Sunday, October 31, 2010

An open letter to the soon-to-be-elected Republican members of Congress

Dear Freshman GOP Congressional Class of 2011:

As I pen this letter to you, we are less than 48 hours away from one of the most watershed mid-term elections of our nation's history--during which all of you will be swept into office. At the risk of doing so prematurely, allow me to express my heartfelt congratulations to you on your election, and my deepest appreciation for stepping to the poltical forefront during one of the most challenging times in American History. You are taking office at a truly challenging and volitile time in our nation--and your willingness to step forward and serve at such a critical time in our nation speaks quite highly of your character.

As you are no doubt aware, you are stepping into an veritable hornets nest in Washington DC. You will be dealing with a President, a news media, and a very loud minority of the American people who will be working against you, and who will stop at nothing (and I mean absolutely nothing) to destroy your poltical career. By measure of what you stand for right now, you represent a threat to them--not only to their individual careers, but to their flawed worldview and institutions. You represent a dagger in the heart of everything they believe, everything they stand for, and everything that they regard (incorrectly) to be truthful about this world...and as such, they will attempt to destroy you just as they are attempting to destroy this great nation.

In the past, when previous generations of first-term Republicans have found themselves in your shoes, many of them have capitulated and fallen prey to the "Inside the beltway" culture of Washington. They have forgotten their constituents, and have instead worked for the approval of the Washington Insiders, the Intelligensia, and the Media. They're willpower, in many cases, has been worn down by the seductive lure of "establishing themselves" into the Washington culture. In short, many of them have moved away from the values and beliefs that they had prior to being elected.

I know that you do not wish for the same to happen to you, and neither do we--the Conservative American Majority who elected you. We want you to excel where those who came before you failed. You no doubt recognize the shortcomings of your predecessors, as do we who elected you. With that in mind, here are some areas for you to focus on that might help in keeping touch with your Conservative roots, and with what is really important in America:

Focus Area #1--Stop the Bleeding: Your primary job on your first day of duty is to oppose anything and everything--both in word and in deed--that is a part of the dangerous Obama agenda. You are unlikely to have a Veto-proof majority, but even so, make Obama use that veto. Make certain that any Liberal agenda items that slip through can only be attributed to the Democratic party. Force them to go on the record for what little they might "accomplish". Do not get lulled into "cooperating" with them on anything-to do so will put your name on a bill or on a program that you do not wish to be associated with. Stay unified in Conservatism--do not allow those on the side of Evil to divide you with promises or pork or favoritism. They will say anything and do anything to destroy us..do not believe one solitary word that any Democrat says--and that includes the President. They do not have the interests of the American People at heart, and they certainly do not have your best interests at heart--regardless of what they might tell you at a cocktail party or in a back room of the Capitol.

Focus Area #2--Publicly stand for Conservatism at every opportunity: Do not sway your public comments based on what some polls say, or what the media is reporting that the American People supposedly think. Do not try to open up a "big tent"--instead realize that the better alternative is a "small tent" that is very crowded. Do not worry about coming up with the "safe" answer to a reporter's question--instead, give the CORRECT answer. The Liberal Media does not have the unchallenged monopoly on communication in this country that they used to--so even if they try to castigate you for saying something "controversial" (read: "something that does not coincide with a Liberal worldview"), WE WILL HAVE YOUR BACK! We got you elected once, we'll get you elected again, so long as you stay with your Conservative princeples.

Focus Area #3--Think "Long-Term" instead of "Short-Term": At the risk of sounding disheartening, many of the things that we in the Conservative movement want are unlikely to be accomplished during one election cycle. For example, we want Obamacare repealed--but even the most enthusiastic Conservative understands that this cannot happen with a Democratic President in office unless we have a solid, veto-proof majority. So while actually accomplishing this is likely far off, it won't be accomplished during this term. Nevertheless, keep your eyes on the prize and consistently advocate the many long-term goals of Conservatism. This is not about winning elections and staying in power--it is instead about reclaiming our nation and our culture from those who have perverted it over the last half of the 20th Century. Such a reclaimation cannot take place overnight...it will instead be a "life's work" for all of us. Do not allow the daunting nature of this worthwhile task to take your eyes off the ball. Understand that you are making a difference that will be felt 40 or 50 years from now, even if it might not be readily apparent today.

Focus Area #4--Realize that the Grass Roots Conservatives (the "Tea Party" etc.) now run the GOP, not the traditional party "leadership": For 20 years, much of the problem with the GOP has been the established leadership who have been more concerned with winning elections, being invited to Washington social functions, and getting the plum spot on the Sunday Morning panel shows than they have been with getting America back on the right track. Make no mistake, this "leadership" had very little to do with the 2010 Congressional gains--it was the grassroots Conservatives...people like the "Tea Partiers" and the younger Conservatives who are just now taking a day-to-day interest in politics...who swept you into office. As a result, this marks (rather profoundly) a generational shift in the GOP. We who elected you are Conservatives first, Republicans second. We are much more concerned with repairing our nation than we are abount winning an election, or having some artifcial majority of (R)'s vs. (D)'s in Congress. We are not under the control of the GOP leadership, instead we act on our own, and you have now seen the power that we possess. The GOP leadership might talk a good game, but never forget, you work for US...not for them. If you stay true to our expectations and principles--if you keep Conservatism first--then you will have our unquestioned loyalty. But be warned--if you turn on us, if you sell us out for the lure of "bi-partisanship" and "cooperation"--we'll drop you quicker than Britney Spears drops her panties. We WILL continue to be involved in the primary process, and we will not hesitate to destroy you in your next primary if you turn your back on Conservatism. Don't force us to do this.

Good luck to you, and Godspeed--a nation depends on you to implement what we the voters have instructed you to do.

Sincerly,
The American People

Thursday, October 21, 2010

The Most Destructive Phrase in the English Language

There is one phrase in the English language that I absolutely despise. I mean, I reeeeaaallly hate it. Can't stand it. Makes my skin crawl whenever I hear it.

And it's not "Last Call".

That offending phrase is "You just can't say those things!"

It's usually a phrase that is used when something controversial--but true or reasonable--is stated in a public forum. It is the epitome of Political Correctness--a retort indicating that while the "offending" comment might have some validity, it's still a comment that somehow shouldn't enter into public debate as it's just too "offensive". It is usually generated by the unspoken notion that it is better to be polite and inoffensive in public debate as opposed to being truthful.

Suppose you're having a conversation with a group of friends, and you say "There's more violent crime in poor, black areas than their are in the suburbs". You're likely to get at least one person in the group to pipe up with the "You just can't say that!" phrase. They won't dispell your point--anybody who would attempt to do so simply could not be taken seriously in light of what human beings see and observe every day--but there is something about that particular piece of truth that doesn't jive with the worldview that they subscribe to, and as such, they cannot tolerate that type of fact into the discussion.

National Public Radio perpetrated perhaps the biggest "You just can't say that!" moment of all time by firing Juan Williams for his comments on the Bill O'Reilly show. Williams "controversially" said that he gets nervous or worried when he goes on an airplane and sees other people wearing Muslim garb.

Well, Duh! After 9/11 who among us doesn't do a double-take when seeing these kind of people in an airport or on a bus?

However, NPR evidently decided that Williams didn't do a suitable job of pretending that the threat of Muslim Terrorism doesn't exist, the way that NPR wants their employees to do so. In the PC world of NPR, the fact that Williams had a reasonable reaction to seeing people in an airport wearing Muslim garb, and dared to be truthful and admit it, was somehow beyond the bounds of good taste. Likewise, I've heard many people since that time say that you just can't say what Williams said, though they would admit that his reaction was somewhat natural and understandable.

Are you fucking serious?

Williams never impuned Muslims as a whole in his comments (and in fact, later in the interview, cautioned Bill O'Reilly that we as a nation should be careful not to view all Muslims in the same vein--a statement that I don't exactly agree with Williams on). All he said was that, after the events of 9/11--when, might I remind you, WE WERE ATTACKED BY RADICAL MUSLIMS--he gets a tad nervous when seeing Muslims on a plane. He didn't say he interferes with them, or that he takes any action against them, or that they shouldn't fly, just that he is a bit more "aware" of them than he might have been previously.

Nobody is suggesting that all Muslims are terrorists--but it is clear, based on recent history, that there is a percentage of them that are. We've also learned that it doesn't take many radical Muslims to cause large amounts of damage (remember Ft. Hood? All done by only one radical Muslim). Therefore it is only logical that a human being who is concious of his own safety would give an extra look towards those who may potentially be among a group that would pose a threat--particularly when in a vulnerable environment such as an airplane.

So it's certainly reasonable that one would take extra precautions with this group of people when you consider the events of the last nine years (and longer if you count the destruction that they have wroght worldwide). The stand of NPR (and those who agree with their decision) gives the appearance that we are to ignore the threat of radical Muslims, by forcing us to "pretend" that such a threat doesn't exist, or is, at worst, minimal.

It is my view that we can't fully address and and solve the problem of radical Islam (or many other problems for that matter) if we are not allowed to honestly discuss them--with no restrictions placed on what we say for "political correctness". See #10 on the CWG list of key Conservative concepts--"The truth hurts, but that's ok." In other words, ignoring an issue, or refusing to acknowledge it because doing so would force us to overturn the unrealistic worldview of those who naively believe that human beings of all races, religions, and nationalities can somehow live in peace (World History shows us that this is, indeed, impossible), will only lead to more problems, and the issue will remain unsolved.

If you have a relative with a drug problem, does insisting that nobody mention it make it go away? Of course not. If you are having financial problems, do they get solved by never looking at your bank statements? Certainly not. It should go without saying--but I suppose it doesn't--that problems cannot be solved when they are ignored. Those problems just fester, grow, and become unmanageable if they are not attacked at first site.

I'm going to say something now that will offend many of you Liberals who read this blog (and I know you're out there): Radical Islam is a problem in America and the World at large. It is not a philosophy to be understood or contained, it is not the result of any group of people having a legitimate gripe with the United States or Western Culture, and it is not a result of the favorite buzzword of the Left--"unfairness". These people hate our culture and our nation, have already attacked us multiple times, and have made it clear that they intend to keep attacking. We must do all we can--on a personal level as well as on a national security front--to address this problem and eliminate it. Our survival depends upon it.

There is never a time where Americans should sacrifice their safety and security merely for abstract and high-minded concepts like "fairness" and "understanding". If protecting our safety crosses the line into bigotry or even racism, then so be it. I hope the American Left can learn this lesson before their inaction results in the demise of us all.

Monday, October 11, 2010

The Rebellion of the Responsible--How the "$75 Tennessee Housfire" points to a changing attitude regarding "Safety Net" government

First, before we get into the topic at hand in this post, a bit of housecleaning: As you may be aware, I'm a bit new to this "blogging" thing--so I'm learning what I'm doing as I go. As you likely are aware, comments on this blog are moderated by yours truly (only for the reason that I don't want this to turn into the typical AOL comments section filled with nothing of consequence). Tonight, when I logged in, I noticed a comment waiting for moderation that I had somehow missed for nearly a month. This is my fault, as I didn't notice the comment waiting for moderation, and I take full responsibility for the oversight. I assure you, faithful readers, that this shall not happen again. The comment has been published (It was in response to the "Gays and Kiss Cams" post), along with my response to it. My sincere apologies, particularly to the poster who originally made the comment...this type of oversight on my part shall not happen again, so sayeth the CWG!!!

Now onto today's topic--the "$75 Tennessee Housefire" and how it relates to the overall poltical climate in our nation today. By now, many of you are aware of the recent situation in which a homeowner in rural Tennessee was denied firefighting assistance because he had not paid a $75 annual subscription fee for such services. The homeowner called the fire department when his house caught fire, the fire department came out, discovered he had not paid the subscription fee, and refused him service, allowing his home to burn to the ground--though they did provide service for his neighbor (who had paid the appropriate fee) when the fire threatened to jump to his property.

The story became national attention when Keith Olbermann tried to use it to attack Conservatives, and the Tea Party in particular. Olbermann made the claim that this type of service was indicative of how the "pay as you go" principals of providing services advocated by many Tea Partiers would function in practice. Olbermann attempted to use this story to illustrate how (in his mind) a system where services are funded by taxes, then provided to everyone is "superior" to a system in which services are funded by a voluntary subscription basis, and only those who buy in for the service are covered.

Keith summoned up all the crocodile tears that he could when delivering this story, even interviewing the homeowner (not once, but twice) sitting in front of his burned out home. Olbermann's reports on this were melodrama worthy of a Sally Struthers "Feed the starving African kids" commercial or a Jerry Lewis Labor Day Telethon. He used these interviews to blame the fire chief for not putting out the fire, blaming the municipality for having a subscription-based service to begin with, and blamed the voters of the county for not approving a measure that would increase taxes in order to provide fire protection across the board...but of course, he never bothered to blame the one person who was actually responsible for the lost home--the homeowner himself.

After his intial report on his "Countdown" program, Olbermann brought the story up again later in the week (along with another exploitation...erm..."interview" with the homeowner who wasn't responsible enough to protect his own property) and expressed incredulousness at the reaction in many quarters that, essentially, the homeowner "had it coming". How could we be so callous, Olbermann wondered aloud? It would appear that what Olbermann found even more shocking than the deadbeat homeowner's house being allowed to burn down was the fact that many Americans essentially agreed with the Fire Chief's decision.

But should Olbermann (or other Liberals--when I read other interactions on the web about this topic, the shock and sadness from the Left--feigned or otherwise--regarding reaction to the homeowner was farily consistent) really be all that surprised? In my view, they really should not be surprised at the reaction against the homeowner here. There seems to be a growing chasm in America between Responsible Americans and Irresponsible Americans. In other words, there is a growing disparity between that group of Americans that work hard, follow the rules, and pay their own way in life and that group of Americans who feel that they should not have to work or produce, should not have to be responsible for their own lot in life, and who feel they are entitled to live off of the spoils produced by those in the other group who are responsible.

For over 60 years (or even longer, if you really want to go back into history) Responsible Americans have been expected to foot the bill for the Irresponsible Americans in society. Under the guise of "fairness", "equality", or just plain old tugging at emotion, heartstrings, and the attempted imposition of guilt, Responsible Americans are expected not only to carry their own weight, but to carry the weight of those who refuse to contribute to society or their own well-being. For many years, well-meaning Conservatives (particularly those in the 1960's, 70's, 80's, and even 90's--remember that "Compassionate Conservative" garbage?) fell right into this trap--falling for the age-old argument of "Well, we have to do something for them, after all, they're suffereing!" So from Social Security, to Medicare, to the "War on Poverty", to attempts to woo Conservatives over on disasterous policies like Universal Health Care and Amnesty for Illegal Immigrints--the Left has consistantly used the tactic of "we can't just let them fall through the cracks" to shame the some on the Right into supporting programs which the government should never undertake.

However, I'm noticing a different type of reaction starting to come from Conservatives (particularly younger Conservatives) that I speak with every day--a reaction of "To Hell with the Irresponsible Americans". Many of us within this group of "New Conservatives" realize that drastic cuts to government must be made, and we are seriously questioning the entire concept of the government-maintained "safety net" that is practically gospel to Liberals. We look back at the last century of American History--during which billions of dollars have been thrown at the "problem areas" of society...only to provide no return on investment. We've seen money thrown at inner city schools for decades--yet graduates of such schools are no more prepared to function in society than they were earlier in the 20th Century. We've seen different social programs set up to help poor and single mothers--only to see a continual increase in the number of single mothers and children without two parents (as well as a decrease in the number of responsible fathers in America...after all, if the government--and by extension the Responsible Americans who actually pay taxes and fund it--will fund the raising of your illegitimate kids, then why should you do it?). Time and again, Americans are told that it's a "moral responsibility" to help those who are "disadvantaged" (igoring the fact that in most cases, those people are the source of their own disadvantages), despite such "help" never resulting in the eradication of the problems that it is supposed to address.

We see our own history, and we know that a change must be made. We see the destruction that the "safety net" form of public policy has wroght, and we want no part of it going forward. We understand that those who refuse to take responsibility for their lives should have to deal with the reprecussions of their choices (such as the Tennessee homeowner who opted not to subscribe to the fire service) without Responsible Americans having to take up the slack for the Irresponsible. We realize that coddling the parasites who wish to subsist off of Responsible Americans only retards the development and the human potential of those who are currently Irresponsible. In other words, they'll never have develop the skills to prosper in American society if they aren't cut off from the teet of society, and forced to learn those skills and provide for themselves.

If you look back at the Healthcare debate--most of the objection to Obamacare from the Right was on this basis. A growing number of Americans are putting their foot down and saying "Not one more motherfucking dime!!" We want to pay for our own healthcare...not yours. We care if our child gets educated...not yours. We will do what it takes to put food on our table and a roof over our heads...but we will no longer provide food and a roof for those of you who don't feel the need to do so.

A new generation of Conservatives is hell-bent on stopping the gravy train that the dregs of American society have lived off of for most of the 20th Century. Not only do we realize that, as a nation, we can no longer afford to provide this gravy train--but more importantly we realize the destructive effect that such "safety nets" have on the lives of those individuals who choose to spend their entire existence trapped in those nets. You need look no further than your nearest inner city to get an eye-opening picture of the destructiveness to human potential that occurs when government tries to fill the void of personal responsibility and the nuclear family. Are some people going to "fall through the cracks" if we continue to pursue the dismantling of the "safety net"? Probably so..but I suspect it will be a lot less than many people think. Reason being: the human instinct for survival will take over, and those who are currently contributing nothing to society will start, because if they do not, they'll starve.

Man acheives his greatest successes when he has no choice but to achieve, and when failure is simply not an option. We must remove the "safety net" in society, and in so doing, remove the option of failure from those Irresponsible Americans in society.

The Responsible Americans must continue to rebel...our nation and our culture depends upon it.