Posted on 10/16/2003 10:48:07 AM PDT by noprob
The entire nation owes radio broadcaster Rush Limbaugh a debt of gratitude, Libertarians say, because his ordeal has exposed every drug warrior in America as a rank hypocrite.
"One thing we don't hear from American politicians very often is silence," said Joe Seehusen, Libertarian Party executive director. "By refusing to criticize Rush Limbaugh, every drug warrior has just been exposed as a shameless, despicable hypocrite.
"And that's good news, because the next time they do speak up, there'll be no reason for anyone to listen."
The revelation that Limbaugh had become addicted to painkillers -- drugs he is accused of procuring illegally from his Palm Beach housekeeper -- has caused a media sensation ever since the megastar's shocking, on-air confession last week.
As the Limbaugh saga continues, here's an important question for Americans to ask, Libertarians say: Why are all the drug warriors suddenly so silent?
"Republican and Democratic politicians have written laws that have condemned more than 400,000 Americans to prison for committing the same 'crime' as Rush Limbaugh," Seehusen pointed out. "If this pill-popping pontificator deserves a get-out-of-jail-free card, these drug warriors had better explain why."
Given their longstanding support for the Drug War, it's fair to ask:
Why haven't President George Bush or his tough-on-crime attorney general, John Ashcroft, uttered a word criticizing Limbaugh's law-breaking?
Why aren't drug czar John P. Walters or his predecessor, Barry McCaffrey, lambasting Limbaugh as a menace to society and a threat to "our children?"
Why aren't federal DEA agents storming Limbaugh's $30 million Florida mansion in a frantic search for criminal evidence?
Why haven't federal, state, and local police agencies seized the celebrity's homes and luxury cars under asset-forfeiture laws?
Finally, why aren't bloviating blabbermouths like William Bennett publicly explaining how America would be better off if Limbaugh were prosecuted, locked in a steel cage and forced to abandon his wife, his friends, and his career?
The answer is obvious, Seehusen said: "America's drug warriors are shameless hypocrites who believe in one standard of justice for ordinary Americans and another for themselves, their families and their political allies.
"That alone should completely discredit them."
But there's an even more disturbing possibility, Seehusen said: that the people who are prosecuting the Drug War don't even believe in its central premise -- which is that public safety requires that drug users be jailed.
"The Bushes and Ashcrofts and McCaffreys of the world may believe, correctly, that individuals fighting a drug addiction deserve medical, not criminal treatment," he said. "That would explain why they're not demanding that Limbaugh be jailed.
"But if that's the case, these politicians have spent decades tearing apart American families for their own political gain. And that's an unforgivable crime."
Which had been a problem for a 1000 years before Thomas Jefferson was born.
Crack, heroin, and even pot smoking were basically unknown in Jefferson's day.
Yeah, yeah, I know that Jefferson and Washington grew hemp, but they didn't smoke it and Martha Washington didn't put out the communal bong in the parlor after dinner.
They grew hemp for rope and paper.
"But if that's the case, these politicians have spent decades tearing apart American families for their own political gain. And that's an unforgivable crime."
It is an unforgivable crime.
Haven't you ever seen "Dazed and Confused"?
You're right. I'm happier than a certain old non-com I see posting.
Ideology doesn't mean squat if you can't get other people on your side. You don't do that by alienating those who could be your allies. Read Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends and Influence People".
Why do all you GOP cheerleaders sound like you care more about the GOP's best interests than America's best interests?
I see the GOP as the best vehicle for implementing what I believe are America's best interests and combating those who are against those interests (Democrats), therefore I guess I am a "GOP cheerleader".
Do I agree with the GOP on everything? No, but that's the way political parties work. As Maggie Thatcher says, parties are "organized consensus". You can't get your ideology implemented in a representative government if you don't have a sufficient number of allies.
What I don't see with the LP is any type of long term strategy for implementing their ideology. They focus their campaigns against both parties, and it gets them nowhere.
Do they think the country is going to embrace the libertarian ideology overnight, with the size and intrusiveness of the current government? No - it must be done gradually. IMHO, helping Democrats get elected (by attacking Republicans) does not move the country towards the libertarian ideology. Electing Democrats is going to expand government giveaways into the middle class (like national healthcare, etc.), and once that happens you will lose all hope.
jmc813, the playbook is getting awfully transparent these days. Getting away for a while helps...
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