That's to be expected; many want to pretend that there are spheres of life (social, fiscal, spiritual, etc) that are disparate, and that one can uphold conservative principles in one sphere and be more lax in another. The Truth is, that whatever laxity one allows in one "sphere" has its root in an underlying philosophy that rationalizes in favor of such laxity, and that underlying philosophy forms thae basis of behavior in every aspect of one's life. Laxity over here, soon or late, eventuates into laxity over there, and over there, and over there... Those who live under the misconception that our lives are internally segregated in this way truly inhabit a Fool's Paradise and, in so doing, imperil us all with their rationalized concessions to evil.
The remedy is not scorn, nor chastisement, but clarity. People must be shown how this is true; how the roots of their personal social morals trace down to an underlying foundation upon which their whole life's edifice rests. Once that is clearly grasped, it becomes inarguable that compromises in the foundation impact the entire structure, not just selected aspects of it.
So, the solution path must incorporate a great deal of teaching and exhortation; rational appeals on behalf of a more conservative culture. Factually put, we cannot simultaneoulsy embrace the underlying philosophies of The Constitution and MTV, nor can a successful political party attempt such; the clash of opposing philosophies will eventually reduce the whole structure into two piles of rubble.
Wow, that's heavy. What an erie image: Lower Manhattan on 9-11 as a prophetic picture of how the simultaneous embrace of clashing philosophies brings destruction. We tried to simultaneously embrace fiscal conservatism (the WTC towers representing commerce and financial strength) and excuse our lax approach to global terrorism by approaching it as a criminal issue. The simultaneous embrace of the philosphy underlying our financial strngth and the philosophy shilling for our limp-wristed stance on terrorism resulted in a clash between them that darkened the skies over NYC and reverbrates through our hearts and minds to this very moment.
No one should believe for an instant that "big tent" attempts to embrace incompatible philosophies within the GOP will be any less destructive.
Good points.
Thx.