I have two sets of friends who unwaveringly belong to the Republican party, and I actually refer to them as "my Republican friends." (As in, "oh, we're heading up north this weekend to visit my Republican friends.") In talking to them, I think I know why they drink the conservative Kool-Aid --- and ask for seconds --- but I'm at a loss as to how to respond to that. And as much as I'm enjoying this Fitzmas season (it's the most wonderful time of the year!), when the dust settles, there's still the nagging question of the
Republican message. As they say, more on the flip.
Thanks for sticking around! :)
The message is, of course, the "pull yourself up by your own bootstraps" one. It speaks of self-reliance, and it's pretty darn effective: by staking the claim to self-reliance, it means the Democrats are the party of the (unjustified) handout, of the ol' tax-and-spend.
There's a lot you can say in response: you can point to government programs that succeed, you can go with the contradiction of a lack of charity within the "Christian" party, etc. You can also talk about re-framing the debate (though changing this particular frame would take decades, if it would happen at all), and I think we've discussed here what good "brands" the Democratic party should promote. (I tried searching for it, but no luck. Give me a break, this is my first post!) But in looking at the actual message itself, I haven't really found a good response to the assertion itself, other than a kick in the shins.
One friend in particular is something of a rags-to-riches story: he came from a fairly poor family, and by working hard in school, he was able to get scholarships while his siblings just sat around and bemoaned their fate (to hear him tell it). He now has a very good job, and they pretty much ask him for handouts at family reunions.
I can talk about the cycle of poverty, and I guess the best message I have is how you can't really run the country like a business. (We can see now, under W's regime, how great an idea that is.) But what else? I'm sure he would say that the way to defeat poverty is through tax cuts and encouraging new entrepreneurs, and that things like raising minimum wage just makes it harder. I think tax cuts tend to make sure the wealthy stay wealthy and don't do a whole lot for the common good, but I don't have a good response, either.
I think the dKos community is my only hope. What do you think?