I note the level of support for Giuliani on FR and I am puzzled by it. Certainly all the Rudy fans here cannot be trolls and liberal moles. A large part of his support here seems to derive not from conservative beliefs and rational arguments, but from a cult of personality following. Disturbing.
I've made the same observation myself. It's bad enough that so many people are willing to jettison core conservative beliefs to support the guy. But too many are turning around and trashing those beliefs as well, in a warped effort to somehow make Rudy seem more "electable" by saying his critics are misguided idiots. I've seen the motives of pro-life groups inpugned. Gun-rights activists accused of wanting guns to kill those who disagree with them. Critics of Rudy's gay rights beliefs referred to as Klan. It's really a sorry display, and it makes me wonder whether the conservatism of some people here is a mile wide and an inch deep. Or whether that inch of water has just dried up and shown the muck that lies beneath.
i am really surprised at some of the Rudybots myself. If you look back at their old post they are really pretty conservative. My belief is that they have fallen into the trap of the MSM. That is a dangerous place for Republicans to be.
Is Free Republic large enough to accommodate Rudy's cult of personality as well as Dubya's?
Indeed. I think what you have is people who place "winning" above all else, and so they've chosen who they believe to be the most electable candidate and will support him no matter his beliefs. However, implicit in that action is the feeling that conservative beliefs are not electable on their own. I question whether these folks have really thought hard about why conservatism works, or whether they just made conservative-sounding statements when it happens to suit "their guy".
Ding-ding-ding!! LiveFree, you a WINNER!
They're like brainwashed Moonie cultists. Those from NYC or from across the river in NJ I can 'almost' understand. But someone from Kansas, or NC, no way. With Rudy's stated positions he should be shunned, treated with disdain, just like any other Liberal Dem.
And 'disturbing' it is. When you get to thinking 'Only Rudy Can Save Us', you're getting in dangerous territory. The last time a politician was viewed as a 'Savior' and who had a 'cult like' following was in 1930's Germany.
We know how well that worked out.
That is probably the best explaination I have heard so far.