Well, I had the most interesting experience at work last week. I met someone who was my age who had honestly never met a Republican in his life. Seriously. For those of you not familiar with the Bay Area political climate, Republicans are a very misunderstood and rare breed. A lot of people are so ignorant to the point that they think that Republicans are evil villans who hate the environment, are opposed to all education, and must have been brainwashed by a certain president whose name I cannot mention here lest I get booed and hissed at.
So, when my fellow intern was joking around and made the comment that he felt he was better qualified to be president than our current one, he expected everyone in the room to jump in and rally around and throw out some Bush-isms and act generally supportive. Everyone did, of course (I am still in California), but I chose to just keep working on my computer & ignore the whole thing.
My fellow intern just assumed I didn’t hear, so he came over to me and tapped me on the shoulder, “Stephanie! Stephanie! I was just telling them about… I mean… don’t you think I would be more qualified to be president than our current one?” He stood gleaming, sure that he’d be the hero of the day. I mean, isn’t it great to think that you’re better than the president of a large country?
I looked at my web design that I loved doing, then looked back at my fellow intern & wondered if I should even start the battle, “Dude. Just leave me out of this.” All of the issues started swirling around in my head. Yes, I know I’m in “I hate Bush” territory. I know that I generally vote Republican, but not always (because not all Republicans are good Republicans). I know that some people think it’s okay to just lambast the President left and right while being otherwise unaware of any facts regarding politics or history. I don’t claim to know it all, but if you’re going to go off on hating the president at least have intelligent reasons why. I’m so tired of this Bush-hatred backed by no reason except “I don’t believe in blood for oil” or “He talks funny” or “No child left behind sucks” or other arguably uneducated responses. Again, I don’t want to get into a debate on whether or not you like Bush. All I’m saying is, please be aware of your reasoning and make sure it’s good reasoning before you have a strong opinion either way. Simple as that.
So, I finally said, “Dude… you’re fishing in the wrong pond.” He searched my face to see if I was joking. When I realized he was still standing there trying to understand me, I daid, “I’m a Republican.” He immediately laughed, because anyone in Silicon Valley who says she is a Republican must be joking. To end the laughter and get me back to my sweet web design I mumbled, “I’m serious.”
He paused and I’m pretty sure that the blood drained from his face. He mumbled, “Dude… she’s… she’s serious. Are you serious?” I nodded. He then said the words that have baffled me ever since, “I’ve never met a Republican before.”
The room stood in silence as my co-workers stared at me. Some were probably confused by it. Some probably held out hope that I was still joking. And still others were probably relieved since it explained some of my more confusing behavior.
Then, my fellow intern said, “Dude… don’t Republicans like hate babies and like dump oil in the ocean for the insurance write off? That’s just wrong man. I can’t believe you’re a Republican.” He looked at me in disgust, as though I was suddenly small and far beneath him.
As I picked my jaw up off the floor, I explained to him why I was a Republican, including simple comments like, “We like babies. We like the environment. We support the general concept of life in all countries. We just don’t think that government programs should pay for it all.” Then I added that things like war and whatnot are not just Republicans, that Democrats have their share of blood on their hands.
When I was done, one of the high school interns in the room said, “Wow. I always thought Republicans were evil. But you’re nice. That’s so weird.”
Interesting day. *Insert Steph’s long drawn out sigh here.*
Steph Lewis's Blog
“I know that some people think it’s okay to just lambast the President left and right while being otherwise unaware of any facts regarding politics or history. I don’t claim to know it all, but if you’re going to go off on hating the president at least have intelligent reasons why. I’m so tired of this Bush-hatred backed by no reason except “I don’t believe in blood for oil” or “He talks funny” or “No child left behind sucks” or other arguably uneducated responses.”
Okay, no offense, but it seems like you assume that anyone who doesn’t like or respect the President is knee-jerk and unthinking about it. Why is that any less broad-brush than the intern, who thinks all Republicans are anti-human and anti-environment? There are many, many principled and well-thought out reasons for the average person to think that, with a competent team around him or her, he or she at least could not do *worse* than the current president. The admonition to back one’s opinion with facts and reasoning sounds kind of patronizing to me, but perhaps I am misunderstanding you.
I fully acknowledge that this particular subject can blow up quickly but here is my 1 1/2 cents,.
I think you qualified everything and made your points solidly. Not because I am a elephant, but because SOME people argue points without knowledge of or reasoning other than “that is what my parents believe” or believing common misperceptions about the other side without consulting NORMAL/sensible folk and not the extreme sides.
Not all elephants are rush limbaugh likewise not all donkeys are eco-terrorists.
It may not have quite as much to do with being a Republican or Democrat as it does with being a conservative or a leftist. Notice I did not say “liberal” which is really quite a respectable word when properly understood, applied and acted upon. Our Founding Fathers (sorry for the sexism…not really) were “liberals” in a sense and I’m very thankful for them. But they were not leftists at all because of the simple fact that they believed in “truth” and “natural law” and the “laws of nature” which all providentially flowed from God, our Creator. From that (read the Declaration of Independence, it’s dripping with those concepts) they devised a nation built upon the rule of law, the only viable foundation for lasting freedom.
To the extent that a person admits and WELCOMES the existence of principles or laws higher than themselves, they are conservative. Leftists tend, on the other hand, to be a law unto themselves, and do all they can to undermine the collective wisdom of the ages (traditions) in favor of the whims of the moment.
My impression, after 58 years with a major in political science from the University of Minnesota (with honors) and a minor in history is that leftists are usually either insufferable elitists (far too smart for traditions…unless they are THEIR traditions) or more often hopelessly naive and uninformed except for the brainwashing done by the media and the dominant educational establishment (some of the most entrenched elitists on the planet).
For further study of this malady called “conservatism,” I refer you to one from my generation who was a hard, hard, hard-core radical…from the Bay area no less, and deeply involved in the elitist naivete of leftist politics: David Horowitz. His book, “Radical Son,” is excellent. It chronicles his journey from the naivete of thinking that leftist politics actually helped the “little guy” as he grew up in an actively Communist home in New York to the realization that he and other fellow-travellers were actually undermining (if not murdering…read the book) the “little guy” with their leftist ideology. He finally came to the startling realization that leftist thought simply doesn’t work.
Check out the review at:
http://frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=1001
Better yet, read the book. As stated “if you’re not a liberal when you’re in your twenties, you haven’t got a heart; but if you’re not a conservative by the time you’re 40, you haven’t got a brain.”
Time’s a-wasting folks.
Steph, you’re not even close to 40, but once again, you’re way, way ahead of the sheeple. Congratulations!
The idea that terms like “leftist,” “liberal” and “conservative” can be used so broadly and without any nuance suggests to me a disengagement with contemporary political reality. There are many shades of people in all of these categories. One of my best friends is a devout Evengelical Christian who votes democrat and falls pretty far to the left on most issues we’ve ever spoken about. The comments above impliedly indict her faith by suggesting that being a “leftist” (insert Rorschach interpretation here) is incompatible with accepting a higher law. Further, suggesting that people are stupid if they’ve limped into middle age without becoming a Republican is neither respectful nor charitable.
Hey all, I think my main point here was not to get into a liberal vs. conservative discussion. I was simply saying that, regardless of where you fall on the political belief spectrum, you should know why. And it doesn’t hurt to have some understanding of history and reasoning to go along with it. I meet a few people now and then who have strong political beliefs, but they are based on stereotypes and rumor. Like someone telling me that they hate republicans because we “dump oil into the ocean for the tax write off.” Broadly stated, misinformed, generalization… not smart.
Without getting dragged into a political debate, let me just say that it was one of the greatest shocks of my life when I found out that Josh and Steph are Republicans. You guys have a poster of Jim Henson for crying out loud! You use Macs! How could this happen?
Ah, good question, Gos. I tend to be more moderate. I’m a bit more liberal in regards to individual freedoms but much more conservative in terms of government money management. I tend to bend more conservative as I think the government is a huge messy bureaucracy. (Although neither party seems to match my opinions there as of late, Republicans are closest).
I’m also all for supporting non-profit organizations to fund most of the social helps available so that people can decide where to give their money rather than having the government control it (think buzz issues that cause a lot of swing voting – envirnoment, free medical clinics, etc.).
So, in short, my Republican-ness comes mainly from the money issue. My personal beliefs are definitely conservative, But, I still consider the extent to which my personal beliefs should effect others and how I vote. Certain things I just can’t accept (like abortion). Other things, I think should be almost wide open (like free speech).
Regardless, I love my Mac.
Oh, I have a few issues with this quiz (such as the stereotypes…), but it is a good general starting point to find out where you stand politically. I’m a “northerner”, just North of the middle.
Take the quiz yourself! They ask for an e-mail address, but type in a bogus one. I like bob@aol.com. http://www.politopia.com
Here’s my description:
North-You are a Northerner-a free marketeer-which means that you advocate a diminished role for the government in the economic realm. You are more or less pleased with the government’s role in the personal realm.
I’m a pixel or two NE of Centerville.