Indeed.
Posted on 11/03/2009 1:03:00 AM PST by Kaslin
Conservatives owe a lot to great men like Barry Goldwater and William F. Buckley who helped keep the fires of conservatism burning when the movement was barely holding together. Without their efforts conservatism would likely not have gotten this far, this fast. That being said, in the last 30 years, conservatism has become considerably stronger, more popular, and more effective than it was in Goldwater and Buckley's heyday. There are three men who deserve to be heralded for that success above all others.
Of course, Ronald Reagan deserves the lion's share of the credit for proving that conservative ideas work in practice. For engineering the Contract with America and the Republican takeover of the house in 1994, Newt Gingrich earned his spot in the pantheon of conservative heroes as well. The other man that all conservatives owe a debt of gratitude? That would be, much to some people's dismay, Rush Limbaugh. Why Rush?
1) He helped inspire a new generation of conservatives: Personally, I'm a conservative because of Rush Limbaugh. You see, back in college, I knew very little about politics, but wanted to learn more. So, I listened to my college professors to get the liberal perspective. It was an eye-opening experience to be told that America needed to abandon its military and use non-violent resistance as a defense strategy. Learning that I was a "fascist" for saying that America should retain the right to do a nuclear-first strike against the Soviet Union was quite a surprise as well. That's what I was hearing from my liberal college professors. I wasn't very impressed.
To find out what conservatives believed, I decided to listen to the most famous conservative I knew of at the time: Rush Limbaugh. After being exposed to his pragmatic, common sense ideas about how our government and country should work, I realized that I was learning more listening to his show that I was in any of my college classes. Soon thereafter, I started thinking of myself as a conservative and the rest is history. Having spoken to a number of other conservatives about how they came by their political beliefs, I can tell you that my story is by no means unique. Rush Limbaugh is undoubtedly personally responsible for bringing millions of Americans over to our cause.
2) Rush Limbaugh made the conservative media feasible: Before Rush, there was no widespread conservative media presence. The blogosphere didn't exist, Fox didn't exist, and AM talk radio was a dying format. It was Rush who blazed the trail that other conservative talkers followed. Quite frankly, he probably even deserves a lot more of the credit for Fox News and the blogosphere than he gets.
Personally, when I started blogging, my goal was to go full-time, despite the fact that I didn't have a journalism degree and almost no one else was doing it. My thought process? It was, "If Rush Limbaugh can do it, why can't I?" Today that dream is a reality and I am not sure it would have happened without Rush. How many other bloggers thought the same way? Along similar lines, ask yourself if Fox News would have considered bucking the trend and having a slightly right-of-center cable news network without Rush Limbaugh and his imitators proving that it could work? With or without Rush Limbaugh, a new conservative media was destined to eventually form. However, if Rush hadn't come along, it might have taken years or even decades longer to come into being.
3) Rush's ability to entertain and explain: In our natural environment, we political wonks can be a dull, humorless bunch. Every issue is life and death based on some principle or rule that the average person doesn't quite seem to comprehend.
Although Rush certainly isn't the only conservative to illustrate absurdity by being absurd or to make our ideology more accessible to the average person, he has played a crucial role in popularizing the idea that politics should be fun.
Rush is often called an "entertainer." He is -- and that's exactly why he has made such a spectacular impact. When you can make people laugh at the mockery of your political enemies or get them as fascinated with a political issue as they are with the latest sitcom, you're ten times more effective than any dry political commentator who always believes that politics should be deadly serious business. It was Rush's inspirational embrace of humor that played a major role in helping make conservatism more accessible to the average person.
Indeed.
“America needed to abandon its military and use non-violent resistance as a defense strategy.”
That won’t even work in a playground. It is supposed to work across the whole planet?
I agree, Rush really popularized conservatism nationally but I also remember his show being surrounded by Bob Grant and Barry Farber back in WABC in New York who were also great conservatives.
God bless Rush.
Everything that Newt did in his younger days has been wiped out with his stuborn support for DeDe in the 23 NY district. When he had the chance to support a true Conservative he supported a flaming liberal rino. So please take Newt name off this list. Put Mark Levin in his place.
Gingrich does belong there. If Rush apostasized tomorrow and became a socialist he would still belong there.= with Ragan and Buckley et al for what he actually accomplished for the movement. Conservatives might not recognize Goldwater in his later years at all.
Rush and his show have helped me to mature as an American. Born in Detroit, I’ve always been an American citizen. Far from being a ‘maturity snob’, I can look back and laugh at my own ignorance of and blindness to the ways of the left. Prior to all of this, I was unaware of the extent to which I had been indoctrinated by a liberal public school district (not that I was a such a great student) and prolonged exposure to and participation in the counterculture of the day.
Listening to the Rush Limbaugh Program for the last ten years has been a great start in my getting caught up on ‘things’. After the first year or so, I came to the realization that at a default level, I was conservative all along. My personality, my understanding of the difference between right and wrong, good and evil, free-wheeling capitalism and socialism, freedom and dependance, etc...Things really began to fall into place by the time I was 42 and not a moment too soon. My belief system was already more defined than I had previously known but was in stark contrast and conflicted with my non-familial upbringing.
Listening to Rush’s show helped me to take my belief system back and to shake off the chains that once had me playing a game by somebody else’s rules where I could somehow be defined by those parameters. I also realized that playing that game was playing a fool’s game.
I fully accept and totally agree with the premise that I’ll never graduate from the “EIB Institute of Advanced Conservative Studies” not because I’m a mind-numbed robot or that I could be just another ditto-head or that I’m such a great student...If Rush Limbaugh were to suddenly leave the scene tomorrow, I would continue to maintain this belief system on my own and never let myself fall into the spoon-feeding lines of dependance on government and under the spell of popular culture again...NEVER AGAIN!
What will never cease to amaze is how many big-name conservatives, starting with Hantity, Tony Snow, Dr. Laura, and nearly every other one that I hear admit that they REALLY thought Rush was was exaggerating for effect. They would think, in various ways: “Liberals aren’t THAT bad, they’re not evil, they’re just a bit misguided.” Poor Rush, needs to get his ratings.
That was, until these others got to the top of their game and ACTUALLY started to see what Liberals really are (just go to college campuses and see who the heroes are...it’s all there to see - in the open). As I say, there is an EVIL, HORRIBLE, streak in a certain percentage of humans - that simply would love to see people who disagree with them tortured and dead. This streak has, in the past, manifested itself in people that supported Stalin, Hitler, Mao, Pol Pot - and is now the basis of today’s Democratic Party. Sure, they don’t do these things (now), since they cannot get away with it - but anyone who doesn’t think they will, once they have the necessary power, will be VERY SORRY.
Rush has ALWAYS understood these people, even if other conservatives have to be dragged kicking and screaming to reality - and that’s why he’s so successful (along with being so talented).
Everyone is talking about these three elections that will change the United States, but really what will change people’s minds that the Republicans are back is if all the Mayors that win are Republicans. Now that would be great news! Why are we not focused on having some of these Mayors who are Republican or Conservative win these elections. It seems that except for New Jersey, if we win New York it is a given since the Republicans have won since the 1800’s and Virginia is time for Republicans as it is their turn....Now Mayors becoming Republican would really open up people’s eyes. I guess we are not ready for real change quite yet. I suppose winning the easy ones is easier for our bragging rights.
Rush's Undeniable Truth of Life #6:
"Our world is governed by the aggressive use of force"
This is how it's always been and all the touchy-feely Liberalism in the world isn't going to change it.
Yes, Rush is effective because his passion is formed in articulation. But there are others. Lots of them.
I started a list and became surprised at how many:
Ann Coulter
Rush Limbaugh
Glen Beck
Thomas Sowell
Cal Thomas
Sean Hannity
Mark Steyn
Hugh Hewett
Larry Elder
Michael Savage
Canada Free Press
Michelle Malkin
Michael Medved
Lloyd Marcus
Mitch Albom
Neil Cavuto
Mark Levin
Laura Ingraham
Lou Dobbs
Brit Hume
Kathy Shaidle
Mark Aexander
Liz Cheney
Jerome Corsi
Jesse Lee Peterson
David Horowitz
Chris Plante
Hannah Giles
Judi MCleod
Jerry McConnell
FOX News
Canada Free Press
John Lillpop (CFP)
Sher Zieve (CFP)
Julia Duin (WT)
Humberto Fontova
Investor’s Daily
Brit Hume
Mychal Massie
Laura Hollis
Bob Beers
Joseph Farah
Liz Cheney
Howie Carr
Michael Barone
A couple of these are activists, not media spekespeople.
And we have allies among the politicians, believe it or not:
Kurt Weldon Congressman PA (R)
Tom Tancredo Congress,an Colorado (R)
Joe Wilson Congressman, SC (R)
Duncan Hunter Cal. Congressman (R)
John Bolton Former US Ambassador to the UN
Michelle Bachmann Senator (R) Minn.
James DeMint Senator (R) SC
Alan Keyes
Sarah Palin, Rogue
Steve King Congressman (R-Iowa)
Mike Pence Cong. (R) IN
Trent Franks (R-Ariz.”Dems Pro-Terrorist
Douglas Hoffmann (R) NY
Bart Stupak (D-Mich.
Doug Hoffman (R) NY
Bob McDonnell (R) VA
Steve King (R-IA) Congressman
Steve King publicly exonerated Rush Limbaugh directly to that NFL weasel.
I was 20 when I began to listen to Rush... I am now 40. I also had the priveledge of observing the greatest President of my time Ronald Reagan. He came into office when I was in 4th grade. So yes, due to them and my parents I am a staunch conservative. :)
I was 20 when I began to listen to Rush... I am now 40. I also had the priveledge of observing the greatest President of my time Ronald Reagan. He came into office when I was in 4th grade. So yes, due to them and my parents I am a staunch conservative. :)
BobL - paying attention to the lessons of history. Your comment is the absolute truth, and worth repeating, so I put it up again. Just in case any of the DU / DailyKos / MoveOn.org lurkers missed it.
“Your comment is the absolute truth, and worth repeating...”
Thanks, and it is sad. The Dems play for keeps, while we treat it like a football game - when the game is over, shake hands and be friends again. Even our top leaders (as Newt may have FINALLY learned over the weekend) manage to get CONTINUALLY TRICKED by these people, and they keep coming back for more punishment.
Good article, but the author neglects relating how before Rush, liberal media and politicians did everything they could to alienate conservatives. Pounding into people the idea that conservatives were evil, fascists and/or ignorant. There was no counter balance for this repetitive daily pounding. On talk shows there would be two to three liberals to one conservative who was routinely and unfairly pounded. Rush, gave voice to us who felt alone in the wilderness. He gave hope where liberals had worked to defeat hope. That is why I say that Rush Limbaugh has had more positive influence in restoring freedom to America than Martin Luther King, John Kennedy, certainly Newt Gingrich, and just about any other person other than Ronald Reagan in the last fifty years. He is a truly great man who deserves much better than what the slime from the left have offered. BTW, in my boycotting of the NFL I will not even discuss games or players with well wishing friends...telling them that I am a patriot and will not support a fascist organization in any manner. I hope some of you will also “take the plunge” into voicing what is a horrible event in American history where a man (and Americanism) is demeaned so terribly. I am very concerned about how the left is truly persecuting the great voices of American philosophy, just as the Nazi’s did to the Jews before the holocaust...
What mayors? Haven’t heard a word about a single mayor race in the whole country? If you are saying a clean sweep in VA, a third party Conservative candidate knocking out a GOP candidate and beating the Dem, and NJ possibly going GOP knocking out a Wall Street/Washington insider Corzine isn’t significant, I ain’t buying.
These are significant, especially because all are running in a year where the ‘GOP is a permanent minority’ and conservatism is dead. These elections all had Obama, Biden, Bill Clinton, etc running around pitching the Dem lines that worked in the past two election cycles, and those ideas are falling flat.
This is a significant advancement of conservatism, and will have a very real impact on what is going on in Washington as the Dem moderates will be forced back to the center to protect their jobs.
liberals got their asses kicked all afternoon in the playground. that’s what they learned in school.
He's really a great conservative rallying point, I try to listen to the first hour any day I can.
Pundits like to point to Obama’s election and the Dem takeover of Congress as proof that Rush has no real influence with anyone who matters. Strange then that they don’t give him any credit for the R Revolution in 94 or his role in preventing Presidents Gore and Kerry.
Great post.
I’ve often said that I am a “student of conservatism” because there is so much to know and that is an ongoing living and learning process.
“Great post.”
Thanks very much. If I could edit any part of it post-post, I’d correct the spelling of the word “dependence” but now that I think about it, I kinda like it being misspelled as a way to show my irreverance towards nanny-stateism.
Newt Gingrich is past tense. He is historically a gem but that has not continued into the present. I am not a Stalinist and do not believe that the history books must be altered to fit the past to modern pecreptions. I would not excise past heroes from the pages of the books because of their later apostasy.
Newt Gingrich is past tense. He is historically a gem but that has not continued into the present. I am not a Stalinist and do not believe that the history books must be altered to fit the past to modern perceptions. I would not excise past heroes from the pages of the books because of their later apostasy.
So the early millitary history of Bendick Arnold should wipe out his treason in latter years? I’m trying to understand your reasoning. I’m sure Mao and Hitler were good little boys at one time too.
do you mean there’s a kind of transcendance or not?...That “Newtie” is who he was when...
Don’t be silly. I have no respect for folks, usually leftists because that is their stock in trade, who believe that if a past hero has become something less or even the enemy then all his contributions in the past must be disparaged and his name blotted out. That is part of the leftist attitude that there is no past and that there are no traditions and we must continually remake the world to our own specifications right now.
That is the stupidest thing I have seen for a while. No, but the history books should not blot out his part before his treason. The past existed and is part of our tradition and heritage. It is the Communists who remove people from old photographs and their names from the books. Any conservative who has the same attitudes is saying that the past is irrelevant. That way lies the denia ofhistory and derivatively, human nature, and is the path to utopian totalitarianism.
“I have no respect for folks, usually leftists because that is their stock in trade, who believe that if a past hero has become something less or even the enemy then all his contributions in the past must be disparaged and his name blotted out. That is part of the leftist attitude that there is no past and that there are no traditions and we must continually remake the world to our own specifications right now.”
And where does it end...with Buzz Aldrin? Some Vietnam war POW’s including McCain, FDNY guys at Ground Zero that day, a spectator diving into a man-made water feature of a zoo’s chimp exhibit in order to save a drowning chimp?...there are some things they can’t touch and the truth is one of them.
Tradition is the essence of conservatism. If you discard history then you have no idea of how to proceed into tomorrow because you don’t know what has worked and not worked in the past and you don’t know what to repeat and what to avoid. The idealistic Left makes that error as a rule and thence derives all the half baked ill considered schemes to which they are prone. Without history you have half an insight and think you have discovered Absolute Truth and disregard human actions and motives.
And if we do not learn form our mistakes (Newt/DeDe) we are doomed to repeat them. Newt was to be on Hanity radio today to explane why he backed DEDe had to go into work did you hear his reason why?
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