Cross Talk
In this interview, David Cross discusses politics. (Via Kim Davis via Off on a Tangent.)

Excerpts:

About a third of eligible youth voted in the 2000 election. Why do you think that is? People are lazy, ignorant, alienated from the process?

David Cross: Yes, I think it's all three of those things. You become ignorant because you're alienated and you don't think out the information and you allow yourself to purposefully get lazy so things don't bother you, so you use that as an excuse not to vote. It's pretty galling that I know people will wait in line for a weekend to see a f*ckin' movie that's gonna be there for three months, but won't wait in line for 12 minutes to vote. If not for yourself, then for everyone else, it's truly one of the most selfish things you can do. Just the fact that you won't educate yourself on the issues. It's truly one of the most selfish things you can do. Especially because so many people have suffered to obtain that right, or obtain the idea of that right.

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Any politicians you admire and would vote for in 2004?

David Cross: I will vote for – it's really depressing to say it but it's just something I've resigned to and I'll have to swallow it – whoever the Democratic nominee is. Nobody is going to be as bad for free thinking, right-minded individuals than George Bush. I don't want to see that motherf*cker in office when he doesn't have to do anything for political reasons. That's really scary. If this shit doesn't scare you now, when he's making concessions for political reasons, giving him another four years where he doesn't have to worry about being reelected, we are f*cked. We're hugely f*cked. And you better get yourself a Bible.

Do you ever think the Bush hatred can backfire and allow people to label Bush-haters as misfits?

David Cross: That's always a danger. If all you do is spew this bumper sticker rhetoric and sputter these cute little catch phrases about how Bush is like Hitler, then you know you're a f*ckin' moron and yeah, that's distracting. But if you can articulate your reason and have a conversation and say, "Let me tell you why I hate Bush, and it's not because he's an evil guy," then hopefully, you won't be painted in a corner as a misfit. The individual has to have the information. You know, you might as well, f*ckin' take your top off and paint sunflowers on your face, you know, drop acid and do that dumb-ass Grateful Dead dance.

If you could change the way the average American thinks about one issue, what would it be?

David Cross: It's not an issue per say, but I would urge people to help create an atmosphere where they don't see this complete ideological divide. Because I think whenever you sit down with another human being who would absolutely disagree with you on every issue, you learn about them as a person and you relate, in human terms, and it's much more difficult for either side to dismiss out of hand, like that person's a freak, that person's a Nazi. You really do see these people as people and understand where they're coming from. That would really do more to help all of this. I think people, for the most part, actually want what they think is best. People are condescending, they don't listen, and it's contributed to a really unfortunate anti-intellectualism in this country.