Posted on 10/14/2006 9:54:19 AM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
October 14, 2006 - 12:42
I was dutifully working my way through Robert Kuttner's Boston Globe column of this morning, Cleaning Up the Mess, on the lookout for some outrageous MSM morsel with which to arouse NewsBusters readers.
But all I was getting were Kuttner's "on the one hand, but on the other hand" arguments as to whether it is in Democratic interests to retake one or both houses of Congress come November. His thesis is that America is such a mess thanks to years of Republican misrule that fixing it could be a thankless task for Dems, who might be better off waiting for the deluge of the 2008 presidential elections. For the record, Kuttner does come down on the side of taking power now.
Though tempted to cut short my reading, I persevered, and my patience was rewarded. For in closing his closing, Kuttner cut loose with a bit of over-the-top rhetoric worthy of George Soros on steroids:
"If the Democrats do take back even one House, they can be thankful that the country has veered back from the precipice of despotism."
The "are liberals patriotic?" debate has become a stale one, so let's not engage it here. But I would certainly say that anyone who sees the United States as teetering on the brink of totalitarianism inhabits a country entirely different from the one I know and love.
KUTTNER IS THE GUY ACCUSING THE USA OF BEING ON PRECIPICE OF DESPOTISM. FINKELSTEIN, WHO IS FREEPER GOVERNSLEAST, IS THE GUY CRITICIZING KUTTNER. PLEASE ADDRESS YOUR CRITICISM ACCORDINGLY.
Boston Globe/NewsBusters precipice-ping to Today show list.
Among other traits, the left has a penchant for hyperbole.
Your disclaimers are always amusing. Do people really think that you write the articles?
This guy is an idiot. He shows a complete inability to understand what "despotism" even IS!
He's right in that we ARE on the precipice of despotism. But it'll only be complete if we elect democRATS to control the House and Senate.
actually, Kuttner is correct: we *are* on the precipice of despotism is the Demonicrats take over congres...
Everybody needs to remember to vote - once for yourself and a second time for Karl Rove.
Worry about despotism when a popular president is willingly given more power by an eager and enthusiastic majority of the population.
We're about the furtherest from that as we can be.
So, does that mean the Democrats would reign in (or abolish) the Internal Revenue Service? In its dealing with U.S. citizens, the IRS is far more despotic than the FBI or Homeland Security.
Unfortunately, yes - it's happened a number of times lately, including one in which I had criticized a column that had criticized the Pope, and a FReeper wrote "figures a guy named Finkelstein would criticize the Pope." That bothered me enough to start making these disclaimers whenever I think there's a risk of confusion.
There is some Republican thinking that should the Dems actually succeed in winning Congress back this year, that it will be a short-lived majority. The Red State voters will remain Red State voters (and some Blue States are in the process of turning purple), even if some turn their backs on certain GOP office holders this election. The demographics favor the GOP, long-term, hence Dem victories this year will represent a momentary blip, not a fundamental shift in the nature of the electorate. Plus, after two years of Democrats acting juvenile and generally mucking up the nation by trying to foist their repugnant philosophy upon the country, the voters will be primed to return the GOP to the majority in '08, and a Republican to the White House as well. So go some of the theories. I'd hate to see the Dems given any hope, with victories this year, but I tend to agree with this assessment that a Dem victory will be much like the Republican victories of 1952 -- short-lived.
The liberal use of Hitler to attack one's political opponents is tiresome, but the prospect of a Dem victory this year does remind me of how Hitler was cheered and embraced by the people of Germany.
He's obviously trying to over-compensate for the loss of hair on his head.
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