Here's why people still support Bush.

[Cyrano]

Aside from war profiteers, corporate executives, and the super-rich, what kind of person could still support King George? The answer is simple. Some of the stupidest people imaginable.

I personally know a handful of people who still back the Great Decider and I realized that what they have in common is that they're not very bright. (And before anyone accuses me of being judgmental, yes, I'm being judgmental.)

Their professions include a postal worker, a real estate appraiser, a fast-food store manager, a nurse, a landscaper, an auto salesman, a retired teacher, and a few others. (These people don't know each other.) None of them can seem to make the conceptual jump between BushCo's actions and their own declining living standards.

They may be good at what they do professionally, but their knowledge of current events is a replay of a Rush Limbaugh rant, and their ability to reason seems virtually non-existent. And while they may in many respects be decent people, they have no idea they are helping take us all down the road to disaster.

In addition to these people are the Jesus freaks who can't wait for the arrival of Armageddon. I only know one and try to avoid him.

[DanCa]

1. Conservative Dogma freaks

They worship conservative dogma and not Jesus Christ the prince of peace. Other than that semantic though I agree with you completely.

[bryant69]

2. Another Factor

They hate us more than they are dissappointed by Bush. Bush may not be much, but at least he's not a stinkin' liberal!

And another factor - they don't want to admit they were wrong. They would rather look for something that would vindicate their support of him than admit that he's a disaster.

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

[Master Mahon]

9. You hit it right on the head

I believe the term for them would be 'Good Nazis'!
They'll ride their commitment to Bush straight to the bowels
of hell rather then admit they backed a complete moron, with
multiple addictions.
It's far beyond just living in denial. It's a complete
mental disconnect with reality and a movement into a
newly concieved 'alternate reality'.

[converted_democrat]

14. You're right.. You are right on the money.. When I was growing up

I was only exposed to conservatives, and I didn't know a single Democrat.. I knew long ago that I was not happy with the republican party, but I was basically brainwashed to believe that all Dems were godless commies.. I didn't want to be a a puke, but I didn't want to be a "godless commie" either.. It took me a while to come around to the left because of this very reason.. (Now that I've come around, I'll never go back..) You are so on the mark with that statement..

[mwb970]

26. It's not just that they can't admit they were wrong.

It's even more that they can't admit we were right.

[Ian David]

3. You know where I still see Bush stickers?

On beat-up old cars.

In the parking lots of Salvation Army stores.

In subsidized housing.

Lined-up in front of food pantries.

And pick-up trucks with "Vietnam Veterans Against Kerry" stickers who must have just barely sneaked into the service as part of "Project 100,000."

[stanwyck]

25. People who are lonely, angry, and feel

they've been left behind. The Bushies feed on their despair by promising them inclusion in their very privileged club.
That never happens.

[AbbyR]

40. Now wait a minute....

I drive an old beat up car (a Toyota which has one redeeming feature: No car payments), which can be seen frequently in front of the food pantry (I donate regularly).

On the back of my car, you will find a Kerry for President sticker, a "Don't Blame Me, I voted for the smart one" sticker and an Xed out W sticker.

I'm one of the Liberal Elite!

[Ian David]

42. I'm not saying that all people owning old cars sport Bush stickers...

but that many people sporting Bush stickers are making barely enough money to keep their old junky car on the road, and that the "booming economy" is sending them to food pantries to "put food on their family."

[godhatesrepublicans]

4. You've hit the fatal flaw of Democracy right on the head.

There will always be a certain percentage of the electorate with diminished capability for critical thinking. The best thing for the world at large is when they are too distracted on election day to vote. Unfortunately the Bushco Repubs have focused their efforts on getting this percentage to believe their BS uncritically, to vote accordingly and donate heavily.

That's why I support mandatory teaching of the Philosophy of Logic and Classical Rhetorical skills starting in 1st grade from now on. You think I'm kidding? Then name a better solution.

[Cyrano]

22. Unfortunately, the thugs understand that an educated populace is

not in their best interest. That's why this "No Child Left Behind" bull is designed to leave as many children behind as possible.

Teaching to the test has become the norm in too many places. Gifted children whose parents aren't wealthy get short changed. Kids who could benefit from tutoring aren't getting it.

This is not unique to the Bush era. I think this crap started with Reagan. A well-educated citizenry would ring the death knell of the Republican Party as it exists today.

[katty]

5. yup, I go with stupid and prefer info from: rush and Faux

the world does not go beyond their tiny ring-pass-not.

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

6. People who watch CNN, Fox, MSNBC, and don't question what they see.

There are a lot of people who amble through life complacently...get up, go to work, watch TV, order a pizza, drink some beer, go to bed, get up for work...

We fall into a major trap sometimes on DU.

You see, we ask questions. We don't simply take the world around us at face value. But we also take it a step further.

We assume that others ask questions too. Sometimes they do. Sometimes they don't. it doesn't necessarily mean that they are stupid or Jesus Freaks or Kool-aid drinkers or ANYTHING else. It just means that they have surrendered to getting up, going to work, watching TV, ordering a pizza...

It defies logic, but so does most of life.

:patriot:

[Swamp Rat]

13. w-w-w-watch t-t-t-teev-v-v-veee!

:D

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

Imus was talking about Tony and David Gregory this morning...

He really wanted to say "Tony made David Gregory his bitch." He danced around it and kept saying "He made him his...he made him his...I don't want to say the word, but you know what I mean...his WIFE."

All eyes are on David Gregory as the one who will challenge Snow in his new role. The other part of the equation is that Gregory can't ASK a question if Snow doesn't CALL on him, so it will be interesting.

ON EDIT: For those who have no idea what I'm talking about, Bush and Snow walked away from Gregory at the end of the conference yesterday without answering his question.

[faithnotgreed]

31. thank you for those details

i enjoy reading (usually anyway) about what exactly is being talked about in the msm
especially when there is a glimmer of hope that someone - david gregory etc - is challenging the status quo

[electron_blue]

38. Yes, this is why the Rep's have pushed "faith-based" initiatives so hard

No so much for the religious aspects, but to get people used to taking things on faith. Not questioning authority.

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

41. Churches pushed the "Kerry is pro-abortion" line in 2004...

...some were subtle about it, like mine. Others leaned hard into the "Kerry is a baby-killer" baloney and a LOT of people BOUGHT IT.

Pro-choice does NOT automatically mean pro-abortion. I've seen no evidence whatsoever to support the claim that Kerry is pro-abortion, but...like it or not...it WAS one of the MAJOR hits against him, courtesy of the Karl Rove "Play To The Evangelicals" smear machine.

[wryter2000]

7. I heard one on the tv last week

He said, "We need a strong leader." 1) what does that mean? 2) what if the leader is "strong" in doing exactly the wrong thing all the time? 3) what in hell makes him think Bush is "strong"?

[toopers]

10. Maybe what he was saying is that we (Democrats) need

a strong leader, and I would agree with him.

[orleans]

8. why change your dead horse in the middle of streaming? n/t

[izzie]

18. That hits it right on the head.

--

[Bonhomme Richard]

11. In my opinion they have a serious character flaw.

It is the same character flaw that allows despots to gain power.

[catmandu57]

12. Add my daddy in law

He still proudly displays his b/c bumpersticker. He gets all of his news from the pigboy, he's never been to our house the man would have a heart attack seeing my DU stickers and Kerry/Edwards sticker.
The apple doesn't fall far from the tree though, sometimes I look at my wife and ask her who the hell she is and where is my wife?, I have to make her think about some things.

[European Socialist]

15. Otherwise decent people"--This is what it must of been like during the...

Civil War, with family members fighting family members. It's very difficult to decide if you can be on speaking terms with people who are so faulty on current events.

[arendt]

16. Sadly, I have experience of INTELLIGENT backers of the boy king...

In the last week, I have been stunned to hear

1) an electrical engineer, very smart guy
2) a medical doctor who I thought was liberal

both say: "I voted for the best man available in the last election,
and I would do it again."

Is that the soundbite they are broadcasting on the brainwash channel?

To fill in some background:

the engineer is a longtime dittohead who is pissed about
getting shafted by a retirement plan change.

the doctor is married to a Southern Belle, and has recurring cancer.

So, I would conclude that its not STUPID people that back bush to the
end; but BITTER, DISAPPOINTED people who (subconsciously) want everyone
else to get screwed as bad as they do.

This kind of victim is the classic recruit to Hate Radio. "Yeah, you
were screwed, and we will tell you who did it: liberals, women, minorities..."

It is a HUGE mistake to think that all the diehards are stupid. They are
a uniformly SOUR and NASTY bunch.

arendt

[Divernan]

17. They believe a critical body part would fall off if they admit a mistake.

nt

[NNN0LHI]

19. We have ours too. Look how many voted for that gagootz Nader n/t

[Cha]

20. They are also masochists.

Nurse? Postal worker? Retired teacher?

[Bigmack]

21. I re-read "What's the Matter with Kansas"....

recently. You're right... it's stupidity.

Many arguments in the peace/progressive community about that word. One side says using the word "stupid" can be seen as elitist and counterproductive. The other side (the side I'm on) says that "stupid" is the only word that describes it. Not ignorant, not stubborn, not even dogmatic. Anyone who continues, time and again, to vote against ALL their own interests is.....wait for it.... STUPID.

Stupid crosses all class, racial, and educational borders.

[Kansas Wyatt]

34. You would be surprised

How many people thought Bush was the same as Dwight Eisenhower in the last election. Because they still trust the news, and nobody showed them the difference. Meanwhile, Republicans were selling this vision of America a few decades back, that they cannot deliver, when working people were treated fairly and Corporate America was not merged with the Government. Stupid yes, but those people seldom hear that East Coast Liberals are not going to put those high class elites ahead of them.

[NRaleighLiberal]

23. Too broad a generalization - my wife is a nurse, very smart (and liberal)-

I work in big Pharma with many smart people who back the idiot. It is much more complex - part money/greed (those I work with who are in finance particularly are pro idiot - all around greed). Then there are the belief system/righties - scared and shaking in their boots - the fear card works great on them. In Raleigh, you tend to see the dreadful dubya stickers on big SUVs and BMWs.

I do think that many average folk prefer someone who is NOT smarter than they are; it is imtimidating, so they mistrust the educated and feel right at home with the ol boy king.

I think we need to be careful about generalizations, mostly because we shouldn't aspire to the sorts of approaches that the right take - and they do generalizations big time. We are better, and smarter, than that, and can hold several complex thoughts at once without blowing a mental gasket, like Freepers do.

[flordehinojos]

24. i said it in another post, i am saying it here again:

i spit on bush, spit on his father george herbert walker bush, i spit on his brother john ellis buttinsky bush and on any other roaming/roving bush out there on this planet.

[BreweryYardRat]

27. That's true.

My mom still supports Bush, and she's pretty damn stupid.

[riona]

28. There is the one segment of the population

that will stand behind Bush no matter what. They believe that the war with Iraq is an important step towards their precious Rapture. Nor do they care about the environment - it's destruction will only hasten things along.

If you haven't read this particular article already, you might be interested.


http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=41&ItemID=7158

[Kansas Wyatt]

29. "Great Decider"

:rofl:

The idiots you speak of, probably do think they are up to date on the "news," because they listen to Rush's news (propaganda).

[DrGonzoLives]

30. The bashing of the working class in this thread is sickening

You think maybe that might have something to do with it? Not this thread in particular, but the sentiments expressed herein? The GOP play it for all they can, and what do we do to counter it?

Nothing.

How many of you acutally try to talk with anyone like that? Without acting frustrated, getting pissed, acting like they're an idiot? Maybe if we actually started doing that, we might start winning them over. Maybe if we convince them that liberals are not the demonic boogiemen that the right-wing has portrayed us as, things might turn around.

Sitting around and expecting them to agree with us out of the blue doesn't do a damn thing.

[Cyrano]

35. I'm not bashing the working class. I'm saying that those who still back

Bush are stupid.

Virtually all of us here at DU are part of the working class. And we recognize the ongoing screwing we've been getting under the thugs who run this country.

If you really believe that the thirty some odd percent who don't "get it" and are still backing Junior can be "converted," I wish you the best of luck in your mission.

Having said this, calling stupid people stupid is not "bashing." You want to hear bashing? Listen to Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Hannity, Coulter, Malkin, and the entire herd of professional bashers.

Then listen to liberals on Air America Radio. You'll hear reasoned arguments, not "bashing."

[Kerrytravelers]

32. These people who still support * never ask where the info is coming from.

My Dad (who voted for Kerry) has a habit of reading things and then quoting them to me (usually this in regards to how I can improve myself... :eyes: ... I'm his hobby...) When I ask him where he got this stat from or that quote from, he often doesn't know. I ask him who said the quote. he doesn't know. "They" is usually his answer. It makes him so mad when I tell him I'm not about to listen until you can tell me who said it, where you read it from and what the intent of the article was.

I will say, however, since chimpy has taken the country hostage Dad has asked a lot more question about what he's reading.

[Marnieworld]

33. I think it's more complicated than that

My mother and brother are both very intelligent people but they watch Fox News, actually believe it and still support the administration. It's hard when politics comes up because I want to get along with them and not fight. I've come to peace that it is not my role in life to teach them. The truth is the truth and will be revealed in time. It's much better for me to love them and not think about this difference in perception.

Realizing that the "news" programs on TV are lying to you for an agenda, an agenda that is against your best interest, is a difficult and painful process. You have to be willing to go through it. Some people are just like you said and just don't have the time and energy to make an extra effort to be informed even if they do figure out that TV lies.

But it's not just intelligence involved. It's an emotional maturity to brace yourself against how fuck up things truly are that some just can't reach. It is so much easier to cling to the belief that this is a great country and to be patriotic I must support my leaders. 9/11 really damaged a lot of people and otherwise kind people rationalize all that has been done in response as a good thing. That belief is comforting and helps make sense of everything else.

I remember my awakening. During the election of 2000 I couldn't believe that an uninformed, illiterate, bumbling asshole was actually a candidate for president. I was amazed daily when the things he said and did would go so unexamined when during the CLinton era things were so different for Bill. Then when the Supreme Court stopped the vote counting because it would cause damage to the "winner" even though the winner isn't known yet until after the votes are counted and there was no challenge in the media I realized that I don't live in the country that I thought that I did. When I read that we wanted to go to Afghanistan before 9/11 because it was ideal for an oil pipeline I think the veil officially lifted and it was so painful at the time. I trust nothing on TV or out of most politician's mouths. I spend hours sifting through articles to find facts through the spin. It's a compulsion that I can't stop that often I envy the bliss of the ignorant and the comfort in thinking that everything is as it should be.

I'm rambling and though I think that lack of critical thinking implied in accepting as fact anything you hear is a sign of a lazy mind, I think that otherwise smart people can choose ignorance because that's all they can handle. We don't need everybody to wake up- just enough.

[Cyrano]

39. It's difficult to respond to your entire post, so I'll stick with your

first sentence. With all due respect to your family, how can "very intelligent people" watch and believe FOX News?

And if a person listened to a fraction of what the Great Decider has to say, how could they still support him? King George is a random word generator whose actions have nothing to do with what comes out of his mouth.

[Marnieworld]

43. Honestly...

I think they can't "handle the truth." I think that a part of them is cutting themselves off from reality to protect themselves from the trauma of being lied to and things not making sense anymore. I think we all have limits to what we can handle mentally and that the brain protects us when we can't. It's easier to believe than to know. It's frustrating for me and a bit lonely because what is going on in this country is very important to me and so upsetting. Yet, I came to reality and I just hope that they will someday as well.

[SammyWinstonJack]

36. So essentially they are self serving, self absorbed, and self righteous?

Nice! :eyes: :banghead: :argh: "....,they have no idea they are helping take us down the road to disaster." And apparently they either don't care or are too lazy to inform themselves. Or both.

[Initech]

37. DING DING DING DING DING!!!!

I've been referring to the religious right as "self-righteous" for a long time now. These people are not righteous in any way, shape, or form. They're just using religion to promote their own disgusting agenda. There's nothing righteous about it.