Curious

[hyphenate]

How many people here became part of the Democratic party because someone managed to alter your worldview or your "firm" opinion? How were you persuaded to become liberal in thought and deed, and do you think it is still possible to hold sway over some of those people who consider themselves "moderates" and openminded?

Are we headed for a downfall in 2006 or 2008 because we are having a harder time convincing the average American that the GOP is wrong, and that the bushlovers are tainted and deadly to our democracy?

What future strategies can we create, muster or utilize to look at our platform and adopt it as their own?

What things are we doing wrong right now that are turning some people off to the message and the messenger? Have we adopted an "in your face" tactic which is only crippling us?

It seems to me that we need to attract those on the right who are not religious fanatics, but who are really decent people somewhere under that GOP exterior. It is only when we can get into their heads that we might have a chance to take down both the bush regime and the radical religious right. If it isn't obvious yet to many (on both sides), it is obvious to some of us that those who are fanatical are trying to speed up the process leading to the so-called apocalypse, and many people who vote on the right need to be shown that it is those on their own side, specifically these fanatics, who want to cause hellfire and brimstone to rain down upon us.

Are we headed for something like a second civil war, with the booty being the heart of our country, and the sides not geographical, but with ideological differences? Are we going to see most of the other nations turn against us for our part in creating horror in the middle east, and for our hubris and arrogance against so many others? How long will our bullying ways keep us from finding accord with others in this world, instead of bringing us back into the fold?

[jukes]

1. born & raised democrat

union-family.

VERY disenchanted w/ their cynicism & sucking-up. wd vote for a new, radical-left party if 1 shows up.


i really believe that the world will tke the US to task soon, and many dem's will be in the resistance.


to be honest, i'd like to be elsewhere before it comes to that, but the economic realities imposed by the Oppresive Party make that most unlikely...

[jswordy]

3. I'm from same background. What we need are some populists...

...in our party. Tom Harken is a bit too old now, but his kind of message delivery could resonate with people. I was happy to see Dean become chair, but that takes his brand of populism off the table, as far as he personally being a candidate soon.

We need to "farm team" some pols in our party who will speak directly to the people and do their will. Old fashioned pols people can really latch onto and say, "There's my senator, working for me!" Or, "My president works for me!"

Third parties are stillborn here cuz the system is so stacked against them. I am waiting for a Midwestern-Western kind of populism to reignite this party. Right now, our most experienced pols look like a bunch of worn-out hacks.

We need new and stimulating blood, younger pols with broad ideas who can develop a true national agenda and lead our nation through the process of deciding its national priorities. And they must always keep foremost in mind the good of the people as a whole, not their own polls or financial gain. Or else we will continue as a country to be controlled by events, rather than to set our own destiny.

[On the Road]

2. I Was a Republican Evangelical When I Was Younger

Never that active politically, but I was very happy when Reagan was elected, even though I thought Carter was OK.

Somewhere around 1990, I began to shift allegiances. It was largely the result of reading James Loewen ("Lies My Teacher Told Me"), Noam Chomsky, and William Greider. What struck me was how much about American history I had never heard before. I felt betrayed and angry, and still do.

One of the things I did not share with a lot of other Republicans was that I sought out other points of view, tried to assimilate them, and was open to changing my mind. "You're not like the others" was a phrase I heard more than once.

I had known a lot of progressives and tended to like them as people even if I didn't agree with their view of the world. To me, being a "witness" for the cause is extremely important. Changing identification is almost impossible without a personal element, and that's difficult to get if you don't like people on the other side.

Other factors are hearing an attractive set of policies expressed with hope derived in a reasonable way from a consistent set of values. That's what Bill Clinton had. That's why Auntie Pinko is a better tool tool for preaching to the masses than the Plaid Adder (sorry, PA). It's why Crossfire is "hurting the country" -- because sound bite attacks crowd out substance.

The final piece of the puzzle is rarely controllable. It's when internal contradictions and disagreements become serious enough to cause a person to question his or her allegiance. But it's important that when it happens, there's an attractive alternative. If the Democrats don't do this, they'll end up like the British Tories who couldn't fully benefit from Tony Blair's troubles.