Sunday, August 26, 2007

The Republicans can always win

We generally think of the Republicans as a political party and technically, that is what they are. They are more than that, however. They are a coalition. A construct of several groups, each with a specific area of concern. They are apathetic to areas of policy outside their specific concerns but are willing to support the agendas of others, as long as those others reciprocate.

The first group is composed of those people with high net worth and actively involved in consolidating and increasing their wealth. Their primary interest is to be able to engage in their commercial activities without regulation, intervention or oversight. As a voting block, their numbers are insignificant. The contributions that they make are purely financial. They hedge their bets and will support anyone in power but prefer the Republican party because of it's greater pliability.

The second group are the neocons. They are highly educated and extremely intelligent. They are well represented in the most respected, admired and productive segments of society. Their sole concern is that the State of Israel be preserved, nurtured and protected, at all costs. The tremendous respect they command makes them invaluable as molders of public opinion. Their intelligence, knowledge and skill allow them to generate coherent policy and direct it's implementation.

The third group are the xenophobes. These people feel discriminated against and threatened by, their peers in society who may not share their same set of beliefs or origins. Their primary motivator is fear. They fear the known. They fear the unknown. They fear what will happen. They fear what will not happen. Their fear makes them easily led. They want, above all else to preserve what they have, no matter how little or insignificant it may be. This is a constantly shifting group. If they lose their fear, they fall away. If they become more afraid, their numbers swell. They are an easy group to manipulate, because the worse you make it for them, the stronger they believe.

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