Long piece by David Brooks in which he attempts to figure out why the Republican party appears to be in shambles:
To put it bluntly, over the past several years, the G.O.P. has made ideological choices that offend conservatism’s Burkean roots. This may seem like an airy-fairy thing that does nothing more than provoke a few dissenting columns from William F. Buckley, George F. Will and Andrew Sullivan. But suburban, Midwestern and many business voters are dispositional conservatives more than creedal conservatives. They care about order, prudence and balanced budgets more than transformational leadership and perpetual tax cuts. It is among these groups that G.O.P. support is collapsing.
American conservatism will never be just dispositional conservatism. America is a creedal nation. But American conservatism is only successful when it’s in tension — when the ambition of its creeds is retrained by the caution of its Burkean roots.
Hogwash. If you want to know why the Republican party is in shambles, read this:
Yesterday, in response to a question from a reporter suspicious of why he wasn’t wearing an American flag pin on his lapel, Barack Obama explained his belief that for some, the pins became a substitute for “true patriotism.” The senator said he would instead “try to tell the American people what I believe will make this country great, and hopefully that will be a testimony to my patriotism.”
I didn’t expect leading conservative voices to understand, but I was a little surprised at the ferocity of the response. Jonah Goldberg described Obama’s perspective as “staggeringly stupid,” and “the single dumbest thing I’ve ever heard of him doing.” Another prominent far-right blogger responded this way:
Seriously, you want this for President of these great United States.This is how he catches the attention of a media aligned with the terror force? This useful tool won’t wear an American flag pin? Talk about pandering to the radical base, he ought to run against Ahmadinejad.
He is scoring points with Georgie Soros, won’t be waiting long for his on his Soros stipend, I’m sure. What’s Obama Hussein’s new campaign slogan, “America Sucks!” ?
For starters, people got tired of being associated with these drooling retards. Then, when they realized that these drooling retards had ideological allies running the show in the Bush administration and then began to experience their idiotic policies, they moved from disgusted to outright hostile.
Like me. It had nothing to do with Burke, and everything to do with what the party had become. A bunch of bedwetting, loudmouth, corrupt, hypocritical, and incompetent boobs with a mean streak a mile long and no sense of fair play or proportion.
Seriously- what does the current Republican party stand for? Permanent war, fear, the nanny state, big spending, torture, execution on demand, complete paranoia regarding the media, control over your body, denial of evolution and outright rejection of science, AND ZOMG THEY ARE GONNA MAKE US WEAR BURKHAS, all the while demanding that in order to be a good American I have to spend most of every damned day condemning half my fellow Americans as terrorist appeasers.
And that isn’t even getting into the COMPLETE and TOTAL corruption of our political processes at every level. The shit is really going to hit the fan after we vote these jackasses out of power in 2008.
Screw them. I got out. They can have their party. I will vote for Democrats and little L libertarians and isolationists until the crazy people aren’t running the GOP. The threat of higher taxes in the short term isn’t enough to keep me from voting out crazy people and voting for sane people with whom I merely disagree regarding policy. Hillarycare doesn’t scare me as much as Frank Gaffney having a line to the person with the nuclear football or Dobson and company crafting domestic policy.
That is why the Republican party is in shambles. The majority of us have decided that the movers and shakers in the GOP and the blogospheric right are certified lunatics who, in a decent and sane society, we would have in controlled environments in rocking chairs under shade trees for most of the day, wheeled in at night for tapioca pudding and some karaoke.
over_educated
You forgot lazy, stupid and disrespectful.
Z
Poor David Brooks… his head keeps slipping out of the sand.
Ninerdave
Ah the quaint days of yore…when you disagreed with someone they didn’t automatically become “the enemy”
The Other Steve
Au contraire. That is exactly how the Bolsheviks and the Nazis treated their political opponents.
Anyway good post, John. The bed wetters over at National Review truly do show what is wrong with the Republican Party.
Ugh
Big picture of Obama on Foxnews.com right now with a little circle on his lapel pointing out that he doesn’t have an american flag on his lapel, and the headline “Space Available.”
Jeebus fucking christ.
Billy K
Mmm…karaoke….
WAIT! I mean, mmmm…..tapioca….
Evinfuilt
I had to go and look. You’re right (not surprising.)
This is just insane. I guess for “those” people, you’re only a patriot if you spend 1.99 on a Chinese pin, $5 for a stick on your Hummer. And if you don’t, you’re a pinko commie terrorist or something.
They want to be fair and balanced. Patriotism isn’t something you buy and sell, its something you earn via sacrifices.
Wilfred
Same with me. However irrelevant the blogosphere may be now it at least succeeded in revealing things that would have stayed hidden forever. Until two years ago I still thought of myself as a bit conservative – in the Thoreauvian, self-reliant sense. The right wing blogs taught me what conservatism has come to really mean. You are the company you keep, and I don’t want anything to do with those people.
They didn’t forget Burke, they resurrected Birch.
Jorge
“We’ll pay for health care and tuition and day care — and here, what else can we give you, soccer moms?”
Ann Coulter on why providing for constituents wants/needs is what’s WRONG with the Democrats.
Does anybody else get the feeling that Ann feels about women the way Michelle Malkin feels about Asians?
fester
Ahhh Conversion Porn — the best red meat writing possible —- but seriously John, why are you so cruel — the Supremes have consistently ruled that karaoke is cruel, unusual and degrading punishment that can consistently rise to the level of pain as organ failure. It is not an approved enhanced interrogation technique.
BG
No one ever listens to John Prine anymore…
Teak111
Its Clinton’s fault-and I mean that seriously. After Carter, the GOP had a 12-year run of big bus conservativsim performed somewhat competantly. But Clinton proved that strongly competent centrism was a serious winning formula for John Q Citizen. So the GOP went extreme to coutneract, pursuing impeachment and all the rest. This green-lighted the crazies and 911 added fuel to the fire. Now we known the teri Schivo/Katrina crazies are only good at oppo, not actually running things, and here we are. The GOP must purge itself of the crazies if it can. Don’t care much for Hillary myself, but heard the best compliment of her yet, that the other side at minimum feel they can work with her. That spells progress if shes is elected. Brooks still thinks conservatism is George Will and Ronald Reagan for Gods sake.
TenguPhule
Fixed.
TenguPhule
Corrected.
cleek
America is a religion to these people. the flag is an object of idolatry. insufficient public worship is heresy. questioning any of it is blasphemy. idiots, every last fucking one of them.
dlw32
You’ve got to be F’ing kidding me. Obama doesn’t wear a flag pin? That’s supposed to be frickin news?
Even ignoring the time that could be spent on the various positions of the various Presidential candidates, you’ve got: an alleged torture memo; Myanmar; Bhutto can return to Pakistan; Congress is trying to pass oversight rules for contractors in Iraq; S-CHIP veto; Sen. Craig; etc, etc.
And Fox wants to talk about Obama’s freakin’ lapel?? How do these guys get anyone to watch this f’ing bull?
Elvis Elvisberg
Brooks’ thesis is that conservatism was too ideologically rigid.
That is way off base.
Today’s conservatism isn’t creedal, it’s tribal. Extend corruption and incompetence into every aspect of governance, and do whatever you want. When criticized, engage in ad hominem attacks against anyone voicing criticism.
It has nothing to do with ideology. It’s about picking a side, and hating your enemy. And your enemy is half this country, and pretty much the whole rest of the world.
Teak111
Burke for Birch-well said!
Gold Star for Robot Boy
Quite right, John.
Davebo
While digesting Reader’s Digest
In the back of a dirty book store,
A plastic flag, with gum on the back,
Fell out on the floor.
Well, I picked it up and I ran outside
Slapped it on my window shield,
And if I could see old Betsy Ross
I’d tell her how good I feel.
Chorus:
But your flag decal won’t get you
Into Heaven any more.
They’re already overcrowded
From your dirty little war.
Now Jesus don’t like killin’
No matter what the reason’s for,
And your flag decal won’t get you
Into Heaven any more.
Well, I went to the bank this morning
And the cashier he said to me,
“If you join the Christmas club
We’ll give you ten of them flags for free.”
Well, I didn’t mess around a bit
I took him up on what he said.
And I stuck them stickers all over my car
And one on my wife’s forehead.
Well, I got my window shield so filled
With flags I couldn’t see.
So, I ran the car upside a curb
And right into a tree.
By the time they got a doctor down
I was already dead.
And I’ll never understand why the man
Standing in the Pearly Gates said…
“But your flag decal won’t get you
Into Heaven any more.
We’re already overcrowded
From your dirty little war.
Now Jesus don’t like killin’
No matter what the reason’s for,
And your flag decal won’t get you
Into Heaven any more.”
Jimmmmm
And that stump-dumb nitwit, Andrew Sullivan, has the temerity to slag Clarence Thomas for–wait for it–whoring his book, while on a book publicity tour: http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/10/the-politicizat.html
Sully: “Brooks likes me. He really likes me: http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/10/the-politicizat.html
Jimmmmm
Ooops:
Sully Joe: “Brooks likes me. He really likes me!”:http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2007/10/how-conservatis.html
Sojourner
You’re comparing the decorum expected of a supreme court justice with that of a political hack?
Fledermaus
yeah wear a pin, you moonbats! It’s literally the least you can do.
r4d20
But at least its still better than having liberals run things :).
As for Obama – Im reminded of Kramer’s “Aids Walk” experience on Seinfeld: “WHAT? YOU DON’T WANT TO WEAR THE RIBBON!!!”
Jim Henley
Go on. Sneer. Jape. Minimize. Distract. It doesn’t change the fact that 15 of the 19 hijackers on those planes were Barack Obama.
Tim F.
Also the most, if the GOP is any judge.
Billy K
Conservatism can never fail; it can only be failed.
I forget who said that – Conason?
Bubblegum Tate
Hey, wingers lap that shit up and ask for more.
Hahaha, I thought the exact same thing. “WHO?!?!? Who doesn’t want to wear the ribbon?!?!? We are all wearing the ribbon! Why aren’t you wearing the ribbon?!?!?”
Pb
To be fair, Thomas is both.
Sojourner
I stand corrected!
Andrew
David Brooks is a dumb-dumb head.
That’s all I’ve got for now.
LITBMueller
And, this assessment of our Nation is brought to you by a guy born in Toronto, raised in NYC, and went to college in Chicago. Clearly, he KNOWS the American character…
This “America is a conservative country” thing has got to stop, and the current collapse of the GOP shows it is not true. The reason the GOP has been so successful, and the reason the party can manage to convince most folks that the USofA is God’s Country is because the Fundies VOTE. they meet at their megachurches and get literally bussed to the polls. They have been the most loyal and wel-organized base in all of American politics.
But, now, it is coming to an end. Why? Because they voted and gave their party what they wanted: control of each branch of government (and, you could argue the GOP STILL controls Congress based on the Dems recent voting record), but what did it get them? The Terry Schiavo Vote…but, abortion is still legal, gay marriage hasn’t been banned, you can still say “shit” on late night TV, Planned Parenthood is still around, the Mexican’s are still here, etc., etc.
They voted TWICE for a guy who screws his eyes as tight as Pat Robertson when he prays, yet NONE of their goals have been met. Even with Alito and Scalia, and all those nuts on the bench! They have blindly supported the War on Terra, dutifully crapped their pants, and eagerly questioned the patriotism of those whose pants were not sufficiently wet. They have supported domestic surveillance, countenanced torture, and blissfully ignored the fact that wages have remained stagnant while their cost of living goes up. They have even sent their own children, brothers, sisters and friends abroad to fight and die for Bush. But, for what? A couple of Supreme Court appointees that still hasn’t gotten them an abortion ban?
Brooks has it backwards: its the Fundies who are either leaving the party, or asking themselves very hard questions. The 28percenters are simply the Cult of Bush members who never question anything. But, the fact that Dobson and his ilk are questioning whether they’ll continue to support the party really shows you all you need to know what happened to the GOP:
They promised their base the world, but never delivered.
whippoorwill
And then I can go back to being a clueless Independent whose only political activity was voting in presidential elections, usually.
And bitching how c-span was a government plot to bore us to tears and should be banned for wasting air waves that could be carrying re-runs of Gilligan’s Island.
And generally avoiding any opportunity to be a responsible citizen and knowing what the hell was happening in my own country.
Yes I hate them, I hate them all for taking away my ignorant bliss and breathtaking apathy at worrying about anything more than the rising price of Jack Daniels and condoms.
That’s all gone now, I fear forever.
Now pass the Cheetos, damnit.
Pug
yeah wear a pin, you moonbats! It’s literally the least you can do.
If you want to steal material from Jon Stewart without attribution, at least use it in the same context he did. Stewart made the joke in reference to those who put yellow Support the Troops ribbons on the back of their SUV’s. He called it “the least you can do . . . literally”.
You also might consider using it somewhere else where there are no Daily Show fans. My suggestion would be Red State or Free Republic.
bohammer
Steve M finds evidence of wankery http//nomoremister.blogspot/.com
Snarky Shark
They promised their base the world, but never delivered.
Hey why not? Anybody who mails in their SS check to these snake oil salesmen that runs the Pharisee party is a rube who deserves fleecing.
That the Republican leadership is nothing but crooks on the make lends delicious irony to the whole thing.
Cheetahs and Gazelles.
Circle of life.
Tom Hilton
Bohammer beat me to it, but here’s a clickable link. Go read it–this is truly amazing.
mitch
Well said, John. This should be required reading.
Tsulagi
Don’t forget the Nazis! Wasn’t the line before the 06 midterms that if you don’t vote Republican not only are you a bad apple, you’re a Nazi appeaser.
Damn you Barak Obama! We know why in addition to not wearing a flag lapel pin you don’t publicly stomp on swastikas! Don’t think you’re fooling us deep thinkers.
Billy K
This is, and always was, a gnomic conceit.
Johnny Pez
An astute analysis, but it doesn’t quite go far enough. why has the GOP embraced insanity? Because they have come to equate sanity with weakness. In fact, by this time next year, the official slogan of the GOP will be “Sanity is a sign of weakness.”
Which would be a lot funnier if so many Democrats didn’t agree with them.
Davis X. Machina
This is, and always was, a gnomic conceit.
Except for that blowhard shilling for the travel company, all the gnomes I have had the pleasure to know have been shy, and somewhat self-effacing.
Calling modern movement conservatism ‘tribal’ instead of ‘creedal’ may be accurate, but is giving it more than its due.
A proper tribe would have cool ethnic music, a bit of dancing, interesting anthro grad students hanging about, body art — tatooing, scarification, etc.
Modern movement conservatism is about as ‘tribal’ as being a Milwaukee Brewers fan.
Ithacan
Fledermaus Says:
yeah wear a pin, you moonbats! It’s literally the least you can do.
I would like to know where I can reach Fledermaus when his unit ships out to the Big Sandbox. The least I can do is sending him some cookies and reading materials.
John Harrold
This is how I’ve always felt about the flag pin that seems to be so popular with the people in our government. It’s an accessory that says “I can check off the patriotism flare box and move on to the rest of the list then I can go play government official.” It’s weird but right now my litmus test for a candidate is this: Will the candidate eliminate all civil rights violations perpetrated by the current administration. Right now, that’s Obama. I’m a libertarian, and I’m not fond of his thoughts on health care, government spending, etc. However, I’ll do what ever I can to regain the civil rights the Bush administration has taken away.
David Kline
Great piece!
Just curious if anyone else who happened to watch Ken Burns’s WW2 series last week was struck by how, in the old days, our leaders tried to fight the war with strategic intelligence and not just go off fighting anyone and everyone to show how tough they were.
As someone who in my own reporting warned against the Jihadists over 20 years ago, I have to tell you that the Bush White House has set back the real and necessary struggle against Jihadism by at least 5-10 years — at a cost of how many unnecessary lives lost?
Bush and Company have done more damage than most Americans realize. Meanwhile, Osama could not have asked for more in his wildest dreams.
conumbdrum
The best response to this madness was penned by Joseph Heller more than four decades ago in Catch-22. Chapter Eleven, “Captain Black.” Pick up a copy, read about The Glorious Loyalty Oath Crusade and tell me that the GOP of today isn’t packed like sardines with little shits just as odious as Captain Black. Jonah Goldberg is Black to the core.
As for Bush, to me he’s always been a dead ringer for Lieutenant (then Colonel, then General) Scheisskopf.
searp
Think corruption, and forget about the rest of it. The posturing is painfully necessary for this crew so that they get 50% + 1. That is all it is.
It is as if the country was being run by the board of Boeing, Northrop, Raytheon and General Dynamics. Oh, probably add some banks, oil and pharmaceutical companies, and some cranky rich people.
Joshua Goldberg and others are just misdirection – the carnival barkers.
Ted
Digby, unless someone else beat her too it.
jcricket
The problem is that “sensible Republicans” like Brooks have spent their entire career trying to redfine everything that actual Democrats do as “moonbat-ism”. I actually heard Brooks give a speech where he basically said if Democrats would only agree with the Republicans, Americans would vote for Democrats. So it’s a big shocker that the party hasn’t noticed that it’s moved to the right of Buchanan on like 50% of the issues.
Plus Brooks never met a situation that couldn’t be reduced to an A/B comparison, one of which remarkably looks like exactly what he believes in and the other is insanity (as he presents it). No one gives a shit about Burke or whomever in the GOP anymore (maybe Sully does, although I’m not sure anymore). Even Liberatarians (big L) are nothing but anti-tax zealots these days. There’s no social libertarianism anymore (except Radley Balko).
Thus one can only conclude that the remaining GOP “moderates” are all useless tools who spend all their time providing cover for the wingnuts in the public eye.
Quietly, underneath the scenes, people like Cole are leaving in droves. My brother-in-law was an “old school North Carolina) Republican (mainly because he “hates taxes”, but don’t discount the subtle racism, too). He’s never voting Republican again and regularly rants on how much Bush and the current crop of Republicans have near-permanently fucked up the country.
You’ll only read about it on the blogs, not in the MSM, but the revolution is taking place, and if Democrats are smart, it will be a generation before Republicans take national prominence again.
Steve J.
Wasn’t the line before the 06 midterms that if you don’t vote Republican not only are you a bad apple, you’re a Nazi appeaser.
According to VP Cheney, Western Civilization was at stake in the 2006 election.
http://radamisto.blogspot.com/2007/03/cheney-fear-drum.html
Steve J.
Getting back to Burke for a second, he was a staunch defender of Habeas Corpus and thought it should apply even in a “time of war.”
(Excerpts)
The main operative regulation of the act is to suspend the Common Law and the statute Habeas Corpus (the sole securities either for liberty or justice) with regard to all those who have been out of the realm, or on the high seas, within a given time.
The act of which I speak is among the fruits of the American war,—a war in my humble opinion productive of many mischiefs, of a kind which distinguish it from all others. Not only our policy is deranged, and our empire distracted, but our laws and our legislative spirit appear to have been totally perverted by it.
eileen from OH
Howsabout people that wear or display stuff should have to pay more than a buck to exhibit their rabid patriotism? Seems to me that the cost of a pin or bumper sticker isn’t really contributing much to the cost of the war and if you REALLY believe in it, ya oughta pay a lot more to prove it. Or at least get your kid to enlist.
Or howsabout you can’t even BUY a flag pin or a yellow ribbon for your bumper without documentary proof that you have a) personally served active duty or b) have a close relative who currently is serving?
Or, better yet, howsabout all this meaningless bullshit be accepted as just that?
Or howsabout we start with the premise that all Americans are patriots and want the best for our country and until they do something that shows they don’t, we just bloody CHILL.
John, as disgusted as you are with the Republicans, I am with my Dems. (Well, maybe not as much, but you have much more Disgust Potential.) They call me for money and I say I’ll give when they do three little words.
Grow. A. Pair.
Scy
I was a Republican for thirty years . . . then along came Bush, Cheney, all the extreme Christians, psycho Republicans that will send kids to war but froth over the evils of Internet poker all the while doing long distance medical diagnosis . . . and then there were the Limbaughs and O’Reillys of the world coming out of the Earth like the Orcs in the Lord of the Rings.. There was a coup in the Republican Party and then in the U.S. Thanks to them, the Democrats could run a goat and I would vote for it. I am not only disgusted with these knuckle draggers and their supporters . . I am even more disgusted for the “real” Republicans that let this happen
John's Minions
What we want to know is, what kind of Republican takes a pundit seriously when his picture by the byline shows him wearing a pink shirt, anyhow?
Hell, we don’t know anyone who wears a pink shirt. Even minion #407’s costume design professor back in college heaped scorn on them, and he was Fab-yoo-lous!
David L Nilsson
Mr Burke- Don’t give up on the Republican Party as long as Rep. Ron Paul has a shot at the nomination. Or even afterwards, if he has enough traction to run third party.
And I don’t care for the foul language on this site. That isn’t what sensible conservative Republicanism is about either. It is the neocon frat boys such as Goldberg who should be left to dirty the discourse of politics. Keep it clean, please.
erblack2
Wow! Just a great, instantly “classic” post that absolutely nails it. All the better that it’s not too analytical. If I were to sift through everything I’ve read on the nets in search of a single best thing, this would do.
Calling my congressman now to see what the prospects are of making it an amendment to the constitution.
whippoorwill
Fuckin’ A.
The Fool
Yeah, Brooks is all worried that conservative ideology became too rigid. Its much better when it remains ill-defined and esoterically concealed. That way it can never be exposed as the hypocritical greed masquerading as a philosophy that it really is.
Cassius Chaerea
Uh, Burke?
That’s one of those fag books. Let’s beat up the pussy!
USA! USA! USA!
CruzBustamove
“What the fuck are you talkin’ about, man?” ~ The Dude
TheraP
My 90 year old lifelong republican dad said recently re bush and his administration: “They should be strung up by the testicles!” I might not put it that way, as I am opposed to torture. But when you piss off a self proclaimed 100% “teutonic” (by ancestry) – you have really lost your base!
futhark
Conservatives used to be interested in conserving things: money, resources, personal liberty, rule of law, and mutual respect, to name a few. Some, like Rep. Ron Paul, still adhere to these values and are working hard to salvage something useful from the train wreck the neocons have made of the Republican Party. In his book “Lila: An Enquiry Into Morals” Robert Pirsig makes the case that successful societies rely on competing and cooperating conservative and liberal elements. The ranting, bloviated rhetoric spewed by Hannity, Limbaugh, Coulter, et al. as well as the flat-out lies told by Republicans in the Bush Administration, have destroyed public trust in leadership calling itself conservative as much as the perversions of power demonstrated by massive deficit spending, abrogation of legal and constitutional rights, ignition of a guerrilla war on the other side of the planet, and numerous other acts hostile to good order and manners.
The American people want and deserve to have government that respects the Constitution, honors our heritage of personal and political liberty, operates in an open, forthright manner, is fiscally responsible, and defends our borders. Such a government is possible, but not until the corporate stranglehold on our political processes is broken.
Restore the Republic
Ron Paul for President 2008
Um yeah
Ted Says:
I forget who said that – Conason?
Digby, unless someone else beat her too it.
Hardly. It was von Hindenburg. Fucking-Ay!
http://www.harpers.org/archive/2006/06/0081080
Leisureguy
I came to this post from a link at The Anonymous Liberal, so I was not a regular reader. Forgive me if you’ve already posted on this.
I’m just now reading John Dean’s book Conservatives Without Conscience, in which he tries to describe what led the GOP to go off-track and why it has persisted in that direction. It’s an extremely readable book—he originally was going to write it with his friend and, to a certain degree, his mentor Barry Goldwater, but Senator Goldwater died before the book could be written. Dean was, however, able to use notes from their collaboration as he finally got around to writing the book.
I think that thoughtful conservatives will find much in this book that’s worth considering. The link will show you hardbound copies selling for a dollar or so.
JohnnyK
Comforting to hear another former Republican (John C) express his disgust at the current Republican Party. The GOP has been changing for 25-30 years – it might be too optimistic to hope that it implodes and is replaced by two or three smaller, more focused parties – one of which would be the more libertarian GOP of the ’50’s and ’60’s. Ahh – I can dream, can’t I?
Daniel
I have to say, that I could not agree with you in 100% regarding o.us poetry, but it’s just my opinion, which could be wrong :)
Roddy McCorley
The real problem with the GOP is that is has ceased to be a political party. You can view it as a massive criminal conspiracy, an uncomfortably large religious cult, some combination of the two, or any number of other unpleasant things — but not a political party. However one may want to define political, alienating or demonizing 70 percent of your fellow citizens does not fit. Deliberately bankrupting your own country does not fit. Cavalierly dismissing the death and suffering of tens of thousands of your own people does not fit.
Once upon a time, the difference between “liberal” and “conservative” had less to do with means than with ends. Right and left may have argued over the best way to improve our schools, but no one would have seriously suggested doing away with them. They may have debated the best way to fix the highways, but no one would have suggested that they could be ignored. They might have quibbled over how best to rebuild a devastated major city, but no one would have dared leave it to fester in the sun. And however differently they might have interpreted the Constitution, no one would have derided it as a scrap of goddam paper.
El Cid
Am I just so ancient that I not only lived through Reagan and the New Right, and Bush Jr. seems to be ZERO of a departure and 100% a fulfillment of the same horrid crap?
The only difference between the lousy rotten Reaganite / New Right horrors and the Bush Jr. / Republican II horrors is that Bush Jr. had NONE OF THE CONSTRAINTS that Reagan and his crazies had which limited the damage they could inflict.
Seriously — had the Soviet Union collapsed in 1981 and Reagan had had a complete majority in all branches of federal, judicial, and most local governments, can anyone imagine the amount of damage those lunatics would have unleashed?
Bush Jr. / Reagan II has simply shown Americans would it really would have been like if all those Reaganite / New Right ideas had been inflicted on them at full force, rather than having had a Democratic Congress as somewhat of a breakwater?
Fingal
jcricket Says: […]
if Democrats are smart, it will be a generation before
Republicans take national prominence again.
Meaning: in some nearby parallel universe.
BKristol
George W Bush is the most underrated president of forever. He will be recognized as the best leader we have had in all of human history. You will all see. When Billary gets elected everyone will have abortions and get gayed.
Chris Dowd
Great piece!
Being a former GOPER myself who long ago was banned from various “conservative” discussion boards for not shutting off half my brain and becoming a pee panting sissy who fears the Muslem hordes are going to sail over here in their reed boats and kill us all- I can relate!
What I want to know is just when did the GOP become the party of stupid evil cowards? Were they always there and I just refused to see it?
And lets get something straight. If you have spent more time worrying about being killed by terrorists than by electrocuting yourself fishing your pop tart out of the toaster every morning you are stupid.
If you think torture or whatever reality denying phrase you want to call it is ok? Then you are evil.
And if terrorism is something that you actually worry about even once a week? Then you are a coward.
Stupid, evil, cowards- that is the core faithful of the GOP today.
On my blog we had an exchange (link below) with a minor GOP operative who actually said he feared the Moooslims were coming to make his “hot” wife wear a burka. Who are these dopes? Why are they allowed to drive or handle money?
http://thedailyburkeman1.blogspot.com/2007/09/for-your-sunday-entertainment.html
Greg George
Even if you believe, as I do, that the Republicans stole the last election, you have to concede that a nearly equal fraction of the people in America, who give enough of a shit to vote, voted for this trip to hell and a higher vision. We have to address the fear and ignorance in this country which is leading to bad political thinking, rather than blame the filthy, lying opportunists who bring them their red meat. I like Hillary’s suggestion that we detach government science funding from politics, and explain to the American people why we must. I would certainly include the so called soft sciences under this protection. We need to move to being a nation grounded in regard for truth, and to teach this reverence to our young people. This, in my opinion, is the only way to subdue the pigs, who are smart, but mean.
nabalzbbfr
This thread is a riot, loonies running amuck thinking they make sense. Call out the men in white coats with butterfly nets.
Greg George
I think the last post may hold the Republican record for the number of cliches used in two sentences. I realize the conservative tradition is to attack with slogans and sound bites, but how about “breaking with tradition” for a change.
Say something new, comment on what is being said or even think once and a while. Given the disastrous state of our current governance, a new approach is clearly needed. What’s yours?
jreed
The most insidious aspect of the current regime is their systematic undermining of the entire federal bureaucracy over the past 7 years. They’ve managed to infest the government with their bots in every nook and cranny. These are stealth bombs waiting for Hillary or whoever to detonate. It will take a decade to flush these loonies out. And it will most assuredly take someone who is savvy to be able to do it quickly and efficiently. And of course, the other horror that continues to feed and nurture the current regime is the corporate media. I think the very best of the best we have in the upcoming selection process is surely Billery. They can do it in a heartbeat. Obama or Edwards or even Ron Paul would be beaten up instantaneously. Trashing the White House…travelgate…whitewater, etc.
Chris Dowd
You know what a riot is? A riot is a bunch of grown men hiding under their beds asking the Feds to take half their paychecks and more- to save them from a threat so ridiculous you have to wonder if they drink stupid juice.
Lish
nabalzbbfr = anonymoose
A simple cypher for someone who is nothing but a simple cypher.
Zuzu
Well said.
I wonder how the Drudges and Hannitys have failed to notice that with the exception of Giulanni, not a single GOP candidate wears a flag pin either.
Scroop Moth
He should have said: “First ask Sen. Craig why he wore his flag lapel pin in his mug shot and then come back to me and let’s have a talk about patriotism.”
Steve R
If you want to steal material from Jon Stewart without attribution, at least use it in the same context he did. Stewart made the joke in reference to those who put yellow Support the Troops ribbons on the back of their SUV’s. He called it “the least you can do . . . literally”.
This is actually from Bill Maher’s recent standup. Save your snark for someone who deserves it.
Fake Democrats Suck
There is one type of monkey i hate more than a republicoid,
and that’s a “democrat” who voted for reagan.
Some wise mad said, “america has one party, the Property party, and it has two right wings.”
America is a fake democracy, and it has always been anti-worker. Our so called holy constitution is a pre-modern document that must be revised to include proportional (multiple minority parties) representation in congress, and
instant-runoff elections. Also, we must have public-financed elections.
Until we wise up our illiterate asses, we will continue
to wallow in a corporate-dominated Idiocracy.
“America’s” daze are numbered.
MoreMoxie
I might like to wear a flag pin, but I can’t because of the asses who wear them. Not fair.
whippoorwill
Cheer up Fake Democrats Suck.
At least Britney may finally be getting her shit together, so as she can get her kids back. At least that’s something.
mclaren
Chris Dowd asked:
November 1980 when Bonzo the Chimp’s co-star got elected president. Everything the current drunk-driving C student in the White House has done has merely filled out the broad outlines of the policies inaugurated by Bonzo the Chimp’s co-star. In fact, most of the incompetent fringe lunatics infesting the current White House were actually part of the West Wing during the Reign of Error of Bonzo the Chimp’s co-star. Rumsfeld…Cheney…it’s all the same crew.
scathew
If you want to see another example of the insanity:
http://www.amazon.com/Antichrist-Awaited-Messiah-Joel-Richardson/dp/1414104405
Check out the 55 almost exclusively positive reviews of this book.
I’m not saying Christians are bad or Muslims are good (or to be clear, bad for that matter), but it’s just freaky…
craigie
Roddy McCorley nails it. Nice one.
brentbent
Since wearing a flag pin equates to proof of loving America shouldn’t people who really want to prove their patriotism wear two pins? And if you are a super American wouldn’t you wear three pins to prove that? In fact, if you were a real American all your clothes would be made in the image of our flag–flag shirt, flag jacket covered in hundreds of flag pins, flag pants, flag socks, flag underwear, flag shoes with red, white, and blue shoelaces, and to top it off your car painted like a flag. Of course, that won’t be enough to stop the terrorists from winning so you’ll have to paint each wall of your house to appear like a flag along with your roof and the windows must have flag curtains and the floors should have flag rugs while furniture is covered with flag upholstery. And, to shut those terrorists up, everybody should dye their hair red, white, and blue. That’ll show everybody in the world who’s number one! We might not be able to save the Middle East, rebuild after Katrina, or educate our childrens but we can have the world’s best posture!
noway
These “former” Republicans aren’t fooling anyone. They will gladly vote for Hillary because she is a “Republican” herself. There is one party in this country, not two. They aren’t losing a thing by voting for Hillary. The fact that they don’t realize this is just another glaring example of their duplicity and/or stupidity. They got to have their fun — completely rape the middle class and bomb the shit out of some rag-heads — and now they don’t want to be seen for what they are (selfish and stupid) so they jump ship. Screw them. Screw John Cole. To hell with all of them that ever voted for and supported these criminals.
I am not fooled and I am not going to forgive and forget just because they want others to believe they are having a come to Jesus moment. It’s easy for them to run to the Democrats because the current Democrats are just like them. They haven’t changed. This is not some revolutionary act. They want an out. They are begging for us to let them persist so they can turn around and fuck this country over again in 20 years when their next “savior” arrives on the scene.
To all “former” Republicans:
BushCo are your people. You bought their shit. You voted for and supported them and you will do it again in the future. You aren’t fooling anyone and you don’t get an out.
Rowland
Too bad the democrats in Congress don’t read this blog (or whatever it is). You had better write them as well as post here. Numbers count. As long as there are millions of them.
Leonard Waks
OK. The republican machine has been a coalition of libertarians, wingnuts, and anti-democratic big corporate money (e.g., Archer Daniels Midland, Big Pharma, Enron).
These groups have nothing in common with one another except an aversion to one or more policies associated with the Democatic party. Its been, enemy of my enemy is my friend.
This coalition-making has corrupted each of the three groups. You have Steve Forbes the wingnut, Christ for no taxes (what ever happened to Give on Caeser what is Caeser’s?) and liberatrians for saving Terri Schiavo.
Now that the damage has been done first to the country and then to the Republican party, and finally to each of the coalition partners, each of the coalition members is peeling off.
Libertarians are less afraid of Hillarycare than having the federal government assign to each of them them their own personal federal agents.
Big business knows it can buy Democrats as well as Republicans, and will have to now that they will take power.
Wingnuts will prefer to form a loser of a third party than to corrupt themselves further by supporting Rudi (Pro-choice, womanizer) Guiliani. The deal was they would sell their votes for supreme court judges and they’ve already got a couple of young ones.
Now comes the terrible job of cleaning up the terrible mess. And I mean terrible.
And each of these groups will have a lot of blame for it.
jvill
I believe it was the late Steve Gilliard who hypothesized a few years back that the Republican Party was in tension between it’s two competing wings: the more classical conservative fiscal types (Hello, Mr. Goldwater), and the religious nanny-staters (It’s Dobson! Run!). While these groups had built an alliance over the past few decades, at the heart of each ideology are competing tenants.
Throw in the tribal mind-set of “obliterate all enemies by any means possible” that truly emerged during President Clinton’s time, and it’s pretty clear this was a long time coming; we’re just witnessing the crack-up.
J Wilson
As a former Republican turned Ron Paul only supporter, I became disenchanted when the Repub’s finally took over and began to do the same things that the Dem’s of the ’90’s did. And their only justification seems to be, Well, Clinton did it!” IOW, they are just as phony and disingenuous. Their support of Rudy is yet another example. Rudy would’ve been laughed out of the country in the ’80’s. This is why so many will not vote or vote for Hillary (gulp) if it comes down to it. Simply because she is the devil we DO know rather than the one we don’t. In re; Rudy/Romney, you don’t get to be the Mayor of NYC or the Gov. of Mass. by being conservative. Remember this above all else.
bill wesley
I am not a republican or a democrate and I hate to say it but the corruption we see in the republican party is just as prevelent in the Democratic party. Americans in general have ceased to trust one another. A nation is only as great as its individual citizens are decent. A nation of individuals who believe in the power of fair play and honesty, a nation whos citizens are concienciouse instead of self absorbed, a people who believe in education over regimentation, in creation over consumption, and above all which is guided by individuals who decide for themselves rather than acting as a “gang” is inherently powerfull. The reverse course makes for a nation that is inherently weak. This is not about our representatives its about US. Plato said democracy inevitasbly leads to tyrany in the long run and he described in detail how this comes about. We show virtually every symtom of the desease he discribes! We continue to blame elected officials for our OWN MISTAKES, never OURSELVES. representative democracy is one step removed from actual democracy….elected officials bear the accountability so the people are free to act without ever calling themselves to task, unless they are concienciouse. We as a people have become a culture which is no longer capable of trust, and without trust we can not embark on the painfull process of atoning for our own misdeeds. The pendelum will NOT SAVE US THIS TIME!
Hayekian
I agree with the contention that the Republican party is adrift and corrupt, but this is mainly because it has abandoned its principles, not BECAUSE of its principles.
Both parties stink to high heaven right now. Democrats’ elation at Republican party problems ring hollow, however, because I don’t see anything on the Democrat side that offers a constructive, thematic approach to solving problems. Mostly, what I hear, and what is posted here, is merely ad homenim attacks on Republicans, rather than explaining what they would do differently.
Fact is, NEITHER party today is willing to address the looming entitlement crisis. This crisis, is NOT something we can solve by “taxing the rich”. We are going to HAVE to cut entitlement programs.
And the Left loves to attack globalization, but the fact is that free trade is a win-win in the long run for most people, in spite of the individual short-term dislocations resulting from trade.
The Republicans are adrift and corrupt, and the Democrats are philosophically bankrupt.
Not a pretty picture.
chetvan
Shut up, Bitch. And go fix me a turkey pot pie!
Indigowatcher
Evinfuilt Says:
Big picture of Obama on Foxnews.com right now with a little circle on his lapel pointing out that he doesn’t have an american flag on his lapel, and the headline “Space Available.”
Jeebus fucking christ.
I had to go and look. You’re right (not surprising.)
This is just insane. I guess for “those” people, you’re only a patriot if you spend 1.99 on a Chinese pin, $5 for a stick on your Hummer. And if you don’t, you’re a pinko commie terrorist or something.
They want to be fair and balanced. Patriotism isn’t something you buy and sell, its something you earn via sacrifices.
October 5th, 2007 at 11:36 am
===============
Ya know what, let Fox News continue on with their drivel. More and more people are becoming aware of what crap they’re being fed on Fox News, and the more they put up headlines like “Space Available” the more it strengthens the anti-FoxNews stance.
realnoid
I cannot believe what I am seeing here. Cole voting Hillary?
I keep thinking about that loose coalition of Corporations,
right wing religion, Sun Myung Moon, MSM networks & newspapers, WSJ & Fox & News Corp, Military, Libertarians,
Republican Likud etc. and I said who can go up against all that? They can make reality appear anyway they want.
Apparently not.
CitizenE
Under the cover of a couple hundred dollar tax break and beginning with the concept that extremism (meaning bomb Viet Nam back to the stone age) in defense of liberty is no vice as rationale for everything from taking the nation to war with lies to justifying torture; beginning with seen one redwood you’ve seen them all and extending it to censoring science on planetary climate change; beginning with corporate welfare in which oil and pharmaceutical companies, not to mention war industries are supported with taxpayer dollars, while calling investing in the health of children “socialism,” pandering to the worst in us, our ethnophobias, homophobias, religious fundamentalism, a demogoguery of hatred–this didn’t begin with the Bush administration, but when people such as Limbaugh, Malkin, and Coulter are referred to as fair and balanced, all of the American right must look at themselves in the mirror and ask–bamboozled?
TenguPhule
And if you believe that line of bullshit, your mouth is very very brown.
Free trade isn’t.
Joe Schembrie
Please, people. Ronald Reagan didn’t believe in evolution, wore a flag pin, was against abortion and gay marriage. And not twenty years has passed since he left office.
The Republicans lost in 2006 because of one and only one issue, the Iraq War. It will lose in 2008 because of that same issue.
The conservative base is not shrinking. What is rather growing is its ability to parse real conservatism from the false conservatism known as neocon fascism.
Quackers
Glad to meet you John Cole, you’re the sanest Republican I’ve met in a long while. I’m a Democrat myself and don’t share your political views very often, but the two party system has served us well and I’m going to be thrilled to see the ‘old’ GOP make a comeback. I like the idea of the two parties sharing power and keeping each other in check. Just my opinion, but I think there are a couple of things that would be a tonic to the Republican party. First, get the hell RID of the religious nuts who seem to think the GOP exists to legislate their intrusive, hateful agenda. Second, if Limbaugh and the rest of his ilk were stricken mute tomorrow, it would be a huge favor to the GOP. These clowns spend countless hours spreading garbage to those with less than stellar mental firepower and we’re seeing the cumulative effect of years of this now. Of course this is just wishful thinking on my part and I don’t like stifling free speech…..but I’ll bet there would be a marked improvement in a Limbaugh-free GOP.
Alex Cacioppo
The Obama-sans-flag-pin thing reminded me of a short story I once read where all the good patriotic Chinese tried to outdo one another with their Mao pins, you know, to show how much they loved China as Mao ravaged and destroyed it culturally, economically and spiritually.
LIBERAL
So the REPUBLIKLAN Party contnues to implode. Give me some popcorn, ugh the type that doesn’t have that chemical that has injured popcorn manufacturing workers or the public that has eaten that popcorn that the Bush FDA has failed to police and failed to police drug companies for making vioxx and celebrex, etc. etc.
Your party has leaned and bent over backwards to companies and not regular people since the 1920’s The party of Lincoln in the 1860’s turned into the party of Robber barons in the 1920’s and the party of the Ku Klux Klan in the 1960’s and it hasn’t looked back since then.
When a party such as the REPUBLIKLAN party has nothing to offer the public but fear, loathing, persecution, patriot games, tax bashing, poorbashing, immigrant bashing and lies and death, they better have a cover up operation of propaganda or they will eventually lose power for 40 years in congress like they did after Eisenhower.
Oh and your Republiklan presidents and party have even f*cked up the New York Yankees who have not won a single world series with a Republiklan in the white house since Eisenhower in 1958. Look it up. The Yankees have not won a world series under Nixon, Ford, Reagan, George Herbert Hoover Bush and George Warmonger Bu$h. What a coincidence.
Let’s face it, you Republiklan party members appear a bunch of losers whining over why your party has lost ppower in congress while you ruined a million innocent people’s lives in Iraq by killing them, and ruining people’s lives in America with your Ayn Randian economics. You people confuse Ayn Rand for Jesus.
Let the Lot of you go to purgatory and never come back.
Cuzco
Hayekian Says:
“I agree with the contention that the Republican party is adrift and corrupt, but this is mainly because it has abandoned its principles, not BECAUSE of its principles.”
I understand your reluctance to question a core belief, but which principles exactly have been abandoned?
A central premise of the Republican party for the last 27 years (at least) is that government can never do the right thing. Ever. Whenever Republicans are in control, they do everything in their power to create gigantic messes. And then when they lose power for awhile they spend all of their time pointing at the messes they created as proof. It’s so obvious now I wonder why you guys even bother.
“Both parties stink to high heaven right now. Democrats’ elation at Republican party problems ring hollow, however, because I don’t see anything on the Democrat side that offers a constructive, thematic approach to solving problems.”
I know it may seem like longer but the Democrats have been in control of the Legislative branch since January of this year. Nine months isn’t enough time to excise fix seven years of Republican incompetance.
In that nine month interval, Republicans in the Senate have fillibustered more legislation than any other Congress in the history of the United States. Perhaps something constructive might get passed if Republican legislators weren’t playing games with all of our lives.
The literal lives of troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, The uncounted numbers of Iraquis who have died as a direct result of this brain dead war. The lives of working Americans who are spun mercessiously by armies of coordinated Republican robots who throw literally every inconsequential detail at the wall in the hopes that some tempest in a teapot will keep their faces on TV. Obama flag lapel pins? Get a freaking life. (That last part isn’t directed at you it’s the morons in the right wing media I’m blaming for that)
“Mostly, what I hear, and what is posted here, is merely ad homenim attacks on Republicans, rather than explaining what they would do differently.”
To actually get anything done I’m afraid that, at least for a few cycles, the United States is going to have to be “De-Baathified” of Republican Legislators. As the saying goes, “Lead, follow or get out of the way.” It’s time for Republicans to get out of the way. You made a much bigger mess this time and it’s going to take a lot of work and a long time to erase the stain of George Bush’s presidency.
“Fact is, NEITHER party today is willing to address the looming entitlement crisis. This crisis, is NOT something we can solve by “taxing the rich”. We are going to HAVE to cut entitlement programs.”
Republicans use the word “entitlements” as if they are some sort of undeserved inheritance. Sorry, but we spend our entire working lives paying into these “gifts” and the only reason they are even in the slightest danger is the tedious Republican modus operandi “Gain power, screw everything up, point to the mess as proof it doesn’t work.” Rinse repeat.
“And the Left loves to attack globalization, but the fact is that free trade is a win-win in the long run for most people, in spite of the individual short-term dislocations resulting from trade.”
In geoliogic terms, yes, a single human lifespan is a mere blip, but It will take at least 100 years and probably more for the “miracle of globalization” to actually “lift all boats.” In the mean time, there are millions of Americans who will live their one and only life with fewer and fewer prospects as our corporate masters ship all the good jobs off to places where they can get work at a bargain.
MK
> Seriously- what does the current Republican party stand
> for? Permanent war, fear, the nanny state, big spending,
> torture, execution on demand, complete paranoia regarding
> the media, control over your body, denial of evolution
> …Screw them. I got out. They can have their party.
> Hillarycare doesn’t scare me as much as Frank Gaffney
> having a line to the person with the nuclear football
> Dobson and company crafting domestic policy.
Oh the Irony of it all.
From the man whose presidential campaign is considered the launching-pad for the modern conservative movement):
“Mark my word, if and when these preachers get control of the [Republican] party, and they’re sure trying to do so, it’s going to be a terrible damn problem. Frankly, these people frighten me. Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can’t and won’t compromise. I know, I’ve tried to deal with them.” (November 1994, Conservatives Without Conscience, John Dean)
Signed,
Another ex-Republican
Lee
POTD
Richard
Brooks is such an embarrassment not only to the NYT, which may want an idiot to be the right-wing balance to their other columnists, but also to conservatives with a brain who must cringe when they read his high school level essays. He writes such incredible drivel, and writes it badly, that it is pointless to respond to his self-centered pronouncements on political reality that always miss the point.
His head may be in the sand on why the Rethuglicans are tanking, but it is just as often in the clouds depriving his brain of oxygen, but most often it is up his ass where nothing of any value hangs out, and there is no oxygen at all. Wherever his head is it’s the wrong place just about all the time.
Why is this guy ubiquitous? Because he’s the right-winger progressives see as moderate and reasonable? What nonsense. He’s a spear chucker for the right and won’t tell the truth even when he knows it. His tortured and unreadable explanation for the demise of the Rethuglicans is a perfect example. He takes one for the team all the time, but I’m sure it doesn’t hurt because his head is far bigger than anything the team shoves up his butt.
Charles Patrick
My dear Mr. Cole,
Although I agree with your sentiments wholeheartedly, I would greatly appreciate you to use another word other than “retards” to describe the odious, vile ogres that presently run the Republican party. Really, Mr. Cole, this is offensive to people such as myself who personally knows someone who is mentally retarded and have no way to defend themselves! My mother, after grabbing my shoulders up when I was a child and using the word “retard” when I should not have used it the way I did, yelled at me to use another word besides that one. Please, sir, use another word besides “retard.” Really, you should be ashamed of yourself.
Chip
The principles of both parties have been completely overshadowed and corrupted by an undue reliance on the manufacturing of outrage directed at the “other side.” In their quest for hits, Diggs and that coveted 15 minutes of fame as a guest “talking head” on Olbermann or O’Reilly, the top left/right bloggers are happily going along with this status quo instead of using their newly found influence to establish an alternative and productive “dialogical” paradigm.
Daryl
I’ve noticed people like Brooks always reach for the lofty euphemisms when they’re trying to sugarcoat failure.
NormBlon
Don’t forget, these Nazis will be in power until January 2009. And their S/S has just applied to set up a base in California. Be very afraid………
Mark N.
Maybe the Rush Limbaughs of the world need to be more concerned about the phony conservatives of the world, and less with the phony soliders.
But, I guess when you’re Rush Limbaugh, you’ll never ever be capable of recognizing that the guy in the mirror is one of the phony conservatives.
shaker o salt
Great Post John.
Just one question. If you think righty bloggers are “drooling retards,” why do you have Protein Wisdom on your blogroll? Isn’t he just about the biggest, dumbest, droolingest, retard blogger out there?
Comic relief?
Or headbanging ZOMG?
Really, I’d like to know.
Big Bri
I stumbled onto this thread tooling around on the net. Only thing I have to say is “I’ve finally found the sane people”. There is discord, discussion, opinion and no one screaming at each other yelling “terrorist lover!” or “conservative Christain nut job!”
Phoenix Woman
As for taxes, if the Democrats would reverse the past three decades’ worth of shifting the burden of paying for our society ever farther downward onto those who can least afford it (what Jacob S. Hacker calls “The Great Risk Shift”), that would benefit the mass of Americans immensely.
Certain people, brainwashed by “the Southern Strategy”, need to get over the idea that it’s better to give a ton of money to a rich white guy than to give that same amount of money to several poor black single moms. For one thing, the single moms, by spending that money, will do more good for the economy and the nation as a whole than the cash will do if it sits in the rich guy’s bank vaults and doesn’t circulate.
RobLACal
Norm wrote:
“these Nazis will be in power until January 2009.”
Who the hell are you calling a Nazi?
Cuzco wrote:
“To actually get anything done I’m afraid that, at least for a few cycles, the United States is going to have to be “De-Baathified” of Republican Legislators. As the saying goes, “Lead, follow or get out of the way.” It’s time for Republicans to get out of the way. You made a much bigger mess this time and it’s going to take a lot of work and a long time to erase the stain of George Bush’s presidency.”
Liberal wrote:
“Let’s face it, you Republiklan party members appear a bunch of losers whining over why your party has lost ppower in congress while you ruined a million innocent people’s lives in Iraq by killing them, and ruining people’s lives in America with your Ayn Randian economics. You people confuse Ayn Rand for Jesus.”
Roddy McCorley Says:
“The real problem with the GOP is that is has ceased to be a political party. You can view it as a massive criminal conspiracy, an uncomfortably large religious cult, some combination of the two, or any number of other unpleasant things—but not a political party. However one may want to define political, alienating or demonizing 70 percent of your fellow citizens does not fit. Deliberately bankrupting your own country does not fit. Cavalierly dismissing the death and suffering of tens of thousands of your own people does not fit.”
Each of you assholes who I quoted above are hear by ordered to report immediately for your execution. If you fail to report not only will you be hunted and captured so too will your entire family or anyone remotely close to you.
For just one minute I wish that one of criminal democrat party of perpetual frauds parade of lies was actually true. The despicable Nazi smear you maggots claim. For the above would certainly take place if it was true. The fact that you puck ass traitorous frauds are still alive is 100% proof that you are UN-AMERICAN LYING POS’s. Who the fuck do you think you are?
I know exactly who the hell you are. You are my family members some of whose mouths water like dope fiends for political power. You are dirty despicable democrats so full of hate for those who dare not agree with your evil maniacal
perverted UN-AMERICAN agenda.
YOU ARE DEMOCRATS PERIOD. That is what you are and all you are. For anyone who was like me only a few years ago , completely ignorant of politics who is registered democratic and BLINDLY voted straight democrat just to get their mother off their back, I’ll give you the Truth as I hear it and see it. It’s too simple for the bug eyed loud mouth lying democrats to handle. I am an AMERICAN not a democrat nor am I a Republican , Libertarian or Independent and yes I know I must register Republican to vote in the Republican Primary. So f*****n what.
Words mean things and Democrats simply cannot “TELL THE TRUTH”. Truth does to democrats what sunlight does to vampires. It destroys them , it turns their so called arguments and into dust. Democrats love to throw the words like “dissent” and “freedom of speech” to sugar coat their despicable and malicious words and behaviors. Democrats “deny the truth of their intentions , take part in a rebellion for simply being sore losers and a party of incompetent criminal frauds incapable of honesty and without hesitation renounce a former allegiance to this Country not merely for their lust of political gain but because they had little loyalty to this Great Country to to begin with.
The fact that they see themselves as “Real” Americans and more grotesquely as “Patriotic Americans” is enough to make me vomit. These phony democrats aren’t terribly bright as they are stuck on stupid with the never ending false claims of providing “Real” transparency , “Real” reform and so on. When they say “real” get ready for the lies. They must stress “real” because nothing they say every has any truth in Reality. Reform or “Real Reform?” Is their any other kind?
Democrats are “PERPETUAL LYING FRAUDS” and do not take my word for it , TAKE THEIRS. They can call me a liar all day long and that they will do. How are they going to look and sound calling themselves liars in the light of the facts that there are.
Democrats COVET what is not theirs. The Office of the Presidency and total control of this Country. They are not worthy and are undeserving.
binzinerator
Hayekian Says:
Typical Goper bullshit. Pretend everyone else is as guilty of, as John Cole put it, “permanent war, fear, the nanny state, big spending, torture, execution on demand, complete paranoia regarding the media, control over your body, denial of evolution and outright rejection of science”, too. Why didn’t you just try the ol’ “B-b-but Clinton did it too…” bit?
In other words, you’d like us to pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. And as if any of these criticisms are any the less damning because they don’t come stapled to a 12-step plan to get out of the deep shithole the Republicans threw the nation into.
And only Goper turd-blower would try to segue from that into one of the right’s fave little propaganda jingles:
Yep, social security will beggar us all in (omigod) 40 years, so we have NO CHOICE but to cut those (surprahze, surprahze as Gomer Pyle would say) entitlement programs.
And I guess if we can just get rid of those gosh-darn entitlement programs, the war crimes of Iraq, torture, and execution on demand won’t seem all that bad.
For those who don’t understand Goper dogwhistle, ‘entitlement programs’ are a Goper synonym for ‘welfare’. And in Goper bullshitese, ‘welfare’ is when people who can’t afford health insurance, medical care, education or training, or even for chrissake food receive something that actually keeps them out of abject poverty; and which is what the Gopers have over the years insinuated into our national consciousness as meaning generous government handouts and lavish donatives for sneaky undeserving people who won’t work and are unmarried and have multiple kids by multiple sex partners and are no doubt poor through their own damn fault or because Darwin hasn’t yet taken its toll or are un-white or surely all of the above.
They never think for an instant of someone like my grandmother, who is in her 90’s and who grew up on a farm, married during the Depression, raised 3 kids, grew a victory garden, and did all the things a housewife was supposed to do in the 40’s 50’s and 60’s and whose husband worked every damn day of his life and for almost 20 years after his retirement up until the day he died and who left a pension but she still needs her Medicare or she’d never be insured otherwise, without which she’d have been bankrupted by medical bills and prescriptions and surely would have lost the house he worked so damned hard all his life to own.
Nope. They never think of those kinds of people. Or perhaps they have, it’s just that people who aren’t rich don’t count.
But of course none of the Bush tax cuts for the rich are seen as entitlement programs, as welfare for the wealthy… no siree those are justly deserved rewards, winnings that rightfully belong to the winners, righteous relief from an onerous burden that prevents our wealthiest citizens from being denied their fair due for having more money than anyone else. Why should they have to pay? We should pay them. They’re entitled.
In fact, Hayekian, I propose we tax the fuckin’ snot out of the rich and then we can see if your assertion has any merit or not. See, I think we can solve it by taxing the rich. We already tried it your way and we know how that turned out.
How the fuck can anyone not be frothing at your stupidity? Your party has pissed away the wealth of this nation, handed the surplus to the wealthy, and blew almost a trillion bucks on a war we didn’t have to have, and now NOW you cry about how old grannies getting cataracts removed are the root of a looming national crisis?
What a Fuckwad. A typical GOP Fuckwad.
binzinerator
Dave Neiwert at Orcinus has some nice documentation of right-wing projection and eliminationist tendencies:
http://dneiwert.blogspot.com/2007/04/not-just-for-theaters.html):
According to Neiwert, “Outsize, absurd, nonsensical and illogical metaphors are the hallmark of right-wing projection in action.”
And as a teaching aid to illustrate the point, we have Roblacal:
Nice demonstration of projection there, Roblacal. It’s not exactly a metaphor, but we get the drift.
I see you didn’t neglect the eliminationist tendencies of the right wing, either:
You’ve threated not only to hunt down and execute a person for making a comment here, but also made a threat to execute that person’s entire family.
I’d say the genuine Nazi has revealed himself.
binzinerator
Damn, Big Bri, you jinxed it!
Bruce Reynolds
I was a Scranton/Rippon Republican in the 1960’s. I served in Vietnam, and earned my patriotism on the field of battle. I left the Republican party in the 1980’s because I am Gay and the crowd that started taking over the Republican party said I was evil and did not belong in “their” party.
I am still very patriotic, but I think this administration has done more harm to the U.S. than any other administration.
RobLACal
binzinerator Says:
“You’ve threated not only to hunt down and execute a person for making a comment here, but also made a threat to execute that person’s entire family.”
I did no such thing.
Alright you Rush Basher. You obviously need someone to hold your hand and explain it for you slowly. Do you even read each word and understand its meaning ? Never mind
They fact that the above has not happened proves those morons who talk out their ass and basically lying out their ass. If Bush was what they called him , they would be dead.
Quite trying to “Clintonize” President Bush, it’s truthfully and factually impossible. He simply is not a perverted lying criminal draft dodging incompetent immoral ashtray receiving in the head POS. Now if you only had the gut to attacks this Country’s “TRUE” Enemies , might just have to break down and call you an American.
Joe
Hey, stop implying GOPers are retards! Retards will most certainly take exception to the comparision!
This thread gives me hope. I’m certainly liberal in my views but see great value and balance in traditional conservatism. It’s these nutjobs who want policies that really only exist to help them ‘feel’ powerful that scare the shit out of me. These idiots would just as soon start a knee jerk of a war than work to acquire the simple and adult ability to challenge one’s one assumptions.
Not to add any new salt to the wounds, but I’m still angry at you conservatives because, let’s face it, Bush and Co. needed your support to get this far. They really haven’t offered any surprises as far as their loyalties, motivations or even competancies are concerned. Both Kerry and Gore would have been far more malliable toward traditional conservative values.
langsx
If Ronald Reagan is considered the hero of your party and your an American something is seriously wrong with you.
Reagan only sold weapons to Iraq and Iran while they were fighting each other. Sounds like a Criminal to me.
RobLACal
A little something for you democrats to whine about.
There were 39 combat related killings in Iraq in January. In the fair city
of Detroit there were 35 murders in the month of January. That’s just one
American city, about as deadly as the entire war-torn country of Iraq
When some claim that President Bush shouldn’t have started this war, state
the following:
a. A democrat, FDR led us into World War II.
b. Germany never attacked us ; Japan did. From 1941-1945, 450,000 lives were
lost … an average of 112,500 per year.
c. A democrat, Truman finished that war and started one in Korea
North Korea never attacked us . From 1950-1953, 55,000 lives were lost …
an average of 18,334 per year.
d A democrat, John F. Kennedy started the Vietnam conflict in 1962. Vietnam
never attacked us.
e. A democrat, Johnson turned Vietnam into a quagmire. From 1965-1975,
58,000 lives were lost .. an average of 5,800 per year.
f. A democrat, Bill Clinton went to war in Bosnia without UN or French
consent. Bosnia never attacked us . He was offered Osama bin Laden’s head on
a platter three times by Sudan and did nothing. Osama has attacked us on
multiple occasions.
g. In the years since terrorists attacked us, President Bush has liberated
two countries, crushed the Taliban, crippled al-Qaida, put nuclear
inspectors in Libya , Iran , and, North Korea without firing a shot, and
captured a terrorist who slaughtered 300,000 of his own people.
The Democrats are complaining about how long the war is taking.
But Wait
It took less time to take Iraq than it took Janet Reno to take the Branch
Davidian compound. That was a 51-day operation..
We’ve been looking for evidence for chemical weapons
in Iraq for less time than it took Hillary Clinton to find the Rose Law Firm
billing records.
It took less time for the 3r d Infantry Division and the Marines to destroy
the Medina Republican Guard than it took a democrat, Ted Kennedy to call the
police after his Oldsmobile sank at Chappaquiddick.
It took less time to take Iraq than it took to the democrats to count and
re-count the votes in Florida!!!
Our Commander-In-Chief is doing a GREAT JOB! The Military morale is high!
The biased media hopes we are too ignorant to realize the facts
But Wait
There’s more!
JOHN GLENN (on the Senate floor – January 26, 2004)
Some people still don’t understand why military personnel do what they do
for a living. This exchange between Senators John Glenn and Senator Howard
Metzenbaum is worth reading. Not only is it a pretty impressive impromptu
speech, but it’s also a good example of one man’s explanation of why men and
women in the armed services do what they do for a living.
This IS a typical, though sad, example of what some who have never served
think of the military.
Senator Metzenbaum (speaking to Senator Glenn): “How can you run for Senate
when you’ve never held a real job?”
Senator Glenn (D-Ohio): “I served 23 years in the United States Marine
Corps.
I served through two wars. I flew 149 missions. My plane was hit by
anti-aircraft fire on 12 different occasions. I was in the space program. It
wasn’t my checkbook, Howard; it was my life on the line. It was not a
nine-to-five job, where I took time off to take the daily cash receipts to
the bank.”
“I ask you to go with me as I went the other day… to a veteran’s hospital
and look those men … with their mangled bodies, in the eye, and tell THEM
they didn’t hold a job!
You go with me to the Space Program at NASA and go, as I have gone, to the
widows and Orphans of Ed White, Gus Grissom and Roger Chaffee… and you
look those kids in the eye and tell them that their DADS didn’t hold a job.
You go with me on Memorial Day and you stand in Arlington National Cemetery,
where I have more friends buried than I ‘d like to remember, and you watch
those waving flags.
You stand there, and you think about this nation, and you tell ME that those
people didn’t have a job?
What about you?”
For those who don’t remember During WW II, Howard Metzenbaum, a democrat was
an attorney representing the Communist Party in the USA.
Now he’s a democratic Senator!
If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you are reading it in English
thank a Veteran.
It might not be a bad idea to keep this circulating. I AM!!!
liberal
RobLACal blithered incoherently,
LOL!
The appropriate comparison is all killings in Detroit to all killings in Iraq.
Nice attempt to try to cherry-pick. Not.
But Germany declared war on us after we declared war on Japan.
No he didn’t. The roots of American involvement in Vietnam go as far back as American funding of the French in the French-Indochinese war (at the end, to the tune of 75% of the cost of the Frensh war effort), and probably earlier, to 1946.
The Taliban have hardly been crushed, and the writ government in Kabul doesn’t extend far outside the city limits.
As for Iraq, yes, it was liberated from Saddam, and (a) now is in a state of civil war, (b) will likely eventually settle down as an ally of Iran.
Would that it were so. And the only reason Bush decided to deal with AQ is because of his failure to prevent 9-11 in the first place, despite ample warnings from Clinton admin personnel during the transition and intelligence warnings in the summer of 2001.
It’s well understood—except by you—that the encouraging state of affairs vis-a-vis Libya is based on diplomacy which began far before Bush 43 took office.
LOL! Bush is responsible for the NPT and related inspection regime in Iran?
And whatever incentive Iran had to develop nuclear weapons before March 2003 pales in comparison to their incentive after we invaded Iraq.
Essentially by abandoning his (Bush’s) track of confronting NK with no carrot and returning to the framework started under Clinton.
liberal
RobLACal wrote,
That’s true, albeit not in the way you intend.
liberal
Hayekian
That’s not an accurate assessment of the situation.
Social Security is fine for a few more decades; longer, if rather the rather pessimistic “official” SS Trustee’s projection for economic growth turns out to be shy of hte mark.
The real entitlement explosion is Medicare and Medicaid, and it stems from the more general cost explosion in the health care sector (viz, private also not just public).
liberal
bill wesley opined,
That’s just false.
Certainly, a baseline amount of corruption will always be with us. But Republican corruption is now wholesale, not just retail, whereby many government functions worth billions of dollars are outsourced to private contractors with connections to the Republican Party.
The model for this is Jeb’s Florida.
liberal
El Cid wrote,
Cf Krugman, “Same Old Party”.
I despise Reagan as much as the next guy, but he wasn’t as bad as Bush; he actually seemed able to learn.
Examples: getting us out of Lebanon after that blew up in his face, and the 1986 tax reform.
Hank Essay
Can you please tell us what you really think??
–
Buzzcook
“crew them. I got out. They can have their party. I will vote for Democrats and little L libertarians and isolationists until the crazy people aren’t running the GOP”
With all due respect, the crazy people have been in charge of the republican party since the end of the civil war. The difference is that till the last few decades there was been an ameliorating influence in the form of progressive till Taft left office, Social liberals till Ford left office and an opposition party in control of congress or the white house till Bush II took office. The influence of the racist dixiecrat move to the republican party after the signing of the voting rights act also empowered the crazys and weakened the remaining moderating influences on republican abuse of power.
Hold a mirror up to just about any time where republicans had power and you can see a reflection of the current administration.
Eric
RobLACal wrote:
Yep; but America was attacked first. A smarter person knows that the United States declared nuetrality and wanted nothing to do with the war until we were attacked.
RobLACal wrote:
Nice try, but you failed. Germany declared war on the United States due to the Empire of Japan being their ally.
RobLACal wrote:
I agree. We should have never gone over to Korea.
RobLACal wrote:
Again, I agree, Vietnam was another mistake.
RobLACal wrote:
Not sure where I stand, but as I am an isolationist, I will agree with you here (we should never get into other people’s sh*t unless we are attacked-I support the war on terror, the original war into Afghanistahn post 9/11, but Iraq had no reason)
In truth, Democrats historically get into other people’s business, and start wars. Democrats also spend money like there is no budget. Hmmm…beginning to sound like Bush. But dare I say that. Pointing out flaws in Bush’s agenda will certainly come with fire and anger from his supporters, even if he fails to live up to his own party’s standards.
As for you saying you are neither a Democrat or Republican, nice try for brownie points. Your Bias is showing.
As put above, most whacko-Republicans I meet always spew the same, authoritarianism crap out. You almost can never have a decent and lively debate…and they never see the other side. Yes, whacko-democrats are the same. But I see a “helluva” more far right-wingers still clinging to the same failed concept, still putting people down, still thinking they’re number one.
RobLACal wrote:
God bless the Veterans and POW-MIAs. I wish they would get more respect. I agree with you heartedly here.
,God I hate politicians and politics.
Dhalgren
John Cole is on a streak. The guy has been making complete sense for a week now. Bravo!