What is a Conservative?
Would JFK have been called a Conservative today? Maybe.
Kennedy wasn't a liberal even by the standards of his time, regarding totalitarianism and taxes. It may seem like a no-brainer now, but Kennedy was under fire for being a vigorous opponent of the Communist infiltration of the State Department under FDR. Kennedy's sweeping across-the-board tax cut dismayed liberal Democrats of the time, who urged government spending binges to "stimulate the economy." [source: "Remembering JFK" ]
Certainly the American population’s views have shifted to the right. The Far Left is the new Middle, the old Middle is the new Right and the Far Right are the new Nazis.
Seventy percent of the U.S. feels that conservatives have gone off the deep end; that the cause no longer matches traditional American values. That also reflects the views of the rest of the world. The U.S. is now discounted across the globe as a rogue nation, and thanks to our lackluster reactions to attacks on our embassies and ships at sea, our enemies see us as a paper tiger. The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism.
Other countries claim that our new Right is closest philosophically to the Taliban we’re fighting in Afghanistan. It’s hard to argue that they are wrong -- especially in light of the fact that, as a country, we have become economically and militarily weaker since Ronald Reagan. How else can we explain, after five years, the lack of a World Trade Center memorial, much less new WTC buildings? We ousted Saddam Hussein, then used his infamous torture prisons to torture our own war captives. Spiritually, the movement has bankrupted itself with eccentric businessmen posing as TV preachers (e.g., Pat Robertson) attempting to alter U.S. national and international policy.
Let’s examine how the rest of America views the conservative movement to develop better strategies to help the U.S. become a better, stronger nation without sinking into the depravity of nations that have forged the same conservative path before us.
"Familiar Agenda?"
Kennedy wasn't a liberal even by the standards of his time, regarding totalitarianism and taxes. It may seem like a no-brainer now, but Kennedy was under fire for being a vigorous opponent of the Communist infiltration of the State Department under FDR. Kennedy's sweeping across-the-board tax cut dismayed liberal Democrats of the time, who urged government spending binges to "stimulate the economy." [source: "Remembering JFK" ]
Certainly the American population’s views have shifted to the right. The Far Left is the new Middle, the old Middle is the new Right and the Far Right are the new Nazis.
Seventy percent of the U.S. feels that conservatives have gone off the deep end; that the cause no longer matches traditional American values. That also reflects the views of the rest of the world. The U.S. is now discounted across the globe as a rogue nation, and thanks to our lackluster reactions to attacks on our embassies and ships at sea, our enemies see us as a paper tiger. The world is beginning to doubt the moral basis of our fight against terrorism.
Other countries claim that our new Right is closest philosophically to the Taliban we’re fighting in Afghanistan. It’s hard to argue that they are wrong -- especially in light of the fact that, as a country, we have become economically and militarily weaker since Ronald Reagan. How else can we explain, after five years, the lack of a World Trade Center memorial, much less new WTC buildings? We ousted Saddam Hussein, then used his infamous torture prisons to torture our own war captives. Spiritually, the movement has bankrupted itself with eccentric businessmen posing as TV preachers (e.g., Pat Robertson) attempting to alter U.S. national and international policy.
Let’s examine how the rest of America views the conservative movement to develop better strategies to help the U.S. become a better, stronger nation without sinking into the depravity of nations that have forged the same conservative path before us.
"Familiar Agenda?"
posted by Neo Caan | 12:21 AM
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