OSCraneIt really is fascinating to me that people are always on your side when bashing the #GOP right up until they get the slightest hint that you are a #Socialist and then suddenly you are the next enemy on the chopping block. Could we maybe, idk, wait until the fascists are all in prison or removed from office to tear each other's throats out, please? Despite what the red scare programmed you to believe, I am not your enemy.
Powerbeard@OSCrane I'm a Republican and I'm not your enemy either. There is a place for socialistic ideas in a healthy nation, it makes sense that we'd want good minds think about those ideas.
@Powerbeard It's been eight years, friend, if you can still say at this point that you 'are' a Republican, then there is something deeply flawed in your personal ideology.
@OSCrane That may be true. But I believe in Republican ideals. Not to the exclusion of others. And I don't define myself by the weak and angry people that have been coopted into the party by fear based right wing media or religious zeolots all so unpopular ideas can be forced. The Republican party is not Republicanism. Amy more than the pedophile Catholic priests anf those who covered for them were Catholicism.
@OSCrane and to be fair, I wouldnt judge anyone for making assumptions based on the label. I even worry that people who know me are going to have a much worse experience when they meet what I call a Social Republican, who are like people that go to church weekly and act against Christian ideals.. Social Christians. For Social Republicans. RINO is a great name, but stolen to mean the opposite of what it really is. Nothing to do with Socialism of course. Just social group behavior.
@Powerbeard If you truly are a republican, then that is completely incompatible with being a Republican... The GOP/RNC/w/e party ideology is to the exclusion of others. Holding up conservative ideals is the entrenchment of a society which prioritized in groups and out groups. Rich/poor, black/white, gay/het, trans/cis, are all mechanisms of the conservative ideology to preserve the status quo. "Be thankful for what you have, because THEY have it worse." There is no such thing as social conservatism, there is either conservatism or progressivism. The arc of history curves ever toward progress, to deny this is to deny reality. The Republican policy is this denial, and every minute they as an institution exist is another day where our lives are in danger. If you are truly a republican, one who believes in a strong, free, resilient, and healthy republic, then you are progressive, because championing anything other than social welfare, equal rights, and labor reform, IS anti-republic.
@OSCrane For me, Republicanism is about fiscal conservatism, not conservatism. A liberal can be A Republican just like a conservative can be a Communist. Personally, I don't like religious conservatives. And what you say is somewhat true about the party, there is no shortage of dumbasses, but I do believe in small government, low taxes, minimal laws and regulations. Should pollution be regulated? Yes 100%. It isn't by either party the way it should be but money has bought out representation.
@OSCrane But unlike Democrats, I don't believe that government solves problems, at least not for long, it always goes bad. Partially because voters can't be trusted to vote in their best interests, they are too easily manipulated and deceived. For example, most Republicans in the party aren't Republicans, just like most Christians don't live by the "teachings" of Christ. So O don't disagree that the institution as it is now is a danger, and I believe it should be renewed, which it has, but badly
@OSCrane also, unlike Democrats, I don't think we are born in obligation to each other. I do think that we should treat others with the same care and respect that we would want. I don't have a problem with taxes for social programs, because it is a small investment with huge dividends, a much more powerful use of that money than individuals could hope for. But right now most of purchase money goes to bankers. Not even American. But also, I was Republican before the party was stolen by fundies.
TerryB@Powerbeard @OSCrane Maybe you've crystallised the whole thing, and not just for the USA. I do feel responsible for others as well as myself, yes.
@terryb @OSCrane honestly we all would be so much better off if we could just be accepting of people that don't think like we do. Not people that wish others harm, but otherwise we lose nothing by not forcing others to align to our way of thinking.
And farther down that road, I believe, is where the true power of diversity lies, where we can meld the best from all.
@OSCrane. also, what did you mean by 8 years? Since Trump? I hated Bush too.