Honesty vs strategy, how do you deal?

[Nordstrodamus]

Of my republican friends I know a few who have drank the cool-aid and believe every piece of nonsense that comes from the Bush campaign (Kerry will ban the bible, Kerry is a flip-flopper, Kerry always raises taxes, Saddam was supporting terror, Iraq is a resounding success, stem cells are murder, etc...), but I would say the majority of my republican friends recognize all this BS as a tactic, a forgiveable lie to promote what, in their minds, is the better good.

Turning the microscope on myself I would say that I think Kerry has made some strategic decisions in his support for the death penalty, opposition to gay marriage, and raising the spectre of the draft. On the last point I think it's arguable that Bush's choices do, indeed, make a draft more likely in the event that we have to wage war on another front, but I digress.

Admittedly, I may be interjecting my bias, but the greater question is how does everyone here cope?

Or is there anyone here who considers themselves a true-believer (aside from in the Mac, of course).

[Anders]

Your type of democracy doesn´t leave room for honesty. Its like the old IR realist dilemma: Honesty doesn´t exist because it always lose to strategy. Liberal democracy as oppose to republican democracy.

This is of course only true in types of democracies that lead to binary political systems. Prisoners dilemma becomes complex with just three players and increasingly so with more and one player can´t control the game.