TOTAL LICENSING
“I am”, replied the bal- determinant: year’s election marked a fundamental
loonist. “How did you realignment as the Republican base of
know?” How could we determine if America is center older blue collar and rural whites shrank
right or center left? to a minority. The Democrats’ new
“Well”, said the man, majority is composed of college
“you don’t know • Rob Dreher (realclearpolitics.com): educated professionals working and
where you are and “conservatives may be down but they’re single women, Blacks, Hispanics and
where you are going. not out. America remains a center right Asians, and people under 30. Most of
You’ve risen to where country which means there are these voters live in sprawling urban/
you are due to a large quantity of hot air. You opportunities for new versions of suburban metropolitan areas and work
made a promise that you have no idea how to conservatism. Barak Obama understands for companies that produce ideas and
keep and you expect me to solve your problem. this which is why even though he’s a services rather than material goods.
You are in exactly the same position you were liberal, he did not campaign as one and is They’re optimistic and not frightened by
before we met but somehow, now it’s my fault”. too smart to govern as one” change; With smart policies Obama can
• Rich Lowry (The Washington Post): secure this growing majority
Put all the quotes about Culture Wars together “in the worst possible environment for The only question is whether it will be
and they are surely entertaining, instructive and Republicans, the idealogical composition short term like Ronald Reagan’s
informative. They are not, however, rising to is- of the election was essentially unchanged realignment in 1980 or more durable like
sues for which we should do or die. from 2004. In exit polls only 22% of those initiated by William McKinley in
voters identified themselves as liberals 1896 and Franklin Roosevelt in 1932”.
LET’S DEVOTE A MINUTE
while 34% said they were conservatives • Some culture warriors termed Obama
TO STATISTICS
and 44% considered themselves as an “Arab”, “Socialist”, and an out of touch
moderates. intellectual, Elitist. Yet he won
When you look carefully at the basic electoral
• John Judis (The New Republic): “this overwhelmingly!
graphs, you see that they have not substantially
changed throughout the last four elections (16
years!)
On this graph, the bars, the thickness of which
depicts graphically the share within the total
electorate as it amounted to the percentage
that was taken up by each sub group.
This change recently showing expanded popu-
lation by groups previously less participato-
ry: youth, blacks, and Hispanics drawn to the
Obama camp.
Only the future can teach us whether this change
of electorate shall be permanent or whether it
was created by the abysmally low ratings of the
incumbent administration. Or the “yes we can”
mantra well phrased and preached by the now
President-elect. Was it personality or the mes-
sage?
Think back to similar changes wrought by Lin-
coln, Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, Reagan, JFK and
Clinton who shared this gift.
No single election really represents a water-
shed!
Seen over decades, the swings of the compass
needle will ever continue while steering the ship
of state slowly forward as the issues of national
importance shall demand. If culture war was a
128
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