My Brother-In-Law .........

[doublethink]

A Truck Driver rose to around $62,000 in income a year during the Clinton administration. And as Bush took office in 2000, he had a great Family Health Insurance Plan, which among other things was brought about by a strong Truckers Union which my Brother-In-Law never belonged to. But he benefited just the same as the company he works for offered non-union workers the same plan. Always a hard worker, he was living his American Dream…..

My Brother-In-Law is lucky to pull in $42,000 now and is constantly ‘on call 24/7’………… My Brother-In-Law now pays extra for my niece and nephews health Insurance every month and complains about it, unaware of the details on how or why the company had to make cuts on things in the last few years (layoffs, broken union, out-sourcing , economy bla bla bla etc etc……..)

My Brother-In-Law at a relatively young age of 48 is developing health problems while his defunct coverage, rising premiums, lower income etc… leave doubt as to his future ability to basically survive and pay the bills.

My Brother-In-Law goes to one of those churches every Sunday who praise president Bush as a ‘Godly Man’ and my brother-in-law is a staunch Republican.

The last time I listened to my Brother-In-Law talk about politics he was all for Social Security Reform, wanting to control his own ‘assets’ and play the stock market. And that’s as deep as my Brother-In-Law gets when it comes to such ‘details’. I sit there and listen and say WTF? WTF is wrong with you?

I love my Brother-In-Law ……… but does he know that when he retires under Bush’s Social Security Reform his retirement will be cut between 35%and 46%. Not to mention the ‘administration costs’ out of his pocket that will be charged to his ‘private social security account’ to GAMBLE the stock market. My Brother-In-Law, …….awwww have another beer dude, love ya man just the same….. Why do I see the drain in the movie ‘Psycho’ in my mind every time I leave my Brother-In-Laws house? Sigh …… :banghead:

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

1. The best I can suggest...

Is that you compie everything that they are trying to do, with what the real effects will be, should they come to pass, and discuss this with him gently.

Also educate him as to what they want to do to the unions that have made his life better.

[doublethink]

7. Thanks for the advice .......

I'll note that, he's all up in arms against our Governor Schwarzenegger because of the 'tax per driving mile' plan out here. Maybe one day he will see through Bush's bull too. Peace. :)

[tedoll78]

2. Not to sound mean..

but I have no pity for your Brother-In-Law; he voted for all of this.

I tell my Chimp-lovin' fundie relatives the same thing. Autistic children in the family suffer because of their votes, with stem cell research & special education funding cuts. The job market shrivels-up and spits them out onto the streets, and they wonder why..

Ya buys the ticket, ya takes the ride..

[Ernesto]

3. I'm with you tedoll78

Screw a "free rider" who "voted himself to the bottom".

[XanaDUer]

4. And we all get to ride with them

that is what annoys me.

To the OP:WOuld he in any way be open to a discussion, backed up with facts from you, about why he should not vote for BushCo.?

[doublethink]

9. I'm afraid he's .......

still drinking the cool-aid, and until I hear out of his mouth one day just one negative thing about Bush, or a Bush policy, or something that finally registers home with him ........ I ONLY ASK FOR ONE THING! :) ..... then I can calmly agree, and like response No.1 up there says start laying the facts on him, I see no other way. It has to originate with him as his own life is affected. He's a good guy, a good heart, sad to see people like this on the dark side, especially when it's family. By the way my Sister, Niece and Nephew are very Progressive, Democratic etc.. thanks to their Uncle ..... me. :) Peace.

[Journeyman]

5. And in your pitiless view, is there no room for. . .

educating these ill-served, ignorant voters? They should just suffer meaninglessly, ripe earth for the next round of debased justifications, easy pickings for the next purveyor of slanderous canards, prone to vote again against their own best interests for lack of an alternative view?

No matter how you rationalize it, no matter how much you protest "he's not my pretzeldent," the truth remains: they did buy the ticket, but it is you -- and they -- who are along for the ride, and so long as you hate and show no compassion, so long as you find them beneath contempt and unworthy of your effort, you'll be at the mercy of their ignorance the rest of your days.

[tedoll78]

8. I harbor no hate..

and nowhere did I say that they were "beneath contempt and unworthy of {my} effort."

I'm all for trying to educate these people, but some just plug their ears and scream "LA LA LA LA.. I CAN'T HEAR YOU.. LA LA LA.." And for those folks, I have no pity.

Now please, stop putting things in my mouth.

[Journeyman]

10. "I have no pity. . ."

"Ya buys the ticket, ya takes the ride.."

"I harbor no hate.."

I can't imagine how you reconcile these three comments.

[tedoll78]

11. Well then..

you must have a very weak imagination. :P

[XanaDUer]

12. That could be apathy, not hate

There does come a point where attempting to help the hapless starts to cause compassion fatigue. There is only so much one can do.

That is not necessarily hate or contempt.

I myself have a Master's degree, and I never even made 40 grand/annum. I never had a good job with a great pension, unions, or anything like that, and I have reached the point of trying to just keep my head above water and hope the bushbots finally wake up.

[tedoll78]

13. I couldn't've said it better myself.

Apathy..

[XanaDUer]

14. I mean, what can you do?

Where I live, the local military types are thrilled. The military bases are not only not going to be closed, but expanded. The local news reports that everyone is "ecstatic."

Never mind Bush screws them in a million other ways. They got theirs (we are in NE FL-our local Repub group bragged about "delivering" this area to Bush in November) and screw everyone else.

[klyon]

15. yes the opposite of hate is indifference

also the opposite of love is indifference

KL

[doublethink]

20. Yea part of me says .....

he's getting what he bargained for, but this ignorance by fellow citizens affects all of us. I have a friend back in Indiana with M.S. and she votes against her own interests too when it comes to stem cell research. Unfricking believable. Peace.

[merbex]

6. He fits the saying...

You can pick your friends but not your relatives

I can totally relate; all my husband's siblings are like this

I like a few of his cousins though - the ones his siblings can't stand

They are liberal and tolerant and SMART and it drives the in- law's nuts

[doublethink]

16. For the life of me .......

I can't understand how some of these people come to their conclusions on their belief system. Not based on facts or truth, even when it stares them in the face sometimes. Ignorance is one thing, but just as a child comes into the world innocent and we fill their heads with propaganda, prejudices, misconceptions of a view, are these people brought up differently? Or just when did they close their minds to reality? How much weight does 'Greed' separate Republicans from Democrats, Progressives? Frustrating at times I just sit there .... saying nothing but wondering what is wrong with these people? Peace. :)

[XanaDUer]

18. Here is my take on them

from a personal point of view (nutball relative who benefited more than I ever did from New Dealism)

They get to claim that white straight men are victims. That seems to be the MO my relative goes on.

[Phoebe Loosinhouse]

17. Your brother-in-law is emblamatic of our collective failure

Boy, is he ever. The Democrats are just percieved as liberal, pot smoking, gay-loving, abortionist, elitist, anti-war weinies and your brother-in-law wants no part of it because he thinks Republicans are God-fearing, self-supporting, values-oriented, smallgovernment.

Of course he has it wrong, but where do we begin with someone like him. Healthcare might be a good place to start.

[doublethink]

19. Our collective failure .........

....... :hurts: