Wow, this thread didn’t turn into nothing more than a vehicle for people to snipe at the Evil Republicans[sup]TM[/sup]. Right.
The only thing that I’ll say is that the Republican leadership seems to be woefully and profoundly out of synch with all registered Republicans I know personally. And I live in a County that is about 75%-80% Republican, IIRC.
For example, I don’t know a single Republican IRL who believes that the Government should mandate sexual behavior, should discourage gays and lesbians from being full partners with full rights in society, should uphold any religion over any other (or make any religion part of their party platform), or that feel that abortion should even be part of a party platform. The vast, vast majority of them are in favor of moderate gun control and are not NRA members, do not think that flag burning is something that needs an Amendment or law to ban it; and feel that the government must do a great deal more to protect the environment, reduce energy consumption, and enact more workplace and career safety measures. One of them (who has framed pictures of Reagan and Bob Dole in his office) wants the government to eliminate all taxes on working parents who make less than $50,000 a year. Most want a food tax elimination, balanced by increased “luxury taxes” on the rich.
I can’t say anything like that for the Democrats I know IRL. They tend to start out on the footing that “Clinton suffered for the Good of America 1000 times worse than Jesus on the cross”, and go downhill from there pretty fast. Two “hard-core Democrats” at work feel that the Government should make Nationwide no-warrant house-to-house sweeps of only registered Republicans to Search for guns, should “ban” all churches (they don’t forget the Constitution, they want it changed to make religion “illegal”), and should make it “illegal” to earn more than $100,000 a year or own a house with a lot larger than 1/4 acre. Another one feels that ALL cars “should be banned”, and that the National Guard should go and confiscate them all. (in fact, they seem to have a lot of uses for the National Guard…I wonder why?) Most just want the government to “Ban SUVs and BMW’s”. Excuse me whilst I :rolleyes:
But it gets better - one of them feels that children should be “emancipated” at age 10, because “keeping children under the control of their parents is no different than slavery” - and she has virtually done that in her household, where her 12-year old daughter decides if she is going to school or not, if she is going to the doctor or not, and what her own freaking curfew is!. This from a person with “Dukakis”, “Gore”, and no less than 4 “Clinton” stickers on their cubicle…
When I compare the two viewpoints in work debates, it’s pretty clear who the real “Party of Hate and Disconnection with Reality” is in my office. :rolleyes: