A friend of mine [Republican] invited me to join his blog. He promised it would be a thoughtful blog and would only deal with issues of the day. He said I would be great as a blog-panelist because I could see both sides of an argument [I majored in Debate and Logic in college until I changed majors to Abnormal Psychology]. I thought, why not? I trusted my friend. We had lively discussions regarding politics, religion [agnostic v Mormon - I'll let you guess which one I am], and other topics of the day. I respected his ideas and his opinions. I joined.
Because my friend was well liked by many, the blog was an almost instant success. Within a couple of months, the members of his group numbered in the hundreds.
I took my time voicing my opinion. Barack Obama became the presidential candidate for my party. I originally wanted Hillary for the office, but respected the party's wishes and began my support of Mr. Obama. I didn't just leap onto the Obama change bandwagon. I began my research on the candidate.
The more I learned regarding the then little known Barack Obama the better I began to like him. He spoke up for universal healthcare. He was a black man with few if any hangups regarding race or gender. He was for stripping away the old immigration laws and redoing the entire immigration process. In short, he was a good candidate with an impressive background [Constitutional Law Major in college and a Congressman from the great state of Illinois]. His opponent, in my opinion, was a slow witted one trick suit with an attitude of monied privilege.
My first post in my friend's blog was fairly innocent. I simply stated that Mr. Obama was a good candidate and that it should be an interesting campaign, and I listed the previously mentioned platform ideas of Mr. Obama's.
Out came the vitriol.
I was a Pinko Commie with Nazi leanings bent on destroying the United States by the very act of giving poor people healthcare...free, forgodsake! Didn't I know that Barack Obama wasn't even a U.S. citizen? Didn't I know he would take all our guns away and leave us at the mercy of the Muslims? Where was my patriotism? Didn't I love this country? And finally, didn't I know ALL liberals are for ruining the government by giving away money to whomever asks for it.
First, Where do you begin to rebut such idiocy? Second, why in the world were these people so upset with Mr. Obama?
Back to the research libraries within the inter-web. I needed to rethink my liberal positions and take a more in depth study of the Republican Mind.
Here's what I learned:
There seem to be 7-types of Republicans.
1. Educated Republicans: These people are educated, but usually educated only in the ability to back up what they believe is true. They seldom see the other side of the coin, or even admit there is another side. They only way to debate them is keep them on topic. They are professional deflectors.
2. Fox News Conservative Radio Republicans: Angry. That's the one word that perfectly describes these Reps. If you debate them and defeat them in debate, they inevitably resort to name calling. I found the only way to debate them is to demand to know where they are getting their 'so-called facts.' They usually have only one source and it's severely biased.
3. Christian Republicans: Best word? Hypocrites. They do everything in the name of Christ in a very unchristian-like manner. I've found the easiest way to debate them is to ask questions like "what would Jesus say about assault rifles?" Or "Do you really believe that America is God's chosen most country in the universe?" Or "what would Jesus think of war?" Their response usually proves that they are hypocrites.
4. Tea Party Republicans: These folks are a combination of the former examples. They think Sarah Palin is intelligent and the media makes her look stupid. They think Glenn Beck is credible. I found that to debate them, you have to keep asking for proof of what they are saying. If you ask them a question, they deflect by asking you a question. Never answer their question until they answer yours. Watch out though, they are known to carry guns in places where guns should never be carried. [This goes for all of the other Republican-types also.]
5. Birther Republicans: Obama was born in Kenya...period. You can't talk them out of it. Show all the proof you want to disprove their point and they still maintain he's not a 'real American.' I never waste time debating them. I could have Barack Obama's birth certificate in my hand and they still wouldn't believe it means he was born in America.
6. Racist Republicans: I DO NOT THINK ALL REPUBLICANS ARE RACISTS! But there are a small number who are and they are very vocal [squeaky wheels]. They hate Obama because he's black and they believe all Muslims are terrorists. The irony here is they actually believe Obama is a racist too. They can't understand when they post racist comments or pictures why people think they are racists. They will call you a racist if you say they are racist. I don't debate these people either. They are impossibly lead-headed.
7. Extremely Uneducated Republicans: One word. Don't. It's easier to teach a dog how to type a letter than it is to debate these folks. In fact, it's hard to read what they write due to the spelling and punctuation errors.
Now a final disclaimer...
Needless to say, I dropped out of my friend's blog. It was just too disheartening. To my Republican friends, no, you are not all the same and yes, there are shades of gray. The above cited individuals are generalities used to describe certain individuals within a larger group of individuals. As a liberal, at times, I find myself siding with some conservative concepts...because I really DO have an open mind.