Free Republic

Between 2000 and 2006, a specter haunted the community of fundamentalist Democrats. Members of this community looked around and observed their moral and intellectual superiority. They observed that their policies were better for the middle classes. And yet the middle classes did not support Democrats. They tended to vote, in large numbers, for the morally and intellectually inferior party, the one, moreover, that catered to the interests of the rich. How could this be? Serious thinkers set to work, and produced a long shelf of books answering this question. Their answers tended to rely on similar themes. First, Democrats lose...

This 420 page effort contains two intertwined books. The one interests me, reports on recent neuroscience advances documenting how people come to political decisions. The one that does not interest me, is a liberal cook book with multiple recipes for winning elections. The books differ; hence, the opinions about the entire book differ. For example, Daniel Gilbert, Professor of Psychology at Harvard University, states this is a fascinating book that appeals to the hearts and minds on both sides of the aisle. Dr. Gilbert is referring to the first book. On the other hand, Howard Dean, the Chairman of the...

This one is a hoot. The L.A.Times has posted a piece in their politics section about the supposed revelations of Drew Westen, a psychologist who is advising Democrats that they are too logical and rely on "facts" too much in their campaigns. Westen is warning Democrats that they need to be more "emotional" in their appeals to the voters because, according to his "research", Democrat and independent voters are just too darn stupid to understand logic and facts. And Westen makes this claim as if Democrats don't already campaign almost strictly on pure emotion with little appeal to intellect now!...

I really think that this is one of the big stories of the day. Maybe because it is something I've been saying for years ... about liberals, that is. It looks like we have a high-powered brain scientist serving as the latest advisor to the Democratic party. Drew Westen conducted research which leads to his conclusion that politicians – liberal politicians -- should try and appeal to people's emotions, rather than bogging them down with data and facts. Where did we first find out about this research? Why, at the ultra-left wing "Take Back America" convention, that's where. The study...

Hearts over minds, he tells Democrats A brain researcher says the party needs to connect with voters' emotions to win. WASHINGTON — Drew Westen, a genial 48-year-old psychologist and brain researcher, was talking to a rapt liberal audience about the role of emotion in politics, how to talk back aggressively to Republicans, and why going negative is not to be feared. It was Day 2 of the progressive "Take Back America" confab, and those who had crowded into a meeting room of the Washington Hilton were about to discover why Westen, a psychology professor at Atlanta's Emory University and former...