Just what kind of person falls for the crap you see on Fox or hear on National Hate Radio? This kind

[DFW]

When I was very little, my dad told me a story about people who have this kind of mentality, in the hope that I wouldn't become one of them. The story went like this:

A guy in the suburbs wanted to mow his lawn, but his lawn mower wasn't working. His neighbor's lawn mower was. He thought, "hey, why don't I go over and ask him if I can borrow his lawn mower?"

He started out, but along the way thought, "well, what if he hesitates about lending me his lawn mower?"

And then: "hey, he might not lend me his lawn mower."

This progressed to: "He could turn me down flat!"

This then turned into: "I'll bet he won't lend me his lawn mower at all."

By the time he reached his neighbor's door, it had become, "Goddam, the son of a bitch won't lend me his lawn mower!"

When his neighbor opened his door, the guy screamed in his completely baffled neighbor's face, "You can keep your goddam lawn mower! I didn't really need to borrow it anyway!" and stomps off in rage back to his house, absolutely convinced that his neighbor had refused to lend him the lawn mower.

If you ever wondered about the though process that permits someone to be absolutely convinced that Obama is
sending out brigades to force everyone to give up their guns or force their women to get abortions, there it is.

That is the kind of person the Republican media are reaching. I resolved very early on in life (thanks, Dad!)
never to become one of them.

[SlingBlade]

1. Simpletons full of Fear and Anxiety ....

Commonly known as the base of the Repuke Party


:kick:

[patrice]

2. Words of wisdom! Ergo, short-circuit their "thinking" by BEING the opposite of what they expect.

Their resulting confusion alone will give you at least a temporary opportunity to persuade.

[nichomachus]

3. Tried that

Doesn't work. Even if you do it, they're convinced there's something else at work. The propaganda is very pervasive and very fear-inducing.

[Snotcicles]

7. If you open the door greeting Harry with, hey buddy is there anything I can loan you today

then you are up to something, and probably have one of your kids over at his place stealing his car as you speak.

[patrice]

9. Logic:? It did not work, therefore, it will not work. There is no such thing as adaptation and

learning.

In almost ALL cases, it takes two to create any kind of situation. And even if your part of it is "small" and theirs is "big", without changing the only thing you can change (you), without changing your small factor that could easily be changed because it is small and you CAN change whatever it is, without that small, but real, difference in the situation, there is way less chance that the neighbor will change and with that new "small" factor that you bring to a situation there IS a chance that change will occur, a chance that was less likely before you changed your part in it.

And if none of that matters to you, it is possible that all you really want is to just bitch about others to make them look bad and elicit the pity brigade's attention, because they are just like you.

So, what is it? :think: or :nopity:

[Snotcicles]

11. You could always post a sign half way up your walk saying

yes Harry help yourself to my mower. But then he would probably just turn around and go home mad because you didn't post it half way down his.

[Snotcicles]

12. Besides, what kind of a piece of crap, would loan his mower to a piece of crap like me? nt

[patrice]

14. True! But the world IS substantially different with that sign there than it was without it.

[DFW]

17. You assume Harry's neighbor knew beforehand that his neighbor wanted to borrow something

The problem is that he hadn't the faintest idea, and was confronted for a dispute he couldn't know existed (because it didn't).

[patrice]

18. True. And not knowing that, Harry's neighbor could simply post a sign saying "Mower for lend",becaus

e he was thinking how hard it was for him when he didn't have a lawn mower and decided that the neighborhood would be more friendly/pleasant if everyone could mow his/her lawns.

[petronius]

34. Nah, that would just be seen as a condescending elitist liberal flaunting his wealth

and trying to impose his fancypants metrosexual lawn choices on the real Americans in the neighborhood...

:)

[patrice]

36. ROFL!

:rofl:

Thanks!!

:hi:

[Snotcicles]

19. When living in my world, all about ME, your duty is to do your homework and be prepared. nt

[patrice]

20. This IS about you and how pleasant your neighborhood is. And if it isn't about that,

if it really IS just about bitter vindictiveness and anger, not about self-directed autonomous solutions, then you should consider getting it over with now, because there is ONLY ONE place that hate leads and you are the only one who can do anything about that.

[patrice]

21. That is, unless you just enjoy the ugliness, in which case you need to admit that up front, so

the rest of us can adapt appropriately.

[Snotcicles]

23. I try to disarm those situations with humor. Success is about 50/50

EDIT> let me shimmy (and sarcasm) in there.

[patrice]

28. I've reached my limit: wishing people who think like this would be honest and just get it over

with now, EXCEPT that they'll take a whole lot of people who want to live in a different kind of world down to HELL with them.

Have you read Cormack McCarthy's The Road?

[Snotcicles]

30. Endurance is the key. If you can outlast them they will respect your

intellect and look up to you, and appreciate your sage advice someday.

[lilyreally]

4. Several that I know of.

And oddly enough they seem to be normal in other respects, although I think each one has a tendency to be bullheaded to some degree. They are friends and I refuse to discuss politics with them, but on the same token, we don't really socialize much (anymore). There is that unspoken barrier.

george bush not only ruined the country, he left many friendships in tatters.

[lilyreally]

6. Forgot to mention,

great story, btw.

[DCKit]

35. "Bullheaded". How polite of you.

I prefer "prejudiced and inflexible". They've already made up their minds, and there's not enough dynamite in the world to blow that dam. And that's just MY family.

It's a mental defect.

[Warren Stupidity]

5. My neighbors up the road?

Nice enough people, upper middle class professionals, and 100% brainwashed. I get to deprogram my wife who comes back from her daily walk with his wife, confused about some regurgitation of hate radio's daily talking points.

[tabasco]

38. Brainwashed is not the entire explanation with these types.

Wilfully ignorant and lacking in moral courage are other characteristics.

As well as lack of compassion or empathy.

[HughMoran]

8. I know the type. It usually starts at home with a parent as most political beliefs do.

I never understood why some of my gay friends were Republicans - it was so contradictory IMO. Then you'd meet the parents - ahhh! Republicans - spreading evil from generation to generation.

[elocs]

10. Those who fall for Fox and hate radio are really just everyday people.

I realize here at DU it seems to be necessary to paint them and caricature them as hate spewing and swallowing simpletons, but they are really our father and mothers, bothers and sisters, relative, friends, coworkers. I know many Republicans who are genuinely friendly people who would help me in any way possible even though they know I am a Democrat. There are many people, even those who voted for Obama, whose daily lives are not consumed with all things political even if they hear and believe the things on Fox.

[DFW]

13. We don't get Fox or American radio here

So I can only rely on snippets from youtube and podcasts sent to me by people Stateside. So
maybe I only see and hear the most extreme examples of their hyperbole.

But back in Texas, I meet with people all the time who are like what you describe. They are
friendly enough and rational on the outside. Even so, when the hair gets let down, out comes
some of the most incredible points of view I could ever imagine, and where I gape in amazement
at their ignorance (the one Obama so correctly said they are proud of), it makes me understand
how 47% of the country could vote for Sarah Palin for VP or half the country vote for Bush in
the 2000 election, where the best choice for the country was (to us) so incredibly obviously NOT Bush.

[shadowknows69]

15. One of my best friends unfortunately

But he's not too far gone yet. He did utter the words: "Obama is my President too", something I'm not sure I was ever able to muster about "The Asterix", so I have to give him props there. He was, to put it simply, a 9/11 convert. He was a Dem all his life, a passionate and gifted journalist with a thirst for the truth. In fact he and another newsman here basically exposed a local cultish church that was raking in HUGE bank with merchandising and whose leader was entagled in some...um extra-godly behavior.

I kind of get the mindset and the initial reason, fear, but the propaganda machine has thrown gas on that fire since 9/12 and it just keeps getting more absurd and over the top. Actually gaining steam, ask the gun store owners, so my hope is he will come to his senses when he sees a Democratic President can "protect" him too.

[lunatica]

16. Yup. It's pretty well summed up in what my father used to say

They've made up their mind. Don't confuse them with facts.

[nichomachus]

37. Mark Twain said something similar

You can't reason someone out of something they weren't reasoned into.

[rucky]

22. spot on

[patrice]

24. False dichotomy. THERE COULD BE MORE OPTIONS; you just don't want them.

:nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity: :nopity:

You've made your choices, so live with it.

Don't come around bemoaning the lack of understanding from others, when you won't do anyting about it. Yeah, they may well STILL refuse to understand you, but at least you can do what you can do.

Your line of reasoning is PURE poison.

[patrice]

25. This is called a Cop Out. nt

[patrice]

26. BTW, Isn't what you're suggesting for us EXACTLY what the neighbor is doing to Harry?

[patrice]

27. Interesting number of recs on this thread. Hey, Everyone, let's all act like Harry's neighbor.

[Gregorian]

29. I love this!

I'll admit right here that there is a bit of that in me. And perhaps in all of us. I'm this way with global warming, population, and where I believe the human race is going. I've already decided that people in general are really stupid. And that is how I've begun to perceive most people I meet.

It works both ways. Liberal or conservative. This mind pattern spans all kinds. It comes from not being present. Which is hard to not do when you are living in this world. Is there a lion around that tree? I thought I heard a roar. To today where we were convinced George Bush was going to invade Iran. And I still believe he had every intention, and worse.

I think we have to cover all bases, but not jump to conclusions, and not hold on to our beliefs to our own downfall.

I think this is a very interesting subject. The more I think about it the more I believe it has a lot to do with the mainstream media's biases. Where else are people coming up with their phoney beliefs? Like the fat little man in the last conservative town in which I lived, who told me one day that we should just nuke Iraq. I asked him why. And he went off on a spree of blabbing that was like a replay of all of the Fox Noise stupidity condensed into two minutes of hate.

[Snotcicles]

31. Discretion is your friend. A quality, It reminds me of a quote

It is better to look like a fool with your mouth closed, then to open it, and remove all doubt.
Or something like that.

[DFW]

32. Interesting phrase you used:

"....not hold onto our beliefs to our own downfall."

Where I can't ever imagine myself changing to one who believes in the professed ideals of the extremist
wing of the Republican Party, I certainly find myself corrected on occasion. Those who don't are the ones
who think they get their credos in daily emails from God, and therefore never need to.

My wife comes from a country (where I spend much of my time, as it the center of my professional life now)
where the leadership once held onto their beliefs to their rather dramatic downfall (Germany). She shakes
her head in disbelief at some of the comments she sees on CNN on our occasional visits to the States. I don't
dare even show her Fox for fear that she will never again accompany me on a trip home.

[Snotcicles]

39. Twain: Fewer things in life are harder to put up with then the annoyance of a good example. nt

[leftchick]

33. old people with no social outlets as well

my mother had a genius IQ way back when. Now she watches faux 24/7 and she is completely propagandized. It is very difficult to visit her.

[barbtries]

40. that made me laugh

and yet, it's not funny. we're talking about a sickness.

[HamdenRice]

41. Hilarious and true! But it also describes lots of Obama haters on the left

There are people right here who are outraged by things that aren't Obama's fault or things that no rational person could expect him to have accomplished yet.