Independents: "Well, all politicians are bad...it's all politics"

[vi5]

God this just drives me nuts. I know so many independents and self proclaimed moderates. And knowing their positions on things, I wouldn't argue that their views are moderate, and I know that they aren't registered with a specific party.

The problem comes with the fact that when a Dem does something wrong or says something stupid or whatever, they take it as proof that the democratic party is bad, corrupt, sneaky, whatever.

But yet when confronted with a specific example of a republican doing the same thing the response is "Well all politicians are bad..sneaky...liars, etc.". It drives me nuts.

My father in law is like this. After the Wellstone funeral he said "The way they politicized it was horrible. Using someone's death for any kind of political purposes or campaign is horrible and I won't vote for any democrat this election because of it."

So when I asked him if he thought it was bad of republicans to use the shot of the body being pulled from the WTC in an ad for bush, or for them to use Reagan's passing as a campaign issue his response was...you guessed it.."Well, it's all politics...all politicians do these things."

AAAAAGGGHH!

[bryant69]

1. Yeah It's a pox on both our houses

But it often shakes out this way. Our misdeeds are charactarized as proof of the essentially corrupt and unamerican nature of the Democratic party. While the misdeeds of the Republicans are just part of politics in general.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[JayS]

2. I find Independents are fairly even when it comes to criticising...

...both parties, and other Independents. That has been my experience in general, anyway.

[Bandit]

3. I consider myself a liberal independent and I do believe almost all

politicians are corrupt. I will admit there are a few exceptions to the rule but over these last four years it has become painfully clear that Democrats are as much in the Corporate pockets as republicans. Doesn't mean I won't vote Democratic "this time" but if drastic changes don't take place and I mean almost immediately it will be the last time I do vote Democratic. I will never vote Republican but I will go third party or just never vote again. Granted I am just one disgruntled fool but I doubt I am alone in these sentiments.

[vi5]

5. And that is a fair belief and assesement........

If these people used every example to show how all politicians are corrupt I would have no beef. It's the inconsistency in reactions and using one example (dems) to make a point about something specific, while using another (repubs) to make a general point overall is where the inconsistency irks me.

[porphyrian]

6. You aren't alone.

I really want to be a Democrat, I'm registered as such, and I believe that it can actually be the party of the people, as naive as that may be. However, I will only stand so much leaning to the right before I tell this party to go fuck itself once and for all. WE are your base, not corporate interests. If Kerry won't acknowledge this when we put him in office, he will not see a second term.

[RandomKoolzip]

4. Any sentient, thinking American with a conscience.....

would, by definition, be a Democrat or a Green. We have the facts on our side, and we don't have to rely on the Olin Foundation or the Cato Institute to provide talking heads in the media to make us appear legitimate.

I really don't understand Independents. At this point in American history, if you don't see the crossroads in front of you, you are willfully ignoring it.

Libertarians are worse than just plain Independents, though.

[JayS]

7. They are Independent because they see the crossroads. n/t

n/t

[Nevernose]

8. All politicians are going to screw us over; Dems less so than Repugs

Not all, but certainly most. Most politicians (at least Democrats) go to the capitol with the intention of making things better for their consituents. Then lobbyists put money in their pockets. Strike One.

Strike two comes when the only way to pass a bill that might actually help anybody is to make it so watered down that by the time it comes out, it's near-useless. Over twenty or thirty years, if we get enough near-uselss bills they seem to equal one whole useful bill. On the rare occasions that congress DOES pass a bill that might help us all out, it becomes front page news.