Has the GOP lost all of their sanity?

[Eol Sha]

Me too, the religious right has no place in true conservatism. Goldwater was for gay rights, just saying.

It was also force the democrats to go true progressive, and then a more realistic party structure on both sides would emerge.

in what way was goldwater for gay rights?

From 1994: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/po ... 072894.htm

[Thermodolia]

I want a government so small I can drown it in a bathtub, then again I'm not a rebulican. And personly I think they military should only protect the USA only.

I have no idea why you would want that. a country with more than 300million people cant operate on a small government.

It was more of a joke. I'm not like some people who think the government is evil.

[USS Monitor]

It's strange to consider that the great republican "hero", Ronald Reagan, wouldn't have much of a change in the republican Primary these days. And Eisenhower? Forget it, he probably couldn't even run as a democrat now...

The GOP has unfortunately been taken over by religious nutcases, particularly on a state-level. Nationally though, Wall Street is fighting back, leading to the infighting we're seeing now.

I must admit that, as a Dane, I simply do not understand how this came to be.

Yes... Sure... On a practical level I understand the process. Gerrymandering made the districts safe. And with safe districts there was no real competition except with your own party, so you end up having to out-republican all the other republicans. It's an echo-chamber where you have to shout louder than anyone else. And since everyone starts out pretty far to the right, all there's left is to move even further to the right...

But here's the thing... That still requires people to vote. After all, someone must be electing these nutcases for office.

What makes people actually vote for this kind of people? Why did people turn so rapidly against Occupy Wall Street? Why has there been no mass strikes, no uprisings? After all, isn't this what all the gun-nuts are dreaming of? The change to march on Washington and show the government just who's the boss.

The gun nuts with pipe dreams about marching on Washington are mostly the right-wing people who vote for Tea Party morons in the first place.

[USS Monitor]

Strange not at all likely wish: I want Huckabee to win the nomination.

Sanders or Hillary - either one - would wipe the floor with that man.

Everyone goes on about how extreme the GOP has supposedly become, yet no one wonders about the quasi-socialist ideology of the Dems.

Because there is no quasi-socialist ideology on the Democratic side...

[MERIZoC]

The party needs a thorough detox to get all the tea out of its system.

The current problem with the GOP comes from the tea, in my opinion.

The entire party really. Tea Partier or establishment Republican, their politicians are all crazy and amoral to the bone.

[Ashmoria]

in what way was goldwater for gay rights?

From 1994: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/po ... 072894.htm

thanks.

I was wondering what passed for gay advocacy in '64 but I see that he came to it late in life. its pretty cool for a man that old to have had the capacity to understand the need for gay rights.

[Eol Sha]

Everyone goes on about how extreme the GOP has supposedly become, yet no one wonders about the quasi-socialist ideology of the Dems.

Because there is no quasi-socialist ideology on the Democratic side...

If there is one they've never been anywhere near as obstructive as the Tea Party. I mean, shit, there's no forty-member block of "socialists" in the House threatening to shut down the government when they don't get 100% of what they want.

[Eol Sha]

From 1994: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/po ... 072894.htm

thanks.

I was wondering what passed for gay advocacy in '64 but I see that he came to it late in life. its pretty cool for a man that old to have had the capacity to understand the need for gay rights.

From what I understand of Barry Goldwater, he wasn't one of those evangelical conservatives who started moving in on the Republican party in the '70s and '80s. Sure, he carried the "racist" vote in '64, but that was more because of his siding with segregationists and supporting their policies and hsi, albeit for different reasons. As well as because of his anti-communist rhetoric.

[Ashmoria]

The current problem with the GOP comes from the tea, in my opinion.

The entire party really. Tea Partier or establishment Republican, their politicians are all crazy and amoral to the bone.

honestly the real problems is polarization and gerrymandering. the nutty base of the republican party has always been there. its not like there was a bunch of fiscally conservative non-party-members who suddenly signed up to become republicans in '10. what changed was the amazing republican successs in '10 and the republicanization of the state legislatures. with gerrymandering utterly out of control the ONLY people the republican office holders are beholden to are those in the nutty base. if they get nominated they WILL win. only the primary voters count.

well that and the kochification of the grassroots. if groups like "americans for prosperity" had to pay their own way they would die out and there would be no one to tell the lunatic base what to believe in.

[Infected Mushroom]

It does indeed.

What are those logical conclusions? You'd rather live in a one party state or dictatorship like China or Kazakhstan?

No that assumption would be a leap of logic

[New Zepuha]

In general, the US political system and electoral system is awful. The constitution has unfortunately created this awful situation we are in as South Park describes it, "We are given the right to choose between a douche and a turd." But the GOP has been getting more and more conservative, which is funny because the Democrats have been becoming more liberal since the mid-forties pushing our politics into the extremes. But back on topic, this is causing the ruination of the GOP, they refuse to back off the social-conservatism that is increasingly alienating the Millennials, who are fast aging into the voting bracket. So as the GOP continues to alienate moderates and the more liberal Republicans; people will start to turn to the Democrats or should God will it, the Libertarians.

TLDR; yes they have. This is coming from a Libertarian however.

[Reagan-land]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

[Ethel mermania]

Me too, the religious right has no place in true conservatism. Goldwater was for gay rights, just saying.

It was also force the democrats to go true progressive, and then a more realistic party structure on both sides would emerge.

Wait, so the religious right is not a product of conservatism? Then what is it a product of?

Their interpretation of religion. The bible is a very conservative book, it leads to a consevasive outlook, blended with "do it my way or go to hell". Which gives us the religious right. Fornication is bad, and we are going to use the state to enforce it. As opposed too, how you for ovate is not my business

[New Zepuha]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

How so?

[Daburuetchi]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

Like how all our scientist are screaming at us that global warming is killing the world but the GOP still denies this or how the continuation of the Bush era tax cuts have not in fact allowed wealth to trickle down but they still endorse them or how the Iraq war turned out to be a terrible idea, that solely benefited oil companies and was launched on a false pretense but they still claim it was about freedom

Jeez i guess I was blind to the Liberal doublethink all along.

[Reagan-land]

The GOP itself hasn't gone insane, really the rest of the world has. More Americans are always wanting free things, no one is willing to work hard nowadays, so people want more government to come in which in reality is the issue. For example, rasing minimum wage, which doesn't stack up if its 15 dollars an hour. Speaking of economics that don't work just about EVERY Liberal has a piss poor sense of currency and are just convincved that money is just infinite and debt doesn't matter, as long as they get the fruits of other labor. I haven't ever met a liberal that has taken a business class, and its no surprise to me at all and the current way that America is going, we are commiting economic scuicide. Even other nations like Russia know this and are going to take advantage of that unless we get a GOP candidate in, as they are usually involved in business their whole life.

[Galloism]

The GOP itself hasn't gone insane, really the rest of the world has. More Americans are always wanting free things, no one is willing to work hard nowadays, so people want more government to come in which in reality is the issue. For example, rasing minimum wage, which doesn't stack up if its 15 dollars an hour. Speaking of economics that don't work just about EVERY Liberal has a piss poor sense of currency and are just convincved that money is just infinite and debt doesn't matter, as long as they get the fruits of other labor. I haven't ever met a liberal that has taken a business class, and its no surprise to me at all and the current way that America is going, we are commiting economic scuicide. Even other nations like Russia know this and are going to take advantage of that unless we get a GOP candidate in, as they are usually involved in business their whole life.

You do realize that, as a master of history, our minimum wage is very low compared to historical norms, yes?

[Khadgar]

The GOP itself hasn't gone insane, really the rest of the world has. More Americans are always wanting free things, no one is willing to work hard nowadays, so people want more government to come in which in reality is the issue. For example, rasing minimum wage, which doesn't stack up if its 15 dollars an hour. Speaking of economics that don't work just about EVERY Liberal has a piss poor sense of currency and are just convincved that money is just infinite and debt doesn't matter, as long as they get the fruits of other labor. I haven't ever met a liberal that has taken a business class, and its no surprise to me at all and the current way that America is going, we are commiting economic scuicide. Even other nations like Russia know this and are going to take advantage of that unless we get a GOP candidate in, as they are usually involved in business their whole life.

You know you're right on the knife edge of trolling with your unfounded generalizations.

Also, know who gets the most "Free stuff"? Corporations. They're people too you know.

[Wallenburg]

From a Hamiltonian party which stood for a strong federal government and the union

Wrong party. Those Republicans became the Democratic Party and the Whig Party.

Has the GOP lost their sanity? Have they given up their odds of being elected for the sake of their comical relief?

The GOP establishment has not; they are doing everything they can to stop the radical reactionaries from destroying the Party. The Freedom Caucus and its constituencies, however...

[USS Monitor]

I want a government so small I can drown it in a bathtub, then again I'm not a rebulican. And personly I think they military should only protect the USA only.

I have no idea why you would want that. a country with more than 300million people cant operate on a small government.

This is one of the reasons I want New England to secede. It would get the government down to a more reasonable scale and make it possible to return to a representative democracy in which representatives can make themselves accessible to the common man on the street. Under the current system, congressional districts are so large that it's simply impossible for congresspeople to listen to and address everyone's concerns. When you write to your representative and get back a form letter instead of a personal response, it's not their fault. It's because the constituency that they are being asked to represent is unmanageable.

[Daburuetchi]

The GOP itself hasn't gone insane, really the rest of the world has. More Americans are always wanting free things, no one is willing to work hard nowadays, so people want more government to come in which in reality is the issue. For example, rasing minimum wage, which doesn't stack up if its 15 dollars an hour.

On average Americans More than the English, more than the French, way more than the Germans or Norwegians [http://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=93364] so the claim that no one wants to work hard is ludicrous. People want a higher minimum wage because they can barely get by since wages are completely stagnant across the board at a time when companies are making record profits

Speaking of economics that don't work just about EVERY Liberal has a piss poor sense of currency and are just convincved that money is just infinite and debt doesn't matter, as long as they get the fruits of other labor. I haven't ever met a liberal that has taken a business class, and its no surprise to me at all and the current way that America is going, we are commiting economic scuicide. Even other nations like Russia know this and are going to take advantage of that unless we get a GOP candidate in, as they are usually involved in business their whole life.

You do realize that the growth of the middle class in America can largely be attributed to the policies of the New Deal right m8? Our levels of income inequality are literally the same as during the guilded age and that was at a time when there was heavy domestic investment. Paul Krugman is a Noble Prize winning economist and a liberal. He's probably teaching half the bloody business classes you attend. Being in business your whole life does not mean you are smart and know how to run an economy. Case and point Donald Trump

[Wallenburg]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

I have. Donald Trump is the poster boy for the GOP. That is insane.

[Eol Sha]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

Like how all our scientist are screaming at us that global warming is killing the world but the GOP still denies this or how the continuation of the Bush era tax cuts have not in fact allowed wealth to trickle down but they still endorse them or how the Iraq war turned out to be a terrible idea, that solely benefited oil companies and was launched on a false pretense but they still claim it was about freedom

Jeez i guess I was blind to the Liberal doublethink all along.

Don't forget the defense contractors. They make no money these days.

[Reagan-land]

If you think that the GOP says absurd things, then you clearly haven't been paying much attention to US events, or history itself for that matter.

Like how all our scientist are screaming at us that global warming is killing the world but the GOP still denies this or how the continuation of the Bush era tax cuts have not in fact allowed wealth to trickle down but they still endorse them or how the Iraq war turned out to be a terrible idea, that solely benefited oil companies and was launched on a false pretense but they still claim it was about freedom

Jeez i guess I was blind to the Liberal doublethink all along.

Global warming IS a hoax. According to Al Gore the ice caps should've been gone in 2012, and the weather still hasn't changed. Allow me to explain what global warming is because you clearly cant even look at a thermometer properly. global Warming is a "Geo-strategic weapon" (Putin has admitted it) that is designed with destroying countries industries in mind, hence driving that nation to low production, less jobs, less companies in other words crippling the industrialized portion of the economy. Have you heard of the phrase 'economic hitmen"? Because that is basicly what the whole global warming farce is. Secondly, if you haven't heard of the 30,000 scientists that sued al gore or the scientists screaming that its a hoax, the EX NASA scientists, and many high key politicans then you need to learn a thing or two about hoaxes. Secondly, I hate bush as well, but the "trickle down theory" IS effective... except all our jobs are from China so the wealth is being trickled down to them rather than us (which sucks ). Sadly, war has always been profitable.

[Daburuetchi]

I have no idea why you would want that. a country with more than 300million people cant operate on a small government.

This is one of the reasons I want New England to secede. It would get the government down to a more reasonable scale and make it possible to return to a representative democracy in which representatives can make themselves accessible to the common man on the street. Under the current system, congressional districts are so large that it's simply impossible for congresspeople to listen to and address everyone's concerns. When you write to your representative and get back a form letter instead of a personal response, it's not their fault. It's because the constituency that they are being asked to represent is unmanageable.

That is insane. The last thing America needs is to be divided into a bunch of small pieces. If you want democracy to better represent the common man limit the amount of money corporations can donate, scrap first past the post, have an independent commission draw election districts and hold elections on the weekends, get rid of the electoral colleges, directly elect supreme court justices, allow voting online and enact reserved seats for minorities and quotas for women