It is clear that today’s progressives have the same constitutional contempt as their predecessors. I hope they do not share the racial vision. Black voters ought to demand, at a minimum, that progressives disavow their ugly racist past. They should re-label themselves to something other than progressives, maybe compassionate totalitarians.
If you listen to either Hillary or Bernie, they are out to give everything they can think of to those they believe are “oppressed” (even if they have “self-oppressed” for their status in society for, well, being lazy, underachievers, or just being a screw-up). They see themselves as the ultimate in compassion – they want to provide anything to everyone and fulfilling the positive rights manifesto of FDR’s Second Bill of Rights in which Government must do things FOR you instead of the Founders vision of negative rights: what government CANNOT do TO you. The former basically says Government will be responsible for you – the latter keeps Government taking over you.
The problem with Progressives is that their “compassion” is Government forced collectivism in that charity and all goodness must flow from Government. The proof of this is the diminution of the Civil Society model that de Toqueville wrote of in the mid 1800s where government was extremely small but personal interactions were large with Society sphere; Progressives have all but forced Government into every nook and cranny of our lives and has crowded out the former meaning of Civil Society.
The compassion, however, is a faux one – true compassion comes voluntarily from individuals either singly or in bands of like minded people. Instead, Progressives extract other peoples’ money to fund “their compassion” – and that is the totalitarian part. Look at any program that Progressives wish to rollout – every single one DEMANDS they take from some to give to others. Oh, they will use soft words, like “this is the price we pay for civilization” or better “we will ask the more fortunate among us to give more” – I can’t think of a more bastardized use of “ask” and “give” than that as both have the sense of it being a two way negotiable transaction. An “ask” in common parlance means that an answer can be either yes or no – which is not the same definition that Progressives mean which really translates as “you WILL comply”. Give is the same thing: to give means that one also has the ability to “not give” – Progressives have used that to cover up what is really happening: an unequivocal demand for your stuff in which you have no say. As in Peter gets Paul to conspire to take Mary to give to Paul, but Peter takes the credit for being able to “give” something to Mary.
And that is the totalitarian part as Mary has little say in the matter. Why? Progressives ALWAYS use the word and phrase “Democracy in work” but as we know from our Founders, a Democracy is nothing more than mob rule which is why we are supposed to be a Constitutional Republic. Doubt me? Why did Progressives pass the 17th Amendment to make Senators publicly elected instead of by the State Legislatures? Because of “democracy” which had the practical (and known) effect of all but nullifying States Rights by the Feds – they have been “Mary-fied” (and ditto for the work to de facto elimination of the Electoral College by the same process). But I digress.
Compassionate Totalitarians – the hiding of the true nature for there has NEVER been a totalitarian that is compassionate. It is ALWAYS about the acquiring power from others and then keeping it. The compassion part is just a dodge, a blind, a misdirection.
Now is a perfect time for you, readers, to watch this in action. Not just the Socialists running in the Dem Party but look at the Republicans as well for there ARE Progressives there as well. And they have and will continue to “conspire” to get votes by any means possible – especially if it is your “means”.
(H/T: Walter Williams at Townhall)
