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Grandparents Fight Back's avatar

I, and many other Democrats, also oppose queer theory, gender ideology and transitioning being promoted to children. If you did not make this a campaign of conservatives but instead one of concerned citizens you could get more people onboard with it.

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Christopher F. Rufo's avatar

Yes, there is public support across the aisle, but conservatives are mostly the ones organizing, so it’s written as a message to them, in particular. But certainly support is welcome from Democrats!

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Tommaso di Maria's avatar

You make a point of speaking to the center-left - though Girondiste support (I include N.R. et. al.) is transactional. Where their support can be private - like the ballot-box - there will be more of it.

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ariel's avatar

I had assumed that left wokery had transformed me into a conservative.

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Graham Cunningham's avatar

It's heartening to hear you as a Democrat opposing these toxic 'woke' fads. But I hope you can also see that they are not just some sudden outbreak of madness. They are the ugly flowering of something with deep roots in the Western academia/intelligentsia (who, in the US context will be Democrat voters all). The root is a narcissistic faux-radical Leftist desire to hold more-sophisticated-than-thou 'luxury beliefs'. It's been building for decades now. https://grahamcunningham.substack.com/p/are-we-making-progress

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Tommaso di Maria's avatar

Among other deeply-rooted elements.

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ariel's avatar

Check out James Lindsay's New Discourses.

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Christopher F. Rufo's avatar

James is great.

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Dave's avatar

Except that 100% of the DEI, gender ideology, etc. is coming from Democrats. So it really is a red vs blue issue.

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Grandparents Fight Back's avatar

It is coming from some Democratic politicians and some woke Democrats but not all Democrats. I am sure all Republicans do not agree with everything that Republican politicians say and do. I know my husband, who is a Republican, does not. The health of children should never be a political issue. As long as the gender critical view is portrayed as a conservative agenda Democrats who have no idea what is going on will look only at what the Democrats are saying and never understand the real problem. Many, if not most, of the parents struggling with this problem in their own families are or were Democrats.

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Libertarian's avatar

Here’s the deal; the average Democrat depends more on taxpayer money than the average Republican, and so the Dem will vote Dem regardless of any issues like wokeness. Indeed they are only more woke than GOP because they depend on government welfare in the form of fed/state/local/school jobs, ebt, welfare, education, healthcare much more. They are wards of the state welfare system and so vote Democrat for more of other people’s money.

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Christopher F. Rufo's avatar

Yes it’s part of the dilemma.

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Jrod's avatar

“Democrats who have no idea what is going on...” Next time you get pulled over for go 40 in a 30mph zone, be sure to plead ignorance as your excuse.

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Grandparents Fight Back's avatar

Older adults who are not in the workforce and do not have children in school and hear only about about how gender affirming care is life saving on TV do not know what this is about. A google search for gender affirming care will not tell you about puberty blockers , hormones and surgeries. You should be trying to reach out to Democrats for support instead of putting them down and alienating them.

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Jrod's avatar

That's a fair point. I'm not trying to put anybody down, but ignorance is no excuse. Anybody with a moral compass and marginal intelligence should recognize that all is not well in Mudville. As far as reaching out to Democrats for support, I'd love to know your formula for persuading people to take a step back and re-examine their political identity. That's something people need to discover on their own, and I remain pessimistic. Speaking from behind the lines is deep blue CA, few people have the strength to face those truths. Naw, just keep ticking the blue box, because red = bibles! guns! white supremacy! Orange man!

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ariel's avatar

No one wants to turn on a dime. I find a subtle approach in a context of mutual respect, with no view to "winning" a debate works best. I didn't wake up all at once myself. And there's always the next psyop to contend with.

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Jrod's avatar

I dunno Ariel. There’s nothing subtle about how the left has upended the mores and traditions on which the stability of our nation depends, and they are “winning”. Naw, it’s past time for nuance and niceties. Sharp elbows and good swats to the rear are in order. Like shocking the pool after a kid left a dookie in it.

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Christopher F. Rufo's avatar

There is winning and winning is the goal.

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ariel's avatar

We can win the war without making those we debate with lose face during some debate skirmish.

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Christopher Maughan's avatar

"...few people have the strength to face those truths." Yes, very few people can handle the oft uncomfortable journey of self examination. And the emotional barriers that aid in preventing this are constantly reinforced, robust, and cozy as all get out.

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Nov 3, 2023
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Grandparents Fight Back's avatar

If you want them to listen first of all do not refer to them as leftys . Labeling others who have different political views does not help open up dialog. Next, ask them to watch videos of de transitioners on U-Tube . I no longer trust the media to not have bias on one side of the other I do trust real people who are telling their personal stories Collect articles from sub-stacks that show books and lesson plans used in schools and show those to them There is one showing what is used in the Chicago schools you can probably find with a web search

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John Rock Foster's avatar

Show them the book, It's Perfectly Normal, which is an explicit sex book aimed at ten-year-olds. It's likely in your school library.

But at some point you have to give up on those who can't change and focus your efforts on those who can. Don't waste your time and energy where it does no good.

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J. Matthews's avatar

I'm an independent, and I agree with you. You make good points.

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Bowtied Shrike's avatar

There's a lot of Republican complicity in DEI, gender ideology, etc. Between 'we need to be decent', taking the left talking points of 10 years ago, and refusing to play to win, most of the problem is a red issue. Republicans lost to Biden and to Fetterman because they lacked the will to beat them. There needs to be more pressure on complicit Republicans.

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BeadleBlog's avatar

Knowing the damage being done to children and the rest of society by the above, any who aren't onboard with ridding ourselves of this evil because Rufo promotes it as conservative is never going to be onboard.

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Person Online's avatar

How are you a Democrat if you recognize those things are wrong? Seems like you should count yourself a conservative.

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Brian Villanueva's avatar

This is a little like saying that "because I have a nice Muslim friend, Islam isn't a religion of violence". The two just aren't connected.

I'm glad you've seen the light. But your realization doesn't change the fact that your party is cheering slicing the private parts off teenagers as liberation, going so far as to seize the children of any parent who won't go along with this lunacy.

Individual Democrats can be very nice, reasonable people. But the Democratic Party has become a vehicle for evil.

There's a simple way to fix that: vote for a Republican. I know that may be hard for you since you disagree with said Republican on lots of stuff, but you have to decide what's most important. I am a die-hard conservative, but if Bernie Sanders came out tomorrow and said he was 100% committed to rooting out wokeness, I would vote for him. The issue is that important to me. Is it that important to you?

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John Rock Foster's avatar

I sympathize with your situation. Maybe your best move is to leave the Dem party, become an independent, and then pick and choose which side you support issue by issue. Remaining a loyal democrat won't improve the democrat party; it will simply damage your grandkids' prospects. The people running the Dem party today can't stand people like you, but they are happy to use your vote to your own detriment. It may be time to re-examine your premises.

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ariel's avatar

Lots of former democrats are politically "homeless" since the vax mandates. It's okay, but takes time to adjust if that was part of your identity. Fortunately, we live in a time offering much disorientation, so that hanging on to old perspectives is quite difficult.

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Jrod's avatar

GFP, respectfully I must say you are not paying attention. The left has 100% made this a political issue. As evidence I invite you to do some research at the state level. Exhibit #1, how the CA state supermajority of democrats has taken this nonsense to absurd levels of stupidity, running roughshod over even the wishes of many of their blue constituents--ones you identify as. Perhaps it is time that well-meaning democrats examine why they habitually check the blue box during elections.

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