I was speaking generally. I know I saw someplace on Yehoodi where someone was casting aspersions on the general intelligence of Bush supporters, but with so many different threads, I can't find it now.

Oh dear - now I don't have to look for a post painting Bush supporters as less smart - it's right here.

And grasshopper just posted that "the party as a whole appears to be embracing bigotry and religious oppression" so there's the racism/homophobia aspect, I think. I don't know where she gets the religious oppression from.

More on topic...

The other big factor is voter turnout. Both sides worked overtime to get people out to vote. The Republicans did a better job. (Overall I think they did better than the Democrat campaign and their attack ads were pretty effective).

The youth vote (18-29) was a big bust. Millions spent on voter drives - which worked on the older people who actually care and have the time/ /experience/peer group/??? to go out and vote.

Quoted from "nurseboy"

Quoted from "hoya01"

Quoted from "nurseboy"
Another thing that gets me: The biggest trend that I'm seeing in here is the attitude that folks who voted for BUsh are somehow "less smart" than someone who voted for Kerry. I find that very condescending and downright offensive. People vote for different reasons and issues and if someone voted the other way, it just means that they have different ideas and values than you do.

Would you mind quoting some language before painting with such a broad brush? I would say that people who voted for Bush for certain reasons - "moral values" as a priority above all others, for example - are wrong. Does that make them less intelligent? No. But I still think they're wrong - priority-wise, and in actually assessing which candidate's "moral values" are superior when judging actions not words.

Sure, here it is:

Quoted from "skadoo"
No, I pray that you learn to think for yourself. That you learn to read carefully, and that you consider more than just religon when it comes to voting. For our nation's sake THINK!

Quoted from "mouth"
I'm saying your beliefs are so inconsistent and pick-and-choose that I don't understand them. Yours, and everyone else who voted for the reasons you did.

Quoted from "SwingKitten"
I hope you're praying that our country won't get attacked again due to our fearless leader getting his claws into the Middle East and pissing off a lot of seriously extremist people who want to hurt us. I hope you're praying that this planet doesn't get destroyed because of religious war. I hope you're praying that MY CITY doesn't get attacked due to YOUR VOTE.

Maybe "less smart" is the wrong term. It's more a feeling that you guys think that Bush supporters are "unenlightened" because we don't see things your way. Just a feeling........

Nice quotes. But you're forgetting one rather important piece of context. Everyone you quoted was talking to arcecat specifically (save for mouth, who referred to "all Bush voters who think like you do" - which isn't all Bush voters, not with Addict and redshoes and you around), not talking about Bush voters generally. Try again.

Newsboy,

I will completely take responsibility for thinking SOME Bush supporters are inconsistent.

But that isn't calling anyone dumb.

I'm basically saying I don't understand - which is kinda calling myself dumb actually. :wink:

And I was speaking to ONE person. I included people who also say the same things she says. But that's hardly all Bush supporters.

And I do agree with Marcelo that the facts show less education amongst Bush supporters. I also believe facts show they are less informed on the issues overall.

Smart or dumb is a personal quality.

Informed and educated is something one chooses. And yes, I have less respect for people who CHOOSE to be less educated and informed, whoever they vote for.

If that doesn't include you, or other Bush supporters, then there's no need to get in a huff over it.

But you can still extrapolate that attitude in general. Take Marcelo's quote:

Quote
No nurseboy, it doesn't. I don't have to accept that people who voted Bush are every bit as smart as Kerry voters. On the contrary, I can cite statistics that say that BUsh voters are more likely to have never gone to college, never finished high school, etc

I don't know if I'm just taking it the wrong way, but it smacks to me of condescention. It gives me the impression that folks view Bush voters as a bunch of religeous nutjobs or uneducated hicks. Maybe it's just me......

Quoted from "arcecat"

Quoted from "SwingKitten"
II hope you're praying that MY CITY doesn't get attacked due to YOUR VOTE.

Do you really think that America has a larger chance of a terrorist attack with Bush in power rather than Kerry?

YES.

yes, i do. and the areas of the country most likely to experience a terrorist attack did NOT vote for Bush. imo, because they don't trust him to do anything but antagonize the extremists.

Quoted from "nurseboy"
But you can still extrapolate that attitude in general. Take Marcelo's quote:

Quote
No nurseboy, it doesn't. I don't have to accept that people who voted Bush are every bit as smart as Kerry voters. On the contrary, I can cite statistics that say that BUsh voters are more likely to have never gone to college, never finished high school, etc

I don't know if I'm just taking it the wrong way, but it smacks to me of condescention. It gives me the impression that folks view Bush voters as a bunch of religeous nutjobs or uneducated hicks. Maybe it's just me......

From that post alone, perhaps. But that's one post. If you want to paint "in here" as having that attitude generally, you'll have to find more than one post.

Frankly speaking, I do view some Bush voters as religious nutjobs and/or uneducated hicks. Just as I view some Kerry voters as elitist snobs. But I don't think anyone in here has said they think the majority of Bush or Kerry voters are of that stereotype.

Quoted from "Marcelo"
The Republicans have been calling gay people sinners and liberals America-haters for the last 20 years. And they should - they should let their views be known.

I want the names of specific Republicans who have done that.

Of course everyone is a sinner

Quoted from "arcecat"
I never said that I prefer to be ill-informed. I am informed. We just have different views.

Oh, really?

What about this post?

Quoted from "arcecat"
Well, I'm not really into studying evolution and stuff. I just don't have any desire to.

This, after you'd already made six posts discussing evolution and creationism. This post, incidentally, indicates (a) current status as ill-informed on a subject and (b) a preference to remain ill-informed on that subject.

Do you even know most of those people's first names?

(I have no snap graphics but I just had to say it)

OH SNAP!

(this was in response to Marcelo but I wasn't fast enough)

I have to agree with Addict that abortion was not THE issue, it was an additional issue that helped voter turnout. But without terrorism and Gay marriage, abortion would not have gotten people to come out to vote. It was one of a few issues that helped. Not the main issue. After all, MOST of America is pro-choice.

Quoted from "nurseboy"
But you can still extrapolate that attitude in general. Take Marcelo's quote:

Quote
No nurseboy, it doesn't. I don't have to accept that people who voted Bush are every bit as smart as Kerry voters. On the contrary, I can cite statistics that say that BUsh voters are more likely to have never gone to college, never finished high school, etc

I don't know if I'm just taking it the wrong way, but it smacks to me of condescention. It gives me the impression that folks view Bush voters as a bunch of religeous nutjobs or uneducated hicks. Maybe it's just me......

Exactly. For every statistic about conservatives and republiucans not being as smart, I could throw out a stat about violent crime being twice (or more) higher in the democratic areas. Does that mean democrats are a bunch of violent criminals? By his logic, yes. :dunno:

The republican party has a strong base in the rural poor. The democratic party has a strong base in the inner-city poor. As a sad fact of economics, the poor are going to have a lot more problems (including education and crime) that manifest themselves a little differently Maybe if, rather than calling country folk a bunch of dumb hicks, democrats would put a tenth the effort into revitalizing our countryside as they do our cities (after all, it is your party who believes the government can effecitively do this) they would get more votes from this type of voter. Clinton did, twice. Learn to care about Americans who don't live in the Northeast or the West Coast and you'll get the votes of Americans who don't live in those places.

But, to the conservative posters reading this thread, I wouldn't worry about what is being said here. As I predicted, the losing side is in denial and trying to come up with "reasons" why they lost - ie why the other side was too stupid to vote for their AWESOME candidate :roll: It's more than a river in Egypt. But they know they have a choice, and that is between keeping the "red part" of this nation in its place and being smug about it, or winning future elections.

Quoted from "Larry"

Quoted from "Swifty"
I think the gay marriage vote in 11 states was the biggest factor in bringing out the ultra-right in an election they may have otherwise stayed at home for. (Particularly Ohio)

This is one of the most insightful things I've heard all day. I wish we had some proof though via a poll or interviews.

I think Nicole beat me to it by about a minute. ;)

Quoted from "Swifty"

Quoted from "Larry"
More on topic... The other big factor is voter turnout. Both sides worked overtime to get people out to vote. The Republicans did a better job. (Overall I think they did better than the Democrat campaign and their attack ads were pretty effective).

I think the gay marriage vote in 11 states was the biggest factor in bringing out the ultra-right in an election they may have otherwise stayed at home for. (Particularly Ohio)

Which means Bush playing politics in this way worked like a charm.