Posted on 12/09/2010 8:02:48 AM PST by Kaslin
The Great Denial continues. The liberals continue to labor under the assumption that nothing very bad happened in early November. They are still supreme. The columnists go on as though nothing is amiss. This week, E.J. Dionne consulted with three defeated members of Congress and passed on to President Barack Obama their advice on how to succeed during the next two years. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continues as if she is speaker for life, though it probably will be a generation until another Democrat holds the post. Mental illness can be amusing.
The fact is that the Democrats lost badly in the midterms, and they probably are going to lose again in 2012. The Republicans picked up six seats in the Senate and more than 60 in the House. They won 683 legislative seats nationwide and gained six governorships. That will give them a powerful say in redistricting. Moreover, in 2012, the Democrats have to defend 23 seats in the Senate, and they probably will lose the presidency, unless the Republicans run a platypus.
In truth, the Democrats have been living on borrowed time for years. Their philosophy is liberal, and outside of the academy, government employee labor unions and a few enthusiasts wedded to identity politics, liberalism is not very popular. In the most recent elections, liberals accounted for 20 percent of the vote. Conservatives accounted for 42 percent of the vote, and independents accounted for 29 percent and broke for the conservatives' positions. These figures have been about the same for nearly three decades.
Most polls show a margin of 40 percent for conservatives and 20 percent for liberals going back to the Reagan years. Even before that, conservatives clearly outnumbered liberals, which is why in the aftermath of the past two elections one had to wonder about the predictions of conservatism's demise. Where was 40 percent of the electorate to go? How could a minority of 20 percent govern the country for long?
Actually, the liberals have been hustlers for a long time. Remember in 2009 when Sam Tanenhaus wrote "The Death of Conservatism"? What did he have in mind? I read the book; it was not very obvious. Or James Carville, who wrote the similarly charnel "40 More Years: How the Democrats Will Rule the Next Generation." I did not read Carville's mendacious book, but what could he possibly have said? Did he talk policy? Did either of these two con men consult the numbers out there among average Americans? Or how about considering their ideas? Americans are alarmed by high deficits and grand political schemes. Actually, the whole world is alarmed. Now the bills are coming due for the European welfare states' entitlements, and there is not the money in Europe to pay for them. The street demonstrations of Greece are going to be Europe-wide before not too long, and we Americans want to avoid them. That is why we threw the big-spending liberals out in November.
Over the past two years, the liberals have shown their true colors. Faced with an entitlement crisis, they rang up trillion-dollar deficits. We now face the aforementioned entitlement crisis and gigantic budgetary problems -- and liberals have no answer for them beyond the policy of tax and spend. They are going to be out of office for a long time. They lean toward calling themselves not liberals, but progressives. I have a better title for them: friendly fascists. The alacrity with which they sprang to support the takeovers of the giant banks and the automobile industry over the past two years suggests their program for the future: corporatism. All they need is a Mussolini and a bankrupt America. I think there is enough vitality in the land to avoid the latter. As for the former, Americans do not like uniforms very well.
At this point, that is still wishful thinking.
It might be a generation before another female Democrat holds the post ...
But at this point, they aren't beyond the traditions of begging, borrowing and stealing to get it back, and we can't overlook possible incompetence by the GOP now or in the near future.
Conservatives understand that corporate takeovers and bailouts are fascism. Liberal voters haven’t even heard the basics about fascist economics; they are clueless about what they are really supporting.
That’s cuz “fashists are whut dose raht wingers are!”
I think conservatives need to articulate, in personal relationships and pubicly that we care about people and why we think conservatism helps people. Liberals are impervious to the facts because they think they care and we don’t. First love, then trust.
Looking forward to Mild Marxism.
I don’t think your method will work with most leftists.
Don’t misconstrue the reason that libs ARE libs.
First and foremost, they want to feel good about themselves as “good people”.
Secondly, they want to feel superior to YOU, both morally and intellectually.
Any attack on the policies they support is a personal attack on their sense of self worth.
And any attempt to show that “conservatives care too” is chipping into their sense of superiority.
Increasingly, our Liberals are becoming not all that “friendly”, either. I suspect that sometime next year, their frustration at having failed to monopolize the national agenda will boil over, fueled by overheated rhetoric that casts their political opponents (conservatives) not merely as mistaken, but evil.
And any attempt to show that “conservatives care too” is chipping into their sense of superiority.
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That’s the point. If “they” are “we,” and “we” are “they” as far as caring goes, then we can have a conversation. If you are a “good” conservative they might listen to you or at least listen enough to have a conversation. Most people self-select the information they expose themselves to. Conservatives don’t read huffpo, liberals don’t read FR. Etc.
I don’t think your method will work with most leftists.
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And I agree. Hard line idealogical folks, nothing works except a “come to Jesus” moment. I’m talking about the people who are part of the mushy middle that leans left.
Yeah, I like to show libs where they AREN’T on the side of the angels for supporting policy X.
My favorite is backing them into a corner with the fact that everything they advocate the government do is backed up with a gun to the head, and that they are advocating that someone be killed by the government if they don’t comply.
My point was that you shouldn’t expect them to examine the issue in a rational manner, because you are indeed attacking their own source of self worth.
ping
and this is why Black Conservatives drive them totally Bat$h*T!
We invalidate their entire worldview (Veltgeist)by serving as living exemplars...
AH Mr. Tyrrell. A fascist is a selfish, nationalistic communist. Inside every socialist, whatever variety, is the black heart of a dictator. The "friendly fascist" is amiable only for short durations. Otherwise, they are lying, cunning, conniving, malicious socialist.
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