I had a LOVELY chat with my evangelical father last Saturday (as if). I do not recall how we got onto politics because I avoid that subject when he and I speak. The conversation was one of the most bizarre I've had in awhile. I was reminded of a few things.
He and the members of his church believe that Bush is "God's man in the Whitehouse." I asked him on what authority he had this information and he informed me that he had heard it from two preachers who had prophesied it prior to the 2000 election (even before W announced he would seek the repug nomination). I asked him if he thought that these folks might use their positions to advance their own political ideas. Of course, these guys are reputable and would never do such an unethical thing.
Lesson #1: I cannot argue my side with him. A preacher (who would never lie) says the Almighty himself told him George Bush is God's choice for president. The preacher can't prove the divine authority and I can't prove he is lying.
He listens to Rush and G. Gordon Liddy religiously, daily and without doubting. He once asked me if I had ever listened to Mr. Limbaugh. I told him that I had but could only spare 5 minutes for a blowhard that gets paid to be an asshole. He said, "give it more time, even Rush himself says it takes about 6 weeks to get used to him." Once you get through the initial period, he said you begin to see how everything connects. I said, "Sounds like brainwashing to me." He thinks I am the one who is brainwashed (of course).
Lesson #2: I cannot argue my side with him. He sees Liddy & Limbaugh (sounds like a slapstick comedy team) as great journalists, not entertainers with a right wing agenda.
They will never change their minds and Democrats might as well stop trying to get them to do so. They have been told by their ministers that x is true. Their ministers get their authority from God. They have been told that Liddy & Limbaugh are good and holy people by these ministers. Liddy & Limbaugh spew their venom and the fundies lap it up like starving sheep.
They have their religious agenda fed to them at church where they learn to listen to conservative radio where they get fed the GOP talking points. They never do independent research on their own because they have a belief that God has called all these people together to make God's will be done. You see the cycle here?
I told my dad that it is dangerous to give anyone THAT much power and influence. He said it is only dangerous if those people are evil. Thus, critical thought on his part is unnecessary. He sees what he has been told is okay for him to see.