Take a read on Lisa Schiffren’s take on last week’s decisions and on the Culture War. I do agree on with her on this:
It’s been an unhappy week in conservative America. I won’t lie. Last week’s three big SCOTUS rulings on Obamacare, gay marriage and housing, and the race to destroy Confederate statuary—because bringing down the flag over the South Carolina statehouse isn’t enough—have been dispiriting. The dawning awareness that we no longer live in a Constitutional Republic, and that we cannot count on the rule of law or the plain meaning of words in legislation, is dive-under-the-covers depressing. If you believe, as I do, that liberalism unleashed has a lot in common with fascism, some dread accompanies evidence that constitutional restraints have been cut. The temptation to hide was strong.
And that’s just the set up.
By a few minutes after 10 a.m. on Friday solid citizens were making plans to drown their sorrows. A usually cheerful, responsible citizen noted that you can’t be drunk all day if you don’t start in the morning. Social media was rife with outrage—at least among my crowd—and a collective throwing up of hands in disgust. Thousands of Facebook users defriended people with whom they usually have moderately antagonistic disagreements. The uselessness of the GOP as an ally in fighting the culture wars was widely discussed.
And Doug Scamman’s part in all this? Ah yes, I thought you’d ask. Yes, he of the “forget about the social issues” fame. Well guess what – this past week his ilk and Scamman were pretty much shown how the Culture WILL and HAS defined the downstream politics. And it is no longer pretty. And as Schiffren points out (“uselessness “), people are mad at the GOP and if “The Elite” continue to be the Elite of the Stupid Party, they will be just utterly amazed at future election results (psst – a precursor happened back in November).
Ding, Ding, DING, Doug! A brief history lesson for you – and I was edumacated in the public school systems, too! Shhh – top secret: the GOP got its start AS A SOCIAL ISSUES PARTY – slavery ring your bell, Doug? Yep, exactly the opposite of what you say now with “concentrate only on the fiscal issues”. By retreating from the Culture War, folks like you have made the GOP useless for a big part of your base. In fact, if you read Schiffren’s piece, a LOT of people are ripped at the GOP.
Look, here’s the math People Support the Party = the Party Supports the People. No support from the Party on issues in which the People are getting kicked in the shorts? Don’t be surprised if they go home. Tell the People you’ll fight for them and once in Concord or DC, go native? Not a way to engender continued support. This should be simple math – and psychology, right?
“The uselessness of the GOP as an ally in fighting the culture wars was widely discussed.” Those who are “leading” had best take this to heart. If nothing else, last cycle the lesson that became clear is that if you took on and stand up to the perceived (and oft times, real) “enemies” of conservatives and bring the fight to them, well the poll numbers rewarded them. I do believe a large part of the base wants a feisty candidate that is willing to throw elbows when needed, not necessarily against the other candidates, but against the Liberals and Progressives – and do it HARD. And even do it more than just needed. “Uselessness” – if you back out of fight of trying to help, why should you get backing? If you aren’t willing to engage, neither will a goodly part of the base. Just ask Presidents Dole, Ford, Romney, and McCain. Just ask Governor Havenstein and second rounder Senator Scott Brown, too, if you think I’m just whistling Dixie.
Methinks that there are plenty who have just about had it with the GOP – and are right on the cusp of just retreating themselves and hunkering down. They no longer care what happens BECAUSE when they count on their GOP elected officials to at least fiercely fight (if they can’t win), they are tired of the GOP turning tail and delivering on the Junior Democrat title. Overpromising and underdelivering with no fight in ya – we can forgettaboutya. Yes the stakes are high but no longer is everyone in the GOP boat willing to row on command when they see those wanting to BE someone rather than fighting for them. Hunkering down seems like the better deal if the GOP ain’t flying air cover anymore.
There is a real angst out there; as bad as what the Progressives are doing to the country, we all know that’s what they do. The anger comes when those we expect to stand up to them, frustrate them at every turn, and cut them off at the knees when our Principles are assailed, simply wimp out with all kinds of excuses. Retreating; well, if the elected can, than why not us? If we can’t see measureable success in actually getting a lower cost government (instead of an ever increasing deficit), a less invasive government (SLASH the size of government to make it impossible for them to rule our lives), and seeing elected legislators in ACTUALLY DO THEIR DAMN JOBS instead of sloughing it off to the Executive Branch to make the “smaller decisions” – that’s why we’re in the sorry mess we’re in. MAKE THE DAMN DECISIONS YOURSELVES instead of leaving it to the bureaucrats.
Excuses. Uselessness. Anger. Retreating. Lazy.
“The uselessness of the GOP as an ally in fighting the culture wars was widely discussed.“
There, is it out of my system? Naw, now that my sabbatical is coming to an end, I’m just starting up again.
