Reply #47: I have a friend who voted for Clinton twice and GW twice.

[Martin Eden]

He's basically a Republican, but not your batguano crazy partisan repuke. I met him when we were both at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale in the early 80's. He's had a very checkered career in marketing, earning big bucks at times but seldom holding a job for more than a few years. He's an A-type personality who still parties just has hearty with the beer and the 420 and the blow as he did 20 years ago. In any political discussion with him you have to be agressive and out-shout him on occasion just to be heard. He doesn't lack intelligence, and knows ten times as much about Chicago politics as I ever will. He admires shrewd successful politicians, which in Chicago are almost all Democrats. He has no respect for people who depend on "government handouts" and uses the N-word freely. He recognized Clinton's brilliance and I guess couldn't bring himself to vote for Big Dog's lesser opponents.

He couldn't stand John Kerry, and saw in GW a political success that for the most part coincided with his ideological leanings (except that he's no fundie). I don't see him very often these days, maybe twice a year. We bonded as buddies in college and are still friends but it takes an effort on my part to refrain from knocking him on his ass when we talk politics, though that's not the primary reason we don't get together much. Besides living 45 minutes away I'm just not a partier like I was 20 years ago, and he always gives me a hangover.

I've told him on multiple occasions what an absolute dumbshit he was for voting for chimpy in 2004, but he's not the kind of guy who can be persuaded to change his opinion. Illinois remains a blue state so I guess his vote didn't really count. We're going to get together in a week or two for some drinks, and I think I'll make sure our mutual college buddy scubadude (who introduced me to DU nearly 8 years ago) is on hand to lend a hand if things get political.