Posted on 02/21/2010 1:14:06 PM PST by Sergeant Tim
I was invited to be the opening speaker at Saturday's CPAC session. I had accepted but then, to my amazement, I learned that the John Birch Society would be one of many co-sponsors. This takes the big-tent idea many steps too far for me. So, I withdrew. Apparently, others were not so moved. That's fine. But it wasn't for me. Bill Buckley and Barry Goldwater, among others, chased the Birchers from the movement decades ago. And they're not a part of the movement. So, to give them a booth at CPAC was boneheaded.
I want to commend Bill Bennett for his wise piece this morning on the Corner. I agree with him.
I have no idea what philosophy Glenn Beck is promoting. And neither does he. It's incoherent. One day it's populist, the next it's libertarian bordering on anarchy, next it's conservative but not really, etc. And to what end? I believe he has announced that he is no longer going to endorse candidates because our problems are bigger than politics. Well, of course, our problems are not easily dissected into categories, but to reject politics is to reject the manner in which we try to organize ourselves. This is as old as Plato and Aristotle. Why would conservatives choose to surrender the political battlefield to our adversaries -- who are trashing this society -- when we must retake it in order to preserve our society? Philosophy, politics, culture, family, etc., are all of one. Edmund Burke, among others, wrote about it extensively, and far better that I possibly can. But all elements of the civil society require our defense. Besides, why preach such a strategy when conservatism is on the rise and the GOP is acting more responsibly?
Moreover, when he does discuss politics, which, ironically, is often, how can he claim today that there is no difference between the two parties when, but for the Republicans in Congress, government-run health care, cap-and-trade, card check, and a long list of other disastrous policies would already be law? The GOP is becoming more conservative thanks to the grass-roots movement and a political uprising across the country, which has even reached into New Jersey and Massachusetts. Why keep pretending otherwise? My only conclusion is that he is promoting a third party or some third way, which is counter-productive to defeating Obama and the Democrat Congress. These are perilous times and this kind of an approach will keep the statists in power for decades.
And what of his flirtations with Ron Paul's lunacy respecting America's supposed provocations with her enemies, including al-Qaeda? Why should such a fatal defect in thinking be ignored? Do we conservatives agree with this?
Finally, Beck is fond of congratulating himself for being the only or the first host to criticize George Bush's spending. This is demonstrably false. I not only attacked his spending, but the creation of the Homeland Security Department, the prescription drug add-on for Medicare, his "moderate" tax cuts, as well as his nomination of Harriet Miers to the Supreme Court, "comprehensive immigration reform," and so forth. And I was not alone -- Rush and Sean did the same, for example. And as someone who fought liberal Republicans in the trenches when campaigning for Reagan in 1976 and 1980, I don't need lectures from Beck, who was nowhere to be found, about big-spending Republicans. But this is not about me, or Beck, or Beck's past drunkenness (which he endlessly wears as some kind of badge of honor). It is about preserving our society for our children and grandchildren. Beck spent precious little time aiming fire at Obama-Pelosi-Reid in his speech, and it is they who are destroying our country.
On as a positive note, I am personally happy to see that Beck has cleaned up his public act -- as best I can tell, no more boiling fake frogs on TV or pretending to pour gasoline on someone -- and the rest of it. But I do think his speech, which contained nuggets of truth heard before and read elsewhere, including on Rush's show and in my book and many other books, may have distracted from some of the more compelling and coherent speeches at the event, including Marco Rubio's superb speech. I fear the media will see to this. I hope not.
Arriving late, and started with the last post - yours.
Are you saying that Beck has declared himself the leader of the Tea Party Movement?
Hey that’s great, same here since 78.
Is he a bit disorganized from time to time,yes of course.
***
Beck is ADD and carrying around and reading about nightmare government stories does not help!
Absoltuey, I used to do morning drive a few years ago 7-10 am and many a day I would crawl out of the studio at 10 and still have to go do my day job,got burnt out big time.
Are you saying Beck isn’t interested in moving the Republican Party toward conservatism?
Just curious.
As he suggested, things will only get much worse if we don't jettison liberal-republicans and continue down this path as a nation.
After viewing attacks on Sarah Palin the chances of this happening are slim. There's a visceral hatred of conservatism that comes from both sides, though mainly from liberals.
Half the incumbent R's in the senate and house couldn't pass a constitution test if their lives depended on it.
Hard to imagine.
Are you saying Beck isn’t interested in moving the Republican Party toward conservatism?
Evidently we are all getting different messages from his shows.
Are you saying Beck isn’t interested in moving the Republican Party toward conservatism?
Are you saying Beck isn’t interested in moving the Republican Party toward conservatism?
*** I would say "until recently either" when I had learned about in the early 1980's
You can’t tell it and he doesn’t show it. Believe me there is no one in the business that is not insecure.
Its the loneliest job on earth.
sorry, don’t know what’s going on, but my last post keeps reposting
No one can imagine when I heard Beck talk on this topic I really jump out of my chair no has every in all my years listening talk about the history of the Progressives.
Yes the word was used but it could register with the listener if they did not have a back ground on that term!
There have been inferences made along the way on several of Beck’s shows that I personally have seen, and I have heard Levin speak on that issue, too.
What on earth do you mean by “gay bashing”?
If you mean criticizing the homosexual agenda, or stating that the perverted sexual acts that they practice and promote are harmful and unnatural and should not be promoted are “gay bashing”, then you’re on the wrong forum.
Usually the only people who use the phrase “gay bashing” are homosexuals and those who push the homosexual agenda, that’s why I’m wondering what you mean.
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