• JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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    1 year ago

    I like the facts, but know nothing about Dale Earnhardt. Was he not a typical Republican?

    • mommykink@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Dale Sr. never really spoke about politics one way or the other, but it’s worth noting that his son is an open progressive in an industry that appeals almost entirely to the Conservative crowd. Is there any reason in particular you think Dale Earnhardt was a typical republican?

      Edit: after a little more research it seems that Dale was probably a traditional Southern conservative but not what we would call today as a MAGA conservative. An excerpt from this article reads:

      Dale’s daughter Kelley recalled an incident that occurred in her childhood, when her father placed a bumper sticker reading “American By Birth / Southern By The Grace Of God” on the rear of his truck. The family’s black housekeeper mentioned that the sticker, which featured the Confederate flag, made her uncomfortable. Dale immediately took a pen knife and slashed the flag off his truck, leaving the expression of Southern pride while divorcing it from the region’s sour history.

    • Da_Boom@iusearchlinux.fyi
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      1 year ago

      It’s hard to say, while he did grow up stuck in a western town, outside of racing there’s not much else known about his life outside of what’s been show by him and his son.

      You can’t make assumptions based on the stereotypes.

      • JokeDeity@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        I know, that’s why I’m asking, for all I know he was very liberal. I’m not a NASCAR guy by any stretch and don’t know anything about these guys, but I know what the fans tend to be like.

    • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Yeah, seconded. He’s in a business surrounded by right wingers and right wing fans. It would be highly unlikely that he didn’t lean hard right, but sometimes these guys surprise you. Like Garth Brooks being a super-popular country singer back in the day but being very liberal - of course that political stance wasn’t talked about at all during the height of his fame.