Posted on 02/27/2005 10:15:18 PM PST by BykrBayb
"The Bottom Line" : Money Trumps Life With Northeast "RINOS"
By Doug Wrenn
Feb 27, 2005, 22:51
It never fails. I guess I just have one of those faces. Everywhere I go, total strangers just feel the need to come up and talk to me. Working long hours on the road, lunch, when I can get it, is often catch as catch can. I usually enjoy the solitude of eating in my car, often overlooking a scenic area if possible, and listening to the radio. One day last week, I had a little extra time and decided to eat like a civilized human being for once, in a nice, sit down restaurant.
I picked an Italian place that I am familiar with. As I climbed the steps, I noticed an elderly woman, hunched over, having some difficulty ascending. I waited and opened the door for her. Ten minutes later, I was still listening to her medical history, including her upcoming thyroid operation. Soon thereafter, her husband entered, after parking the car, escorted his wife into the dining room, and rescued me as well. As for me, I made a beeline through another door, knowing that the bar in this place is usually quiet during the day and always has the TV on. I could have lunch at the bar and catch the news. I was happy to see that I was the only patron in the bar. The bartender gave me a menu and a TV remote. Now if the beef stew special they had that day was at least even mildly decent, I was already in Heaven!
I am a big fan of New England Cable News. Mostly because it is ironically difficult to get in much of New England! (What a concept!) Also, because it covers much of the local New England news, hence the name. I never paid much attention to the slant of this network. It is probably left, but I enjoy it when I can see it anyway. This place actually got NECN! Now, I was really happy and nestled in! The upholstery on the chair under my backside was barely even warm yet on this particularly cold and snowy day, when an older fellow came in and sat one chair away from me, but I was in a good mood and forgave him! Then it happened! "Excuse me, would you mind if I change the channel?" Sigh! Typical of my luck! "Yeah, sure, whatever, here you go.", as I slid the remote over to this already annoying guy who shattered my euphoric tranquility in a mere matter of seconds!
Apparently, this guy was a regular. He kept kidding the bartender and conversing with her, throwing around names only the two of them were familiar with. This guy was also particularly loud. Given his age, I was trying to give him the benefit of the doubt, that perhaps he had a minor hearing impairment. Time would later reveal however, that my strongest instinct was most correct, he was just obnoxious!
The bartender was in and out of the room intermittently, either busy with other tasks, or trying to avoid the loud mouthed barfly to my left. Her absence thus made he and I often the only two people in the room. Have you ever watched a movie that you really want to see (and hear) with someone who just won't shut up? Then you might know this guy. For every news story that came on, he felt the need to offer unsolicited commentary out loud, but without making eye contact, almost like I was supposed to hear him, but not really. To his credit, when he changed the channel from NECN, the guy put on Fox News. At first I felt some respite, knowing my new found, but unwanted friend and I were at least of the same conservative ideology, or at least, so I originally thought.
This guy just would not shut up. Nothing on the news escaped him without comment. He kind of reminded me of those two little Martians who sit in a simulated, dark movie theatre on TV and crack jokes about the movie that they are watching. I always heard (and used to believe) that if you are subjected to an annoying person, ignore them long enough and they will catch the hint and go bother someone else. This guy apparently never heard that wisdom, or does not subscribe to it. He kept yammering away, loudly and openly, but without direction. Finally, a story came on about another California mudslide (or a flood...I'm not even sure) and he was screaming about that too, but this time, looked directly at me when he did it! At that time, I thought, "(Expletive deleted), now I have to actually talk to this guy! I just want to eat my beef stew...preferably in peace!" During the news report, a victim of the tragedy said they would rebuild in the same location after their home was destroyed. "Oh yeah, great! Go ahead and rebuild, and then rebuild again, and then again! And who has to keep paying for it? Us, every time! The government always bails these people out and WE have to keep paying for it, while they know that their home will soon just get wiped out in the same spot again!" Now that eye contact was established, I felt obligated to respond to this guy and his latest rant. (I'm not always as obnoxious as you might think I am!) Besides, I did agree with what he said. I told him that I agreed with him, and commented on a similar story I heard on the news a few weeks ago. We both concurred that people should not rebuild in areas prone to mudslides and floods and the government should not be required to bail them out for repeating the same bad judgement, and in that way, too many people rely on the government for way too much, rather than accepting more personal responsibility. So right about now, I am realizing that my beef stew will not be consumed in peace, but with the exception of the volume, the conversation was pleasant, and it was still nice to converse with a fellow conservative in an otherwise liberal state. I was duped. It was not until later that I remembered how few "true conservatives" really do live in the northeast!
From California mudslides and floods, Fox News then went to Florida, specifically, the Terri Schiavo case. Terri Schiavo is the woman who is in a (disputed) vegetative state. Unconfirmed allegations are that her husband put her in that state, and is trying to make money off of her. He has been living with another woman for about ten years now, and he plans to marry that woman once Terri is dead. Terri is on life support. An intense legal battle has been ongoing in Florida with this case, even involving Governor Jeb Bush. Bush, Terri's parents and other supporters are trying to keep her alive and contend that Terri is aware and responsive. The husband wants the tubes pulled, resulting in agonizing death via slow starvation and dehydration, a slow, inhumane and torturous fate we do not even apply to convicted murderers on death row, or terrorist POWs. Barring any further appeal, Terri is scheduled to die (or begin to die) on March 18 at 1:00 PM, as per a recent court decision. There is also an ongoing argument between both sides if this fate is what Terri wanted or not.
"(Expletive deleted), Pull the plug! Yank out the tubes! Get it over with for crying out loud! I am sick of this! The woman isn't getting any better! Get it over with! Do you know who is paying for this? WE ARE, THAT's WHO! Pull the tubes!" Aha! The infamous northeast "RINO" ("Republican In Name Only) has just been sighted! Unlike the other "rhino" that hides in tall grass, this RINO hides under the guise of conservatism, but is not conservative, just greedy! My unwanted neighbor at the bar has just exposed his true colors. Shame on me. I am more savvy than that. I should have known better than to think that he was a real conservative in this part of the country. I couldn't blame my bad judgement on intoxication, as I was only drinking ginger ale. I was just simply duped!
"Well, you know, don't forget, we are talking about a human life here," I reminded "Mr. Softy." "Do you know what this woman is costing us?," He replied? "Yes, I know," I said, "but she is still a person, and a person, who perhaps very much wants to live." "Pull the tube!" Enough of this nonsense!" Do you know what she is costing us?" "But what if you were her?," I persisted." "I wouldn't be in her position. My kids already know, when I am ready to go, let me die!, " he said. (I didn't bother to tell "Mr. Warm and Fuzzy" that such a reminder to HIS children probably won't be necessary when HIS time comes!) "But that is different," I said. "You already made that decision. The matter gets much stickier once life support is begun." Again, that fell on deaf ears, either in the figurative or literal sense. "Pull the tube!", he yelled again. "Enough of this expense!" "But this is human life.", I tried again. "Isn't that worth more than money?" (More deaf ears.) "Pull the tube, get it over with! I just came back from Florida myself. I had a dying uncle down there. I told the docs in the hospital, let him go, and they did, and I came back home. He already had it written out, besides, I wasn't about to pay all that extra money for nothing! Why? For what?" Again, I said, "Yeah, but you are talking about a living will. There is still an argument in the Schiavo case about what her previous wishes were and how responsive she is. The parents claim one thing, and the husband claims another, and there are suspicions about the husband's motives as he has something to possibly gain from her death. This is actually a different type of situation." "Pull the tube! Why are we wasting all this money? Do you know how many better things we could spend our money on?" (Pork belly stock came to mind as a sarcastically witty response to prove a point, but again, I chose politeness over my usual biting sarcasm!) In the absence of my reply, "Cuddles" ranted on some more about some kind of retina laser therapy just improved in Europe, the new world capital of hedonistic secular socialism. This ping pong like back and forth debate continued, but thankfully concluded when the besieged bartender emerged from exile, and gave me my check, and not a minute too soon. I paid my bill forthwith and wished "Mr. Happy" a good day, and vacated the premises as expeditiously as possible. Much to my chagrin, I never got the chance to come back with my next argument, but that would have invoked the word "God" and I doubt that ideal would have gained much traction, let alone, understanding with my barstool debate partner. Just as well Assault on a person over the age of 60 is a felony in my state, and with my Irish/Italian temper, I think if I heard "Pull the tube!" from that jerk one more time, I may have forgotten his age and knocked that arrogant, sanctimonious loud mouthed buffoon off his bar stool and then HE would then be on life support! (And yours truly, in jail!) Actually, maybe that would not have been such a bad idea after all. It would have been worth it just to go visit him in the hospital (after serving my jail sentence) and yelling to him, "Pull the tube!" I wonder if he would object to all that expense then?
Radio talk show host Michael Savage recently brought up a good point in discussing the Terri Schiavo case. He questioned where all these do-gooders are, who stand outside prisons, holding candle lit vigils to spare convicted serial killers from the death penalty. Where are these people now? Yes, thankfully, Terri Schiavo and her parents do have supporters, but why aren't their voices heard as loudly in the (liberal) press and media as those trying to spare some evil, degenerate cretin who kills other human beings for profit, or for fun? Sadly, I think we all know the answer. Those of us who believe in capital punishment believe in it because it protects society from those convicted by a judge or jury of heinous crimes, and proven to be a menace to society, with that threat exacerbated by a woefully over worked and inept criminal justice system that allows dangerous, recidivist felons to go back onto the street after a certain number of years, regardless of crime or sentence. But what did Terri Schiavo do to deserve her fate? Why is it that in a society in which certain rare and endangered species of animals and their eggs are protected with heavy criminal sanctions under law, the very same government that legislates and enforces such laws justifies and allows the killing of unborn babies, or the elderly, disabled, and infirm, who some deem inconvenient or not worthy of living? If we do not defend the very weakest and most innocent among us, what does that say about our culture? And worse yet, who is next to be killed?
I previously alluded to my irascible lunch mate being a Republican. That was speculation on my part. don't know if he was a Republican or not, but I assume that either he is, or is supportive of the "northeast" version of Republican politics, that being conservative on fiscal issues, and liberal on social issues. That isn't conservative. Like I said before, that's just greedy. We have often heard Republicans bad mouthed as being rich, greedy, etc.. There are lots of falsehoods out there, but as with any other stereotype, the small crux of the speculation is truth, that is just covered over with layers of exaggeration. In comparing RNC donations to DNC donations, yes, the RNC has much more money. The difference is however, that most Republican donors donate one hundred dollars or less. Contrary to popular belief, most Democrat donors are less in number, but like George Soros, et al, donate in larger amounts. We all have also undoubtedly heard the terms "Rockefeller Republicans," "Blue Blood Republicans," "Country Club Republicans," etc.. All these terms mean the same thing, fiscal conservatism, and social liberalism, as advocated by such Republicans in the northeast. The same ilk also occupies the "left coast," appropriately named in more ways than one. Most of these so called Republicans are really closer to the Libertarian Party in their ideology. The only difference is that for right or for wrong, while I don't completely subscribe to the Libertarian platform, every Libertarian I ever talked to was a true believer, and held his or her beliefs for matters of what they deemed to be the preservation of civil liberties. Most RINO Republicans I have ever interacted with (and there have been plenty) are simply greedy, and phony in the sense that they will pass themselves off as "conservatives," but the "bottom line" (pardon the pun) with them is always the almighty dollar, whatever their given excuses are. This yutz in the bar was a classic example. The sanctity of life and the dignity of a fellow human being meant nothing to him. It was all dollars and cents. I am a fiscal conservative, too, but not at the sacrifice of my social values. Terri Schiavo, and those in similar situations deserve more than a bill to be paid. I once heard that the nationwide average of lawsuits for accidental wrongful death cases places the average human life at a mean cost of $500,000.00 after all the smoke clears in court. That means that each of us has a price tag on our heads. We are worth, give or take, about a half a million bucks each. Is this what it has all come to? I get angry at the stereotypes about Republicans. In most of the country, Republicans are conservatives, fiscally, as well as socially. I don't like hearing an entire party smeared for the wrongs of the two fringe (in more ways than one) ends of the country. The Republican Party is not perfect by any means. It has plenty of faults, but to set the record straight, being all about money is not one of them. (At least not at the grassroots level among Republicans.) I have always been suspicious of liberal Republicans. I think some are genuinely liberal, and I think the rest are frauds, chameleons, turning like weathervanes in a wind storm to get the best deal for themselves. They are opportunists to the surrounding liberal political climate of certain regions, phonies, and at least a dozen other more earthy descriptive names I will refrain from using in this format for respect of decorum. But I think you get the gist.
During a recent family gathering, my very liberal, pro-Democrat family (Holidays are always fun with them when the conversation turns political!) and I were gathered at the table, eating. One family member (knowing full well that yours truly always has an opinion about everything!) asked me my opinion of California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. I said that I didn't like him. Aghast, the family member inquired, "Why? He's a Republican, isn't he?" "Yes he is, I replied. "I guess I am just a better conservative than I am a Republican." She didn't understand what I meant by that statement. I was not surprised. Most other Democrats I have met don't understand the difference, either. Come to think of it, that concept also seems to befuddle certain "Republicans" as well!
More than once in this column, I have ranted on about the GOP. There is plenty of ammunition there, but there are plenty of erroneous impressions of the GOP and its platform out there as well. As with most arguments, the answer lies somewhere in the middle. I am done ranting without taking action. I have recently switched party affiliation to the Constitution Party. Maybe if I lived in a place like South Carolina, Texas, Wyoming, Idaho, Alaska, etc..I might still be a Republican, but even then, I'm not sure. For better or for worse, I live up here in God's little forgotten (and very blue) corner of the country, and a region not at all reflective of most of the country, or its values. As such, for too long, I have not been adequately represented in government by my party. Too many times, I have had to hold my nose and vote, or compromise my principles, campaigning for not a better candidate, but the one who I thought was "the lesser of two evils." Too many times, I have seen self centered hypocrites like this schmuck in the bar that ruined my lunch last week. (Just as well, the beef stew tasted like it came out of a can anyway!) The lesser of two evils is STILL evil. I guess I have had an Epiphany at this stage of my life, and would rather be with underdogs than hypocrites. I just feel more comfortable in a party that does what it says and says what it does, and one in which the words "God" and "Constitution" are not taboo. I guess I want to be in a party in which human life and human dignity is respected, regardless of monetary cost. Fiscal conservatism is not doling out federal dollars for a function that is not a Constitutional function of federal government, especially for someone too dumb, apathetic or selfish to rebuild his house in a safer location, rather than repeatedly putting in back in the middle of a zone well known to be prone to floods and mudslides and counting on the government to pick up the tab every time predicted disaster strikes. Fiscal conservatism, however, is not killing a fellow human being because their presence in your life is deemed to be inconvenient or too expensive. Sadly, that motherless mutant version of a Republican (registered, or otherwise) in the bar is not the exception in the GOP in my state, he is the rule, and the personification of one of several reasons why I switched. I have seen it far too many times before. Enough. I've had it. I'm done. I'm out. No more liberalism, and especially, no more hypocrisy, for votes, power, trendy political correctness, or any other lame excuse.
Proudly, I voted for Michael Peroutka instead of George W. Bush in 2004. I figured Peroutka would lose. I didn't care. "Duty is ours. Results are God's," so said President John Quincy Adams. I voted for Bush in 2000. I saw what that created. Michael Savage was absolutely correct in his prediction that Bush, unencumbered by having to run for reelection again due to term limits, would drift even farther to the left in his second term if he won. I already figured that, and sure enough, Bush is already proving that. Temporarily, I regretted voting for Peroutka after I heard that Bush won. I missed out in all the celebrating and hoopla, like I previously enjoyed in 2000. Shortly after Election Day though, that fleeting sadness dissipated, as Bush exposed himself as the true liberal that he is. I kind of felt the same way, a few days after I switched parties. "Did I do the right thing?" Now I know. Yes, I did. And just like George W. Bush confirmed my correct decision in November, this ying yang in the bar confirmed my other correct decision earlier this month. Enough of Republican compromise (and Democrat assimilation). I guess at this stage in my life, I yearn for more principle and less compromise, and to hell with what is popular. There is no compromise to right and wrong. Such a decision, unlike moral relativism, is absolute. How do you compromise in the Terri Schiavo case? You can't pull the feeding tube only half way out. This isn't the Biblical story of King Solomon with the baby. Either the tube comes out, or it stays in. Life or death. That's it. Too often nowadays, we are duped into believing that some decisions do not have a point of no return and that there is always a way out. Reality dictates that such is not the case. Just ask Terri or her parents. Terri Schiavo deserves the right to live. She is no less a person than any of us. Never mind the questions that cannot be answered. As our coinage reminds us, "In God we trust." So be it then. Let Him sort out the rest.
As for political ideology and/or affiliation, others need to reflect and arrive at their own individual decisions. I have made mine, and I am at peace with it. And here is another decision, from now on, I am going back to eating lunch in my car. In more ways than one, I think I will enjoy even more peace with that one.
Doug Wrenn
Note: I have found a web site on the Internet that appears to be a foundation to help Terri Schiavo and her cause. I know nothing about this foundation or web site and cannot give an endorsement for or against it. However, for anyone interested, the foundation is called The Terri Schindler-Schiavo Foundation, and its web site is www.terrisfight.org . Much information can be found at that site, and donations are accepted there as well. If you choose to do so, do so at your own risk. Whatever you decide however, please, at the very least, join me in praying for Terri and her family, friends and supporters, who are enduring more suffering than any human being should ever have to endure. Besides, let us never forget the sage adage that reminds us, "There, but by the grace of God, go I." Thank you. -- Doug
© Copyright 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 by Magic City Morning Star
How do I begin...the gentlemen characterized as a RINO clearly needs to learn some manners and his argumentative style leaves much to be desired. But I don't know how much we gain by playing this game of pinning-the-tail-on-the-RINO. Who gets to define what it means to be a Republican? The real problem is that we create these litmus tests on a small number of issues; whereas we may agree on a broad variety of other conservative, free-market, and pro-family issues. But we stigmatize, alienate, and eventually remove people from the party- people with whom we share much in common. I think we should continue to stand for what we believe; but we should also be able to disagree without fear of being ex-communicated.
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