Are DUers more or less prone to hero worship than RWers?

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

RW heroes: Shrub, Deadeye Dick, Rummy, various RW "pundits" esp. Rush, etc.

DU heroes: various politicians past and present, officeholders and candidates, Patrick Fitzgerald, various DUers, various AAR broadcasters, Michael Moore, Jon Stewart, Colbert, Helen Thomas etc.

Of course, one DUer's hero is often another DUer's goat. Witness Hillary Clinton, John Kerry, Ed Schultz.

Dont' get me wrong, I think it's good and important to have some heroes, they provide inspiration and motivate and often lead. Sometimes, though, they lead in bad directions rather than good. I find the phenomenon of hero worship interesting.

[beam me up scottie]

1. We're just as bad.

I'd elaborate but if I were to list the heroes in question, their followers would hunt me down and kill me.

[Rosemary2205]

6. LOL!

Try coming by with a low post count and mention maybe Michael Moore mighta took artistic license with a factoid or two.....that'll get pandora's box hoppin. :)

[beam me up scottie]

8. ROFL !

Oh, I'll bet it did!

Hopefully you brought your asbestos undies that day.
:evilgrin:

[specimenfred1984]

10. They're Already Hunting Down My Every Post

It only took about 5 minutes.

[beam me up scottie]

11. Um, after a quick search,

I'd have to say that looks just like what you wanted. :)

[IntravenousDemilo]

2. We're about the same. We just have better heroes, that's all. n/m

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

4. I agree with this statement. ^

[blonndee]

3. Less. We have our heroes, but it seems we're willing to

question them and even take them on when we feel it's warranted. Goes along with being critical thinkers, I think.

[Chipper Chat]

9. Well said.

Right now as we type there are a million dyed-in-the-wool 'murkan republicans who would drink a glass of cyanide koolaid and jump off the Sears Tower if that's what Bush ordered. If Ted Kennedy (one of my heroes) told me to do that I would at least ask him if I could have a can of Coke instead and if there was water below the Tower so I could swim to safety.
(I know I know - bad joke)

[Rosemary2205]

5. Oh I think it's a human thing, not a freep thing.

IMHO when a human is so untouchable they can't be human anymore it does no one any good.

[Mythsaje]

7. I strive to be my own "hero."

I may cheer for those who are doing the right things, but I don't tend to idolize others except in very narrow ways. Mostly other authors, for particular attributes as writers. Frank Herbert, for his political and social insights, Spider Robinson, for his empathic gift, and a few others for their ability to visualize romantic and personal interaction.

[Chulanowa]

12. I don't think so

We have a lot of respect and affection for our figures, but I have never seen it turn into the mindless worship that the right gives to people on their side.

When we see our guys screw up, we point at them and say "Hey! Dude! You just screwed up!"
When a right-wing hero screws up, they point and say "Hey! Dude! The liberals screwed up and made you take the fall for it!"

[Mythsaje]

15. Yes, this is true.

Nice insight.

[newswolf56]

13. Equally prone but for very different reasons:

The Right is prone to hero-worship because of its core ideology: it believes absolutely in der führerprinzip -- the Christian/capitalist/Nazi/corporate doctrine of omnipotent leadership and unquestioning obedience by the followers -- the Bush Regime personified, not only in the "unitary executive" concept but in its organization and discipline as well.

What passes for the Left in the United States is equally prone to hero-worship because it has no ideology at all -- no theory, no analysis (and no ability to ever again develop theory or analysis because of combination of the savage anti-intellectuality lingering from the McCarthy Era and the general public-school/mass media dumbing-down of America). Bereft of ideology and analysis, the Left's only other option is to become a personality cult, often rabid, for whatever momentary hero is turned up by the tides of politics and circumstance: note in this context the recent Truthout affair, a classic example.

[conflictgirl]

14. I agree about it being equal but for different reasons

I think you're right about the reasons for the RW hero worship, that it's about blind submission to authority. But I think the left tendency toward hero worship is more because our party tends to be more idealistic and wants to have reason for hope. Looking for hope tends to make us collectively a little vulnerable to charismatic or authoritative voices and less willing to investigate whether or not those persons really act in a manner befitting the hero label.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

16. Equally, but our heroes are actually heroes.

But I do think it goes too far sometimes, like when people compare Cindy Sheehan to Rosa Parks -- not that Cindy isn't great, it's just that she's not quite Rosa Parks.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

23. I think one issue is, that liberals have been out of power and without

strong voices in the key positions of power in the last several years, there is a strong yearning to assign super powers and abilities to heroes.

Patrick Fitzgerald is a prime example. I think it's great that there is a such a good and careful prosecutor on the CIA/Plame case, but it feels like some expect him to literally ride into the White House on a stallion, in shining armor, and smite the shrubco foes with his trusty sword Excalibur.

[ClintonTyree]

17. Much less prone...........

because we actually QUESTION what those who would lead us say. The freeps are on 'auto-pilot', whatever their leaders say is gospel and there will be NO discussion or wavering from that official position.

Progressives are much more critical, cynical even, in their approach to politics and life in general. Maybe I'm projecting my own values here but it seems to me that we're more finely attuned to world and national events than our counterparts. We look at things from all angles, not the party prescribed one.

[H2O Man]

18. Other.

Human beings in our culture tend to have a "hero" or role model in one or more of the early stages of development. A teenager might have posters of his/her favorite athlete or musician on their bedroom wall. There is nothing wrong with that.

The problem comes when people who are in the adult stages of life allow their beliefs to be held together by external means -- be it a "hero," a political party, or any other ideology. That is, when a person's belief in anything depends on a "leader" (Jim Jones, George W. Bush, etc) it simply means that the truth has not taken root within themselves, and are held together by outside influence.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

19. I don't think there's much of a difference between the two groups.

Viva Chavez, etc.

[johnnie]

20. Heroes?

I leave heroes to comic books and action movies. They are fine when you are a child, but having admiration for someone and calling them a hero are two different things to me.

[Mayberry Machiavelli]

21. You will see posts by DUers saying "so and so is my hero".

[Loge23]

22. Will Pitt?

Just asking?!
He seems to have an almost fanatical fan base here.

[KoKo]

25. Skepticism is healthy only to the degree where Cynicism doesn't creep in

and cause one to give up saying "a pox on all their houses." And role models are good...but sadly in these times role models who turn into hero's can tend to "fall." Bought off with money, commercialization and their own pride which can ofen "be shown before a fall."

Think we all go through phases. Still, it's good not to put ANYONE on a Plaster Pedestal where they can be knocked down or torn down or covered with bird doo.

Hey...what do I know...just a little observation from life experience and alot of time reading...:shrug:

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

24. Has Nothing To Do With Politics.

At all.

So I'd say it would be even then.

[Beelzebud]

26. Equally prone.

[Jigarotta]

27. my heros are the people I know

close, right there in my face. I definitely know them.

[Jigarotta]

35. give someone close to you a hero hug.

it's so easy.

[Tactical Progressive]

28. Right-wingers are power-worshipping submissives

It's their nature to be kiss-up/kick-down authoritarians.

They don't believe in reason; they belive in faith. They don't believe in consensus; they believe in power.

It's the perfect anti-reason climate for hero-worship.

We all have some of that as human beings. They have an overwhelming amount of it.

[BlooInBloo]

29. Wish I could say "less", but the truthout debacle showed me otherwise...

[Beelzebud]

30. FITZZZZZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1111

[BlooInBloo]

31. LOL!

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

32. Counting on "leaders" is nice way to cop-out.

Leaving it up to the bosses of whatever stripe avoids taking responsibility for one's own life and makes us victims.

My "heroes" are the people in organizations like Doctors Without Borders, The Freedom Project, Amnesty International, and such like.

[johnaries]

33. Are you kidding me? The way we eat our own?

If we fall into hero worship quickly, we fall out of it much more quickly. Hey, nobody's perfect.

[NewJeffCT]

34. I think our hero worship is less absolute

Somebody had posted the other day about how even failed Republicans become respected elder statesmen in their party - Bob Dole, as an example. Heck, even Dick Nixon was a bit redeemed in their eyes before he passed away... On the other hand, what's Mike Dukakis been up to since 1988? Or, Walter Mondale?