Posted on 01/20/2016 11:54:10 PM PST by WTFOVR
So! YOU. STILL. DON'T. GET. IT!
It is an irony of politics that we often get that which we most despise yet doggedly work to bring into fruition - mediocrity ...
Purists want nothing less than complete lock step with whatever definition each one of them individually defines to be their ideology. But life, in a land that upholds as sacrosanct the historically novel idea of individual freedom, must by its very nature admit as many diverse opinions as their exists individuals.
The nexus of the problem is that the purist can never bend in the wind - and so he snaps - at everything and everyone, friend and foe alike. Not settling for anything less than 100 percent of that which defines his personal orthodoxy, he or she will cast out those who otherwise might be his best ally in the fight.
So goes the present contest of wills between two groups, each of whose chosen leader now battles for the number one position in a political struggle that will decide the fate of this American Republic for generations to come - that is, if our nation manages to survive as a republic.
Thus, it is to the "conservative purists" that I direct this rebuke ...
You, oh most orthodox believer in the church of "conservatism," would have all other members march, in perfect Hun tradition, as one gloriously synchronized goose-stepping phalanx. You, oh most pure of ideologues, would brutishly force all to go lock step to the beat of your most holy drum, left-right-left, without but a millimeter of deviation nor a nanosecond of doubt - even while the entire edifice burns and crumbles down around you ... Boldly you shall continue to sing only the most orthodox of conservative hymns, while holding up your fist in defiance and rage, obstinately certain of your "ideological purity" throughout the ensuing sociopolitical collapse.
Shall we attempt to douse the flames? NO! The water is contaminated with impurities! We dare not allow it to touch our sacred conservative tabernacle! We must not defile ourselves! We should rather perish! But the flames will surely spread and burn down the city ... So be it! Better to die than compromise our precious bodily fluids! Commander Jack D. Conservative will have none of it! OK, have it your way ...
The total destruction of EVERYTHING Americans ever were, or could ever hope to be, is but a minor thing; for you will happily perish in the flames of political Armageddon, gladly be reduced to ashes, because you may proudly shout from your graves that never did you deviate in the slightest from your dogma ... Let the irony of your indifference forever echo above the charred destruction ... Let the epitaph of this Republic be chiseled into the cold granite of your obstinately monolithic stupidity:
"Here lies Pure Conservatism - His cause perished with his country, but at least he pridefully never gave one inch!"
And you, oh purist, with your willing accomplices, made certain that neither could any other, less you beat them into submission with incessant mockery and damnable calumny - "Burn the heretics! Long live the Church of Pure!"
In your absolute arrogance, you forgot one very important axiom of life - a tree that never bends in the wind, snaps.
There is nothing so constant as change, and if it is not allowed to develop organically, then it will come by way of destructive revolution. Nor is there any object so elusive as the entity without blemish. Nothing in this life is pure - not even gold, and least of all political ideology ... There will always be heretics and compromising hellions to muddy the waters. Oh, the shame of it all!
The fact is that the political brinkmanship is not about electing the the most ideologically pure candidate ... The contest is and always has been one of choosing the MOST ELECTABLE ideological candidate ... You don't get 100 percent unadulterated conservatism - you settle for the mutt, because in politics the purebred is a myth - a figment spun only in the imaginations of those who have not acquired the ability to courageously face life's awful truths. Reality often sucks for ideologues.
No, you do not get the "purist" candidate - for reason that there is not one political animal who can win a national election by the weight of his ideological purity alone. Why? Because there is not one individual voter who is made up of 100 percent unadulterated anything. We're all political mutts! No citizen this side of sanity, who functions productively within our Constitutional Representative Republic, is so self-absorbed in their orthodoxy as to play the purist fiddle while the nation burns to the ground around them.
This is not a dress rehearsal, there is no do-over. This is our moment of trial. We have a nation in financial and cultural chaos, a Republic sitting on the precipice of the abyss. We have but one last opportunity to perhaps pull her back from the edge; and in this hour of peril "purity" takes a back seat to self-preservation.
We are now in a "fight to the death" with forces that unabashedly mean to destroy us and all we have ever been. Let me remind those who perhaps have forgotten those fateful words past spoken:
"... Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. ..." - Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address
We need ALL hands on deck - the purists and the not so pure; the ideologue and the pragmatist; Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Independent, man, woman, young, old - every one who believes in what this country stands for ... We need every creed, color, race and ethnicity who, at their very core, are AMERICANS FIRST!
Which now brings me to the point of my rant: Donald J. Trump ...
OK, I get it - Trump is not a straight down the list "pure" conservative. Well, golly gee, all you followers of Captain Obvious, thanks for pointing that out to me - I might never have guessed! But then again ... Neither is Senator Ted Cruz, his protests to the contrary notwithstanding.
In fact, I doubt you ideological bloodhounds will ever find such a creature among us, because we each hold to a different idea of what defines that ubiquitous moniker of "conservative" - and that reality check IS the point that Governor Palin made in her endorsement speech for Donald Trump.
On the other hand, the enemy we face IS VERY "pure" - and VERY focused on one singular evil goal - the utter destruction of our Republic ... He is the Dragon of fascist governance - let's call this beast "Smog," if you please, and we are the Hobbits.
Smog is the guardian of the gold that lies beneath the seemingly impenetrable mountain fortress of The Establishment, whose evil overlords have plotted down through the centuries so to protect their ill-gotten gain - and thus, by treachery of their warring dynasties, cast a perpetual darkness upon the Land of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. Their proxies promise reform - some promise to "spread the wealth;" and still others promise to "punish the wicked and restore justice." But somehow the smothering darkness never yields its grip on the land, no matter how often the dynastic throne changes hands, because the Dragon allows none but its heirs to enter his gold filled lair.
This Dragon, this entrenched and most powerful adversary, desires to crush our rugged individualism; he desires to extinguish the guiding spirit that beats in every American heart; any who dare threaten his power are burned out of existence - the orthodox and not so orthodox alike ... For all must accept their serfdom, never to be more than drones, existing but not prospering in this planned utopia of Dynastic crony collectivism.
Unfortunately for the cause of freedom, those who demand nothing less than "ideological purity" consistently act to deny admittance to those falling short of their personally prescribed measure. Thus the purists help our Dragon adversary achieve his evil goals.
We are a nation in search of a champion; but,more than a Bilbo Baggins, we need a Brave Heart ... We need a leader who will exploit the Dragon's weakness, see the chink in the Dragon's allegedly invincible armor, and let fly the arrow of liberty to its fateful mark. We need a new breed of warrior, one who fights to win; not merely for the purists, but for all Americans: the red, the white, the blue - and all the shades in between. That individual may not be the most "pure" of conservatives, but he's the only man consistently hitting the target ... A lean, mean fighting machine, named Donald J. Trump.
Thank you.
There’s more?! Yes, it truly is red/blue pill time and I cannot believe I/we are living through this nightmare! Where have all the decent leaders gone? Rhetorical of course....
Wrong. If you don’t have bedrock conservative values, then you will be pulled to the left in D.C. Because that is where the tide flows in D.C. as in most big urban areas. And you can’t fight “for Americans” if you don’t know what you’re fighting for.
Why would I vote for a candidate who agrees with me LESS than another candidate, and whom I trust less than the other candidate even on the points I agree with him on?
That smacks of anti-Americanism. I’ll grant you that America isn’t as great as it once was, but a hellhole? Really?
It’s not even close to ‘anti-American’ and I reject that entirely.
Yes, if you venture out much or have a business, have children, have investments, the reality of how sick this nation is cannot be denied. I doubt you need nor want me to list all the ways we are suffering. I certainly hope you see that reality.
I didn’t say I ‘like’ it, I am stating that the reality is what it is. One can only recover when they face the truth.
Thank you for not answering my question ...
And do not presume upon what metaphysical doctrines and principles I hold. You know me not. I said nothing about either, but rather cautioned against rigid adherence to political ideology. Your caustic reaction, and that of your cohorts, is rather telling ...
You each appear mostly possessed by anger ... which tells me I struck a chord which you are not wont to examine to deeply.
Judging from their voting records, the caliber of “dogma” possessed by those in Congress - whom you and others likely chose to be your champions of conservative “principles” - I must reply you have not a leg to stand on. Your so-called conservatives have proven themselves moral cowards and epic failures in carrying out their sworn oaths of office.
A Purist? lol
I am really having a hard time getting my arms around that so I can absorb it.
Conservatism is a philosophy, not a religion or even a political dogma.
It cannot be purist by definition because to be conservative is also to have a open mind and the ability to think critically.
As we grow as a society, things change. Conservatism was at one time a isolationist group as a whole, for tariffs and against free trade, believing that this was the best way to protect America and maintain jobs. But we now see tariffs as a tool that should be used intelligently and only if necessary. We believe in free but fair trade and are no longer isolationist.
This is just one of many reasons why conservatism is not a dogma and cannot be purist.
It's a philosophy based largely on history and as much consideration is given to what went right as to what went wrong in the past. It cannot by definition be a purist movement. Your screed is therefore based on a flawed premise that it often talked about by our left wing opposition.
I never thought I would see this sort of thing here on FR to the degree I see it since the Trump announcement for president.
Something is just not right when I have to fend off this sort of garbage.
There’s nothing self righteous about it. Marriage is not dealing with liberals unless you really made a dumb move and married one.
Running a company and running a country arent remotely in the same ballpark. Every time a company is filled with liberals, that company has problems. Look what happened to Apple recently. Their projections arent so great.
A boss and a President are somewhat comparable. But a Boss makes the calls and does not have an entire legislative branch there to veto.
A legislative branch, I would add, that is the creation of lesser evil stupidity.
So tell me. What did dealmaking with liberals result in for Mitch and Jonbon?
What did it result in for GWB?
What did it result in for GHWB?
What did it result in for Ronaldus?
I’ll tell you what because you obviously forgot. It all resulted in less liberty. Less cash for the taxpayer’s family, Less babies to populate the country, less good men and women now dead in Iraq, Lybia and the Stans. Less of everything good, right and just and more of everything bad, wrong and evil.
And just because it’s Trump matters not. He’s one man. And he isn’t playing with dealmakers. He would be playing with 500 people determined to screw him and us.
Sure we compromise. We decide every day what color socks to wear, which car to take to work and what day to mow the lawn. Do you ‘compromise when your 14 year old daughter tells you she is sleeping at her boyfriend’s house? No? Why not? Don’t be a self righteous tyrant! Do you compromise when your buddy takes your boat out to pick up chicks on the weekend you planned to take the family to the lake? Why not? Don’t be so self righteous!
Or do you grasp the simple concept that compromising larger issues is ALWAYS a bad idea and causes problems?
Go ahead. SHOW ME where America EVER benefits in these high level giveaways to liberals. You sure as hell can’t point to one in the last 7 years.
Your premise is correct - but, to be bluntly honest, we do need to be careful on this point, b/c history is replete with lessons of those who swung the pendulum too far in reaction to economic and judicial tyranny ... case in point Wehrmacht Germany. Yes, I know - some will imply I am making a comparison between two particular individuals; but, no ... Rather I am pointing out a social axiom proven by history. I admit that this is my greatest fear under the present set of sociopolitical and cultural circumstances ... IOW - Be careful what you wish for. Life is full of contradictions (sigh).
What am I supposedly angry about? And why does your post sound like a lunatic’s rant?
You either stand for something, or you stand for nothing.
We have been fighting every election to eliminate linguini spined compromisers.. We currently have a house and senate full of them, despite every effort we have made.
What made Obama so dangerous was that he did not compromise his positions on anything. He does not make deals, he tells the republicans what he wants and then attacks them in speeches and the willing sycophant press until they do his bidding. if there is any compromises, they are insignificant.
So how do you counter that?
You do it by replacing him with a man who will act on our behalf in the same way that Obama acts for his Marxist supporters. You replace him with a man who's end game is to return the US to a constitutional republic, and not continue to degrade it. The man who can do this needs a conservatively principled understanding and mindset.
If we fail here, to do this. We may well have sealed the fate of the US.
This is the man I intend to vote for.
How could things be any worse?
Elect Trump and we will find out
You’re hopeless - you now want to equate moral compromise with political compromise?
And marriage IS a two way street, whose facets go beyond whether your spouse holds opposite political views ... But for the sake of argument, why would any thinking man place himself in such an awkward position, unless he was thinking with the wrong “head”?
Obviously moral and philosophical comparability matters in a marriage - particularly for the sake of the children created by that union. So, I suspect you are putting up a straw-man argument here. The bottom line is that while it is true one must compromise on many things in life, I neither directly stated nor implied that morals were up for such treatment.
Oh, BTW - do you think Ronald Reagan made no compromises? As I recall, Reagan enacted amnesty to illegals in exchange for a promise of securing the border - too bad that Tip O’Neil was such a blatantly dishonest pig ... but Reagan trusted him. So was Ronaldus Maximus a dummy?
And how may employees does Donald Trump oversee in some capacity? How many subordinates does he direct? How many customers must he consider in his myriad of decisions. Oh, you think that these individuals have not personalities? You believe they are without intelligence and contribution? They are all just mindless drones taking orders from “the boss”? I find it both revealing and amazing the shallow opinion you hold towards the lives of other people.
And, BTW, just who elected those 500 individuals to office?
You go too far in your presumptions as to what I imply by compromise. Just as your rigid adherence to ideology puts you right up there with Obama. The fact is that one may compromise on some things without surrendering principle or moral integrity. But, I suppose, that is a concept that you and others are either incapable of comprehending or else too blindly obstinate to admit.
That what political experts say. You can disagree all you want because you don’t like the results.
It is equitable. What do you think the basis is for the Nanny Statists!
Politics and morality are inextricably linked.
That is where the political dogma is on the left. They see their politics as a moral imperative or religion. It's why they refuse to accept or even consider any other way of thinking.
Sound familiar? it is to me...I'm lookin at it every day..of late.
You are missing the point of what I stated. I do not advocate compromise on morals - and I did not state or imply that anybody should, be they in the field of politics or something else. You seem to believe that compromise on anything means compromise on everything. The more of these post I read, the more I am convinced that more than a few individuals are being purposely disingenuous in their responses.
Not at all. It's just that this particular horse has been beaten 7 ways to Sunday.
What do you think of the date of the publication?
I don't know, what do you want to hear? That older birther bs is of some more esteemed value than new birther bs?
It is only an open forum for a give and exchange of ideas. You just like to dish it out.
Not at all - I would love a real debate on the issues. This is just tiring.
"On native soil" is a bs argument, and always has been... It matters not a whit that he was born on foreign ground.
IMHO, your best argument is the 'Two American Parents" shtick, which is admittedly back-fed through naturalization ~ but it is a losing argument, which will never make it through court. Precedent is already set, and 50 states have already vetted the candidate, and declared him eligible, or he would not be on the ballot. In reality, no one has standing to challenge that...
The only real shot you have is to destroy the citizenship of the mother - her citizenship somehow being inaccurately portrayed to the states - which isn't going to happen, but that's why the sudden flurry trying to somehow prove her a Canadian citizen.
So despite all your wailing and weeping, and all the dirt thrown in the air, Ted Cruz is a Native Son.
And for the fun of it, what is it that you hope to gain between you and I? Do you think that disqualifying Cruz will leave me no choice but to vote for Trump?
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