Some interesting responses and some B.S. ones. First things first, Bush and his followers who acuse those on the left who have reacted rather strongly to his policies of dividing the nation is the same thing as condeming a woman for fighting back while a guy is raping here. What the hell has happened in the past four years to make a thread like this even a serious topic of conversation? People have pointed out the obvious problems with dividing a nation between it's red and blue states. So if Divorce is not a solution then what is? Couples therapy? Seriously, the one thing I have heard and like is the abolition of party caucauses and making all elections non-partisan. Right now in our Congress and increasingly at the State Legislative level the rule of the party line trumps individual thought. What if we did away with party labels next to candidates and elected officials all together? Of course people would still identify with one party over another but imagine a Congress where every member was forced to vote on a bill based on it's merits not out of fear from Tom Delay? Who the hell elected him the leader of the House? He represents a small part of Texas not all of America. Maybe just maybe Moderates would rise again.
Up until here, eh, o.k., but nothing majorly off, except that you say that he hath no morals. Of course he can't. He's a liberal!! (Wait, wasn't Jesus a liberal?) Like protecting the unborn but lying to a populace, sponsoring and condoning the slaughter of thousands of living human beings, is that "civilization"? You do know that the south has higher divorce rates, veneral disease rates, in short, so many of the very things that ya'll are trying to safeguard your folk from we the heathens? Like slavery? Like disenfranchisement of the non-landed gentry and women? Do you not at least question some of the motives and decisions of our founding fathers and the succeeding generations? how about the slaughter and anihilation of the indigenous ppl? wow. I'm glad we can agree that the neo-cons must be eliminated for the good of humanity. clap clap clap. I think I got a tear in my eye. What's that, me, a liberal w/ a heart? How could that be? INT: get off your high ********ing horse.
If we do have another civil war, the Starbucks nation is screwed, where do you think all the Nuclear Weapons are at? In NYC at 101st and Park? Try again.
Good point. Oh, we're already hooked. Why else would we have had our convention in Las Vegas a few years ago? It's those wacky Pentacostals and Church of Christers that are the problem.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe Mmm hmm. You do realize that if the country did split, the South's economy would instantaneously collapse, right? So the red states would be a nuclear-armed third world country with religious nutjobs running around and a strongman in charge. Maybe it should be "Jesustan" instead of "Jesusland," cause the above sounds awfully familiar.
[Stuff that I probably shouldn't know, but do] Not in Clark County. You've got to go out into one of the rural counties in Nevada for that. [/No, I don't know this from experience] Voter intimidation, Oklahoma-style.
Extra points if you know the first and last name of the owner, and which one of the prostitutes he's dating.
Once again, the Pentagon is in a blue, not a red, county. I'm sure they have an "off" switch for all those nukes in case this sort of thing happens. If not, well, I suppose we'll just have to use the nukes from our French allies.
Actually, I made the same mistake that you did, thinking that prostitution was legal in Vegas. Aimer PMed me with the correction.
That's the nuclear option. We should think about ways to get more Dem and GOP moderates into the system, and viable in the system. Step one would be to have non-partisan commissions handle all reapportionment. But, really, Tom DeLay doesn't have to hold the hammer too tightly. He's genuinely popular among his brethren. The House isn't the Senate. (Even the Senate isn't the Senate anymore, but you get the point.)
If we do indeed have a National Divorce, we should set up a webcam on the nuclear-missile-pointy-thingy and pick an arbitrary target every day, just in case the red states get out of line. It will be like an online, doomsday version of Where In the Red States Is Carmen San Diego Headed?
Obviously, the NCA would be removed from the Pentagon, and the East Coast for that matter, to the new Capital of the Restored United States of America, headed by President Starkey in the HHH Metrodome, where the Vikings used to play. Free Rep. if you can name the movie I pirated that from.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe Man, I thought I was the only one who saw The Postman.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe And we have a winner.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe D'oh! I knew that! War Cal State Fullerton finance major Kevin Costner!
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe And Deadwood, South Dakota Casino owner.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/11/07/blue_state_to_reds/ I don't know if this has been posted here as I haven't read all the thread.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe I hope these never get re-issued:
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe (wiping away a tear) It's tragicomic 'cause it's true.
Re: A National Divorce - A Serious Thread on Why We Should or Should not Stay Togethe Democrats might have more success in the red states if they'd ever visit them. Out of all the 2004 Democratic nomination hopefuls, I think one (Wesley Clark) came to Alabama. Sure, Alabama's only got 9 electoral votes, but fact is, all of these 9s and 8s and 7s add up no matter how much punch California, New York, Pennsylvania, etc. have. The Bush II campaigns have shown that the little ones add up. Things aren't so black & white as people paint them to be (go figure.) Georgia: 58% Bush - 41% Kerry Mississippi: 60% Bush - 40% Kerry Arkansas: 54% Bush - 45% Kerry Maybe, just maybe, if Democrats paid some of these states a little more attention, they could make greater inroads. Granted, I'm living in Florida now (and I voted for Kerry), but I've voted Democrat while living in Alabama. Blaming a region of the country for the nation's political woes is stupid. In this case, the red states were an overwhelming geographic majority, so to pinpoint one region is dumb. Scapegoating always is. Maybe if the Howard Deans didn't make comments about Democrats being for pickup driving guys with gunracks too, people wouldn't be so resistant to the Democratic party. If that's their idea of reaching out to people, somebody needs to give them some pointers on how to make someone feel welcome. Perhaps these candidates should engage the red states and not demonize them, and then maybe things could be turned around for the Democratic party, because sometimes the margin of victory in these states isn't insurmountable.
Back to seriousness, with a Vermont secession discussion that took place Friday night. ...Later, in an open discussion, conference attendees shared their ideas about alternative political options for the state of Vermont in the face of a doomed American empire. Participants in the conference came from diverse backgrounds and from across the political spectrum, making for a lively conversation that would rival even the best Vermont town meeting. Thomas Naylor, founder of the Second Vermont Republic, said he believes the current political system in the United States is "corrupt to the core" and that Vermont must break its ties with the United States to begin the process of reform. Naylor is a retired entrepreneur and professor of economics at Duke University. Donald Livingston, professor of philosophy at Emory University, said traditions of local democracy have withered in the United States in the 20th century as the federal government has strengthened. "As Aristotle said, 'We have to learn civic virtue by practicing civic virtue,' " he said. "But we don't have anything to do anymore..." ...Other participants pushed for the creation of a new local currency, resistance to the federal No Child Left Behind Act, and the repeal of corporate "personhood." Perhaps the most optimistic of the conference participants was Gus Jaccaci, an author, corporate consultant, and futurist from Thetford. As a founder of the World Future Society, he said he finds much cause for optimism. "This group is really precious," he said, "because we're asking the question, 'What can America be?' This room full of people can transform the American experiment. We can consciously evolve the country to bring about the next civilizational renaissance..."