posted on May 21, 2004 06:25:47 PM new
Is there any group in America that Bush hasn't angered? Hopefully by November, Bush will have angered enough people nobody except his immediate family will vote for him.
Fearful strip clubs register voters to oust President Bush
May 21, 2004
BY XIAO ZHANG
BELOIT, Wis. -- Strip club owners are putting a little bada-bing in the presidential campaign by asking patrons to turn their eyes away from the stage for a moment to fill out a voter registration form -- and then vote against President Bush.
''It's not to say our industry loves John Kerry or anything like that,'' said Dave Manack, associate publisher of E.D. Publications, which publishes Exotic Dancer magazine. ''But George Bush, if he's re-elected, it could be very damaging to our industry.''
Fearful that conservatives might turn off the colored lights for good, a trade organization for adult nightclubs is asking owners to register customers and employees and then encourage them to cast their ballots against the president. Micheal Ocello, president of the Association of Club Executives, said the group believes the president's brand of conservatism is bad for business.
''We must do everything within our power to help ensure that Bush and his ultra-conservative administration are removed from the White House,'' Ocello wrote in a letter to nearly 4,000 club owners. ''If we are to survive, we must act now.''
Heather Layman, spokeswoman for the Republican National Committee, said she doesn't know why the businesses would consider the president unfriendly to their industry. In its own voter-registration drive this year, the GOP has registered more than 1 million people.
''I have to admit that the strip club owners are not a group we targeted,'' Layman said.
In southern Wisconsin, more than 200 people have registered in the last month at the bar Diamond Jim's and the strip club Isabella Queen, both located between Janesville and Beloit. They are the first of Wisconsin's 80 strip clubs to provide voter registration services.
''I'm actually fighting for my survival,'' said Jim Halbach, who owns the establishments. ''That's the way I look at it.''
On a recent night at the Isabella Queen, Christopher Ness, a 35-year-old patron, filled out a registration form. But he said if he goes to the polls in November, he'll probably vote Republican.
posted on May 21, 2004 06:30:55 PM new
Interesting. I have friends who are staunch republicans who will not vote for Bush under any circumstances. One works for the government. There have been comments made by her and people in her office that this country will not survive another four years of Bush.
Believe it or not, I used to vote republican. I made Linda K look like a flaming liberal. But it took George Dubya Bush to set me straight on how I should vote. I would never vote for him, or anyone like him. EVER!
As I have said in other threads, I have a couple of gay friends. When Bush announced an attempt to ban gay marriage with the constitutional amendment, that did it for me. There is not a reason in my mind that my friends should have to be treated in any different way than anyone else. We amend the constitution to GIVE RIGHTS, not to take them away.
True Americans do not exclude anybody. They recognize that everyone should have the same rights. Bigotry, intolerance and hatred are cancers of the mind.
posted on May 21, 2004 07:01:17 PM new
There are many voters that consider strip clubs a nuisance. I don't see President Bush passing an executive order closing all of them. After all the clubs have more to worry about from local governments & citizens than from the Federal government.
When the Supreme Court decided Barnes v. Glen Theatre in 1991, eight of the nine justices agreed that nude dancing was entitled to First Amendment protection. (Antonin Scalia was the lone holdout.)
"The Secret Service has announced it is doubling its protection for John Kerry. You can understand why — with two positions on every issue, he has twice as many people mad at him." —Jay Leno
[ edited by Bear1949 on May 21, 2004 07:03 PM ]
posted on May 21, 2004 07:07:18 PM new
On Topic: He hasn't angered the religious right, and they are a force to be reckoned with.
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When a dog howls at the moon, we call it religion. When he barks at strangers, we call it patriotism. - Edward Abbey
posted on May 21, 2004 07:48:41 PM new
All other things being equal, if one hypothetical "generic" candidate was supporting strip clubs and another wanted to shut them all down, which do you think would win on this issue alone?
I'd bet more people would vote for the guy who wanted to shut them down.
And as Profe said, this is going to please the religious right, and they're a much bigger and moe vocal demographic than strip club attendees.
This isn't going to hurt Bush.
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We do not stop playing because we grow old. We grow old because we stop playing -- Anonymous
posted on May 22, 2004 07:05:00 AM new
And as Profe said, this is going to please the religious right, and they're a much bigger and moe vocal demographic than strip club attendees.
This isn't going to hurt Bush
While I agree this one small group will not hurt Bush, but if you have enough of these smaller groups of people that ban together, Bush can be defeated again.
In 2000 Bush did not have the majority vote, he was elected President only because of the current electoral system.
