How much does your personal situation affect your politics?

[undeterred]

Poll question: How much does your personal situation affect your politics?

[undeterred]

1. I've been out of work for over 6 months

and I'm sure Obama would look better to me if I had a job.

[MADem]

2. I have friends and relatives who are unemployed, under-employed, disabled,

needing better medical care, and having a tough time affording college.

And I know FULL WELL that, if I think they're having trouble now, they'd be TOTALLY FUCKED if any Republican in that messed up Primary Pack ever got elected President.

I wish more people could see that.

[undeterred]

6. I agree.

We had some good programs for the poor in Wisconsin, and as soon as Walker got in everything has been scaled back as far as possible. He turned down the unemployment extension and said no to money for rehab programs. Said no to everything the Federal government was ready to give to Wisconsin, including the high speed rail and the jobs that came with it.

I have no health insurance either. I guess I'm grumpy no matter who is in office if they aren't progressive, and thats never going to happen again.

[MH1]

3. Based solely on my current situation, I'd probably be expected to be a republican.

But my life history and the situation of people I know causes me to be a Democrat, and for anyone who knows that much about me, it's probably fairly predictable.

[DesertFlower]

4. we're doing fine financially.

we've realized the american dream. i want the same for everyone else who works hard like we did.

[treestar]

5. Not much

The big picture is a lot larger than my personal situation. I'm not going to vote Republican even if it would improve my personal situation.

[Blue_In_AK]

7. I've been a Democrat all my life

through ups and downs, thick and thin. My personal situation has nothing to do with it at this time. It's habit.

[Warpy]

8. I'd have to say not at all

I was a Yellow Dog Democrat when I was really poor and I'm a Yellow Dog Democrat now that I'm middle class. Chances are I'd still be a Yellow Dog Democrat if I hit the lottery and got rich quick.

I'm a Yellow Dog Democrat because the Republicans are wrong about everything and they always cost me money when they get into power.

[DesertFlower]

13. i have been a democrat my whole life.

not a yellow dog -- i'm a former new yorker. but like warpy i was a dem when i was poor, middle class and now upper middle class.

[Curmudgeoness]

9. Not so much....I have been a Dem all my life through good times and bad.

It is not so much about personal situation at any given point.

I try to live by the philosophy that I could very well be in someone else's shoes but for luck. Luck of birth, luck of ability, luck of being in the right place at the right time. And there have been times when my luck also ran out. Either way, I am still a Democrat, and a liberal.

[Riley18]

10. My profession is being dismantled before my eyes, my children do not yet have

secure, well paying jobs, healthcare costs are a nightmare , and Bank of America is stealing my house. So I would really appreciate a president who stood by average Americans instead of the wealthy.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

11. As I told my accountant, "I'm not rich enough to be a Republican."

Though I will vote Green, occasionally, when the Democrats, who are rich enough to be Republicans, vote with them.

[Populist_Prole]

12. Not very much. I'm doing alright living modestly but have come to HATE the RW all the more

While I'm fairly gainfully employed, I know there is always downward pressure on my and pretty much anybody else in the working class' income and job security. Even if I was somehow become richened by an unknown benefactor, my loyalty will always make me side with the working class or those beset by woes that keep them poor. Why would anybody want to be a rich man in a poor country?

[Ineeda]

14. I'm in the fight, but not because it directly affects me (yet).

I'm keeping my head above water, financially. I'm past child-bearing years, so won't need an abortion. I'm retired with a very small nest-egg. I don't have a mortgage, and my debts are minor. I have affordable health insurance. None of these battles affects me directly. But I care a great deal about each of them, and know millions of people in this country desperately need what I have. So my personal situation doesn't affect my politics. My personal ethics and empathy do.

[txwhitedove]

15. Personally doing well right now. Lifelong yellow dog Democrat, raised by

yellow dog Democrat grandparents. Grandpa told me straight out, "We're yellow dog Democrats." FDR and Eleanor were heroes in our house. I still believe Democratic Party and ideals have the heart and humanity. But, what the hell happened to this country?

[nc4bo]

16. Other. Not doing as bad as some but definitely not doing as well.

There's a thought that's always in the back of my head and it goes something like; we're only as great as the least of us. Democratic principals look out for the least of us, it's not perfect and has been on the chopping block of many a politician, some of them even our own. Those principals are worth fight for!

I'm also admitting that I am selfishness.

So even though my husband and I walk the edge, we have a warm/cool place to call home, we have food, kids are ok (my daughter just told me she had a + pregnancy test!!), I also want to see those in worse shape than I to have a better life or a chance at a better life because one day I and mine may be in need of the same.

[Ruby the Liberal]

17. My politics are not personal, they are based on what I think is best for society as a whole.

[GodlessBiker]

18. How would Warren Buffett vote in this poll?

[undeterred]

19. He would say even though I am stinking rich I should be taxed.

But he is still a stinkin' Republican, isn't he?

[Recovered Repug]

20. When does ones personal situation not affect ones politics?

Based on the responses, it seems that most are based on their current financial situation - understandable given the economy. However, doesn't ones personal situation include their entire background/life experience? One's race/gender/religion/sexual and upbringing all effect one's personal situation/political views.

[Wwagsthedog]

21. I like yellow dogs!

[LWolf]

22. Other:

The culture I was raised in, and the values I was raised with, helped shape the person that I am. My choices and experiences as that person affect my politics. Examples:

1. I neither respect nor support cheating or cheaters in any form.
2. I neither respect nor support words and actions that promote hate, fear, greed, power-mongering, nationalism, or hubris.
3. I am skeptical of politics and politicians in general because of the propaganda and manipulation involved in the process.

I wasn't born or raised to be a team player. I'm the only child of a single working parent who raised me to value work, honesty, and personal integrity, to have empathy for others, and to reach out to support those who need it. The planet, rather than a nation, a religion, or a party, is where my loyalty lies.