Heartland wisdom: what-in-hell happened to the republican party??

Editorial: Eight myths to chill an old-school Republican soul

It's sad to see what has happened to the Party of Lincoln, and for that matter, the party of lesser mortals like George H.W. Bush of Texas, Bob Dole of Kansas and Jack Danforth of Missouri. No one ever would mistake them for liberals, but they were statesmen who put country before party.

Today we have the spectacle of smart, patriotic men and women putting their brains and integrity on ice to please a party dominated by anti-intellectual social Darwinists and the plutocrats who finance and mislead them.

Consider the mythology that makes up GOP orthodoxy today. Imagine the contortions that cramp the brains and souls of men and women of intelligence and compassion who seek state and national office under the Republican banner.

• They must believe, despite the evidence of the 2008 financial collapse, that unregulated — or at most, lightly regulated — financial markets are good for America and the world.

• They must believe in the brilliantly cast conceit known as the "pro-growth agenda," in which economic growth can be attained only by reducing corporate and individual tax rates, especially among the investor class, and by freeing business from environmental rules that have cleaned up America's air and water and labor regulations that helped create America's middle class.

• Though rising health care costs are pillaging the economy, and even though health care in America is now a matter of what you can afford, Republican candidates for office must deny that health care is a basic right and resist a real attempt to change and improve the system.

• GOP candidates must scoff at scientific consensus about global warming. Blame it on human activity? Bad. Cite Noah's Ark as evidence? Good. They must express at least some doubt about the science of evolution.

• They must insist, statistics and evidence to the contrary, that most of the nation's energy needs can be met safely with more domestic oil drilling, "clean-coal" technology and greater reliance on perfectly safe nuclear power plants.

• They must believe that all 11.2 million undocumented immigrants living in the United States can be rounded up, detained, tried, repatriated and kept from returning at a reasonable cost.

• Even though there are more than four unemployed persons for every available job, GOP candidates should at least hint that unemployment benefits keep people from seeking jobs.

• They must believe that the Founding Fathers wanted to guarantee individuals the absolute right to own high-capacity, rapid-fire weapons that did not exist in the late 18th century.

By no means is this list complete. It almost makes you feel sorry for the people who pretend to believe this stuff. Almost.

St.Louis Post-Dispatch Sunday, June 26, 2011
Read more: http://www.stltoday.com/news/opinion/columns/the-platform/article_b477e0fb-aab4-5d8e-90fe-c42826da31dd.html#ixzz1QjFOoddS

Comments

[Coiler]

Interestingly, Ayn Rand herself received Social Security payments and Medicare benefits under the name of Ann O'Connor (her husband was Frank O'Connor).

She wrote in her book “The Virtue of Selfishness” that accepting any government controls is “delivering oneself into gradual enslavement.”

[excessive moderate]

I understand the misgivings of the middle to follow the far left, but it’s absolutely insane to follow the far right.

[KS]

The Post-Dispatch seems to have created an urban myth - they seem as biased as the NY (Sl)Times. I'll have to consult Kevin Phillips' most recent writings for a more real view. Phillips is no fan of the Democratic Party either.

[KS]

I am clearly not GOP by their standards.

[chucks]

We can't all ride bicycles, trains or buses to work, nor do most of us want to. While researching, inventing, developing and discovering new fuel and power sources, we still need to keep up with our existing power needs. We can not shut down industry while we seek new sources to power the world.
We don't need to gather up 11,000,000 illegal aliens. We just need to make it law to not be able to hire those people. If you fine business $500.00to say $1000.00 per day per illegal, those folks will find there way home. Gasp, that will open up a whole lot of entry level jobs for inner-city youth and suburban cracker kids as well. Bonus, crime reduction.
Two years unemployment pay is flat out stupid.
When the Founding Fathers wrote that guarantee, the government (both ours and the rest of the worlds) only had muskets and black powder cannons. If one day we need to stand a militia to defend or re-take our government, troops armed with .22 cal Roebucks and .38 Smith and Wesson six guns are not going to get the job done. We, or our children will need real fire power. It is a valid and responsible right.
Etc. Etc. Etc.......
I don't think that following the left in to tyranny and enslavement is the answer. To follow the likes of Nancy Pelosi,Barney Frank and their ilk is ignorance and stupidity and down right dangerous.
Those are the people that believe keeping laws secret from the people until they pass them is an honest way to do business.

[Andrew]

Ordinary people are beginning to get angry at the pro-business political machine that's mostly represented by the Right. You have the poll that shows most people believe the bad economy was started before Obama took office (a point of fact really), and twice now I've heard people complaining about pro-business politics out loud at the grocery store (I had never heard anyone even mention politics before).

My guess is that people are willing to blame Obama for a lack of job creation, because jobs can come and go overnight, but they see their home values being decimated, a decade's worth of appreciation simply erased, and they're smart enough to know Obama had nothing to do with that. I think the extent of the damage is just starting to be known to the wider public.

[Andrew]

chucks says I don't think that following the left in to tyranny and enslavement is the answer.

It's funny that you say that, because after a deregulated Wall Street managed to make my house lose much of it's value, with their fancy "credit deault swaps", despite the fact that I've been working away, making mortgage payment and mortgage payment, I feel kinda like I've been made into a slave by the "invisible hand of the free market". How am I not supposed to feel robbed? Fuck your free market. I want European style socialism.

[joanie]

Amen, St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Amen.

[joanie]

"tyranny and enslavement" - what a bobble-head.

[joanie]

Jack Danforth. The Senator who put forth Clarence Thomas' name for the Supreme Court. I liked Danforth but what a mistake!

[Glory Hole]

The stupid mick is a socialist. Socialism for 300 million people, many illegal and worthless. Nobody watches him.

[shemar moore]

Idaho Lawmaker Who Drunkenly Stole Car Gets Off With Misdemeanor

After he stole a Ford Excursion and drove it with a .15 blood alcohol content -- almost twice the legal limit -- John McGee was charged with felony grand theft and faced the prospect of a hefty jail sentence. The Republican state senator from Idaho, who had been mentioned as a possible congressional or gubernatorial candidate, seemed to have reached the end of his political career.

Or maybe not. On Friday morning, McGee reached a plea agreement that saw the felony charged dropped, leaving him with just a misdemeanor DUI.

The reason? "Senator McGee did not intend to drive drunk, and he did not intend to steal anybody's car," said his lawyer. "I think there are medical explanations for what occurred that night."

Late update: Here, via KTVB.com, are the details:

McGee's defense attorney said the senator was celebrating with friends after a day of golf when he fell. He injured his knee, hip, and suffered a concussion, which impaired his judgment. [...]

McGee is ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, with $250 of that suspended. His driver's license will be suspended for 180 days, but he can apply for restricted privileges after 30 days.

The senator paid restitution on the damages of the truck and has written a letter of apology."

the only thing medically wrong with him is he is insane. And Republican. But I repeat myself