Pajamas Media is having a contest/survey to see which is a better term for folks who align themselves with neither the Republicans or the Democrats. Currently the group is called x21 which is not very catchy and sounds more like a vitamin the Cylons would have to take to keep their spine nice and red-glowy. So one can easily see they need a new name. The submitted ones in the contest are:
Autonocrats
Centrocrats
Conglomerates
Positionistas
Flexocrats
Freerangers
Hybrids
Mosaics
PHI (Politically Hybrid Individuals)
Pragmatics
Purples
Patriocrats
Mugwumps
Which mostly sound like they are Democrat outcasts, what with all the ‘crats and general envirowienie-ness . I’m not entirely sure this is the case. However, If I were interested in winning the Pajamas Media logo-emblazoned pajamas I’d have entered the following:
- Fencitarians – Does barbed wire make a comfy seat?
- Middlerodans – That’s where most people that get run over, get run over.
- The For-gainst – We like it, we hate, we hike it ,we late it!
- Vaguens – Our postion is mpflflmmfmthph, did you get that?
- Windblosers (long o) – We use meteor-o-logic to figure out what to do.
That’s the best I could come up with. What would you call them?
Noncommitarians
Quasiparticipatorians
Vichy
Noncommitarians
Quasiparticipatorians
Vichy
Sorry, I won’t do it again.
Sorry, I won’t do it again.
Losers? Morons? Or are those titles already claimed by the DNC?
“Masochists” because they can’t tell pleasure from pain?
“Arrogants” (yes, spelled that way) because they making no judgments makes them better than everyone else?
How about “Useful Idiots”? That’s pretty self-explanatory.
I don’t see the problem with moderates. As a scientist, I pretty much have to stay in the middle. The Left will firebomb my lab for being mean to bunnies or whatever, and the Right thinks my research is offending Jesus.
Eunichtarians – No balls to make a call.
Hmmm. Is there a word for people who don’t know what they believe, or don’t believe it seriously enough to be committed to it, or aren’t well-enough informed to understand why it’s important; will decide how to vote based on which commercial they like the best, or which they hear last; who think there’s something noble about not having non-negotiable core values?
I find myself torn bewteen “political agnostics” and “zombies.” Can I make two submissions? “Losertarians” is already taken.
And the worst part is, 40-45% of the country is already committed to vote for one candidate; another 40-45% is committed to the other; and for the next thirty days, the campaign is all about getting the remaining 10-20% of the remaining dunderheads who aren’t smart enough to have already figured out the differences between the two into one camp or the other. Every election, the fate of the world is in the hands of dunderheads!
Sorry. I’m just in a really foul mood today. My bad.
Other ideas:
* Armadillos (“nothing in the middle of the road but a yellow line and dead…”)
* Fuzzycrats
And I’ll take my pajamas in black silk, thank you very much.
DailyShow4newsians?
As prob the only person to talk with authority about this issue I got say that I like “Centrocrat” and just because I am not a right wing nut job or a bleeding heart liberal doesnt mean I dont have strong positions one way or another.
Being a middle of the road guy doesnt mean undecided it means “I think before I act.”
The great thing is that most Americans are eather right to center or left to center as long as that remains true our democracy will survive.
The problem with assuming all moderates are indecisive morons is that there are people who take a number of solid extreme positions that just happen to average out to centrism.
Slowbutunsures
I’mthinkingI’mthinking
Wakemeupbeforeyouvotevote
Paris Hilticans?
George,
I think he was referring to unaligned independents and non-voters that losely identify themselves as independents. Specifically at those who won’t identify themselves with any group. First, I might point out that many of these independents do actually belong to groups with identifiable group political/social beliefs. Second, They aren’t all centrist moderates even if they identify themselves so. Almost everyone thinks of themselves as normal and moderate. The aberrant groups are the wingers, aren’t they?
Yes, there are plenty of good independents, but there are as many nutcases amongst the independents and non-participants as in either of the parties.
Whethermen.
Iffies
Ok, This is too long winded, but here goes–
Nowhereitarians/ Farkitarians — Don’t care. Don’t see a reason to care. Won’t care when asked later. Shit just happens. Don’t expect me to do anything about it. Where’s the John.
Pouting Juvenillians/ Jr. Moonbats – Haven’t grown up yet. Can’t really be responsible for others. Have the world view of a 15 year old. These are the larval form of the infamous Moonbat. Good examples are George Carlin, Robin Williams, much of the entertainment crowd, the rock and roll crowd, etc. The DailyShow4newsians that DohX mentions intersect with this group. Many people grow out of it. Unfortunately, many of these folks later get mired in hopeless sophomorism and turn to the hard political left.
Dirty Little Punk Ass $hits — A Subgroup of Juvenillians, though more given to extreme hate and destructive antisocial behavior. Howard Stern, the gansta rap crowd, much of what passes for alternative rock.
Apolitical Conformist Pressure — This one is a serious social problem. Many people don’t participate politically because they have been told since birth that people in their social class or peer group don’t and shouldn’t participate politically. This is very common among minority groups. This used to be a major problem in the working and poor classes. Not only would upper classes keep them down, but their own peer group provided even greater pressure. Both America and Europe made a huge amount of headway against this. Unfortunately both the counterculture and youth culture have harshly re-imposed an ethos of nonparticipation (or should I call it anti-participation).
Sophomoron — Too far left to vote for a Democrat, unless they find it absolutely necessary to compromise their lofty Platonic idealism by getting off their ass, and to a voting booth. Won’t identify themselves as utopian leftists because they haven’t got a clue about politics in general. They are even inclined to think there ignorance on political maters is a virtue. When they vote, these are straight welfare state ticket voters. After all, it is the ultimate role of government to be the provider of all. They are likely to think that shopping at Target instead of Wal-Mart is a social virtue.
Since the majority of Democrats and Republicans have no idea what their stand is, and simply follow suit with what everyone else is doing, I am proud to say I am neither. Instead I take the time to study the issue, and vote for the candidate that I feel best represents my views. Sometimes that person is Democrat, sometimes Republicans. Sometimes it is Constitution, Libertarian, etc. In this case, I would call the party Informed.
At one time we were called Federalists.
And ya can kiss my arse.
Polinostics.
MB – A solution to your problem: Seek a government grant to create mutant firebombing bunnies. The left can’t resist wasting money – they are genetically predisposed to vote for it.
Then send the mutant bunnies, armed with religious tracts and molatov coctails, off to visit havoc upon the very lefties who are after your laboratory. Make them strong enough to flip the lefties over and shake them until all the loose change comes out of their pockets first. to help defray bunny feed and uranium laced carrots.
Full circle karma.
(Moderates, indeed. Bah!)
‘Undeclared’ works for this Reagan republican…why prance around with my pretty little lemming tag on, waiting to be categorized and pushed onto one side of an issue in some jack-holes poll based solely on my party affiliation.
Until a viable candidate such as a McCain or heavan forbid, Powell, run as an Independant, we have our choice of two evils only. Vote when it is time to vote, and keep them guessing/talking as long as possible…its information flow folks, otherwise they would just count the number of registered Dems and Repubs in your town/city/state and be done with it.
Sew your party tag into the back of your undershorts, and get over yourselves.
I’d call them Useless. No party means no keg and being sober is just useless.
So we are coming up with a new name for
Independants ??
Thats what they call “neithers” where I am from.
These funny.
DailyShow4newsians (doHxsz)
Whethermen (noche)
GrandeLattenians: We’re more interested in our morning coffee than in knowing the issues.
I’m confused. Are we talking about people who agree with one party on some issues and the other party on others, or people who don’t have positions?
Refuseniks
Because they refuse to take a stand.
Greaseballs
Because they are to slippery to pin down.
Slimers
Because they stand for nothing.
French
Scooter Brown,
Yes, exactly.
Giovanni, I make fun because, like, I care.
Infidel Castrol, I make fun because, like, I care.
There isn’t a nickels worth of difference in big spending reps or dems except in defense. So I register Republican to piss off lefties and vote constitution to piss of the right of center lefties. Go Tom Tancredo.
I dont doubt it, Tancrado is def GOING… straight to hell.
Bubba could not agree more.
I don’t get George Guy’s idea that being an extremist on a lot of positions cancels one out to a moderate. Doesn’t it just make you an extremist on a lot of issues? If you’re willing to position yourself between the two parties, you’re not a very committed extremist.
For my part, I would love to be the sort of extremist who sits committedly outside both our loser parties and whose strong, principled stands make a difference. But when I looked up Independent, it said “syn. moderate, see also squish, clueless.” So I became a Republican.
Dhummies?
A waste of flesh
Oxygen thieves
I’m not fooled by this “we want to look at issues before we make a decision” argument. Give me a break. How many new issues are there? Some day-after we are visited by aliens-we might debate the moral argument of intergalactic marriage, but until then, show me a new issue. National defense? Second Amendment? Abortion? Taxes? How many arguments do you need to hear?
Grow a spine and make a decision.
George guy is exactly right. PJM wants a term for people who have definite positions, but whose positions aren’t all aligned with either (any) party.
They’re not moderates: they aren’t in favor of, say, a sort-of closed border and a little bit of gay marriage.
They’re not undecided or apathetic.
They poll as moderates, because they choose some from Column D and some from Column R, and the poll (misleadingly) averages that out and gets an M.
I don’t see what’s wrong with ‘independents,’ but it’s not my contest.
No, I’m not buying into this “Independent’s are issue voters” baloney.
For your information the party affiliated folks are every bit as issue oriented or more so. I have no problem with people that happen to be midway between the parties and vote and participate that way. Fine by me. I’ve been around long enough though to recognize that many of the issue oriented Independents are full of beans. In reality they aren’t going to get to know the issues, they rarely get out and vote, and they aren’t going to band together with others to get anything done. Sorry, Independents are the least politically active group.
I’m not trying to paint the whole group with one brush, but there are too many phonies that really aren’t doing jack. A lot of them think they’re the absolute peak of noble independent mindedness and untainted virtue. Sorry, I’ve lived around you Independent folks too long. I don’t see any sacred cows amongst you. Just the regular cud chewing kind.
“I’m not fooled by this “we want to look at issues before we make a decision” argument. Give me a break. How many new issues are there? Some day-after we are visited by aliens-we might debate the moral argument of intergalactic marriage, but until then, show me a new issue. National defense? Second Amendment? Abortion? Taxes? How many arguments do you need to hear?”
What does newness have to do with it? Not being a republican or democrat doesn’t mean you don’t have a position on all the issues.