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"...Why on God's green earth would normal, traditional American families want anything to do with the Democrat Party?

Aren't too many of those left....."

Excellent point. The statistics are interesting. In rough numbers, only 30% of households has children under the age of 18 present. Only 8% of households is made up of a married couple with children at home and a mother who does not work outside of the home. I don't have numbers relating to female headed households with young children present, but am quite certain that it is higher than 8%.

Increasingly, America is made up of single parent households, seniors, immigrants and minority groups. Each segment benefits from government sponsored transfer of wealth from economically viable households (read: reasonably well educated, married) to less economically viable households.

The Democrats can knit together a very powerful coalition by buying the votes of the less economically viable households, satisfying the "I-want-sex-without-consequences" crowd (abortion rights) and embodying the discontent of the "I'm-in-a-life-long-rebellion-against-Daddy" crowd (environmentalists and peaceniks). In reality, the numbers stack up very much against the Republicans.

I hate to say this, but Peggy is "projecting" her feelings onto a generation that largely doesn't share her views. We are a minority and a shrinking one. GWB has done as much as one could to stem the tide. It's not enough, however; and the Democrats, with their insatiable lust for power, will rise to the top in the relatively short term.

Peggy, we've won a battle or two, but we've lost the war.

There's a couple countervailing demographic trends that hurt the Democrats:

1. America is aging. The older people get, the more conservative they get.
2. The people who are reproducing are conservative. Religious people have a higher birthrate that unreligious people.

So, the republicans have a coalition of the religious (and it can get larger as the conservative Jews and Catholics move from their traditional Democratic base), families, and elderly.

Peggy, we've won a battle or two, but we've lost the war.

Unfortunately, I think you are right. GWB's election was the last gasp of Middle America, made possible only by the nation's complete disgust with the Clinton Administration. Every year, the number of government dependents described in your post grows - while Peggy's "normal, traditional American families" are slowly dying out. This may not be as evident to FR posters who live in the relatively thinly populated Midwest and South, but all the Democrats need to do is stick to their theme ("Those evil Republicans are trying to deny you the benefits YOU DESERVE!") and they'll always be able to manufacture enough votes to win close elections.

Peggy, we've won a battle or two, but we've lost the war.

I disagree with that! I think that we are in the early stages of this other war!

Perhaps certain statistics show that the traditional family has changed. I certainly know a thing or so about untraditional families!

The real war is about ideas. Here In Massachusetts during the last gubernatorial election the Democrat candidate lost during the final debate. It was so obvious, as she sat there smirking while defending outrageous abortion policies!

People are changing their minds.

The Democrat parrty is in big trouble here in Massachusetts and all over the Country. You may see democrats elected to office, but they will be more careful with their votes, count on it! There will always be strongholds, but even such places there are thinking people who are making a difference.

The days of the Democrat Party Plantation mentality are coming to an end!