Radicalization of the Republican Party & Where Does It Go From Here?

Discussion in 'Politics' started by joepistole, Apr 28, 2015.

  1. Seattle Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,857
    It's actually rather odd to find a connection between religion and conservative values. There is much more in the Bible (for example) that would suggest a liberal bias.

    That's because, I guess, in the U.S. religion is just used as a front for intolerant values already held. Otherwise, it's just cherry picking to pull gay related passages out of the Bible to the exclusion of the majority of biblical passages preaching brotherly love, inclusion, sharing, humbleness...none of which seem to ever make it from the Bible to anyone's actual behavior.
     
  2. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  3. joepistole Deacon Blues Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    22,910
    Hmm…this is a two party system, Democrats (liberal) and Republicans (conservative), dude, you do realize that don’t you? Then again, perhaps you don’t. Further, you are and have been arguing and Repeating Republican talking points almost verbatim. But you don’t want people to think you are a Republican, you just argue and mindlessly repeat their taking points.
    Well we will never know how you voted – as if that were really relevant. The arguments you have made are not consistent with the ideology of the folks you claim you have voted for in the past. Now while that may fool and play well with dittoheads, it doesn’t do as well in a science forum. So if you want people to believe you vote for people who have positions which are antithetical to your arguments, so be it. If you want people to think you are a loon, so be it.

    Well you don’t have to read too much in this thread to see many examples of how radical and extreme Republicans have become. Merely reading the responses to your posts will show examples of Republican extremism and radicalism. As I have told you many times now, repeatedly threatening to cause and nearly causing an intentional and unnecessary debt default is both extreme and radical. Republicans have done that not once, but twice in recent years. As others have pointed out in this thread in response to your posts, a Republican governor activating the state guard as a Republican recently did to thwart an imagined invasion and takeover by federal troops is extreme and radical. It’s beyond rational; it is paranoia, a mental illness.

    So if you continue ignore reality, well there really isn’t much anyone can do for you. You can join the many loons who already reside in this country. But to ignore the answers to the questions you asked and pretend they don’t exist, well that is either a severe cognitive impairment or dishonesty.
    LOL, this has already been discussed ad nauseum. As has been explained to you numerous times dude, your argument here isn’t relevant. And your repeated use of the argument just repeatedly demonstrates your ignorance of statistics and logical thought.
    You were asked to a simple question, what is an “unapologetic Republican”. It isn’t surprising Republicans are and have been running away from Baby Bush. Baby Bush is now widely viewed as one of America’s worst presidents. So based on what you just wrote unapologetic means unwillingness to compromise with Democrats. Well using that definition, and contrary to your previous post, Reagan wasn’t an “unapologetic” Republican either because Reagan compromised with Democrats. The only Republicans in more than a century who fit your definition of “unapologetic” were Republicans in the last 3 congresses. For well over a century, if ever, there has not been a Republican POTUS who fits your definition of “unapologetic”.
     
    Last edited: May 11, 2015
  4. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  5. Randwolf Ignorance killed the cat Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    4,201
    As to gun control, you're right. The left is sounding a lot like those damn fascist Canadians, Australians, Japanese and Limeys...

    Why don't you go moderate something Syne? Oh, wait...
     
    joepistole likes this.
  6. Google AdSense Guest Advertisement



    to hide all adverts.
  7. Randwolf Ignorance killed the cat Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    4,201
    I seem to be admitting that I did not coin the phrase "bat shit crazy". I'm not sure anyone actually "coined" it, I think it just got applied to observable behavior. You know, if the shoe fits...

    I know. I'm sorry there are so many, many examples of bat shit crazy Republican lunatics doing bat shit crazy things. Heed that alleged "Ancient Chinese Proverb" - be careful what you ask for - you might get it.

    I am. Unfortunately...
    The outliers seem to be becoming the majority.

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!


    Thanks for that meme there Super Syne - the reason I posted them is because that site happened to be the number one hit on my Google search. I have little time to waste with your stupid games. What's your excuse?
     
    joepistole likes this.
  8. pjdude1219 The biscuit has risen Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    16,479
    actually in absolute numbers more democrats voted for the major civil rights bills as well as in percentages if you break it down by region. ie. in any given region the democrats were more likely to vote for a civil rights bill than the respective republican congress person so your assertion is wrong.
    putting fascism on the left is a right wing tactic to pretend everything good is right wing and everything left wing is bad. also the nazis loosened the gun control laws of the weimar republic. the idea that right wing thinking is inherently freedom is because at its core most rightwing thinking is childish and cannot accept any other outcome than being perfect. also most political scientist view the political spectrum as having multiple axis. its about the only thing that libertarian propaganda test floating around the internet gets right. probably one of the more accurate models is the Vosem Chart


    the IRS targeted the tea party groups because they noticed a pattern of fraud and shady dealings related to them. If you start seeing a pattern that you key in on it. that's not nefarious that's doing your job.
     
    cosmictotem likes this.
  9. iceaura Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    30,994
    It seems to have fascism on the left, and only one dimension.

    It has communism labeled as "total government". It also has conservatives closer to anarchy than liberals are - along this one mysterious dimension of whatever.

    I'm drawing a blank on appropriate response, but thank you for clarifying the source of your political opinions.
     
  10. Cowboy My Aim Is True Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,707
    Common sense says that when you're in a hole, you stop digging. Our national debt is the biggest threat to America's future. I think it would be less disastrous to intentionally crash the economy now than to run up another $50 trillion in debt and have the economy crash on its own in a few decades. Obama himself was opposed to raising the debt ceiling...back when a Republican was in the White House.

    And the Fairness Doctrine is pointless these days. There are plenty of ways to hear different takes on political issues that don't involve government regulation. I suspect that most advocates of the Fairness Doctrine are more interested in harassing their political opponents than keeping the public informed.
     
    madanthonywayne likes this.
  11. joepistole Deacon Blues Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    22,910
    Well, common sense assumes a common knowledge, and unfortunately, most folks, including you Cowboy, have no knowledge of finance or economics which extends beyond the household budget. For starters, we are not in a hole (whatever that means). Our debt isn’t the biggest threat to America’s future. And if you had some understanding of macroeconomics, you would know that. Our debt is much less than virtually any other developed nation and our debt (in relative terms) has been much higher in the past (e.g. post WWII). The biggest threat to our future is the possibility that we become unable to effectively govern ourselves (e.g. cause an intentional and unnecessary debt default).
    Because politicians like to play on voter ignorance and use the debt ceiling as a cudgel for political gain, Obama avoid that landmine by opposing it while he was a senator. But his opposition didn’t threaten the health and wellbeing of the nation as Republicans did not once but twice when they nearly caused an intentional and unnecessary debt default.

    A debt default would have put the nation back into a deep recession, a depression. It would have exacerbated the nation’s debt issues. What happens when people stop paying their debts? Their interest rates go up. So ironically, your debt default would have increased government spending. Economic recessions increase government spending as more people become unemployed and dependent on government for unemployment insurance, housing, healthcare and food. Crime rates increase, so more money is needed for law enforcement and jails.
    Economic Armageddon didn’t work out so well for the Weimer Republic. This notion that a debt default would be somehow a purifying event is just nonsense and it not rooted in history or rational thought. And with responsible fiscal policy, there is no rational reason to believe there is an imminent economic crisis related to US debt in the near or distant future.
    If it is pointless, then why are Republicans so vehemently opposed to restoration of the Fairness Doctrine? The fact is democracies are dependent on well informed voters and that was fact recognized by our founding fathers. And the fact is, that with Republican entertainment (e.g. Fox News & Republican Radio), academic study has found consumers of Republican entertainment to be less well informed than those who consume no news. That is bad. Why are Republicans fiercely afraid of an open and honest discussion of important issues? The Fairness Doctrine would require cable and radio programs to provide an honest discussion of the issues. The answer is pretty simple, Republicans are threatened by honesty.
     
  12. iceaura Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    30,994
    No, it isn't.

    Bigger threats include the loss of our manufacturing base, the current oversimplification and risky alterations to our agricultural practices, our dependence on fragile and violence threatened point sources of key resources we do not control, the climate changes incoming from the CO2 boost, and a level of national political dysfunction not seen since the Civil War.

    Yeah, the debt is not good - that hangover from W's War and Reagan's Crash will be weighing us down for a generation. We'll have to deal with it. But it's nowhere near as dangerous to the country entire as is the current nature of the Republican Party.

    That misses the point. There have always been ways to get different takes on political issues, for those with the money and time. What the Fairness Doctrine sought to prevent, and its value has become obvious in the breach, is the presentation of only one narrow and biased take on political issues as if it were actual journalism, fair and balanced (or at least fact checked) news reporting.
     
  13. Kittamaru Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Adieu, Sciforums. Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    13,938
    http://www.seattlebikeblog.com/2013...not-good-for-the-environment-should-be-taxed/



    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!



    Just...just what!?
     
  14. gmilam Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,522
  15. joepistole Deacon Blues Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    22,910
    Some very interesting articles have been published on this subject to explain the radicalized Republican Party and the role played by Republican entertainment.

    "Media doesn't need to win elections to profit
    The problem is that right-wing media is in no way dependent on the political success of the GOP. In fact, it's almost the opposite: The more the party establishment fails to deliver on the far right's (wildly unrealistic) demands, the more the audience feels betrayed, and the angrier it gets. That means more clicks, more phone calls, more engagement. It is to right-wing media's great benefit for the party to engage in a series of dramatic, doomed protest gestures like shutting down the government or attempting to repeal Obamacare for the 47th time. It stokes the outrage machine.

    Conservative media outlets and activists have entered into a self-reinforcing cycle of mutually supported radicalization. They have everything to gain by demonstrating their ideological purity and nothing to gain from compromise or nuance:"

    http://www.vox.com/2015/7/30/9074761/conservative-media-republican-party

    A Harvard study on conservative media and its influence in the radicalization of the Republican Party was released just a few days ago. It's really good and a validation. http://shorensteincenter.org/conservative-media-influence-on-republican-party-jackie-calmes/
     
    Last edited: Aug 16, 2015
  16. sculptor Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,466
    wild guess du jour

    The media profit from creating dichotomies where none actually exist.
     
  17. joepistole Deacon Blues Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    22,910
  18. sculptor Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,466
    Who is leading the polls?
     
  19. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    37,884
    You know, though this is somewhat belated it does, in fact, occur to me to mention that I have this weird little standard by which I remind that some people "can't tell the difference".

    Rep. Orcutt has farms to answer for. He cannot afford to be able to tell the difference.

    And, yeah, the really affecting part really is a Republican phenomenon; I hesitate to invoke a juxtaposition from such a controversial subject, but this is kind of the whole #WhatAboutTheBigPolluters and #NotAllBigPolluters thing. Farms do a lot of damage. The temptation to pick on people for breathing is strong; not everyone can tell the difference.

    Thus filed, it's easy to move on without the astonishment. Sadly, you become somewhat accustomed to it after a while.

    Then again, we are talking about Republicans, here, so it is also true that they are well capable of shaking us awake on a regular basis.

    Hey, remember that time the Republican lawyer got all pissed off because a chemist said there was a moral duty to environmental stewardship, and just because this chemist happened to be, you know, the fucking Pope, the Catholic Republican attorney got it into his mind to tell the chemist to leave the science to the scientists?

    I mean, really. You can't make this shit up.

    You say leave the science to the scientists in response to the musician, it doesn't matter if the musician is right.

    You say it to an actual fucking scientist?

    How the hell can Rick Santorum not tell the difference?

    You see? Thus filed, something, something, Burt Ward.
     
  20. Michael 歌舞伎 Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    20,285
    The one truly redeeming feature of Donald Duck, errr.... Trump, that really sets him apart from the other brown-noser doormats (left and right). The one attribute that most qualifies Trump for the job: POTUS. Donald Trump is an expert at declaring bankruptcy. When the going gets tough, Trump sticks it to his creditors. Basically, THIS is the trait most needed in the next POTUS. Particularly given O-blah-ma will blow past 20T soon enough, right about as we start nose-diving into the next Central Bank/Planner caused 'recession'. Who better than to see us through troubled waters than The Trumpinator.

    LOL
     
  21. wellwisher Banned Banned

    Messages:
    5,160
    Many people feel that the two political parties have become one party at the level of leadership; ruling elite, due to the impact of big money on the political process. The pretense of two competing parties, is there for the electorate. This is a smoke screen for back room deals among thieves, who are on the same side of money.

    The pretense of political differences keeps the masses fighting circular battles so they will not combine their strength like their leaders. Trump is one of those top dog elite guys, who is running both two parties; super rich. He has bought and sold people from both parties, including tons of New York democrats.

    As the top tier elite, Trump is thinking an end game that is above the circular battles of the masses. People are sensing this about him. Why elect another middleman, when you can get in at the normally hidden top tier; someone who buys and sells middlemen.
     
    joepistole likes this.
  22. Tiassa Let us not launch the boat ... Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    37,884

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!


    I think this stupid pretense is blown to smithereens by reality. Indeed, your pretense is so damnably stupid one wonders if it's deliberate.

    To wit, in Texas, it's only one political party pushing a bill to allow state agents to aid and abet child abuse in the name of Christian freedom.

    In Louisiana, it's a Republican governor who decided he can legislate state-sanctioned bigotry by executive order after the legislature said no.

    I think you'll find, when you allow reality to inform your self-centered, delusional fantasy, that there are observable differences in how the parties treat people and what their policies bring.

    Indeed, I've found the one-party lament is presently chiefly driven by conservatives looking to haul themselves out of the gutter. Normally, the one-party complaint is a denigration, but for Republicans right now it would be a step up. Petulant conservatives have every reason for pushing this pretense right now; it's a "watch the birdie" distraction.

    These kinds of moronic distractions offered up in lieu of saying anything generally useful don't serve any real purpose; the only people who believe the one-party lament these days seem to be those who need there to be only one party because that's the only thing they can think of, and they really, really, really want to pretend to be smart the same way snake handlers want people to think they're really, really Christian. You know how it goes; if someone does something really stupid, over and over again, people will admire his honest dedication, or some such.

    I have health insurance, now. I can marry a partner of my choosing if I can find one. These are two tremendous differences in my quality of life that have occurred in recent times, and between the two parties, one wants me to have these things while the other fights tooth and nail to take these things away and reduce my quality of life. Thus, when people bawl about there being only one party, it is laughably stupid.

    Really, the only excuse would be to demand some reasonable accommodation for cognitive disability, and that would be pushing the bounds of reason; otherwise this petty, pouting juvenilia is idiotic beyond acceptability.
    ____________________

    Notes:

    Image note: Busy Doing Nothing ― Pino learns to be human by imitating Re-L, a dubious choice nonetheless dictated by the constrictions of reality. Detail of frame from Ergo Proxy.​
     
    Kristoffer and joepistole like this.
  23. joepistole Deacon Blues Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    22,910
    That's just one of the many conspiracies right wingers evoke in order to justify and excuse the unjustifiable and inexcusable behavior of right wingers.
     

Share This Page