Nixonland...

[GTurck]

Just reading Rick Perlstein's book and please don't bash me for bringing up history; I am an avid history reader.
In the chapter,Orthogonians, he lays out a brilliant exposition of the origins of the Tea Parties and modern Republican reactionaries. I suggest it be read in that light.
"When the people who felt like losers united around their shared psychology and sense of grievance, their enemies felt somehow more overwhelming, not less; even if the Franklins (liberals) weren't really so powerful at all, Franklin "power" often merely being a self-perpetuating effect of an Orthogonian (tea party)sense of victimization."
Knowledge is power and the Orthogonian always feels that their knowledge is insufficient and/or is thwarted by the Franklins; even while they refuse the tools of gaining that knowledge or reject it outright for not being orthodox to their understandings.
What I am saying is that we cannot change people's minds by logic alone. We must overcome their resentments and sense of grievance without compromising our own principles.

[midnight]

1. I'm curious if anyone from history was able to accomplish

helping the greedy, depraved, killing types overcome their resentments and sense of grievance without compromising their own? I can't think of anyone off hand... I wonder inturitively if it might be in the best interest of humanity to just show those with resenments that life is moving on.... People can't live like slaves or cannon fodder.....

[H2O Man]

2. Outstanding book.

Definitely a valuable read.

[BeyondGeography]

3. We're still there

It is a great book. Nixon (with no small help from Buchanan among others) leveraged his understanding of the white working class in particular and white people generally in ways that will last well into this century. Add the fact that he played for keeps politically and he was a force to be reckoned with.

Policy-wise, Reagan set the tone for the modern Republican Party, but the political playbook comes from Nixon.