Election reveals divided nation

No surprise there…

According to this analysis, people who voted for Bush are Christians worried about terrorism and moral values. People who voted for Kerry don’t really go to church and worry about Iraq and the economy…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3973197.stm

Looking at the charts on that page, the division is very apparent.

I think you should take Israel’s lead and build a security fence down the middle of the country, and give half to Bush, half to Kerry. That way everybody would be happy.

Cool.
If we did that, we would have to give Kerry 16 states in the NE.and the left coast, where I am a resident. Bush would get the rest.Check out CNN.com

Oh, and a 3.4 million vote majority and electoral majority is not divided.
Hilarious, a brit lecturing us about party politics:D

At least we’re divided in half not in 8:laugh:

I dunno…their sample size is ~14000 voters at exit polls versus ~115,000,000 votes counted so far…

I don’t think the US is as divided as everybody else thinks. At least I hope not ???

TG

EDIT: That is 0.0121739% sampling rate. That has got to be SPOT ON. NOT!

I’m not a Brit, and I wasn’t lecturing anyone. Just posting a link to a BBC article.

Apologies for offending the undivided nation of America… :laugh: :laugh:

America was rather deeply divided when Lincoln was president, however, think what the country would look like if the blue states tried to secede today.

Now that’s a thought :laugh: There was actually a book, called Ecotopia, where the NW did secede.

I think Florida should be termporarily seceded during elections :laugh:

It’s not a matter of numbers, but of what people value. I find that I have almost nothing in common with my fundamentalist neighbor who voted for Bush. Well, we share a street. And a planet, too, come to think of it. :)

I didn’t say we were divided, we are.Just not as divided as the losing side wants to portray.
No one was offended


The surprise, from the exit polls, is that the war, economy, and terrorism took somewhat of a backseat to moral issues in the eyes of voters.

Its no surprise that the losing party begns the call for “unity” and"coming together"-what do they want to compromise on?
Abortion, Gay marriage, 2nd amendment???

I am sorry for assuming you were a brit, my apologies.

Quote (CosmicCharlie @ Nov. 03 2004,15:08)
Now that's a thought :laugh: There was actually a book, called Ecotopia, where the NW did secede.




Unhappy Democrats Need to Wait to Get Into Canada
Wed Nov 3, 2004 01:16 PM ET

By David Ljunggren

OTTAWA (Reuters) - Disgruntled Democrats seeking a safe Canadian haven after President Bush won Tuesday's election should not pack their bags just yet.

Canadian officials made clear on Wednesday that any U.S. citizens so fed up with Bush that they want to make a fresh start up north would have to stand in line like any other would-be immigrants -- a wait that can take up to a year.

"You just can't come into Canada and say 'I'm going to stay here'. In other words, there has to be an application. There has to be a reason why the person is coming to Canada," said immigration ministry spokeswoman Maria Iadinardi.

There are anywhere from 600,000 to a million Americans living in Canada, a country that leans more to the left than the United States and has traditionally favored the Democrats over the Republicans.

But recent statistics show a gradual decline in U.S. citizens coming to work in Canada, which has a creaking publicly funded healthcare system and relatively high levels of personal taxation.

Government officials, real estate brokers and Democrat activists said that while some Americans might talk about a move to Canada rather than living with a new Bush administration, they did not expect a mass influx.

"It's one thing to say 'I'm leaving for Canada' and quite another to actually find a job here and wonder about where you're going to live and where the children are going to go to school," said one government official.

Roger King of the Toronto-based Democrats Abroad group said he had heard nothing to back up talk of a possible exodus of party members.

"I imagine most committed Democrats will want to stay in the United States and continue being politically active there," he told Reuters.

Americans seeking to immigrate can apply to become permanent citizens of Canada, a process that often takes a year. Becoming a full citizen takes a further three years.

The other main way to move north on a long-term basis is to find a job, which in all cases requires a work permit. This takes from four to six months to come through.

Official statistics show the number of U.S. workers entering Canada dropped to 15,789 in 2002 from 21,627 in 2000. Early indicators on Wednesday showed little sign of this changing.

A spokesman for Canada's foreign affairs ministry said there had been no increase in the number of hits on the Washington embassy's immigration Web site, while housing brokers said they doubted they would see a surge in U.S. business.

"Canada's always open and welcoming to Americans who want to relocate here, but we don't think it would be a trend or movement," said Gino Romanese of Royal Lepage Residential Real Estate Services in Toronto.

Those wishing to move to Canada could always take a risk and claim refugee status -- the path chosen earlier this year by two U.S. deserters who opposed the war in Iraq.

"Anybody who enters Canada who claims refugee status will be provided with a work permit ... it doesn't matter what country they're from," Iadinardi said.

Refugee cases are handled by special boards, which can take months to decide whether to admit applicants. The rulings can be appealed and opposition politicians complain some people ordered deported have been in Canada for 10 years or more.

© Copyright Reuters 2004.
Quote (TomS @ Nov. 03 2004,15:24)
I find that I have almost nothing in common with my fundamentalist neighbor who voted for Bush. Well, we share a street. And a planet, too, come to think of it. :)



Funny, and I with my Communist neighbor who voted for Kerry .... :)

Ali bin Gali :cool:
Its no surprise that the losing party begns the call for "unity" and"coming together"-what do they want to compromise on?
Abortion, Gay marriage, 2nd amendment???
PastorB - that's one of the most cynical things I've ever heard you say. How will we ever heal when you feel this way?

I'll be cynical for a moment. You guys are in power now - do what you want. Overturn Roe vs. Wade - do it! Pass a gay marriage constitutional admentment - please do it! Pass a gun law that allows everyone to have an AK-47 as mandatory equipment in their house to protect against terrorists - DO IT!!!

BUT PLEASE STOP BLAMING THE DEMOCRATS BECAUSE WE HAVEN'T BEEN IN POWER FOR 4 YEARS OR LONGER. AND STOP WHINING.

Ahhhh… you’re going through the classic Shock-Denial-Acceptance-Anger emotions today Mike… :cool:

Even though the balance of power has shifted towards Republican it doesnt mean they are perenially right (no pun intended)…its a “chance”.

No more blaming the liberals, democrats, or whoever is considered an anti-christ. No more scapegoating.

This indeed will be interesting.

According to this analysis, people who voted for Bush are Christians worried about terrorism and moral values. People who voted for Kerry don't really go to church and worry about Iraq and the economy....


I think the important point here is that just becuase moral values, whatever that is, was not the top of the Dems list does not make them immoral nor do the Repubs not care about the economy. I just find the argument assumes that sometimes. My grandmother told me she didn't like Kerry because he didn't talk about moral values assuming somehow that he hated families and thinks illigitimacy and abortion is somehow a great idea everyone should partake it. Not the case at all. On the other side, you get Dems that somehow think Bush is thrilled that folks are out of work and getting shot up in Iraq everyday. Not true either. Just becuase those were the ot buttons for one side doesn't mean the other side doesn't care about the issue as well.

Argh. The voice of reason, Chip. What are you thinking? How can we maintain the essential levels of hatred and fear with you spewing this kind of tripe?

Bubba

Exactly. I voted for Bush in 2000 because it seems like the Democrats were leaning towards outsourcing everything in America to foreign countries…on the other hand the republicans i think are out of touch as well when it comes to social issues…the patriot law has been used and abused and rarely talked about but when it comes to guns…its a top issue…all in the same breath of love they Lord our Savior.

You were correct in how both sides shoot darts at each other of being the extreme. Republicans are not all spiteful redneck racists and democrats are not immoral who believe prochoice means that abortion is a joyous occasion.
This election was very difficult for me because the democrats are in such a sorried state as far their ranking members are concerned…I tend to vote more democratc nowdays due to social issues but American deserves better than Kerry…he sent off a lot of red flags during the campaign.

Wow… reason and civility. There hasn’t been much of that here recently. It’s a nice change.

Seems to me, that the ‘division’ (and yes, i believe it’s there) might go beyond Dems vs. Repubs. Have you looked at any electoral maps like these? Red shows counties that voted Rep. Blue shows counties that voted Dem.

This is Pennsylvania. The circle indicates Philly.


This is Illinois. The circle indicates Chicago.



I picked 2 states that went for Kerry. Seems to me that what we really have here are rural voters voting Rep and urban voters going Dem.


tj

TJ - the interesting map of the 2000 election was indeed the red & blue county map, not the state map. I assume the 2004 election shows the same.

It seems to be an urban vs. rural divide to me. In the past, Democrats could connect to at least some rural voters but they don’t seem to be able to do it today.