44 years a Republican, 1 year an Independent, today I'm joining the Democratic Party

[babylonsister]

http://www.chicagonow.com/politics-now/2017/07/44-years-a-republican-1-year-an-independent-today-im-joining-the-democratic-party/

44 years a Republican, 1 year an Independent, today I'm joining the Democratic Party
By Bob Schneider, July 7, 2017 at 10:47 am

snip//


Why I left the GOP:

Hate and paranoia have become an ideological principle in the GOP. The common view is the poor are thieves and stealing taxpayer's money. They point to social programs as having failed to end poverty. Social programs are not designed to end poverty. They are designed to keep you alive while an individual tries to find another pathway in life.

They hate education. Their steadfast crusade to end public education, to deny it money is an attack on our future. I went to public schools, including a public university. I received a good education, from dedicated teachers and professors. That should be preserved and not torn to shreds.

They are trade protectionists and isolationists. This is the final betrayal of Ronald Reagan.

They blame the victims. In fact, they have a false victimhood that they are actually the victims of the poor. They point to a mother on food stamps with an iPhone in her hand as "evidence" of theft. Did they ever stop to think that maybe a family member in better circumstances gave her that iPhone?

With competition, which the GOP claims is a very conservative idea, the prices on smartphones have dropped dramatically along with the cost of service. Why shouldn't a poor person have access to the rest of the world? Their view that I've read a hundred times if I have read it once. The resentment of the poor only continues the poverty and despair of the poor.

The GOP hates the poor. They are only interested in self. Everything with the GOP today is "I." There is no "we" in their dialogue. In the GOP rant about the poor, they go out of their way to admonish the poor for being poor. They treat them without dignity and try to destroy all hope for the poor.

The GOP is xenophobic. The day we lose the melting pot is the day we lose America. I wrote about that yesterday which you can read by clicking here.

Education is the key to ending poverty. See my comment above about the GOP views on education.

The GOP is overtly racist and unapologetic for it. They can talk about how much they love Israel but that doesn't stop them from being anti-semitic. They love the Jews "over there," but the Jews under their very noses? Not so much. This week, I have been told I am a kike which is not a term of endearment and told there is an oven with my name on it. I belong in an oven because I don't agree with conservatives. That sums up today's GOP.

more...

http://www.chicagonow.com/politics-now/2017/07/44-years-a-republican-1-year-an-independent-today-im-joining-the-democratic-party/

[Bluepinky]

1. They are also traitors, liars and cheaters.

They know they can't win elections legally, so they will do anything to win.

[Cary]

2. There are still way too many cultists.

Last edited Tue Jul 11, 2017, 01:22 PM - Edit history (1)

[Vinca]

3. Well, at least we know one person is paying attention.

I don't understand people who vote party over anything else. If a Democrat was running and I felt they were totally amoral or ignorant or nuts, I wouldn't vote for them. Maybe that's education kicking in. LOL.

[mountain grammy]

4. In my experience working campaigns and talking to voters.

Many people are switching from both partys to Independent. My husband is still a registered Republican but can't stand the party. I'm still a registered Democrat because I was raised one. But corporate influence and greed and massive income inequality can be laid at the feet of both parties and we know it..
In my world, where I knock on doors and talk to people, I saw the largest shift in 2016 when registered Independents, mostly young, switched to the Democratic party to participate in the caucuses for Bernie Sanders. As qualified and bona fide as Hillary is, that wasn't done for her.
Had she chosen Bernie for her running mate, I think we'd be saying "Madame President." Biggest mistake ever.

[bresue]

5. A fact in history...is that the Republican party was the first socialist party in the world....

And many GOPers forget that when they vote for social injustices and remove social programs. And when they campaign for fiscal conservatism or true free capitalism.

Lincoln advocated for human rights, equality, and responsibility for our weaker members. What happened to the Republican soul and pride of looking out for the little man?

[Hortensis]

8. Irrelevant, though. Parties change. In this case, 180 degrees

from the progressive era days when problems with out-of-control capitalism forced progressive reforms, mostly undertaken by liberal Republicans. And then only a minority wing of the Republican Party supported socialism as an answer.

Notably, the Democratic Party at that time had itself been basically irrelevant. Well before the Civil War another party collapsed, its conservatives flooded into the Dem, which split, etc., etc. The great party our liberal founding fathers began thus ultimately found itself on the wrong, conservative side of history in the runup to the war; and afterward, the Democratic Party was in eclipse for most of the rest of the century, made up mostly of some rural conservatives.

During that period, both our largest liberal progressives and conservative business factions mostly concentrated and competed for power in the Republican Party. Business-oriented conservatives ultimately won, while the liberals, who were most of the GOP's progressives, took the moribund Democratic Party label back and resuscitated it under its original ideals (to the great displeasure of its southern conservatives, of course).

[bresue]

10. And that was my point...for a true blooded Repub...what are they standing for?

Republican and Democratic are only labels....which can be reversed on the spin of a dime.

I am reading many more stories of Repubs going Independent and then Dem. What are the reasons? I myself was raised Repub, but changed over because of my own personal beliefs in fighting for the working person. My father was in a union his entire life...but he voted Repub because of fanatical religious preaching which convinced him and many of their congregation to vote Repub even though it went against the grain of his true beliefs.

At present, big business is using religion and the pulpits and religious TV shows to control their base. If we want to sway any Repubs in the next election season, we need to point out the sins of these entities. We need to advocate for true ethical, morality, and compassion for our fellow citizens. And direct our campaigns to reach and touch their compassion and inner beliefs of protecting the little person.

We need to realize many Repubs are good hearted, but misled by lies and repeated rhetoric from the pulpits.

[Hortensis]

14. Sorry I missed your point, Bresue. So agree.

There's a Grand Canyon-size disconnect between their values, their warped image of the world, and what they end up voting for or against. Conservative scholars mourn the destruction of what they called traditional conservatism, but of course conserving what was good and worked well would not have suited the purposes of those directing their behavior these days at all.

Good luck, though, to anyone affiliated with the left trying to point out the "sins of these entities." Except for the more moderate centrists who are already doubting--a big except for those we have to persuade.

Most cons I know would require intensive counseling to change their minds, though. On the increasingly rare occasions when issues are still discussed, I just say my position is a moral issue for me, whatever it is. Might be noted by a silent doubter, and briefly surprises those who claimed the word with a big red party label.

[bresue]

17. Actually, since I am sitting in a field of red...I have started asking them questions

What does it mean to be a conservative? What does it mean to be a liberal? What is a progressive? I sure get a mix of thoughts. My mom is totally a Dem at heart, but votes Repub because of her religion. However, the ironic point is that Dump is the least moral or ethical person besides Nixon.

So, she has had layers and layers of falsehoods and lies told to her....

And I am sure everyone on this board and even ones from the Discussionists that sneak over to this blog, is finding out that labeling and stereotyping is transforming. But, it is very discouraging to me that Heritage Foundation and 700 Club continue to cover for Dump's crimes, which is against whatever religious teachings we accept.

[Hortensis]

18. That last, as you clearly know, not to them.

The dissonance between their religious beliefs and today's behaviors is compartmentalized away. Asking cons questions that ask them to think sounds like a good technique. For the roughly half who are potentially able to.

Bob Altemeyer describing characteristics of the effectively unreachable 20-25% of people who are authoritarian and probably are very largely represented in Rump's base:

"Their beliefs are a mass of contradictions. They have highly compartmentalized minds, in which opposite beliefs live independent lives in separate boxes. As a result, their thinking is full of double-standards.

They reason poorly. If they like the conclusion of an argument, they don’t pay much attention to whether the evidence is valid or the argument is consistent. They especially have trouble realizing a conclusion is invalid.

They are highly dogmatic. Because they have mainly gotten their beliefs from the authorities in their lives, rather than think things out for themselves, they have no real defense when facts or events indicate they are wrong. So they just dig in their heels and refuse to change.

Because they severely limit their exposure to different people and ideas, they vastly overestimate the extent to which other people agree with them. And thinking they are “the moral majority” supports their attacks on the “evil minorities” they see in the country."

https://theauthoritarians.org/donald-trump-and-authoritarian-followers/

Bob did us all a big service. I no longer irritate people to death, whether this group or cons with more flexible minds, by reminding them of "facts," the way I did for years when I was young.

[bresue]

19. Yes...you hit the nail with your hammer

I totally agree with your quote

"Their beliefs are a mass of contradictions. They have highly compartmentalized minds, in which opposite beliefs live independent lives in separate boxes. As a result, their thinking is full of double-standards." Or the ends justify the means...and remain very superstitious in their beliefs...not challenging the theocracy, but saying they do.

Very, very great point!

[Hortensis]

21. Dr. Altemeyer's. Considering his scary field of expertise,

his stories of his studies are amazingly fun to read.

But here're his last introductory comments on characteristics of authoritarians that'll no doubt ping just as strong:

"They are largely blind to themselves. They have little self-understanding and insight into why they think and do what they do. They are heavily into denial.

I hasten to add that studies find examples of all these things in lots of others, not just authoritarian followers. But not as consistently, and not nearly as much."

[zipplewrath]

6. Unfortunately, this is the problem

As much as I appreciate that this person has seen the light, it is really the problem.

I'd rather this was the stereotypical republican with whom progressive democrats could have a robust debate. These are the people with whom I could "reach across the aisle" and find common ground. Unfortunately, with them joining the party, now we don't get to have the debate. That would be "destructive to the party". I can't run a candidate against them, the most I can do is run a candidate in the primary, and that would certainly be a case of "giving the GOP ammunition". As more disaffected republicans join the democratic party, we end up with the "reasonable people" versus the "whack jobs". That's no way to run a country and that's how you end up with a Trump for President. And it is a great way to suppress progressivism because we spend all our time cleaning up their mess and very little actually moving a progressive agenda forward. It's been 60 years since we came up with Medicaid and we are STILL arguing about its very existence. And no closer to anything like single payer than we were 60 years ago.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

7. Social programs are cheaper for taxpayers than no social programs, when total all the extended costs

[Stuart G]

9. This is a great post..great article..please, please read the entire article..PLEASE..

It is a gem, and incredible. A thoughtful person, with a long history in the Republican party, dedicated to it, opens his mind, and sees the truth of what it has become. More important: He describes that truth in a way that we can all agree on, and in the process destroys whatever the Republican party currently stands for.
..It is well written and brutally honest...something that needs to be shown to all...yes ALL!!!

[George II]

11. To Mr. Schneider, welcome to the real world, glad you escaped the dark side.

[Stuart G]

12. About "Public Education"..here is an example..

There is a skill I learned in the public schools, that is currently being used. At this very moment..Yes!!!

..I think, although I am not sure what they called it..But..it was... ...Typing I, and Typing II..in the early 60s....I thought it would come in handy..and I also thought that learning to type was/is important. So...I type pretty fast, make a lot of mistakes, and correct most of them. (I don't spell too well, but now, the computer corrects it)..so..they don't call it typing anymore..

...................It is called .."keyboarding"....ok, call it whatever..it is typing..plain and simple..and
....................I learned it in a high school, a public school for all...Oh, my mom was a public school teacher, and I was a public high school teacher for 27 years. (taught History..well I tried)

[socialist_n_TN]

13. Hmm. 44 years as a Republican means..........

that he voted for Reagan twice, Bush the Elder twice, Dole once, Bush the Younger twice, McCain/PALIN once, and Romney/RYAN once before deciding that TRUMP was a "bridge too far". And this is the type of people that the Democratic Party wants to attract?

If so, I think that we see how the fastest growing political demographic is "independent".

[Hell Hath No Fury]

15. With every Republican --

joining the Democrats, the Party becomes just that much further pushed/entrenched "right".

I would prefer they stay in the GOP and make it a better Party.

[Orsino]

16. He's saying a lot of the right things, but waaaaay late.

Perhaps, as he says, the tough part is breaking with a lifetime of GOP support. Now that he's a Dem, maybe he can be more honest about his political goals.

[bresue]

20. I really do feel that this is a time that many are going to do a self-discovery

I have already seen it in my field of red...not that they have come over to the dark side yet...lol! But I do see an evolving thought process among many.

I guess I am an optimistic person, but I do see the dark red fading. (And no that is not in anyway reference to blood)