Centerfield

I think you'll find the same lack of perspective on the far right, but they don't have pretentions of superiority.

These were stories written by starting with a concept, and then looking for the juiciest quotes to support the preconceived idea, which was "let's find the looniest and most obnoxious disappointed ABBers, and get them to say angry bitter things." These people are elitists, and moreso leftists than democrats per se.

If you want to talk about both fringes, consider this: while the left fringe feels intellectually superior to "stupid conservatives", the very right fringe tends to feel morally superior to "loony and morally bankrupt lefties."

The challenge for us here is to fight efforts by both partisan sides to characterize the other side by its most outrageous and frankly least representative members. Partisans hate for the truth to get in the way of a good story, just like this reporter.

I have to agree with Rick. molotov just explained why the Democrats are in trouble in another thread. The right is just quicker on the uptake.

I'm not laughing because my political views are homeless.

BK,

Good points and actually I have said the same thing to people who continually conflate Michael Moore with the Democratic Party. Still, I couldn't resist.

I am new to posting here, and am admittedly not a centrist but more of a moderate liberal. However, I believe that compromise is the key, as neither side has it exactly correct, and the fringe elements of both parties are totally adverse to compromise. Maybe we should start a new Independent Party that lies in the middle...moderate conservatives, complete centrists, and moderate liberals. Just my opinion.

Wow. I read the article on New Yorker's views of the rest of us. My wife was rabidly for Bush but she loves New York. If New York feels that we in the boondocks (after all, Phoenix at 1.8 million really is nothing but a small burg) don't like them, they should talk to us. And what about all of that outpouring of sympathy and aid after 9/11

And PS we did think about our votes.

CJB, I'm starving for representation. I have been for most of my adult life.

I agree with BK; the right is no more immune to self-centeredness than the left. If the right takes this election as a vindication of every single one of its precepts, we will lose, and big, 4 years from now. The same polls which show staunch opposition to gay marriage show plenty of potential support for civil unions (Bush-haters, note that Bush spoke favorably of the possibility of civil unions in one of the debates).

Now, that's not to say that Republicans need to fall for the Democratic version of "bipartisanship" and compromise, which always means giving in to the Democratic point of view entirely. The Democrats most definitely need to realize they lost because they are not at the moment supported by a clear majority of the country.

What we need now is for rational people, be they leftist, rightist, or moderate, to reach out to reduce the hatred that was so vehemently expressed during this cycle. Those on the right need to understand why they are feared as homophobes and violators of civil liberties by some on the left just as the left needs to understand that those fears are not true, that there are reasonable grounds to differ on many of those issues which are not based on bigotry or incipient fascism.

At the same time we cannot do all this indiscriminately just for the sake of being centrist. The Republican candidates may welcome the support of Bob Jones University from time to time, but they didn't seat Bob Jones next to a former president during their convention.

The Democrats are rightly stuck to Michael Moore because they embraced him and the Hollywood left who spewed the vilest venom at President Bush. The Democrats are stuck with encouraging that venom because John Kerry called Hollywood the "heart and soul" of America. I don't recall once during the Democratic convention when the crowd applauded for ANYTHING positive about President Bush. Contrast that with the President himself praising Senator Kerry for his patriotism and service to his country, and the applause that generated in the Republican hall. Calculated? Scripted? Sure. But the two conventions speak volumes about which party promoted civility even in the midst of significant disagreements over important matters.

I feel your pain Jamie.

I meant to type this before...

Welcome, CJB! :) I'm relatively new, too.

Bush and Rove had the winning formula. Hype the terror threat, tar the MA Sanator with the flip/flop and liberal label and pray on.

The real test will be what happens in both the broader war on terror and the economy in the next several years.

If the GOP takes this victory as a mandate for a more conservative lean, and events in the world reflect a more complex reality than "Yee-Ha", there will be MORE than hell to pay.

We need to become one country unified in principles and looking forward. Regionalism is not going to get the job done, for either the residents of the heartland or the coasts. No one will be immune if the terrorists get their way!

Now, that's not to say that Republicans need to fall for the Democratic version of "bipartisanship" and compromise, which always means giving in to the Democratic point of view entirely

A nice example of how partisanship or ideology warps one's view of reality.

For a good example of liberal anger which is counterproductive but also very funny:

http://kenlayne.com/2004/11/jesusland.html

Man, the things I've heard in the last two days in NYC.

Donald, will you share some of the less offensive things you've heard?

I think that all Republicans should send a thank you letter to Howard Dean, the Supreme Court of Massachusetts and most importantly to the Honorable Gavin Newsom of San Francisco. Newsom, in particular, probably could be credited with the passage of all 11 state amendments, banning gay marriage and/or civil unions, and the re-election of George Bush.

What Newsom did was a lot of things, but mostly, it was politically stupid. Why? Because he misjudged the curve. Eventually, the US might reach the day when gay marriage is no big deal. That day is not today. All Newsom did with his illegal stunts was put the gay marriage movement back a decade or two, IMO.

If I was a politically intelligent gay person I would make sure that Newsom never darkens the door of city hall again.

Jason

Jason is absolutely right. Whenever a court tries to legislate social issues, no matter how morally correct, it creates a problem for the Dems. Look at Brown v. Board of Education. Now, I'm not saying that the Court should not have decided it that way, of course, but it ultimately painted the Democrats into a corner. Legislation is different. The Civil Rights Act had less resistence than school desegregation, in part because southerners have more respect for the legislative process than for court-ordered solutions.

Thanks for that insightful comment! It makes interesting reading, especially when I need a payday advance .

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