Posted by Fitz
I do not mean to complain, but I have heard variations on the same basic mantras countless times from Democrats and fellow travelers over the last four weeks. I understand that people are angry and upset. I also understand that it can seem bewildering – gay bashing and prohibition laws concerning reproductive rights is a staggeringly narrow ‘values’ debate.
But, frankly, all the whining is starting to give me a real headache. It is time to face facts, and fact number one is that no one, especially the GOP leadership, is really waging a war of values.
The best way to tell what a person or organization really believes in is to examine actions, not words. The only values truly held are the ones that are adhered to when it costs something. The rest are just values of convenience.
Using this standard, it would seem reasonable to conclude that today’s GOP only truly holds two values – a thirst for power, and wanton greed. All the talk about traditional, family oriented values is just that, talk. Think about it, would a ‘values’ party put the son of a Nazi, who has smoked dope in public, supports gay unions, ruined his heart with illegal steroids, and has a history of groping woman and boasting of inter-racial group sex exploits on National TV?
Would a party that cared about families and children have its corporate media mouthpiece be the same conglomerate that makes most of its money off shows that set the stage for young woman to get drunk and have sex, and then capture their tears as they call their families and boyfriends?
The GOP does not believe in ‘values’ any more than it believes in ‘fiscal responsibility’. ‘Values’, as it is being bandied about today, is just a semantic softener. Just as ‘Undisclosed Collateral Damage Figures’ is much more palatable than, say, ’30,000 innocent woman and children dying horrible deaths…’, ‘voting on values’ sounds much more palatable than ‘voting on hate, intolerance, ignorance, and fear…’
A rose may remain sweet, but the power of names should not be underestimated.
One old saying is ‘fight fire with fire’. And I can see how Democrats might find some merit in this. For example, I do not understand why every Democratic candidate was not running ads showing nasty men in suits chasing young girls down school halls, pushing them down, groping them, and then stealing their milk money. Then, a candidate could appear and discuss deficits, fiscal responsibility, and priorities, against a background of video footage showing US soldiers armoring their own vehicles with sand and plywood.
Now that the election is over, the only difference I see is that the ad could end with the nasty gropers all meeting up on the new Presidential yacht and having a big laugh over Democrats wanting to spend money on port security instead.
But, another old saying seems even more appropriate – “The only true weapon against tyranny is courage.”
I think that the minority party needs to stand loudly and firmly on values. One advantage to the current form of GOP rule is that it is not necessary for Democrats to move to ‘the left’ to differentiate themselves. Huge core issues like fiscal sanity and public security are wide open.
Think about flag burning and all the mileage that the GOP has gotten out of it. Now, picture a drum beat from Democrats about REAL Americans, the kind who know that we all have to pay our FAIR SHARE when our country is at war, just like our ancestors. Or, show COURAGE by walking out of a store when you cannot buy American because we know that multi-national corporations will gladly destroy our way of life to make a buck and it is up to REAL Americans to save our own jobs.
I don’t know about anyone else, but I could stomach my political party’s leaders wrapping themselves in the flag if, at the end of the day, they actually stood for something other than power and greed.
-jjf