Somebody Help Me With This

I'm sorry, but I'm stumped.

I know I live in a very BLUE state, but I don't understand this phenomenon:

"Dissatisfaction over the war in Iraq, the economy and rising health care costs might spell trouble for Republicans, but a study by Democratic strategists warns that their party's failure to connect with voters on cultural issues could prevent Democratic candidates from reaping gains in upcoming national elections.

Democrats have expressed bewilderment over Republican gains among lower-income, less-educated voters, saying they are voting against their economic self-interest by supporting Republican candidates. But the new Democracy Corps study concludes that cultural issues trump economic issues by a wide margin for many of these voters -- giving the GOP a significant electoral advantage."

Clearly, I'm one of those who don't get it. Maybe I have to read my copy of "What's the Matter with Kansas?" to really get a handle on this. Maybe I'm just too old and remember the days when people weren't scared of one another's differences (like gay people, non-Christians, non-traditional families). Maybe I live in a place where people aren't freaked out by differences. But I don't necessarily agree that we should (in the immortal words of Howard Dean) become "Republican Lite." So I guess I should get accustomed to losing federal elections in the near future because I would rather lose 'em than turn into hypocritical, win-at-any-cost Democrats.

I agree with those who say that "privacy" issues might bring some centrists over to our side. In other words, having a government that values privacy means that it won't have a say in who you marry, what you do with your reproductive organs, whether you attend a church regularly or not at all, etc. In fact, in some ways, this sounds like the kind of party the Republicans used to be, doesn't it? (It's strange to live long enough to see such changes; if you had asked me in 1973 if I would ever think like this, I would have been shocked.)

Having said that, I think there is room in this "privacy" discussion for political privacy, which means the ability to talk how you'd like, read the books or web sites that interest you, take public stands on issues that might go against the so-called mainstream, and not worry about repurcussions. This also means speaking up, or acting up, when you disagree with the government. With this type of public privacy allowed (if not enouraged), I hope lefties would be able to to live with the centrists in harmony.

But in the meantime, can anyone explain how liberal policies (gay marriage, abortion rights, etc) have adverse impacts on individual families? In my view, if you don't want a gay marriage or abortion, don't get one. Also, if someone could help me understand how these cultural differences affect voting, I'm all ears. At the risk of sounding like an old fart, there was a time when people voted to improve their financial or social situation (Social Security, voting rights, health care). Apparently, today people are willing to part with those things in order to have a "safe" society where life is orderly and everybody is the same.

Yes, I'm one of the bewildered.