I dislike the word "sheeple." It implies that Americans are docile

[smoogatz]

and stupid, as opposed to busy and occasionally misiniformed. I think it's patronizing in the extreme to suggest that the majority of Americans are "sheeple," when in fact the majority dislike Bush, oppose the war, and think the White House has problems telling the truth. They get it. We should get that they get it. We're no longer in the minority, and we should start acting like it. The first step is to remind ourselves that the American people aren't the enemy--they're us.

[davidinalameda]

1. some people are docile and stupid

and some Americans are the enemy

being a gay man, I've been the victim of my fellow Americans

[ClassWarrior]

7. Ergo, because some are, we should then sterotype all of them??

That's the LAST thing I expect from a gay man who's known victimization.

NGU.

[davidinalameda]

28. no one is saying to sterotype all Americans

but some people do fall into that category

[ClassWarrior]

37. That's EXACTLY the premise of the OP...

...that using that term broad-brushes the majority of Americans.

And just because some gay people fall into an arbitrarily-defined category, does that make it okay to call most gays <choose the most offensive derogatory term you've been called>?

NGU.

[sufrommich]

35. But they aren't your

enemy because they are americans,but because they are homophobic.There is a difference and homophobia is not an american phenomenon.

[Walt Starr]

2. I think more than 51% of Americans are docile and stupid n/t

[smoogatz]

10. I think Americans are busy and believe what they see on the nightly news

Not exactly the same thing. I don't think Democrats will do particularly well in national elections as long as we continue to be perceived as arrogant, patronizing know-it-alls who look down on ordinary people.

[Walt Starr]

24. I think the Democratic party will lose a good percentage of the base

if they refuse to filibuster.

I know I'll be done with the party if they don't force the GOP to go nuclear.

[smoogatz]

25. There we agree.

A radical ideologue like Alito is not SCOTUS material. His appointment is not acceptable to the American people.

[CottonBear]

26. If the American people are so smart, then why do they vote against

their own best interests? If they were smarter they would be more well-informed about issues and candidates for elective office. They are easily led astray by manipulative political ad campaigns.

For instance, Republicans managed to convince a bunch of poor people, minorities and students to vote for non-partisan voting in the only blue city in NE GA outside of Atlanta! The ad campaign was slick and dirty and run by out of county Republicans and their newly hired black "Uncle Tom" Chamber of Commerce representative. The uninformed and easily manipulated people who voted for this measure have just screwed over both them and us.
:(
My widowed sister-in-law (husband was a union man) and her son (who had a child out of wedlock while married to another woman and who had previously filed personal bankruptcy) just survived Katrina. They were evacuees for many weeks and the son lost his job (no schooling beyond high school). FEMA and the Red Cross were little or no help to them. Her cousin in living in an RV in the front yard because the cousin's home was destroyed. Both of them will both still vote for Republicans because of gay marriage (or as they put it "we don't want queers to get married) and abortion. Did I mention they watch Fox News?

[smoogatz]

31. Because Republicans have done a better job of appealing to them

than we have. Republicans have used their distrust of government as a selling point. Democrats have allowed themselves to be framed as "pro everything that's bad" by Republicans. Blaming the voters is like Ford blaming consumers for buying Toyotas. It misses the point.

[ClassWarrior]

44. You want an excellent answer to your question? Read this book:

"Don't Think of an Elephant" by George Lakoff. It's an easy read, it's only about $10, and it will literally change your way of thinking about politics.

NGU.

[CottonBear]

65. Thanks! I'll look for it at the library.

I feel the need to change individual minds as well as work for Democratic candidates. I am so god-damned frustrated with my conservative co-workers and family. Mr.CB and I are the only Democrats in our families. We live in a blue community but are surrounded by Republican counties. :(

[rkc3]

30. I think it's mostly because most Americans don't have the

mental capacity to form independent thoughts - it's really hard work to do so.

Maybe I say this because I can't stand bush and am a bit arrogant, but it's completely unfathomable to me that despite everything bush has done to ruin this country and enrich his supporters 39% still support his policies.

Seriously, he's ruined our reputation abroad; tells us he is a christian yet supports torture and has destroyed the lives of thousands of Iraqis; wants to restore honor and dignity to the WH yet his admin has committed treason in the Plame case; tells us he is a conservative yet we have the biggest deficit and budget in history; tells us he is against welfare yet he supports the biggest corporate giveaways ever; and the list goes on.

Other than make the rich richer, what has he done for the good of the country? Until the 39% answer that question, I'm going to believe that most Americans are idiots.

[ClassWarrior]

42. You really believe that most Americans don't have the mental capacity...

...to form independent thoughts??

Wow. That is truly an astounding thing to admit.

Wow.

NGU.

[rkc3]

56. How can you explain their total disregard for reason?

Every time I find myself discussing politics with a bush supporter I find they use talking points from some knucklehead on the TV/radio.

And when I try to connect a few dots for them, they run home to momma and remind me about Bill's BJ. Seriously, a blow job is worse than committing treason, allowing torture, or taking our country to war for false pretenses?

At the same time, we'll be better served by trying to communicate like adults and avoid name-calling, but what can you do when you make a case for how this government has abandoned its people and the only reply is about Clinton's extra-marital affairs?

What can you do when someone makes a choice to vote against their own self-interests? It's the same as deciding not to use a seatbelt when all of the evidence tells you otherwise.

[ClassWarrior]

59. See post #44. It's really an eye-opening book.

NGU.

[rkc3]

61. So what do you do when you try to re-frame the debate and it still

doesn't work?

The repbus are in power because they have the weight of the media behind them (or at least have a more unified front when handing out talking points).

Working one on one, like we're doing, is not very good. I don't carry the weight (figuratively and literally) that Rush has, so my colleagues and neighbors choose not to think about what I say - I'm just another damned liberal.

Anyway, the book might be an intersting read - maybe we should send it to several Democratic leaders.

[ClassWarrior]

67. Please have the courtesy of reading the book before you comment like...

...you know what I'm saying. You asked, "How can you explain their total disregard for reason?" Lakoff explains it much better than I can, as a background to the whole discussion of framing. The short answer: they have a different standard of "reason." Like I said, read the book.

And I have delivered copies of the book to my Dem leaders. At less than $10 a pop, it's pretty much a no-brainer.

NGU.

[sufrommich]

36. Agree.n/t

[sendero]

52. Someone once said..

...."the price of freedom is eternal vigilance".

I'm sure that most folks interpret that to mean "vigilance against an outside enemy", but they are soon to find otherwise.

Personally, while I agree that it is not a political winner to describe the majority of Americans as "sheeple", that is in fact what they are.

[devilgrrl]

51. That's only 51% of the 39% that actually vote...

so in reality, 61% are docile sheeple. These are the assholes who don't vote or don't care - I think the terms are VERY appropriate.

[jrthin]

3. Well...the facts

speak for themselves: the rethugs rule all branches of government. A smart public would never have allowed that.

[Skidmore]

4. Docility is lazy and

placid contentment. To content to muster the energy to look outside of one's own little universe. Stupidity is a by-product.

[The Magistrate]

5. You Are Quite Correct, Sir

It is a most unwise usage, and that on several levels. To me, the most important flaw in it is that is an insuilting assertion of superiority by the person using it, and attempts to persuade people to your view that begin with insulting them are not likely to succeed....

"LET'S GO GET THOSE BUSH BASTARDS!"

[flowomo]

13. in full agreement....

if I wanted to try to bring a Republican friend over to my side by sharing some thoughts/arguments, I wouldn't ask them to visit DU because if they saw that "sheeple" slur or any number of other disrespectful references, he/she would just get angry/insulted, not informed.

[TahitiNut]

50. "The Lord is my Shepherd ..."

The lord, the duke, the baron, the prince, the king, the boss ... no matter. Sheep.

[valerief]

6. I don't like the word TERRRRRRRRR

[CottonBear]

8. To quote Edward R. Murrow:

"A nation of sheep will beget a government of wolves."
-- Edward R. Murrow

[sui generis]

9. who was it that said

if an imitation is so good that it is indistinguishable from reality, then it IS reality.

It doesn't matter WHY people vote to support stupidity, the fact that they vote that way means they're stupid.

I don't think it's patronizing to disrespect the KIND of American who feels obligated to vote but not to educate themselves on the issues and the impact of those issues.

Sheep follow a shepherd, and if that shepherd is Karl Rove, then they are sheeple.

I don't believe that it's an "us or them" question either - there are plenty of us who don't go the blogs and DU who claim to be too busy to understand the issues. The only thing in the "majority" is the status quo. We would do well to always remember that.

[unpossibles]

19. I will agree with this

I know sheeple cut of every cloth, so to speak.

[ClassWarrior]

11. You are correct. Most of the RW types I know are very intelligent...

...and either highly succeptible to emotional appeals or EXTREMELY misinformed.

NGU.

[sui generis]

20. every time I see

"NGU" I think a letter in the vietnamese alphabet or non-gonococcal urethritis.

Which is it?

:evilgrin:

But on topic, people who are highly susceptible to emotional appeals are by definition not critical thinkers.

They say things like "I feel that such and such is wrong" rather than "I have concluded that because of these three things, such and such is wrong".

Those people are dangerous, precisely because they can be manipulated by emotion and blinded to facts so easily.

[ClassWarrior]

38. I don't disagree with you, but that wasn't my point.

My point is that a term like "sheeple" is a bigoted remark that broad-brushes the American people based on an arbitrarily-defined categorization. If a black person "deserves" to be called an "n-word" according to someone's arbitrary opinion, should we as Progressives condone that person calling the African American an "n-word?"

Oh yeah. NGU is Never Give Up, my personal motto since 11/03/04.

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

27. Sheep are intelligent too...

"We have, it seems, been underestimating ovine intellect. While apparently mindlessly ruminating, sheep could in fact be pondering on long-absent flock-mates or even shepherds, report Keith Kendrick and colleagues at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge, UK, in a Brief Communication in Nature."

http://www.vetscite.org/publish/items/000361/

[ClassWarrior]

39. Grow up.

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

46. LOL!

That was an actual point.

I am a Republican and I consider myself rather intelligent.

My parents are Republican and also intelligent.

Ma Eldritch worked at MIT on the Space Training program back in the 60's and wrote for the Boston Globe.
Pa Eldritch, an engineer, is quite literally a 'rocket scientist'.

But both of them adhere quite blindly to the RW message. I have tried, in vain, to at least bring Ma Eldritch around. I patiently and clearly spelled out why we invaded Iraq, explained the PNAC, and have so far been right about nearly every prediction I stated to her.

But she simply refuses to believe it... "You're just getting one side of the story from people with an agenda." she says.

"It's not a 'story', what I have told you is simple, irrefutable fact. I have looked for proof that it is wrong and found nothing to negate these assertions."

-But it does not matter, They absolutely refuse to even look at anything that may impinge upon their world view.

They are intelligent AND they are sheeple.

The truth of one does not negate that of the other.




Now you grow up you stinky poopyhead. No backs, double black magic!:silly:

[ClassWarrior]

47. Then maybe YOU'LL answer my question. If one is...

...according to your arbitrary definition, an "n-word," is it okay to call most African Americans "n-words?"

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

54. Your example is not relevant.

The word 'n****r' is applied to someone based on skin color, not 'arbitrary' definitions. It is the issuer of the insult who is ignorant, not his intended subject (necessarily).

You would do better to use the example of 'asshole' which is much more subjective in its' application, but can be understood to apply to a wide range of negative characteristics.

'Sheeple' in the context I have always used it, and in the context I have seen it used, is applied to people who are 'easily led' to believe something without the will or intellectual curiosity to question their leaders. Much the same way sheep do not question the shepherd who leads them.

I assume that we use 'sheeple' because 'cattleeple' just doesn't have the same ring to it.

If one is going to contest the use of the word 'sheeple' with its' specific not arbitrary connotations as being arbitrary, then you might want to start the crusade against far more arbitrary epithets such as 'Fools', 'Idiots', and 'Morans'.

[ClassWarrior]

55. It wasn't an example. It was a question. And you avoided it.

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

58. It is a very poor question. And the answer is irrelevant to the point.

But I'll answer it anyway;

No, it is not ok to use the 'N' word because it is ignorant to hurl a racial epithet whose sole basis is to degrade someone for the color of their skin.

Yes, it is ok to use 'sheeple' when describing someone who chooses to blindly follow reckless leaders despite the mountains of evidence that they are being led off a cliff.


If a black man acts like an 'asshole', he is called an 'asshole', not a 'n****r'.

If a man acts like a sheep, we call him 'sheepish'. -The connotation is timidity and trepidation.

If a bunch of people act like sheep, we call them 'sheeple'.

If a bunch of people run into a burning skyscraper to rescue others, we call them 'heroes'.

If a bunch of people act aloof, we call them 'snobs'.

Why can we apply all of these? because the adjectives are specific to those persons' behavior, NOT their skin color.

There is no comparison between the use of the word 'n****r' and the use of the word 'sheeple'. That is why your question is silly.

[ClassWarrior]

68. The point is you're slamming an entire group of people - that's bigotry.

Racial bigotry is but one aspect of it.

Definition of "bigot" from the American Heritage Dictionary: One who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.

http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=bigot

You're not calling "one man" a sheep or an asshole. You're tarring an entire category of people. At best, it's strategically foolish for us. At worst, it's hate speech.

Quit obfuscating.

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

70. No, not at all... if I were slamming an entire group of people

I would say 'All Republicans are sheeple'.

And that is clearly not the case.

You see, one must fit the criteria to be considered a 'sheep'.
When I say 'sheeple', I am only referring to those who are willfully oblivious to uncomfortable information and blind followers of those that are pursuing their own self-interest.

I am not arbitrarily assigning a value to a group of people, each of whom may or may not fit that criteria... I am referring directly and only to those who fit the profile.

You have attempted to reverse the flow of logic by calling a rhombus a square.

I can understand that you might assume that anyone who uses the term 'sheeple' is referring to all Republicans or all the uneducated... but that is not necessarily the case.
Nor is it what I have been saying.

Let me clear this up for you...

You obviously don't like bigotry, right?

So if you said, "I don't like bigots." - you have just committed the 'bigotry' of which you accuse me. Why?
Because you have just 'slammed and entire group of people'.

So it's obviously bigotry to call bigots bigots.

-By your logic... not mine.

You are trying to fit a round peg in a square hole. For instance; calling an entire group of people... let's say, all the Libertarians, 'anarchistic jerks' would be 'slamming an entire group of people'. Saying that you hate 'anarchistic jerks' Is not slamming Libertarians.

Get it?

By your own logic, you are a bigot for having used the term 'fascist'. Were you referring to everyone in the Bush administration? If so, perhaps you have unfairly cast a blanket on those who do not deserve the title.

The fact is, there is a large percentage of the population that are being unwittingly led to push agendas to their own detriment, are intellectually incurious, and utterly unwilling to listen to any information that makes them 'uncomfortable'. Right now, the word that we use to describe those specific people is 'sheeple'.

If you can come up with a better word to describe people who, by their own devices, fall 'squarely' into that category, then by all means tell me what word you have come up with so I can tell you what a bigot you are for doing so.;)

In the meanwhile, for the sake of expediency rather than saying; "the population that are being unwittingly led to push agendas to their own detriment, are intellectually incurious, and utterly unwilling to listen to any information that makes them 'uncomfortable'"... I will say 'sheeple'.

[ClassWarrior]

71. But that is the ENTIRE point of the OP.

"I think it's patronizing in the extreme to suggest that the majority of Americans are 'sheeple,'" is the exact quote. That is exactly what the phrase "sheeple" suggests - the majority of the American people (read: Joe Lunchbucket) "don't have the mental capacity to form individual thoughts," as another poster on this thread said.

And your "fit the criteria" argument smells to high heaven like the argument (usually posed by whites) that there's a difference between "blacks" and "n-words," so that makes it alright to use the n-word.

:eyes:

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

72. And just where did I say I agreed with that?

I have to say that completely changing the subject of this discussion from why saying 'n****r' is akin to saying 'sheeple' to "Well he said 'the majority of Americans', and that was what I was talking about all along..." - is pretty thin.

Then going so far as to suggest I am somehow racist for making a point about 'fitting the criteria' is not nice... so let's not go there. (besides... it was Chris Rock who said there is a difference between 'black people' and 'n*****s', and we know how much of a dirty racist he is.)

I see that you concede that 'n****r' and 'sheeple' are not the same...


So you agree that there are 'sheeple'?

[The Doctor.]

74. Oh, and before you blow a gasket...

Of course it's elitist and arrogant to assume most of America are like sheep without doing a full survey.

But there is a body, a large segment of America that fits perfectly into that 'criteria' and are actively working against America's own interests.
I doubt you'd disagree with that.

Those are the 'sheeple' I'm talking about.

Whether or not that body comprises more than 50% of the populace is not something anyone is qualified to speculate on. That might be very arrogant, but it still is not 'bigoted' any more than calling bigots bigots is bigoted.

[ClassWarrior]

75. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha...

:rofl:

Okay. Good luck with that.

NGU.

[The Doctor.]

76. So now it is you who will not answer the question...

You can evade with derision as much as you like, but it proves only that you are unwilling to admit what we can apparently agree upon...

That, by the definition I have posed, there are indeed many 'sheeple' in this country.

Or do you still think that saying 'sheeple' is the same as saying 'n****r'?

Or are you the sort for whom it is impossible to admit he is wrong?

I agree that it is arrogant to assume that so many people fit a single definition... that much we agree on.

I assert that it is no more bigoted to suggest that a segment of the populace is ignorant and easily beguiled than it is to say that 'some ducks have brown feathers'.
And although I believe that one is neither wrong, nor necessarily a bigot to point to a great sociological affliction and find a label for it. To disagree is to say either;

a) It's not an affliction, and there is no reason to try to educate people who are actively led against their own self interest.

-or-

b) There exists no such segment of the population that I have described... that there are no 'sheeple'.

In either case, you would be wrong.

So which one is it?

This logic is quite sound. I believe I have distilled the argument to its' salient points and you seem unable to mount a cogent response.

Please do try.

[cassiepriam]

12. If the shoe fits...........

[ClassWarrior]

41. ..........be bigoted to the owner of the foot?

:shrug:

NGU.

[unpossibles]

14. While I would like to agree, I can't

"busy and occasionally misiniformed" is synonymous with sheeple in my book. While it is a lot of work to stay informed on every issue, to keep a general interest is not. Also, many people continue to believe the lies, even after exposed as false (ie: the Iraq-9/11 "connection", Swiftboat, trickle-down economics, fair elections, etc).

I think that when people decide that they don't care or can't be bothered to understand something so important, then they are stupid, or at least willfully ignorant.

It's their choice, of course, but... so is jumping off a cliff or attacking a bear.

[Ron Green]

15. The evidence for "Sheeple" is pretty strong.

Most of the people I communicate with are thoughtful and concerned about the direction of current events. But I don't communicate with most people. Most of them are stumbling through Wal*Mart, watching "reality" shows on TV, or wrapped up in professional sports. These people don't vote in overwhelming numbers, but they did so sufficiently, combined with the religio-crazies and the independently wealthy, to allow George Bush to occupy the White House.

[seabeyond]

16. ah, but if you dont buy into the filibuster or walk from dem party

you are sheep dont you know. it is the very best to dismiss another's argument. has nothing to do with truth. then, legitimately, one can stick fingers in ears and la la la la la.

[The Doctor.]

17. Fear makes people 'docile'...

and most people are afraid of taking responsibility for things that seem to outweigh them.

Being busy leads directly to the inability to seek accurate information, therfore they are misinformed.
It is when they adhere to that misinformation and spread it as fact that they are being stupid.

So yes... most Americans are docile and stupid... until they become informed and realize they are not alone to face the responsibility.

So let's get to it.

[Pacifist Patriot]

18. *shrug* As misleading as almost any other generality, but also

as fitting in many cases. In my opinion, being busy is no excuse for ignorance. I'm about as busy as they come and I can find the time to squeeze a few relevant facts into my brain.

Besides, I think the usage really applies beyond the voters. Deliberate non-voters are sheeple in my opinion. They are willing to let the government AND their fellow citizens make their decisions for them. That's docile.

Voter registration and turnout being what it is, it probably is safe to assume the majority of Americans are sheeple.

[BurgherHoldtheLies]

21. Lambs to the slaughter...is that better? eom

[renie408]

22. In part, I agree, but I think that 'sheeple' might come closer than..

you want to think. To me, 'sheeple' refers to the fact that a large chunk of Americans are easily herded. How this relates to their intelligence, I am not willing to speculate. But given the current political population of the Congress, the Senate and the White House...I have to feel that at least slightly over half of this country ARE easily herded. It does not help that there really is NO real journalism any more in mainstream media. But any TRUE conservative would recognize that what is passing for conservatism in Washington these days is an...abomination?? So, even if 51% of the population is conservative, the only reason they would pick THESE conservatives is if they were a little, well, stupid or maybe placid and, regardless, easily fooled.

[whatever4]

23. Okay, but I'm royally pissed at my nation and my locale, in general

and I guess that's just all I can say, because though now people are waking up and the numbers are showing it, they let it get this way. It just wasn't that hard to see, and maybe it will be a large social lesson eventually. But for now...god, these people voted to ban gay marriage, and this dumb-ass war, how can I feel anything but contempt for them? They may not be sheeple, but they went a long god damned way toward acting like sheeple.

[southpaw]

29. Dittoheads...

The fans of Limbaugh proudly refer to themselves as "Ditto-Heads"

...not significantly different from 'sheeple' is it?

[Double T]

32. Many Americans are their OWN worst enemy..........

they support the very thing that is destroying their quality of life!!!!!

[Tsiyu]

33. Sheep can be incredibly busy and they are not the dumbest of animals

but they always have their noses firmly planted in the grass, or else they are looking for greener pastures. They often fail to see danger approach because they are focused on eating above all other activities.

Then, when danger does strike, they run as a herd, maybe not sure why, but certain it's the right thing to do because "everyone else is doing it."

Entities like FU(X) News take advantage of these traits, and train their Sheepdog Reporters to run the herd any which way they desire.

Americans ARE like sheep. Day-to-day life takes precedence over long term survival and prosperity.

There is no excuse for not educating yourself on issues of the day. That's what good citizens do.

Good sheep, on the other hand...

[sepia_steel]

34. Sheeple is used for people who still worship *, IMO, not everyone. nt

[RebelOne]

40. In my experience, sheep are not docile.

I was chased and almost run down by a ram on a hillside above Loch Ness in Scotland.

[renie408]

43. Come to think of it...

several years ago an elderly couple here were killed by their pet ram. He trampled them to death.

[Ron Green]

45. "All We Like Sheep...."

All we like sheep
(All we like sheep)
Have gone astray-ay-ay-ay-aay
We have turn-ed
(We have turn-ed)
Everyone to his own way.

Music by Handel
Words by Isaiah, I believe.

[TahitiNut]

49. "The Lord is my Shepherd ..."

:shrug:

[MadHound]

48. Well, judging by our society, I would say docile and stupid

Are as good as any adjective out there. C'mon now, if the majority of Americans weren't docile and stupid, how did Bushco get elected, not just once, but twice!

And I'm sorry, but I'm just as busy as the next person, sometimes more so, yet I manage to keep up on what is going on, and even do some digging into what is really going on. Most people I think are too lazy to go beyond the surface of TV news, especially Fox.

And the American public has been systematically dumbed down in their education, even since I was in school, and a great deal since my Mom was in school. We are, and have been a dumbed down populace for awhile.

Yes, the majority of Americans are finally waking up and realizing what is going on. But it toom an illegal, immoral war that has degenerated into a quagmire, a presidential scandal, the pictures of the dead and dying post-Katrina, and rising energy prices to wake these people up. And my bet is that if Bushco had just prevented their oil cronies from raising the price of petroleum products, the American public would still be asleep.

You may dislike the term sheeple, but I think it is entirely apt. I suppose we'll have to agree to disagree on this one.

[Jim Stark]

53. Sheeple is

the exact word Michael Savage uses when talking about the American people.

[ArkDem]

57. The term does more to define the person who uses it than

it's intended target.

[Silverhair]

60. It won't win votes, therefore it hurts us.

It shows scorn for the average person, and tends to drive thim away. It has been well demonstrated by now that DU is NOT our private little chat session. Absure things that get put up here are chosen by the RWs for wide dissmination to people to demonstrate the hatred that, by extension, all Democrats have for the average working Joe/Jane. And that chases votes away.

[LiberalPersona]

62. Americans ARE docile

The vast majority of the country doesn't give half a shit who runs the country, they are unaware of the gravity of things. They just sit back and let things happen with the assumption that America will always be the way it is no matter who has the power.

[ComerPerro]

63. Well, if they aren't stupid, they should stop acting so stupid

and actually express some outrage.

[Greyhound]

64. Sorry you don't like it but most amerikans are stupid and docile.

As pointed out in other replies, look at the evidence. They rarely bother to vote, even when the results of the election will have devastating, long-term consequences to their personal lives. They listen, and give credence to, any idiot with a camera and/or microphone. They honestly believe that if a person has a large bank account, they must be knowledgeable. Most amerikans don't even know what form of government they are subject to, let alone who their representatives are. They can't read, nor comprehend, basic instructions written at a 6th grade level, and they don't care! Large numbers believe that the world was created in a week by an invisible man that lives in the sky. They have no understanding of science or the difference between science and belief. More people believe the Elvis is still alive than are able to point out Washington DC on a map.
Had enough? There are many, many more examples.

[porphyrian]

66. Why do you assume "sheeple" means "Americans?"

My understanding of it is that it applies to any stupid, blind followers. Geography does little to limit this human phenomenon.

[LittleClarkie]

69. What could we use

to denote someone who's eyes are somewhat glazed over, barely paying attention?

That was me about a year and a half ago.

I see true sheeple as the ones who swallow Fox News whole. Thankfully, there aren't a ton of them. Not all Bush voters are sheeple. And some of the Dems like me are sheeple as well, only vaguely voting Dem without concrete reasons why. I know a social worker who voted Bush, but loved Clinton. Weird.

[in_cog_ni_to]

73. Repukes ARE docile and STUPID.

They ARE sheeple. That's the PERFECT word to describe those assholes.

[leesa]

77. They are lazy and self-absorbed...better?