tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post2575889237579158938..comments2024-03-18T02:22:56.392-04:00Comments on Disgusted Beyond Belief: Has the Pendulum Shifted?DBBhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17805375811782552873noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post-66710956945513248502009-03-01T21:16:00.000-05:002009-03-01T21:16:00.000-05:00Erin, I will second DBB's recommendation of Bob Al...Erin, I will second DBB's recommendation of Bob Altemeyer's groundbreaking work, <A HREF="http://home.cc.umanitoba.ca/~altemey/" REL="nofollow">The Authoritarians</A>.Larry Hamelinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08788697573946266404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post-90370111413940975422009-03-01T14:56:00.000-05:002009-03-01T14:56:00.000-05:00Is that what RWA stands for? I thought it was "ri...Is <I>that</I> what RWA stands for? I thought it was "rich white assholes."<BR/><BR/>(Not facetious. I really had no idea. Google suggested it could have been the Romance Writers of America organization, but I'm not that credible.)Erinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03315849412290918217noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post-55749692751215575322009-03-01T09:40:00.001-05:002009-03-01T09:40:00.001-05:00You are not yet sufficiently cynical and Machiavel...You are not yet sufficiently cynical and Machiavellian.<BR/><BR/>Of course the pendulum has shifted; that's what pendulums do. And it's also true that the pendulum will shift again to the right. The Republicans will wait out this shift to the left and keep pulling to the right.<BR/><BR/><I>[A]ll the GOP has is tactics. They have no strategy.</I><BR/><BR/>This is manifestly false. If the Republican party was all about tactics, they would shift to left, just as the tactically and non-strategically oriented Democrats have shifted to the right.<BR/><BR/>The conservative strategy is to keep the pressure on to move to the right by any means possible, under all circumstances. They are staying true to their overall strategy. The Republican strategy is to represent the conservatives in government, even when conservatism is temporarily unpopular.<BR/><BR/>Their hypocrisy and partisanship (not to mention their outright lies and bullshit) are irrelevant. People quickly forget outrages over hypocrisy and partisanship; they remember ideas, slogans and positions that are continually asserted. Sooner or later (probably sooner) reality -- or at least the superficial popular understanding of reality -- will conform sufficiently to these continually repeated conservative ideas to swing the pendulum to the right.Larry Hamelinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08788697573946266404noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post-91520037491757694172009-03-01T09:40:00.000-05:002009-03-01T09:40:00.000-05:00Good ideas. On top of that, ought to add what per...Good ideas. On top of that, ought to add what percentage of RWAs actually vote versus the percentage of far left. And also ought to analyze which blocs actually stick together no matter what.<BR/><BR/>But the RWA information is particularly important given that they do stick together no matter what - so it is a very significant and important phenomenon - versus the mostly mythical "welfare moms" who probably don't vote anyway. <BR/><BR/>Research an RWAs will likely explain over 20% of the vote each election. I doubt any other single phenomenon is so significant.DBBhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17805375811782552873noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2925765946042638459.post-60163495229729995262009-03-01T08:45:00.000-05:002009-03-01T08:45:00.000-05:00Ah, the old "right-wing authoritarian" argument. I...Ah, the old "right-wing authoritarian" argument. I like the idea of having the media report what percentage of Republican support comes from RWAs. More information is always a good thing.<BR/><BR/>Let's follow up on that by reporting what percentage of Democratic supporters are paid by the state (whether welfare or work), what percentage are ideologically socialist or communist but voting on a "popular front" basis, and what percentage have psychological deficits that cause them to need some external force, like a government, to act as their parent.Roberthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07160061641869302097noreply@blogger.com