As I said, a con job, his smooth demeanor hid the damage he caused. The middle class can’t afford health care, but “It’s Morning in America”…etc. Also you have millions of talk radio followers who deify him every day, there is a proposed plan it put a monument to Reagan in every county in the USA. He already has a carrier, airport and federal building named after him. Let us remember where Reagan kicked off his campaign. When you hear Reagan saved the world hundreds of times a week from the echo chamber what do you expect.
I think it’s more like you never expect to be questioned or something.
Well, of course, Lib, since I take care to hew to opinions that are wildly popular, I almost never have to endure any skepticism. Yes, that must be it.
The thread police, they live inside of my head.
The thread police, they come to me in my bed.
The thread police, theyre coming to arrest me.
Nobody expects the Thread Police!
Surprise is their main weapon.
Surpise and fear.
Surprise, fear and an almost fanatical devotion to the mods!
Surprise, fear, an almost fanatical devotion to the mods, and an ever-vigilant willingness to combat vice…I’ll come in again.
And the cross of office fell to the floor during the coronation Nicholas II style. (If only Bush would have gone to St. Helena, preferably as half of a quail hunting expedition with the Tsarevich Cheney.)
He was an actor. He could say lines convincingly. He was even a better speaker than Gore, Kerry and Romney. If they were better they would have had a chance to be elected. It is about tv presence nowadays.
I agree with this notion, elucidator. Ronald Reagan was the first president marketed and sold to the American people like coca-cola or basketball shoes.
The current administration is the Reagan legacy.
One of my best threads was this pit thread spewing hatred of Reagan.
Reagan should have been impeached for Iran Contra. At least Bush has shown that a president can be worse than Regan.
The firing of the air traffic controllers was one of the best things he did. Everything still runs just fine without them. Bunch of whiners.
SDI was the final nail in coffin of the Soviet Union. We’d come to believe that communism was just another form of government with which we’d have to learn to coexist. Reagan new this was wrong, challenged them and we won.
It’s sad that you consider that one of your best threads.
Anyone remember the last years of Carter? 444 days of Americans being held hostage in Iran, the fiasco of a rescue attempt, the boycotting of the Moscow Olympics, double digit inflation, high unemployment and, of course, a “crisis of confidence” (according to the infamous “malaise” speech of 7/15/79).
Reagan came in like John Wayne, told us that America was good and strong and could be better. He projected confidence, not pessimism. He showed strength, not weakness. He was the anti-Carter.
Republicans, then and now, clung to it. Democrats typically tell you what is wrong with America: unemployment, discrimination, environmental problems, homelessness, etc. They would then say how it was up to the government to fix it.
Republicans instead thought of The Duke fighting it out and not giving in, the strong man who doesn’t know the meaning of the word “quit”. He didn’t need government support or special programs, he could do it all singlehandedly.
The country needed a hero and The Gipper fit the bill. Jingoistic and nationalistic? Sure, but after being told for years how we were failing and appearing like fools because we couldn’t stand up to the freaking Ayatollah, it felt good to be proud to be an American. Simplistic about morality? Maybe, but after the hedonism of the late 60’s and 70’s it was refreshing to think maybe people would say no to drugs, not because Nancy said so but because they had the sense to know that drugs could kill them.
Appearances meant a lot and still do. That is why Obama’s message of hope is so strong today. People look at what we’ve had for the past 8 years and want someone positive. HRC feels to much like “establishment” and people want something different. If he gets elected, it won’t matter if he delivers on his promises or not. He will be remembered as the president that helped America heal after the grim early days of the new millennium.
Comments on image and looks remind of Superbitch Gore Vidal’s line “Reagan is the greatest triumph of the embalmer’s art.”
Actually this was started much earlier. The Hidden Persuaders, was published in 1957 and talked about the marketing of a candidate. Of course, Bob Newhart did a great bit about it in “Abe Lincoln vs. Madison Avenue”.
Well, what did I do besides ask the guys what their thread-shitting posts had to do with the thread topic? Do you honestly call that thread policing? And if so, do you call it on everyone who does it every time? Is there some problem, from your point of view, with people actually discussing what the OP wanted to discuss?
Perhaps a new thread is in order. Something along the lines of “Why is Reagan so hated by some Democrats and virtually no Republicans?”.
Oh, please. :rolleyes: I think 90% of the anti-Republican threads on this board already say that. Especially ones where Der Trihs posts. Reagan is hated by the left the way that Clinton is hated by the right. Same song, different verse. Even their wives are bashed in similar ways: they are both cast as power crazy, manipulative shrews who were the real power behind the throne.
Ahem…well, I thought it might be nice to suggest a place for the ilk to go so we could get back to talking about why we love Reagan.
Good luck with that. The thread title has ‘Reagan’ in it…so, of course it’s an open invitation to bash him continuously. As Lib said, it’s the same if you open a thread titled ‘Why is Clinton so loved by so many Democrats (and a Republican or two hiding in the bushes)?’…you would invariably get someone clown coming in and bashing Clinton despite the fact that this wasn’t what the OP was asking for. The only difference is that on THIS board you are going to get a lot more Reagan bashing (and I wouldn’t be surprised if there wasn’t a Bush bash or two for forms sake) than Clinton.
Most of the right wingnuts have fled these parts…while a lot of the left wingnuts are still flourishing in these fertile grounds. I name no names of course…
-XT
Hard core liberal here. As an eight year old when Reagan was elected, I didn’t understand it because I didn’t know anyone who voted for him. I have gained more respect for him with age, though I still disagree with policies and would like to see what is in the hidden papers.
To attempt to answer the question:
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I think Republicans adore Reagan because he pretty much saved the party. In the wake of Watergate, the Republican party took a real hit in image. My reading of the history indicates that conventional wisdom put the next Republican president a long way in the future. For Reagan to be able to bring dissonant wings of the party together and storm to victory was amazing. The party desperately needed another face than Nixon’s to appear in people’s minds when you said Republican, and Ronnie did that.
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I think the “Reagan” Democrats like Reagan for the reasons described previously. He spoke to people in a way that resonated with them. They felt like he really understood what they wanted and that he was working in their best interests. His optimism in dour times and the changing of dour times into moderately prosperous ones made reality enough like the image to make it stick.
There are lots of other threads to argue whether such affection is warranted or rational, and so I forgo any such comments here.