Is any purpose served by political stereotyping of average people?

Question

Extremist Republicans call Democrats unpatriotic.
Extremist Democrats call Republicans blind sheep.

If you engage in this behavior, why do you do it? and Do you really believe that it serves your chosen cause?

If you do not engage in this behavior, are you tired of it? and Do you think it serves any good purpose in the political debate?

This question is not about politicians, but rather about the political interaction between average people.

sitizen_x: Quite the contrary intelligent debate is very productive for changing people's opinions. People did not turn out to vote because of the rhetoric, but rather in spite of it. As evidence I submit that most people say they did not vote for the Democrats but rather against the Republicans. This shows they were informed thus trashing the Democrat epithets, and did not feel they were voting against patriotism which kills the Republican epithets.

Answer 1

Start with the fact that really front edge bright and well-educated people don't do this. Nice uneducated ones don't either. Take those two groups away, and what you have is the base of yahoo answers political boards.

The reason some people do it, the mean ones, is to feel better. It's release to call someone an idiot on a big loudspeaker from behind a curtain where you'll never be seen or called to account for your comments. It's exactly like prank calls or vandalism. Messing with people by remote control.

The reason a lot of other people do it -- call them middle brow users -- is because once you pigeonhole and demonize a group with a stereotype, they are in a tidy box, and you don't have to bother with trying to see things from their point of view anymore. Instead, you just kneejerk "oh, it's the Nabobs", and you're done with it. It's intellectual laziness. But sometimes the way a middlebrow goes about it is superficially clever, and indicative of the fact they aren't 100% dummies, at very least. They have some sort of language skills and ability to entertain, if not great insight. If you think about it, that's what a lot of radio talk """pundits""" have too: superficial verbal agility, with no real insight.

But whoever does it, it's not useful, and ultimately damaging to the public dialog on issues.

Answer 2

Your question presumes that stereotypes are there for no reason.
Wether it serves any purpose is a matter of opinion. Now, personally I don't think that all democrats are unpatriotic. However, I DO believe that all democrats are liberal to the point where they are dangerous, and the fewer of them in office the better. Now is that an example of a sterotypical mindset? Probably.
I know Democrats are proponents of gov't centralization and higher taxation with less reresentation. Living in Massachusetts I know that democrats are capable of ignoring the will of the voters without fear of being voted out of office. I have a very good insight on the simple fact of life that SOME sterotypes are there for a reason.
I have not been called a sheep by any democrat. Nor have I called any democrat unpatriotic. (I do have exceptions to that rule, but they are reserved for idiots like Michael Moore, and even he has slipped back into the fringe obscurity he so richly deserves.)
9 out of 10 of my day to day political discussions/arguments are with regular people who think. When one knows how to pick those who think vs. bomb throwing pundits, they have a better chance of avoiding stereotyping horseshit.

Answer 3

Well if you were to look at some of my most recent questions,you'd see that I'm very tired of this.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=Ajmqaz3Gu2ClMfoBSupHwrnsy6IX?qid=20061111085640AAsB7ob
People should no more stereotype by virtue of party then by race,color creed or sexual orientation.I myself choose not to align myself with any single party.I think this defeats the purpose of being able to make your own decisions based on what is either fact or what's best.
I find it impossible to believe in the single minded ideaologies of one party or the other.
I think prejudice is WRONG no matter what particular forum it's in.I have never once heard a person make a statement and wondered what their party affiliation is.Since this moderate aproach is becoming ever so more popular there's hope the United States will again one day become united again.
An added note for the guy above me.Abuse reports are reviewed by a REAL person by Yahoo! Customer Care.This is why not every report of abuse results in a violation or suspension.You are not suspended from one or two violations either.I've had a tatal or 27 since I started and was threatened with suspension only once because of recurring violations.

Answer 4

Politics is a firey subject and people get emotional when others don't agree with their views. Speaking for the Republican side, how many times have we seen "When will Bush be Impeached?" or "Foley" come up? That draws a response and then someone makes an abuse report. Then the robots at Yahoo suspend someone's account, which forces them to start over so there's more anger mixed in the pot. This is the result. Truthfully, Yahoo needs to rethink how they are interfering with the discourse. I can see them editing profanity, outright advertising and things like that but the way they do it now, they have allowed some people to use abuse reports as a weapon against others.

Answer 5

It's a strange phenomenon. I sometimes wonder if the people who do that think they're running for office themselves.

Politics by nature is divisive, especially election campaigns. Vilifying someone whose opinion differs from yours is not productive though. Compromise and problem solving are the ways to move forward. People have to be willing to accept a compromise soultion that is for the good of most Americans.

Answer 6

I can understand the reluctance of a person that does not like .. or better still, feels that "arguing gets you no where"..
unfortunately the world turns very slowly and the voice of change takes all temperaments. So while I am empathetic to your question I am in strong defense of the harshest political banter among the citizens.. 60% of the electorate turned out this time.. people are Pi$$ed and if that's what it takes them to get off their keasters, then so be it..

Answer 7

Average people do not interact this way. I've never seen this type of behavior at the grocery store. It's here on the Internet where people can be anonymous that this behavior is prevalent. I don't fear much for the country yet. ;)

Answer 8

The anonymity of the computer allows us to VENT and be a little stronger in OUR rhetoric than we would if we were talking to a person we knew and wanted to get along with.

Answer 9

The Only purpose is by political operatives to divide and conquer, the only way to stop it is to vote against any candidate who allows their campaign to use it. If it wan't successful they wouldn't do it. "Evil triumphs when good men do nothing".

Answer 10

I am so very tired of it. It is unproductive and steers us away from the real issues.