I guess I shouldn't let the month go by without a poke at DailyKOS as it continues to distentigrate into the netherregions of DemocraticUnderground-itis. I mean yeah, there was the site owner calling brutally savaged contractors in Iraq dirty things, so somewhere well after that mental screw up, add this one ...
Harris Poll - Party Affiliation/Philosophy
First, its worth noting what caught my eye about this post. I honestly thought the poster (DemFromCT) might end up being hung in effigy due to a highlighted bit of heresy posted:
Unlike some of the other polls, The Harris Poll finds that the Democrats still retain a small lead over the Republicans in party identification, although it has declined in every decade since the 1970s. Based on over 6,000 interviews conducted by telephone last year, one-third (33%) of all adults "consider themselves" to be Democrats, 28% self-identify as Republicans and 24% as Independents.(...)
This was quoted from a nice Harris Poll roundup as the title of the post suggests. The news, basically, was that little had changed over the last 30 years. The poster tries to make a mountain out of a molehill in noting a 7% point decline among conservative identifyers since 1995, but that's about as loony as it got. I was curious what the comments would add. Follow me, if you dare ...
"We should call ourselves "progressive," not "liberal." The term is just as accurate, and who doesn't want to progress? I think it would eliminate a lot of the stigma associated with being "liberal."" - First off, this comment does a big disservice to many who genuinely describe their politics as progressive and yet the traditional description of liberal does not apply in their mind.
I think that the true power is the corporate elite. They use the religious right as one of their power bases. The corporate elite use them for political power and organization. The corporate elite are at the top of both parties but have greatest influence within the Republican party. In some ways I suppose that the corporate elite should be called the Plutocrat party. They stand for consolidating the power into the hands of the few while limiting the rights of the many. - I really can't think of words to describe this one ... just accept the head shaking this one induces as normal and maybe it goes away after a while.
"Liberals have always scored in the upper 18%." - I spoke too soon earlier. I sincerely hope this was an effort at humor. Otherwise, I'd have to figure out how one polls in the low 18%
"People who describe themselves as Moderate and Independent really tend to be somewhat moderate and independent. The endless bi-polar tug of war that goes on in American politics is just one way to try and reach them." - Brilliant strategy ... the way to win over the middle is to play to the base. The legacy of Howard Dean lives on, ladies and gentlemen.
"One reason people dont like liberals is that the rightwingers continue to dump on us and our politicians' response is to go and hide" - ...or perhaps because some of them actually open their mouths, too.
"How to stop this? Take a stand and stick with it. Dont try to compromise with the right wing." - check with Jim Hightower on this one. This strategy worked real well with him when he endorsed Jesse Jackson in 1988 and ran for reelection in 1990, losing to an unheard of State Rep ... who is now our Governor.
"I've moved slightly to the right with age, yet find myself further to the left of center than I was 20 years ago! As I've moved right, our political culture has moved right at twice my speed." - Dude, I seriously want to see the metrics on this one!
"More and more young people register as independent. So do more and more minorities. Within a decade or two I think that they will be a huge majority of voters." - some partial truth in here, but still ignores the vast 30 year trend line that remains mostly flat.
There's more, but the curiosity factor within me has waned.