>>I’m all for fighting. And I’m all for winning. I just don’t think we have to sell our conservative souls, or betray our conservative values, to do so.
Oh, for crying out loud, we aren’t bashing infants’ heads against a wall! Conservative values do not include letting the enemy choose the time, place, weapons, and terrain for every fight. George Washington won most of his battles by subterfuge. His biggest win was accomplished by sneaking his men across a river at night and attacking on Christmas Day, which was a very unseemly thing to do and would definitely violate your “conservative values”.
The greatest conservative value is individual freedom. In fact, the ONLY conservative value is individual freedom. All other values come from that one thing. We are in a fight for that freedom against a remorseless enemy who will take that away from us. It is their goal!
All I’m saying is that we must fight the battle for hearts and mind using the same tactics they use against us. Those tactices are working and that’s why they are winning. Look at how many people believe that Sarah Palin said “I can see Russia from my house”!
The Left throws a dozen lies up against the wall each week to see which ones stick. The ones that stick get repeated a hundred times in the first 24 hours.
If we say that they’re lying, they just deny.
When we accumulate evidence that they are lying, they claim we are taking them out of context.
When we play the video to prove context, they claim that it isn’t important or that we misunderstand.
When we gather more evidence that it is lie, that their statements were in context, and that what they said is what they meant; they just say, “are you still talking about that? This is a week old and we have more important things to worry about.”
Now, if we do not engage in the same tactics, then they NEVER have to be on the defensive. We play defense constantly and they move the chains on every play.
One rule of combat is “If you find yourself in a fair fight, then your tactics suck!”
I simply don’t agree that we need to or should lie in order to advance conservatism.
I can see that there might be an extraordinary situation in which lying might well be justified. But I don’t think lying as a matter of course is either necessary or advisable for conservatives.
I believe that conservatism is the truth, and that the truth is strong enough to stand on its own. That truth helped defeat the Soviet Union. That truth helped make America the great country we are today.
Gandhi overcame violence with peace. I am not willing to become the enemy in order to “defeat” them.
I have been re-watching the Lord of the Rings movies lately. Boromir attempts to take the Ring, because he knows the Ring gives its holder the power to conquer the world.
Would it have given him that power? Yes, but he would not have been victor over Sauron. He would only have been his replacement. Later, his brother Faramir captures Frodo and decides to send the Ring to Gondor, to give Gondor its power. Galadriel comments that the captain of Gondor (that is, Faramir) has only to stretch out his hand and take the Ring, and all will be lost.
Upon seeing the power of the Ring to corrupt even Frodo, Faramir changes his mind and releases the Ring-bearer to continue his quest to destroy the Ring. In fact, he decides he is even willing to forfeit his life in order to do so. And that one decision makes a difference between a failure that looks like a victory, and a real victory.
And yes, it’s just a story. But great stories are great because they reflect the principles of real life.
Conservatism is strong enough to stand on the truth. That is what I believe. If you believe otherwise, then we’ll just have to agree to disagree.