2007-03-08 23:24:37 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Study of Bush's psyche touches a nerve
A study funded by the US government has concluded that conservatism can be explained psychologically as a set of neuroses rooted in "fear and aggression, dogmatism and the intolerance of ambiguity".
As if that was not enough to get Republican blood boiling, the report's four authors linked Hitler, Mussolini, Ronald Reagan and the rightwing talkshow host, Rush Limbaugh, arguing they all suffered from the same affliction.
All of them "preached a return to an idealised past and condoned inequality".
Republicans are demanding to know why the psychologists behind the report, Political Conservatism as Motivated Social Cognition, received $1.2m in public funds for their research from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health.
The authors also peer into the psyche of President George Bush, who turns out to be a textbook case. The telltale signs are his preference for moral certainty and frequently expressed dislike of nuance.
"This intolerance of ambiguity can lead people to cling to the familiar, to arrive at premature conclusions, and to impose simplistic cliches and stereotypes," the authors argue in the Psychological Bulletin.
One of the psychologists behind the study, Jack Glaser, said the aversion to shades of grey and the need for "closure" could explain the fact that the Bush administration ignored intelligence that contradicted its beliefs about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.
2007-03-08 23:30:33 · answer #1 · answered by justagirl33552 4 · 2⤊ 5⤋
Another amusing my side is always good the other side is always bad question. People can definitely ask the same question about Democrats also. Here is your answer though. Politicians in general can be corrupted and political ideology has nothing to do with it. I honestly believe that most start out with the best of intentions really believing that they can make difference. The problem is that Washington is a you scratch my back and I'll scratch your world where deals are not made in the best interests of the electorate, but rather in the interest of the power base of the candidate. You, I and anyone else existing in that fishbowl could be corrupted by the access to money and power. If you believe any different you are just extremely naive.
Want more honesty in government?
Support an end to lobbying and term limits for all.
2007-03-09 07:36:30 · answer #2 · answered by Bryan 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Take out the "Republican" part of your question, and all of the above would be true. Maybe politicians start out caring about their constituents, but after years of having legislation blocked because of their political persuasion, it becomes just about the money. That's just the way it is. Democrats won't pass a Republican bill, Republicans won't pass a Democrat bill.
2007-03-09 07:41:40 · answer #3 · answered by The_Cricket: Thinking Pink! 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Its not just the republicans.
Any politician that has spent more than 90 days in Washington is by definition, corrupt.
Vote all the bums out. Vote anti-incumbent.
2007-03-09 07:29:32 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 1⤋
None of the above.
2007-03-09 07:30:40 · answer #5 · answered by wizjp 7 · 1⤊ 2⤋
It's a way of life for them, to get to the top no matter what ot takes... aided by an immoral evangelical right!
2007-03-09 07:33:18 · answer #6 · answered by Wally H 2 · 1⤊ 4⤋
ya they are trained by Democrats they just leave something out like morals
2007-03-09 07:29:10 · answer #7 · answered by pjlisa13 4 · 3⤊ 2⤋
Huh?
2007-03-09 07:27:16 · answer #8 · answered by zaphodsclone 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
You are extremely ignorant
2007-03-09 07:27:26 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 1⤋
all of the above
2007-03-09 07:29:12 · answer #10 · answered by plhudson01 6 · 1⤊ 6⤋