Libertarian ping! Click here to get added or here to be removed or just reply to this post!
Posted on 11/06/2008 12:03:31 PM PST by Def Conservative
With more than 63 million votes, President-elect Barack Obama--eloquent, young and bankrolled to the gunwales--has won the White House. That still leaves more than 55 million Americans who voted for the aging, outspent warrior, John McCain.
What were those McCain supporters voting for? Rather than reverting to the zillion polls of recent months, which centered on the platforms put forward by the candidates, I'll hazard a guess--based on what was missing from this campaign, and seems to have all but vanished from the main stage of American politics.
That would be the straightforward love and defense of individual liberty, with its attendant freedom to take risks, and responsibility for the results. And here I stress individual. Not the chant of the crowd, but that basic American passion for individual life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
(Excerpt) Read more at forbes.com ...
Hear hear.
What would their retort be ? OH, we can’t have that as it’s dangerous, unfair, and detrimental to the environment ?
I wish...The ‘young voters’ are only moved by “cool” and are deaf to anything else. And with a Dem Congress, Pelosi et. al. are all in a little bubble of their own.
Before liberty can be restored, a lot of the people — inside and outside the government—need to be educated on what liberty is.
Time for some repackaging of the message...just remember in 2 years, Obambi won’t be at the top of the ticket...there will be no commie to swoon after.
True.
If we claim it as ours though, it doesn’t matter. It’s after the election adn we STILL don’t know what change means....but apparently it’s something the Dems have.
True.
If we claim it as ours though, it doesn’t matter. It’s after the election adn we STILL don’t know what change means....but apparently it’s something the Dems have.
bttt
How are all these young people so whacked-out clueless, choosing the leader of the free world based on a coolness test?
I am not raising slaves, indentured servants, boot-lickers, or people who judge people on less of a standard than character and integrity.
Do some homework into Alinksy, and the public school system... NOT liberty-promoting centers, by any means.
The first bill the dems will pass will be amnesty for illegals which will increase their voter base by 10 million. Next will be an assault weapons bill and freedom of choice act.
It is conceivable that we will never see a conservative in the WH for the remainder of our lives.
Ask anybody if they believe in liberty, and they will say they do; but if you ask them what that means, they are likely to tell you many different things. Some of those things I wouldn’t necessarily consider liberty as America has traditionally understood it. The “do as I please without any notion of responsibility” definition is not one that I would accept. We see plenty who live by that definition and we’re reaping the consequences.
Besides the emphasis on individual liberty, there also needs to be education on how a constitutional republic is supposed to work; and how, if it runs as it is supposed to, a constitional republic is a catalyst for liberty. I have an Italian friend whom I helped prepare for his citizenship test. He was very interested in the constitution and we got sidetracked from the test questions themselves and went pretty much in depth on that topic. He told me he discussed what he learned with American co-workers, and most of them had no idea about what he was talking about. How a constitutional republic is supposed to work is something a lot of people —inside and outside the government — need to be educated on.
“Before liberty can be restored, a lot of the people — inside and outside the government—need to be educated on what liberty is.”
Exactly. I’d love to see a campaign based on restoration of everyday liberties, such as would be very attractive to even those not too liberal. Polls keep showing that most people in America are conservative at heart, both left and right.
It should be specific, and focused on stupid and irksome laws imposed on us by the lib-tards. Liberties we’ve lost. Such as:
* Repeal mandatory seat-belt laws (lets have a little Darwinism here).
* Repeal motorcycle helmet laws (let the idiots self-destruct).
* Rolling back a whole list of environmental laws that do minimal good (banning incandescent light bulbs leaps to mind).
The list should not include the controversial issue of Roe v. Wade. That would be a separate battle. KISS.
It would amount to a leader at the federal level finding ways to encourage State level changes. Maybe it wouldn’t be feasible nation-wide in the long run, but it would sure attract lot of voters in the middle.
It’s all about appealing to instincts and human nature. Obama was all about such emotional appeals. Steal the playbook.
Ron Paul did that and the Republican Party deemed him "a kook", marginalized him and embraced McCain.
That's because most "republicans" are scared to death of liberty.
“The ‘young voters’ are only moved by “cool” and are deaf to anything else”
I’m not so sure.
I remember being a late-teenager, and I’m the father of one now. If there’s one thing that teens want, it is independence. Of course, to a lot of them (taught in Gov’t schools), independence means freedom to dress just like their peers, lol! But none the less, I think outreach to the younger voters can be fruitful if we impress upon them the value of freedom and liberty, without the boot of the Gov’t on their necks.
What we need is a campaign that gets as basic and emotional as Obama’s. I’m not saying make a whole campaign about emotion, but that a large part should be touchy-feely. That’s the only way to appeal to about one-third of the electorate.
Look, this is a reality check. In general, about one-third of voters understand the values of conservatives and will defend the Constitution. They won’t vote for a liberal. Just don’t alienate them like RINO’s do.
Another one-third drinks the liberal/socialist Kool-Aid. They of course won’t vote for a conservative, even a semi-liberal like McLame.
The final one-third has no clue, and won’t make any effort to get one. You just can’t educate one-third of the voters up to where they can make intelligent judgements. Won’t happen.
This low-information yet large part of the electorate can only be reached by simple and emotional appeals. Positive messages. Sound bites. Specific issues that can be discussed around the water cooler like getting back to having a choice about seat belts. Memorable and simple issues that affect them directly like Obama paying for the mortgage and gas.
I’ll leave you with a blogger’s comment (can’t recall who/where) that’s really apt here:
Now pardon me while I gather the paperwork that I need in order to sign over my 401K account to Obama’s IRS police. I need to get that done before the bus to the re-education camp gets here!
Amen. Finally, someone put it all together into the right words.
Ping a ling!
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Bump!
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