Kakki wrote:
> You are spinning my original comments. All I inferred was that Lincoln was a
> good example of a "pure" Republican. I also went on to say that the parties'
> idealogy/philosophy has been perverted from its original over time. So we
> are saying the same thing in this regard - so why spin my comments?
Lincoln is not an example of a Republican as we know Republicans today, pure or
impure.
That's not a spin; that's a fact.
It was clear from your comment about "the original Republicans being more like
the Libertarians of today" that you did not know what the original philosophy
of the Republican party was. I did and wrote about it, so how could we have
said the same thing?
I said the emphasis on states rights switched from the Democratic party to the
Republican (which I think of as changing, not being perverted); you talked
about factions glomming onto the original parties ... undermining their
ideology. Are you thinking that since we were both talking about change we were
saying the same thing? Ok, I can live with that, although there's a big
difference in tone between the words switched and undermined.
To be complete about it, here's your original paragraph:
"I may be deluded but it has always been my understanding that a true
Republican, one who sticks to the original idealogy, is someone who
staunchly believes in individual rights to live your life the way you
choose. I think the original Republicans were more like the Libertarians of
today. It seems that at some point there were a few factions that glommed
onto the party and gave it a bad name. We all know what those factions are.
Their original ideology of upholding individual freedom has been greatly
perverted by the sway of those factions. There have also been factions that
glommed onto the Democratic party over the years which have also undermined
their ideology."
> > States' rights versus the federal government is the main difference
> between the > ideologies of today's two main parties, and it plays itself out
> in many
> > different ways.
>
> I don't believe this is accurate.
This *is* accurate and it's very basic.
Different actions result from those different philosophies if people are being
true to what they believe. The reality of politics, however, is that people are
often forced into moderation in order to get anything done. That does not mean
the underlying differences no longer exist, but it may make it harder to see
them.
Debra Shea
