I believe Republicans live in a world of fear

[Toots]

They appear to me to be afraid of everything. They are scared of lawyers because they could be held accountable. They are afraid of Liberals because we may make them pay their fair share. They are afraid of other countries because again they may hold them accountable. They live with such guilt that they are constantly afraid they will somehow be held accountable. Even their religion has a jealous God of War who will hold them accountable. Because of their deep seated fears they are constantly trying to attack someone either physically or mentally. Get them before they get us or better known as "Pre-Emptive Attack". They need to be armed to the teeth because they just know some intruder (big and black I'm sure) is going to break down their door and do nasty things to their daughters and wives. If we are ever going to win this battle of America we must somehow restore it to the land of the brave and eliminate the intense fear which in turn creates hatreds. Eliminate their fears and we win. I don't know how it is possible but I'm sure it is psychological and can be treated.

[kittenpants]

1. I think you're right. They're highly paranoid. n/t

[ananda]

2. hmm

It may be true that they live in fear, as most of America does, including many Dems.

Bush and Co. depend on fear for their existence, and a lot of their faux power stems from fear of stepping out of the comfort zone of tv and addiction that most Americans live in.

People here will put up with anything .. as long as it's called something else or deliberately skewed or ignored by the media.

Sue

[BillZBubb]

3. You are 100% correct. Psychological studies have shown this.

Conservatives have a fear based view of the world. Liberals have a more balanced assessment. I wish I had a link to the last study I saw. Maybe a web search would find it.

[Jade Fox]

13. Here you go....

http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/07/22_politics.shtml

[KharmaTrain]

4. Fear Has Always Been The Weapon Of The Opressed

Look at religion and what binds the faithful? Fear. Fear of death, fear of what will happen aftewards. Fear of retribution...and so on.

Repugnicans have used fear as well...from the Cold War fear of Commies that's now translating to "Islamists" and the political moderates and left. Having a bogie man adds a face to the fear so it can be easily adapted and perverted in many different ways. Listen to a wingnut speak and your hearing years of misinformation piled upon stereotypes all based on fear.

When you can instill fear in someone, you can use that trigger to create all sorts of reactions. Division also works as well...us vs. them...and that a good doseage of "persecution complex" is added in to really scramble their fear-laden brains. Again, the product of years of well organized and orchestrated media effort that now dominates what a majority see and hear.

You can't eliminate fears, but you can show which are real and which aren't. We should fear a growing and overpowering government. We should fear a corporate welfare system that is destroying the lower class to fatten up the upper class.

What seperates Democrats and Progressives from Repugnicans is our view of change. We welcome is and view it a progress. They fear since they can't control it.

Cheers

[lady lib]

5. When I was out canvassing for Kerry

I would occasionally have run-ins with them (usually the husband of a Democratic wife). And each time I would come away with the impression that they're just frightened little men. That explains why Repubs vote for bullies, why they own guns, why they drive humongous pick ups or hummers, and why their God is unmerciful to anyone who is different from them.

[Jade Fox]

14. Yes, read "The Wimp Factor" by Steven Ducat.

It's all about this phenomenon. :)

[lady lib]

15. Thanks, Jade Fox.

I made a note of it and will check it out.

:hi:

[MisterP]

18. just look at Poppy Spender--er--Bush: running like Scott Evil in Austin

Powers, mincing, prancing, screaming "eek, eek, eek!" during the '88 campaign, trying to counterbalance with race-baiting ads and monster trucks and a family the size of Monaco

[EDT]

6. Everyone should be afraid of lawyers.

Just be the guilty party in a fender bender with no car damage or injuries. I have, and it's no fun.

[Toots]

8. Only the guilty need be afraid

I am not saying an innocent person never got punished but it is so rare no one should be afraid of it. About the same chance as being struck by lightening.

[EDT]

10. You've obviusly never been involved in a lawsuit. Guilt and innocence mean

nothing.

[Gyre]

9. Your personal vendetta is irrelevant to this discussion.

Get over it!

Gyre

[EDT]

12. Not personal- just have my experience to offer in the discussion.

I won't get over it either, lawyers prey on all of us. There's a place for them in society, but they've gone way beyond what their power should be in destroying people.

Get in a car accident, or get a divorce and be the person with more to lose, and you'll see.

[undergroundpanther]

7. fear leads to a desire for control

once you have control over others that you fear ,you get to see you have power over them ,So to keep control or the illusion of it alive through power you can do this longer by abusing power lying, and projecting your fears into scapegoats to get people who don't understand to let you stay in power.
Make all people in politics and the military,media ,industrial and financial worlds be forced face their fears and be held accountable,for we have to make power accountable to the least of us to keep the country safe from corrupt power.. If a politician abuses power..All involved need to be held accountable by the people that were hurt by the abuse of power(sympathizers can't be trusted to expose a 'brother') or else we all will continue to suffer like we are now.Power must be watched by the people,people must be up their legislators crawl continually corporations especially Ceo's must be forced to be transparent and accountable to the public and all power needs to be kept on a very short leash lest it harm us though our obedience and complacency and economic comforts..

[Roxy66]

11. You just put into words the exact explanation I've been thinking

This is to the tee my thoughts exactly. Most of us here have had some sort of education in Psych...be it in college with Psych 101 or other forms of info, we just seem to get it. Their behavior runs hand-in-hand with fear. Fear will drive all kinds of denial, and dishonesty, along with aggression. I've thought that the reason most college professors are liberal is because they are educated enough to realize fear is obsolete. Liberal are generlly not afraid of the things Repugs are.

[seabeyond]

16. i tell them, having faith, i am not nearly so afraid

for them to be so afraid, states their lack of faith

[MisterP]

17. like the foreign exchange students that got fatally shot around Halloween:

one was Japanese and came on Nov. 1, the other was Norwegian, I think, and shot in the back running away because he coulda been a hoodlum and coulda brought his friends and coulda broke in and coulda threatened Mr. Macho and coulda done something bad and coulda coulda coulda coulda coulda coulda

[tinrobot]

19. Reminds me of Albert Brooks' film "Defending Your Life"

The basic point of that movie was that life was all about conquering fear. Those who managed to conquer their fears moved up into a better place, those who didn't were sent back down to Earth to try again.

Taking this literally, it means those who are fearful are less advanced than those who know how to manage their fears.

Sounds about right.

[Roxy66]

22. That is one of my favorite movies......fits about right

[Bigmack]

20. I'm scared shitless!

Undergroundpanther... Roxy66... and others in this thread:

I'm scared shitless... and if you aren't, perhaps you should rethink the situation. Madmen are in charge of the world... the military, the oil, the nukes, the economy, etc., etc., and we don't seem to be able to do a helluva lot about it.

I TAUGHT psychology, so I'm familiar with some of what you say, but my fears have nothing to do with controlling others... they have to do with maintaining some small control over my own life and the lives of those close to me.

I don't see my fear leading to denial or aggression... I think that's how people with the "Rightwing Personality Disorder" respond to fear. My fears are based on logic and a knowledge of history.

My wife and I are over 60, and while I was a Marine - a thousand years ago - my fighting days are generally over. Now I'm concerned with saving my ass.
I think peak oil is here... can't do anything about it. Now... what can I do to survive my 60's, 70's, and 80's?

To think that "the people" are somehow going to overcome the enormous power of the forces arrayed against us is naive. Some grinding of the wheels of history is the only thing that will overcome these bastards, and most of us live between those wheels. History will show Bush was a disaster, but how many people on earth will suffer in the meantime?

[applegrove]

21. Yup - all the rules have to favor them. That is the only way they play!

Wimps!!