You keep saying this as if there’s some policy, rhetoric or outcome equivalence to draw today in 2021. The last time I asked for an example you produced page 14 of a voting bill in GA as your evidence. This was after a great deal of badgering, I might add.
I’m going to guess that you can’t do much better here, so let’s steer the thread back on-track.
On a state/local level I think a few things are in play, as this lady is far from the only fringe leftist holding some kind of elected office.
In simple terms, conservatives completely failed to get a competing message out with most immigrants to Maine. Not all, but most. Some, like me, came pre-packaged with conservative values and opinions. We have many more that came with no real understanding of American politics, and the Democrats had policies that this new population found more appealing. Not all, but most.
This is unsurprising and still one of the oldest tricks in the book when it comes to politics. Voting your way into stuff without any further effort on your part has always had its appeal, and I can’t blame anyone from Somalia or any other war-torn hellhole for accepting an offer like that.
Nor can I blame them for organizing themselves into voting for more.
Maine is a rather insular chunk of land, or at least more so than anywhere else in the USA that I’ve lived or done work in long enough to get a feel for the locals. I have liberal friends, and one of my best friends could be accurately described as a revolutionary socialist who professes to believe that the Democrats are conservative capitalists with few meaningful differences compared to Republicans. He still spends a great deal of his ample free time working to elect Democrats.
He’s a well-educated professional. He’s extremely good at what he does, and rightfully successful because of it. He’s lived life by what most will agree are traditional conservative values, aside from never taking personal responsibility for another human being’s well-being. I think that’s a big difference, and a big reason why “childless liberal” is not an entirely unfair stereotype, especially talking about 40+ year-olds.
He also volunteers his time with The Poor People’s Campaign. You can google it if you want to learn more. I once mentioned I’d be happy to volunteer my time to help poor people too, and suggested that he send some my way who would like help with their resume’s, practice in a mock interview, or were perhaps unaware of the many well-paying jobs open locally. I have many contacts in manufacturing and supporting industries who are looking for workers who are ready to work and ready to pay them well.
I was told that The Poor People’s Campaign had different ideas about lifting populations out of poverty. They intend to achieve this via policy change designed to address structural inequalities brought about by systemic racism. Again, if you think I’m being unfair or hyperbolic, please refer to their website. The Poor People’s Campaign doesn’t mention useful skills anywhere.
I think my good friend represents the general ideas and general good intentions of most Maine liberal voters who were born and raised in the USA. The further you get away from Portland the more conservative Maine becomes, but the population thins out really fast. A few hours north and you’re in the Northwest Aroostook, where about a dozen people live in an area larger than Delaware.
We all live in Maine, where nothing bad really happens very often. This is the bubble I was referring to. Our “bad parts of town” are normal cities and towns in most other states. I suspect few of them have been to the South Side of Chicago, let alone observed the worsening conditions taking hold over my lifetime. This consequence-free environment allows for the cultivation of all sorts of wild ideas and even allows for the belief that these wild ideas will somehow make things better.
All without a shred of evidence and despite all evidence to the contrary.
The social reinforcement is also a major factor. Being an open conservative in the Portland, Maine area will exclude you from quite a bit. Being an outspoken leftist will not, and will get you attention, validation and even elected to office.
If there’s any doubt whether the politician named in the article is genuine with her sentiment, well, just check out her twitter. It doesn’t seem like a politician using hyperbole to emphasize a point, nor could I begin to ascertain what the underlying point might even be.
https://twitter.com/NasreenME
Speaking for myself, I’m thinking about coming out of the closet as an open conservative. I’m even thinking about becoming involved in local politics. I’d rather be playing computer games, fishing with my kid, writing on T-Nation, bouncing at my local bar, getting smashed by the nastiest black belts around, or even doing 20 rep squat sets than getting involved with government again, but here I am. THATS how bad these nut jobs are. I don’t want them calling the shots on anything where I live, but they are.
Do you? Does anyone?
