Can somebody explain this to me????

[Darkhawk32]

I have a friend that is....

1) Pro-choice
2) Pro-protection of civil liberties (even while fighting terrorism)
3) Against the war in Iraq
4) Against corporate welfare
5) Against the Fundies
6) Against said fundies getting federal tax money
7) Against government waste
8) Against borrowing and running up HUGE deficits


But yet he voted for BUSH!
(Can someone explain this to me?)

Also, we were discussing subsidizing of farmers to NOT plant crop at times. I had steered him toward the idea of having farmers plant different type of crops in different years and such (e.g. asparagus instead of corn). I said that the government could subsidize the process with low-interest loans and it would stabilize the markets and make small farmers more valuable. He said that was a great idea.."Why can't the Democrats think of that?"

I said, "We did. 1988... Michael Dukakis."

The look I got was priceless....
:silly:

[buff2]

1. It's the "God" thing

They think if they vote republican,it's their ticket to Heaven. :puke:

[Darkhawk32]

6. Can't be that... HE'S ATHEIST! n/t

[Fridays Child]

9. Maybe he needs to turn off Fox and/or Rush?

[liberal N proud]

2. I bet his daddy voted repuke, so that is why he votes repuke.

[ComerPerro]

3. I can. Easily .And, its not a smart-assed quip, either

One thing the GOP did full force this last year: They ran a campaign of lowered expectations.

"Sure, Bush is bad, but do you think Kerry could do any better?"

"Yeah, I know, Bush is corrupt. But all politicians are."

"Kerry is just as bad as Bush"

"Kerry is exactly the same as Bush."

On every single one of those issues, this mantra applies.

That is why a lot of conservatives voted for Bush, despite claiming to be against wasteful spending and giving the government broad powers.

They were told that, while Bush was spending like none before and was trying to strip away your civil liberties, the Democrats would do worse.

That strategy worked

[Guns Aximbo]

7. You're right

I can't tell you how many times repugnants said all of those things to me. Yet voted for Hitler.

[Darkhawk32]

8. We had a discussion about tax increases once...

And blames all tax increases on Democrats.

I pointed out to him the huge tax increases by Reagan and Bush 1 but still racked up HUGE deficits.

[sandnsea]

13. And Democrats don't really like him anyway

Actually, WE put that shit out there and THEY ran with it.

Anyway, maybe we should start some sort of rant about right wing peer pressure. That's the only reason they vote Republican, they're afraid to "just say no" to their Republican friends.

[pnutchuck]

4. I have the exact same friend!

Against everything you mentioned above, and also voted for Bush. I have no explaination for you, and am trying to find one myself. Maybe they're part of a secret government experiment that is spiking their Wheaties, they can believe in whatever they want, but are programmed to think Bush is the answer. Just kidding, but it is a strange phenomenon for pepople like this to exist, seemingly intelligent and open minded, but Bush supporters...

[MarianJack]

5. I Can't!

My mom is terrified of **'s Social Security plans, hates the war, knows that what both my sister and I told her about ** was true (weboth volunteered for Kerry) and she voted for the moron because Teresa has "too much to say" and the first frump is "a real lady". :puke:

Thanks, mom!

[dkofos]

10. It's simple

Your friend is stupid.

Next question?

[shadowknows69]

11. a lot of people weren't impressed with Kerry either

I think there may have been a significant number of people who think that in the absence of truly innovative thinking then the status quo is safer.

[Darkhawk32]

12. He hates all Dems.... but agrees with all the points I made above...

Just bewilders me. LOL

[sandnsea]

15. Too macho to vote Dem

He'd never be able to look his buds in the eye again. That's what I think.

[sandnsea]

14. I should have read further

Thanks for proving my point in post 13. I wonder, did you do your part in spreading this shit before the election? Pat yourself on the back, you're as responsible for Bush as the Bush voter is. I actually never personally talked to anybody who didn't like Kerry, not out here in the real world. I heard people talk about all "those other people" though. Rove did a great job spreading that line, I'll give him that.

[shadowknows69]

16. I know several Dems that didn't like Kerry

for all but one of us the thought of Bush was definitely not an option. I voted for edwards in the NY primary and would've voted sharpton or kucinich if the MSM had given anyone else a chance to shine but Kerry was chosen for us just as surely as Bush was. We need radical change in th is country. Kerry for all his qualifications I fear wouldn't have been that force for extreme change that we need and that we would get with a Dean, Sharpton or Kucinich. If there was any legitimacy to the election (which I don't personally believe there was but) we have to examine the reasons Kerry was unelectable. Trust me, I'm a dissapointed Democrat but I know I didn't do anything that helped the shrub get elected. I just try to look at things from all sides and when my party is fu*king up I'm going to say something about it.

[sandnsea]

17. Alot of that on DU

Not so much out in the real world. You keep bashing the Democrats though, wouldn't want to put the focus on Bush or anything. :eyes:

[shadowknows69]

18. I'm just saying

our options are:
Make a strong third party come to prominence

fix what's wrong with the democratic party and fight for election reform so we can have a fair election or

take to the streets and fight civil war II

unlike *, I'd prefer to go the way of peaceful and less bloody reform listed iin the first two options. I'm not the enemy I promise.

[sandnsea]

20. Just be for something

If you find you're not for what the Democratic Party stands for, then go make a third party stronger. I'm all for strong voices that are FOR something. As it stands, all we're doing is shooting at each other. We do all the right's work for them. I'm sick of it.

I know you're not the enemy. I'm just asking some people to stop acting like it.

You know, during this campaign, one group was saying Kerry isn't ripping Bush enough and the other saying Kerry doesn't stand for anything. I just think too many people didn't get down off their high horses and listen to what the man actually said. Just like I think people don't always know everything Democrats are trying to work on because they spend more time griping than getting behind the changes that are being proposed. People get caught up in cablenews propaganda and then wonder why those stories drag on and on.

I'm worried about what's right in front of our face. SS, Iraq, stopping an Iran war, medicaid cuts, ANWR drilling. Change usually happens as people are struggling towards a goal, together. IMHO.

[seabeyond]

19. bushco's have tied it into maleness.

a man is not a man if he votes democrat

seemed to have been pretty easy for a lot of males to fall into this. i have two brothers a father and many more in my community that bought it

the hannities, rush, oreilly, matthews.....they all feed it

[Sgent]

21. Sounds like your friend is a Libertarian

in his thought processes.

Traditionally, L's vote republican -- small government, non-involvement in foriegn activities, rail against subsidies, etc.

Since * come to office especially, the R's have lost all of their fiscal conservatism -- reinstated farm subsidies, Medicare expansion, No Child Left Behind, etc.

Most libertarians believe that every one of those is bad, and would like to see entitlement reform, military cutbacks, etc.

In close elections, they often have to pick between the lesser of two evils -- the democrats, who they agree with on social issues but massively disagree with on economic ones, or the republcins, who are the exact opposite.

In the last 4 years or so, the repugs have gotten more involved in the social issues, and abandoned the fiscal conservatism. A lot of libertarains though are still very scared to vote for someone like Kerry who wanted a fairly major expansion of government.

[sabra]

22. Who did he vote for in 2k?

[Darkhawk32]

23. Bush n/t