(re-titled and edited a bit. Probably shouldn't have posted it at 1AM on a weekday too, lol!)

A few weeks back at the GOS one of our fellow C99Peeps recommended in a thread that I should cross post a Diary I had written over here as he/she thought it contained some useful information.

With all the chaos that preparing for the visit of my wife's entire family (including TWO mothers-in-law LOL!) I had forgotten all about it but then a comment in a post here about how to go about convincing those that were still Democratic Party Loyalists to look at facts and come over to the dark side of the revolution sparked my memory.

I will link it here in it's unedited original form. My initial intent was for it to serve as a primer from an ex republican on how to sway our republican friends and family members but I feel the ideas and tactics expressed should be just as appropriate for convincing our Democratic Party brethren to join the Political Revolution.

Please let me know what you think and feel free to expand upon or present your own ideas as well! If you want to check out any of the comments at the GOS you can view at the link below. (Some people brought up some very valid points and if you do venture over to the cesspit and see something worth commenting or expanding on please feel free to touch on it here.)

Everything I have written below should be taken with a grain of salt though, because at the end of the day I am just another asshole with a keyboard and an internet connection.

Cross post with link follows below:

An Ex-RWNJ's guide to converting RWNJ's.

Ok, maybe I wasn't a RWNJ. I don't think I was, but I could certainly see how many Kossacks on here would have no trouble considering me one.

I was a registered Republican for 18 or so years. I owned upwards of 20 firearms, reloading equipment & several thousand rounds of ammo, lived in the Rural Nevada high desert and worked in law enforcement.

I was pro Death Penalty.

I was O.K with the militarization of the police to a certain degree.

I supported the War on Drugs to a degree as well.

I strongly supported Police Unions.

I was Anti- ANY gun new gun laws. Etc. Etc.

Very little of that is true anymore, and if you would care to follow me below the fold I will share with you some tips on "Converting" even more of the less rabid members of the opposition.

As I mentioned in my previous (and only other) diary my grammar and punctuation can tend to suck, so consider this a trigger warning for the grammar Nazi's. I will not be held responsible for any seizures, blindness, pulled abdominal muscles from excess snorts of derision or incontinence you may experience if you continue reading beyond this point.

I am going to say a lot of stuff here and mostly in the form of a rambling rant. Some of it will probably get me some hate, but even if you think I am way off base on a few things, try to keep an open mind about the rest. (And please let me know in the comments where you think I am off my rocker, I always try to be open to the possibility that I am totally wrong anymore. lol!)

I should also note that I have ZERO data to back up anything I am saying, these conclusions are based on nothing more than my own personal experience both with my conversion, that of others who's views I feel I have helped change and from conversations with other "Ex-Pat's" of the Republican Party.

ALL of my evidence is anecdotal. So take what I have to say with a grain of salt, I have been wrong before and I am sure I will be again, and I am even more certain that my fellow Kossack's won't let me down by failing to alert me when it happens.

O.K. Lets start with some general thoughts on engaging them in conversation. 90% of what I have to say here assumes that we are talking about a RWNJ that you have reoccurring contact with, not the random nutter on the street. Focus on those within your circle of influence.

When it comes to a debate, always try to do so in a calm and rational manner. Don't get overly emotional, even when discussing a very emotional issue with what at the time feels like a complete and utter nutbag.

Do NOT let them get you worked up, if you do, it makes it easier for them to dismiss what you have to say. The dynamic then changes and it becomes about "Winning" the argument, not about discussing the issue. If it heads that way, just disengage. That is their field of battle so don't fight on it.

Always present your position like you are trying to convince a third party that may be watching that yours is the correct one, even if nobody is there but the two of you. This will help you with keeping your composure and might aid in preventing the conversation from sliding into an argument.

Know your Shit and learn their talking points. This is easily done if you can tolerate a couple hours of Faux or Lush Dimbulb a week. I know, its painful, but I never said this was gonna be easy. Then form your own counterarguments or paraphrase those of someone you agree with who you feel said it better.

When you refute them, do it in more of a subtle way. Don't necessarily tell them they are wrong, ask them questions that you already know the answers to and try to work that into the conversation in an organic way rather than just tossing facts and figures at them (But know your citations, and try to obtain them from as neutral of a source as possible.) and try to give them an "out".

People hate to admit to being wrong, so lets make it as easy as possible for them to do so, but don't push for it. This isn't about your ego, its about converting them. Having them come to the truth is more important than forcing them to acknowledge that they were wrong. I don't want apologies, I want converts.

Try presenting different views in a manner such as this when appropriate, "Yeah, I used to think that way about that too, but then I came across this bit of information. and it got me thinking about it so I dug deeper and found this, that and the other thing. What do you think about those?". This stimulates conversation and reduces barriers, you are asking them for THEIR opinion, which usually makes people feel valued or important. If they still don't agree, let it go, and then next time it comes up initiate with, "You know, I was thinking about what you said the last time we talked so I looked into it further and this is what I came across." Rinse and repeat.

Remember, this isn't about convincing them. You will most likely NEVER convince them your goal is to GUIDE them to the truth, not force feed it to them. RWNJ's are an ornery lot when they think something is being forced on them, even if it's something good. Don't beat a dead horse, put the info out there and drop the mic. (Unless they engage you in a legitimate dialog). Move on to another non-confrontational topic and end the conversation in a friendly manner, this will allow you to build a foundation for future discussions.

This is about getting the info out there in front of them and discussing it rationally with you in a conversation and not about winning the argument of the moment. If we can get the info in front of them in way that gets them to actually think about it they will convert themselves. (I am speaking in generalities of course.)

Be subtle, softly persistent, patient and most importantly, realistic.

Realize that you are not going to be able to convert everyone, just try to convert those that are in your sphere of influence. And accept that this is going to take time. You are trying to change the way someone views something that many consider to be a core part of who and what they are. But it is time well spent. When they have that epiphany moment it will be paid back in full because nobody is more dedicated to a cause then the newly converted.

For some of the more rabid types, appeal to their conspiracy bias, because there is indeed a conspiracy going on to overthrow our Democracy, they are just looking in the wrong damn location. They are afraid of Communists, Socialists and Democrats when what they really need to be afraid of is the Oligarchy. Unfortunately the Far Right has done an effective job of lumping progressive social values with communists. That's gonna take some fixing that is beyond me, so for now, maybe we can sic them on the Oligarchs instead of us? LoL!

Such change is possible, but it is usually done in small, barely perceptible increments, at least at the beginning. (I was an exception to the rule, my epiphany came over a period of weeks, if not days) but in some you will start to see the change in the way they view issues quite quickly (Maybe months instead of years).

And finally, get the hell off of their hot button issues, at least for now. Gun control is not gonna help with getting the ball rolling, it is a chock in front of it. I'm not saying to not fight the battle, I am saying that first we need to get them to agree with us on the stuff that they actually agree with us on, which is a surprisingly large amount of shit before we stand a snowballs chance in hell of getting them to even consider that issue.

We even agree on a lot of stuff about guns, so lets just focus solely on those items where their is virtually no disagreement initially, such as background checks and maybe worry about other, more contentious items after we address those.

We gotta realize that workable change is done in increments and stop trying to do everything at once. We need a more linear approach to our issues. Prioritize what we agree on, work on that and by the time we get those things passed maybe we can get back into the habit of working together again and keep up the momentum. I think even a lot of the politicians would like to see some serious change, they are mostly just to spineless to admit it.

Basically, we need to approach this as a two stage campaign.

Stage one, convince them that we actually do share a lot of the same beliefs on a staggering number of issues and FIX those issues.

This is critical, because right now, we see each other as opponents at best or outright enemies at worst. Thanks largely in part to the Koch Brothers, Murdoch and all the others who profit due to the division between Americans.

Stage two, begin a productive dialog on the stuff that we don't agree on and work on COMPROMISE on those issues.

This can be done, I am proof.

All it took for me was some patient friends with a progressive bent, a healthy dose of being screwed by bad political decisions and finally getting high speed internet which complemented my tendency towards obsessively researching any subject that catches my attention.

My friends got me thinking, my curiosity got me looking and the internet gave me access to information to such a level that it changed the way I viewed the world.

But I doubt I would have EVER reached that epiphany if someone tried to force it onto me.