I live in Utah, which is one of the most blatantly Republican states in the U.S. I have had many conversations with people in regards to this election, and I have come to some bleak conclusions. Too many are guilty of logical fallacies:
- Many people are protective of their political party, akin to a religion or a sports team. Such a person's political party (and elected members of it) is incapable of doing any wrong, and is deserving of boundless loyalty and faith, regardless of the party's actions. To such a person, their party of choice is completely unaccountable for its actions, and the actions of its elected members.
- Many people value material things (money) over human life, so long as the aforementioned human life doesn't belong to themselves or anyone they directly know. For instance, 1000+ dead soldiers and 13,000+ innocent Iraqi deaths is "not too many, really," but 5 cents more per gallon of gas is an outrage.
- Many people value safety over liberty.
- Many people trust the government blindly.
These are not the squakings of a card-carrying, life-long Democrat.... only a few years ago I described myself politically as "middle of the road, with Republican leanings." Today I wouldn't really call myself a Democrat precisely, it would be more accurate to say "anti-Republican." And the primary contributor to assigning me that label is our president.
I hope to find the middle of that road again some day, but our liberty, and the lives of many, are hanging in the balance on this election.