How did carpetbaggers, slimeballs, dweebs, and generalized assholes come to rule the Texas GOP?

[MaybeACoordinator 8349]

I know there is a lot of of talk about this in the Paxton, Patrick, Cruz, and Abbott threads, but I wanted to ask the question more generally.

And I now there is the "because -R" theory of @Brisketexan's, whereby even a candidate by the name of Pete O'Puppycrusher would defeat an amalgam of Jesus, Tom Landry, and Willie Nelson today in any statewide election. But my question is this -- how did this motley crew of Dick Tracy villains and slime-coated dorks rise to the top within the GOP itself? I could understand if these decades of one-party rule resulted in a whole mess of Sid Miller-type yayhoos, and Louie Gohmert-type morons, but how is it that electorate that not that long ago churned out magnificent bastards and bitches like LBJ and Ann Richards now settles for the likes of these utterly un-Texan shitheels, with shitty BBQ and crisp mom jeans. Have we no re pride as a people?

Any credible answer beyond "racism" gets a gold star, but that may well be it. I don't know.

[mchookem 16224]

[Hookah Horns 3082]

Because the GOP is chock the fuck full of slime balls and general assholes, and one gets ahead in the GOP by being the biggest piece of shit possible. 

 

And no, Texas Rs have plenty of pride. It's shame they lack. 

[TexasEd 8064]

[Bama Chick 28596]

I know there is a lot of of talk about this in the Paxton, Patrick, Cruz, and Abbott threads, but I wanted to ask the question more generally.
And I now there is the "because -R" theory of [mention=593]Brisketexan[/mention]'s, whereby even a candidate by the name of Pete O'Puppycrusher would defeat an amalgam of Jesus, Tom Landry, and Willie Nelson today in any statewide election. But my question is this -- how did this motley crew of Dick Tracy villains and slime-coated dorks rise to the top within the GOP itself? I could understand if these decades of one-party rule resulted in a whole mess of Sid Miller-type yayhoos, and Louie Gohmert-type morons, but how is it that electorate that not that long ago churned out magnificent bastards and bitches like LBJ and Ann Richards now settles for the likes of these utterly un-Texan shitheels, with shitty BBQ and crisp mom jeans. Have we no re pride as a people?
Any credible answer beyond "racism" gets a gold star, but that may well be it. I don't know.

Because y’all ain’t as different and unique as y’all think you are.

[PenelopeWitherspoon 19093]

5 hours ago, TexasEd said:

 

2 hours ago, Bama Chick said:

Because y’all ain’t as different and unique as y’all think you are.

These are both good answers.  

I think a lot of it falls at the feet of simple racism and misogyny.  There are a lot of ugly people in the world, and TFG made it ok for them to say the quiet parts out loud.

Then there are our single issue voters.  People who continue to vote GQP come hell of high water becuase of tax cuts or gun rights.  Assholes who are completely ok with the GQP being un-American, insurrection plotting, traitors provided they can buy any gun they want anytime and get to pay $500 less in federal income taxes.  Those people will never fucking change their mind unless tragedy falls at their feet.

And finally, I think most voters are complete morons. They are not going to sit and listen to policy.  Politics has become 20 second soundbites.  It is fucking disgusting how uninformed the American voter is.  

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by PenelopeWitherspoon

[MaybeACoordinator 8349]

2 hours ago, Bama Chick said:

Because y’all ain’t as different and unique as y’all think you are.

As someone who grew up partially in Tennessee, I agree, and have long backed you on this point. And in a way I almost envy Alabama because at least y'all's assholes are mostly homegrown.

[GhostOfTomJoad 9308]

Is it too cynical of me to think that Barbara Jordan showing the US and the world that a progressive, gay African-American woman from Texas could be a powerful political voice scared the bejesus out of a lot of politicians? Seems like the Texas good ol' boys vowed to make sure that wouldn't happen again.

[PenelopeWitherspoon 19093]

4 minutes ago, GhostOfTomJoad said:

Is it too cynical of me to think that Barbara Jordan showing the US and the world that a progressive, gay African-American woman from Texas could be a powerful political voice scared the bejesus out of a lot of politicians? Seems like the Texas good ol' boys vowed to make sure that wouldn't happen again.

Nah, cause we still got Ann Richards as governor.  And George W Bush was pretty harmless as governor, or at least what I remember. Of course, Bob Bullock was Lt. Gov for most of Bush's terms in office, with Rick Perry only coming in at the end of 1999.  Rick Perry was the first Republican Lt. Governor elected in Texas since Reconstruction.  

[pyrohornIII 4809]

I've found that in a lot of things, not just politics, that you don't know shit until you are at least 50 miles from your home.   You can't sell snake oil or even a cancer cure to those around you, but if you go down the road, they are eager to eat that stuff up.  

Maybe the carpetbagger thing is just that same sentiment on a larger scale?

 

[RomaVicta 29794]

 

Put a smile and a cowboy hat on a hate engine, and you get Texas in your back pocket. 

 

[Willfully Horn 7916]

No cv 

[ChuckNorrisActionJeans 2659]

5 hours ago, PenelopeWitherspoon said:

Nah, cause we still got Ann Richards as governor.  And George W Bush was pretty harmless as governor, or at least what I remember. Of course, Bob Bullock was Lt. Gov for most of Bush's terms in office, with Rick Perry only coming in at the end of 1999.  Rick Perry was the first Republican Lt. Governor elected in Texas since Reconstruction.  

Correct me if I'm wrong, but my recollection is that we wouldn't have even gotten Ann had Clayton Williams not made his infamous "lay back and enjoy it" remark  (which nowadays would be no problem or even a plus for R's, but nevertheless)

[RDCanecutter 26282]

"carpetbaggers, slimeballs, dweebs, and generalized assholes"

In scientific I-Know-Ever-Damn-Thing fashion I must reply that since you are asking 4 separate things, I must respond with 4 answers.

1. Carpetbaggers: Texas has doubled in population since you were Dazed and Confused. Part of that is babies, who all start out in the "Asshole" category, so we'll put them aside. The rest include normal folk just occasionally moving, as normal folk are wont to do, others fleeing crushing poverty in Louisiana or possibly even Mexico, and then the true Carpetbagger, somebody who got run out of his home state and would not be accepted in Texas either, except: he bought a hat, he bought a truck, and he goes around all down-homey except for occasionally saying "y'all" when he means one person.

2. Slimeballs: these are everywhere, but flock to areas with new construction so I guess you got lucky just like Florida. Similar to a Carpetbagger, but do not buy hats or attempt to blend. You can summon them by saying "Sunbelt" 3 times.

3. Dweebs: With enough AC and screen-time, any human being transforms into the Dweeb. Welcome to the future.

4. Generalized Assholes: You're on this site. I'm on this site. We're all on this site.

[tchookem 3900]

Nah, cause we still got Ann Richards as governor.  And George W Bush was pretty harmless as governor, or at least what I remember. Of course, Bob Bullock was Lt. Gov for most of Bush's terms in office, with Rick Perry only coming in at the end of 1999.  Rick Perry was the first Republican Lt. Governor elected in Texas since Reconstruction.  

We only got Ann Richards because Clayton Williams was dumb enough (by 1990s standards) to say the quiet part out loud, and Texas had a quantum of shame. Today he would have been elected in a landslide.

[Chewbacca 7730]

I think the issue is fucking Boomers.  We wouldn't hire these old fuckers to work for us because their brains don't work that well anymore, but they're running the fucking country.  And they are racist as shit, they hate LGBTQ people and they vote.  Lord, do they vote because they love being in charge and won't let go of the reigns until they die off in sufficient numbers that they can't dominate elections anymore.  Their brains are stuck in the 80s and think that's how everything should be forever.  Fucking worst generation ever.  By a landslide.

[chainsaw 9838]

3 minutes ago, RDCanecutter said:

4. Generalized Assholes: You're on this site. I'm on this site. We're all on this site.

I take umbrage to that. We aren't your garden variety assholes.

We are broken brained assholes.

[Mole 4320]

41 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

I think the issue is fucking Boomers. 

Charlie Brown satirized the boomer mentality when Sally said: All I want is what I have coming to me. All I want is my fair share.

Boomers grew up telling themselves tall tales about how special their generation was and they never stopped telling themselves this. They never grew up.

Now faced with death and the smallness of their self-proclaimed special generation, there is a real conflict with the narcissism that is inherent to their identity. And now they rage.

Some of what we see in Texas and around the country looks like this rage. Our representatives are terrible because we’re terrible and value being terrible.

 

[RomaVicta 29794]

31 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

I think the issue is fucking Boomers.  We wouldn't hire these old fuckers to work for us because their brains don't work that well anymore, but they're running the fucking country.  And they are racist as shit, they hate LGBTQ people and they vote.  Lord, do they vote because they love being in charge and won't let go of the reigns until they die off in sufficient numbers that they can't dominate elections anymore.  Their brains are stuck in the 80s and think that's how everything should be forever.  Fucking worst generation ever.  By a landslide.

You mean they lump vast groups of people linked only by some general, superficial detail into a homogenized group in order to hate them? 

The world sucks, and we (white) boomers got a good deal in life before the downward trend. A real good deal, especially if you were too young to be sent off to Vietnam. I would be resentful of that if I were coming into my prime as the atmosphere is melting, the USA is regressing, I was saddled with an absurdly large education loan, and upward mobility has stalled.

With boomers you get yuppies, preppies, environmentalsts, rapacious Wall Street types, and proponents of equal rights for women and minorities. Oh, and racists, too.

Like I said, I do get the resentment, but as Hud said, "now don't go shootin' all the dogs because one had fleas."

One of my favorite movies. It's changed as I've watched it at different ages.

[Chewbacca 7730]

8 minutes ago, RomaVicta said:

You mean they lump vast groups of people linked only by some general, superficial detail into a homogenized group in order to hate them? 

The world sucks, and we (white) boomers got a good deal in life before the downward trend. A real good deal, especially if you were too young to be sent off to Vietnam. I would be resentful of that if I were coming into my prime as the atmosphere is melting, the USA is regressing, I was saddled with an absurdly large education loan, and upward mobility has stalled.

With boomers you get yuppies, preppies, environmentalsts, rapacious Wall Street types, and proponents of equal rights for women and minorities. Oh, and racists, too.

Like I said, I do get the resentment, but as Hud said, "now don't go shootin' all the dogs because one had fleas."

One of my favorite movies. It's changed as I've watched it at different ages.

Boomers have raped the environment, saddled future generations with trillions and trillions of dollars in debt and control the majority of the wealth in the country (but they love to tell people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps).  They went to college when you could pay for school with a part time job.  They raised families when you could comfortably own a house and support a family on one middle class income.  Now all they want is tax cuts so they can keep their money, and they want to tell other people how to live.  Meanwhile, Millennials are looking at a future where they have a ton of student loan debt and many will never be able to buy a home.  The American Dream is dying and Boomers are largely responsible.  

 

Of course it's a generalization and not all Boomers are this way, but if the shoe fits...

[SydneyCarton 47884]

18 minutes ago, Chewbacca said:

Boomers have raped the environment, saddled future generations with trillions and trillions of dollars in debt and control the majority of the wealth in the country (but they love to tell people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps).  They went to college when you could pay for school with a part time job.  They raised families when you could comfortably own a house and support a family on one middle class income.  Now all they want is tax cuts so they can keep their money, and they want to tell other people how to live.  Meanwhile, Millennials are looking at a future where they have a ton of student loan debt and many will never be able to buy a home.  The American Dream is dying and Boomers are largely responsible.  

 

Of course it's a generalization and not all Boomers are this way, but if the shoe fits...

The good news is we're staring the down the barrel of the greatest transfer of wealth in human history from boomers to Gen Xers and millenials.

The bad news is it's probably still going to be too late. 

[washparkhorn 9935]

One person - Phil Gramm - Georgia fucknut teaching voodoo economics at aggy - was the forerunmer of Texas Repubs today. 

 

[Hmbre97 6297]

Boomers have raped the environment, saddled future generations with trillions and trillions of dollars in debt and control the majority of the wealth in the country (but they love to tell people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps).  They went to college when you could pay for school with a part time job.  They raised families when you could comfortably own a house and support a family on one middle class income.  Now all they want is tax cuts so they can keep their money, and they want to tell other people how to live.  Meanwhile, Millennials are looking at a future where they have a ton of student loan debt and many will never be able to buy a home.  The American Dream is dying and Boomers are largely responsible.  
 
Of course it's a generalization and not all Boomers are this way, but if the shoe fits...

[David Dennison 18660]

2 hours ago, Chewbacca said:

I think the issue is fucking Boomers.  We wouldn't hire these old fuckers to work for us because their brains don't work that well anymore, but they're running the fucking country.  And they are racist as shit, they hate LGBTQ people and they vote.  Lord, do they vote because they love being in charge and won't let go of the reigns until they die off in sufficient numbers that they can't dominate elections anymore.  Their brains are stuck in the 80s and think that's how everything should be forever.  Fucking worst generation ever.  By a landslide.

And when they are gone, the zoomers and their kids are going to all sorts of pissed off at Gen X for fucking around and finding out.

Whatever.

Edited June 6, 2022 by David Dennison

[Chad Fuck 17566]

41 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

And when they are gone, the zoomers and their kids are going to all sorts of pissed off at Gen X for fucking around and finding out.

Whatever.

Nevermind.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33843]

47 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

And when they are gone, the zoomers and their kids are going to all sorts of pissed off at Gen X for fucking around and finding out.

Whatever.

what?

[RomaVicta 29794]

2 hours ago, Chewbacca said:

Boomers have raped the environment, saddled future generations with trillions and trillions of dollars in debt and control the majority of the wealth in the country (but they love to tell people to pull themselves up by their bootstraps).  They went to college when you could pay for school with a part time job.  They raised families when you could comfortably own a house and support a family on one middle class income.  Now all they want is tax cuts so they can keep their money, and they want to tell other people how to live.  Meanwhile, Millennials are looking at a future where they have a ton of student loan debt and many will never be able to buy a home.  The American Dream is dying and Boomers are largely responsible.  

 

Of course it's a generalization and not all Boomers are this way, but if the shoe fits...

You're outrage is limiting the scope of your historical view. I'll not argue as it's clearly pointless. 

[Bookman 4611]

38 minutes ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

what?

And I forget just why I taste.

[hornmpa96 2598]

It’s because we are a one party state and only 3% of the Texas electorate votes in the Republican primary. If you win the R primary, you win the general. That 3% actively wants all of these carpetbaggers, etc. Maybe they wouldn’t vote for an Irishman and definitely not a Dutch person though.

[Bookman 4611]

I voted in the Republican primary this year. First time I've done that since before 2015.

[elfenix 34171]

2 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

One person - Phil Gramm - Georgia fucknut teaching voodoo economics at aggy - was the forerunmer of Texas Repubs today. 

 

in the late 90s we let aggy rewrite our banking laws and we let another texas republican congresscritter rewrite our trade laws with china, which bill went along with because he desperately wanted to be liked.  and the next twenty+ years have been entirely too predictable as a result.

[HenryJames 65890]

[David Dennison 18660]

2 hours ago, Longhorn_Fan68 said:

what?

Zoomers and their kids will want to blame Gen X for knowing about climate change and not doing anything about it. Hopefully they'll get frustrated by Gen X indifference and lay blame at the feet of Millennials instead. 

Burn.

[Longhorn_Fan68 33843]

41 minutes ago, HenryJames said:

Just in time for pride month, that's one handsome lesbian...

*** static over earpiece ***

... I've just been informed that is in fact Texas Lt Governor Dan Patrick. 

[Fudge Nuggets 19151]

6 minutes ago, David Dennison said:

Zoomers and their kids will want to blame Gen X for knowing about climate change and not doing anything about it. Hopefully they'll get frustrated by Gen X indifference and lay blame at the feet of Millennials instead. 

Burn.

There's never been enough of us Gen X'ers to make a shit bit of difference in anything.  Just look at the standard headlines these days.  Everything is Boomer this, Millenial that, blah blah fucking blah.

We don't even fucking exist in the minds of politicians, media, etc.

[atomheartbevo 89449]

8 minutes ago, Fudge Nuggets said:

There's never been enough of us Gen X'ers to make a shit bit of difference in anything.  Just look at the standard headlines these days.  Everything is Boomer this, Millenial that, blah blah fucking blah.

We don't even fucking exist in the minds of politicians, media, etc.

 

[atomheartbevo 89449]

 

[Chewbacca 7730]

3 hours ago, David Dennison said:

And when they are gone, the zoomers and their kids are going to all sorts of pissed off at Gen X for fucking around and finding out.

Whatever.

Gen X will never be in charge of anything.  We're not a big enough voting block.

[Chewbacca 7730]

2 hours ago, RomaVicta said:

You're outrage is limiting the scope of your historical view. I'll not argue as it's clearly pointless. 

Tell me how I'm wrong.

[Jhawkmvp 1489]

If you have political ambitions of someday being president, like a lot of politically inclined ego maniacs, reaching higher office in a highly populated state is a big step towards a possible successful run for that office. You can almost certainly count on winning your own state and a bunch of electoral votes in a presidential election. So Texas as been the spot for Republicans for a couple decades at least, with Florida recently joining you. However, most soon realize they will not be popular or charismatic enough to be president someday, so then you are stuck with them staying around, fucking up your state, in whatever local or state office they got elected to.  For Dems, California and New York would be ideal places to launch your political career.

[Hmbre97 6297]

2 hours ago, HenryJames said:

 

I think that's the old softball coach at my high school. Is she running for office?

[safe sex 11684]

7 hours ago, RomaVicta said:

You mean they lump vast groups of people linked only by some general, superficial detail into a homogenized group in order to hate them? 

The world sucks, and we (white) boomers got a good deal in life before the downward trend. A real good deal, especially if you were too young to be sent off to Vietnam. I would be resentful of that if I were coming into my prime as the atmosphere is melting, the USA is regressing, I was saddled with an absurdly large education loan, and upward mobility has stalled.

With boomers you get yuppies, preppies, environmentalsts, rapacious Wall Street types, and proponents of equal rights for women and minorities. Oh, and racists, too.

Like I said, I do get the resentment, but as Hud said, "now don't go shootin' all the dogs because one had fleas."

One of my favorite movies. It's changed as I've watched it at different ages.

"Movies do not change, but their viewers do." - Roger Ebert

[Ojo Rojo 1906]

1. Human nature. Overly simplistic explanation for a lot of behaviors, but generally humans fear change and gravitate to other people who are like them. This fuels racism, misogyny, anti-LGBTQ and all of the rest of it. People also want to feel good by being right and hearing things that confirm what they already believe. My personal belief is that higher level thinkers know this about themselves and can turn it off because they know it's backwards.

2. Psuedo media types like Rush, the Fox news crew, Alex Jones, etc. They all learned how to make a buck off people's fears and ignorance. Their messages are consumed by many millions whose political beliefs and votes are affected by it.

3. Politicians themselves. In this democracy we elect politicians who are good at getting elected. They may not be good at anything else, like governing. They may have no conscience, no soul, no goodwill whatsoever for their fellow man.  They are just good at getting elected. That means that they know if you tell a bunch of people what they want to hear you will more likely get their votes. Again, I personally believe that some people have just a smidge more critical thinking ability and are more skeptical.  "You mean to tell me that you can provide me all of these great benefits from the government AND lower my taxes at the same time? Bullshit. No vote for you!"

4. The internet. It can be a massive echo chamber. It's also an endless source for #2 and #3 to spew their messages.

[Bullneck 18987]

 

 

[NWBuck 8548]

Because Texans are all righteous dudes?