When blue is red; and red is blue
Cats: odd things, politics|Did any other Canadians have trouble sorting out the red/blue colour coding in the US election coverage?
In Canada red is the colour of the more progressive Liberal party. Blue is the colour of the more conservative Conservative party.
In the US those colours are opposite with red representing the conservative Republicans and blue the progressive Democrats.
I could see that McCain’s name was in red. His tie was red. And his State of Arizona was also red. Likewise Obama was blue. But it seemed counter-intuitive to me.
Apparently, the red-blue semiotics run deep in my psychology, and it really turned into a mind-bender to make my brain translate the colours.
The primitive back of my brain kept seeing red as Democrat. It saw Texas as a Democrat state. Sarah Palin was red.
I always understood that red was universal for left wing. In Britain, red is the colour of the Labour party. In on the extreme left wing, communists are referred to as Reds or pinkos, often by Republicans who also wear read.
Can you see my confusion?
Can anyone explain why Republicans are Reds?
Is there a cognitive neuroscientist in the house?
November 6th, 2008 at 2:54 pm
Don’t ask me, I’m still trying to figure why the “Christian Democrats” are actually the Republicans in Italy.
November 6th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
Maybe it’s that the U.S. ‘left’ is pretty much the same as the Canadian ‘right’ and so has the same colour (or// color).
November 6th, 2008 at 8:24 pm
I think that red/blue state thing started in 2000. The Democrats remained blue for the next two election cycles because we kept losing. Perhaps the GOP states were red in honor of the bloody red meat they enjoy so much. I don’t know.
November 6th, 2008 at 8:43 pm
Cormac, yes, with the polarized politics of the states the last few year, Christian democrat sound like a contradiction in terms, like airline food or military intelligence.
Dick, I would have said that up until tues. I think Obama is left of Harper, though,
Bubs, did it on start then? hmmm.
November 6th, 2008 at 9:04 pm
Its always confused me too. Glad I’m not the only one. I’d be interested to know why though.
November 6th, 2008 at 10:56 pm
Did anyone notice that FOX News’ colors were more muted than the other networks? It was if they were trying to fool everyone into thinking that the country wasn’t going as blue as we really were.
November 7th, 2008 at 10:29 am
Here’s a quick exert about color perception and association in modern society:
As an object we react and respond to different colors in very distinct ways. Color can control our emotions, behavior, and mood. Different cultures have also linked specific colors to specific objects. Different genders may also respond to colors in a variety of ways.
Blue is located on the strong end of the light spectrum, and it has a wavelength of 480nm to 460nm. During the twentieth century blue has become associated with masculinity. Traditionally it has symbolized constancy, faith, sensitivity, peace, loyalty, and a desire to nurture. It is the color of the sky and the ocean.
Red, one of the primary colors is at the lower end of the visible spectrum. Red can be defined for shades ranging from bright red to a dull reddish brown. The color red has many symbolizes many qualities and aspects of life. For example, red has been used to symbolize love, for instance a red rose is represents love between two people. Red also stands for good, strong health. In Scotland, red wool is applied to relieve sprains, and in Ireland it’s used to relieve soar throats, and in Macedonia to prevent fevers. In China a ruby is worn around the neck to promote long life.
In the brain, we see that we associate different emotions with different colors.
(source: http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/2046)
My theory is if people associate these colors with specific political party values they will gravitate towards that specific party based on their values. This may have been an underlaying factor when these parties were choosing their party colors.
November 7th, 2008 at 12:01 pm
Justin, thanks that is so interesting. My question is, what if I’d grown up in America where the culture assigns different political meanings to the colours. Red would still be red and on the lower end of the visual spectrrum in the States. But would I vote conservative in the states because of the properties of the colour red? I can’t imagine it.
November 7th, 2008 at 9:56 pm
I just checked, and sure enough the first time “red state” and “blue state” became used as a shorthand for Republican and Democratic states was in the 2000 election. The phrase was supposedly first used by Tim Russert. Prior to that election there was no uniform color assigned to parties during election night coverage.
November 8th, 2008 at 12:01 am
I was confused as well. I had to keep wandering around the house muttering, “it’s the opposite”.
November 8th, 2008 at 2:09 am
Bubs, only since 2000? That is interesting. I thought it was a long tradition or something
Barbara, I bet you wander around the house all the time muttering that, not matter what it is
November 11th, 2008 at 1:00 am
Um, the Democratic party is blue because it is my favorite color? That’s all I’ve got.