The Lies of "Conservatism" and the "Center" are Immoral
MARK KARLIN BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG
There once was a somewhat principled -- even if selfish and objectionable -- movement in America called Conservatism. But that is no more: as much a victim of the public relations-named "Reagan Revolution" as are America's middle and working class and the once robust economy of the United States.
The modern "conservative" movement is nothing more than a massively funded and highly effective communications strategy to shift America into an oligarchy that functions for the super wealthy through tax cuts and for corporations through the elimination of safety regulations for the public good and the privatization of government.
That's not conservatism; that's highway robbery. It's a crime.
All this came about through the organized strategy and financing of wealthy financiers and corporations to build a network of think tanks, media-owned outlets, reporters toting the oligarchy line on the "benefits" of unrestrained "free trade," public relations initiatives, and front organizations to move America from an evolutionary society relying on the strength of innovation and a dynamic educated middle class to a relatively static society in which those at the top are in a members-only club growing obese with wealth while kicking others down from the ladder to the top and demanding tithes from them.
The most vital cudgel used to achieve this economic and social imbalance that stultifies the American nation and is immoral to its founding principles is the notion of "centrism." It is beat into us by Republican and Democratic politicians (Rahm Emanuel and the White House being current exemplars), the corporate mainstream media, and, of course, the relentlessly effective GOP echo chamber.
What is "centrism" other than an artificial metaphor, given that America is confronting so many issues and that the vast majority of society wants to move forward, not backward. What most Americans want is not static "centrism," but movement ahead. That is the conundrum that corporate journalism, subject to the goals of its owners can't explain: how a society that allegedly is "conservative" is fed up with the gridlock in Washington that won't produce change.
After all, so called "Conservatism" is the opposite of progress. It is moving backwards instead of forwards. The world, however, doesn't stop -- and the immoral assertion of "centrism" as the trope that politicians use to stifle America's advancement is allowing other nations like China, India and a United Europe to catapult past us.
To prevent the continued development of a prosperous society that benefits more than a privileged few, the GOP developed a massive propaganda machine of everything from think tanks, to publishing houses, to "stalking horses" in whom they invested -- like General Electric and some California plutocrats did in Ronald Reagan. The Republicans lured -- primarily through television and radio -- millions of financially threatened working and out of work Americans through fear and scapegoating to blame liberals and alien "hordes" for their plight instead of the global corporations who were stealing their jobs and shipping them offshore in the middle of the night.
Then the corporate media and timid Democrats in D.C., who get their share of corporate pay-offs to do the bidding of companies loyal now only to gross profiteering and risk taking and not to the U.S., created the notion that somehow all this pollster labeling of political positions indicated that we were a "centrist" nation as if it were some sort of marker you could find in a corn field in Kansas. The profound problem for the ruling elites in D.C. and their corporate mainstream cohorts is that when you ask Americans on individual issues what their preferences are, they lean decidedly toward government involvement in advancing the interests and achievement of the nation.
America prided itself on breaking away from the fixed and stultifying inherited upper class rule of Europe, only now to have an interest group with such massive amounts of funds to create a "natural order" of winners and losers; in essence, to reverse the American Revolution.
That's not "centrist" or "conservative"; it is immoral, even treasonous.
Ask the South American nations who threw off governments that the U.S. supported because they were, in essence, subsidiaries of American corporations. Now, the majority of South America is ruled by populist leaders responsive to the needs of their people before the needs of wealthy magnates and U.S. companies that span the globe.
Ask the people of the Iberian Peninsula who long ago threw off dictatorships and elected populist governments.
No, the "center" is what "we the people" make of it and what true leaders can mold in the way of vision and persuasion. It evolves; it mutates; at its best it reaches for our highest aspirations, but it takes inspiration, understandable language, and the strength to vanquish with hope the fears evoked by demagogues.
The created fiction of the "center" is used as an excuse for inaction on behalf of America's obscenely wealthy interests.
If you look at how phony the concept is, just think what the Republicans did with a post World War II society that saw most of America (with the exception of minorities) move forward and the development of a broad middle class. The "Reagan Revolution" moved that "center" to the far right, stealing from the working and middle class through completely unnecessary tax cuts for the wealthy and using propaganda techniques to poison people against government, while giving a free pass to corporations who acted with callous and pre-meditated indifference toward their U.S. workforces and obligations to the common good.
The "center" is ever-moving, if only we had the leadership that was unbought to move it toward our aspirations and dreams, and to take advantage of the great skills of the American people, instead of sinking, for instance, our public education system so that the gluttonous rich can fatten themselves up even more as the Republicans shift America's wealth from the middle to the top through manipulation and myths of "the center."
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Suppose that every day, ten
Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this; The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing. The fifth would pay $1 The sixth would pay $3 The seventh would pay $7 The eighth would pay $12 The ninth would pay $18 The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59 So, that's what they decided to do.. The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve ball. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20". Drinks for the ten men would now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes.So the first four men were unaffected.They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men - the paying customers? How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his fair share? They realised that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by a higher percentage the poorer he was, to follow the principle of the tax system they had been using, and he proceeded to work out the amounts he suggested that each should now pay. And so the fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% saving). The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% saving). The seventh now paid $5 instead of $7 (28% saving). The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% saving). The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% saving). The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% saving). Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But, once outside the bar, the men began to compare their savings. "I only got a dollar out of the $20 saving," declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man,"but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar too. It's unfair that he got ten times more benefit than me!" "That's true!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back, when I got only $2? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison, "we didn't get anything at all. This new tax system exploits the poor!" The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had their beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill! And that, boys and girls, journalists and government ministers, is how our tax system works. The people who already pay the highest taxes will naturally get the most benefit from a tax reduction.. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas, where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier. David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D. Professor of Economics. For those who understand, no explanation is needed. For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible. beckham england manager
Democrats have been a huge
Democrats have been a huge disappointment but then they have let us progressives down, time and time again. Whether it was voting for the Iraq war over and over again. Or authorizing the Patriot Act, again and again. world cup 2010
If only we were more
If only we were more motivated to do something against bad leadership rather than sitting on our velour couches watching our wall sized televisions, tsking all the while. Tutting will not get you anywhere - try and make a difference! Get out ther and organise protests, sign petitions for the change you want to see in the world. jessica watson sailing
how much power are we going
how much power are we going to give to one party before the completely dominate with their "conservative ways" of undercutting the regular tax payer in order to make the rich richer? surely the point of having the dems, the libs and so on is to ensure that fairness is meted out across the board. US Iran conflict
nothing but the truth - borrowed from a real thinker
In addition, to say that "the once robust economy of the United States" has been victimized by the Reagan Revolution would suggest that the economy has declined since then. This is apparently not the case. According to the BLS, real GDP per capita in the US rose from $26,005 in 1981, when Reagan took office, to $43,250 in 2008, an increase of about 66%.
Conservatism
I think that conservatism is not going to go away. I also think that the country can move forward without corporate involvement in government and with the government running companies and other aspects of our lives. They work for us, even the poor.
We can search high and low for an online casino like this one to gamble at but we will always return to this casino en ligne because of the service and the casino games offered.
Too little, too late, ...
... and too funny.
Mark, who pushed Obama all through the primaries, now says:
The "White House"? The "White House" is a Democratic politician? No, Mark. The "White House' is a large building housing the President's office and residence. Obama is the name you're struggling to type. Shouldn't be that difficult, really ...... it's the same name you were selling last year, and the year before.
Abusive relationship
Liberals have been in a long-term abusive relationship with the Democrats.
The first reaction to this reality is usually denial. As the Democrats' right-wing agenda becomes clearer, denial by liberals becomes harder and harder. A few are finally admitting it to themselves, but others are ashamed by the time they've wasted on "change you can believe in". Still others are anxious about where they're going to go if they break with the Democrats.
Many of the liberals in denial about the Democrats are grasping at straws to maintain their denial. They point to the handful of actual progressives in the Democratic Party, trying to talk themselves into believing the whole party is this progressive. Sadly, it is not.
IN REALITY, the Democrats have continued the most obnoxious Republican policies, and have made only cosmetic changes that don't have much impact on the corporate bottom line. The Republicans have worked themselves into a frenzy opposing even these changes, maintaining the illusion that these two corporate-funded parties have different agendas.
The solution is to stop voting for corrupt parties that are working against us. Where the votes go, the Democrats will follow, which will give us some positive results even before these corrupt parties can be replaced.
Vote Green!
Yeah
Same old stuff as always.
Good luck with that.
you know that cornfield in Kansas?
make it in August and we've got a winner.
Off On The Wrong Foot
"There once was a somewhat principled -- even if selfish and objectionable -- movement in America called Conservatism."
If you believe this at face value, I have an ocean-front home in Las Vegas to sell you.
There has always been only one principle for conservatives: MORE!
These were the people who created the Guided Age by making wage slaves out of chattel slaves and those who freed them from bondage. It was these people who bankrolled Lenin because the Tsar wouldn't let them rape Russia for profit. It was these people who helped Hitler gain power because the Communists were out of their control. It is these people who have redefined colonialism such that government acts as the overseer of the native subsistence slaves for the private sector plantation owners. It is these people who will bring about the end of survivability for our race if they aren't stopped soon.
So stop being so nice and understanding of these creepy crooks. That is what they hired Obama to do!
We have to do better
Democrats have been a huge disappointment but then they have let us progressives down, time and time again. Whether it was voting for the Iraq war over and over again. Or authorizing the Patriot Act, again and again.
Thanks for this thoughtful commentary.
ecthompson md
http://www.whereistheoutrage.net
Forget the Green Party
There is absolutely no chance of a Green Party candidate winning a Presidential election...none, zip, nada! The problem with progressives supporting the Greens is an obvious one...division of progressive ranks and losing elections to Republicans...do you really want to go there? Really?
Greens
has the Green Party won more than a seat in the House? Here's the problem with a 3rd party - if Ross Perot couldn't make a 3rd party work, i'm not sure any of us can. Democrats and Republicans agree on 2 things, bow to big business and NO 3rd party. They work together to crush any attempt at a 3rd party getting a foothold.
ecthompson md http://www.whereistheoutrage.net
It takes more than one election cycle
You've obviously been brainwashed by the corporate media, which try to convince people that the only way the Green Party can make progress is to get 51% of the vote in a single election.
Obviously this is unrealistic. EVERY party goes through a growth stage. The Democrats did it. The Republicans did it. Why would you expect the Greens to be any different?
What the Green Party CAN do is get 5% of the vote, which would entitle them to matching Federal funds. This fact is never mentioned in the corporate media, which want uninformed people (like yourself) to think it's hopeless to try to replace the corporate parties.
It's not, and we will. Just not in one election.
The Democrats have continued the most obnoxious Republican policies; they're not as different as you think. They stand for protecting the oligarchy. Your Green votes will put pressure on them to start representing citizens' interests, in a way that voting for them never will
It's a lot like housebreaking a puppy. You'll get nowhere with unconditional praise. At some point you have to say "No! Bad dog!".
If we want change, we have to say "No! Bad party!"
Think about it.
Republican policies
And another thing, Carol: You've ALREADY lost the last election to Republicans. Look at Obama's policies; they're REPUBLICAN policies.
Calling Obama a "Democrat" doesn't make him one any more than calling him a "progressive" makes him one.
Likewise, the fact that the Republican Party is opposing what Obama does, doesn't mean Obama's policies aren't Republican. They are. It's just theater designed to make gullible people like you think these two corporate-funded parties aren't both moving us along to the same destination.
Helping enemies is counterproductive
Good essay. The notion of "centrists" is based on the fallacy that Democrats are leftists, so any Democrat with right-wing ideas must "average out" to the center.
IN REALITY, most Democrats are on the corporate payroll, protecting profits for the super rich, while maintaining their scam of fooling liberals into thinking they're progressive.
Since the editorial staff of BuzzFlash is aware of this, it's a mystery why Democrats are exclusively supported on this site, with absolutely no mention of non-corporate alternatives like the Green Party.
Besides building an alternative to the corrupt corporate parties, supporting the Green Party is also a powerful way to pressure the Democratic Party into actually supporting some of the progressive ideas they give lip service to, by giving them competition from a REAL progressive party.
Frankly, the strategy of unconditional support for the Democrats doesn't seem to be working out for you.
Please stop lying, again!
When will you get it through your thick head that all Democrats ARE NOT DINO SELLOUTS!
In your deluded world, progressive Democrats like Dennis Kucinich and Howard Dean, are just as corrupt as the Blue Dog DINO-Fascists who have taken over the Democratic Party. This, of course, is a lie on your part.
Yet you never acknowledge THE FACT that what makes the system so corrupt for Democrats, Republicans AND GREENS alike (that is if a Green were to ever get elected), is the private campaign money that is used to legally bribe our elected representatives.
Green politicians are human too. It would not take much money to bribe them once they are in office, that's if they ever get into office.
Your problem is, you are still stuck on Green pre-election campaign promises, but only because they never, ever get elected, unless there is no mention of party affiliation for any of the candidates on the ballot. Once in office, no doubt they too would break their pre-election campaign promises and become just as corrupt as any Republican or Democrat representative.
It is the system that is broken and corrupt that breaks and corrupts the politicians, regardless of their party affilation. Get rid of private money and allow only publicaly financed campaigns and you begin to eliminate the problem.
They are what they do
You're apparently too dumb to realize that a handful of progressive Democrats is irrelevant to the actions of the party as a whole.
The Democrats have:
1. Continued Bush's wars
2. Continued Bush's bank bailouts
3. Continued to protect the torturers
4. Continued the Republican opposition to single-payer and public option health care
5. Continued to tap our phones and record our emails.
6. Continued corporate trade agreements like NAFTA that export US jobs to low-wage countries.
7. Continued the coverup of the neocons' role in staging the 9/11 attacks.
My question to you, Kevin, is: How is the Democratic Party able to force this right-wing agenda when it has progressives like Kucinich in it? We're waiting for your answer.
The Greens don't accept ANY corporate money, and any Green politican that did would be ending their career in the Green Party. You can't say that about the Democrats.
You're also apparently too ignorant to know that over 200 Greens have been elected to office at the local level. It's not surprising you're unaware of this; the corporate media never report Green-Party wins. A few Greens have made it to the state level. It's only a matter of time until Greens make it to the Federal level.
The way to stop corporate money in politics is to NOT vote for corrupt parties on the corporate payroll. Duh.
WE'RE STILL WAITING FOR YOUR ANSWER, KEVIN...
n/a
...BUELLER? ...BUELLER? ...BUELLER? ...
n/a
Our Permissive Parent
Ronald Reagan won American hearts by being a permissive parent who told us that we were special and deserved everything. Underneath that lie was the fact that most people were never going to have much of anything and that only a special few would enjoy a special lifestyle by feeding off the rest of us. But everyone was sure that THEY would be the one who would work hard and achieve The American Dream.
Now more and more people are waking up from the dream, but are again being exploited, this time by the Tea Party movement. They know something is wrong and are willing the blame government regulation. Didn't their Great White Father, Ronnie Reagan, warn them about government regulation? Isn't it bad? That must be why they are loosing their houses. It's the taxes! Yeah, the taxes. Nevermind that you have to have a job to pay them.
The propaganda machines run at full tilt 24/7. And people pay $50 and more for the privilege of being lied to. George Orwell had it largely right in "Animal Farm" and "1984." Throw in a dash of Bradbury, who envisioned televisions that took up entire walls and you have modern day dystopian America. Now where's that clicker?
Conservatism
When you hear the word "conservative" in political science classes, it stands for something noble and honorable, defending "tradition." But when it's put into practice, the "tradition" it stands for is corporate dominance of our government and society, and the oppression of ninety percent of the population for some excuse or another. "Consertatism" is merely a series of excuses for plutocracy.