I understand why people hate Bush, but......

[Big D]

Enough with the flaming and spam, everyone.[q=DocFrance]I hope I never run into you on the streets...[/q]Why should he be threatened for having a different opinion to you?
Your job might require you to back your nation's leader, and that is understandable, but it's unfair for you to expect the same from everyone else.

I dislike extremism in all its forms. I dislike extremists who use religion as their excuse for their actions. This includes Islamic fundamentalist regimes, and the quasi-religious motivations for the acts of aggression carried out by the current Bush administration.
Extremism is not just religious, however. Political extremes are just as bad. While I dislike President Bush and his actions, I can understand why others like him, and why they praise him for being a strong, decisive and courageous leader. I disagree with them, but I understand how and why they feel as they do.
Thus, I'm not prepared to scorn everyone who supports President Bush. Some people say, "but if you hate Bush then that means you hate all his supporters and all of America too!", to which I can say only "hogwash".
Too often, people are influenced by the extremes they see in the world around them, especially in the perpetually biased and sensationalist media. People see a mullet-haird, gun-waving redneck supporting Bush, and conclude that all Bush supporters are mullet-haired, gun-waving rednecks. On the other hand, a Bush opponent is often portrayed as a namby-pamby, extreme pacifist civil libertarian with no real grasp of the realities of the world. Again, this stereotype represents an extreme outlier, not the universal norm.

Tolerance, once again, is an early victim.
Many people feel stronger when they have somebody - a group, an individual, whatever - to dislike. The media can fuel that disquiet by manufacturing opinions and beliefs about the "other side" in any dispute.
The result? More controversy, more conflict, more news and thus more ratings.

Please refrain from using this thread to make petty insults or jokes about President Bush. Let's maintain a degree of civility and seriousness here.

[Alice]

I can understand why people dislike bush... and i believe people who follow him tend to be stupid.. id say 90% of them can die for all i care honestly...

alot of people just do things cuz they think they have to, they dont really look into their heart which is what makes these people stupid. A bunch of lemmings... following some guy who follows people who r old and are dead or dyign that really dont matter anymore cuz the world really depends on the young people and the future, not the past and old revenges that older people want.

bush is center of fake.. he has nothing real about him and for that hes bullcrap...

his supporters deserve to be treated like idiots unless they can prove otherwise, i know im treated like an idiot for liking democrats.. what goes around comes around

[nik0tine]

What an idiot. This is almost laughable. No wait.. this IS laughable.

his supporters deserve to be treated like idiots unless they can prove otherwise, i know im treated like an idiot for liking democrats.. what goes around comes around

I just want to say that, even though I hate Bush and his followers, we cannot forget that they are people to. I hate Republicans as a group of people. It's much easier that way. However, I do know many Republicans, and even though they have vile political beliefs I find it difficult to hate them. It's far easier to hate someone when you don't know them. Just think about the Republicans that you know, and tell me if you really hate those people, or would want them to be treated badly.

[DarkLadyNyara]

I am a definite Bush-hater(well, really a conservative, right-wing, Republican hater), but I always have felt that tolerance is the core of liberalism, and that includes tolerating people whose veiws you personaly detest. I would never put a Bush/Cheney sticker on my car, but I will defend someone elses right to do so. Isn't that what America is about?

[DocFrance]

[q=DocFrance]I hope I never run into you on the streets...[/q]Why should he be threatened for having a different opinion to you?
Your job might require you to back your nation's leader, and that is understandable, but it's unfair for you to expect the same from everyone else.

I'm sorry, did you interpret that as me threatening him? Quite the opposite - based on the hatred from his post, I felt more worried that he would try to run me off the road. I guess I didn't quite make that clear.

I've had some bad experiences with people who don't quite appreciate my profession. I've been called a baby-killer on a few occasions. When I was a fourth-class cadet, we all had to wear our service uniform when out on the town. One day, my friends and I were on a day pass in Colorado Springs, and we happened to come across a "peace" protest. Not much of a peace protest, because they started throwing things at us. Fortunately, we were pretty quick on our feet.

I would never put a Bush/Cheney sticker on my car, but I will defend someone elses right to do so. Isn't that what America is about?

"I don't agree with a word you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." ~Voltaire

[Wiegrahf42]

Great now all people who dislike Bush will be lumped in with this idiot. Same for the people harassing Doc France, I've got nothing against the military, just disagree with the President's policies.

[Harvest Moon]

My girlfriend and best friend think me insane FOR voting for bush.. considering i'm a communist.. but what commie would vote for kerry when he owns smurfing Heinz coporation?!?! Besides, he was a coward. Afraid of what "people might think" and didn't honor his own values, Bush atleast had self-esteem, something a leader HAS to have..

Besides those obvious reasons I believe bush will make the world come to the end the way I want it too. Either way the world as we know it (Meaning the fall of America.) is going to end, but there are many ways of which that end could come. And good ol' Dubyha is going to insure the U.S's destruction in a way I know I won't die in vain.

Ofcourse Bush may be half of the reason the world's going to end in the first place but that's tottaly besides the point..

[Alice]

I retract my comment. i was mad at the time and wasnt thinking clearly.. blah :P sorry

[Optium]

The funniest part is that he actually took the time to write that entire sign
out so that he could hold it up to her. Or maybe he had it made
beforehand to use on anyone with a Bush sticker. Which is worse.

.opt

[Doomgaze]

My girlfriend and best friend think me insane FOR voting for bush.. considering i'm a communist.. but what commie would vote for kerry when he owns smurfing Heinz coporation?!?! Besides, he was a coward. Afraid of what "people might think" and didn't honor his own values, Bush atleast had self-esteem, something a leader HAS to have..

Besides those obvious reasons I believe bush will make the world come to the end the way I want it too. Either way the world as we know it (Meaning the fall of America.) is going to end, but there are many ways of which that end could come. And good ol' Dubyha is going to insure the U.S's destruction in a way I know I won't die in vain.

Ofcourse Bush may be half of the reason the world's going to end in the first place but that's tottaly besides the point..

Erm... what?

[Big D]

I'm sorry, did you interpret that as me threatening him? Quite the opposite - based on the hatred from his post, I felt more worried that he would try to run me off the road. I guess I didn't quite make that clear.

Ah, I see... yes, I did get the wrong impression, and I'm deeply sorry for the error.

[DocFrance]

No hard feelings, I just hope you didn't hurt yourself when you jumped to conclusions

[CloudSquallandZidane]

Well, now that could make a kick ass Democrat campaign for 2008:

"Vote Democrats or accidents MAY happen"

Or...

"Vote Democrats, because you know, things can...like...break"

Its better than the last campaign.

[Shadow Nexus]

My girlfriend and best friend think me insane FOR voting for bush.. considering i'm a communist.. but what commie would vote for kerry when he owns smurfing Heinz coporation?!?!

Uh...you have a very interesting concept of communism if you are being a communist and voting Bush. Kerry owns Heinz, but people in the Bush administration also own companies. What's the point? If you are not going to vote anyone owning companies, don't vote.

[DarkLadyNyara]

So true.