Seriously, how do you Red Staters and Red Area people hang in there?

[Arugula Latte]

I live in a very Dark Blue area (Portland, Ore.)

However, even though I live amongst liberals, progressives, enlightened folks, environmentalists, pro-choicers, feminists, the well-educated, artists, teachers, vegans, agnostics, you name it -- a virtual paradise, in my view -- I occasionally run up against a person or vehicle that bums me out. Somebody mentions that so-and so is a Republican ("Can you believe it?") or I see a W'04 sticker on a car in Beaverton (suburb) or I pass a church with a sign supporting the anti-gay marriage amendment on our ballot, and I feel instantly a little depressed and deflated.

I realize these things are trivial, but, still, they do temporarily dampen my day a little. So, what I want to know is, how the heck do you people who live in the rural South or some other very Red Area keep your sanity when you are surrounded by fundies and Bush-lovers? I realize not everybody in a Red Area drinks the Kool-Aid, but, still, when you are in the political/philosophical minority day in and day out, how do you stand it? Does it eat away at you or do you have defenses?

I really admire your fortitude. I would crumble, I think.

[LizW]

1. It can be depressing

I have to make myself focus on the people I know who are good and kind in spite of being misguided in their politics. I stay out of political discusions with friends and family for the most part, and when it can't be avoided, I try to keep the discussion on issues (like the need for good public education and taking care of veterans) where we agree, instead of on the true wedge issues where I know the Bush lovers can't ever be swayed.

The Bush-stickered Cadillac SUVs and Hummers don't really bother me. Why wouldn't rich people vote for Bush? He watches out for them.

I do feel sad when I see a beat-up old car with a Bush sticker. I feel bad for people who vote against their own interests.

But mostly, DU is my haven and refuge. :)

[MISSDem]

57. My old Cadillac has a Kerry sticker on it

[donco6]

2. It gets to me after a while.

Even here on this board sometimes - I work in public education and there are quite a number of DUers who mince no terms in their opinion of public educators - especially administrators like me.

But here in CO, it's the legislature that gets to me the most. I don't think they really represent the majority, but they seem to keep getting elected. People like Keith King who would love to abolish public ed - House Majority Leader. President of the Senate John Andrews another ultra RW asshole. And on and on. Even the moderate Pugs are sick of them.

[JLucas4092]

11. Colorado....

is hard. I grew up in Grand Junction where my family and I would celebrate a democrat getting 30% of the vote. I still remember the joy my parents had when I was 10 and Clinton was voted to the White House.

I then went to Greeley for three years. It's best to not talk about those years.

Now however, I'm in Boulder and I love it. And slowly, Boulder is taking over the state! Denver is getting to be liberal. We'll never have the Pueblos, Grand Junctions and Ft. Collins', but other parts can be ours.

Now we just have to make sure Gov. Owens doesn't run for Prez in '08 like rumored. Let's keep our state disgrace private please.

[Kanary]

33. Denver has always been liberal...... no "getting to be" there.......

Just one little nitpick.

Saw *lots* of the large Kerry signs the last couple of days, in unlikely places.......2 on 285 in Aspen Park and one in Shawnee.

Another of the large Kerry signs on 7 north of Meeker Park. Not exactly places I'd expect to see them.

I know I could never handle being in the more conservative areas of Colorado. It's hard enough in Denvoid.

Kanary

[JLucas4092]

34. I stand corrected

I always viewed Denver as moderate repub. Maybe that's just what the press in GJ wanted me to think (Lord knows they did everything to convince me I was wrong).

[Kanary]

37. It's not the "hotbed of radicalism" that Boulder is, but always liberal

Think: Pat Schroeder. :)

We're an island of normalcy surrounded by RW idiocy. :hi:

Kanary

[paulk]

53. Kanary's right on

Boulder is more radical left - Denver is very solidly liberal.
Also, Pueblo is a lot more liberal than people realize - there used to be a lot of union support down there.

I understand what you're saying about Greeley - I worked up in that area for many years. Windsor, Johnstown, LaSalle - all those little towns up and down the old Cheyenne Highway - I lived in Boulder during a lot of that time - it was truly weird - like driving up from Boulder into right wing militia Idaho every day - and then driving back to Boulder at night.

I've thought a lot about moving to the western slope/ Grand Junction area. I particularly like it around Palisades. But I've worked out there, too - and I don't know if I could take it. My little Denver liberal pink world would be hard to leave...

[JLucas4092]

62. Grand Junction

GJ is ok. I grew up there, and didn't really enjoy it so I'm biased. The town is mainly a retirement town and pretty much anything done there that might raise taxes is shot down viciously. In 2002, for the fifth or sixth time, they tried taxing one cent for every $100 so they could build a new library (the current one is in an old Safeway store). IT failed, but the margin was closer.

Beautiful area though.

[bobbieinok]

3. in 89 moved from IA back to OK

CULTURE SHOCK I grew up here in so bapt church, but OK and so bapts are NOT what they used to be.

Since RW and religious right people and talk shows are all over the country, we can sometimes let y'all know what's coming on RW media.

Malloy from Chicago 98+ was my first refuge. He listed lots of web sites....My first were bartcop and salon's tabletalk, later DU.

[kayell]

4. The internet, being selective in who I associate with,

avoiding politics at work (mostly), living in a diverse neighborhood, even though in a freeper town, staying clear of the fundies as much as possible, occasional childish acts of subversion for grins and giggles.

Gardening, hiking, reading.

[Victimerican]

5. Vodka...

If it's good enough for Siberia, it's good enough for me. :toast:

[KoKo]

6. White Zin and working for Kerry...but it's rough.

:-( And, NC is more progressive than many of the states in the South in many ways...still, it's rough. Not much theater or distractions of other kinds...lots of fast food "grow your gut" stuff and discussion is hard to come by...

[crispini]

7. I am a rebel by nature.

I am an upstanding taxpaying citizen with a good job and a house. All who know me agree that I am a kind, hardworking, decent person, and I have the respect of my Repub coworkers. However, I am OUT AND PROUD Democrat, and I enjoy nothing more than a good fight. I am well-informed, highly opinionated, and back down from nothing. I like an argument! I guess I am an adrenaline addict. I am most happy when I am pissed off and full of righteous anger, fighting for the underdog, for a good cause, etc.

Repubs are not demons... they're just people with different opinions. I work with many people who are Repubs and we ignore each other's differences when it comes to work... can discuss issues calmly from time to time ... and TAKE NO PRISONERS if someone wants to get up in my grill.

And, for the sake of balance and calmness, I retreat to my yoga class, my lefty bookstores, my local Buddhist community center, and the Democratic party office, where I relax and enjoy the fraternity of likeminded fellows. (Dallas isn't really all THAT red... it's still a major metropolitan area, despite being in a red state. So maybe my answer doesn't really count.)

I wouldn't move to San Fransciso or another liberal haven if you paid me. I would be simply one of many, there. I like being NOT one of the herd. :7

[Kazak]

8. Actually, I love Oklahoma...

I've lived here practically my whole life, know this town like the back of my hand, have a good deal of liberal progressive friends, and am a rabid Sooner fan, so if I have my way...I ain't goin' anywhere.

[bling bling]

9. The DU keeps me from going mad

I cannot emphasize this enough. Thank you for asking.

[stanwyck]

10. I live in Georgia

granted, I'm in Atlanta, which has its share of liberals...but this is still a very conservative area. It's difficult. Too many people get their "news" from hate-radio. I work with a young woman who didn't even know that Japanese Americans were put in camps during World War II. And she's planning to home-school her kids. Fundamentalism over science is widespread here. I hate to say this, but I get a much better feeling about the future of our country when I return to central Illinois, where I grew up. I've gotten more combative. I won't be passive anymore. I've found there are kindred spirits. We feel as though we're out-numbered. We are. But we're feisty.

[drdigi420]

17. I live in Midtown, Atlanta, and it is fairly liberal

but anything outside I-285 is freeperville

[stanwyck]

32. OK. You sold me

I'm going to have to order T-Shirts now.

[RebelOne]

41. I live north of Atlanta in Woodstock.

And it is just about 100% Republican. When the election was held back in Aug. for public office, there was not one Democrat running in Cherokee County. So I didn't vote for anyone because I sure as hell wasn't going to give my vote to a Right-winger.

[librechik]

12. I'm married to a crazy skier who won't leave Colorado

So I'm praying Colorado goes Kerry so I don't have to get a divorce!

(snicker)

[Indykatie]

13. Lurker Speaks Up for First Time

I live in Indiana and have survived by "lurking" at DU. The time spent here has provided me with two things. You've armed with the needed knowledge to sway a few undecideds and motivated me to be generous with my check book. I was originally a Clark supporter but have come to respect and be proud of JFK as our candidate. I'm also proud to say that because of DU I was a financial supporter of that "skinny kid with the funny name" before most folks knew who Obama was. I will also be spending election day in Fort Lauderdale where my mother lives, helping get all her friends to the polls. DU, you've made an activist of me at the ripe old age of 51.

[crispini]

18. Welcome to DU

Indykatie!

[WhoDoYouTrust]

19. Great first post, Indykatie!

Looking forward to your contributions!

[Robbien]

27. Obama! Yay!

Sorry about that Indy thing. My two sisters live in that blood red area. Indy is great, but the politics stink.

From your neighbor in Chicago, Welcome to DU!

[TahitiNut]

47. It could be worse.

You could live in Utah, Wyoming, or Nebraska.

[Rockholm]

65. Welcome Indykatie!

[Wind Dancer]

14. It is really hard since I lived in a progressive

town that I loved so much before moving here. My plan is to move to Vermont in a few years if we don't have to leave the country. I'm tired of the corporate owned government and mean spiritedness that has intensified with the media and RW talking shows spewing hatred all the time.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

28. Vermont is great state

That is my other favorite place to live next to Maine. Maine is my favorite because I grew up there, lived there for most of my life, and my family still lives there.

One thing I love, among many things, about Maine and Vermont is the lack of billboards. Billboards are so ugly.

[Columbia]

15. I think a world where everyone agrees on everything would be rather boring

Don't you?

[kerry-is-my-prez]

16. I've been living amongst Repubs so long I'm used to it....

It's actually kind of fun to "tweak" the Repubs around here with my Kerry sticker, etc. People around here are mostly into Bush for the money aspect only - and not because they think he's so great - for the most part - so they just keep their mouths shut most of the time. I've had a few get mildly nasty with me - but for the most part they could care less.

Us Libs tend to hang out together and really appreciate each other - it's kind of "us against the majority" so it makes for some good friendships and good conversations.

What depresses me is that there is tons of people across the country who can't see the truth about what is going on and may re-select Bush.

[GodHelpUsAll2]

20. Texas here

It's completely revolting and extremely intense/potentially dangerous at times. I work for ALL republicans who seem to think I am interested in Pro-Bush anti democrat email non stop even though I have made it perfectly clear to them my feelings about Republicans and this Administration. I see Bush/Cheney yard signs ALL over my neighborhood, I am constantly exposed to gay bashing, religious extremists and prejudice bullshit all the time. I have been in Texas all my life (that's 38 years) and where it is my home, a LOT of it's natives make me physically ill on a continual basis and I have often seriously thought of relocation to a more blue state. I have democratic bumper stickers on my car, democratic signs in the front window of my home (I have to put them inside the window to keep them from mysteriously disappearing) I proudly wear my red white and blue donkey pin and I can't remember the last weekend errand run I went on that I did not encounter some dumb ass bubba in a big truck or SUV that didn't flip me off or yell something hateful out the window at me. I have developed very tough skin out of necessity. What is sad about it all, along with that thick skin I have also had to become more cautions and constantly alert things are so tense. These days Bush supporters are a dangerous crowd. It's no longer a matter of just having a different opinion, They act as if you are the anti-christ if you admit or dare to display that you are a democrat.

[ulysses]

21. I'm trying to be nice...I really am...

but a SIGN deflates you? Buck up, friend.

Me, I try to get in front of W-bearing cars on I-285 so that they can read my bumper stickers. Petty, but satisfying. :)

[vajraroshana]

22. DU helps a bit

So does watching sitcom reruns intstead of the news, lol. When I do watch the news I keep my finger hovering near the mute button so I can make the repugs "shut up!", a cheap thrill and impotent at that but it helps!

I'm in Huntsville, Ala. It ain't rural, but it's so overwhelmingly Bush/fundie country it kind of drives me crazy. I don't even see Kerry stickers on any cars, anywhere.

Several of my best friends (all hardcore liberals) have moved away in the past couple or three years. One of my brothers is liberal, but the other is a fundie/bushie and I'm just not talking with him right now. He pisses me off too much with his cultivated willful ignorance, e.g., when last I spoke with him he said we were at war in Iraq "because THEY attacked us!" uugghhh

But there are bright spots; my fundie brother's wife said she's voting for Kerry (it's a secret, shh...), also my other (liberal) brother's wife and her family are going to vote for the first time ever and they're voting for Kerry (that's a big happy bright spot because she -- and her mother and father and two sisters and brother, all of them -- said before when we begged them to register and vote "a lot of good it did anyone, Bush just stole the election anyway" -- they all said it at one time or another!; they don't think that way anymore and they've also gotten a lot of other first-time voters that are going to vote for Kerry. They can't stand Bush and they are all Christian. And they have a lot of Christian friends that they say are going to vote for Kerry. It pains them to do so mostly because of the democrat's abortion stance; but they're starting to see the big picture. Oh and all of them are very much rural. It looks like a trend going on there. And can you blame them ?, wages are low, and in this right-to-work state many of them have found that after working 7 or 8 years at a plant that they get terminated just when their "benefits" start getting half-way decent.

There's not any chance for Kerry here in Alabama, but I'll bet there's going to be a surprise at the numbers that do vote Democrat. Economic issues will trump cultural issues during hard times and a lot of rural folks are having hard times, and they are blaming it on Republican policies.

[Indykatie]

23. Thanks for the welcome.

I at least live in a very Blue section of a City within a very Red State. Kerry will not win Indiana but I can guarantee Kerry will do better than most expect. Many of my professional collegues who are Republican have voiced doubts that they will vote for Bush and there is a distinct absence of B/C stickers and yard signs around the city. That certainly wan't the case in 2000.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

24. I'm not sure if I'm in a red state.

I'm in Florida. I guess it is a battle ground state. I live in Orlando. It seems very republican around here for the most part. I don't have to deal with people around here too much anymore, now that I am a stay-at-home-mom. I'm able to cope with the situation, but it is certainly not ideal. The only adult I get to talk to on most days is my husband. I've tried meeting some other moms in the area, but I have nothing in common with them. Most of the women I've met have been republican military wives for some reason.

I've been keeping busy, so I'm not really bothered by my lack of local friends too much at all. Almost every morning I'll go running with my son in his jogging stroller. I always bring some of his animal crackers with us and I let him feed them to the ducks at a near by pond. He likes to point out every airplane he sees in the sky every time I take him outside. These little daily outings keep my spirits up and keep me sane. I've also lost 20 pounds since the beginning of May from all the running without even changing my diet.

I'm anxious for our move next summer. We'll be going back to some place in New England. It will be a return to normalcy for me, because I'm used to that area of the country. I'm from Maine and I love it there. I hope to be able to move back there some day. However, we'll probably be going to Connecticut because my husband is planning to go to school there.

[drbtg1]

61. If you do wind up moving to Connecticut,...

...at least it's getting better. We just got rid of our ethically-challenged Republican governor here.

[Robbien]

25. They put out propaganda that my state was not dark blue

HA!

We are bluer than blue, but that propaganda gave us a taste of what the not Dark Blue (Illinois) states must be going through.

Hold on you guys.

[yardwork]

26. I've lived in Blue towns in Red regions all my life - I'm used to it

I've been a Democrat all my life. Most of my neighbors are and have been Democrats, but we're usually surrounded by a sea of Republicans.

Guess what? Some liberals are jerks. Some Republicans are kind, sincere, honest, generous people. They're misled by the Republican candidates or they let single issues decide their votes.

If I lived in a community where everybody felt the same about politics I would probably disagree with the majority just because I'm contrary that way.

[BamaGirl]

29. I live in rural Alabama

Very very conservative here. I know just a couple of Dems locally. I'm from Atlanta and whenever I need a boost I call home and vent at my parents lol. Otherwise, I avoid religion and politics in conversation. It's just not worth the headache. They aren't gonna change my mind, and I'm not gonna change their's. I swear, some ppl try to pick a fight with me on purpose...just stupid.

~~BamaGirl

[Kanary]

40. Hi BamaGirl! Welcome to DU!

:hi: :hi: :hi:

:toast:

Kanary

[ChipperbackDemocrat]

30. A look from both perspectives

how the heck do you people who live in the rural South or some other very Red Area keep your sanity when you are surrounded by fundies and Bush-lovers?

It's not easy. I grew up and lived much of life in hopelessly red Nebraska. The state is 70% Republican, even though Republican policies have constantly been to Nebraska's detriment.
Yet, we have managed to elect Democratic congressmen, senators and governors. We manage to send Democrats into the legislature. We managed to win the small victories that add up to so much major victories that help peoples lives.
I've found that if nothing else, you have to keep pushing for the man or woman in the mirror. How would you see yourself if you didn't hold true to the things that you feel are right?

I've been in the minority in so many things in my own life, that fighting from the outside comes natural. I've grown up black in a mostly white state. I've grown up intellectual in a culture that disdains intellectualism. I was a dorky lad surrounded in the jock culture. In Nebraska, I was a guerilla. But that guerilla warfare shaped the beliefs I hold dear. Beliefs that made me a good reporter, a better activist and in my mind a better citizen of this country.

Living in a mostly blue state now, I better see the contrast. There I was a bleed liberal, here I am considered nearly Republican. I've noticed over my years here on the more liberal coast, our weakness in a sense. A creeping arrogance marks the political left on the coast, because some aren't willing to engage in places where we may fear to tread.

We cannot afford that fear anymore, or the concept that they are so powerful and so steeped in common groupthink. We know why they push so hard. They have to be the ultimate salesman. They are selling an agenda of Soviet America. All power in an all-consuming state, driven by apparatchiks of corporations and well-moneyed interests. They are willing to fortress the country using fear to keep the local systems in line. And they use our love of country to fuel their fear and make that sale.

Ultimately what drives me push through, even with so many sporting "W" on their cars and the boos I got at the Labor Day Parade, and the person who came up to me in the parking lot and said, "If you support Kerry, you support Osama, Fags and Traitors", because the opposition is so base, inhumane and cruel that their victory would be akin to taking those traqulizers and becoming THX-1138. I value my mind, my heart and my country too much to give in. Even through that jerk in the grocery store parking lot, I was make an impression on 5 other people, who all got voter registration cards from me!!!!!!!!

As far as "crumbling" goes, I think you need to give yourself some credit. You'll be surprised how much fortitude you show when you standing up for what you believe in.

Remember, our adversary is a political bully. They seek to prey on the weak. Their policies target the weak to enhance their own strength. When we stand up to the Republican with the truth, they fold. They can't stand on their record on the economy, enviroment, government spending, national defense, health care, education. There is nothing they have except fear.

They have to find a fear for us. For some it may be fear of Osama. Others get turned by fear of Heather's two mommies, or the black or Latino family moving in the neighborhood. Others groove to the fear of one less limosine or Mercedes. Either way, its about fear for them.

For us, its got to be about love and hope. We love our country, and we want to get back into the hope business again. America's been a light amid darkness. Hope amid hopelessness. We can be that again, if we are willing to stand.

Stand tall, my friend. Their time is over, November 2nd.

"When Francis Scott Key wrote those words. Does ever that Star Spangled Banner yet wave, o'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? He was drawing the quintessential link between democracy and courage." -- Rep Dennis J. Kucinich (D-Ohio)

[Gemini Cat]

31. Red stater here:

I talk to people. I make sure they are registered to vote.
I also ask them questions. For example: what keeps you up at night terrorism or the fact you can't pay your bills? Say, heard about the draft yet? No? How was your tax cut? Oh, you only received $47.00? How far did that tax cut go at the supermarket? Have you heard about the Halliburton no-bid contracts? What do you think about it?
What about the blunders surrounding 9-11?
What do *YOU* think? And so on and so forth. The point is to get people to think about what's happening to them, to their country and to the world because of bush. I get a lot of positive responses when people think.


Secondly, I don't waste my valuable time on stupid people. That helps too.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

54. That's a good strategy for changing minds.

My husband uses a similar strategy in the classroom to get kids to behave. He makes them analyze what they are doing and the consequences of it. It works better than just giving detentions or writing referrals. The kids are more likely to do the right thing the next time too.

[democratreformed]

35. My daughter started taking an alternate route to college so she wouldn't

have to pass the HUGE Bush/Cheney sign on her regular route. Now, there's one on the other end of town too. Yesterday, she called me on my cell phone as I was fixing to pass it and said, "It helps if you roll down your window and yell BOO real loud as you pass".

[usurper4]

36. I just realize

that most people are sheep. And I try to illustrate for them "skepticism", to show them how they're being misled.

Hopefully, I can get some converts.

[Ripley]

38. Self-medicate.

Basically I avoid talking politics with them. It's futile.

That which doesn't kill us only makes us stronger. It's hard work.

[Fleshdancer]

39. I'm in Austin - a small island of sanity surrounded by red

Sometimes it's hard for me to understand how the rest of Texas can be so damn red when Austin is so very blue. Sure, I'll see some Bush/Cheney bumper stickers every now and then, but most yard signs and bumper stickers are Democratic.

[AgadorSparticus]

63. actually, you're not the only blue part of texas. i grew up in s. texas

and we have ALWAYS delivered. the rio grande valley is dark, dark blue.

[0007]

42. 'Tis ruff -

The Hummers and flags and kick ass attitude is pathetic The dullness and ignorance of the people is the hardest thing to overcome. The local news is mostly all they pay attention too. 75% of the people couldn't even tell you who the cabinet members are.

Some days are bad, I agree.

[funkybutt]

43. I register voters

I still believe LA could go Blue. Hopelessly optimistic? maybe ..I just remind myself that the "polls" had our democrat governor loosing by double digits just days before she was elected. It could happen.

[tnlefty]

44. Crumbling is not an option. I care too much about the future for my

children and humanity.

As Confound_W stated, it is necessary to try to get people to think about how politics impacts their daily lives. Sometimes I can be a bit of a verbal guerilla, but with some people that seems to be what it takes to get them to understand that some of the very social policies that they take advantage of are the very ones that will be eliminated if they continue to vote for repugs.

I had a 70-something year old woman approach me in the parking lot of the post office last week and she was so excited and just had to tell me how wonderful it was to see a "young" person, I'm not called that often anymore, with so many stickers on my vehicle and proudly a democrat. She and some of her friends are afraid that the people in this state will be stupid enough (as she put it) to turn this state red on the electoral map again. I was impressed with how much better she was informed than my mother who is somewhat younger, and I realized that if she's still at it well into her 70's I can try to tough it out, too!

[WLKjr]

45. I tell them how it is

all the righties I encounter here in OH. and I let them know what knuckledraggers they are by pointing out their stupidity in the support of an idiot.

[6th Borough]

46. If they are Reups, I at least hang around the *ahem* loose ones. /EM

[catmandu57]

48. Sometimes it's not easy

there are days when I swear massive doses of dumb have been dumped into the water supply, but all you can do is do what you must, to quote Dylan.
Recently driving through a small town in Oklahoma, I passed yards full of b/c* signs and local repugs, when lo and behold there was a yard full of democratic signs, with a big Kerry/Edwards sign in the middle.
Now there, I thought to myself is someone with balls.

[TexasSissy]

49. I feel like I'm drowning in a sea of redness sometimes. And no

Kerry sign on my car yet. Afraid I'll get keyed. But I do have a local Dem's sign in my yard for a run for US Rep. (As do many others, I might add, which is VERY different for this neck o'the woods.)

[Carolina]

50. DU

commondreams, buzzflash, truthout, bartcop ....

My loathing of Bush and the idiocy of many of my fellow citizens in this red state knows no limits and the only thing standing between me and total lunacy is the internet.

Alcohol, namely French Cosmopolitans (vive La France), apple martinis and fig vodka helps too. There are also pockets of kindred spirits, highly motivated progressives, who are all the more active because they don't have the comfort or the ability to be complacent (no offense) among so many sheeple.

Still sometimes, you just sit and stare and wonder how did it all come to this

[RichardRay]

51. Note from Wyoming

I live in the bluest portion of an overwhelmingly red landscape - Jackson Hole in Wyoming. That said, I just get along. Everybody I know and work with is aware of my social, political and economic perspectives. I take the time to find the places where there is agreement and strengthen relationships based on those shared perspectives. Every so often I make a little progress and I celebrate that (albeit privately :-).

I respect my neighbors and am respected in return. One of the advantages of living in a lightly populated area in the least populace state in the union (Wyoming pop is around 440,000, Teton County around 15,000, Jackson around 5,000 and Wilson around 200) is that there aren't enough people of any particular stripe for folks to successfully form cliques that can ignore each other. As much as I may dislike the politics or social perspective of the guy who lives at the bottom of my hill I _will_ stop and help him get his car started on a -50F morning, and he'll do the same for me. We HAVE to get along or somebody freezes to death. If someone ignored a neighbor in that situation for political reasons I don't think they'd last very long around here. Having even that much contact and responsibility for each other's welfare makes it tough to just dismiss someone out of hand.

Richard Ray - Jackson Hole, WY

[wickywom]

52. We're masochistic.

No really always have.. I've learned to feed off the tension like a cat.

[Carson]

55. I love my state

Kentucky, that is. It's a "Red" state but filled with plenty of good people, Repub and Dem alike.

I wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

[MISSDem]

56. I do live in a small town in the South and work in a large

metropolitan area, both of which are heavily Republican. It is frustrating to think that your vote won't really count because you know the electorals are going for Bush. Still you press on and try to influence as many people as possible especially in neighboring states where the election is not already decided (and who knows maybe one day we'll have a surprice here in Mississippi). I remember the first day that I put my Kerry bumper sticker on my car; it hadn't been there 10 minutes before a man I know said to me, "I can't believe what I saw on your car." Can you imagine saying that to someone? And since our area has had a major call up of National Guard troops I also have a "Support the Troops" sticker on my car. That kinda gets me some odd looks. And sometimes I'm a little paranoid about having the Kerry sticker on my car because some people here are mean about their beliefs, if you know what I mean.

[CitySky]

58. How I survive as a transplanted blue-stater in Texas

is to FIGHT HARD for what I believe in. You've got to have some spit and fire in you to be a Democrat in Texas, I've noticed. Suits me fine!

Here's what I've done this season so far:

* Attend local Dem events
* Alert indy media friends to good events
* Give money to candidates
* Volunteer for candidates and for my local party
* Protest sleazy Republican operatives
* Stay all over Tom DeLay like a cheap suit
* Speak up where it may help
* Wear my Kerry gear when I'm at the grocery store
* Register voters
* Drive a car that reflects my views (fuel-efficient, with stickers and signs. Today the window sign says: FOUR MORE MONTHS! That's until President Kerry's inauguration, Jan 20 2005)

I sleep fine at night. :)

-Peace!

[CitySky]

59. PS

All that being said, I live in a liberal part of Houston. The 'pugs are mainly in the 'burbs. So I have it easier than many of the posters here.

-Peace!

[fudge stripe cookays]

60. Thanks Org, from Dallas.

A veritable HOTBED of red. But we're turning it pink.

When I finally woke up last year, I tried to make up for lost time, and did it in a big way.

I joined my local county Democrats club, went to Dean meetups, traveled to Iowa twice as a Texas Ranger for Dean, went to the pro-choice march in Washington, went to my first state convention, and went to other grass roots events.

When I decided we were too far out in the boonies and I wanted to reach others, I started my OWN Dean meetup. Led one for about 4 months, so I made lots of great new connections.

We host moveon parties and other types of parties, and really try to do our best to remain positive. The way I see it, we can do more good here. It's very easy to be blue in a blue state, but if I can wake even ONE more person up to what's going on, then my life here has been worth it.

Yep, you definitely have to have some spit and vinegar in you to be a Texas Democrat, but we just forge ahead, thinking of our heroes like Ann Richards, Molly Ivins, Jim Hightower, Barbara Jordan, and so many more.

Instead of being always positive and getting bummed when we see a Bush sticker, we keep a different mindset. Every day is a challenge. I start off the day sort of lukewarm, and keep constant counts of Kerry to Bush stickers. It varies from day to day.

Every time you see a sticker for Kerry/Edwards or Martin Frost or any of the other Dems here, it's a victory and gives you an EXTRA reason to smile. You just keep forging ahead, and you keep your friends close. Democratic friends like crispini, derby378, ginbarn, richardo, the pditties, the anarchy1999s, (and so many more) keep us energized.

:hi: Org!
FSC

[BiggJawn]

64. You'd hang yourself in my neck-o-th-woods...

"...Somebody mentions that so-and so is a Republican ("Can you believe it?") or I see a W'04 sticker on a car in Beaverton (suburb) or I pass a church with a sign supporting the anti-gay marriage amendment on our ballot, and I feel instantly a little depressed and deflated."

In the next county over, they had a freaking RALLY to "protect" marriage....And 150 people showed up.

You grow a THICK hide, and work for Change, or you go hide in a Starbucks...

And I'm not in the "rural South", either. I live 2 hour's drive to Lake Michigan

[kodi]

66. someone has to be the light in the dark, might as well be me.

besides, i haven't found a single local bush supporter who could think his way out of a wet kotex wrapper. then again, around these parts they call 32 women a full set of teeth. i figure i have convinced a dozen or so people not to vote for bush and instead cast their votes for kerry. and a few i am taking to the polling booth myself

[CitySky]

67. Good for you kodi

Way to go. :thumbsup:

[Jacobin]

68. It's a bitch here in Louisiana

I've lived here all my life, except for college years. New Orleans is fine, particularly Orleans Parish, where it is quite liberal. Most of the rest if the state is very red.

What has pissed me off more than most things is seeing bumper stickers showing a cartoon of a little boy peeing on the word "France". It blows my mind. France warned us not to invade Iraq, we did, its a complete and utter clusterfuck, so whose fault is it?....Why France of course.

The Bushbots are simply intolerable. I have managed to find five people who were old style republicans who know that Bush is not really a republican but a neo-con. They have said that they just won't vote, because they can't bring themselves to vote for Kerry. I did get one person to agree finally to vote for Kerry as he has a draft age son and sees the handwriting on the wall.

My 15 year old son HATES the RWers here. He gets upset with the daily. He went to a summer program at the U. of Chicago this summer and couldn't believe there were actually parts of the country that were liberal. He is now trying to find a way to go to boarding school to get away from bushbots.

I have a practice here, love the countryside and the fact that this state is not homogenized culturally with the rest of the U.S.. I'm not going anywhere, but it is almost impossible to have a discussion with anyone here that doesn't go in circles.

Oh well, onward and upward.