Dialog
AAA has a post up today that really caught my eye. He linked to a City Journal diary that summarizes a problem that Conservatives face on a daily basis.
"The thing I like best about being a conservative is that I don’t have to lie. I don’t have to pretend that men and women are the same. I don’t have to declare that failed or oppressive cultures are as good as mine. I don’t have to say that everyone’s special or that the rich cause poverty or that all religions are a path to God. I don’t have to claim that a bad writer like Alice Walker is a good one or that a good writer like Toni Morrison is a great one. I don’t have to pretend that Islam means peace.
Of course, like everything, this candor has its price. A politics that depends on honesty will be, by nature, often impolite. Good manners and hypocrisy are intimately intertwined, and so conservatives, with their gimlet-eyed view of the world, are always susceptible to charges of incivility. It’s not really nice, you know, to describe things as they are."
He also nails liberalism with the cold hard truth.
"This is leftism’s great strength: it’s all white lies. That’s its only advantage, as far as I can tell. None of its programs actually works, after all. From statism and income redistribution to liberalized criminal laws and multiculturalism, from its assault on religion to its redefinition of family, leftist policies have made the common life worse wherever they’re installed. But because it depends on—indeed is defined by—describing the human condition inaccurately, leftism is nothing if not polite. With its tortuous attempts to rename unpleasant facts out of existence—he’s not crippled, dear, he’s handicapped; it’s not a slum, it’s an inner city; it’s not surrender, it’s redeployment—leftism has outlived its own failure by hiding itself within the most labyrinthine construct of social delicacy since Victoria was queen.
This is no small thing. To rewrite the rules of courteous behavior is to wield enormous power. I see it in Southern California, in the bleeding heart of leftism, where I live. I’ve been banned from my monthly poker game, lost tennis partners, lost friends—not because I’m belligerent but because I’ve wondered aloud if the people shouldn’t be allowed to make their own abortion laws, say, or if the world might not be a better place without the UN.
It’s a rotten feeling. I sometimes think that I’d rather be deemed evil than a boor. Wickedness has some flair to it, even a whiff of radicalism. If you molest a child, there’s always a chance that you can get the ACLU to defend you as a cultural innovator. But if you make a remark at table about the destructive social effects of broken homes and then discover that your dinner partner is a divorcée—trust me, you feel like a real louse. It’s manners, not morals, that lay the borderlines of our behavior."
This is where AAA steps in.
"Far too often we back down for fear of ruining the party or conversation. Far too often our leaders and officials don’t want to be seen as mean or uncaring.
Is it better to give a man a fish, or teach him how to fish so he will never need your handouts again?
Liberals will give the man someone else’s fish, and then tax the other fishermen.
I’m tired of watching leading Republicans turn spineless in the face of elections. I’m tired of Republicans backing away from the ideological battle we are in. I am tired of being “nice” at dinners abnd parties, just because.
Until we conservatives and Republicans are willing to speak our minds and argue on behalf of our values, we will never win the hearts and minds of the average voters. The DFL could care less where and when they aspouse their liberal agenda. So why are we?"
I certainly agree - conservatives need to step up the defense of the philosophy. We need to be able to stand up and defend what we believe and why - but that does not mean that we have to be mean, confrontational or rude about it. When debating issues, I have always let the words of a wise philosoper guide me - I speak the truth in love. My experience has been that when I do speak the truth of conservatism in a loving, gentle manner, I get one of two possible responses. I either get a thoughtfull "I hadn't thought of it that way" or I get "YOU BEOTCH". Sadly, too many liberals, when presented with a calm, factual argument resort to name calling in response. It does not need to be that way, but it is. However, I will not back away from a rational defense of my ideals. Our leaders need to start doing the same.
"The thing I like best about being a conservative is that I don’t have to lie. I don’t have to pretend that men and women are the same. I don’t have to declare that failed or oppressive cultures are as good as mine. I don’t have to say that everyone’s special or that the rich cause poverty or that all religions are a path to God. I don’t have to claim that a bad writer like Alice Walker is a good one or that a good writer like Toni Morrison is a great one. I don’t have to pretend that Islam means peace.
Of course, like everything, this candor has its price. A politics that depends on honesty will be, by nature, often impolite. Good manners and hypocrisy are intimately intertwined, and so conservatives, with their gimlet-eyed view of the world, are always susceptible to charges of incivility. It’s not really nice, you know, to describe things as they are."
He also nails liberalism with the cold hard truth.
"This is leftism’s great strength: it’s all white lies. That’s its only advantage, as far as I can tell. None of its programs actually works, after all. From statism and income redistribution to liberalized criminal laws and multiculturalism, from its assault on religion to its redefinition of family, leftist policies have made the common life worse wherever they’re installed. But because it depends on—indeed is defined by—describing the human condition inaccurately, leftism is nothing if not polite. With its tortuous attempts to rename unpleasant facts out of existence—he’s not crippled, dear, he’s handicapped; it’s not a slum, it’s an inner city; it’s not surrender, it’s redeployment—leftism has outlived its own failure by hiding itself within the most labyrinthine construct of social delicacy since Victoria was queen.
This is no small thing. To rewrite the rules of courteous behavior is to wield enormous power. I see it in Southern California, in the bleeding heart of leftism, where I live. I’ve been banned from my monthly poker game, lost tennis partners, lost friends—not because I’m belligerent but because I’ve wondered aloud if the people shouldn’t be allowed to make their own abortion laws, say, or if the world might not be a better place without the UN.
It’s a rotten feeling. I sometimes think that I’d rather be deemed evil than a boor. Wickedness has some flair to it, even a whiff of radicalism. If you molest a child, there’s always a chance that you can get the ACLU to defend you as a cultural innovator. But if you make a remark at table about the destructive social effects of broken homes and then discover that your dinner partner is a divorcée—trust me, you feel like a real louse. It’s manners, not morals, that lay the borderlines of our behavior."
This is where AAA steps in.
"Far too often we back down for fear of ruining the party or conversation. Far too often our leaders and officials don’t want to be seen as mean or uncaring.
Is it better to give a man a fish, or teach him how to fish so he will never need your handouts again?
Liberals will give the man someone else’s fish, and then tax the other fishermen.
I’m tired of watching leading Republicans turn spineless in the face of elections. I’m tired of Republicans backing away from the ideological battle we are in. I am tired of being “nice” at dinners abnd parties, just because.
Until we conservatives and Republicans are willing to speak our minds and argue on behalf of our values, we will never win the hearts and minds of the average voters. The DFL could care less where and when they aspouse their liberal agenda. So why are we?"
I certainly agree - conservatives need to step up the defense of the philosophy. We need to be able to stand up and defend what we believe and why - but that does not mean that we have to be mean, confrontational or rude about it. When debating issues, I have always let the words of a wise philosoper guide me - I speak the truth in love. My experience has been that when I do speak the truth of conservatism in a loving, gentle manner, I get one of two possible responses. I either get a thoughtfull "I hadn't thought of it that way" or I get "YOU BEOTCH". Sadly, too many liberals, when presented with a calm, factual argument resort to name calling in response. It does not need to be that way, but it is. However, I will not back away from a rational defense of my ideals. Our leaders need to start doing the same.
Labels: Bush Derangement Syndrome, Democrats, Republicans
posted by The Lady Logician at
4:17 PM
5 Comments:
I find that I fare best by use of the rapier, not the broadsword. I like to state the facts so delicately and irrefutably that it is sometimes hours before the hapless liberal notices he is bleeding from every pore. It gives me time to make my get-a-way before the sputtering ad hominem tirade begins. Priceless.
J. Ewing
By
Anonymous, at 5:45 PM
I try not to pull out the rapier, too soon. I prefer to Educate, not necessarily the person I am "debating" but those who may be waffling between the two positions. I try to maintain decorum, unless of course some anonymous hack dives right in with the ad hominems - at which point, all bets are off.
LL
By
The Lady Logician, at 7:09 AM
So, how's that education thing workin' for ya? Have you ever met a liberal with enough mental tinder to sustain a spark of thought?
I occasionally enjoy the game that can never really be won-- debating a liberal-- and consider count it a victory when they descend into sputtering incoherence (usually after the 2nd or 3rd statement). At that point, though, it becomes like a good defensive lob in tennis. While they're waiting for it to come down, you slip away.
J. Ewing
By
Anonymous, at 9:54 AM
Well there is a certain level of liberal that is "un-educable" when it comes to conservatism and personal responsibility, but I have gotten a few sparks of recognition...usually followed by the sputtering of "bbbbuttt that can't beeeeeeee!!!!!"
LL
By
The Lady Logician, at 10:01 AM
You just have to have the temerity to stand up for the fundamental principle (sound familiar) in battling the Great Ignorance: "Let no lie go unanswered, let no truth go unspoken." So it is written, so it should be.
J. Ewing
By
Anonymous, at 12:08 PM
Post a Comment
<< Home