Crazy in Vermont

Apparently, there is some Kos poll floating around that is supposed to demonstrate the 'bat shit crazy' nature of republicans due to the level of support for secession. Of course, i would remind readers that during the Bush years, there was an equally high polling number along "the left" who likewise supported secession. But whereas secession support among the right is mere hot air, secessionist ideas among some on the left, conversely, remain strong, even with a Dem majority. Frankly,if secession were to happen, it would be from a "progressive blue State." Case in point, this week's Time Magazine article on the Vermont Secessionist movement. This is how they describe themselves:

"left-libertarian, anti-big government, anti-empire, antiwar, with small is beautiful as our guiding philosophy."

The movement estimates around 10-15% of the Vermont population supports secession from the United States. As I laid out in out in earlier post, liberty ultimately is exit, not voice. Even as the likes of John Buttrick warn that conservative expropriation of the libertarian movement threatens to destroy it(at the very least, the Libertarian party), and the Campaign for Liberty celebrates an endorsement from "Duty to the State First," warmonger Sarah Palin, libertarianism is still alive in the United States.

I've seen the poll, it's here: http://www.dailykos.com/statepoll/2010/1/31/US/437

Frankly, I think it does show some serious problems with the Republican base. I don't care if someone favors secession for their state, which is only 23% of Republicans. I worry about 31% believing that Obama hates white people, or 73% opposing openly gay teachers in school.

That despite being born to a white mother & largely raised by white grandparents so many can see Obama as some kind of bigoted militant black radical is amazing.

My suspicion has been that a lot of this sentiment is pent-up fear of racial "payback". Of course, if "payback" was coming it would've already been initiated by now, but this crowd isn't exactly logical...

I reviewed that link; was the polling sample a convention of "Focus on the Family" voters?

Of course, I don't subscribe to the idea that the only thing wrong with american government is that one side(party) is rational while the other side(party) is irrational; if we could just get rid of the irrational side(party), have our guys in charge, then we will get enlightened government. Today's political discourse revolves around the dynamic that neither side views the other as legitimate. Kos, who is writing book, American Taliban, commissions a poll that over-samples the fundamentalist voter and viola, case made. Frankly, if the poll was accurate(in the sense of reflecting "conservative" opinion), then it would actually be making the case I've been stating, namely that "communitarianism" in the US would just result in a type of socially-conservative corporatism. Frankly, if I were a progressive, I might be inclined to think twice, after seeing that poll, about the babble of a social contract. You might not like what you are supposedly implicitly signing...