Is the Bush administration messing up people's minds?

[genius]

The last few days, I've seen several confrontive Republicans in stores. Three women went up to a young girl who had dared to wear a gymnastics outfit into a store and started talking about how she needed to wear more appropriate clothing. She had shoes and the relevant parts of her body were covered by the outfit but apparently they felt they had the right to go up to some girl they didn't know and tell demand that she live up to their standard of dress.

Yesterday, I was looking at a copy of "Worse than Watergate" and some guy came up and loudly said "Lies. All lies." He hadn't read the book, but it was lies - to him - and that was what he was going to tell people he saw with the book.

These are just a couple of examples. But I wonder if the advocates of suppression are just getting more vocal because they're scared or if the programming of the Bush media is getting people to go after anyone who's different or who they think might get an education.

Has anyone else noticed any difference in society lately?

[charlyvi]

1. No offense....

But where have you been for three years? This type of behavior started in Clinton's term; come to think of it, Ralph Reed started much of it when he decided to turn Christianity into a political movement.

[drthais]

2. no, the * administration

is not actually 'messing with people's minds'
they have merely played up to minds
that were long ago messed up

it is my opinion that the type of people you site
have been 'programmed' or indoctrinated
by right-wing nutz (i.e., Rush)

you are right about one thing:
this train of thought plays to the uneducated
and the ignorant

this type of zombie-think is prevelant in our area
my husband works with otherwise intelligent
and even educated people
who spout the same kind of nutty stuff
they still say crap like
'man, those pictures are no worse
than an LSU frat party'
no how can you even have a conversation with THAT?

[displacedtexan]

3. I've noticed more liberals speaking up, actually.

I even heard a pedestrian, who almost got run down by a car (with a Bush/Cheney sticker) making an illegal left turn, yell, "Fucking Republican!"

We all cheered.

[coloradodem2005]

4. Here's my $.02

The bulk of Republicans these days, I have no use for. A friend who is trying to be mor objective and is more conservative, though he does not like Bush either, I can have a dialogue with because we do disagree, and maybe I rant about the stupidity of this war and the state of the economy, but the discourse is civil.

But the bulk of Republicans now seem to be like what you described. Never wanting to believe an opposing point of view, always telling other's how to live their lives and they are not reasonable. I think that there were always parts of society like this. Though after 9/11, it has changed very noticably. So yes I have noticed.

[Alerter_]

11. there are a handful of conservatives and Republicans

you can have respect for. But the horde of ditto-head, Rush-Limbaugh, Clinton-haters are worthless and unsalvagable. The best we can hope for is to distract and demoralize them enough they won't bother getting off the couch.

[coloradodem2005]

14. I agree.

There are respectable republicans. I am talking about the majority of republicans.

[fearnobush]

5. My big shut them up statement is "There is no liberal media."

I go on to tell them that Newt Gingrich has is on the record saying that he created the illusion of a liberal media. Then I ask them how good does it feel to be lied too, "I bet it feels real good being taken for a sucker all the time." I like to tell the to take the red pill as well.

[boobooday]

6. The more desperate they get

The more they have to play to their core audience.

Karl Rove said it best: "Once people start to make some money, they tend to vote Republican. Unless they're overeducated."

This is a small group of people, so they know they have to get them all het up to make it look like there is some kind of "grass-roots" movement. When really it's just a bunch of corporations and a smattering of lunatics.



http://www.wgoeshome.com

[indigobusiness]

7. He has just given context to minds

that were already messed up.

[jokerman93]

8. It's like an episode of

It's like an episode of Twilight Zone or the Stepford Wives out there these days. The descriptions I hear of incidents like this don't even have to be embellished to be surreal.

Anyone else concerned about this, as I am?

[kentuck]

9. Yes, we have a dysfunctional country,

Primarily from the guilt for voting for an incompetent and dysfunctional leader.

[FormerOstrich]

10. divide & conquer

I think they are intentionally fueling the flames so we fight over the media liberal or not instead of paying attention to the fact they are fucking all of us over. Seems to me if you can get past the racism and pre-recorded talking points (geez is there a book of them, subliminal messages in TV, in the water?) that really there is a lot more common ground than you might think. instead we are divided and, yes, being conquered.

[charlyvi]

12. I think they've gone far enough

now; they have driven halfway sensible people to our tent. My best friend (30 yrs) never voted for a Democrat in his life; he's a staunch Catholic, lives in Illinois. He thinks Bush* is toast--thinks he's a lying, spending, war mongering idiot who doesn't have a chance in hell. It truly brought tears to my eyes.

[keithyboy]

13. No, people are stupid on their own.

BUT, this administration sure is making it easy for people to 'feel comfortable' with their own sutpidity.

[Jade Fox]

15. They are desperate.....

We've gotten (in Bush) what their idols like Limabaugh said we should
want, and its a disaster.

Plus, obvious maniacs like Ann Coulter getting media air-time and writing
books has empowered ignorant people to imagine their views are as valid as
those who actually know what they are talking about.