Dropping the “Bat-Shit Crazy” Party

John Cole of Balloon Juice has announced that he has dropped his registration as a Republican and is now a Democrat:

Long story short, I got up there to register as an independent, said “Fuck it,” and now I am a Democrat. I certainly don’t agree with all their positions, but they are not bat-shit crazy like the GOP. That has to count for something.

There’s a lot of us who have been voting Democratic lately who don’t agree with all the traditional Democratic positions. That’s why the Democrats took control of Congress in 2006, and why the Democrats will probably take the White House in 2008. The Republicans have become just too “bat-shit crazy” to be trusted with governing.

Having so many people begin to vote Democratic also changes what Democratic positions mean. The party has become more of a big tent. There are more fiscal conservatives (which is a good thing) as well as more social conservatives (which isn’t so good). Ultimately Cole sums it up in declaring the Republicans “bat-shit crazy.” While Democrats can disagree on a variety of issues, at least we have a common frame of reference for debating the issues.

The Republicans live in an alternative reality as they reject science (from evolution to climate change), reject rational economic theory (with fantasies that lowering taxes will always bring in more revenue and confusing corporate welfare for the free market), reject our nation’s history (such as with claims that the founding fathers did not intend for separation of church and state in the writing of both the Constitution and Bill of Rights), and reject reality in dealing with current problems (such as claims of WMD in Iraq and a connection between Saddam and 9/11). When Republicans so frequently deny reality there is no room for rational debate and it is difficult to seek compromise. As, like Cole, I don’t always agree with the Democrats I continue to consider myself an independent, but that becomes increasingly irrelevant as the Republicans become increasingly under the control of extremists who reject reality.

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