The Gray Lady Confirms Blue Civil War (20th Century Liberalism Is In Serious Trouble)

The American Interest ^ | January 18, 2013 | Walter Russell Mead

[lbryce]

You know the blue model is in serious trouble when even New York Times writers turn against it. Yesterday dyed-in-the-wool Democrat Thomas Edsall responded to Via Meadia‘s take on blue model collapse. In his response he struggles mightily with the bluer angels of his nature, calling our take “apocalyptic,” but in the end admits that 20th-century liberalism is in serious trouble:

Dozens of city and state public employee pension plans are on the verge of bankruptcy—or are actually bankrupt—from Rhode Island to California; in 2010, a survey of 126 state and local plans showed assets of $2.7 trillion and liabilities of $3.5 trillion, an $800 billion shortfall. The national debt exceeds $16 trillion.

The result is that the different power blocks that make up the Democratic base are trampling each other in a rush to grab the last rents of the dying blue system:

In cities from Los Angeles to Chicago to Houston, African-Americans are competing with Hispanics and others for government jobs, good schools, good neighborhoods, political power and basic resources.

Twentieth-century liberalism is a victim of its own success: it gave us longer and more prosperous lives, in turn putting tremendous pressure on social services and pensions. The result is the fragmenting coalition Edsall points to. Though he places part of the blame for the blue civil war on Republican-backed austerity measures, Edsall admits that demographic shifts and outmoded ways of delivering social services also played a role.

The reality of blue model decline is so obvious that nobody can ignore it any longer.

[lbryce]

Twentieth-century liberalism is a victim of its own success: it gave us longer and more prosperous lives, in turn putting tremendous pressure on social services and pensions. The result is the fragmenting coalition Edsall points to.

(My emphasis)Though he places part of the blame for the blue civil war on Republican-backed austerity measures, Edsall admits that demographic shifts and outmoded ways of delivering social services also played a role.

Obviously this Edsall character has a seriously convoluted case of liberalism of his own, putting part of the blame for the blue-civil war on Republican-backed austerity measures. Well, that's the first, most insidious symptom of liberalism gone amuck, blaming "Republican-backed austerity measures (or to put it in Liberal-ese, they didn't want to increase expenditures as much as the Democrats demanded).

First of all, Edsall errs egregiously when he gives credi for the American cornucopia we've enjoyed within the past nearly hundred years to liberalism. I don't think it's at all liberalism as much as it is capitalism.

The other point I want to make is that I'm wondering if ever in history has a president like the current foreign-born resident-squatter at 1600 Pennsylvania effected social, economic change for the worse of course,in such short time, so rapidly, so precipitously as he has done. Edsall, as the dye-in-the-wool liberal that he is, is of course going to give liberalism credit for all the wonderful things about American society, an argument I wholeheartedly disagree with.

But instead of putting the blame to the end of Liberalism where it sorely surely belongs, at the feet of Zero with his mammoth nearly unserviceable no ceiling budget profligacy, he blames it on Republican frugality and their dastardly plan to eviscerate, destroy America through the feared austerity route.

Liberalism failed because the money ran out, because it was an ideologically, morally (pun definitely intended) bankrupt philosophy not much different than what Communism, Bolshevism was. There is nothing about Liberalism that made America one iota better, morally, economically, certainly not politically.

[freekitty]

Don’t buy it. What they are saying is communism is alive and well while liberalism was all a front for it.

[Joe 6-pack]

"Twentieth-century liberalism is a victim of its own success: it gave us longer and more prosperous lives..."

Longer, more prosperous lives came about in spite of, not as a result of, 20th Century liberalism.

[Little Ray]

Unfortunately, its replacement is going to the “Red Model,” as in Communist. Or maybe Black, as in Fascist. Not that there is all that bit of a difference.

[reg45]

The problem with Socialism is that, eventually, you run out of other people's money.

-- Margaret Thatcher

[lbryce]

I was thinking Black as in Obamaism.

[Art in Idaho]

BTTT.

Excellent summary and spot on. I wish everyone in America truly understood this. Education is the key. We have a lot of work to do.

[lbryce]

She stole that from me at a party I was at in London in 1981.

[cripplecreek]

Too many part time allies living together in a permanent camp.

Learn to exploit the cracks people.

[Carry_Okie]

Feeding frenzy or no, they still regard us as the enemy and will band together to get at more of the carcass.

[randita]

The reversal of liberalism will come at the state and local levels. As the money runs out, fiscally conservative local and state governments will cut costs to balance budgets and pass laws to create positive economic conditions for job growth.

Liberal governments will borrow money and raise taxes rather than cut costs and end up driving the productive people and businesses out of their states. In addition, by offering a filet mignon of social services to residents, they will attract takers and further burden the tax payers that are left.

Several states with GOP governors and legislatures have rescinded state income taxes. Several others are considering it.

Conservative run states are going to see economic booms in the next few years, while liberal run states are going to be heading toward serious financial meltdowns.

At some point, this will be clear enough for all to see and so drastic that the differences cannot be lied about or demagogued.

[Noumenon]

“They had a choice, all of them. They could have followed in the footsteps of good men like my father, or President Truman. Decent men, who believed in a day’s work for a day’s pay. Instead they followed the droppings of lechers and Communists and didn’t realize that the trail led over a precipice until it was too late. Don’t tell me they didn’t have a choice."

"Now the whole world stands on the brink, staring down into bloody hell, all those liberals and intellectuals and smooth-talkers… and all of a sudden, nobody can think of anything to say.”
--Rorschach – from The Watchmen

[Standing Wolf]

Excellent summary and spot on. I wish everyone in America truly understood this. Education is the key. We have a lot of work to do.

You're entirely correct, Art in Idaho, but I believe it wouldn't be a bad idea to bear a fact in mind: without ignorance, there'd be no leftist extremism. It needs fear, superstition, hatred, bitter envy, irrationality, and much else, but simple ignorance is an absolute requirement, and there's no substitute for it.

[CitizenUSA]

And...when the liberal states collapse, they will blame it all on the conservative states that “stole” their productive people.

[Common Sense 101]

I agree with you completely and I believe this will be where the battles will be held in the future. As conservative fiscal and social policies result in economic and societally-thriving communities, the vile, perverted, parasitic libtards will infest these regions of the country in greater numbers. It’s what they do... they are the “takers”, the lazy, ignorant, entitlement-minded scumbags will attempt to extract “their stuff” from the only areas capable of producing, and there is only one thing that will turn them back - a unified and overwhelming brute force.

[Art in Idaho]

Excellent summary. State governments that see this handwriting on the wall will be well served to institute conservative fiscal governance pronto. Good for business, people, neighborhoods and individual liberty. See my tagline. I truly believe this.

[DustyMoment]

Yesterday dyed-in-the-wool Democrat Thomas Edsall responded to Via Meadia‘s take on blue model collapse. In his response he struggles mightily with the bluer angels of his nature, calling our take “apocalyptic,” but in the end admits that 20th-century liberalism is in serious trouble: Dozens of city and state public employee pension plans are on the verge of bankruptcy—or are actually bankrupt—from Rhode Island to California; in 2010, a survey of 126 state and local plans showed assets of $2.7 trillion and liabilities of $3.5 trillion, an $800 billion shortfall. The national debt exceeds $16 trillion.

The result is that the different power blocks that make up the Democratic base are trampling each other in a rush to grab the last rents of the dying blue system:

Not sure what the agenda is, here, but I don't believe that anyone at the NYT is declaring liberalism is, essentially, on life support. Centuries of history are simply being repeated as America faces its dramatic tailspin into irrelevance due to the actions of a gutless Congress, gutless SCOTUS and, most of all, a corrupt communist POTUS.

Our government is out of control and in disarray. There is only one way to fix this problem and restore America to its once proud position as "the shining city on a hill." Rebel. We can't fix it at the ballot box; we can't fix it by writing our elected gutless wonders in Congress; we can't fix it through legal action. Rebelling is the only way we can hit Ctrl+alt+del and attempt to restore America to the Representative Republic envisioned by the Founders. Short of that, the only other option is for the red states to secede.

[Art in Idaho]

Comment of the day:

Without ignorance, there'd be no leftist extremism.

[SaraJohnson]

People are always looking to socialism for an easy way out these days. The more they do that, the more poverty and oppression they encounter.

Freedom comes with personal responsibility which is not easy but also, it is not offering socialism’s guarentee of poverty and oppression.

I guess each generation must relearn the truth that marxism is death. The state makes for a nasty, abusive all powerful parent/god.

[freekitty]

You bet