From my profile:
A former idealistic idiot who has seen the light & truth of the repug party. Someone who's sorry for having voted R/L from 88 to 08. A person who hopes to make amends & support the defeat of the thinly veiled hateful trash that the repug party truly is
I started reading Daily Kos quite by accident while in my "both parties suck now attitude". I would always block out anything other than hate radio & faux news.
Don't wan't my point broken so please skip below the fold
But an incredible person here changed all that. Ironically her message was far more important than politics (she knows who she is). But because of a link I followed to read her diary, my thinking was about to be changed in ways that still astound my friends (they would've bet more money on the world ending Dec 21, 2012 than me becoming a democrat)
I started to read Daily KOS because of her. Now why did I respond to the diaries written here but not the press/media?
They were written by REAL PEOPLE. The people who write here aren't some abstract media person with an agenda, but real people writing about how policies affect them in a personal nature. Even in my "libertarian stupid dayz/daze" I would help a person I knew personally, but when the people became abstract I thought why is my money being taken away from me and given to them.
The DKOS community helped me to see that people aren't abstract ideas, but REAL even if I didn't know them. The community here helped me get over my union feelings as well (I had 2 bad incidents which turned me from pro to anti union - yes I was pro-union in my early L/R dayz/daze). I wish I could remember the diary I read way back that talked about the extremely awful conditions at one place. I felt so bad for those people trying to organize that I understood that I shouldn't let a couple bad expierences cloud my thinking. I started to believe in unions once more.
I could write more and more about how I have learned to see issues more clearly.
Some issues I was always on the side of good (which caused me endless issues with some repugs, specifically my outright disdain and hatred of bigotry to the point where they stopped showing me their sterotype hate-filled chain e-mails)
Now after all this why in my title do I say I need help?
There are 2 big issues that I don't see eye to eye with many people here. (I know with so many good fights to fight, not everyone will agree with everything)
One I have resolved to not even make comments on as I know I will never change. That is the I/P issue. Being Jewish I have some very strong feelings on this. As such I NEVER comment in those diaries and would appreciate it if you would leave any I/P issues out of responses to this diary. It can only lead to hard feelings for everyone.
(Me being able to set this issue aside was my last big hurdle to being able to accept becoming a democrat)
The second? What I need help with? I need a patient person willing to engage me in a conversation showing me where my error in logic is on one BIG ISSUE. I need someone who will not just say RW talking point, but someone who can help me work through the logic of an arguement to help me see where my brain isn't working properly.
Now why don't I mention the issue in the open? I will NOT give RW nutjobs cover while I try to figure out where I have gone wrong. I will NOT give RW nutjobs anything of mine to point to and say SEE THIS
I beleive I have come so far
I am really proud of:
1) Becoming a TU here (I knew I was on the correct road)
2) When I was first asked to join a group here (made me feel like I truly belonged)
3) When I was first called a bleeding whiny liberal by a very facistss RW nut job I know in real life.
4) ZERO HR's
I do NOT want to keep believing in a position that most everyone here would disagree with. So I ask if someone here can logically argue with me to help me see where I am wrong. I ask that you be patient and that you don't go smearing my reputation. I trust that I can count on the great community here to help me and not kick me in the butt as I am asking for help
I WANT to keep moving in the direction I am, but I need some help to move more forward.
Thank you everyone here for your many great diaries. My Rec list is all over the place as I love reading the many great diverse ideas here. I hope I don't appear to be scatterbrained in that :)
5:55 PM PT: Ok, I will say the issue of which I need help with: Illegal Immigration. My views on this are most assuredly not progressive. I am ashamed of that, but I need to understand where my logic is wrong. I was afraid at first to say it openly, but maybe if I do, I can start to understand. I sent a few kosmails already. If anyone is willing to listen to my (most assuredly) screwed-up logic and tell me where I fail I would be very grateful
7:19 PM PT: You nailed my whole issue right there! (0 / 0)
I also undersand that resourses are finite, but from what I see most immigrants just want to work and contribute.
Sorry I can't help you any more but no one else seems to have seen your update.
You seem like a very good person, one who is more than willing to have empathy for others. Maybe you could do some investigating and find out what reasons these poor people have for leaving whatever it is they are leaving.
Your first sentence right there nails it!
I think of everyone already here legally that suffers from poverty, homelessness, hunger, poor education, run down neighborhoods where life is hard. When I think of those people and how they struggle I want to help them. Our government has finite resources like you said. Repugs try to cut the social safety net even more.
When I think of people already here legally that need the help, I can't seem to justify letting illegal immigrants stay.
I do feel bad for people whose life is so bad they feel even risking being here illegally would be a better life. But at the same time, I feel bad for people already here living in disgraceful conditions for a country like the USA.
My problem is like you said above with limited resources allowing more people in just doesn't make sense. I feel bad for people whose lives are so hard that they come here by any means necessary. At the same time I feel bad for people already here living in poverty.
By helping illegal immigrants, do we send a message to those already here in poverty that we do not care?
By turning away illegal immigrants do we say we don't care about you? They are people worthy of respect too!
I am so fucking confused!!!!!
It is impossible to help everyone, no matter how much we all want to. What is the answer?
My answer aligns with the side of the hate-filled repugs.
From that logic of finite resources, I end up siding on an important issue with the repugs (who do it for hate-filled reasons). As such that thought of me now siding with them on such a big issue makes me feel a bit disgusted with myself. As a technical person I need to see the logic, the WHY, so that I can have a different opinion.
I guess I ended up posting my reasons anyways.
I hereby state that the use of my logic posted here by ANY RW nut-job to advance a position of theirs is totally WITHOUT my consent and as such will be constituted as willful intellectual dishonesty!