvement with celebrities, I couldn't see her as a real person.

There's more but I also have soup on the stove and AHS coming on later. I'm happy to have a friendly debate with anyone and learning different positions. However, the election is over with, and there's no changing the outcoume. [P] P.S. I'm all for a woman's choice when it comes to abortion, the regulation of semi/fully automatic assault weopons, and I fully support the LGBT community.

It is actually really refreshing to see someone say something other than something racist. Where I live, that is pretty much the only thing that people care about. They don't seem to care that there are immigrants that are here legally as naturalized citizens, or who are trying to get citizenship while they are working under a visa. I work with several people from Cuba who came here legally, and who have citizenship who are afraid that they are going to be deported because of how people here are acting, and that feels really messed up to me, because they did it all legally and no one here cares. So to address each of your points in a pseudo debate form, I guess, I'll say this:

1. There is a legal way to do things, and I feel like people really need to be following it. I'll agree with you there. I can understand why people do it (dangerous living conditions in other countries and such) and I really wish that we had a better policy in place to be able to help those people. For example, I was looking at Canada's immigration site, and they seem to have that kind of thing in effect for refugees, as far as I can tell.

2. I have specific thoughts on Obamacare as well. I won't disclose my exact income, but it's lower than 55k, and my husband can't work due to narcolepsy that his doctor has not yet figured out a treatment plan for to help him function through the workday (hopefully soon though). I'm our only income provider right now. Our premiums have gone up and it is insane. When I was a temp (and temp services always have terrible insurance anyway) I paid around $900 a month for our premium, and our insurance covered basically nothing. Right now, I pay $300, since I am working for a better company, but our deductible is $3k each, and until we hit that, our insurance literally pays for nothing. I would like to see insurance vanish and us to go to a healthcare system that is more like what Canada has, where you might be paying taxes for it, sure, but it would be less than your old premiums, and procedures and doctor's visits might actually be affordable. I recently had to see a sleep specialist, and had to pay the $80 consultation fee out of pocket, which wasn't awful, but was hard considering, and then had to pay $300 for an in home sleep study, and with cost of living being so high and it being solely my income right now, I'm trying to find a way to make it work. Insurance being unregulated is ridiculous, because the companies can charge you whatever they want, and you basically have to deal with it. There needs to be more regulation about what the maximum they can charge is.

3. War. I don't want to go to war. We need a president who will keep the peace. I don't care who it is, I care that they do it.

4. The thing with Bernie Sanders losing the nomination was pretty ridiculous, honestly. I've also read that she was not a very popular senator because she talked about doing a lot of things that she didn't come through on.

I'm also for women having the choice about abortion, for a lot of reasons, most of them being that there are a lot of medical reasons for abortion that the GOP typically doesn't seem to care about. I'm really glad to hear that you support the LGBT community. I have a ton of LGBT friends that are really worried about what is going to happen to them, and I'm glad to hear that there are Trump supporters that are supporting them.

It hurts being grouped together with the terms racist and sexist. I feel that many Hillary supporters see a media portrayal and represent an entire movement based on a few bad apples. My Facebook timeline is full of people damning us and supporting the spawning riots. I try to be open-minded, loving, and accepting. I would even bet that I'm the only anti-animal cruelty/vegan in my entire town. I believe Trump was the best choice out of what we ended up having. Hopefully everyone can keep their cool and help make the world great. <3

I think you might be needed in here. It looks to be teetering into debating politics.

It pains me too to see some democrats lumping all of the Trump voters as racists and bigots that don't care about minorities. I know quite a few people that voted for Trump in my area and none of them are like that. Some of them are Hispanic and others Vietnamese that came into this country legally and are really looking for reform. Other people I know have actively voiced that they are fed up with the corruption and the fact that Trump was able to fund his own campaign and has to cater to no one and no one has him in their pocket gives them piece of mind.

It also pains me to see all the riots and vote shaming/lashing out on one another. When we are a country divided, we are weak. When we are united we are strong. We have dealt with poverty, the depression and multiple wars in the past, we can get through this.

I just read a report from Seattle saying four people were shot in a anti-Trump riot... This is truly sad. :(

As someone living in that city, local police say the shootings have no connection to the protest.

I'm going to refrain commenting on politics except to say that it's important to have accurate information.

As someone living on the other side of the country, and I read three recent (posted a hour ago) articles about the same story, I can only assume they are accurate. Thanks for your input...

Can I give a small ray of hope!

F%&k Yeah, Obama!

I just think... he has 2 months left... maybe he can seal some other things in that can't be turned over?

And... Hillary won the 'popular' vote so not all hope is lost for the American people. Sorry if that's already been shared, I haven't read through every post! >.<

My heart is with all of you worried about the future with this man. I really really hope most of our worries are not founded.

<3 <3 <3 Stay strong and stay united <3 <3 <3

My parents voted for him. My mother voted reluctantly because she agreed with the need for economic change and Clinton is shady af. My father voted for him because he says that Trump is not a politician, so he can trust that most of what he says aren't self-serving lies/bs. Plus he's for the wall and mass deportation of illegal immigrants, and economic change.

While I do think that illegal immigration is wrong, the number of them has decreased anyways. Actually, people immigrating illegally for any other reason than fear for their lives makes me angry. I had a best friend whose parents emigrated from Mexico legally to come here. They worked hard to make a living for their family and it's like all their hard work was for nothing. They absolutely despised illegal immigrants from any country.

I doubt it though. With the way the country is going... for example, the backlash after the gay marriage rights, as it was finally voted into law, you saw how the people pushed back.

Finally, to everyone: please, calm down. I know you're angry and confused and frustrated, but it is not the end of the world. The tides change every so often and we must bear through them the best we can. It's not forever. It's not permanent. But if we all continue to bemoan and lash out (and I'm not saying anyone here is!) at 'the other side' how can we claim to be better than 'them' when it is their time that is ending and they treat us the same?

Earlier this year, I made a promise to be honest to myself. Yes, it makes me upset that he won. It makes me upset to see all this hate on all sides. It upset me when Clinton rigged the primaries in her favor. But I can choose to stay calm and focus on me and my needs, and my family and friends. I can say this and do this because I know things will change, for better or worse. They always will change. There will always be hateful people in the world. There will always be greed, and murder, and other evils in the world. It is human nature. I cannot change other people, and if I try, I will only get frustrated at them for being 'unwilling' to change. But I can change myself, and how I view other people and their thoughts and feelings. I can calmly and confidently say that I can see why another person thinks the way they do. It doesn't mean I agree with them, but it makes me aware of what other people feel in the world.

So yes, I'm disappointed in many things. Yes, I was a nervous wreck for most of this election cycle, but every now and then I stop and take the time to be reminded of my promise to myself.

And as Sam Cooke once sang: "There've been times that I thought I couldn't last for long, but now I think I'm able to carry on. It's been a long, a long time coming, but I know a change gonna come."

Finally: thank you anon for the kind words and yummy-looking cookie 😊

I'm American and I'm terrified right now. I'm a member of the LGBT+ community, and now that Trump has been elected, I am fearful for my rights and also for the lives of my younger LGBT+ brothers and sisters. :( Pence is a menace and I'm really scared that he's going to push for conversion therapy and that people are going to die because of it. Fortunately, I'm old enough that it can't be forced on me, and I'm also super lucky to have wonderful parents who accept me and all my queerness, but I still worry about the youngsters whose parents aren't as accepting as mine...

I'm scared for a lot of other reasons too, but that is my primary worry right now. :( Not trying to argue or anything, I just kind of wanted to put my feelings down somewhere. I'm just scared. I don't know what else to do except hope for the best.

Hoping for the best, expecting the worst out of all this.

I think the important thing is not to be defeated by this. Take time to grieve and make sense of this senseless situation, and then be prepared to speak up. Rally, protest, join in. While the result is definite, you have every right to be angry and make your voices heard. Yes, we have to accept that Trump is the president, but there is going to be a long, long fight for protecting our rights from the monstrous GOP and protecting those too vulnerable to defend themselves from the hatred his election has validated. While Trump might desire unity, he does not deserve it. His party deserves to be dragged through the pits. Now is the time we need to be at our strongest. Through silence we become complicit.

Just going to leave some facts here for people that are afraid of losing their rights to give you some peace of mind:

Gay marriage has overwhelming support nationwide -- 55 percent to 37 percent against.

Legal abortion is favored by 56 percent, with 41 percent opposed.

The vast majority of the population supports background checks for gun buyers -- up to 90 percent in some polls.

A majority of Americans support some kind of universal health care, 58 percent to 37 percent.

64 percent of Americans are worried about global warming. Only 36 percent are not.

Sources: http://www.pewforum.org/2016/05/12/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/ http://www.pewforum.org/2016/04/08/public-opinion-on-abortion-2/ http://fivethirtyeight.com/features/most-americans-agree-with-obama-that-more-gun-buyers-should-get-background-checks/ http://www.gallup.com/poll/191504/majority-support-idea-fed-funded-healthcare-system.aspx http://www.gallup.com/poll/190010/concern-global-warming-eight-year-high.aspx

And if you don't think Trump's platform is explicitly intertwined with bigotry, have a read of this: /day-1-in-trumps-america-9e4d58381001#.jf7wjt243">Day 1 in Trump’s America

So depressed and terrified over the results of this election. I can't believe Trump actually won,we are heading for an apocalypse on so many levels.