People hardly ever vote in favor of their own economic interests.

[eridani]

Low income white people are like every one else. They vote for the kind of society that they want to live in--in this case one where non-whites know their place.

Lots of 1%-ers want to live in a more equal society, and lots of poor people would like to live in a society in which they get to be the fuckers, not the fuckees.

http://readersupportednews.org/opinion2/277-75/11619-why-do-poor-white-voters-reject-the-democrats

First, it interprets interests too narrowly. As a well-paid journalist, I vote against my economic interests when I support parties that favour wealth redistribution. That's because my own economic interests are not the only things that interest me when I vote. I have a vision of a society that I'd like to live in that goes beyond my own bank account.

[surrealAmerican]

1. It's a valid point.

Economic interests don't exist in a vacuum. Even if it might be in my economic interest to elect people who would start wars, it wouldn't be in my interest to do so in other ways.

[rational_democrat]

2. ...

I mean honestly you said it yourself with "I have a vision of a society that I'd like to live in that goes beyond my own bank account." The poor whites in my neighborhood primarily vote republican because of their religion and societal values. They have it stuck in their mind that democrats want to kill religion off completely. They honestly don't care about money.

[geckosfeet]

3. Republics are paragons of religious piety and social reform. Right. What a load of dung.

[CTyankee]

10. Poor whites seem also to want to feel superior to SOMEONE! I know Italian Americans whose

grandparents came over on the boat, yet they want to pull up the ladder for the "illegals." They rail against their religion when said religion comes out in favor of giving "illegals" rights, such as what happened with Catholic Churches here. Their need too feel better about their poor economic status by kicking someone further down on the rungs overrides their Church's teaching on this issue.

[JDPriestly]

4. "I have a vision of a society that I'd like to live in that goes beyond my own bank account."

That vision is called morality. It's called conscience. It's also called social awareness.

Thank you.

[panzerfaust]

5. As a two-percenter I should vote for conservatives, but I do not.

Perhaps some people develop a sense of justice - and so become progressives - whilst others cannot see beyond narrow confines of race and religion and thus become the hate-filled, repressive, intolerant, xenophobic conservatives who are so much in evidence this century: Even if it means putting the boot on their own necks.

[Odin2005]

17. Alerted.

[ZombieHorde]

18. ...

At least not KNOWINGLY
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=732528

REASON FOR ALERT:

This post is disruptive, hurtful, rude, insensitive, over-the-top, or otherwise inappropriate. (See <a href="http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=aboutus#communitystandards" target="_blank">Community Standards</a>.)

ALERTER'S COMMENTS:

Blatantly anti-Obama BS in election season.

JURY RESULTS

You served on a randomly-selected Jury of DU members which reviewed this post. The review was completed at Sun May 27, 2012, 06:26 PM, and the Jury voted 5-1 to HIDE IT.

Juror #1 voted to HIDE IT and said: Right wing propaganda
Juror #2 voted to LEAVE IT ALONE and said: I am not seeing it
Juror #3 voted to HIDE IT and said: Crossing the line.
Juror #4 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #5 voted to HIDE IT and said: No explanation given
Juror #6 voted to HIDE IT and said: I would normally not vote to hide this, but we need to be cool for about eight months every four years. Just wait six more months, then post your anti-Obama stuff. Peace.

Thank you very much for participating in our Jury system, and we hope you will be able to participate again in the future.

[TomClash]

7. May I suggest

that the white working class does not vote in its "economic interests" because they don't think either political party really represents those interests. Maybe they just aren't interested in bullshit marginal economic changes.

[TBF]

15. I think it's a little of both. Very good point. nt

[treestar]

8. It's also an old saw that people vote their pocketbooks

But they may not realize what will benefit them there. They think they'd have more money if nonwhite people "know their place" and may be wrong, but they vote on their wrong conclusion.

[Gman]

9. Vote your paycheck

You can't go to church to rail about abortion without gas in the tank. You don't have the money to buy guns. What's so hard about that? Vote your paycheck and bible thump and buy all the guns you want with a good paying job.

[eridani]

14. It isn't hard. The article just points out that it doesn't work.

In WA, Bill Gates, Sr. put a lot of money into establishing an income tax on high earners in 2010. The people most likely to benefit from this were exactly the people most likely to vote against it. If you get why Gates, Sr. put his vision first, why not apply the same reasoning to lower income people?

[Romulox]

11. This group has hardly flourished these past 3 years. Perhaps there's a flaw in our own

assumptions?

[oldhippie]

12. This group? I'm not clear on ...

... which group you are referring to. GD? Or conservatives?

What group?

[Romulox]

13. Read the OP/linked article, then rejoin the discussion. nt

[Odin2005]

16. They are afraid of going to Hell for voting for the "wrong" person.

This is why I call religion a form of social control. They are constantly told by their preachers that if they do not vote for RWers they will go to Hell.

[loyalsister]

19. It's patronising in the extreme to assume that poorer white people don't understand

The entire article actually defends the people that are so often denigrated here. These people are not idiots. And I am kind of tired of the talking points that demonize them.

Yes, God, guns, gays, and racism is always in play, but there are people who are not motivated by those issues and are still willing to vote for republicans.
Some middle class people fear that poor people will catch up and disrupt the balance. I heard that very argument from a person during the auto bailout discussions.

It is unfair and condescending to write off what people believe as stupid because they don't read Krugman's essays and evaluate their circumstances based on what we believe is true. I think I limit much of my reading and basic information intake to what I agree with and hope to be true.

Some are dreamers and believe the American dream of wealth and prosperity is available based on anecdotes and misrepresented history.
It is worth remembering that they are part of a demographic that is "supposed" to have more privilege.
Thus, some people put the blame on someone, or they believe that the natural condition of privilege will reemerge if they affiliate themselves with people who have it. There is information that supports\affirms those beliefs. It isn't fair to just write people off as stupid if that is part of their belief system.