Reagan began the modern era of "incivility" in public political discourse.

[keithyboy]

Despite what the pundits are saying about what an aimiable guy he was, in every clip of his political statements you can see a mean-spirited, cowboy-like persona that carried over through right trough Bush/Clinton/Bush. Especially during the Clinton years, the Reagan worshipers felt it necessary to be a mean and uncivil as they could be. This started with the grim-faced Reagan attacks on Carter. Remember, when we were faced with hostage situation where American lives were in danger, Reagan lead the charge of non-support for the President. Where was the patriotic togetherness during those years? From Kennedy through Carter (and even including Nixon) at least America wasn't hated becuase of the public good graces of its leaders. Reagan began the spiraling down of the international admiration and respect for this nation. Clinton did much to restore it but he was hampered and hounded by the still active and powerful Reagan worshipers. Even during the Nixon-Watergate era, I cannot recall the kind of meaness we saw during the Reagan years. Reagan taught us to hate our government. Reagan taught us that we should despise a government that tries to provide social services to its poor and needy using public funds. Reagan taught us to define "anybody but us" as evil. GW is carrying on that legacy with much the same results. The USSR fell of its own weight and would have no matter who was President...a drunken, militaristic nation cannot long survive. We are headed in that direction...drunk with power and hubris(not alcohol) and with a military cabal in place that will eventully suck the life blood out of nation. I'm glad Reagan is dead; I'm just glad he is not President. I will be even happier when Bush is not President!

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

1. Good point..which is why when my fellow liberals play into it

I get a bit annoyed...what better way to honor the man than to become what was intended.

There are many ways to honor a person..one way is to fall into the trap they set for you.

[trotsky]

2. Bartcop has written on this.

Reagan's legacy needs to include the OKC bombing. The man who told us that "government is the problem," should bear the responsibility of accepting all the anti-government groups that it spawned.

[mitchum]

13. Excellent point!

[rocktivity]

3. It began with Reagan calling those who disagreed with him

as "doom and gloom-ers." If we'd known then what we know now...

:headbang:
rocknation

[pollock]

4. Yes. On Clinton:

Clinton never refuted the ugliness of the right wing-that in part is why he did not know how to defend himself from impeachment.

[ochazuke]

5. In every speech he gave, he offended me personally

So, I *never* felt he was my president, though I give him credit for accepting Gorbechev's offer of peace (against the advice of most conservatives).

He was an angry old man who demonized his opponents, the greatest American demogouge since Joe McCarthy.

All this talk of his optimism makes me a little ill: as a politician, he was unrelentingly negative, reactionary, and just plain MEAN.

[Waverley_Hills_Hiker]

6. good to see im not alone.

I always thought of him as this old grouch and sorehead.

So its sort of refreshing to read your post.

[pollock]

7. Yes, Reagan was a mean spirited bully.

Actually shocked me that people believed in it.

[keithyboy]

14. You don't know "people" in America very well.

Reagan just gave them enough nerve to come out of their closets of bigotry. He legitimized the very worst in all of us, no matter for or against him.

[indepat]

10. The dichotomy between the words and actions of Repug Presidents

beginning with Reagan is possibly the most extreme in history IMHO, for their actions belie every seeming well-intentioned motive using a plethora of blathering oxymora designed to obfuscate their intent which is solely to benefit a precious few rather than we the people: by far most of their supporters are/have been IMHO deluded, delusional, and/or demented.

[Yupster]

8. Yeah if Reagan and his opponents

could have only been as nice and respectful as Nixon and his opponents were. Then we'd all be friendlier today.

[DemoTex]

9. "There you go again ..."

When Reagan sneered that phrase to President Jimmy Carter during the 1980 Presidential debates I went ballistic. How smug! How disrespectful of a truly good and decent man (who happened to be the President at the time).

[moondust]

11. The "L" word.

Reagan introduced it and the Ann Coulter Brownshirt Hate Factory was born.

[mitchum]

12. kick for truth over conditioned "respect"...

There was nothing respectable about that stupid and destructive man