Pretty much everything that is fucked up in the country is rooted in Republicanism. And if it ......

[Stinky The Clown]

..... isn't, it is rooted in pandering to Republicans. As if that weren't enough, people are still in the streets with misspelled signs and hats and open carry sidearms in support of Republicans.

How is this even possible? Seriously, how is it possible that Republicans have any support whatsoever?

[MadHound]

1. More general than that, it is rooted in greed and corporatism.

It's all about making, or transferring obscene amounts of wealth to the already rich.

[seabeckind]

Ding, ding

Too many are blaming the monkey for being a monkey and ignoring the organ grinder.

The only difference between the dem and the repub is that the repub is easier to buy and comes cheaper.

[clarence swinney]

39. MAD HOUND BARKS TRUTH

1945-1% owned 30% Total Financial Wealth
1980=20%
1989=36%(Ron 60% tax Cut for them)

2008
1%=43%
10%=70%
20%=93%
80%=7%=120,000,000 hard workers=shafted shafted

Intended Redistribution by Rich Conservative backers of Reagan + Bush
owners of TV-TALK RADIO-- PRESS--military industrial--WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT

7% cannot own much except home equity

olduglymeanhonest angy angry

[Kablooie]

50. Yep. There are plenty of Democrats that support GOP values as well.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. Sad and scary. Peope can be such lemmings....look at the witch burnings, the Inquisition, the

Crusades...and there are countless more examples of humans blindly following the ignorant, the evil, the incompetent, the greedy, the power-hungry.

Aside from lemmings, what other creature does this?

[NWHarkness]

19. Lemmings don't even do it!

That's actually a myth. Only humans are that stupid.

[BrklynLiberal]

49. Aha! That figures. The myth was probably invented to make the human behavior look a bit

less insane.

[rucky]

3. Propaganda works

more brilliantly than I could ever imagine.

[glowing]

4. Because they mixed politics with religion and Republicons are equated

with beign annoited by God.. The Dems are Satan's spawns. I'm serious. One of the major reasons I stopped going to the church I was attending was because they started supporting Bush 1 and listening to Rush Limbaugh.... Everything about that was soooo wrong to me. Then equating being a Puke with being a Good Christian made my head hurt. That's how they get the support they do. They played the God card. They fuck with people's fear of death and the unknown... this is how they can actually look at Sarah like a fucking Saint and support her.

[Skinner]

5. People are not very smart. (nt)

[bluedave]

6. workin' man

It's even MORE incredible that any working people support them--the American insanity rate must be very high.

[OHdem10]

7. How many people really realize and have it explained to them that

Conservative Economic Fundamentalism has landed us here and
it sure as heck will not pull us out.

[patrice]

17. That's what I really think: All of this is about what people know/understand.

[scarletwoman]

24. You're forgetting "neoliberal" economic policy, the philosophical underpinnig of the DLC.

The IMF and World Bank are founded on NEOLIBERAL principles. It's absurd to place blame on conservatives only.

This thread is a textbook example of pointing out the mote in the other's eye, while ignoring the beam in our own.

sw

[clarence swinney]

41. NEWT SAYS HE CAN PULL US OUT

WOW! HEAD IN SAND! SLEEPWALKING THROUGH HISTORY!
Title of article: Conservatives call for massive deficit spending
Newt Gingrich at Human Events calls for Economic Freedom Act.
Proposes
Reduce Payroll Tax by Half
Eliminate Capital Gains Tax
Reduce Corporate Tax Rate to 12.5%
Eliminate Estate Tax
He said Obama stimulus was not enough to get back to Job Creation
I always though Newt was a very intelligent informed person.
He loses me on these proposals.
He backed Bush Spending 3500 billion and getting 2100B of Revenue to cover it.
Ok to borrow 1400B???? That was Bush last budget.
12,000 Billion of Debt. Why?
We did what Newt proposes-- more of same medicine
CUT REVENUES + INCREASE SPEND & BORROW =KIDS PAY TOMORROW
Start in 1981
cut Top Income Rate by 60%
cut capital gains tax by 43%
cut Estate Tax by ?
cut Corporate taxes via loopholes
cap on Payroll tax for rich

Newt, We already did what you suggest and it did not work

clarenceswinney-olduglymeanhonest ANGRY ANGRY

[NNN0LHI]

8. If the Rethugs were outfitting the Titanic they would demand fewer lifeboats

Wouldn't want to cost White Star Line an extra few hundred bucks.

That is not an original thought. I heard it on the TV the other day.

But it sure is true.

Don

[lpbk2713]

9. RW Hatemonger Radio, that's how.

The hatemongers like Beck and Limbaugh are funded by the big money on the conservative side because it is in the fat cats' interest to keep the hate pot stirred. How else could Limbaugh get a $400 Million dollar contract by selling some of the off the wall products that he advertises on his show? The bulk of that $400 Million has to come from somewhere and it comes from Big Oil, Big Pharma, Big Tobacco and of course the RNC as well as others. The RW Media Hatemongers are glad to return the favor by delivering their message of hate and paranoia in the form of outright lies, exaggerations and distortions.

[burnsei sensei]

30. Add to that what David Niewert calls

eliminationist rhetoric.

[mrdmk]

10. Marketing!

Back in the 1960's, Republicans under the leadership of Richard Nixon were learning how a policy was perceived by and be implemented to the public that would make or break the success of that policy.

Here are some samples:

Nixon had four policies he was running under (from memory and if you want links, go look them up yourself):

1) He had a "Secret Plan" to end the Vietnam War.

2) There was a "Silent Majority" that Nixon working for.

3) The "War on Drugs", translated into beating down people who did not agree on policies of the U.S. Government.

4) An unknown policy that was being used on the public was "The Southern Strategy".

Of course the start of this revelation was the propaganda from "The War on Communism". Nixon was there at start of "The War on Communism", then it handed off to Joseph McCarthy who blew it bad. People had learned from those mistakes.

Another mistake is when you have idiots carrying misspelled signs, open sidearms, and me first attitude for the general public to read, see, and deal with, these policies are going to be dealt with by the disgusted and it will not be pretty. Just hang in there my follow poster(s)...


on edit: by, be, that, it, had, and disgusted(s)

[mrdmk]

16. Excuse the reply to my own posting

After Richard Nixon royally "Fucked-UP", there were a number of "Think Tanks" started and funded by very rich people and corporations. Those "Think Tanks" are in full gear today today with plenty of money in their bank accounts. Also we now have a number of Marketing Firms that will do anything for a buck. Unfortunately, some people have no conscience what-so-ever...

[izquierdista]

25. He didn't fuck up...

...he got caught. It's never in the Republicans' plan to have the night watchmen find your burglars or for a cop to be in the next bathroom stall. If the tape on the door at the Watergate wasn't showing, Tricky could have finished out his term.

But I do remember being 12 years old when he laid all that bullshit on the public and thinking "how can adults believe this stuff?"

[mrdmk]

47. In politics everything is legal until you get caught, and getting caught is a mistake

During the 1972 election, at the time of the Watergate Break-in, it was determined by the media that Nixon would win by a landslide (which was a fact*). Whether or not Nixon knew about the Watergate break-in before the intrusion and approved the act, he was up to neck in the cover-up. The cover-up made him a political gallery duck, a major mistake i.e. a fuck-up!!!

For people who like to read: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watergate_scandal

The following is not an in-defense statement of the Nixon Presidency: Nixon pissed-off many Republican backers with the National Environmental Policy Act, called Clean Air Act of 1970, also Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and with some additions to social programs. There was a strong moment towards these national polices for a long time, thus Nixon made them his own and signed them into law. Of course, these new laws were not favored by Corporations, Bankers, and Wall Street. Hence, Nixon had some very powerful people behind the scenes that wanted him out of office.

Noam Chomsky remarked that, in many respects, Nixon was "the last liberal president."<94> Indeed, Nixon believed in using government wisely to benefit all and supported the idea of practical liberalism.

(The preceding paragraph is at the following link under "Initiatives within the federal government")

link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Nixon#Presidency_.281969.E2.80.931974.29


*In my own opinion George McGovern did not seem like a take charge candidate and was always on the defensive. I was also 12 years old at the time...

[clarence swinney]

42. WSA

WALL STREET OF AMERICA
formerly United States of America
Own Largest Corporations
Own TV
Own Talk Radio
Own Print Press
Own Defense Industries
Own Government
bye bye land of free and common good
$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ GOD OF THE MOUNTAIN $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

[patrice]

11. Maybe the" breakdown of the bicameral mind" is not complete, so we

have a bunch of humans running around who really ARE on the other side of that missing link in the family tree.

[patrice]

13. Oh! forgot: cite for Julian Jaynes

[SpiralHawk]

12. "Smirk." - Republicon Homelanders Against America

[abluelady]

14. May Not Be a Popular Theory

But just imagine if Clinton kept his pants zipped! Gore would have been President and so much of this shit never would have happened!

[glitch]

21. They would have used something else, possibly even lethal.

Gore was never to be allowed the presidency.

[abluelady]

31. Maybe

But we certainly lost all our ammunition. Believe me I was happy with Clinton, but disappointed that someone soooo smart messed up soooo badly.

[clarence swinney]

44. I HAD A DREAM LAST NIGHT

AL GORE WON AND WAS ELECTED( NOT SELECTED)
A LOOK AT A DIFFERENT 2010
He would have continued Clinton/Newt Fiscal Policies of Pay Your Way
We would continue to have Surpluses not Debt as far as the eye can see
Debt today would be 6000B not 12000B
2010 Budget would be 3000B not 3800
Unemployment would be 5% not the real 17%.
Food Stamp Roll would be 10% not 40%
Unemployment Insurance Roll would be low
Redistribution of Wealth back to Middle Class would have continued
The top 1% would own 20% not 43% of Total Financial Wealth
He would have continued Taxing the top 1%
Wall Street Regulators would be under experts not Partners In Crime
We would have 400 military bases not 800 worldwide
We would not have two wars
We would not have lost thousands of lives of young youths
Hundreds of thousands of Muslims would still be alive
Thousands of young Muslims would still have legs feet and minds
America would still be the most admired nation on Earth not the most despised
We would go back to behaving as a Christ-Like nation via our national policies
Millions would own homes not foreclosure notices
States would not be laying off hundreds of thousands in such important jobs as
Teaching and Policing California would have a balanced budget
John Kerry would be President.
Sound common sense policies would continue.

[ixion]

15. Well, not entirely

And given that there have been Dems present and accounted for during the creation of said legislation, I think a blanket statement like that is difficult to prove.

While I do agree that Rethugs were the instigators of things like the so-called 'wars' on drugs and terror, two of our biggest problems, there is also the problem of the incessant, nearly-impossible-to-navigate labyrinth that is the US government "support service" for the people who finance it: We, the People. That is, your everyday individual has little to no access to government, and when there is access, it's fortified by a phalanx of bureaucracy that is impossible (by design) to navigate.

[Stinky The Clown]

20. The Vichy Dems would be covered in the OP's part about "pandering".

[scarletwoman]

18. Wrong. You're firing at the wrong enemy. The real enemy is the collusion between government

and big business. And that, my friend, has been a bipartisan project all along.

Democratic politicians are just as willing to be bought off by the fat wallets of lobbyists as Republican politicians.

The Ruling Class is the Ruling Class, and they will serve will their class interests first and foremost, no matter whether they have a "R" or a "D" after their names.

Playing up an ultimately irrelevent partisan divide just prolongs the destructive delusion that causes people to identify with the Ruling Class rather than seriously fight for their OWN class interests.

The only duality that matters is the Ruling Class and The Rest of Us. Until we start framing our politics correctly we will never overcome the depradations of living in a predatory capitalist system that values profit over people.

sw

[glitch]

22. Good point about the elite v. US however

There are a few good Dems, true they are surrounded. I hate to see them lumped in with the rest.

[scarletwoman]

27. Every Ruling Class throughout history has had among its members those who believe in the idea of

"Noblesse Oblige". That doesn't mean that they aren't members of their class.

The fact that there are a few "good Dems" just enables the con to continue. They still belong to the opposing team, the team that disempowers The Rest of Us.

[glitch]

51. There are people who think they can make this system work for the people. They may be wrong

but that doesn't make them lesser evil.

Perhaps just not further along the path to truth. Or maybe we're wrong (but I don't think so).

[scarletwoman]

54. Say you work in a bomb factory, it doesn't matter that you may not like what bombs do.

You are still lending your energy to enabling the MIC to exist. A well-intentioned politician is still lending his/her energy to the continuity of the current system.

[defendandprotect]

40. Ruling class elites use the GOP to do their dirty work -- it's the corporate party . . .

and they never fail to ensure they get no competition --

that's why they infiltrate other parties -- DLC-corporate wing of Democratic Party.

In fact, DLC infiltrates the Green Party!!



Elites wear the suits -- but they use organized crime for their dirty work.

Same with the Supreme Court now and their fellow criminals there --

yeah -- they're wearing robes. But they are no less commiting crimes against democracy.

[clarence swinney]

45. SCARLET WOMAN IS OK

WALL STREET OF AMERICA

owns 150,000,000 workers

20%--93% of Total Financial Wealth is owned by 20%
20% in 2008 paid 30% of Total Income in Federal-State- Local Taxes
Middle 20% paid almost same

That is not a progressive Tax system.

That top 20% were taxed at 15% federal rate and middle 20% at 28% Tax Rate.

It hurts to report this .

olduglymeanhonest upset upset

[clarence swinney]

46. SCARLET WOMAN IS OK

WALL STREET OF AMERICA

owns 150,000,000 workers

20%--93% of Total Financial Wealth is owned by 20%
20% in 2008 paid 30% of Total Income in Federal-State- Local Taxes
Middle 20% paid almost same

That is not a progressive Tax system.

That top 20% were taxed at 15% federal rate and middle 20% at 28% Tax Rate.

It hurts to report this .

olduglymeanhonest upset upset

[walldude]

53. Sad but true... I'd rec this if I could

[scarletwoman]

55. Thank you. The most important work we can do is to break the illusion that there's any reality to

the Dem/Repub duality. They serve the exact same masters.

[treestar]

23. IMO the state by state nature of elections

Gives the red states electoral votes/Senators they don't get by pure population and gives them disproportionate support. The Rugged Individualism thing still affects them.

Wedge issues and simple messages. Both Clinton and Obama are "too cerebral" and use too many big words. Things are complicated, and people have no patience with that. They take comfort in the Rs simple messages.

Wedge issues - guns, god and gays - and immigration - easily distract the working class - and a good enough economy for the most part - as long as people get along well enough, they don't object to the rich getting so much as they do about guns, god and gays and brown people. that's why things will get better when whites are just another minority.

[MilesColtrane]

26. Republicans appeal to the reptilian brain.

Fear of the other...'Fuck you, I better get mine'.

[Peacetrain]

28. There are times, I do not even know what to say to people..

You can't reason with hate Stinky.. and when you get down to it.. that what it is.. they hate use. I mean they really hate us.

Long gone are Republicans that you could reason with.. they have spent the last 10 or 15 years just cutting their teeth on hate.. pure hate and loathing.

[burnsei sensei]

29. The screwing up comes from

confounding nostalgia with honest history.
History is like your family-- you don't get the history you want. You get what you have been given.
We have yet to get ourselves over that psychological hurdle in our education.

[MrScorpio]

32. Stinky, I cannot agree with you any more than I already do

I've been asking the exact same question for far too long.

[branders seine]

33. rapublicanism is an organized crime cult,

like the Yakuza or the M13, but operating in a higher circle of power and corruption.

[IDemo]

34. Stockhom syndrome, abused spouse syndrome,

Strong Daddy syndrome.

[tavalon]

35. I disagree

Corporations are our problem. They have co-opted the government and don't think for a minute Republicans are the only bad guys here. Democrats play stupid but their pockets are just as full of corporate blood money.

[clarence swinney]

36. CONSERVATISM= DEATH TO AMERICA

1945-1980 were Great Middle Class Years.
Affordable Education-Homes-Health Care-Jobs Jobs-Unions-Pensions

Reagan and Neo-Cons came on in 1981.
Ir was intentional ENRICH Wall Street reduce Middle Class.
1945-1% owned 30% Total Financial Wealth
1980-1% owned 20%
1989-36% (Ron big tax cuts for 1%)

2008--Bush Finished the Job
1%=43%
10%=70%
20%=93%
80%=7%-=120,000,000 workers=SHAFTED

20 years 3 Conservative presidents
18 years Conservative Senate
12 years Conservative House
6 years TOTAL CONTROL
Bush 8 let Wall Street go into Big Time Gambling
Instead of using investors money to create new businesses and increase current ones and create Jobs,
They created 31,000 Net New Jobs per Month.A shame.
Prior were Carter 218,000--Reagan 175,000--Clinton record 237.000
31,000 was an insult to working America.
During Bush 8 Wall Street shipped 2,300,000 of our jobs to China.
It will take creation of 250,00 new jobs per month for five years to get back to full employment (5%)

The Conservative ideology of Market knows best gave us Great Depression and Great Recession. Even Ultra Conservative Alan Greenspan had to admit it.

WHAT DID THEY DO??
Since 1980
60% Tax Cut to Top 1%
47% Tax Cut to Gamblers on Wall Street in Unearned Income Tax
Huge Estate Tax Cut
Revenue Sharing costs to rich in income taxes transferred to Middle Class in property taxes.
Fed gave Bush 1% Interest and big increase in Total Money Supply
1920's Deja Vu. Banks rushed to borrow and lend lend lend to Developers
to build homes too large-too expensive for middle class declining disposable income
Increased Middle Class Payroll Tax
Taxes SS income
Five Cent Tax On Gas
Spending Spree on Defense which enriched Rich Investors in Defense
stocks,.
The Big Three took a 1000B of Debt from Carter and added on 8000B in 20 years of Spend + Borrow Our kids Can Pay Tomorrow.

Carter left Reagan a 600B Budget to which he added on 80%.
Carter left Reagan a less than 1000B of Debt and he added on 1700B
Clinton left Bush an 1800 B Budget which Bush took to 3600B..
Clinton left Bush a Surplus as far as an eye could see and Bush added on
6000B Debt or more than we had after 220 years.Grover Nutquist had a party..

Folks! It was intentional. Grover Nutquist of ATR made 127 visits to White House in Bush first term. He was one who wanted to drown Government in a bathtub..How! Spend and Borrow to force us to eliminate Social Programs.
He has us, in 2010, exactly where he wanted us.
Facts hurt. Democrats are just dumb to not preach it over and over
8 more of Neocons And American World Status will disappear to number two or three or worse.
Neocon ideology destroyed Rome-Spain-Holland-England and now America?
cswinney old ugly mean honest

prove me wrong please with facts and numbers

[kenny blankenship]

37. Yeah. If only it were *confined* to Republicanism...

[defendandprotect]

38. True -- Why? Evidently we haven't put a GUN in everyone's hands yet -- !!

[BootinUp]

43. The brainwashing begins at a young age. nt

[Greyhound]

48. Sorry but it predates the Republican Party.

I think the very root might well be our collective refusal to acknowledge that there is a class of psychopathic parasites that have gained more and more control over this nation since before the American Civil War.

Check out the SCOTUS of the 1830's, you might be shocked.

[uponit7771]

52. Cause it's easier for most folk to bitch about the country not being progressive enough than to....

...go to dem county chairs and get progressives in office.

[HughMoran]

56. Nation of ass holes

:shrug:

[deaniac21]

57. All politicians get their money from the same places. It's a shame

that we have to be governed by politicians.