The Lollygabber

Green Republicans and Patriotic Democrats?

August 22, 2008 at 7:27 am 5 comments

This afternoon I pulled up to a policyholder’s long, gravelly driveway out in the country. Judging by the overwhelmingly GOP billboards and picket signs throughout the community, I figured most of the people I would run into would not be on my side in November. That was OK with me because I do my best to keep religion and politics out of my professional interactions. The house sat on several acres with a brand new seafoam green Toyota Prius parked out front. A few months ago, a conservative co-worker opined (not without contempt) that people only drive hybrid cars to make a leftist political statement. I begged to differ at the time, but, from that point forward, I couldn’t help but notice the number of hybrid cars on the road with Obama or Clinton bumper stickers. (I have yet to see a Prius with a McCain endorsement). So, needless to say, I had a hunch that the policyholders I was about to see were themselves democrats. Good thing I didn’t open my big trap.

To make a long story short, this family possessed very conservative political views, going as far to say that this country was being overturned by Communists (which is interesting, considering the fact that the U.S. has only had 1 democratic president since I was born and that even the power players on the left are veering more toward the center). And as far as Mother Earth is concerned, the policyholders went off onto a tangent about how the environmentalists are brainwashing their constituents with a money-making agenda.

I came to the conclusion that the policyholders had either a) inherited the car or b) decided that saving gas money trumped putting off any kind of political image by a vehicle.

Do green republicans and patriotic democrats exist? Absolutely, but the media doesn’t want us to think so. I know just as many gay people who plan to vote for McCain as I do pro-lifers who support Obama. The Republican party doesn’t just consist of WASPy, affluent, heterosexual, gun-toting, traditionalists. And my fellow Democrats aren’t necessarily working class, pro-choice, eco-friendly, pacifistic minorities who support big government. If we were to create a venn diagram of American politics, we would find that a lot of ideologies don’t easily fit into a certain party. Lofty generalizations pit us against each other when, for the most part, we’re all moving toward a common goal.

In 2004, my aunt hung a gigantic American flag in her front yard – a typical half acre lawn in the suburbs of Dallas. With respect to her patriotism, Aunt Denise’s neighbors didn’t know whether to feel confused or jealous. The only Kerry supporter on the block, Denise wanted to make a statement that she could be just as patriotic as anyone else. Like me, my aunt opposes the war but supports our troops. I’m sure she’s honoring the seventh anniversary of 9/11 the same as everyone else. Patriotism takes on multiple forms.

And now that I think about it, I’ll have to ask her if her rightmost neighbor, an NRA card-carrier, has a Prius parked in his garage.

Entry filed under: Politics. Tags: Politics.