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and I remember him saying nasty things about Democrats while growing up, but he wasn't involved in politics in any way. My mom never mentioned politics before she died but I assume she voted Republican too.
I never thought much about politics, but I had a strong connection with Caroline Kennedy because she was my age when her father died, and I remember watching the funeral and being so sad that her daddy died. Years later I also had a teenybopper crush on Robert Kennedy, and was horrified when he was murdered. I first started thinking about politics when I went to summer school to make up a government class I'd flunked. The Watergate hearings were on, and I don't know if it was because the teacher was lazy or if he just wanted us to know what was going on, but our classes consisted of watching the hearings, discussing them, then writing an essay about that day's testimony. I thought it was really boring, as did everyone else, but what can you expect from teenagers who'd rather be out in the sun?
It did make me think that Republicans were crooked and shifty, so when the time came that I could first vote, I paid a lot of attention to Jimmy Carter. I really liked him, and was planning on voting for him. I made the mistake of mentioning that to my dad, and he went off. We'd never talked about Watergate or Nixon, so I was shocked that he still supported the Republicans. After several near-screamfests, we never brought up politics again. I've voted straight Democratic ever since.
A couple of weeks ago, my dad called to wish me happy birthday (I live in another state now), and at the end of the conversation, just out of curiousity, I asked him if he was still going to vote for Bush. He was appalled that I would even question that he would. He was even more appalled that I wasn't! He said "Don't tell me you're a Democrat! If you're a Democrat...I don't even want to know you!" I said I was proud to be a Democrat. He called Kerry a lying slimeball, and said Edwards was worse. I tried to talk to him to get him to tell me what caused him to be so angry, but he was furious and wouldn't talk to me straight. I didn't yell, I didn't get angry, I just wanted to know. I have a suspicion that it was the Swift Boat thing, but he wouldn't say it. I told him he was being lied to and that Kerry was a good man, but he wouldn't listen. He hung up on me! I probably won't talk to him again until I call him at Christmas, though if Kerry wins I'm going to have to restrain myself from calling him and gloating.
If my dad (who's 78) was a freeper type, his anger would be understandable, but he's not. Far from it. He's not religious, though he's a believer and goes to church and church functions like pot luck suppers. He's what I'd call a casual Lutheran, grew up in the Lutheran church (hardly a hotbed of radical right-wingers).
My dad is not a news junkie and probably wouldn't know Fox news from CNN or MSNBC while flipping channels and maybe pausing to check it out if a big news story/tragedy had happened.
My dad does not listen to Rush Limbaugh (has probably never even heard of him) and only listens to country music, if he turns on the radio at all.
My dad is not on the internet, and wouldn't know a browser from a freeper. If we lived closer we'd probably try to set him up, but we've lived in a different state for 14 years. My mother-in-law does use the computer for her work and e-mail, but that's it. (she's a Catholic btw. I haven't talked to her about Kerry but I'm wondering if she might vote for him)
It's just weird that my dad isn't exposed to any of the things (church, news, net, radio) that get right-winger types going, and yet he's seemingly been convinced that Kerry is a no-good liar. They don't live in a swing state, btw, so he couldn't have been bombarded by their nasty ads. It's depressing. People can go on and on about how the Swift Boat Liars for Bush aren't important, but I have my dad to point to. He's a WWII vet, and some version of these assholes' lies have somehow wormed their way into his brain, and infected it.
It bothers me. Sigh.
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