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Article by Michael D. Shear
[A Reader's Comment: Francine of Massachusetts, 09/12/2011]
I had the most disturbing conversation with my mother. She is retired, a rabid Republican and devoted FOX viewer. An otherwise intelligent woman, she is totally irrational on politics. She is concerned that the US is turning 'socialist' and is worried that someone will take away her Social Security. When I point out that it is the party she supports that wants to end Social Security, she tells me Obama is a socialist. When I point out that if he were a socialist the last thing he would do is end Social Security, she tells me he's against workers and if he had his way, everyone would lose their jobs - like the Post Office workers. When I point out that it's the Republican politicians who are against unions and want to privatize government agencies, she says I don't know the truth and should watch FOX because they are the only ones who are showing the truth. She said she doesn't want anyone taking away her Medicare and I ask her how she would pay for her health care with the Republican vouchers. Her response? It wasn't a problem until Obama changed everything. What he changed, she can't say. All she knows is he's a socialist and wants to turn the US into Canada where people die waiting for doctor appointments. When I point out that we all wait for appointments but we all get service in real emergencies, she says if Obama had his way no one would get health care.
And so it goes. She hated Roosevelt and yet she believes that Social Security is great, that the US won WWII because the US is great and none of it had anything to do with Roosevelt. She hated LBJ but loves Medicare. Basically, she hates all Democratic politicians except for their legacies. And she loves all Republican politicians and refuses to believe that they are trying to undermine the very programs she values.
There's no talking to her. She isn't interested in facts. She only listens to FOX. She votes and she isn't alone. It's sad.
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