Being a Bush Supporter Living in Manhattan

Yesterday's NY Sun had a front-page feature on the trials and tribulations of a group of Sun reporters festooned with Bush/Cheney re-election gear as they wandered around Manhattan. It was a pretty amusing story, complete with tales of rude stares, occasional hisses, profanity, etc.

My own experience, however, in wearing a Bush/Cheney or "Viva Bush" pin around Manhattan for the past month or so has been entirely different. While I've occasionally encountered the odd look of contempt (though that may because of my grungy appearance), I've rarely seen any rudeness and hostility. On the contrary, every day or two I meet peope who say "great button" or ask where I got it. My response is usually to offer them mine if they'll promise to wear it, since I have more at home.

The only time I did encounter a hostile reponse was, oddly enough, at my daughter's third grade curriculum night at an upper east side, private girls school. While milling around eating cheese and drinking soft drinks, waiting for the Headmistress to make her welcome speech, I was chatting with another lower school parent. Ethan Hawke, the actor best known as the former Mr. Uma Thurmon, walked by to get a drink and noticed my "Viva Bush" button. He walked up to me and said "you've really got some balls to wear that button here." My response was "most Kerry supporters are very nice people and tolerant of dissenting views." Bizarrely, Hawke went on to say that he was "hoping and praying every day between now and the election" that I would change my mind. After some further comments about Bush being a "war criminal" and "a fascist", he left my friend and I to our conversation. Poor guy, I guess he'd never met a Republican before.