He says its hypocritical of me to be defending Kyle Constable as just a 15 year old and then to pile on the Georgia Teen Republicans.
He’s right.
That wasn’t actually my original intention (which was just to defend Kyle), but it certainly ended up there — and it relates to my distain for these groups, i.e. the Teen Republicans, the Young Republicans, and the College Republicans.
You’ve got a 15 year old kid who did something a lot of Oxedine supporters don’t like and people are piling on the kid.
The Teen Republicans joined the piling on. They aren’t just a group of kids, though they are — they’re also part of the party apparatus, whether official or not.
Kyle, to my knowledge, was acting on his own.
But Grift’s right. I shouldn’t be pounding the Teen Republicans as hard as I did because, at the end of the day, they too are just kids all things being equal.
I’ll use this opportunity, though, to delve into my distain for these types of groups — I consider myself a conservative before I consider myself a Republican. And these groups tend to be too in the weeds with the party. Just read what goes on at College Republican national elections and Young Republican elections. It’s horrifying in its corruption. The same thing happens on the other side of the aisle too. It’s as bipartisan as it is ridiculous.
I’m a Christian first, even with all my warts and flaws. And then I’m a conservative. I’d much rather lose on some issues than sell my soul to win. In my personal experience, too many of the people who get involved in Young Republicans, Young Democrats, College Republicans, College Democrats, and the rest are in it just to win — and along the way take it way too seriously.
I think that the Georgia Teen Republicans rushing out a press release as they did is a reflection of that.
In any event, this makes Grift and me agreeing twice in about a week, which should scare people.
I still stand with Kyle on this one. And there’s no sense beating him up over what he did.
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I want to see at least 1 more thread on this non-issue before nightfall. Good grief!
May I request an extension? I’ve been in my car for the past 12 hours.
Corruption just in these organizations? You should see what even goes on at the county level in the grown up party.
I’ve seen it. That’s why I am not involved in organized Republican politics. Don’t go to the conventions, don’t go to the meetings, don’t go to the breakfasts.
I’ve ceased by a team player for the GOP and haven’t been for a while, despite my party preference on the ballot.
I can certainly understand that, and have had the same feeling off and on as well.
…kinda remind me of that ole Chuck Norris movie…”Lone Wolf McQuade”……David Caradine was the bad guy, and you see how he’s done would up closeted in a crazy way…
So now we got Lone Elephant Eric Erickson, kang of the beast…stay tuned as the saga continues….
Not showing up is not helping matters. But I suppose if you are the one causing the problems then it is helping matters when you don’t show up. Just a thought.
It annoys me when the loudest ones are the folks who aren’t involved. Where did leadership and service go? Or must there always be “something in it for me?”
That’s been my experience in these groups. Everyone is angling for something. I’d rather be in it for the cause.
Then be in it for the cause. Why others are in it has nothing to do with why you are in it. So now what’s your excuse?
There are more ways to be involved than just the local and state party affiliates. I do not see why this should cause you so much animosity toward Erick.
Perhaps because Erick decided to launch an attack on an innocent group?
For the record, Doug, these groups provide leadership training experience, as well as training in other aspects of the political arena. AND, they allow that kind of training to happen within people in their same age group and experience.
For Erick to disregard them is to demonstrate that he’s kinda ignorant as to how beneficial Republican party affiliate groups are to the cause…because, I got news for him: his little “gathering” of political blogging nerds really does nothing to drive-out vote in favor of one candidate or another.
That takes volunteer bodies to go out and pound the streets.
I consider myself a conservative before I consider myself a Republican.
Do you still consider George W. Bush to be a “conservative,” Erick?
For a while I thought Bush was a conservative, then I thought he wasn’t but our new President makes Bush look like a spendthrift, so maybe Bush was a conservative (an economic one at least).
Doesn’t as spend thrift spend money as fast as he can?
D’oh.
I meant a miser.
Bush was NOT a conservative in any light. His spending record just led this country down the path to TODAY’S spending spree.
Buzz: A “conservative” stands on his/her own…reflecting basic principles of conservatism.
Comparing Bush to Obama and declaring Bush to be “conservative” because he spent less is absurd.
I am the North Vice Chairman of the Georgia Association of Teen Republicans and am extremely upset with my fellow members of the Executive Board. I had no idea “we” had released a statement until I read the poorly executed press relesase here on Peach Pundit just a few minuetes ago. I support Kyle becuase in America we have freedom of speech. What Kyle did in no way reflects the views of the Georgia Teen Republicans.
I also wouldn’t say that the GATRS joined in on piling onto Kyle as 4 members out of 7 weren’t even notified of the vote on “condoning” Kyle’s actions.
I think this type of thing is partly what Erick might have been referring to in regard to corruption in “these organizations”.
Sounds like it.
One example of one incident does not make for a valid whitewashing of the entire system of organizations that help train people among their peers.
That’s why I said “this type of thing”. But having been a part of these organizations from college till now, I have seen a fair amount of it, and I too do not like it.
Seems like the Teen Republicans should focus on learning how to spell and less time on stabbing each other in the back… There will be plenty of time for that latter in life.
Enjoy your childhood.
Erick just agrees with Grift because he know how much it annoys him.
There are some good YRs (and I assume YDs). There are some YRs (and I assume YDs) who get involved solely because they want to pay their dues, move up the ladder, and muck at the political pork trough with the other scumbags who take our tax dollars and hand them off to their friends.
Mostly I find the YRs irrelevant – there are plenty of opportunities for those under 40 to be involved in the real party. The primary purpose they serve is to get younger Republicans involved. They tend to do this with social events (AYRs and BYRs are particularly good in that regard). However, I don’t see why they need to be a separate organization, and not part of their local party.
The Gwinnett YRs suffer because most of the active ones are involved in running the Gwinnett GOP.
They are part of their local Party Chris. The YR club chairs sit on the executive committee of their local county party and the state chair sits on the state executive board. Their purpose is to advise the party of the needs of their peers, or at least that’s how it is supposed to work.
They aren’t part of. They _are_. Chuck who restarted the Gwinnett YRs is Chair. Rich, the current YR chairman, is 1st vice chair.
Given that I can make about one GOP event a month, I’m gonna go to a real party meeting not a YR meeting.
Maybe they serve a purpose in the counties where the Blue Hairs run everything.
I never understood the YR thing. If you are out of college or over 25, you should be in the grown up group.
39 is not young, it’s middle aged. lol
Not when the grown-up group is full of nothing but blue-hairs.
No truer words have ever been spoken.
They wouldn’t be full of blue hairs if the “Young” Republicans were in it.
It would look like a younger organization over all. As it stands, people think the Republicans are nothing but old men.
They dominate way too much and are resistant to accept younger faces. If it is taken to too much of an extreme the party will die with them, to put it insensitively.
But, I must quarrel with you. The party apparatus is mostly old women.
That’s because all the OLD men are in elected positions.
And then why mess with a winning system?
And that’s why I believe that these groups are important as access points. I will agree with Erick that many take this stuff WAY too seriously, but I have refused to let a few bad apples spoil it for me, and through these organizations, I have made friends I will have, I hope, the rest of my life which includes Erick. I met Erick in the CRs back in 1995.
Erick- Gross. You have warts?
hee-hee-hee….yeah, Jenny’s a Christian and SHE doesn’t have any warts!
There are a whole lot of Jesus loving, sincerely nice, relatively good looking, faux prolife eunuchs who have no business being in political office.
The ONLY reason Christian Evangelicals identify with the Republican party is because the Republican party figured out early that they could use the pro-life issue to manipulate really stupid Jesus freaks into voting for completely incompetent power monger idiots because they imagine that an “R” is going to stop prenatal murder.
Prenatal murder will not stop any time soon because it makes Planned Parenthood and National Right to Life Committee (and the pro-life industry in general) millions of dollars every year. And the aforementioned voter block has been deceived into believing that Roe v. Wade is the reason 35,000 children are butchered every year in Atlanta. This is of course completely false, and the abortion industry can easily be regulated into oblivion and extinction through the manipulation of legal means within DHR. But shhhhh. Don’t tell the pro-life populace.
And then having the pro-life leadership line up in Washington to decry obamacare covered abortions, rather than decrying the atrocity of socialized medicine entirely. Good grief. ARE WE THIS OBTUSE???
Our Republican Congressman Phil Gingrey merely quibbles about how Healthcare should be reformed–not the fact that the states never authorized the federal government to be engaged in Healthcare. This is par for the course with Republicans. They merely argue about the manner in which tyranny should advance. They don’t attempt to stop the tyranny. (Should I even bring up pathetic Purdue who accepted the bailout and our wonderful Republicans who appropriated those funds?)
So here’s to hoping that all the angry Georgians will kick out Sunday School teaching career politicians from office next election cycle, and vote INTO office fire breathing liberty lovers who actually have the stainless steal spine necessary to bring self-government back to Georgia. http://www.georgiafirst.org
*Jenny takes a drink*
Jenny,
The ONLY reason Christian Evangelicals identify with the Republican party is because the Republican party figured out early that they could use the pro-life issue to manipulate really stupid Jesus freaks into voting for completely incompetent power monger idiots because they imagine that an “R” is going to stop prenatal murder.
I think you are slightly in error here. From my observance and research, it was the Christian Evangelicals who invaded the Republican Party and injected their religious and pro-life beliefs into the political arena, not the other way around.
Two names for you: Ralph Reed and Pat Robertson. These two charlatans of the evangelical world sought to use the Republican Party as a tool to advance their agenda of seeking a Christian-only political party.
Bill,
Honestly, you really need to stop sugarcoating things…LOL
I believe the GOP did/does exactly what you are saying. The GOP is the only place where folks that truly believe the sanctity of life is the only issue worth fighting can feel welcome. Some of these folks have mastered advocacy, making thei voices louder and chests puffier than their numbers actually are. Yet their views cannot categorically be dismissed.
We as a Nation must resolve the santity of life question. We cannot be one Nation under God, without one clear rule of law that all must obey.
This question is so much more wretching when the legality of embryonic stem cell research angs in the balance in Georgia. If the GA GOP embraces what many CC or CR believe, Georgia will not be able to participate in the research and development of ESC.
Frankly, I do not think that is best for GA.
Yes, I have a tattoo of the Constitution. Right on my ….. oh, well, maybe I better not say.
Wherever it is, just never let it drag across the ground.
Erick,
Let’s talk about your disdain for organized auxiliary GOP politics for a bit.
First let’s have full disclosure on my part. I was never a member of a TAR’s group, however if my high school would have had one, I probably would have joined. I join the College Republicans of Dalton College in 1988. Later, I became statewide officer in the TN CR’s. I maintained my GA voting status and attended school in TN. In 1993, I started the NWGA Young Republicans, which is still going today. I have held various statewide roles in the YR’s including, Chairman.
I have attended 1 CR national convention, and 5 national YR conventions. Some of them have been very interesting.
The auxiliary GOP organizations are a great training ground for future GOP leaders. I seriously doubt that a GOP auxiliary will openly endorse anyone for an office unless they have won the GOP primary. Every organization, political or not, has it’s problems. However, if you really care about the cause, the problems are easier to fix from the inside. Sitting on the outside throwing rocks is easy.
I am sure that the TAR’s, as an organization, do not want to be on bad terms with a major candidate for Governor. As stated in another thread, they have some fine tuning to do on how to send that message.
Being involved will teach you that different people have different motivations. It could be that to promote one’s blog, one will use titles like “histories greatest monster.” Or one might accuse someone of scurrilous acts such as changing Wiki information and promise that you know who REALLY did it, only to never to reveal said name. Or perhaps one’s motivation might be to make a leading candidate look bad so their candidate can win. Then one might complain that they disdain organized politics because people are out to promote themselves. (See above.)
As far as too many on both sides being in it just to win, well, this is politics. That does not mean win at any cost, but for some it will. Assuming you understand people’s motivations can be costly. I don’t think I have met said 15 year old. I don’t know him well enough to say things went exactly as described, or if things went they way they did and he perceived it that way.
I will say that I don’t think you can be off the record with a 15 year old. I will say that many will take this situation and try to spin it to make their candidate look good (or someone else’s look bad). Other’s may take this situation to say “what’s in it for me?”
It is either a chance to improve the situation by actively getting involved, a chance to sit on the sidelines and throw rocks, or a chance to find something in it for you, such as promoting a blog. Life, politics, and situations like these are what you make of them.
Respectable post.
You all ought to recall that I mentioned Amercia needs a better level of understanding and communication between Dems and GOP right after the election. Some called ‘reaching across the aisle, ‘rolling over’, or worse.
Simply more open dialogue. That may lead to real solutions.
I am really pleased to see this post. WE,as a Nation must put away our collective disdain and employ Statesmanship to resolve some of the toughest financial and social issues we have had to address since the 1930′s.
Glad for this post, it doesn’t mean kumbaya-time for all, but rather a fruitful dialogue.
The guy probably most scared is Grift.
Not quite
Riiiggggght, it’s the moderates that get along. If I had a weblog I would build me a ……………………………..
Griftdrift, I read your blog the other day. You are a talented writer. Stay with it.
Love and peace, dudes and dudettes….
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