On Reagan, cooperation, and the hijacking of the Republican party by neo-cons.

     If the rethugs could find a way to revive Reagan and have
him run again, they would. 
     They love him. He's the embodiment of all that is evil in
modern rethuglican philosophy.
     He's no conservative, he's a 'Reagan conservative,' which
means big government, bloated government, massive corruption,
screwing everyone in every way possible...all in the name of
the neoconservative agenda.
     These are the real enemies...the neo-cons who first
gained influence in the sleaze of the Reagan years. Many
people may not realize it, but Reagan's evil was fueled by the
neo-conservative agenda, who wormed their way into influence
through an alliance with evangelicals, an unholy pact that
gave Reagan vast power. 
     There ARE good republicans out there, people who are as
sick of the hijacking of their party as we are of the effects
it has had.
In the end, the only way we can get rid of this slime once and
for all is to bring both sides together...the good dems (those
who aren't sucking on the diseased corporate teat) and the
good repubs (the ones who recognize the neocon infection in
their party and want to purge it) to fight it.
     Otherwise, the results will be disastrous not just for
the individual parties, but for the entire country. 
     The mistake many DUer's make is to assume that the Repubs
are the only problem...the corruption caused by the neocons
has poisoned our party as well. Not as horribly as the
republicans, but nearly. A lot of sleazy dems have realize
they can cash in, big time, by throwing their lot in with the
neo-con agenda. We can't expect to take back our country
without cutting away the disease in BOTH parties. The process
will not be easy. It will not be clean. It will be tough,
painful, and will take time. But it is necessary. As long as
the neoconservatives continue to exert influence, our country
continues on its downward spiral.
It's not hard to do, you can play two-faced and deceitful, or
you can just wear it on your sleeve and go all-out (as in the
cases of Lieberman or Zell Miller).
     I know there a lot of angry people here who cringe at the
thought of cooperating with the repubs on anything...but the
sad truth is, in the end, we will have to.
We can destroy the Republican party, scatter it to the winds,
but THAT WILL NOT GET RID OF THE NEO-CONS...they'll still have
the dems to further corrupt and influence.
     Our first step is to take the white house, and gain a
significant majority in Congress. Then we need to purge OUR
party of Neo Con influence, we need to try and imprison the
guiltiest of the guilty, and undo the damage they have done.
Then we need to have healing...of the country, of the rift
between liberal and conservative, between dem and republican.
Perhaps those will be the steps we need to take on the road
back to greatness.
     All of us, Dem and Republican, Liberal and Conservative,
all of us have been played for fools by a thoroughly corrupted
group of men and women who are totally consumed by greed.
     If we want to keep our own souls, we can't let hate
dictate our course. 
We're all in this together...the common enemy is an enemy to
all...it's a long fight we have ahead of us, but we can win,
we WILL win, because this country is worth fighting for and
preserving.
     The alternative is letting THEM win...and a victory for
the neoconservative movement is a loss for all the world.

     Incidentally, if you have not yet seen 'The Power of
Nightmares,' DO SO. It will help you understand how the
Republican party became what it is today. Reagan isn't the
only one at fault...Wolfowitz, Cheney, Rumsfeld...all of these
scum are guilty.