The red staters only thread, if you live in red, please reply

[CBGLuthier]

I do not care to continue the flame wars about red vs. blue.

I would like for everyone one of US who happens to live in a red state to please post one reply to this thread.

I would like for those of our fellow DU'ers who continue to smear the red states to know just how many of us are here.

[comsymp]

1. One

[Tight_rope]

I live in Texas...and I hate it!

[Lady Effingbroke]

366. Me too!

I live in Texas...despise it more with every passing day. Funny, I didn't feel this way until * was sElected.

[spatlese]

2. Another one...

[NaturalHigh]

3. Boomer Sooner

[fishwax]

142. Boomer Sooner indeed n/t

[datasuspect]

4. in exile

in southeast texas

[rockymountaindem]

5. Here I am.

[Texasgal]

6. Proud Texan

Checking in!

[L84TEA]

7. ...GRRRr....

me too...
:eyes:

[sam sarrha]

8. I live here, ..but i fear for my life

[RUDUing2]

9. Missourian living in a state of disgust...

[nickinSTL]

24. Another disgusted Missourian

n/t

[HeeBGBz]

81. Living amongst a nest of Repugs in southern Missouri

Where is sanctuary?

[RayOfHope]

132. Another blue Missourian here n/t

[Annette]

178. I live in the state of Misery too.

[proud2BlibKansan]

294. KC area here

KS side, but MO is blue too.

[azoth]

227. I go here. My city/county was bluer than blue...not much comfort however.

[jbm]

253. and still another from Missouri...

:-(

[LSdemocrat]

271. I'm in St. Louis

[bling bling]

287. Another Missourian here.

Luckily I'm in a blue county. If it weren't for that I would be making plans to sell my house and get the hell out.

[MuseRider]

10. Jayhawker here. n/t

[JPace]

11. North Carolina

[dweller]

16. another Tarheel here

dp

[Kenergy]

143. Jewel? n/t

[jmowreader]

146. In here from North Carolina

[GetTheRightVote]

279. Unfornately so am I - NC Sucks !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[lildreamer316]

304. Greensboro NC here

....unfortunately.

[jdj]

326. Also in NC (union county)

[mmonk]

173. N.C. resident

[ExCiber]

242. Me too

[Carolinian]

264. Good Old North State here

[Esse Quam Videri]

274. Nother North Carolinian

Live in Charlotte - At least Mecklenburg County was blue

[scotjohn]

299. Chapel Hill, NC -- or "Communist Hill" as Jesse Helms said

[ncrainbowgrrl]

305. Hi there, fellow Chapel Hillian!

:hi:
Welcome to DU!

[yardwork]

336. Another Chapel Hill resident reporting in

[luaneryder]

368. I'm in Raleigh

And my Repub neighbors wish Chapel Hill would be nuked into oblivion. I haven't lived here long and don't understand their abject hatred for CH and UNC.

[auburngrad82]

328. Same here. Good ol' rural, redneck NC.

Way out in the boonies with the tobacco farmers and the good ol' boys.

[clspector]

12. here in Texas

But lucky to be living in very blue Travis county.

[datasuspect]

23. can i seek political asylum there?

stuck here in jefferson county, although they voted strongly for lampson, this is still a very "reagan democrat" area.

plus it literally smells like ASS due to all the chemical plants

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

13. I think you're missing the point.

When we smear the red states, I'm pretty goddamn certain that no one believes that there are absolutely no Democrats within the state. Aren't we being a wee-bit touchy?

[Texasgal]

19. One word

NO.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

21. Now there's a well articulated argument.

:eyes:

[Texasgal]

27. Okay...

How about, it serves no useful purpose? Why sit around bashing red states? Does it make people feel better? How is it constructive?

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

37. Why does it bother you? Is everything you do "constructive"?

Most of us here I feel have a greater respect for our Red State brethren because we know how hard it must be to live there. So I'm not sure why bashing states that are actively trying to destroy any progress this country is made is a personal attack on you. You're CLEARLY not who we're talking about.

When we see states like Georgia and Kansas banning evolution from the classroom, we get frustrated. When we see South Carolina and Mississippi fight to keep the Confederate flag prominent, we get frustrated. When we see Alabama fighting to put the Ten Commandments into Federal buildings, we get frustrated. It's called venting when we bash them because we will explode with that frustration if we do not. It may not be "constructive", but since we're not there, we can't do a damn thing "constructive" about it.

[Texasgal]

49. Perhaps your rants

upset the rest of us. We know our state is full of a bunch of imbeciles. We don't need to hear over, and OVER, and OVER again how crappy and stupid we are. I have grown tired of it.

You may not be speaking of me in your rants, but having some compassion for us folks that have to deal with freepers day in and day out would be a very nice change.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

59. Given that this is "Democratic Underground"...

and that the entire point of this site is for us Democrats to vent about our frustrations with Republicans... and given that red states take predominantly Republican actions... and given that DU tends to draw the most liberal of liberals... I think you're asking a bit too much. Criticism of Republicans and the states that overwhelmingly elect them is NOT going to be tempered, nor should it be. That'd be defying the entire point of being here. If you don't want to hear about how horrible we think Republicans are, you're in the wrong place completely.

[Hobarticus]

65. States don't vote, people do...

"If you don't want to hear about how horrible we think Republicans are, you're in the wrong place completely."

If you don't want to hear red-state Dems talking about their frustrations with their neighbors and families, then maybe you're in the wrong place completely, too.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

74. No, we DO want to hear that.

The point of the original post is to say that we shouldn't be bashing red states because of a lot of red staters are here. The point is we know you guys aren't the ones that did it. However, a majority of your neighbors did and they deserve and will continue to be bashed when they do asinine things. Red stater Dems should not only be talking about their frustrations with the neighbors and families, they should be leading the charge because we sure as hell can't do much from where we are to change minds!

[Texasgal]

68. Fine....

Do what you will, I will continue to stand behind my state. You have admitted that's it's not constructive and that your just ranting. Then you asked why we are so sensitive. I answered your question. For a liberal it would be nice to see a little compassion, but I suppose that's just too much to ask.

I am not leaving DU just because of this reason, there are countless other reasons to stay. Plus... I like it here. Thank you however, for telling me that sensitivity is not welcome. I'll keep that in mind.

Sit around, rant, be non-constructive.... seems wasteful to me. But to each his own I suppose.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

96. You're asking us to be something that we are not.

We do not condone the actions of your states. We will never condone a lot of those actions. That's not insensitive. And us talking about it isn't insensitive either.

When a state like your Texas sends whom we think is the most evil man since Hitler back to the White House with over 60% of the vote, I'm sorry, but yeah, we're going to bash them. That's not insensitivity either. That's the whole point of us being here.

Further, what is there to do here besides sit around and rant? There might, might be a handful of people here who are in a position to actually do something. That's it. So what other function does a political bulletin board serve? You think it's going to create world peace or something? C'mon.

[Texasgal]

117. I find your post rather sarcastic

There are some of us that get out and volunteer on the behalf of our party and for organizations. You see, I do things that are constructive, and I come here on DU to help exchange ideas and to meet and chat with Dem brothers and sisters.

Trying to create "world" peace from a message board as you suggested is a pretty silly observation. I was simply hoping for some compassion...gee, what was I thinking?

[SheepyMcSheepster]

73. i thought this site served multiple purposes?

i didn't realise DU's entire reason for existence could be summed up so easily?

"the entire point of this site is for us Democrats to vent about our frustrations with Republicans"

this site is many things to many people, i come here to learn, dicuss, and become more informed.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

77. This site was started in 2000 in protest of Bush being elected.

So, yeah, the point is for us to vent our frustrations with Republicans. Sounds like it's damn well in the mission statement to me.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

83. i was looking for a mission statement, got a link?

edit: someone should tell the people in the various groups (gaming/musicians etc.) that DU is only for venting about republicans

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

92. here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/about.html

[SheepyMcSheepster]

97. i suppose this is what you are refering to?

"This website exists so our members and guests are assured that there are many others across the country who share their outrage at the unilateral, arrogant, and extreme right-wing approach taken by George W. Bush and his team, the conservative Republicans in Congress, and the five conservative partisans on the Supreme Court. We address the right in harsh terms, and we fully intend to make the word "conservative" absolutely radioactive."

i understand why you want to call people on the carpet for their beliefs but at the same time i don't believe this type of vitriolic attitude towards red states and their inhabitants will win you any new democratic converts.

i guess i place more emphasis on making a change vs. just calling people names.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

99. I agree, but we're not going to solve world peace here.

Nor do we have anything to do with the strategic process. We're just citizens talking politics. That's all.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

100. so what is wrong with a thread where red-staters check in?

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

102. The last line:

I would like for those of our fellow DU'ers who continue to smear the red states to know just how many of us are here

The original poster is acting as if we're personally smearing every single person that lives in a red state, as if we don't know there are SOME Democrats there. It's bullshit.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

104. well....

can't you see how flat out name calling of states could be percieved as a smear to those of us that live in these states.

we grew up in these states, we work in these states, our families come from these states. we see people all around us who voted for W, but otherwise seem like decent people. you seem to want to demonize everyone who voted for W, that is your perogative, but i don't think it accurately reflects the situation. many of the people around me are good people, they are just unaware of what is going on around them.

would the best approach to teacing a kid who is bad at algebra be to say "you suck at algebra, i can't believe you are so stupid"?

why stop at states, why not just condemn all of the united states?

the united states sucks everyone is so stupid i can't believe they elected W! Those dumbfucks better not do it again! we are going to win next time becauase they are so fucking dumb! vote democrat dumbassess!

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

107. Uhm, some of us do condemn all of the U.S.

And when it comes to dealing with people outside of the U.S., most of us most definitely do immediately apologize for Bush being President. And yeah, that's exactly how the rest of the world views us.

What you described is reality.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

113. i disagree, it is flat out oversimplification

you cannot fix a problem unless you properly diagnose it.

i want to fix, i don't want to make the problem worse.

imo calling people names doesn't fix anything, it just makes people more defensive. it makes them less open to discussion, no one is going to listen if they feel threatened or looked down on.

i guess we just disagree and that is fine by me.


edit: do you condemn yourself when you condem the whole U.S.?

what makes you part of the solution and not part of the problem?

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

115. Yeah, i do condemn myself.

I condemn every one of us. We all might've done something more to prevent Bush from being re-elected.

But personally, I think the problem goes even deeper. I think the country is STILL drawn along lines that have existed since before the Civil War. I think we have irreconcilable differences, and the only thing that separates now from the past is that the South has a higher population concentration than it used to.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

119. so how do you suggest winning over the larger south?

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

122. I don't.

I think we need to make in-roads in places like New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and Nevada. Those are places we can truly make a dent if we try.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

126. and how do we make in roads in those states?

i don't think it is done by setting a tone of red state vs. blue state.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

130. Again, I don't think we at DU are setting the tone for anything.

I don't think what we talk about here really matters all that much.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

134. fair enough

well, i guess we have both clarified our opinions, and that is about all we can do. nice little chat there, thanks! take care

:hi:

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

137. It's always good to air things out.

Take care and thanks for a nice discussion!! :hi:

[Romberry]

363. Speak for yourself. The rants don't upset me at all.

I'm a red state dissident. Do you think the rants against the USSR upset the dissidents that were there? It ain't personal and it ain't directed at you. Join in the fun! Be a red state dissident too!

[SheepyMcSheepster]

54. what you see is people in those states doing the things you list

the states don't do them by themselves. i feel like you are oversimplifying. badmouthing states that are "red" serves no purpose in my mind other than to drive a non-existant wedge between the people of the U.S.

that is my opinion of course.

with talk like that you play into the hands of those conservatives who would say "look at those democrats, they think you people in the red states are stupid idiots, they want to tell you how to run your life, they have nothing for contempt for you and think you are not able to make informed decisions about the world around you".

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

89. And anyone that takes the 50,000 Dems at DU

to be truly representative of our party needs help, just as anyone who believes Free Republic truly represents the Republican Party.

We ARE the fringe. We do not represent the mainstream. We are driven here by the fact that we are politically rabid.

We're not playing into anyone's hands.

Further, did you not read the part about no one actually thinking every person within the state is as horrible as we depict? No one reasonably believes that, but when a state overwhelmingly and repeatedly takes actions that make you want to slam your head against the wall, I'm sorry, but we're going to be pissed about it. We're not going to say, "I know South Carolina is trying to have institutional intimidation of black people by flying a Confederate Flag, but we know you didn't mean it. It's okay." Sorry, that ain't gonna happen.

[SheepyMcSheepster]

93. fine get pissed, get mad, tell people inside imaginary lines they are dumb

that's a winning strategy.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

98. Almost none of us here are strategists.

And not many more actually have roles outside of voting. So what's it matter?

[SheepyMcSheepster]

116. i guess it doesn't matter to you

i have a different take on things.

i feel like republicans have used many issues to basically control/shape peoples perceptions, if you attack the mis-perception it is like getting in a fight with the tar baby, it all goes back to the way we discuss politics and the words that are used to frame the debate. it does matter how we speak, it does matter how we act, it does matter how we treat others if we want our views/agenda to win popular opinion.

we disagree and that is fine.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

121. It is fine, even healthy, to disagree.

And I respect your opinion. And you're right to a point, except I don't think we represent anything here really. That's all.

[prairierose]

192. Why don't you have a role outside of voting?

Why have you not become active in your local party and tried to influence the national party. Why do you just come here to vent your feelings against freepers and people who live in red states? Why have you not become involved in some of the research projects going on here at DU? Why have you not become involved in the discussion regarding reframing the message? This is one of the most important things going on here. We as progressives must find language that will tell the truth about the regressive party and attract people to come and listen to OUR message, to work for OUR message and the issues that we feel are important. The issues that the MSM ignore.

Many of us here,even those from red states (I'm in SD) come here not only to vent our feelings about the disastrous policies of * and his gang of criminals but to also help with the battle of the moment and the battles to come. We come to find like minded people to give us hope and courage to continue the fight in our regressive states.

Normally, I would not respond to a message like yours but people who bitch & ONLY vote piss me off. Unless you are bedridden, there is work that you could be doing to try to change the direction of this country. Even if you were bedridden, you could probably write LTTEs to inform others about the important issues that divide this country. Do you spend your money politically or do you do all your shopping at the evil walmart because it's cheap and convenient. Who cares if they do not pay their workers a living wage or benefits? Who cares if they are one of the main reasons that so many jobs have left our shores?

In this state we were subjected to 1 year of negative smears against our senior Senator. And DO NOT tell me that Daschle was weak and you're glad he's gone. He has been my personal friend for 25 years and you obviously know very little of the political realities here or in DC. Or for that matter, the kind of man he really is. You have no idea of the numbers of people who gave their time and energy to try to counteract the lies of the regressives. The people who walked many miles knocking on doors and talking to people or leaving literature. The people who spent hours at a time on the phone talking to people trying to counteract the lies that were spread every day both by the MSM and the local media. And all of those people were yelled at and called names by some of the people they tried to talk to.

If there are many people who come here only to vent, maybe we need a venting forum and you can all go there & vent to your heart's content and stop calling us names. Do you think that I am happy that so many of the people in my state believe the lies of the regressives? Do you think I am going to be happy to see people getting poorer here. Our economy will be devastated by the revenge wreaked on us by * for having had the temerity to have Daschle as a Senator for 20 years. The little puppet they put in to replace him will do nothing to stop that revenge.

There's hard times coming friend and you had better get off your a** and do something more than vent.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

306. Actually, I work in politics. It's MY job.

The vast majority of people here, however, I suspect don't do much more than vote.

[floridadem30]

317. Well I don't know about the majority, but I write letters daily and try to

educate the republicans I do know about the truth. This is not the only forum I am a member of.

[Bush_My_Ass]

234. frustrated red stater

A frustrated Oklahoman here.. We get frustrated at our new elected Senator who claims "rampant lesbianism" in Southeastern Oklahoma is a huge problem and that "abortion providers should get the death penalty"

Let me say that I am very frustrated with the state I live in right now. There is so much hate and contempt toward even moderate democrats here in Oklahoma, people call you "commie" if you don't believe in "the war" It's ridiculous, and 99% of these people have never taken a World History class-it's not required here in the public schools. Geez...

[xultar]

31. Damn Straight. I don't get the Posters Intent. n/t

[WyLoochka]

52. Blues can bash Arizona

to their hearts' content. I do it myself and will join in and support any Arizona red bashing thread I come across.

[tnlefty]

70. TN, too. Crapped in the face of the intellectually superior

Al Gore and chose Dimson*. After 4 yrs. of Chimpy McDumbass chose him again. I intend to throw it in the faces of everyone around me, and not in a particularly nice way, for the next 4 yrs. I am going to do everything that I can, along with some interested others, to implement the tough love approach here.

[City Lights]

105. I'll second that.

Red stater who has no problem with red-state bashing checking in. :-)

I do not take any Arizona bashing personally, so let 'er rip.

[southlandshari]

286. No

All of us Dems in red states were just as angry at the election results as those in blue states (perhaps more so because our own states went against our efforts and our votes).

It isn't that hard to use a few words to acknowledge our existence and our work for the cause before launching into a rant about our communities. Most - if not all - of us are more than willing to JOIN your rant, but not if insult after insult is added to tremendous injury, especially by people we thought were on our team.

[quisp]

14. Tidewater Virginia

[SheepyMcSheepster]

15. North Carolina

checking in.

[democrat in Tallahassee]

17. I'm blue in a red state

[flvegan]

18. Shame in Florida...again!

My county (Hillsborough) went belly up for bunnypants. Sigh.

[flobee1kenobi]

25. Montgomery Co, Ohio

Blue county in a red wasteland

[Synnical]

20. South East Florida

The blue part of the state

[kdmorris]

276. Same here.. Delray Beach, Palm Beach County n/t

[Hobarticus]

22. Iowa, relunctantly checking in...

Sorry, can't believe we went red this time.

[rurallib]

39. Me too

still in shock. I think we should split into East Iowa and West Iowa.

[Hobarticus]

44. Welcome to DU, rurallib!!!

I'm all for that!

Here in Dubuque county, where are you?

[Rambis]

94. Iowa here

I still don't belive it!

[Hobarticus]

207. What the hell happened, rambis?

Thought we had more sense here!

[Rambis]

229. I have no idea

It beats the hell outta me. I talked to, and worked with a bunch of republicans. I just don't know.

[CornField]

314. Another Iowan in disbelief... at least I live on the blue side.

[NoPasaran]

26. Another Texan

Blue county

[atommom]

28. Floating in the red Kansas sea here. nt

[buckettgirl]

318. Western Kanas here too! n/t

[xultar]

29. I don't understand your post. I live in Red state and I hate it.

I admit I feel like I am alone and I hate just about everyone I see. When I see a car with a K/E sticker on it I smile. But for the most part I hate just about everyone in my state that didn't vote for Kerry. I consider them to be dumb ass and ignorant. When I see a car with *04 stickers I wanna puke!

Is that a bad thing?

[Frogtutor]

169. I can't speak for the original poster, but I think maybe it's just a

difference in outlook. For example, I was born and have always lived in Texas. I know that Texas was once a Democratic party stand-hold. I knew the movement to the right was pretty bad, but I had no idea HOW bad until after this last election. I felt very isolated and angry just after the election, and still do to an extent. But, I am angry with every single person who voted for Bush in the entire country. I haven't been making distinctions between states, because BARELY a majority voted for Bush overall the states. It's kind of like the glass half empty or the glass half full kind of thing; I view it as "almost half the state of Texas voted for Kerry", instead of "the majority of voters in Texas voted for Bush". Texas is my home; it's certainly not perfect, but I think it is a wonderful place for the most part. Call me naive if you must, but I truly, firmly believe in my heart that most of the people who voted for Bush in the whole country are simply misguided. I am optimistic, and I have faith that these people can still be reached and enlightened. For the most part, coming here to DU has made me feel better. I have found people from Texas and from everywhere else who share many of my views, and this has made me feel less isolated, more accepted, and somewhat empowered. People are certainly entitled to their opinions, but I've found it disheartening when I've seen broad, sweeping generalizations made about "Texans" or "southerners", etc. I belong to both of these groups, and the LAST thing I would want is for people to assume I'm ignorant, or bigoted, or a fundamental Christian, etc. based on the label "Texan" or "southerner".
Anyway, I'm not mad at anyone here; I'm just trying to point out the subtle distinctions of red state bashing vs. republican bashing that might offend or discourage some of the red state Democrats in these forums.
Thanks for reading, and thanks to everyone who has made me and other newbies feel welcome here!

Frogtutor

[xultar]

183. Well, welcome to DU. I unlike you have no faith that the ones who've

had a sip of the kool-aid can be reached.

It's over and nothing but a mass exit by us intelligent folks will get them to see how wrong they are.

We should let them run this place all by themselves. The'll screw it into the ground. I have no problems moving and letting them have this place @ all.

[jukes]

GA now

born/raised in MO.

[RubyDuby in GA]

67. Hey - me too!

Born in MO, moved to GA when I was 5 - many moons ago......
I qualify for GRITS status (girls raised in the south for you non-southern folk).

[Citizen Jane]

84. Another GRIT here!

The only things that make life in Georgia bearable are working in a department with only one Freeper (and he's not in this department so I'm using his office and lmao while surfing DU) and living in DeKalb county, which, thankfully went blue.

I was raised, however, in VOLUSIA COUNTY! (eeek!)

[RebelOne]

103. Georgia here, too.

And I live in the red county of Cherokee.

[Dulcinea]

140. GA transplant here too

first 22 years of life in PA

now Dekalb Co resident....a blue oasis in a red sea.

[gapoli]

145. Lifetime Georgian

and lovin it.

[RubyDuby in GA]

161. Welcome to DU

Glad to have you here! :bounce:

:toast:

[FlyByNight]

289. GA here too, but born and raised in CT

I live in the metro Atlanta area.

[RedTail Wolf]

354. Georgian family from before we became a country

Native American ancestors lived here and I was born here. It's a red state but it's home. It feels good to walk the land of my ancestors even though the Repugnicans are trying to destroy the land, the air, and the water.
WE could use some of the ancestors fighting spirit now!



RedTail Wolf

[liberal N proud]

30. Ohio calling in

It sucks living here, now more than ever.
But I moved from Missouri and I see it is red this election, if that can be believed either.

[bowens43]

32. North Carolina

[Midlodemocrat]

33. Virginia here

...I actually enjoy living here. Lots of transplants and the people in my immediate neighborhood are very nice.

[SammyWinstonJack]

34. Texas here

Is that red enough? :evilgrin:

[yellerpup]

35. Red State, Blue County

Despite our best efforts, we wuz robbed in NC.

[dinmo]

36. One in SW Missouri

:hi: another disgusted SW Missourian

[missouri dem]

53. Welcome to DU neighbor.

[RaleighNCDUer]

38. We need to change the talking point --

Saying a state is red, because it has a majority red population is like saying * has a mandate with his 51%. 'Red state' is a good sound bite, but is meaningless, because all it means is 'a state that has a majority of voters who voted for *, regardless of the political breakdown elsewhere.' The only true red state would be one with a red governor, two red senators, all red congresscritters, and a red state legislature.

Can someone who is less verbose than I condense that into an appropriate sound bite?

BTW, I like the irony of calling these hardcore conservatives 'Reds'.

[NoSheep]

40. Another here in NC. n/t

[MARALE]

41. Should be blue

By less than 1%, am living in a red state.:-(

[booley]

42. In the state of Misery

St. Louis and KC are like little islands in a sea of stupidity and bigotry.

[RUDUing2]

63. Columbia is too...thank god for UMC...forces the town to be more liberal.

[nonconformist]

43. Kentucky here

Although I'm not a native - I was born and raised in a Detroit suburb. My husband, however, is a native and he's a strong progressive Democrat.

[gtp1976]

325. Kentucky as well.

nm

[kcwayne]

45. Surrounded by knuckle draggers in Indiana

[ArkDem]

46. Let them show their lack of intelligence. Who cares?

[arkie dem]

50. Another Arkie

[ObaMania]

47. Virginia

[SleepingDragon]

48. Iowa: Blue no more?

:cry:

The blue state / red state divide is a lie perpetuated by the Bush administration and the MSM. It suits Karl Roves "inevitability" strategy.

I live in a red precinct in a slightly blue county. The church I go to is a blue church in a red precinct, but has both blue and red members. My family is made up of red and blue.

Red and Blue states? Give me a break.

[Hobarticus]

208. Welcome to DU, from a fellow Iowan!

Ever see the 'percentage' map of Iowa posted here on DU? Lots of purple out there.

[chiburb]

51. Here's the problem with smearing ANY state....

Illinois, where I live, is a "Blue" state, right? NO! It's a Red state with a Blue island called Chicago. Without the major cities of this country, you'd be hard-pressed to name more than a hand-full of Blue states.

So... I suggest we do some rural versus city bashing, and leave the states out of it!

;-)

[southlandshari]

290. Except...

that in some states, especially in the South, the counties that went blue were RURAL, not urban.

The key there and everywhere else was race - African American populations went blue across the country, no matter where (north, south, rural, urban).

So if there is any genuine dividing line and bashing to be done, it seems we ought to start with race. I'm white, and feel absolutely no anger at anyone who says white folks #$%^$@ it up in this election. Why can't we get a clue and start listening to the African American community more?

I'm not really advocating that we lump all whites into the "bad" category and all blacks in the "good" category, but in all honesty, this is no more simplistic than all the north/south, rural/urban comparisons, and is actually more statistically AND historically defensible.

[vptpt]

55. Tennessee

And sometimes I feel like I'm the only one.

[GoSolar]

56. Virginia resident

Northern Virginia is quite progressive.

[Ripley]

57. Reply.

It's pretty arrogant of them no? Especially the fucks from Callyfourneeya.

Congratulations you pimple on the Earth you Mr. Rove. You have stolen the election again and now can gloat over the total meltdown of the Democrats and Liberals of America as they eat each other like cannibals.

[ScaRBama]

58. Alabama

[southpaw]

66. Blue in Bama

nothing new or unexpected

[sam sarrha]

60. NEW's Headline tomorrow... !! Control Freak Loses Control !! ..

[bookman]

61. Red Texas

I live in one of the reddest counties in Texas.

[2bfree]

174. Me too.

Aransas county is mighty red.

[southernleftylady]

62. Tennessee here nt

[catmandu57]

64. Stuck in missouri mud

we got our asses kicked here, no voting fraud, just a simple old fashioned ass whooping. Out of 8000+ votes in our county, 5000+ went repuke.
Our democratic committee here is old and tired and needs kicked out, I went to a county planning meeting and it was terrible, poor and feeble, what fire there was was doused by old and cold long time members.
I want out of here, but, I'm fucking stuck in gumbo mud.

[The Blue Knight]

69. Here's a Buckeye

:)

[krazyeyes]

71. Newbie from Kansas

I've been a long time lurker and really enjoy this site. I'm getting the hell out of Kansas after graduation, but I still call it my home as of right now...

[abbadon]

72. Deep in the Shallow South

from South Alabama (hence my avatar), now in Atlanta (that's still a part of "Georgia," unlikely as it seems ;))

[RubyDuby in GA]

79. I know what you mean

I work in Atlanta and am very active in politics. All the groups I volunteer and work with are located in the city, but I live outside the perimeter. It's like visiting a different country when you get OTP. I live in the town that I grew up in and seriously wonder how I turned out so normal and everybody else is so screwed up. Good genes I guess...proud daughter of proud Democrats...whole family turned out well :)

And south Alabama...my best friend's mom lives in Gulf Shores...needless to say we didnt' go over too well with the natives with all our pro-Kerry, Bush-bashing stuff on our cars when we went a-visitin'. Imagine that :shrug:

[ChickMagic]

75. A 6th generation Texan here

Texas used to be blue until Reagan. My Gawd, Texas went for Humphrey! Dallas County is on the right track having voted in a daughter of migrant workers, hispanic and gay as sherrif. I think Dallas Co. is almost catching up with Austin!

[Red State Rebel]

76. Missouri here - first time my county has been red that I recall

I'm so disgusted I could puke.

[fujiyama]

78. I may not live in a Red State

but I live in a red district.

Bad enough. My suburban shit hole went to Bush by like 5 points.

[BiggJawn]

80. I ALERT on "Red v. Blue" threads.

Bet you got mouth-breathers in your precious blue states, too.

[salin]

82. born in - escaped from -but keep coming back to

this red state where I was born. HOwever, I was born in a heavy blue enclave - and the rest of the state views us as anathema. Heck I don't always see myself as a part of this state. That could also be because I have lived in many heavy blue areas in blue states.

However even the heavy blue part of blue California in which I used to live - voted exceptionally red-like on some ballot propositions. WIththat I learned that the assumption of blue/red isn't always so clear cut.

[B Calm]

I live behind the Hoosier Iron Curtain and

the farther you travel south in the state of Indiana the people I've seen have large protruding foreheads, very few teeth and play banjo on their porches. Noticed this more in Dan Burton's district than anywhere else...

[pattycake]

85. ON KANSAS SIDE OF KANSAS CITY

Orginally from St Joe, MO; Blue Staters have to realize how we have to literally argue with the status quo pubs on every frigging thing. Listened to their BS for years & always gave my opinion. It takes some guts out here!!

[Annette]

180. I use to live in St. Joe Mo

Where the Pony Express began and Jesse James ended.

[bac511]

310. I DO live in St. Joe

Embarrassed to say that St. Joe usually carries the democratic president, but not this year...

Lots of delusional people in these parts...

Sad, sad, sad...

[Catchawave]

86. virginia here too ! n/t

[Dem Agog]

87. Sadly Enough

I'm in the red...

[strangemedicine]

88. Blue in South Dakota

Checking in.:kick:

[Rainbowreflect]

90. Nebraska Dem here.

[mcar]

91. Here

n/t

[LiberalAndProud]

95. Another Nebraska Dem

[Nashyra]

109. Blue in Nevada

And rather than bashing "red states" I'm into bashing ignorance. Yhat's being nice, I actually consider anyone who voted for * to be just stupid or ignorant, but I'm continuing to try and change my state to Blue. Work Work Work one vote at a time. Douglas County Dem's were supposed to get 7100 votes for Kerry we got him 8400 one vote at a time. We are working on 2006.

[Catherine Vincent]

101. I live in a red state.

But ever since the repukes and the media showed that red/blue map on tv, I always said there were loads of blue people in those red states and loads of red people in those blue states. They are trying to divide us. It ain't goanna happen. People are smarter than that....well at least some of us.

It doesn't bother me when other DUers rag on the red states. Because I know they are not talking about us blue people here.:-)

[RushIsRot]

106. Louisiana checking in.

Stranded amid a sea of the sanctimonious and self-righteous.

[Hippo_Tron]

302. We went blue in '92 and in '96, it's time we did it again...

And as far as I'm concerned, David Vitter is going to be a one term senator.

[RushIsRot]

311. Unfortunately, that's six years too long for Vitter.

But Landrieu is no prize either. She votes with the Rethuglicans the majority of the time.

[Frogtutor]

108. My name is Frogtutor, and I'm drowning in crimson in Fort Worth, TX n/t

[yellowdogintexas]

288. I figured you for a Fort Worther, or a former Fort Worther

Same here....

drowning in crimson is a good way to put it.

But there are three good blue households on my block how about yours?
I partied with about 250 of us last night at Southside Preservation Hall in Fairmount!

[Frogtutor]

309. No, almost everyone I know is one of those delusional Bush

voters who think they're Republicans, but would know better if they knew anything about the Democratic party. But, to be fair, I don't know that many of my neighbors well enough to know their political views. I'm kind of a homebody. I don't guess the sign people made it to my neighborhood during the election, but I notice a lot of Bush bumper stickers when I take my son to school!

[yellowdogintexas]

331. oh we are here, believe it!!!

What school does your son attend?

I figured you for a Fort Worther, due to the frogtutor id..
you tend to notice that if you live in FW.

I have several friends on the TCU faculty; met them through my church.

I am one of those who still has Kerry bumper stickers on the car.

I may replace with the time honored "Texas Democrat" one once I get my hands on it.


If you want to meet up w/ other local Dems, I will try to remember to let you know of meetings, activities etc.

[Frogtutor]

337. Thanks, I'd be interested in knowing about those things...

I loved TCU and most of my intructors; I was a "non-traditional" student (read: old), and I just graduated in 2002. I got a BS in science in elementary education, reading specialty.

We live on the southwest side, between Fort Worth and Crowley, in unincorporated Tarrant County. We're in Crowley ISD, and my son goes to the new elementary school they just opened this fall. He's in 6th grade, so he'll be in middle school next year. I am VERY unhappy with his school right now; I won't even get started on that.

It's funny--I've NEVER had bumper stickers on my car; partly because I didn't want the clutter, and partly because I'm kind of shy about advertising my views (nonconfrontational). But, since I donated to DU, I'm going to get a bumper sticker from them, and I'm actually going to put it on my car! I think I also want one that says "proud Democrat". I'm thinking someone needs to print some that say, "I'm a Democrat AND a Christian". Lord, I'll be having confrontations all over town! LOL

[yellowdogintexas]

341. yeah, Crowley is sort of conservative.

However, the Democrats still exist here. Remember Mayor Moncrief is a Democrat who was our State Senator and still would be if they had not jacked with his district too. (the test run for the congressional messup)

Are you in Barton's or Green's district? Or Grainger?

I am in Granger's just barely. so glad to be OUT of Barton's. We are off I20 and WestCreek Drive, south of the Freeway.

Good on you if you are in Green's district and thank God he beat Wolgemuth.


Are you a church goer? If so what denomination?

If you are a Methodist or a dissatisfied liberally tending protestant of any variety you might want to visit First Methodist in downtown FW.

LOTS OF YELLOW DOGS THERE>>>>>>

Tarrant County Democrats have a website. www.tcdp.net, and there are all sorts of Democratic clubs around the area.

keep in touch, I will do the same...there will be activities soon, I am certain.

[Frogtutor]

346. Thanks for all the great info!

I'm relieved to know that others are out there! My rep IS Barton--but to be honest, I really don't know much about any politics besides the presidential election. But, I'm planning to change that!

Funny you should mention church; I was actually going to ask about it! I call myself a nondenominational Christian, went to Baptist churches occasionally growing up, and I don't have a church. I've been thinking about finding one, but I wanted to make sure it was a good, liberal one. I'm not sure if I want to drive downtown, though...depends on what time services are!

My brother used to live off Westcreek; he lived on Binyon. He just moved to my neighborhood. We've only been here almost 4 years; we lived in River Oaks before, and a LOT closer to downtown. Isn't the First Methodist in downtown the one that was hit by the tornado?

Thanks again, and I will keep in touch!

Frogtutor

[yellowdogintexas]

351. First United Methodist Was NOT hit by the tornado

although Mike on Channel 5 was about to have a duck fit until the copter flew over it and it was still there.

The church that was demolished was Calvary Cathedral a fundie non denominational church. They sold their land to Pier 1 and bought a used building from a Church of Christ that had built a new campus. So they have more land, Pier 1 has a new building and everybody is happy.

(It is my personal opinion that Calvary's hit caused the funnel to bounce off the apartments on Henderson and slammed the funnel right into Bank ONe...which may have saved FUMC>

We had peripheral damage and a ton of debris but basicall survived intact.

It is a beautiful high gothic imitation sanctuary, fronts on 5th Street just off Henderson. Takes me 10 minutes to get there on a Sunday morning. Take 35 to 30 West, exit Henderson, go right (north) on Henderson and you are there.

Services are 9:30 and 11:00 with Sunday school in both hours too.
Children's choir, Junior choir, Youth choir, Youth activities and lots of opportunities to volunteer.

http://www.fumcftw.org/index.html website

[Frogtutor]

356. Oooohhhhh, ok; I've seen that church, it is beautiful! Thanks! n/t

[UTUSN]

110. Spartacus Checking In n/t

[clintonlover]

111. GEORGIA HERE eom

[LizW]

112. Here in Alabama n/t

[Tom Yossarian Joad]

256. Another DUer in Bama.

[Maiden England]

114. Here in the heart of Cajun Country, Louisiana

My little patch of land here is bright friggin blue (but its only 63'x 186', but still very bright blue!)

[Peter Frank]

118. I'm an Independent...

...from the great red state of North Carolina. Bush is not too popular here in Raleigh, but boy do they love him in the rural areas. Sometimes you have to be careful of what you say when you get out of the cities.

[Selwynn]

120. I do, and RED STATES FUCKING SUCK!!!!! :)

[otohara]

123. Colorado

I'm so ashamed

[vision]

124. Living in Missouri

and IMO the Red states deserve the disdain if the vote was not rigged. I have lived most of my life in Kansas and Missouri and while most of the people are decent that doesn't mean they are wise.

I am a Christian but Liberal so I am on the other side of the fence of the "moral Americans". I care out others and want to better life for everybody. They cannot see it, if it does not affect them than it doesn't exist.

[Doohickie]

125. Yet another Texan

originally from upstate New York, another predominantly red area (if you look at the county-by-county map).

[twenty2strings]

127. Big bunches in arkansas...

We are suffering too. Two out of five are with us but we're just going to have to ride this one out. Just like the great depression, we're going to need each other. Conversation, personal meetings and networking have to be utilized in a way that lifts us up. Don't be cowed into submission. This is going to take some time. Wait til the oil runs out and it will. The republicans are scared of the world. We're not. Let's stay together. I love each and every one of you!:hi:

[bluesoccermom]

128. red county in a blue state

being a newbie, I wonder if the board was this divided in 2000?
Anyway, I`m thankful to be blue in Illinois and I have to give all you dems in red states a lot a credit..seems a lot of you are working hard for change in adverse conditions.

When did we become so divisive!

[Jacklyn75]

129. I'm in Missouri but not from here...

I have always been a dem - converted my husband to one before I would marry him. It's VERY hard living in a red state. We don't have much support at all. My poor brother lives in Kansas it's even worse for him. HOWEVER he's a die hard dem too.

[democratreformed]

131. Here I am. n/t

[Liberal Mommy]

138. Another Lonely Texan

Blue county and just think he lives less than 2 hours from me.
I might actually run into the idiot one day. :scared:

[Samurai_Writer]

133. In Florida here...

Our county went for Kerry, but we are surrounded by a sea of red counties here on the Treasure Coast.

[green grizzly]

135. Utah here

A little lonely here.

[helderheid]

324. Hi Utah

I feel your pain - I'm here too.

[DuaneBidoux]

136. Texas Here - and Fuck This Red State

[muse]

139. Blue Voter in Red Texas

I don't know how many times I have to say it, but the DNC gave Texas absolute no money - ZERO - this election cycle - not even for our state candidates, so all of our efforts for Kerry were grassroots. Our state demcratic party was not happy with the DNC. We were essentially orphaned or given up for dead. This was the fate for many red states. Yet, the dems in Harris and Fort Bend County had meetups with attendance out the doors, we had visibility events, we put hangers on doors, we worked the polls, we went out of state to work in the swing states. Not to mention, we donated money like crazy to get get Kerry elected. I actually went into my savings.

[SaintLouisBlues]

141. St. Louis went 81% for Kerry

Red Missouri sucks!

[Razorback_Democrat]

144. Red Stater Here!

I personally like the idea of "shades of purple" because there are plenty of blues in my state, and just because the majority voted red on *sh, we also re-elected a Dem Senator, Lincoln, and have a Dem majority in both House (3 of 4) and Senate (2 of 2) and our statehouse is majority Dem!

I don't know what happened here in Arkansas, except that the NRA types had the word out that Kerry was going to take away their guns!

I did some phone banking for Kerry here and got that response from many people I called who were supposed to be leaning Dem (if the data was right)

Arkansas is not a Red state except on the presidency, and we are purple on that one.

[samtob]

147. As red as it gets here n/t

[thinkingwoman]

148. Hoosier here

Born and raised in Indiana.

[BlueOhio]

149. Butler County OH

When the red states get smeared and slammed I personally, do not feel its directed at me.

Im as blue as they get, having transplanted my self from California in march of this year, I figured my Vote might make a difference here.

[DrGonzoLives]

150. Hoosier

nad yes I like living here in the midwest.

[juliagoolia]

151. That'd be me out here in TX

Waving to you all. I've lived in Red States, and I've lived in Blue States..
But I will always have a Blue State of mind!

[MISSDem]

152. Mississippi here

40% for Kerry

[juslikagrzly]

153. Oklahoma here

Every time I turn around, psychoCoburn is making the national/international news for being such a sick, twisted piece of **it!

This whole red state/blue state is weird. We all know it's more purple. But, it's like dissing my family. I can do it, but you can't :-). Strange cognitive dissonance comes from having to constantly fight with my fellow dems and live with all the repugs. Yeah, we're a big fat red state. Hate us if you will. We hate us. The psychological implications are scary :-).


edited to get the smilies right :-).

[Nestea]

154. TEXAN here- Screw people who bash my state

nt

[merh]

155. Unfortunately, I am blue in a red state!

Not only red, but in the South. Double whammy!

But I will not give up the fight to change things.
:hi: :cry:

(Mississippi)

[Dark]

156. O-H-I-O. Hopefully not red for too much longer!

:-)

[catmandu57]

157. All the missourians who responded here

This is for you.

I know many of you are new here and to that I say welcome home, now let me get to it.
We have had one meeting in 02, despite pleas and cajolings we've never got together again.
That one time for everyone who was there it was great, being among people who thought like each other, totally free to discuss and debate the situation was such a mental health booster, I don't know why we weren't meeting every month after that.

Except maybe the midterms collapsed us, no matter in the time since then, we've never got together again. Getting you guys in one place is harder than herding cats, if you speak to the Illinois DU'ers and to the East coast DU'ers they get together all the time and they're loving it.

So, one more time, and this includes all of you people in the surrounding states, lets join up, we need physical info, ways to get together later after the ball implodes, my email is in my profile, lets do it while we can.

[sunnystarr]

158. Tennessee here

transplanted from upstate NY. Davidson county (Nashville and surrounding area) went for Kerry.

[Dr.Phool]

159. I live in Florida

I moved from Ohio 2 years ago.

I ran for Congress earlier this year, and worked my ass off first for Howard Dean, and then for John Kerry. Not to mention other local Dems.

I may be a citizen of Costa Rica or New Zealand soon.

[Ekirh]

160. Living in VA....

My town voted over 60 percent Republican... and I was the only Democrat vote in the family.

[HuskerDem]

162. I am from Nebraska

If we were to abolish the stupid & undemocratic electoral college it simply wouldn't be an issue anymore.

[winston61]

163. here in Texas

I've lived in Texas a long time and let me tell you that not everybody down here is a bible thumping bubba. And this is not the only place that has them. Texas is filled with kind, generous and loving people. I married a Texas girl. But Texans are no less vulnerable to propaganda and the 'John Wayne/ Whatever America does is noble and good' complex. Texans, like most all Americans see that they and their neighbors are basically kind,decent people. Americans like to think that we have some 'specialness' that others in the world don't. That for some reason we have a nobility that others don't. This can cause us to refuse to see the real motives of leaders or to be able to understand why others in the world hate us. And we want to believe in our leaders are as well. There is the dis-connect. No one likes to admit being conned and lead down the garden path. The age old techniques of propaganda and fear are no less effective now than in the past. There is a reason that we don't see dead or wounded soldiers or civilians in Iraq. The neocons staged a coup without firing a shot. Who is suffering? The poor and working classes who have to die in the imperial wars because so many have swallowed the kool aid. The Allies marched German civilians through the death camps to show what they had supported. Too bad that Bush's advocates can't be airlifted to Iraq for the same treat.

[pmbryant]

164. Texas

[Sputnik]

165. Bill Clinton's/Wes Clark's home state here

:*

[RuleofLaw]

166. Florida here

[recovering democrat]

167. Georgia Blue

In a county that gave Kerry 70% of its votes and just put some fine Dems in office locally also. GEORGIA IS PURPLE.

[merci_me]

168. Texas here, use to brag.............

that I came here from Ohio, but now hanging my head in shame about that.

Fortunately, I can point out that I was born in Massachusetts and due to my dad's employer, moved to Ohio, BUT he was transferred back to MA three times during my crucial formative years.

Mary

[spooky3]

170. another Virginian here

[BluePatriot]

171. Texan here (nt)

[Gayla]

175. 4th Generation Yellow Dog

Democrat from Alabama. And my son, who was (and will be our
Democratic Congressional Candidate for the Alabama 4th District,
is fifth generation.

www.coleforcongress.com

[kerry-is-my-prez]

172. I'm in Florida but refuse to call it red - the vote was stolen both times

I don't take offense at the people who are putting down the red states because I know that they mean the dumbass "red" people - not the better educated "blue people."

I can't stand those "red" people myself and am happy that the rest of the country realizes what we have to put up with. There really are pockets of blue in the red states.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

176. Currently in Florida.

I've only been here for about 3 years. My family doesn't like it here much, so we're moving back to the northeast (where we are originally from) in June. I don't consider myself a southerner at all. I grew up in New England, and lived there most of my life, so I identify with that area of the country the most. No offense meant to any of the real southerners we've got on DU.

[movie_girl99]

177. I'm in Texas

Born and raised here and now as much as I would like to pick up and leave I cant because I have a senior in HS and one in 8th grade not to mention our jobs are here as well.

[donheld]

179. I'm in Colorado

i have no problem with "bashing of red states" i do it myself. We all know all red states have a great share of blue people and all blue states have a great share of red people.

[dhinojosa]

181. I live in New Mexico; and I am accountable for it's goddamn redness.

Sure I tried my best to make this state blue. A lot of us did, but it didn't change the fact that we became a red state because a great many of us are complete idiots. So I am all "for" making fun of red-states, even mine. Look, if you hate being called a red-state, work harder next time. I will, until then enjoy the name calling and have a laugh.


Remember it's stupid pride over nationalism that got us into Iraq, and it will be stupid pride of your state that will tear us democrats apart.

Have a beer, have a laugh, and have fun, even at your state's expense.

[choicevoice]

182. Louisiana red stater here

All of the "Fuck the South" posts have thoroughly pissed me off. Even in most of the blue states about 40% of your population voted republican red. So we have an additional 10 to 15 % of idiots who voted like the idiots in your state did.

As liberal or progressive or even moderate Democrats the hatred in your posts for an entire segment of the country smacks of bigotry. Unfortunately it has made me aware of what you "REALLY" think about us. You tolerate us for our votes all the while you have disdain for all southerners all the while forgetting that there are in each state 40% of us with the same beliefs and goals that you have.

May I suggest that if the only southern people you have met are the ones you describe you might want to visit southerners other than your friends and family.

[lachattefolle]

184. Sucks to be in red state Arizona. n/t

[Trailrider1951]

185. Texas here

Right now I'm in Houston, but I will move to Austin next year.

[DebinTx]

186. Texas here.

.

[Butterflies]

187. Virginia here

It sucks to be in a red state, but the good news is that it's less red now than it's been in a long time. We need more progressives to move here before 2008 and we'll have a good shot at turning blue!

[phatkatt]

188. Alabama - red in more ways than one.

Ack! Get me out!

[Pithlet]

189. Tennessee, however

I haven't felt particularly bashed by the DU community. I know they aren't talking about me when they talk about "Red Staters" for the most part. I do think the Red State/Blue state dichotomy is only important when discussing the electoral college, and doesn't paint an accurate picture of the political makeup of the US geographically.

[0007]

190. Midland Texas is blood red!

[kwyjibo]

221. You live in Midland?! I'm so sorry! (Austin here.)

I got out of Midland as soon as I could. It's such a depressing, uninspiring town. No trees, no water, no hills, no open minds.. just strip malls, churches, and high school football.

[seabeyond]

350. my husband born and raised in midland

graduated '83 midland high school

[prayin4rain]

191. Texas.

[mikita]

193. NC Mts. -- red or blue doesn't matter.....

Proving honest elections is the only thing that matters -- some of the "red" states are undoubtedly "blue".....

[seabeyond]

194. texas here n/t

[Moloch]

195. Louisiana here...

but please, feel free to criticize my state, we do it all the time.....

[nonews]

196. nc Piedmont

[brie]

198. NH Blue?????

Being a liberal Dem from Mass and moving up stream 25 miles is like moving to another land that speaks a foreign language. I held my breath, and thanked the gods above that we went blue, but only by a narrow margin, and NO ONE in my area is a blue blood. I am surrounded by reds, and it is really hard making friends when everyone here is passionate about their politics.

[The Wielding Truth]

210. Welcome to DU, Blue!

:hi:

[Fovea]

197. Kansas

in one of the only blue counties.

[AspenRose]

199. "Blue" gone "Red": New Mexico

Although I think if it's 49.8% for Bush** and 49.1% Kerry, it's more purple than anything.

[dhinojosa]

203. Are you in ALB?

[babylonsister]

200. Displaced NYer in Texas

[DemExpat]

201. Expat from TEXAS!

DemEx

[bearfan454]

202. Central TX n/t

[fshrink]

204. WY. And I don't mind "my" state being smeared.

It deserves it.

[KnowerOfLogic]

205. I live in a red state, and let me be the first to smear it! Of course

there are blue people in red states and vice-versa, but in a winner-take-all political system, it's the 51% that matters.

[iamthebandfanman]

206. kentucky here :(

:(

[LiberalCat]

209. Ohio

Love the state; hate the sexist self-important conservatives.

[doni_georgia]

211. Metro Hotlanta, GA here

Lifelong, active, yellow dog Democrat
:kick:

[Qanisqineq]

212. Blue in a red state!

Currently living in CO but grew up in North Dakota. Also lived in Virginia and Kentucky (reds) and Illinois (blue) and worked in Wash, DC (blue)

:hi:

[JeffInRick]

213. Arizona here!

Hi all. Seemed like a good place for my first post.
Red, red, red, as far as the I can see here!

[UNIXcock]

258. Echo ...

... I love my native State Arizona

[smurfygirl]

214. Kentucky here. And yes I wear

shoes and have teeth. And I'm also not a baptist.

[kittycat1164]

231. Ky here too

And Smurfygirl, I too wear shoes, have teeth and am not Baptist! too funny!

[Carey46955]

275. Kentucky here too (Louisville to be exact)

And yes...teeth...shoes...not a Baptist.

[yellowdogintexas]

291. In Texas now but raised in Kentucky...and I also

have teeth, shoes and am not a Baptist

( do we have enough to start a group here?)

[loudestchick]

215. I live in a red state!

I live in Kansas City, Missouri...Kansas City is blue, St.Louis is blue...all the mid-staters make our state red :cry:

[Psst_Im_Not_Here]

216. Colorado

But, O how I wish I was in a BLUE state...and no mamby pamby swing blue states either....it will have to be SOLID BLUE!

[BulletproofLandshark]

217. Virginia Checking In...

From the very red Shenandoah Valley.

[SmileyBoy]

218. North Dakota.

Although my precinct voted for Kerry, my county came close to a Kerry win, and my state had the most votes for a Democratic presidential candidate (110,662) since Humphrey in 1968.

[Qanisqineq]

224. Really?

I didn't know ND had the most votes for a dem candidate since 1968. Good for them! I have relatives there that voted for the first time ever and voted for Kerry! (my dad, for one example)

[montieg]

219. Another Texan

whose county went to B* 4 to 1. And the Dems here are fighting it like hell!

[Dora]

220. Texas

[RedEarth]

222. Oklahoma

For the misinformed..McVeigh and Nichols are NOT from Oklahoma..Nichols from Michigan & McVeigh NY

[argyl]

223. Texas. Home of LBJ, orphanage to Smirk.

[Blue Gardener]

225. Iowan Here

And I am getting VERY tired of all the Iowa bashing that's been going on since the election. Enough already!

[GetTheRightVote]

281. I am Orginally from Iowa - It tried to go Blue but stolen too !!!

[NC_Nurse]

226. Yep.

we're not ALL stoopid. :)

[Lady Effingbroke]

228. Texas - - Houston.

I didn't realize there were so many Texas DUers! :hi:

[Brand New Tico]

230. (Double) Sorry everyone - from Georgia

I want to apologize for America and the world both for my state's pathetic votes for Bush, and for Zell Miller.

I sincerely apologize for our votes for both of these psychos.

Please forgive us - but next time please don't show us any mercy when the next Civil War comes. Now you see what happens when you fail to crush rebellion in a complete and thorough way. The slime oozes back out from under its rock.

Sherman was a wussy wimp girlie man - he should have finished the job. A few thousand redneck bodies hanging from a few thousand trees would have done the trick.

I'm a Georgia native, but I despise rednecks more than Satan himself.

[Redleg]

232. I live in a Red State but I don't care if people flame Red States.

I just don't want to be stereotyped.

[Bush_My_Ass]

237. I don't care either

I don't blame anyone one bit for the outrage over red staters. People here (freaky freepers)in Oklahoma are so out of touch with reality it's scary. They still belive WMD were found. There is no excuse for someone to be uninformed-that's what pisses me off too-they don't believe in the news-NPR is "commie news" and Limbaugh Looney is their only news outlet.

[bunkerbuster1]

249. Fine by me too. F*ck the South!

knock some damn sense into these foolish, misguided souls.

[Dancing_Dave]

233. I'm in Kansas now, but I'm looking at teaching English in Japan

Enough is enough already!

[Bush_My_Ass]

235. Pissed Oklahoman

This is the first time I have posted anything. DU has been my only sane outlet ever since the election. I live in Oklahoma and I am tired of being the nice little rational democrat! I am very angry that these right wing freepers have gotton their way. These morality moronic monsters are so fucking hypocritical.

Fucking frat boy pieces of shit at my school say they voted for Bush because of his stance on gay marriage, meanwhile they get off on girl-on girl porn! Blows my mind!

[Kay Autic]

308. Lemme guess..those frat boys are Sooners?

I'm in Oklahoma, I hate the state, the people and the damn weather. And most of all, I hate their stupid red-neck, whitetrash football team. The fucking Sooners.

No one gives two shits about actual intellectual politics here, just who the Gooners are playing on Saturday, so all the sister-fucking bandwagon redneck fans who couldn't even point to Norman, OK on a fucking map, can have an excuse to drink and beat their pregnant 17 year old wife.

The entire election process here was akin to a football game.

I HATE, HATE this state. Seriously, it depresses me that I live here, and circumstances for the immediate moment are keeping me here. So in a last ditch attempt:

30ish SWF, 110lbs, dark brown hair, dark brown eyes seeks blue-state resident like-minded gentleman. Home must be handicap accessible (at least the doors) and be able to lift 70lbs and put up with a very sweet greyhound. Non smoker preferred, social drinker required! PM me!


Dating also sucks here, your choices are the uneducated redneck or the uneducated redneck. In fact, I just recently stopped dating this wealthy businessman, who is otherwise a nice man, but voted for *.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

236. I'm in VA.

[FuzzySlippers]

238. Unfortunately, I do now.

Iowa. My county went narrowly for Kerry, though.

[MelissaB]

239. I'm from Alabama!

Somebody please help get me out of here! We have been trying for a year. I'm so lonley!!

[VolcanoJen]

240. I'm calling you from somewhere deep in Ohio.

:hi:

[Lex]

241. I'm in a Dark Blue County in a Red State--NC.

Our Governor is Dem, our state legislature is Dem controlled.

[GodHelpUsAll2]

243. Red Stater

here!

[chocolateeater]

244. Blue in Kentucky n/t

[bvar22]

245. Myth of the RED state.

The Red vs. Blue map that many are using in a whiney bigoted manner is a product of our "Winner Take All" electoral process. The following map (copied from DU Front Page after the election) is Representative of the percentage of the population that voted Democratic or Republican.

I don't see ANY Red States. I only see some states where the Democratic Party needs to work a little harder.




To those Democrats living in states where bush* took the majority of the votes:
Don't get overwhelmed. Take heart. You need only gain a few percentage points to turn your state blue. Considering that the Democratic Party abandoned most of you during the '04 campaign, you did remarkably well.


To Democrats living in so called Blue States that for some irrational reason feel superior to Democrats living in the other states:
WTF?

[boi1946]

246. Galveston, Texas

But this small island has considerably more liberal people than many places in Texas...and I sometimes forget it's really part of a red state.

[MissMarple]

247. Colorado, in the reddist part of the state.

But locally we reelected a state representative under brutal assault by the amoral right wing. And we took back both houses for the first time in 40 years. Am I hearing "bellwether"?

[bunkerbuster1]

248. Greetings from Rednecklandia, Joe-Jah

aka Gwinnett County, named after a Declaration of Independence signer who... um... got himself shot arguing with a subordinate.

Yes, 160,000 foolish, misguided Gwinnettians voted for Bush. But 90,000 of us voted for Kerry. And there'll be more of us voting progressive next time, I assure you.

[mondohondo]

250. Ohioan for Kerry

Lake County Ohio here. We did our damndest to get Kerry elected but fell just short. Please let the fraud be discovered!

[neebob]

251. Colorado here

wondering why we care if people criticize the states we live in. Are we feeling insecure or what?

[ignatius 2]

252. Indiana here. I did my damndest to convince people to dump

The Chimpmeister, I actually convinced several to vote for Kerry, but this is bigtime repub and Bush country and we are for the most part a blue collar union state. Go figure. I think being the original home of the KKK and in the bible belt is the problem. I am seriously considering seeing if a blue state will have me. Living here is just too damned depressing and I am tired of the ignorance and bigotry.

[Mike L]

254. Livin Large in Fundie Land

[cry baby]

255. Another "blue" Tennessean

Just south of Nashville - there is a sign in my neighbors yard that says "W - STILL The President!" Puke-o-rama

[bobd]

257. Toledo Ohio Here

Lucas County went for Kerry 60 to 40.

[Cookie wookie]

259. Georgia here

and there's plenty of us hard fighting Dems here. If Diebold didn't vote for our state, maybe the whole thing would go blue, only the shadow knows.

[Castilleja]

260. I live in South Texas

I have lived here all of my life, it's my home. It is in the blue lower part of Texas. It is a wierd city (Not Austin, although that is probably where I belong ;)) and there are lots of Republicans here, but it's still my home, I like it and I don't intend to go anywhere, red state or not. I am sick to death of hearing the phrase Red States, as though we are all voting with one mind, stop generalizing.

[kitchen girl]

261. Columbus, Ohio, here.

A blue dot in a sea of red...

[Miami Liberal]

262. Red Florida but

I take solace in the fact that Miami-Dade(my county), Broward and Palm Beach counties went BLUE.

[agincourt]

263. Nebraska here,

Some really good progressive minded folks here, but I must admit,we have a shitpot full of RW assholes and knuckle draggers. Maybe that's why the Cornhuskers lose a lot now. God is punishing them for being freepers.

[OldLeftieLawyer]

265. I live in Virginia

I console myself that Mr. Jefferson is still here, and that someday another Democrat will carry the Old Dominion.

I would like this to happen while I'm still alive to see it.

[Neverarepublican]

266. Ohio

Here I am in the stolen state

[greendog]

267. Flathead County, Montana.....

...where a group of local Republicans organized to support a Democrat for County Commissioner.....because the Republican candidate was too extreme. The Democrat won by 135 votes!

[biscotti]

273. Stuck in Kansas

It was supposed to be for a couple of years. That was 25 years ago. I have always worked on campaigns for Democrat's over the years.I belong to several national liberal organizations. There are lots of liberals in this state. It's just that they are out shouted, out spent and are not as connected to industries (polluters)in the state who buy political favors.

[AuntPatsy]

268. Texas here, supposedly red state or so Faux and company believe

do all of you believe the media numbers these days? Or do you actually take time to see these past two elections for what they were....

Stolen folks and we all know it to be fact not some dreamt up conspiracy theory......

By going on and on about red state blue state bs you continue to allow for spin city to be so misleading, did some of you ever think about that?

As for all of say Mass, etc going for Kerry, we know it did not happen, there are good and bad in all states, the same as along racial lines etc...

Food for thought...

[Queen Jane]

269. South Carolina, right here. nt.

[YellowRubberDuckie]

270. I'm an oklahoman....

I don't care that people flame my state. A lot of the people here are complete idiots.
Duckie

[ohio_liberal]

272. Another Ohioan

:)

[BlueInRed]

277. one here

who is very tired of sweeping generalizations and assumptions about red states.

you know what they say assuming does....

[smiley_glad_hands]

278. Virginian, and I will never leave this country. eom

[Malingerer]

280. Indiana

I'm living in Indiana. I see as many Kerry stickers as Bush stickers on campus. The campus newspaper has vocal letters from both sides. But I don't know what percentage of the Kerry camp are out of staters. I do know that Kerry's sad attempt to appeal to hunters did him more damage than if he had just ignored them. They saw right through everything he said invovling hunting. Thats pretty big here in Indiana it would seem.

[area51]

282. Red State occupant.

This is a so-called "right to work" state; the more accurate term is "right to fire".

[GetTheRightVote]

285. Charlotte, NC - Home to Charlotte Observer who backed Kerry for Pres.

They backed Kerry because they hated Bush and his policies, big move for the paper in a very, very red area of this state, my heros.

[southlandshari]

283. Alabama here

Thanks for this thread!

As I've said in previous threads in the past few weeks, I NEVER thought I'd see the day that I became an defender of the Deep South. That said, while there is still much I abhor about the politics of my state, and I have no problem saying as much, a disappointing number of recent threads were shockingly narrow and bigoted in their vast generalizations of all who live in red states.

I'm not moving to a blue state. I'm not disowning family members who voted Republican. I'm not going to see any "red state", including my own (which is arguably the reddest of the red), as a lost cause. How simplistic and anger-driven - and un-Democratic - can we be here?

For weeks, I waded into the fray in these threads on more occasions than was healthy. Though I understood the frustration, I just couldn't quite buy into the argument that all of us "red staters" ought to just sit back and take being lumped in with those we worked so hard to defeat politically in submissive silence.

I think I actually made some new friends on a couple of those threads at the end of the day, including one (maybe two) of those who had been the most antagonistic towards "red states" and the South in particular.

Still, it wasn't pretty. So, thanks a million for this simple thread allowing us all to "represent" on behalf of our much-maligned states!

[yellowdogintexas]

284. I am in Texas, Fort Worth to be exact

and I am not the only Democrat in this city.

I love living here but hate that it is a Republican haven.

We are trying to take it back but man sometimes......

[Greylyn58]

292. Charlotte, NC Here

and I had high hopes for a Kerry victory. My only consolation is that my county went blue for Kerry/Edwards.

And I'll admit I'm tired of the smears and nastiness directed at the red states. Democrats are everywhere and where we are I know we tried hard to make our states blue.

[aaronbees]

293. red state x 2

SW Arkansas here and northeast Texas ... an area that's traditionally been (conservative) Dem, I believe, until about ten years ago.

[vapro]

295. Blue in Virginia

I voted for John Kerry. I am an outcast because of my values and beliefs in this Southwest VA sea of * sheep. It is difficult to look around this world in which I live and see these mindless blobs.

[Sinti]

296. Blue in Virginia n/t

[juajen]

297. Louisiana/Red, sometimes purple

This is surely a mixed up state. It really wants to be democrat, it really does. I'm not sure votes were not skimmed here for Vitter and *. The red states should be audited also. Anybody paying any attention to this? No, I have no pull and for health reasons am not able.

[RB TexLa]

298. Live in Texas now, raised in and vote in Louisiana

[AlwaysDemocrat]

300. Tangled up in Red (Indiana) (EOM)

[Mist]

301. NC - I live in a blue haven in a mostly red state

tho' some areas of NC are definately purple. I don't mind the flaming of some states (inc. this one)--it releases tension if nothing else!

[elcondor]

303. Ohio

*sigh*

[FlaGranny]

307. Well, Florida, but

I'm not really in a red area. My area is a lovely shade of blue.

[emdee]

312. I'm in Tennessee --- but at least my county went for Kerry! n/t

n/t

[utahgirl]

313. Red red Utahn here

It's so embarrassing!

utahgirl

[floridadem30]

315. I live in Florida and still believe Kerry won here

[EstimatedProphet]

316. I do

And I'm not happy about it.

[cyberswede]

319. so blue in a red state!

Iowa, but at least our precinct, town, and county all went blue.

[tanyev]

320. Texas

We're just waitin' for the rapture here in Plano!

[helderheid]

321. UTAH HERE

Internet Outreach Coordinator for the Utah Democratic Progressive Caucus.

[TransitJohn]

322. Wyoming

:wave:

[funkybutt]

323. bright blue concentration in a red state

New Orleans had over 150K votes for Kerry and only 40K for Bush

[DemCam]

327. Hideous thought! NM is red, too.

I had never thought of it before! I am now supposedly one of them, a category that somehow doesn't seem to fit...except we have always voted with one exception with the national trend for president.

I don't feel like we're a "red state"...maybe because of where I live...in our one large city...that went comfortably blue.

Hey, blues...come on out to NM. I'm afraid our demographic is being infilterated.

[nostalgicaboutmyfutr]

329. Colorado....

[neohippie]

330. I am Stuck inside of NC with the red state blues again

reporting for DUty

[NamVetsWeeLass]

332. Stuck in Red Hell... AKA West BY GAWD Virginny........

But still not giving up the dream of moving back to Pennsylvania where it is indeed BLUE

[ernstbass]

333. Virginia here

I'm nestled in a progressive blue town (Blacksburg VA) that is surronded by ignorant right wing towns

[NamVetsWeeLass]

339. Lucky for you, I am stuck in a tri-state red sea. I can be in either

Ohio or Kentucky in five minutes.

[libbygurl]

347. WV here, too. Still, a substantial minority voted K/E just the same. nt

[PunkyPower]

334. Clive-Des Moines, Iowa

Just moved here at the beginning of the month (voted via absentee ballot back in Milwaukee, WI (home of 18 years which went blue aain) before I moved) They're saying now that * got Iowa by only 10,000 or so votes, (iowa went to gore in 2k) makes me hang my head in shame, most of my extended family I'm coming back to here in Des Moines are liberal at heart but ignorant and brainwashed by the media enough (regardless of my immediate familie's constantly throwing facts in their face) to vote for *.

[hippiegranny]

335. I really worked to turn Arizona blue

maybe I can encourage some New Yorkers or Chicagoans wjo are sick of cold weather to transfer? If we can't change the minds of those already here, we'll just have to bring the progressives IN! HA!

[aikanae]

361. either that or tell snowbirds to go home (mess up the northerners)

[okieinpain]

338. oklahoma, not great not bad, we do have a dem gov, and part of

the congress is still ruled by dems. we have those old school dems. they aren't really liberal, but they are better then delay.

[huskerlaw]

340. Nebraska. ::sigh::

n/t

[lgardengate]

342. Me! I'm in WV

[AnIndependentTexan]

343. live in texas and ready to move

[lectrobyte]

344. red on the head (Raleigh NC, which should have known better)

[Doncha_know]

345. I live in the Peoples Republic of Austin Tx

I am not ashamed to be from Texas.

[NAO]

348. I live in a bright blue county (Pima) in a big red state (AZ)

I hail from the blue rectangle in Southern Arizona.

[aikanae]

359. maricopa here. aren't you under investigation too?

www.blackboxvoting.org has pima county listed.
know why?
i stopped reading the press.

[Hun Joro]

349. Texas here.

[Beausoleil]

352. Texas

n/t

[mastershake]

353. Kansas City MO

werd

[Solar]

355. Missourian expat studying in Texas

do I count twice ?

[magellan]

357. Living in a "red" state for the first time in my life -- FL

Luckily I live in a very blue neighborhood.

[POTGNE]

358. West Virginia Here.....

I'm a mountain woman....LOL! Can't stand Bush though! There are at least 33% of us in my county alone who can't stand the SOB! LOL! We're standing tall and holding Dumbya accountable for the next four years! Personally, I will be relentless in my pursuit of a fairer, more considerate, more efficient, and more fiscally responsible government, Who's with me? :kick:

[aikanae]

360. AZ and i reserve the right to continue bashing red, they deserve it

except for our GOV (D).
we have some very stoopid senators.

i can't even stand to read the press here.

[Romberry]

362. Selma, Alabama here but the Blues can slam the Reds....

...all they want if you ask me. I don't take it personally. Their slams aren't directed at me or at you. Their slams are directed at the moron majority that votes in the states where we live. Hell, I slam the moron majority myself. And why not? Red states slop at the public trough, typically receiving far more federal tax money back than they paid in, while blue states bust their ass to fill the trough and get back less than they put in.

Why do you take it personally? When I was growing up we were a nation that slammed the USSR as the "evil empire" (and who knew we really needed 'em to stay there and act as a counterbalance to the neocon lunatics?) but the dissidents in the USSR didn't complain. Red-state dissidents is what we are. Join the slam!

[Native]

364. Cracker Here - Born & Raised in Florida

And, believe it or not, we still have assholes with Bush/Cheney signs in their yards.

[dand]

365. Virginia a vast military base, KKK enclave and repuke haven

I feel like I am the lone liberal in the State.

[shesemsmom]

367. I live in Indiana

Red state....generally blue county. BUT not this time. We got creamed by the religious right. No I don't want to live some where else. I want to change it.

[Pepper32]

369. Another Georgia transplant here...

I moved to Atlanta in August of this year and I'm already regretting it. I'm making plans to get my family back to a blue state soon.

I don't want to be trapped here when all hell breaks loose, which I feel WILL happen, eventually.