Wednesday, October 05, 2005

You're either with us or you're a liberal

Nasty word, isn't it? L-I-B-E-R-A-L ... Seems benign enough on the surface; however, it is pure poison to the politically conservative. Here ... let's do some word association, American Right:

Al Franken

Screaming left-wing liberal

Cindy Sheehan

Anti-American liberal nutcase

Ann Coulter

An angel, sent directly from the Almighty in this crusade against the Stars and Stripes by liberal left-wing nutcases and screaming Anti-patriots.

(I won't make any mention of Rush Limbaugh. Some neocons see him as their personal second-coming.)

Simple enough, isn't it? But why do we have to suffer through all this partisan nonsense? The British have become infected with our two-party bull$#!^ as well ... So much for the last purely academic stronghold ...

Now, I have a point, and I'm about to get to it, but first I must say that I'm really neither Democrat nor Republican. I'm what some would consider a moderate, if not an Independent. Yes, I've flirted once or twice with the Green Party, but honestly, environmentalism should be an agenda, not a political ideology.

The point: I never read, listen or pay much attention to political pundits from the Left or the Right. It's confusing, really, that both sides assert that they're telling the truth, but when the other side supposedly debunks them, they never address nor redress the factual correction. I had, in fact, never read anything by Al Franken, Ann Coulter or Rush Limbaugh ... until today.

It's intriguing to read some of the inflammatory statements that they make, both sides, Left and Right. Some, in fact, would in many ways equivocate to a partisan call to arms, which would explain the extreme militant environment that shrouds our federal government like the smog billowing on the Dallas skyline.

My first time reading Ann Coulter was a preview in the preface to her books Slander and Treason on the Amazon website. What a banshee! That was my primary impression. But, as I've always heard is best to do, I shall remain skeptical.

The same goes for my first foray into Al Franken's humorist approach to the "professional debunking" of conservative "lies" in his book Lies. Not so much a banshee, but I would be a crying and frightful pile of mush if I was the conservative pundit that was receiving those wallops.

Rush, Al, O'Reilly or [insert non-existen liberal politcal pundit here] can just keep talking to those incensed enough by their morals, ethics or whatever. However, I prefer to stay true to what I believe than jump on a political bandwagon.

Moderate; thy name is _____________.

9 comments:

MattJ said...

To be fair, we've always been pretty much a two party Country since the reformation. Anywhere where the British political system has had a hand is, in fact, a pure mockery of Democracy. I think you have a similar 'First past the post' system to ours. Only yours, in theory, is a little fairer. Until you take into account the vast corrpution inherrent to a pricately funded campaign trail.

Anyway, for those not familiar wiht our quaint ways, allow me to elaborate. A pitiful number of people vote. one party gets under 40% of that vate and they win, the rest of the people don't count. Ever.

Good isn't it? I mean the other votes go some way to determine which suit sits where but the only votes of dissention are, once again, the Liberal Democrats in any given situation who are continually mocked for Crazy Radical ideas like proportional representation and, gasp! Not invading small countries just to give our own fat pockets an even fatter lining.
[stew]

More tomorrow. will calm down a bit first.

MattJ said...

OK, I'm back. You lucky people.

Yeah, so, even though that on the front of it wse have always had a multi party system in this country it's very rare that there has ever been any real influence from the Liberals. I mean initially the major players were the Tories and the Reformists (Conservatives and Labour). Now the Reformists were only liberal in the sense that they objected to landed gentry with no chins sitting in parliament because of their lineage.

Ok, I could bang on for a while but basically, you get the picture, really only ever been 2 parties (I have started voting LibDem though for the record). At the moment, there is only one which is why Bush's pet Priminister gets away with so much.

Anyway, great post with a good point. The far left and the far right are pretty much as bad as each other, PolPot was an extreme liberal and look at what that nutter got up to! Politics shouldn't be seen as a Pendulum swinging left to right, but rather as a circle.

MattJ said...

Ok, I am becoming a blog stalker, but you got me on a pet subject and you used the word Patriot in your text. It's a word I despise because it so often used out of context and to excuse so many things that I it has come to mean nothing more than a blanket excuse for abhorrent behaviour to me. If I voice my opinion that it's against the will of the people that we invade countries for economic gain I'm unpatriotic and 'harming out soldiers morale'. I think getting troops slaughtered for no good reason is going to affect their morale a hell of a lot more thanks!

Anyway, this wasn't meant to be that long I just wanted to leave one of my favorite quotes from the creator of the first dictionary, Samuel Johnson. Under the entry Patriotism, he describes it as 'The Last refuge of the scoundrel'. Ambrose Pearce, nearly a century later with this famous quote:
“In Dr. Johnson’s famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer, I beg to submit that it is the first.”

Miss Dallas said...

It seems as if the Brits and us "ugly Americans" are in the same boat when it comes to partisan politicking.

No matter how idealistic I get about democracy, i.e. vox populi and such, but then I realize that most people in this country don't vote along their beliefs and ideals and their own will for reform. It's like picking a team for the World Series or a pool for the Super Bowl. Picking a winner means you have bragging rights when the election is over and everything is said and done.

There is always scandal about American elections. Not to mention the overall idiocy that the electronic ballot without a verification coupon.

But, I must say, I was disappointed with the 2004 election outcome. I chose the lesser of 2 evils (only because Nader couldn't get on the TX ballot). And, we didn't win.

But let me tell you this. Bush isn't making a difference in office, but rather his cabinet is making a difference by following directions from his strategists and aides. And trust me, they are catching a proverbial TON of heat right now for their wayward ways regarding campaign funding, leaks and other federal mishaps.

So, if we had elected Kerry, which we unfortunately did not, he would have the brightest minds working for him in office, which is what really makes a difference. He would have chosen Supreme Court justices that would be far different than what you see today...

Man... I want to go to the parallel universe where Kerry won. That'd be cool...

Malkin said...

partisan bull shit sucks. plain and simple. I'm really interested in politics but I have no desire to enter into it because of the constant bickering and bs that goes on. Well, that and the fact Karl Rove (or whoever) would dig up my past and eat it alive. :-)

-Mark

MattJ said...

Democracy is great. Democracy(TM) as Marketed by Bush,Bush, Blair & Bush is a thinkly veiled police state.

Sorry I just read 1984 for the 40th time and it's amazing that a guy over 60 years ago predicted this kind of activity, writes one of the most well known stories about it and still no one appears to notice when it begins to come true!

Miss Dallas said...

That's not even Orwell's best work, but I agree in that both our governments are becoming frightfully Orwellian.

Every time I read the reviews of a Bush speech I am reminded of the aftermath of Two Minutes Hate.

MattJ said...

I know a lot of peole regard Down and Out in London and Paris as the best. I have to confess I have not read it to date but I remember Animal Farm having a profound effect on me when I read it in, what would be 9th grade for you I think? (13/14?). Excellent work, and I think inspired to make it a childrens book.

Shame the makers of the cartoon didn't have the courage to keep to the story.

Anonymous said...

Politics without partisanship will never happen and never has happened, though in the past the rhetoric was much more enjoyable.

The only way to remove partisanship is to remove the political process. You never heard much about nasty partisan bickering in Saddam's Iraq, or in Kim's Korea or Assad's Syria.

It's the natural reaction those in the political game have to disliking what the other side(s) say. The best way to deal with it is to make sure your voice is heard. Through the exchange of ideas (with luck they are based in fact, logic and reason) the outcome will be that best-suited for the voting people. Those who do not vote, sit back and enjoy the ride. Life is not a spectator sport.