That's how horribly, ruinously astray they've gone, as a party: they've finally morphed, en masse, into chirpy, blank-eyed little simulacra of George McGovern.
The shrill, self-righteous scolds of Mittens' online Sister-Wife Squadron are absolutely correct in noting, while clutching their skirts and clucking disapprovingly, that "The Free Republic of today is nothing like it used to be."
Just not in the way they think they are.
” - - - Today’s GOP — the putative “party of conservatism” — is roughly where the ‘Rats were in ‘72 - - - “
Good AND accurate observation!
We need to define ourselves before we can take over the Republican Party. If not, we will split into the various hotbutton topic-oriented groups that will keep us distracted from solving the main problem.
If most Republicans think of themselves as “Conservatives,” then they need to ask themselves this question: “What are we Conserving?”
Words mean things to voters IF they are backed up by actions.
Free Republic fairly represents the tangled web of generations that still want to be proud of America, IMHO.
The shift that you pointed out is a major one, seen in hindsight.
The shift that I see playing out now is the Socialist/Communist Surge which will culminate with the US Federal Government rapidly becoming the US Welfare State.
Currently, the Feds borrow 40 cents on the dollar by selling Federal Bonds so that the Feds can pay out 40 cents on the dollar to the Welfare Entitlement voters.
Additionally, Socialist Volker came up with THE Corporate Welfare Slogan: “To Big To Fail” which means that ALL BIG entities that involve risk of failure will be given Federal Welfare if they fail.
The problem is that there is no entity to give the Feds Welfare if the Feds fail.
Thus, the Feds will have to follow England’s model in the 1950’s and 60’s and Nationalize the Major Industries.
This has already begun.
Obama”care” has nothing to do with “care’” and everything to do with Nationalizing 1/6 of the US Economy: the Feds need the MONEY!
The Fed’s National Debt is a little more than the GDP of the US, so $15, 000,000,000,000.00 X 1/6 = $ 2,500,000,000,000.00 Est. Annual Return to the FEDS, less expenses, of course.
The US Welfare Entitlement State began with FDR’s Social Security System, to help the WW1 veterans who were rioting on the DC Mall. The WW1 Veterans are all dead now, but FDR’s now bankrupt SSS lives on.
BTW, just for a dose of REALITY as to who is sincere about conserving, ask your “Conservative” Republican Friends when they would like to start to have their present or future SSS checks, Medicare and Medicaid checks reduced by 10 % a year, every year until the SSS, Medicare and Medicaid Welfare Entitlement Programs can be sold to Private Charities.
That dose of Reality will demonstrate to you why we need to define ourselves very clearly, because we NEED a Conservative Republican Party to Counteract the Socialist/Communist Surge.
WE NEED TO REMEMBER THAT A NATIONAL ELECTION IS A TERRIBLE THING TO WASTE.