Posted on 11/06/2004 7:29:37 AM PST by ConYoungBlack
Guys,
below is an editorial that I myself wrote. It is going to run in several small print media outlets here in Kansas City on next Tuesday and Wednesday. The big publication here ( Kansas City The Star) is "considering" it for their on-line edition for next Friday. I'm an aspiring conservative writer and a young African American male, (sell out, uncle tom - or so I'm told) nonetheless. I just Thought I'd let the Freepers get a load of it first hand so that you can me tell what you think.
Thanks,
Curt
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So here we are on another post election week in America, and from my point of view the good guys won and the bad guys lost, but that's over simplifying it a bit (OK it's oversimplifying it a lot). There are obviously some good hearted people that voted for Mr. Kerry (probably due to a lack of partaking in the lumbering work it takes to educate ones self on such a choice). The liberal media is reeling, and they have begun to lash out at the "extremist Christians" for our part in the matter of their defeat. This is, as we know, spin and hype, of course.
Their disillusionment is borne of their own pre-emptive gloat and over confidence pre election and early election day. Kerry had weathered the attack from the vets for truth, and went on to supposedly horse whip a lost looking Dubya in the debates, and then it started happening for them (or did it) on Nov. 2 the exit polls were good for Kerry, very good in fact, and this was a little slice of heaven to Danny Rather and company as he did his best to conceal a smug grin. Then something strange happened. The majority and mainstream of America spoke up for itself. (Something the Dem/libs didn't count on because for the last twenty years we've laid down and took what they dished us in silence). For the first time in years we spoke, and we spoke loudly.
We spoke to the media elite, and Hollywood, and even to my own poor leadership in the black community. Rather was inconsolable as he did his best to give a logical explanation as to why CBS was the last one left to call Ohio for Mr. Bush. Every major network had conceded the obvious, but not Rather and company. No surprise here, from the network news machine that always waits until all of the facts are in before reporting them (ha).
Then the morning after came, and America got the chance to behold Katie Couric dressed in full black as she addressed her viewers as if she were broadcasting live from a mortuary where her dear dad lay at rest. America had spoken to Katie and her ilk, and the message was clear, the message was that we don't care what Ben Affleck, P. Diddy, Babs, John Stewart, Dan Rather, Tommy Brokaw, Mike Moore, and even what the two John's (Kerry and Edwards) think our values should be, we've been friends with our values for quite a while and know our own values reasonably well, we appreciate the input but we feel that the ultra liberal progressivism, hypersexualism, and secularism just isn't our cup of tea, but hey, thanks for sharing. They were shocked, the exit polls had listed "morals" (yuk) as the driving force behind the result of the elections result.
Then the marginilazation of the Bush win began. The pollsters were running for the hills and the liberal media was a trainwreck on Wednesday, they began by launching the first salvo at values/morals based voters by insulting them (They still havent learned) by saying things like "Bush won by using the votes of over zealous knuckle dragging southern homophobic evangelicals". Several "Blue State" editorialists quipped that It was all part of Karl Roves plan to use "homophobia as a means to get out the conservative vote, by driving people to the polls with Defense of Marriage Amendments in eleven states".
Then they even turned on their own and began to eat their young, because the spin then turned on their golden boy, John Kerry. The left leaning media began to hint on Thursday that the only reason they lost was because their candidate was a bad candidate, and even poorly a organized one, and that is what had cost them this election. It couldn't be that (GASP) their Party and their ideals have shifted so far left that their MESSAGE is bad, not their messenger. No, no, no, that has never occurred to them. Must be the messenger. They believe that all of the training they have all recieved in their mega-city, liberal, Ivory tower schools of progressive thought has been spot on. That we common folk just haven't been as privelidged to gain enlightenment to the fact that liberal ideas are the smartest ideas.
Keep in mind that this is the same media that days earlier were still acting as if Kerry was the master on the campaign trail and on the stump. Even Kerry's own arrogant, narcissistic and selfishly morbid adoption of the acronym "JFK" per mere coincidence of his own initials being that in the same of their last presidential hero was brilliant in their eyes. To the lefty talking heads, he was to be the savior of America's unwashed masses and a warrior for the greater good of liberal politics in fly over midwest/south country with his effeminate, metro-sexual, Ivy trained, nor'easter politico. The lagging economy and the contentious attitudes about the war in Iraq had opened a door to the average middle American's mind (or so they thought), Boy, were they out of touch (duh).
So what was the message that America sent to the DNC and liberals in general.? Well, here's a list straight from Naithan's head that came immediately to mind.
If you plan on ever winning the minds of America again like you did during the "New Deal" era of Democrat Party dominance here's what you Dems and liberals alike need to be doing.
1. Distance your party from the ultra liberal Hollywood ninnies, feminists, and wacko's and their ideas. I know that we are in the Midwest/south and we are not privy to the brilliance that can only be gleaned in the art houses and coffee shops of New York and Los Angeles, but these loud mouth demagogues are out spoken, over exposed, and are actually energizing your oppositions voters against you. They are not changing peoples mind, they are pissing people off with their attack dog smears against the President and their constant arrogant smug remarks that war against OUR majority values and faiths. Letting these fringe based lunatics have front and center as your allies or strange bed fellows was an incredible tactical bogey. I'm all smiles today.
2. In regards to point number one, make sure that Michael Moore is the first to go. He should walk the plank immediately. I would excommunicate him in a very public manner, as to make a clean break.
3. Start promoting a culture in your elite journalism schools (which is most if not all of them) that the neat political correct notion of psuedo - "tolerance" doesn't end at the door of Christian and Conservative ideas. At that point you may start actually producing balanced and fair minded news anchors, editorialists, political analysts, etc. etc. etc. (Hence not once again pee'ing off 51% of Americans).
4. Start rethinking the dynamics of your partnership with the militant wing of the Gay and Lesbian "rights" movement. Currently your Party and liberal ideologues are bowing down to their every whim and it is starting to cause a rift with the average American. Most Americans have values that exclude the notion of homosexual marriage, and deem it as nonsense, not because they hate gays (on the contrary) but because they love their own families. This doesn't make any of them "homophobic" it makes them principled in their own values and traditions, mainly due to their (oh mi gosh get ready for this word) "FAITH". In your attempt to beat the rush, and seem ahead of the curve of enlightenment, you tried to pander to these radical groups every want and desire without any border or restraint. In doing so you became short sighted of the good of the country AS A WHOLE. You thought this would go over well if you just skipped the elected officials of the people and went straight through your pals on the bench. Tuesday was your reminder of who we are.
5. Abortion on demand, early term or late. This speaks to another far left element of your party that has become a mainstream component as of late, the ultra feminist radicals, like N.O.W. and N.A.R.A.L. and Planned Parenthood. Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know they pay the bills and all, but someone in your party needs to take a step back and take a deep breath. There is a conservative back lash going on in this country and it's against the sixty and seventy year old liberals in your party that were twenty something years old when they attended Woodstock in the sixties. The sexual revolution that was a part of their generations so called "revolution of the mind" has been force fed us to a point of exhaustion. The merits and horrors of abortion notwithstanding. With the internet around and with science improving, it just isn't possible to fool the electorate into thinking this is just a "surgical procedure" anymore. It's brutal, and with all of these media options and information outlets available to us, we just know better than we did, even ten years ago. A word of advice, give up the sham, and drop it. We are on to you now and so are our BORN children, which may I remind you will be your future electorate population in five to ten years.
6. Actually start finding, nurturing and promoting "Pro-Life" and "Faith based" candidates again in your party. This probably won't happen in a million years, but then again I couldn't care a less if you lose elections and the ear of mainstream thought for a million years either.
7. When you say tolerance - mean it.
(This was an independant editorial written by Curt Helm)
Bravo, sir, and good luck in your endeavors.
And ping.
Great article. Nails it on the head. Check again for some typeo's. Keep it up! Hope to read more.
You know Lewis Diguid will go apoplectic having a black person with conservative views (thinking for themselves) in his paper. (watch your back)
Good advice to the opposition. Unfortunately you can't change their anti-American stripes into a badge of honor. I'm going to continue to encourage them to leave the country as they have promised.
Good piece, needs a summary at the end or perhaps a
closer, in sales it's called a closer and is usually
usually "make the check payable to etc"
Remember too, this IS the future, and you're already on
the main stream of communication, start a blog, keep posting
here, several folks have gotten their start right here.
Keep it up, Freep it UP.
Tet68.
When I was 29, I sometimes let the "arrogance of my youth" show. No insult meant here, but you might want to embrace a little more humility in your delivery...like "An African American Conservative View."
I have heard African Americans angrily protest that you are not "monolithic" in your views, Conservatives are also not monolithic. The is no "the" here.
Kudos my Brother from another Mother!!!
Hope you're seeking a bit of well intentioned criticism, cause here goes.
It's a bit long. Might leave out many of the parenthesis lines. Find a way to say the same thing in about 2/3rds the number of words.
But your message is spot on. And you do write well, if only a bit much.
Good luck and hope to see you in the papers.
Curt,
Nicely done. As a writer myself, I would suggest one change. It's redundant to use the phrase "as we know" in the same sentence with the phrase "of course".
I hope your writing takes root and flourishes. If it can actually get accepted at a place like the Kansas City Star, maybe you can reach some who would otherwise be deaf to our message.
Ve-Ry Nice!
Welcome aboard, you speak with great clarity and conviction that is a far cry from the Black leadership mush emanating from the left.
We always need to reach out to Black conservatives, I have great reservations that we on the right of center have not elected more.
You have a good future writing and I have a good reading future.
You mean like "Gran" in your nickname would imply that you're fat? (j/k)
Glass houses, you know.
You put into one sentence what I have felt for years.
You might consider the term "African-American" as being defunct liberalism. Be proudly Black-American. You are as African as I am Ukrainian-Polish-German. I don't relate to those countries and simply can't.
Bump!
Very well done article. I can only hope they don't take your advice. Wait, who am I kidding? They won't. You're conservative, so they can automatically dismiss your advice as the ravings of a certified lunatic.
In all seriousness, good luck with getting the Star to run this, and congratulations on a job well done!
It is great, hope no dummyrats are watching
Good analysis and a very good essay. I hope you get this published. May I have your permission to send it to some people on my address list? None of them are in the media, just some of the good hearted people of faith who helped re-elect our President. They like to read good essays and editorials written by real conservatives and those are kinda scarce. Good luck in your writing and your career.
Excellent!
OK, so now for my "critique" without humor.
It is, indeed, a very well written article with a few, minor spelling and grammatical errors as pointed out by another poster.
However, with regard to the "gay marriage" thing or for that matter even tolerating gays in any way to begin with, I have never seen anyone approach it from this standpoint and it by no means has to have a "religious backbone":
Why not use the argument that "gay" relationships are not "reproductive," period. As stated, it doesn't have to be based on religion at all. It's just counter to sustaining the human race.
Why not apply that same logic to abortion and keep religion out of it, if for no other reason than to keep the lefties from screaming, "Religious zealot?" When a leftie asks about abortion just reply, "It's not reproductive and is not in the best interests of bettering the human race." That should silence anyone.
One doesn't even have to mention religion at all using these answers. Again, to be used only to keep the socialists from screaming and crying out that we are religious zealots. If one can keep the religious argument out of it then that just makes it a "neater" package.
Let's tackle our religious aspects on its own merit and as a separate part of the ideals.
Otherwise, I disagree with "Michael Moore walking the plank." How about keel-hauling him? :-)
( As an aside, with reference to the "reproductive" thing I have to give credit where credit is due. That would be John Brodie, a Hall of Fame quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers in the 60s and 70s. There are some football players who are deep thinkers. ) :-)
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