Dirty commie liberals ...

[veronica_rich]

Look at all the horrible things our progenitors have done to society. Shame on them and their progressive goals.

To be fair, many conservative politicians have done positive things for America in the past, and protected certain institutions when they should have. But since I so rarely see "conservative" being spat as an expletive against somebody's character reference, I don't have an accompanying humorous essay to link to about that.

ETA: Also: Am laughing my fool butt off at "Hardball" and Chris Matthews hammering the McCain spokeswoman about Palin's wardrobe and her comments about the VP being in charge of the Senate - Nancy's sighing and rolling her eyes like how silly this is, but I can't help thinking of the silly parsing the conservative media's done about Obama's name and his "ties" to ACORN and "terrorists." Crow doesn't taste really good.

Comments

[a-silver-rose.livejournal.com]

And don't forget about Joe's wife, who is entitled to same voice in government her husband enjoys, because some stinkin' liberal made sure she could.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

I really hope that's Joe the plumber. (You know, who can say what he thinks of our stinking government because some liberal business owners and criminals a few hundred years ago made sure he had that right.)

[lizzie-omalley.livejournal.com]

Well, on the Republican side, Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclimation and Nixon signed the National Environmental Policy Act in to law and was, I think, a supporter. I have no idea who sponsered the bill. He may have also been responsible for sighning the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, but I'd have to research that. On the other hand, these days they'd likely be called Stinking Liberal Republicans, not "True" republicans.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

I love how the modern Republicans claim Lincoln. The truth is, 140 years ago, "Democrat" and "Republican" was reversed on platform ... so Lincoln was actually a Democrat. ;-)

[lizzie-omalley.livejournal.com]

I never knew that. That's pretty interesting. So I was right in thinking that Lincoln is spinning in his grave over what the party has become.

I should have paid attention in US history class but then that isn't the sort of thing they teach in US history class in the formative years. Pity that. It is the sort of thing that is useful to know so that people can learn that things are not static. That people and opinions and values change over time and labels are inherently misleading.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Actually, this is something I learned in either junior high or high school ... and I believe there were more than just two parties (or rather, that third parties weren't quite the underdogs they are now; it was still usually a race just between the two main candidates). Hell, I hope I am remembering it right in the first place, it's been 20 years at least.

But I am right about one thing: What was considered Republican 140 years ago is now Democrat platform.

[the-dala.livejournal.com]

::nods:: Anything that doesn't fit the overall historical narrative gets glossed over or omitted. There's a book I keep meaning to get called Lies My Teacher Told Me which is all about the things that get left out of history textbooks. The bit I read was about how Helen Keller was an extremely outspoken activist and socialist and Woodrow Wilson was a racist, but you wouldn't learn that from the average high schooler's profiles of them.

[a-silver-rose.livejournal.com]

My favorite history lie? Christopher Columbus dies because he went crazy trying to prove the world was round. I actually had a grade school teacher tell my class this 30 years ago. *Ugh* Just say he died of an illness, and leave it at that. You don't have to specify said illness.

[the-dala.livejournal.com]

Ver is right that the definition/qualities of 'Republican' and 'Democrat' have altered significantly over the years. And Nixon - I know he was a crazy paranoid bigot, but he did accomplish some good things in his administration. Even my deeply Nixon-hating dad will acknowledge that :)

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Eh, as politicians go, Nixon really wasn't so bad. You have to accept at the outset that all of them are going to do things that piss you off (even Obama if he gets in - and BTW, a LOT of people are going to be very upset the first time he can't complete a campaign promise, for the reason they're idealizing him), and then just judge from there how far they stray from that path of "acceptable deviancy." *G* I mean, let's face it: Kissinger is who talked him into staying longer in Vietnam, and compared to every other "-gate" that's come since, Watergate is teeny, tiny potatoes.

[finding-neo.livejournal.com]

Didn't we used to have a Whig party, like the English?