Why are republicans so much better at playing "The Game"???

[samrock]

and the "The Game" has just 2 rules...

1) If anything bad happens the other side MUST get the blame or at worst your side can not be perceived as to blame...

2) If anything good happens your side MUST get the credit or at worst the other side can not be perceived as getting to take the credit.

[NJmaverick]

1. They are also smart enough not to eat their own

at least until the tea baggers came along.

[backscatter712]

2. Most of the media is on their side.

So they get to spin to win the game, while Democrats are denied access to a mic.

[Octafish]

55. That's because most of the money is, too.

So easy, a caveman can do it.

[trumad]

3. There so good they lost the Senate and the House.

[anonymous171]

13. And yet they still control the dialogue and framing. nt

[trumad]

38. But that doesn't seem to be working...

If we followed their standards, we'd lose, correct?

[anonymous171]

39. It does seem to be working. Just look at what has happened with Health Care "reform"

[girl gone mad]

42. What, you mean the part where Democrats rolled over..

and gave their lobbyists total victory

[trumad]

51. I'm talking national elections...

[left coaster]

20. lol! Yes, thank you! nt

[Telly Savalas]

54. Being masterful at spinning things can only go so far

when horrible governance creates unspinnable situations.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

4. Because they have no shame, no morals and no conscience

Basically, they are all sociopaths.

If you actually have a functioning brain, a beating heart and a little empathy, you just can't bring yourself to stoop to their level and still sleep at night.

[crazylikafox]

8. agreed

[anonymous171]

12. It doesn't help that Democrats never say that to their face.

Usually they just call republicans "stupid" or "ignorant" They never attack their values.

[treestar]

37. Tolerance

Liberals will be tolerant and that includes fundies - believe what you want to believe and we will respect that.

With the right it is the other way - they will attack us as immoral for not following their values.

[Laura902]

5. They know how the average american thinks

Dems need to start making things easier for people of lower than average intelligence(average american compared to rest of developed world ex. japan, UK...etc)

[anonymous171]

14. If Amerikkkans are that stoopid, then Democrats have even less of an excuse.

[Laura902]

17. Dems usually use bigger words

and statistics and facts, they be confusilatin' to the folks I know(I have many family members who are tea-baggers)

[anonymous171]

22. I think it's important to remember that conservatives think in "values" not numbers

If we want to destroy them, dems need to learn to speak their language.

[Laura902]

23. another reason why

dems can't reach them with facts such as "If we cut 20% of our emissions by whatever date we can help the environment and reduce our dependence on foreign oil at the same time" they take it as "we are going to take your car away and make your house very cold"

[Libertas1776]

6. Because they invented it? n/t

[rrneck]

7. Because it's their game.

The Democrats need to stop trying to play their game and play their own.

Stop selling out to big business.

Empower the middle and lower classes.

TAKE CARE OF PEOPLE AND STOP TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO SQUEEZE ANOTHER FUCKING DIME OUT OF THEM.

[CJCRANE]

9. Because they concentrate on the Game at the expense of everything else.

The Democrats govern and formulate policy while the right thinks up talking points and propaganda.

[anonymous171]

11. The Game IS everything. Governing to win is the only way to govern.

FDR, Huey Long, and pretty much every democrat up until LBJ knew this.

[anonymous171]

10. I don't know. After JFK/LBJ, democrats just lost their will to fight

We became obsessed with "respecting the other side" and "reaching compromise" instead of winning.

[lpbk2713]

15. They're more devious.

And 'devious' has nothing to do with intelligence. It's pure malevolent instinct on their part.

[Parker CA]

16. Because they have zero qualms with distorting the truth beyond all reasonable levels. BIG lies.

[liberal N proud]

18. Solidarity, stupidity and aggression all combined

You have to have aggressive people who are stupid enough to believe what ever the talking points are that they will stick together regardless of how ridiculous the matter is.

They you have to have someone who is willing to lie the people and lead them down the path of destruction.

Where, on the other hand, Democrats believe that everyone is entitled to their opinion. Besides, Liberals wouldn't follow.

It helps the GOP that the media is completely owned by republicans.

[DJ13]

19. Both sides play their part towards serving the special interests

The GOP plays bully, the Dems play passive.

It ends up working out as the perfect bit of theater towards rewarding the same groups since the same groups pay significant sums to both party's.

Its like good cop, bad cop........they both work towards the same goal.

[louis-t]

21. Because they spend 100% of their time in training.

When you have no ideas or plans other than 'destroy', it leaves a lot of time for practice.

[anonymous171]

25. That is the only admirable thing about the GOP.

Politics is war. Like most wars, the object is to completely destroy or at least incapacitate your opponent. The sooner the left drops their delusional belief that politics is about cooperation and drum circles and adopts the GOP model the better.

[Cairycat]

24. We want a better country, they want to WIN

They appeal to peoples' baser instincts, we appeal to their better ones.

And it is very true they control the media.

[Zen Democrat]

26. Because they have no principles. n/t

[Hello_Kitty]

27. Because they have simple messages that appeal to authoritarian assholes. eom

[stray cat]

28. because they are smarter than dems.

[girl gone mad]

43. You would say that.

[Warpy]

29. Because they're ruthless

It's really easy to "win" if you cheat.

Of course, appealing to your base instead of the other party works wonders, too.

[fascisthunter]

30. because they are sociopathic?

it's easier to lie when you have no conscience

[closeupready]

31. Because they are crooks; that's, by definition, what crooks do - game the system.

As long as they end up benefiting, it's okay (whatever 'it' is).

[anonymous171]

32. I wish the dems were more like that.

We might actually have universal healthcare by now if they weren't so spineless.

[closeupready]

33. If you mean you wish they were as effective as the GOP at getting their way, I agree.

Seems like the GOP is extremely effective. Think about it - who are the most powerful Senators? Olympia Snowe, Joseph Lieberman - a Republican and a Republican-wannabe. They get all the media attention, the White House tailors legislation to accommodate them, and they STILL vote in lockstep with the GOP. I mean, you can't make this stuff up and put it in a book or movie - nobody would be able to suspend disbelief. It would have to actually be happening (as it is), and a work of nonfiction be created. I guess kind of like the Gulf of Tonkin or God knows what.

[anonymous171]

36. Yep. Dems should adopt the GOP's tactics, not their policies. nt

[reggie the dog]

34. because their "game" favors the same elite who

bribe, no buy, no give campaign contributions to Democrats too...

[Festivito]

35. Because most money is in few hands, and Rs play to those hands.

And, we will become more enslaved unless we stop it.

[glitch]

40. They can't win on merit so "Gaming the system" is all they've got. nt

[ArmajaDasComatose]

41. Because they're up against a phony 'oppositional' party that actually serves to bolster their aims

And a dim bulb populace conditioned over time to dismiss the obvious.

[anAustralianobserver]

44. Yes, politics became pure partisan sport to them and regular people have been too guileless to

see that. I think many of them get off on repressing their consciences and goading each other to new lows of con-artistry. eg manipulating people's religious and patriotic conditioning. Perhaps half the Bush government was addicted to meth or coke or something hehe.

Maybe they justify it to themselves by framing it in their own minds as just a role-playing game which is dissociated from their normal family lives.

In Australian politics there's a big measure of this kind of thing as well, but Right-leaning voters are not as ideological. They won't be conned as long by a personality before seeing that something isn't in their own interest.

So there's less of a 'What's the Matter with Kansas?' factor here (identity politics/values politics).

(There's a positive side to being a more 'ideological' culture like yours though. Historically you've valued the generation and actualisation of big audacious new ideas and cultural changes.)

Anyway I think The Game's rules are changing fast with internet forums, Youtube etc. I imagine these partisan political tactics (and the wealth inequality they undergird) won't survive another decade!


off-topic PS. I think you badly need a run-off/preference voting system to break the 2-party stalemate situation.

[Odin2005]

45. Because they are sociopaths.

[City Lights]

46. The corporate hoore media deserves a lot of credit for their success. nt

[tranche]

47. The game is consolidation of power.

And many Dems are in on it too.

[TroglodyteScholar]

48. Because they look at it as a game n/t

[janet118]

49. Because the game is fixed.

[applegrove]

50. Because there are no rules for them to follow. Their followers think they are all moral

but the party is the party of liars.

[Tim01]

52. Because they are team, and goal oriented. nt

[spanone]

53. they make up the lie, the media repeats it ad nauseum...voila! history change