Why reach out?

[Mythsaje]

With my last serious post, I made mention of reaching across the aisle to those who might not see eye-to-eye with us on everything, but could possibly grasp how far out of line this administration and its congressional enablers had allowed things to become.

I tried to explain exactly why we have a problem with these things, and tried to point out the areas in which we are similar rather than different.

I actually believe that most Americans are actually centrist (and I don't mean the right-leaning, corporatist kind of centrist, but the middle-of-the-road, see good things about both sides and distrustful of extremists kind of centrist) and tend to have more liberal values than conservative ones. The tactic of using the word "liberal" as an insult has infected more than just the public discourse. It's confused people who aren't themselves particularly politically-minded.

I've written some great rants of late, but, while entertaining, rants aren't what we need the most. We need to find those things that make the connections between those who are undecided, or confused, about their political leanings.

We need to take away the 'zap' of their "values" crap, because, when you get right down to it, WE know that most of it is political mechanizations, not at all real. Most of them are pretend Christians, since they don't follow the teachings of Christ so much as use them to further their own agenda.

We know this.

What makes us different from the average Republican voter? Is it our talent for discernment? Our natural skepticism toward easy answers? That's some of it, certainly. We like to look beyond the obvious, and tend to understand nuance better than those who might vote Republican out of knee-jerk response to "values" chatter.

Our values are American values...equality, fairness, and truth. Dictating to others the way they should live is NOT a traditional American value, though they'd like nothing more than to make us believe it is.

The Republicans USED to say they were for smaller government and less government interference in our lives. That was a lie, obviously. Since they've been in power, they'd done nothing BUT interfere. They want to leave Big Business alone, but Big Business has proved, time and again, to be irresponsible with more freedom.

People are occasionally irresponsible with freedom as well, but which do you believe has a better chance of causing more damage? Irresponsible people or irresponsible corporations?

The answer seems obvious to us, doesn't it?

I think it's vital we try to reach as many of these people as possible, because we can't let basic misunderstandings and deliberate misinformation on the part of the media and Republican spin-meisters stop us from explaining to these people where we're on the same page.

We believe in responsive, responsible government, and I think, deep down, most Americans do as well. It just needs to be pointed out that, regardless of size, a government that doesn't pay attention to the voters, hides facts whenever convenient, and uses outright deception to manipulate public perception, is not in America's best interests.

We can't do this by insulting them, but by finding common ground and working outward from there. I don't see that we have much of a choice in that.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. Most Republicans I know

are, at the very least, questioning what Bush is doing now. The ones who didn't drink the Kool Aid don't like him or what he has done to his party-and also didn't vote for him in the last election-though they still give themselves the GOP label and vote for GOP candidates on a local level. My husband was shocked when one fellow, who can't say a good thing about Bill Clinton, asked to borrow our copy of F911. Times are changing.

[Mythsaje]

2. I believe so too...

We need to make a concerted effort to find that common ground--to make people understand that we, as liberals, don't want to destroy their religion, or take away their rights to practice it. We want them to have the freedom everyone should enjoy.

We need to make some of these people understand that economic stimulation actually happens from the bottom up--that it's good for America that the least among us has the ability to purchase consumer goods and thus drive the local economy.

We need to explain to them that guaranteeing quality healthcare for everyone is just good sense. Sick people can't work, and even if they do, they're not productive. People who don't make decent money don't contribute to the system and remain a drain on it.

And we need to get across the point that there's no reason CEOs should make millions upon millions of dollars when there are people among us who work as hard, or harder, barely make enough to get by.

[B Calm]

13. I burn copies of F911 DVD and leave them in rest areas when I travel.

I know for a fact I have burned several hundred copies.

[bryant69]

3. Good points

I think when you get in an ideological partisan mindset it is hard to see people as individuals; some of whom will always be Republican and will support Bush to hell and back, but many of whom have different attitudes and ideas.

Bryant
Check it out --> http://politicalcomment.blogspot.com

[NanceGreggs]

4. As always, Mythsaje ...

... well said.

[porphyrian]

5. We don't all have to adopt the same strategy, and I doubt that we can.

I'm glad there are people like you who are ready to be nice and welcoming, but it's ridiculous of you to think that we're all in that same place, or that we will be in the foreseeable future. Luckily, as Democrats, we don't all have to think and behave the same way.

[Mythsaje]

6. I don't think we're all in the same place...

But all of us average Americans have some mutual points of interest. We ALL have something in common, even if it's just wanting a better world for our kids to grow up in.

[porphyrian]

7. I agree with that, but the next step will simply re-ignite the conflict...

...as it is the means by which we reach this common goal that we are in disagreement with each other over. If we don't move towards reaching the goal, it won't be reached.

[Mythsaje]

8. Not necessarily...

I realize that a lot of them aren't fact-based. But even the most blind can see eventually when something doesn't work when it smacks them in the face again and again.

[porphyrian]

9. ...

You realize that nearly a third of all Americans prove your last statement false, don't you?

[Mythsaje]

10. So far, perhaps...

But so far doesn't necessarily mean forever.

[porphyrian]

11. You think they'll stop banging their heads the ten millionth time?

One definition of insanity is repeating the same action over and over and expecting different results. I'm not calling you crazy, but your optimism exceeds mine on this issue quite a bit. While I certainly don't speak for everyone, and probably not even a majority, I know others are with me on this one. Some people can never be rehabilitated, and a lot of people cannot be rehabilitated in a short period of time.

I'm not sure we have the time necessary to convert the third I've mentioned earlier before the damage to this country is irreversable, and I'm not done being angry at them for getting us here yet anyway. I'm glad you see things differently, though, because the ones you do get may save us all. Who knows?

[Mythsaje]

12. We don't have a lot of options...

Either the 33% will end up having negligible effect in the next few elections, they'll win and we'll be screwed, or we can somehow whittle them down to 30% or less.

It's not the 33% that I try to reach, but the "undecideds" who still haven't caught on to the fact that Bush IS the result of Republican policy carried to its inevitable conclusion. They may think it's a fluke, or that he's just incompetent, but the reality is that the Republican policies are sheer insanity in and of themselves.