八里莊:

低收入人士(一般也是教育水平低)的人是不會象教育程度高的人那樣精於計算，但他們也會比較：克里貿易保護主義的經濟政策就真能為低收入人士帶來更大利益？

美國強大的國力靠的就是自由經濟而不是閉關自守,從這點上看我支持小布。還有就是：他們不認為過去四年糟糕，他們不願意冒險換人連過去的利益都不保。

其實精英唾棄小布跟紅脖子選擇小布都不是看中他的經濟政策，而是偏重價值觀，眼界開闊的精英不知道貿易保護主義的弊端？但他們忽略不及了。他們忙着維護更重要的東西---自由主義的價值觀。這點紅脖子不過跟精英們做了同樣的取捨，怎麼就能說他們蠢而精英們聰明呢？大家不過都是在站在自己的立場選擇而已。

美國人利益至上不錯，可畢竟是個清教徒建立的國家，他們的宗教情結很難被中國人理解。這次大選給了個範例：美國人很注重精神的。

還有最重要的一點：反恐。美國人對恐怖主義還是相當害怕的，說話簡短，態度果斷的小布給了他們安全感。這點克里顯得很無力。美國人是聽不懂什麼合作反恐的，美國人只相信自己。因為紅脖子的左鄰右舍都是美國人，他們不懂跟外國人怎麼合作。要讓他們變得跟精英一樣視野開闊，好，給他們同等的教育和經驗。怎麼做俺不知道。

你們老說美國人傻，起碼是選小布的人傻，說THEY DESERVE HIM。那你說他們會因此損失什麼呢？小布要變成希特勒？別逗了，價值觀的風向標一貫跟時裝一樣，今天東明天西，保守力量今天強大了，但在美國這樣的國家，我還真看不出就能回到中世紀。

美國人選小布還真不傻。他們和小布有共同的道德觀共同的利益，這點他們跟克里坐不到一條板凳上去。紅脖子們一天沒跟精英們分享共同的道德觀和價值觀，一天就不可能做出跟精英一樣的選擇。選跟自己一樣的人，紅脖子們跟精英在這點上是一致的。 在做選擇題上，智商不是決定性因素。

傳統的價值觀是不能輕易拋棄的， 穩定的社會實際上依賴這種傳統，而更為寬容的道德觀和價值觀則能保護少數人的利益，增加社會的公平度同時減少因為少數人不見容於大眾帶來的震盪。一個成熟的社會體系是要求得兩者之間的平衡的。這是中庸之道在社會道德領域的體現，這樣的社會才能保證持續發展，把社會動盪的可能減到最低。
我持自由主義價值觀，但我不認為保守主義是愚蠢。他們不過是天平的兩端。平衡是最重要的。

聽雨:

同事間常聊天，所以對美國社會背後我們這些外來移民不太清楚的東西略知一二。

一女孩全家都是典型的紅脖子，周圍的鄰居實際上還都是滿有錢的，可是他們對生活的局限認識，讓人咂舌。 女孩是家裡唯一的叛逆，常和父親辯論。她不明白為什麼布什可以隨意武力侵略他國，他父親說，打得好，我才不管他們死多少，只要我們安全。

宗教比他們的生命還重要，從宗教里延伸出來的道德觀左右着他們的生活方式, 另一同事未婚妻全家也是紅脖子的家庭，從來不關心國內大事，新聞只關心自己小鎮的就好，更不要說國際的了。在外面看起來挺客氣的，可是關起門來大罵老黑和我們這些移民，那種咬牙切齒，就差戴個白頭套了。

紅脖子不都是你們想象的農民。他們很多保持着歐洲家庭的習俗，女士有嚴格的坐相站相說話方式，規矩之嚴，是在蘭州的人民難以想象的。他們不是沒有接受過普及教育，可是因為他們對傳統價值觀的嚴格遵守，導致他們拒絕和時代同發展而落後於其他地方。 這種意識形態上的固步自封,以宗教和宗族的優越感表現出來,發展得輕點是封建遺老,重點的話就和小希很相近了(如果他們有機會的話)

雖然我不贊成說他們蠢，但我知道他們絕對沒有能力象巴黎上面說的那種分析能力。對於他們來說，對墮胎和同性戀的反感，大於一切. 他們從宗教里延伸出來的道德觀主宰着他們的思維,就這麼簡單。他們或許提倡持有槍支的自由，可是絕對反對貿易的自由。如果有一點點思想的,就會知道布什自己的道德觀和紅脖子們推從的道德是背道而馳的,切尼更有個同性戀的女兒. 共同利益就更談不上了,布什的政策在經濟上嚴重的損害了這些人的利益. 不過他們是不會深究的,或許是不能,或許是不願, 我不想隨意猜測.

我只是沒有想到,這樣的人有這麼多, 5千萬,小豆說的"我們再也沒有'他不代表我們'藉口了",我很理解她的絕望.

豆粘兒:

The World is Grey

Sorry about ranting in English. But I feel like I need to get this off my chest and I don’t have time right now. I keep on typing things out and then hitting the delete key since the words don't even begin to capture a fraction of what I'm feeling right now. Yesterday I went through the day having to fight back the urge to weep, which kept popping up with great frequency and at the most inopportune moments (e.g. the Prof, “what do you think of the impact of nanotechnology on computer architecture”; me “hmm…oh…whaa?” ). The day ended at last and I got home and had myself a really good, bawling, snot-running cry in the shower. I've been trying to remember the last time I cried that hard. I think it was 9/11.

So it feels like the world is ending. And in many ways it is, even though I keep trying to focus on the fact that it's just another four years. We endured four years of Ashcroft and Cheney and Rumsfeld, we can surely do it again, I tell myself. That only works if you don't think about the decades-long generational stamp this Administration is in process of applying to our judiciary. That only works if you don't think about Iraq and the coming civil war that should break out sometime next spring. Now basically we have a republican majority in the senate and the house. Daschle lost, Kerry lost, and now at least two and potentially four of the seats in the house are up for reappointment by a president whose supreme justice of choice is Clarence frickin’ conservative Thomas, who believes that there is no such thing as right to privacy in the constitution. And for those of you who are gay, pack up your belongings and leave the country, for you are plaque and this country would rather have bloodshed in other countries and be out of work than give you rights.

How much damage can you do to a country in the space of four years? I really think we're about to find out. To think I've waited for a change to die for so long, and this is the result.

The thing I can't stop thinking about is that not only did we lose the election yesterday, we also lost our excuse. That oh-so-important 'please excuse - we didn't elect this idiot' one. That was my only consolation during the worst insanities of Bush's first term, the knowledge that the majority of my fellow citizens had rejected Bush and his agenda in 2000, the reality that we were trapped on a bus driven by a crazy man and couldn't get off. But now, we own him. He now truly represents the majority of people who voted. We chose and our choice was this.

Some small part of me thinks we are getting the government we deserve. That we have picked our partner and he's made up the bed and we deserve to lie in it. But then I think of the 55,384,497 people (a number which will go up, by the way, they're still counting votes) who said "No" to Bush and "Yes" to Kerry and I think that they, that we, at least, don't deserve this. The world certainly doesn't deserve it. All I can say to my friends living in foreign lands is that we tried. So, so hard. And I'm so very, very sorry that it just wasn't enough. I would ask for your forgiveness and patience, but I think you're probably just about out of those. So I'll simply ask you to remember that more than 55 million of us didn't want this. That millions of us opened our wallets and gave of our time and energy to try to make sure this didn't happen. That millions of us stood for hours in line at the polls, in the rain in some places, and until the early hours of this morning in others, to try to make sure this didn't happen. In the end, it just wasn't enough. But we tried. We tried.

Ah, the world is grey and cold. And it will not lift its head to look at me.

唯一:

十幾年前我到這塊大陸來，因為我和很多當年的年輕人一樣，嚮往民主自由。我覺得我來對了。

十幾年後，我仍然覺得我沒有走錯路，這塊大陸仍然是地球上最民主自由的地方。

民主在我的理解就是，想說什麼說什麼，想幹什麼不必走後門，投票選總統小民有張三李四王麻子幾個候選人可選，不會在大選那天出現神秘槍擊案。。。

至今，我在這塊地方都得到了這些權力。

你可以說他們的民主還不夠徹底，但是，這世界上沒有能滿足所有人的制度－除了無政府主義。不過我不想要無政府主義，至少我希望有人管收垃圾的事情。

也許我要求不高，但是升斗小民有這些就夠了。

至於小布是不是靠家裡的錢當上總統，是不是２０００年在佛州選票上做了手腳，我不太在意。我看到他們走法律途徑重新點票，失敗者能客氣地認輸，勝利者不會詆毀敗方，我很滿意了，換一個國家，也許會演變成暗殺或者內戰那樣的結局。

民主就是一切能放在桌面上談。你懷疑小布２０００年在佛州選票上做手腳了麼？那你得有證據，拿不出來，僅靠懷疑不算數。

如果你認為這裡還不夠民主，請講講你理想的民主應該是什麼樣。

微粒:

我看咱們茶館的同學很少有不關心美國大選的，但是大概很多的同學也就是聊聊，真正深入思考的並如豆粘兒一樣帶入感情的並不多。

昨天看到橡皮一氣呵成的民主狗頭論，心下里的確是纏抖了一哈：(( 我很想知道同學們來到美國的初衷是什麼？！就我個人來說，我在國內的生活條件很不錯啦，我很想看看並想了解我從小就比較景仰的自由，民主制度到底是什麼樣的是我的最大目的。

我是在2000年的初秋來到的美國，所以基本上一開始就被搞糊塗啦。。。小克創造的美好的美國我連個尾巴都沒瞧清楚就發生了上次大選的選票事件：((

大家再看看這次，民主黨可以說是徹底失敗啦，總統不說啦，參眾兩院都沒啦。。。我不會說這樣的選舉不民主，看到現在，我知道這就是民主，民主就是一人一票，無論你是誰，你只有一票；無論你多麼的看不得那些鄉下人他們也有自己的一票，和你的一票一樣的被計算！

作為民主黨的總統後選人，到大選後期都不敢公開說：LIBERAL啦，難道這不是問題嘛？！昨晚NBC採訪OH的投票人，大家坐在小餐館裡，各個胖嘟嘟看上去很憨厚，人家說啦：我們要捍衛我們的道德觀，那些人都不是基督徒，我們不信任他們！

我們這些在MA，CA呆久了的華人大概真的以為全美國和這些地方一樣，是那麼的提倡徹底的自由，其實呢，結果呢？！

我們很多人，我自己我在猜想也包括橡皮都對美國的民主寄予了很高的期望，是我們自己把民主給神化啦，當然其中被美國的宣傳機器影響也占了很大部分，帶着過於美好的脫離實際的想法看待民主，自然是會受傷的。。。

今天波士頓那份免費的METRA上終於看到了特里薩溫柔感人的畫面，您說您早幹嗎去啦？！美國人民喜歡的還是那種看上去很善良並甜甜微笑的勞拉，而不是您這種獨立的女強人！

我理解橡皮同學的失落並希望橡皮同學能夠看到我這貼，並且快樂起來：))
民主就是這樣的，現實，真實，有時候美好，有時候也不怎麼樣，認識到這一點，我也很恍惚。。。

冬青:

布什的勝利就是狂熱的基督徒的勝利。多數美國人把道德排在第一位，即使觀點不同。而他們的道德不過是建立在聖經上的道德。有人即使同意克里的觀點，仍認為布什更正直。俺最不能理解的就是這一點。當總統的不應該看他到底做了什麼嗎？以反恐名義，基督徒同穆斯林宣戰。

從昨天高院改變聯邦法院判決，允許ohio選舉當天challange voter就預示了共和黨的勝利。4年前高院把總統職位判給了布什。今年共和黨又利用法律阻擋新選民註冊。不少法律糾紛被拖延。布什上台再任命幾位一夥的大法官，麥卡錫時代降臨。

Idea

To: 數據數據

Your understanding of how Hitler came to power might be wrong

In a country which has more than two major players in politics, whoever can win about 42-45% of popular votes in an legislative election will usually get an easy majority government, which means that this party is going to control more than half of the seats in a parliament.

Hitler’s 37% win certainly gave him a minority government. Although his party didn’t win a simple majority in the parliament, which means 50% +1 seats or more, it still had more seats than any other parties. Therefore, Hitler was entitled to ???? a minority government and as the leader of his party, he automatically became the prime minister.

The tricky part of a minority government is, it relies on the support of the opposition parties to pass any bills that they put forward. If the oppositions unite and vote against the government in a confident vote, then the government is defeated, the parliament is disbanded and another election has to be called. So, usually a minority government can’t push its own agenda too aggressively because they simply can’t guarantee their bills can be pasted. This might be the reason why Hitler was considered lucky. Against the common wisdom that a minority government should be moderate and compromising to sustain its life, Hitler actually went extreme and grabbed even more power as the result. This was certainly an irregularity that happened at a special time in the special circumstances.

Just some interesting in????ation, the average longevity of Italian government after the WWII is probably less than two years. The Itatians always have minority governments and most of the governments didn't last long.

編後話:收集了一些較長的貼,以供大家集中閱讀,也許會有遺漏,望諒.