|
MAY 15, 2003 - We have been receiving a lot of mail over the past month regarding some of the
articles we have been running. People are very excited but confused.
Take this e-mail that was sent by a person from South Bend, Indiana:
Dear Mr. Bico,
What is with your f*ing site. I thought it was supposed to be a moderate
site. You sound like either a liberal pansy or a right wing moron or something,
I don’t know. I mean you don’t sound like either, but you sound like, I don’t
know, but it’s just not damned moderate. You’re a f*ing looney!
Sincerely,
Frank
What we see here is one of the main misperceptions people have about us moderate
independents. They believe that to be “moderate” means to be moderate in
temperament – as in not passionate.
As you, loyal reader, know, the label moderate is not meant to be applied to
temperament at all but to political persuasion. And, in fact, the label
“independent” is not exactly a timid or easy-going phrase.
Let’s take a look at another e-mail, this one from a female reader in Kankakee,
Illinois:
Moderate Independent,
What is this s*? I consider myself a moderate and an independent, which
means I don’t vote, don’t care about politics, ignore the issues of the day,
and, in general, just sit by and watch the world take place on TV rather than
voting or anything stupid like that. So where do you guys get off talking about
all of this political s* while still calling yourselves The Moderate Independent?
Here we see another common misperception: that moderate independents are
uninterested, uniformed, and unmotivated to participate in the important
discussions and events of their world. Just because we don’t cling to this
party or that doesn’t mean we sit by and let the people who affiliate with some
party wreck things for us.
No, in fact, we are the voters who decide each election. 30 percent of voters
will always vote Democrat, 30 percent always Republican, with only a percent or
two difference each election based on the particular candidate. So, obviously,
the elections are not decided by these people.
The rest of us, the 40 percent who are moderate independents, make up what is
called the “swing vote.” That’s a fancy way of saying we swing the election
toward the saner of the two candidates, provided there is one.
Let’s look at one more e-mail:
Dear TMI,
I am personally offended. By all of it. Personally. I am really hurt.
Jennie
|
