NO Duh!
As I read today I was reminded why I have a link to it.
Yeah, That Must Be It [http://blogfromonhigh.blogspot.com/2008/11/yeah-that-must-be-it.html
Why did West Virginia go for McCain last Tuesday?
The answer comes from the ever-sententious Charleston Gazette:Why did Democrat-dominated West Virginia remain a Republican "red state" for the third straight presidential election? Marshall University professor Marybeth Beller told West Virginia Public Radio it might be because less-educated, white, blue-collar families in southern coal counties were leery of the unfamiliar "otherness" of Barack Obama, a mixed-race intellectual raised unusually in Hawaii, Indonesia and elsewhere. She noted that better-educated, more cosmopolitan voters in Morgantown and the Eastern Panhandle gave higher support to Obama.
So why did every Democrat in West Virginia who was running for statewide and congressional office win last Tuesday?
It must be becauseless-educated, white, blue-collar families in southern coal counties were leery of the unfamiliar "otherness" of Republicans, a group from mixed-socio-economic circumstances, most of whom were rumored to be native West Virginians, and that better-educated, more cosmopolitan voters in Morgantown and the Eastern Panhandle were just as wisethe people of West Virginia are really smart.
I have to agree. The smart people of West Virginia have said NO to Obama's call to cut back on a critical contribution to its economy...COAL.
Labels: Issues
posted by Kelly @ 11/10/2008 09:44:00 PM
11 left a comment.--
11 Comments:
LOL! Now if only there were a way to pry the Rockfellers hands off that state...
You know, that touches on an aspect of politics in this last election cycle that really annoys me. Tell me if I am wrong:
The presupposition that people vote for a candidate because of personal hatreds, excuses, biases and advertisements RATHER than because a candidate has a political platform is fundamentally flawed.
Allow me to elaborate.
It is easy to use cynicism and say that everyone that disagrees with me is mentally deficient. While that may, in fact, be true in my particular case is beside the point.... ;-)
It works for both major parties in a lot of cases. McCain supporters sometimes said that because of the personal things that were exposed about Obama, no one in their right mind could vote for him. The way that Sarah Palin's personal life was excoriated by the Obama supporters made them feel just sure that no one could vote for her party.
I am an eternal optimist, I suppose, but I really think that the people that voted for Obama by and large supported the Democratic Platform. Likewise, I think that people that voted Republican did so because they, in turn, believe that the Platform of that party really is the best thing for our country.
Naturally there are exceptions to this rule, but I am speaking in very large and general terms.
I think that the people that voted for McCain in WV did so because they saw a political advantage to that candidate. I got very tired of hearing that the Red State people were back-woods rubes and racists just as I got very tired of hearing that every Obama supporter was an east-coast liberal elitist or a radical America-hater. I do not think that all liberals get up in the morning and think, "Hmmmm, How can I support the destruction of the country today?" Likewise, all conservatives do not get up in the morning and think, "Hmmmm, how can I oppress minorities and poor people today?"
Love the results of the last election or hate them, we vote these regimes into power as a whole. If the Republicans want the Oval Office back in four years, they are going to have to win in the arena of sound political ideals that a majority of voters will want in office. If they will not or cannot make that fight, then the opposition wins, and it is not a statement on the intelligence of the american people.
Agree?
James, Well said!!
As a follow-up, I want to say that I forgot earlier to mention the men and women that have served this country.
We must honor their suffering by being the best America that we can be, politics and all the rest!
God bless the USA!
AMEN!!
If you ask Obama, they stopped clinging to their guns and their religion just long enough to get to the polls!
The presupposition that people vote for a candidate because of personal hatreds, excuses, biases and advertisements RATHER than because a candidate has a political platform is fundamentally flawed.
I'm sorry, but why would an individual favor one political platform over another UNLESS he were filled with "personal" hatreds, excuses, biases that could be affected by the rhetoric of advertising? Isn't EVERY choice a result of some "bias" in the judgement of an individual?
Don't both the "subject" AND "object" involved in exerting a preference contain "qualities" that attract or repel?
ps - Who reads the party "platforms"? I don't.
At least these folks were smart enough to vote with their wallets.
Brooke, well, that is a very big motivator.
FJ, I would go so far as to say that in this case the people of WV could probably care less what color Obama is.
But, yes, we all have our biases. What makes us choose or prefer one political party over another. I know that there are many who have no idea what the Democtratic party really stands for...yet still vote that way.
Also, I don't think you have to read a political platform to have an idea of what the particular party stands for.
Pasadena said If you ask Obama, they stopped clinging to their guns and their religion just long enough to get to the polls!"
Interesting thought considering that they are so overwhelmingly Democrat...which tends to be more secular and anti gun.
Country folk HATE city slickers like Obama. City slickers, on the other hand, love their fellow urbanites.
City slickers hate gun-toting G_d-fearing country folk.
IMHO, color has NOTHING to do with it.
It's a "natural" antipathy. Red vs Blue. Rural vs Urban.
Well, perhaps my phraseology is lacking. I should have not used the word 'bias' as much as I would use the term 'informed decision.' In my experience, people in the country are frequently as well informed as anyone that I have known in the urban areas. The informed decision is based on biases that generally do not include base attitudes about race or sex, but rather on biases based on one's political philosophy.
I would point out that all of the urban areas except for Dallas voted red as well as the urban areas here in Texas.
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