Uh..huh?  I did a write-in for a person with which you've probably no knowledge.  Yes, that person also lost.  (election -wise)  But, I chose them because I thought they were the best candidate. 

But, as I stated, I'm increasingly thinking the whole GOP is a losing cause.  The amount of energy and time people are spending to grill, question, and reject those like myself, who have come to Ricochet looking to help turn the tide, is enlightening.  But, not in a good way. 

"Us"?   Hmm, aren't you a UK citizen? 

Hmm, no, because my vote has been , and currently is, lost to the GOP at the national level.  (not state, as we've lucky in my state and have had good candidates)   So, my vote is an argument, as are all the votes the GOP has lost for decades.  They add up.  That's where we are now.  At a crucial point, and unless the party decision makers grasp this fact, it's going to only get worse.

It's not important that one knows where my vote went, as I'm clearly stating in posts, comments, and on my profile, my position.  If the GOP decision makers choose to stay their course, then so be it.  But, I'm here on Ricochet to try to turn that ship around, and maybe it is futile.  I'm increasingly thinking that is the case.

Meg Whitman lost to Jerry Brown, in CA.  Not sure how that can be compared to fielding a viable candidate for President of the U.S.   I mean seriously, do we compare CA to the rest of the nation...?!   ; )

A candidate doesn't have to be "non-religious", but just not a holy-warrior-type. 

Yes,  with Romney, I stand by the "loser" label, because  that's what Romney did, he lost.

But, who knows, maybe the GOP will follow your tips and strategy, and we can see how it plays out.

Yes, Douglas, that site is anti-conservative, but they are also an information source for people who vote. 

So, it's crucial that the GOP does not put it's head into the sand, and only see their own spin.  They have to also see the spin that the left puts on them, and realize that is how they are seen by much of the nation, and the voters. 

A good political strategy for the GOP would be to not only stay firm on critical issues like economics, budgeting, and debt, but to tweak their image to mitigate damage from the people within the party who who look like extremists.  

GOP strategist have to learn to step outside of the protective bubble that is the GOP, and look at their image through the eyes of the outsider.  Because, there's just not enough votes within the bubble, to carry the day.
  

I haven't divulged who I voted for in the last presidential election.  You're fishing in the wrong waters, detective James.   You do realize that one can vote for candidates of their choosing, correct?   A vote for president doesn't have to be one of the candidates on the ballot.

http://www.youcanwritein.com/how-write-in-vote.php

If I were interesting in helping the GOP, instead of grilling long-time registered Repulicans on how they voted in the last election, I'd be trying to find out why they didn't vote GOP.  One way to do that, is to listen to their message.

Mike, fielding a good candidate for a national election is more than just these components.  That's point I was trying to make.  When Rick Perry makes the news in this way:

http://www.npr.org/2011/08/05/138995325/rick-perrys-religious-revival-sparks-a-holy-war

and this:  http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/perry-christian-warriors-spiritual-warfare-satan-separation-church-state

You've got a losing strategy for the GOP.  It's fine if Texas is happy with Perry.   That's not the issue. The issue is the GOP needs to be able to field a viable candidate at the national level, for the office of President of the United States.   Key word is viable.

I'm a member of some other online forums, and this topic is being discussed in another forum where I post.  Here's the article link that I read on another forum.  I seems the parents are a heterosexual married couple, and the child is a triplet.  The father is an ex-marine. 

http://news.yahoo.com/colo-transgender-girl-cant-school-bathroom-214244912.html

John McCain and Mitt Romney were losers.  The strategy for winning isn't just the political message, it's also the candidate.  Neither man looked solid, but looked like a flip-floppers. 

They were weak candidates.   You run a weak candidates, and you're going to lose.  Plus, both McCain and Romney looked like conservatives to those on the left.  To the rest of us, they looked like weak, flip-flopping, faux-conservatives.  Who wants to vote for that?  I know I didn't, and neither got my vote. 

No problem, you can have Texas.  Meanwhile, Indiana is now going into it's ninth year of GOP statewide leadership (with a history of GOP governance).  We have "right-to-work" laws, Charter schools, statewide online education for K-12.  Giving autonomy to the people.  Indiana leadership supports smaller government, and more liberal social polices.
Plus, our current governor who probably has his eye on the large national political scene.  If done right,  GOP can have both state and federal political wins. 

But, it won't happen with a GOP that wants to infuse religion into public policy.  That ship has sailed.  Texas hasn't learned this yet.

My first thoughts are that the parents are a heterosexual couple who have very liberal ideas along the lines of "gender".  Not that the parents themselves are gay or lesbian.  The gay and lesbian parents that I've come to know, don't raise their children any different than the rest of society.  

I had that book, and still do!  Mine was order through the scholastic book program.  Excellent story, and shows how Jimmy gains confidence after going blind. He even has run-ins with a bully kid, and ultimately he overcomes that situation.  (the kid who accidentally blinded him with the fireworks, later taunts the seeing eye-dog into attacking, which becomes a pivotal part of the story)

Jimmy learns to overcome a difficult disability, and accepts himself for being different. He adapts. Which is a big part of the message .

It doesn't sound like the lesson the parent's of that six year old boy are teaching their son, is that life isn't fair, and he must learn to adapt and overcome.  Instead they are teaching him, life isn't fair, but work to make others bend to your will, so you don't have to adapt.

My older brother had his paper route for about two years, and when he kept expanding his route, was finally told the territory was too big.  (bicycle delivery) He bought his first 10-speed bike with the money he made.

But, that didn't stop him.  He enlisted me, I signed up for a route adjacent to his, and together we had a mega-paper route.   We were good, and won contests for sales.   Won trips, prizes, and of course, made money.   I used to love the early morning rides, all quiet before people were up and about.  Sometimes it would be so quiet that early in the morning, that we'd hear the hot air swoosh, from hot air balloons passing overhead.   Our Sunday papers were so big, that we had to load them into a pull cart, and walk the route.

My brother had his paper routes for a total of 4 years, and I had mine for 3 years. 

I'm in Indiana.   I know what winning red states look like, and they don't have to be CPAC ideology.   My state had, and still has, an entrenched UAW/union mentality, yet still managed to be a reliable red state most of my life.  Reason is that the GOP here is more moderate.  What's going on in Texas for the past 15 or more years, is the kind of conservatism that is dooming the GOP at the federal level.  I'm assuming that the GOP still wants to win at federal level?  On their current trajectory, it's not going to happen.

Congratulations Fred!   

I don't recall the words from my marriage vows, (we're supposed to remember this stuff?!) but pretty sure the word obey was not in there.

I'm pretty sure the winning philosophy would be one that...you know...wins.   *looks around*   Nope.  Not seeing it.