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| English: The Barnum & Bailey greatest show on Earth, the world's largest, grandest, best amusement institution. General view of the twelve colossal water proof canvas pavilions, ... (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
Don't let me lead anyone to believe that I think I know much about any of this topic of politics. Like many of you I'm just an observer of this whole mess with no direct personal investment in the process. I listened to what the media and the candidates had to say and then I voted. This post is only a matter of my interpretation of what has transpired in the 2012 U.S. elections and what I think it could mean for the future of this country. I hope you will read this, consider what I have said, and give us your thoughts. I hope we can start a dialogue and come to some rational conclusions.
The way I see it the Democratic Party of today is quite a bit different than what it was 50 years ago or so. Not that I've paid that much attention over the years, but I think the Democrats of yesteryear might be a bit confused if they were to suddenly appear on today's scene. There have been big changes in the Dems whereas the Republicans have held a steady mostly focused course since the mid-1800's--Grand Old Party is a fitting title indeed.
Along about the 1970's the Democrats opened a Pandora's Box and started unleashing a whole hodgepodge of issues. It's been a process that has continued until this day. But let me stop and back off of this analogy. After all I'm no big fan of Greek mythology and Greece is no model to emulate seeing as how they have all of the problems they've been having. Instead let me return to my favorite analogy, one that is in a more capitalistic vein--the circus.
Ah yes, the political parties and the elections are like circuses. Just as in the real world of circuses there are many different circuses. For now the main circuses of influence that we will concern ourselves with are the Democrats and the Republicans. And it's starting to look like the Democrats are the greatest show on Earth to borrow the slogan from Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey, the great American conglomeration of circusdom. The Democrats are poised to become the constant winners in all future U.S. Presidential elections.
Why do I say this? The Democrats have a bigger tent.
The Republicans might be likened to something more of an old-timey mudshow traversing the countryside playing to the crowds who are looking for more traditional fare. They pitch a tiny tent and put on their show with a few clowns, some standard political circus performers all performing variations of the same act, and one old tired elephant. The crowd mostly knows what to expect throughout the performance because there is a predictability and an agreed upon standard of values. The audience consists primarily of hard-working Americans who value independence and would prefer the government to stay out of their business as much as possible.
The Democrats on the other hand pitch a gigantic tent amidst a massive midway. A pompous parade lures their crowds to the celebratory grounds where hot dogs and cotton candy are doled out freely before the big show begins. And that show! What a show it is. Three rings of dazzling displays with action at the tent top and everywhere you look. Everyone is excited with so much going on--so much that no one can take it all in. The audience members keep their eyes on their favorite acts and miss most of the others. The important thing here is that everyone goes away happy because they all got want they wanted. It makes no difference that they didn't see everything in the show. They saw what they came to see and that's what matters to them.
So what am I getting at? You tell me. It's my circus metaphor and I think it makes sense, but then again I wrote it. If I started dissecting this and started getting down to specifics then I might offend somebody. I might make someone mad. I might lose another reader. If I started getting too open and honest then I might start sounding like a Republican--or at least what an unafraid Republican should sound like. But let's face it--honesty and forthrightness can be risky business in our society.
What does the Republican Party need to do to win another U.S. presidential election barring any major missteps on the Democrat side? Do they need a bigger tent? I think that would just make them Democrats. I'd say they need to find more ways to cram more people into that little tent. Republicans will need more numbers to win the next presidential race, but I don't think they need a bigger tent to do that. However if the Republicans don't find a way to outsmart the big tent circus party then we may never see another Republican president.
Do you get what I'm saying? Have I been too ambiguous with my metaphors? Am I right, wrong, or ridiculous? Do we need more influence from other political parties? Anyone want to join the Juggler Party?
So Democrats have more clowns? Now that is funny.
ReplyDeleteI don't talk about politics online, but I do get the gist of what you mean.
Like Alex I think I get the gist of this too Lee and see no problems with your opinion at all. I honestly believe that Republicans will have a good chance of becoming president in the next election if Barack doesn't do a good job in this session. It's going to be interesting though and I can't wait to see what happens.
ReplyDeleteLee,
ReplyDeleteI was a bit disappointed after reading your blog post. I am so exhausted with the political rants online, at work, newspapers...etc. I prefer not to mix politics and blogging. To me, blogging is usually a refreshing and joyful journey.
Doris
You're a brave soul and I love your metaphors. To me politics is just smoke and mirrors trickery and bait and switch tactics. As Barnum said,"There's a sucker born every minute." And unfortunately for our country these suckers vote.
ReplyDeleteYou can pack me into the other tent, the one not set up by the Democrats or the Republicans. Actually, I don't believe there is a tent for the likes of someone like me, somene who chooses to observe the circuses going on around.
ReplyDeleteTo use your analogy, here's what was seen from the outside:
Democrats - "Let's all work together."
Republicans - "Let's take the country back." (to where or what I'm still unsure)
Democrats - "Welcome one and all. You don't have to struggle alone."
Republicans - "We are the true Americans. Patriotism is what we do. Check out our flag. That other circus isn't waving a flag but we are."
Democrats - "Let's say yes to a future where more can advance and we invest in making more of America better. But it's going to take hard work we can do together."
Republicans - "Let's work to put more Americans back to work by making Obama a one term president and repealing Obamacare."
Democrats - "It took 8 years to get in this mess, it'll take more than one term to get America back progressing forward." (sounds like a blame game to some, a reality to others)
Republicans - "This economy should have been fixed by now. Taxing job creators and starting a class war between the rich and poor doesn't solve anything."
If you notice, from the outside looking at the messages being tossed out by the loud speakers, there was a distinct bit of difference. I've heard that the squeaky wheel often gets noticed the most. Oddly, the squeaky that got heard was often laced with hate, name calling (it happened with both sides of course, but the squeaky wheel was much louder), disrespect that was awarded with applause (things that would not have occurred with previous presidents).
The Republicans can certainly have a president elected again, sooner than later, if the message of "exclusivity" can ring not as loud over the message of how their choice would be better to lead the country.
As a side note, much of what you see from the post was observed what checking out both liberal and conservative media outlets.
Again, this is just one person's observation.
Alex -- It's not so much that the Democratic Party has more clowns, they just have more causes. More clowns with causes one might say.
ReplyDeleteYeamie -- If this current administration screws up in a big way the Republicans could take the presidency so long as they can't be faulted as the ones causing the screw-up.
Doris -- I hope this post won't stop you from reading this blog. I won't always be going off on political rants, I just want to be tossing out ideas to readers to see what others think. As for blogging, I first heard about it in the context of dealing with politics and issues. Blogging can be many things and I think I'm just going back to it's roots when I do a piece like this one. Thanks for at least checking this out.
Lee
LOL - more clowns! Funny, Alex.
ReplyDeleteMy husband says if Condoleezza Rice were to run for president, she wouldn't lose. She's just too smart to do it though.
By the way, Arlee. I hope you don't lose blog readers. It doesn't appear that you're trying to ram your own thoughts and opinions down anyone's throat, but rather, opening the door to some interesting discussion while sharing your own observations. Though I don't discuss politics much, I don't mind the occasional chat here and there :-)
ReplyDeleteEm -- A truth succinctly said. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteAngela -- I think a lot of voters might be willingly to pack that other tent. If the parties were more specific in the issues I think we'd see the truths more clearly. I love how you've broken this down. You're right about the squeaky wheels and there are a lot of them. There is so much noise that it's difficult to hear what is really being said by anyone.
Rice -- I like Condi and yes she's probably too smart to get herself into the mess of running as a candidate. It would be interesting to see what she could do with the office of the presidency. There's always 2016.
Lee
Angela -- A great big thank you to you! You get what I'm doing. I don't want to pick any fights; I just want to reason things out and clear the air which has been obfuscated by confusing and often unsupported rhetoric. Discussion has always been the goal of this blog from its beginnings.
ReplyDeleteLee
I'd say both parties have departed from what they were intended to be. The Republicans have not stayed the same. They have become extremely religious (which should be left out of politics) and elitist. But, yes, the whole thing is a circus. They just have different kinds of tents. One from the corners of a garage; the other an expensive model from REI.
ReplyDeleteThere will never be another Republican President because there will be no more Republicans. They will abandon their Christian conservative base in an attempt to appeal to Democrats and that will be the end of them. What will rise to replace them? Just another form of Democrats, the New Democrats that is. We are a fundamentally altered nation now and "All the king's horses, and all the king's men..."
ReplyDeleteThe whole Electoral College process is wrong and antiquated, developed with the 'needs' and technology limitations of the 18th century. You can see how wrong it was by the mere fact that the Swing State even exists, and that the candidates then only focused on 10 percent of the states toward the end. And spending a bazillion dollars mainly in just a few spots campaigning with seemingly little net effect.
ReplyDeleteSorry Lee, the circus thing just really bugs me. It's way too easy to say that everything is just messed up these days and try to write it off as crazy stuff. I could go on and on about how it's not a big tent we need to worry about, but a bigger ability to be truly free...
ReplyDeleteHere's my own personal analogy for the political parties of today: I call it store A and store B. Store A wants to sell you good quality products that will last a very long time. Sometimes it takes some work and trial and error to get the best products in the store and they do cost a bit more because they require hard work and ingenuity to produce. Store A is not a perfect place, but when you do get good stuff from store A it really does last and people come back looking for more. You're more likely than not to find a spry older man running the store who has wisdom to share if you can get past his crusty attitude. Now take store B. Store B is a seemingly perfect place where everything is happy and wonderful all the time and you never have to worry about how long the items at the store last or what they cost because they are all FREE!!! No work required. No need to worry about where these wares are produced. Just stand in the long line out front and get whatever you want. Never mind that in the long run this can't go on forever. Shhhh... don't look behind the curtain at the counter. Nothing to see there, folks... There's a beautiful girl at the front counter and she's beckoning you in.
Find me one place where the ideas of the current democrat party have worked long term and the people have not eventually overthrown their source of free stuff. Be patient and know that every government rat trap is full of free cheese.
Maybe American ideals will not exist here in this place, but there's always freedom loving people looking forward to the next horizon. It's a cycle that human beings just cannot seem to break.
Susan -- Everything has changed to get us where we are today. Maybe the religious aspect needs to be reevaluated a bit more--by not just the parties, but all of us.
ReplyDeleteJack -- I think you make a good point. This is the goal of any agenda trying to tap in to the various parties--every one is saying "Add me" to your platform, but the point is when that agenda is added to a party then that party becomes more like the other. We are all one; we are the world.
ESB -- Great point. It's almost like we all have a voice kind of sort of but not exactly really. Maybe it's time to reevaluate the election process.
Jasmine --True, not everyone appreciates the circus metaphor--some people are actually terrified of clowns. However, circus is a world I grew up around and I can relate to it. Besides the circus is a commonly used metaphorical representation for things like politics so I think it works pretty well. I do like your metaphor as well and yours does a good job of illustrating the point. I think you and I are coming to the same conclusion via different paths. Good job on your part.
Lee
The Republicans need to present a candidate worthy of a vote. Romney was the best they've got? Even dyed-in-the-wool Republicans voted for Obama.
ReplyDelete1. I think you don't grasp the cyclical nature of politics. It may be that the democrats are again rising to the top, although that may not be happening quite yet. We'll have to see. But the republicans rose with Reagan, and the dems were before that from FDR, and the republicans were before that.
ReplyDelete2. The Republican party is no way what it used to be. Lincoln, a Republican, freed the slaves, but today's Republicans seek to make new slaves. If Lincoln was alive today, he's be a Democrat, that doesn't say good things about the Republicans upholding the beliefs their party was founded on.
3. The Republicans need to realize that there are other people in the world beyond rich, white men. They specifically went after the white vote with the assumption that they could win off of that. This is not the 50s anymore; the Republicans seem to think that's the decade we're still in.
Tami -- I'm not sure about the claim that "dyed-in-the-wool Republicans" voting for Obama. I really kind of doubt that unless they were really Democratic sheep wearing Republican clothing. I do agree that many in the party were not overly thrilled in the choice of Romney, but I don't know what the best alternative would have been under the current circumstances.
ReplyDeleteAndrew-- 1) Just about everything is cyclical. I'm not sure the Republicans can ever rise back up to the top without a tactical change to their approach of reaching and teaching the people. Republican ideas are growing stale to the disillusioned and are not attractive for the emerging masses.
2) I guess the slave metaphor can be used by both sides. I'm not sure how the Republicans seek to create slaves unless you are referring to slavery to large corporations. Some have suggested that the Democrats are trying to make the populace enslaved by big government by creating a dependency on entitlements. It's possible that the image of the Republican Party has been distorted by propaganda from other camps. 3) This is where the bigger tent comes in. The Republican has some support from those other than white males, but not what is needed for growth. There has to be proselytizing for there cause to reach those who are just following tradition or the concept of what they think they should be. A bigger tent with wide door flaps is far more welcoming and easy to get into without putting much thought process into the entry. The Republicans can keep their values, but they will not experience growth or success unless they prove to more people that they are the values that will work in the long run. Maybe that's why one of the alternative parties might be a better solution in the future. The Republican Party has been sullied by the ideas you and I both suggest.
Lee
Andrew - I should have said "proselytizing for their cause" instead of "there cause". Me, the poor editor! I probably made more errors, but that one stood out as I reread.
ReplyDeleteLee
I can't help wondering what a campaign would be like if it was limited to only six to nine months before national vote:
ReplyDeleteMonths 1 through 4 - primaries for parties nominating a candidate. The main form of communication would be for the candidates to speak about their accomplishments and imperfections themselves and a detailed overview of steps they'd consider taking to address the issues, providing some form of researchable material that voters can dig into to make an educated vote on the party candidate.
Months 5 through 6/9 - at this point, there's no need for ridiculous mud slinging or overly-simplistic generalizations from the left or right (is there anyone in the middle?), name calling or threats to fire employees or moving to Costa Rica if a certain candidate wins (again, the power of the squeaky wheel leaving a lasting impression, not good when it's a negative impression, sorry, some that marketing crap from college is kicking in again lol!!) At this point, both/all party candidates can make their rounds throughout America sharing their information with voters and reiterating how their platform would/could address moving the country progressively forward, traditionally forward or improving the status quo...whatever lol!!
By the way, it wasn't on purpose, but I spent a lot of time catching sound bites just so I could see what the most powerful buzz words were. There were more than I could keep up with, but honestly, that seemed to be all the campaigns were about: buzz word, buzz word, idea, buzz word, buzz word.
Interesting...
Saw your post on Twitter and the headline caught my attention. So here I am, an unapologetic political junkie. I agree when you say it will be some time before the Republicans win another presidential election. But I respectfully disagree with why you think this might happen. I think one reason the Republicans lost the 2012 election is that they’re out of touch with the diversity of today’s American population. This is no longer the America of white picket fences and apple pie, a dessert that holds no appeal for millions of Americans. Aside from that, I think what we saw take place in 2012 was a war of ideologies culminating in the gay marriage and abortion issues and fueled by an extremist religious right wing that made a lot of Americans uncomfortable. The Tea Party did more damage to the Republican campaign than an army of stampeding circus elephants could have done.
ReplyDelete"one old tired elephant,"-- clever.
ReplyDeleteYour assessment is a pretty good one, I think. The thing I've noticed most in the past months seems to be that, to go with your metaphor, the folks pitching the tiny tent seem content with the smaller crowd inside their tiny tent and are uninterested in, say, inviting folks from the other circus into their tent. I agree with you that if the GOP is to stick around, they're going to need a little more "party" and a little less "grand old."
You may be on to something.
ReplyDeleteForty some years ago, Political Science was the subject that got me good grades and helped me get the debate club trophy for my class. Today I am very disappointed by politics. The amount of money that went to the television stations( to promote both parties) could have been used otherwise to mend the economic status of this country.
The day Republicans will understand issues of the general public could be the day there will be a Republican President. I am hoping that they will take a lesson from the governer of New Jersey.
Wow, what a great, but dangerous topic. Your metaphor of a circus tent that everyone is familiar with and knows is accurate. We know what the Republican platform is and while there are some good things there are also some extremely tired and out dated points.
ReplyDeleteI won't go into more detail for fear of upsetting people and I don't want to start any flame war on your blog.
I think you're right, our political processes (and government) seems to be going the circus way and not a cooperating circus either--meaning neither party will work together. So it ends up being a circus.
ReplyDeletePeople are very passionate about their politics. For sure. I certainly won't stop reading your blog because you wrote a (very interesting)post about how you feel about the repubs and demos.
T
Angela-- You may be aware that I am a fan of "marketing crap". I'm not sure that the parties would be very agreeable to such stringent confines as you suggest though it would be nice to see. I think a candidate who might run that sort of a campaign on a voluntary basis might catch the attention and spark the imagination of voters. We can dream.
ReplyDeleteJP -- Glad you stopped by. I think we agree more than you suggest. The Republicans would do well to tap into the diversity they do have. Then they need to convince the voters of the beauty of white picket fences and come up with a new and innovative apple pie recipe. Friendly persuasion could do wonders.
Colby -- A New Republican Party might work. Keep the traditional ideas but refresh them to make them seem new.
Munir -- I'm not very thrilled about politics either, but the process and the marketing aspects do fascinate me.
Melissa - Getting into this topic is a bit dicey, but it's what's on my mind here of late and I thought it was worth hashing out with the daring few that were willing to join in the conversation. Thanks for your part.
Teresa-- Thank you for your vote of confidence. Now will you vote for me as president?
Lee
Just wanted to tell you great posting and definitely enjoyed reading it. When something weighs on your heart and mind I think that none of us should feel we shouldn't post about it. Sometimes it helps just getting it out! You said it all and you said it well!
ReplyDelete`
ReplyDeleteOh, boy! . . .
BOIDMAN, I will begin by saying that I liked your circus analogy. It worked well on several levels.
>..."The Democrats on the other hand pitch a gigantic tent ... Everyone is excited with so much going on - so much that no one can take it all in. The audience members keep their eyes on their favorite acts and miss most of the others. The important thing here is that everyone goes away happy because they all got want they wanted. It makes no difference that they didn't see everything in the show. They saw what they came to see and that's what matters to them."
That was BRILLIANT, Lee! I understood perfectly what you were saying between the lines (or, rather, cloaked within the lines). BRILLIANT!
And now, my opinion:
Three of the biggest problems here are, 1) Most of these commenters do not know the history of the U.S. and how and why it became a Constitutional Republic, 2) most of them have never really studied the U.S. Constitution which, along with the Declaration of Independence, is what makes America "American", and 3) they do not understand that we do not really have two political parties. (The Democrats and the Republicans represent two sides of THE VERY SAME COIN.)
Lee, excluding you and Yellow Rose Jasmine (whom I think submitted the overall best comment), it's sad that the three commenters who had the MOST to say also appear to be the LEAST informed (or the MOST misinformed). Not surprising, really, that one of the three gets a good deal of his political edjukation from NPR.
To me politics is just smoke and mirrors trickery and bait and switch tactics.
~ Em-Musing
Right on! (If I may use a 'Summer Of Love' expression.)
My husband says if Condoleezza Rice were to run for president, she wouldn't lose.
~ Diane
That's probably true. Unfortunately though, Rice is a genuine traitor to her country, as she provided cover for the George W. Bush Administration after it deliberately killed nearly 3,000 American citizens on 9/11 as justification to invade the Middle East.
The Republicans have not stayed the same. They have become extremely religious (which should be left out of politics)
~ Susan
I suppose it would come as a great surprise to Susan to learn that the Declaration of Independence refers to God 4 times, and the U.S. Constitution refers to Jesus Christ at its conclusion.
We are a fundamentally altered nation now and "All the king's horses, and all the king's men..."
~ Jack
Jack's comment was astute, but I'm not surprised. I remember his comment on my 'BECOME AN EDUCATED AMERICAN PATRIOT' guest post, and he showed himself to be smarter than the average bear there, too.
Lee, I like your Circus analogy because it provides a lot of room and opportunity to include symbolism that works.
But I still believe my more basic, nutshell analogy of a 'PUNCH 'N' JUDY' show is best in an "overall" way: You have two puppets - Punch and Judy (the Dumb-O-Crats and the Repugnantcans) - fighting against each other, but unseen by the audience (which chooses sides and roots for one puppet or the other), is a single puppeteer completely controlling BOTH puppets.
I realize, of course, that this is a separate topic for another year.
Very good blog bit, Brother Lee!
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
Gossip Girl-- Thank you for those words of support. I sincerely appreciate them.
ReplyDeleteStMc-- Thank you for your endorsement and analysis. I did appreciate today's comments and whether they were right, wrong, or whatever, they were well presented each according to its source. Like the 2012 elections indicated there is a divide in our country and the comments here illustrate this as well. I'm not sure that I'd totally agree about the parties being "two sides of the same coin", I would agree that the outcome is essentially one of parity when all is said and done. If the third puppet were brought onto the stage and ended up winning, perhaps that too would be operated by the same puppet master. Maybe even concerning ourselves at all with the politics of this world is folly that we shouldn't even be getting ourselves worked up over. I don't know for sure about any of it, but it's good that you stay educated and keep those who listened informed about issues. Thanks for being there.
Lee
Lee-
ReplyDeleteI'm coming late to the party, and it being just after midnight I am not going to read all the comments (I'll come back to read Stephen's tomorrow) so if I repeat what has already been said, I apologize.
First off-great post.
Sadly, you may be right, but fortunately, the parties have not really been any different for so long it won't matter.
In my eyes, the problem is that people think in terms of the tents (to use your analogy) or the parties.
They need to think of issues, not slogans, and looke at what people they vote for have done, not what they say (past performance is a pretty good indicator of future performance).
There are times when you want to be liberal (YOU ROCK, COLORADO!!), and there are times to be conservative.
I know I say that a lot, but I hope if enough people read it, it may sink in.
Larry
Hi Lee - I read your post and the comments ... interesting - and I'm pleased you've had a lot of response ...
ReplyDeleteI watched from the British sidelines .. cheers for now - Hilary
I liked it.
ReplyDeleteLarry -- I hope Colorado is a sign of things to come even as in CA authorities are cracking down on medical marijuana vendors. A message at least is being sent. I agree with the importance of knowing why we are voting for a candidate, but most voters are lazy and the nicely wrapped and packaged candidate delivered to their living room is the easiest way to go.
ReplyDeleteHilary- I suppose Britain has its fair share of issue problems that are much like those we face in the U.S. It seems to be pervasive worldwide.
fmc -- I'm glad you liked it.
Lee
You might be right about the bigger and flashier circus. If the GOP keeps the status quo, they won't take the Oval Office again. Seems like the Dems appeal to younger voters, women, and Latinos. How can any party win against those odds?
ReplyDeleteNot being American, I don't have much to say. but it sure is interesting to eavesdrop on all this discussion!
ReplyDeleteI'm not American either, but we here in Australia were nervous about the election too. For my part, I'm thrilled with the outcome 'cause the alternative was just too petrifying. But of course, no candidate is perfect. And here in Australia right now, our two main parties are basically standing for the same thing, so we don't have any actual variety of choice at least if we want to vote for someone who has a chance of getting into office. I always vote Green 'cause at least I can respect those dudes. ;)
ReplyDeleteBuck -- Future candidates will have to persuade women and any other special interest groups that they have what's best for the country and the voters as a whole. Educating voters is imperative. Feelings should not be the primary impetus for voting for a candidate.
ReplyDeleteDamyanti -- Issues in the United States are international issues. What we decide will influence the rest of the world and vice versa.
Trisha -- Your view of the U.S. elections may have been influenced by skewed and misguided media. I'm not sure we are looking at any bright prospects with the administration to come. Any negative outcome resulting from a Republican victory might be minor in comparison to an economic collapse of the United States. I fear that may be the direction we could be heading--I hope not, but I don't like the signs. And I don't know if we get corrupted media reports about Australia, but I've been hearing some pretty scary and weird stuff about your country. Then again according to many resources I sometimes get the impression that the whole world is heading towards Crazy Town.
Lee
I have two die-hard Republicans in my family. They both voted for Obama. I think it was a first for both. I agree with Tami.
ReplyDeleteThe difficult part of a democracy is that it requires thoughtful, active, committed participation, and yet we're apparently supposed to line up behind fools and idiots. What is amazing to me is how we seem too arrogant to search the world for ideas that work. Canada has a fine health care system (I lived under it for years) for such a small tax base. Germany models an employed population and successful finances. I haven't been convinced in years that our leaders in any way give a hoot about The People. The longer we go on this way, the further entangled we become with the rich and powerful holding us for ransom, and the harder it is to undo. Don't apologize for speaking out. It looks like it's up to The People to give some hard and realistic direction, for we have no leaders and haven't for some time now.
ReplyDeleteSusan -- I'm surprised to hear this.
ReplyDeleteChristina -- You make a good point. Or one might say that we have leaders who have an agenda that is not for the benefit of the People.
Lee
Hi Lee! Sorry I've been sketchy on my blog visits lately. Just now I was Googling something totally different and this popped up so I had to come over to see what you had to say.
ReplyDeleteI love this analogy. I completely get it. I'm still licking my wounds from the election results, and in my reflections came to accept that Americans are simply suckers for the best marketing campaign. A scary thought, but it's the only way I can explain what happened.
I like your plan to find a way to draw more people to the Republican tent rather than change the core values. Sounds like it's gonna have to be a grass roots effort...
Interesting post, Lee. I have thoughts about it all, but I've lost my energy sitting here trying to figure out how to say it in a few words. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI completely understand what you mean about "the circus". Unfortunately because of how our elections are run, they aren't exactly organized to make sure they represent the best our country has to offer. It represents who had the most charisma, connections, money, and best public relations (whether it reflects reality or not). This is why the jibjab political cartoons have been so popular I think.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a particular affinity for one party or another, but I do agree that the circus needs to be taken out of politics. And I'd like a pony and a villa in Tuscany as long as we're dreaming :-P
Lee,
ReplyDeleteNice job tip-toeing through the minefield. I like the tent analogy but I am not sure it is totally accurate. Yes democrats equal bigger government but when you look at the republican lobbyist fueled corporate America that controls Halliburton, our food, fuel, banks and outsourcing one has to ask – who has the bigger tent? The top 5% supposedly employ and keep American running – it is that same 5% that is mostly republican and controls Corporate America. The Republican party has completely transformed. I am not even sure Reagan could get elected under a Republican ticket. As I stated in my Responsive Universe blog over at wordpress.com the Republican Party’s loudest voice is rightwing fringe crazies like Rick Santorum, Todd Akin, Paul Broun and others – this scares moderates from both sides. You think I am off base? It scares the crap out of me and I voted accordingly. So did the Nation. America is changing and if the Republican party does not change to meet the needs and wants of Americas newest generations and immigrants then they will be hard pressed to ever see the oval office again. You called my blog post parody or satire but when you live in a republican bubble it is not easy to see the big picture. You can argue all my points but the fact is there are fundamental problems with the Republican party and it is not all tents, clowns and juggling. I left your posts up on my site – I am sure you will do the same with a slanted rebuttal. Best of luck and thanks for the RT’s – John C. Bader
Nicki-- Grassroots indeed. What the Republicans need to achieve cannot be done efficiently with high-cost ad campaigns or preaching to the choir that is already following the party line. Reaching out to the believers that don't realize that their belief aligns with Republican values is essential.
ReplyDeleteAnita -- I understand your feelings and got much insight from the post you did. We all have four more years to reassess what is happening and what is going to happen.
Fa La -- Don't know if we'll ever get the circus out of the hearts of the people and the politics. Bread and circuses have been around forever I guess.
John -- The big tent analogy isn't as much about money as it is about people. A tiny circus can have lot's of money behind it and get by with higher ticket prices while the big circus lets in plenty of freebies and has a large section of cheap seats with money to subsidize the whole operation. The big political tent accommodates many agendas and population segments by adding everything into one big mix pot. What you call "the fringe" may be what the media and the opposition has labeled "the fringe". The beliefs may not be that extreme if you delve into the true American psyche, but I think the real problem is that most Americans are essentially apathetic about the politics and undereducated about the ideologies. I don't think the Republican party needs to change as much as they need to identify the true values of populace, including the youth and immigrants, and tap into those values to show how the Republican Party may suit their needs better. However, that being said, I think their are deep fundamental problems with both parties and I think they both suck in many ways. The voters have essentially been duped--mostly by ignorance and caving to propaganda--and the big machine of politics and media are ultimately the ones who hold the cards. We need some new players at the political table. New parties. Old ideas made new again and new ideas that make sense in the long run. I'm not in any bubble--my Libertarian bubble burst many years ago. Now I'm mostly an observer who dutifully goes to the polls and makes whatever statement my vote makes. By the way, I have never removed any comment except for spam and once I think I removed a comment that was particularly offensive toward another commenter. Disagreement is not offensive to me. I welcome it and encourage it. Disagreement inspires deeper thought.
Lee
Democrats are magicians: masters of misdirection. Republican are chickens, racing around to find bits of corn.
ReplyDeleteSusan, interesting thought about the Republicans. Your analogy of Democrats is one that I've used for a long time. I've thought about writing a post about this, but I've never gotten around to it (at least not to my recollection). The Dems are certainly the most deceptive and with the greatest skill at political tricks. Republicans are often too transparent to fool the people.
DeleteLee