"Democrat party"

[Dan Goodman]

David Bowie wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society<ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       David Bowie<db.list at PMPKN.NET>
> Subject:      Re: "Democrat party"
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> From:    RonButters at AOL.COM
>
> <snip>
>
>> I agree with Larry, not only is it not a simple matter of "analogy," it is
>> also the case that it is simply impolite and childish to use terms of reference
>> that the vast majority of the members of the referred-to group do not wish to
>> have used. "Democrat Party" is akin to name-calling--about as puerile as
>> "Repub-bull-ick Party would be."
>
> I challenge the "vast majority" claim.
>
> Vast majority of national Democratic Party figures, maybe. But the vast
> majority of Democrats? I suspect "don't know/don't care" would be the
> plurality (at least) response, were a poll taken.

In Minnesota, it's the DFL.  (Democratic-Farmer-Labor.)  Sixty years on,
there doesn't seem to be much left of the Farmer-Labor Party in the
merged party; but the name remains.

--
Dan Goodman
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