Political Purity and the Political Spectrum

I think the homogenus thing will become more and more false as the years go by because a lot more minorities are going to vote Republican.Yeah,the new face are going to be stuffy minority conservatives.

Actually if you think about it many Hispanics are very conservative and are beginning to take an interst in the Republican Party and they will become the biggest majority in America in twenty years. .

That's true.

The Republican Party is basically two factions right now. The fiscal conservatives (libertarians) and social conservatives (the Religious Right). There is a degree of overlap here, as well.

Conversely, the Democratic Party is at least three factions:

• The Feminists
• The Environmentalists
• The Social Democrats

I'm sure I could find more if I thought about it long enough...

Blacks, anti-war movement, economic liberals, working class (especially unions), public servants.

Just out of curiosity, which of the two parties includes left libertarians, since I heard quite contradictory statements on the issue?

edited 11th Sep '11 2:10:38 PM by MilosStefanovic

If anything, I've heard of the tendency for minorities to not vote republican due to perceptions of racism.

Those rumours are getting to be proven more and more false as more minority members join.I think there is a division but people tend to gloss it.

So we have what's left of the Civil Rights Movement in there, the Pacifists, and... all the rest is part of "Social Democrats."

It varies. Some side with the Republicans for the "small government!" byline, while others side with the Democrats for the "legalize everything!" stance they... don't actively discourage...

where did I say anything about rumors? The fact is that there have been actively racist statements by politicians, and such statements repel minorities. An Oklahoman congresswoman said that blacks are poor because they don't work hard in school, saying that when she was a teacher she heard how they would rather sit on their ass and collect welfare from the government. A senator flat out blamed single mothers and poor minorities for the credit crunch.

Like the fact that Obama won 96% of the black vote in 2008? Hardly 'more and more minorities' joining. Hispanic vote split 2-1 for Obama.

I feel ashamed being from Oklahoma just hearing that.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:18:16 PM by DarkConfidant

I'm not entirely sure it was Oklahoma. Pretty sure, not entirely sure.

Also, before "welfare queens" show up, http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1077/is_n2_v48/ai_12970819/

I think Hispanics tend towards socially conservative but fiscally liberal, which makes for the 50/50 split. To use Mexico as the example, society tends to be very collective and conformist, but also traditional, resulting in such a mentality.

Considering that it actually takes some effort to get southern States to officially recognize the main cause of the Civil War as "slavery" and they still wave Confederate flags around, I'd say that racism is alive and well in the Republican-dominated Deep South...

edited 11th Sep '11 2:23:45 PM by USAF713

Yeah, there are definitely fringes of it here where I live, and I imagine it's worse if you go deeper South.

From what I've heard, US Serbs vote Democrat, while Croats tend to go for Republican. Pretty strange.

I wonder how those numbers would change if we added in illegal immigrants.

In any case, I would say that there is enough overlap in the Republican Party's factions that it can act fairly singularly, without worrying about internal struggle. Conversely, the Democratic Party is like a big pie made up of pieces from other things...

I am not saying racism is over or that is not still there but not all people who wear the Confederate flags are racists.I think some southerners have misplace loyalties about the south in the civil war but aren't apart of some hate group.I know racism will never fully leave the South but not all southerners who are with the Republican base are racists.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:31:23 PM by joyflower

The flag of the South is also used as symbol of history and culture. Having the stars and bars is pretty much saying I am southerner. Just because they have the flag does not mean they are all for the south rising again or the south should have won etc.

Much like our politics our culuture is not black and white and there is no nice category or group you can lump anyone into.

Yeah,the southern base of the Republican Party really makes up a big part.I think we can say it came from the 60's when the south moved to the Republican Party.So,yeah that meant the racists came along as well.

The funny thing is I have family down in the south and they all vote democratic of course.While little old me votes Republican.

You know we are apart of a new generation and who says that we can get more minorities into the Republican Party as the years go on by kicking out some of the more racist stuff.Besides some southern states have people besides just whites.It could take a lot of effort but I think it could be worth it.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:38:55 PM by joyflower

Excuse me if I don't take the second-most recognizable symbol of racist oppression being a "symbol of cultural heritage" kindly.

And, ironically, they used to call the Deep South the "Solid South," as it voted as one big bloc (the bloc being the Old Confederacy)... for the Democrats.

And then the Democrats became the party of the Civil Rights Movement while Nixon grabbed disillusioned conservative "Dixiecrats" and brought them into the Republican fold, thus creating the current fiscal/social conservative balance there while simultaneously fracturing the Democrats.

The '60s, in other words, suck. Still.

Thats like me claiming that Bloody Kansas was about liberty and states rights as a Missourian.

(it wasnt)

Republicans wont widely get minority voters until they drop such lovely topics as making immigration even more draconic and implementing further checks forcing immigrants to prove their citizenship from their platform.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:50:30 PM by Midgetsnowman

On that note, Rolling stones article.

The stwatiska once was a symbol of good luck but I will keep it at that.

I think the Southern base is one I think that needs a little cleaning off but it doesn't mean its all bad.

Snowman@My mom is a democrat and she is against illegal immigrants lying about their status.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:55:25 PM by joyflower

Yeah. And here in CA, anyway, the local GOP is trying to moderate itself on immigration. And it's not like the state party isn't able to elect minority candidates...

And IIRC that wouldn't surprise me, at all. There tends to be a little bit of African-American/Latino tension round here when it comes to immigration.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:55:50 PM by Cojuanco

it still is. In Asian countries. Where it was a symbol of good luck for thousands of years before it was perverted.

The cionfederate flag was specifically created at the founding of the Confederation. It does not have some wide cultural history prior to that date.

You're essentuially trying to claim an ancient, venerated symbol used by an unfavorable group has as little historical and cultural significance as something invented merely a hundred and fifty years ago.

edited 11th Sep '11 2:55:45 PM by Midgetsnowman

The swastika is a religious symbol twisted into a corruption of the original. The Confederate Flag... has never meant anything other than treason for the sake of bigotry.

I think the Republican Party party if you think about it could be called a former teen rebel because it used to be the loose one.Actually I think the Republicans are still appeal to women and minorities but just the more consevative ones which is why there are more coming out.

Civil War generaling it both ways can be a dangerous thing because the funny thing is that Ulysses S. Grant's wife had slaves.Slavery was a vocal point but saying all the south was for it might be an enormous mistake.There was still ablonists in the south.

edited 11th Sep '11 3:11:50 PM by joyflower