Somehow, the neocons have managed to convince, through hate and fear, the knuckle-dragging masses of rural America that liberals are unpatriotic, hate family values, like to coddle criminals, and love paying higher taxes. They've also somehow managed to paint liberals as rich, elitist, atheistic effete, in total control of the economy and intellectual (the greatest crime of all). I'm old enough to have seen it all happen, and I was raised in the rural south where it all started. It all began in the late fifties, early sixties, well before the Vietnam/Hippy era, and seems to have been a reaction to the Civil Rights movement. Back then, it was called "States Rights", but it was just a code for racism. Political movements evolve, and race is not the issue any more, but that's where it started and that's where it came from.

Sorry for the rant, but being the only Cuban in a hillbilly highschool does tend to radicalize you.