Gerard Alexander has a wonderful piece in today's Washington Post. It's a great read for anyone who wants a good belly laugh or feels the need to experience an unusual amount of rage. Say, enough to rip a telephone book in half or lift your car over a pile of snow.
Better writers than I will likely respond to Mr. Alexander's pathetic screed. For the moment I would simply ask Mr. Alexander (and anyone who stands with him) the following questions:
By what conceivable measure can you make the claim that Conservative policies improved or enhanced the interests and well-being of the United States and its citizens during the Bush Administration? What achievements can you point to? What accomplishments? What results were obtained by following Conservative doctrine that justify continuing to implement its tenets in public policy?
Mr. Alexander's article is a classic example of a common Conservative/Republican technique: accuse your opponent (almost always a "liberal") of engaging in precisely the behavior that you yourself are engaging in. This immediately defangs and delegitimizes the opponent's claim on this very point, as the liberal opponent will appear to be saying, in effect, "So's your mama!"
The purpose of accusing liberals of condescension is, and always has been, to discredit and dismiss any and all arguments, opinions, views or even facts that run counter to the Conservative viewpoint before they can even be considered. The Conservatives label liberal arguments condescending, because it is an emotionally loaded term. Nobody wants to feel condescended to. Therefore, if liberals are resorting to such emotion-laden behavior, their intellectual arguments cannot be not worthy of intellectual consideration and must be dismissed.
This has been, in fact, the Conservative modus operandi for years, reaching its zenith during the Bush presidency. This is its basic structure:
demonize > distort > caricature > discredit > dismiss.
This formula allows Conservatives to easily dispose of anything or anyone who opposes their agenda, whether it's economic policy or the war in Iraq.
By far my favorite line from Alexander's article is, "It's an odd time for liberals to feel smug."
Are you kidding me? This would be the perfect time for liberals to feel smug!
George Bush, the icon, sun-king and anointed savior of the Conservative movement, left office in complete disgrace, having brought the country to the brink of ruin, economically, militarily and in any other way you care to mention.
Yet Conservatives are incapable of acknowledging that any of this actually happened. Not to themselves and certainly not to the public.
Has there ever been a group of people less willing and less capable of admitting their mistakes? Has a single Conservative accepted responsibility for the condition in which they left the nation when Bush left office? Has anyone associated with the Conservative movement ever - God forbid - apologized for the enormous personal destruction that they left in the wake of their economic policies and their unnecessary war?
On the contrary, they have not shown a shred of remorse, regret or humility. In fact, the Republican Obfuscation Machine has been working overtime to sow confusion, fear and mistrust in the public sphere so that the public will quickly forget the results of all their failed policies. I am sure in the days and weeks to come, we will be hearing the phrase "condescending liberal," from every corner of the Conservative/Republican universe, for if there is anything the Conservative movement excels at, it is speaking in perfect unison when their leaders demand it.
As demonstrated by Mr. Alexander's article, they remain in full attack mode against their perceived "enemies," and continue to try to blame others for their failures. .
In any other realm of life, this would be considered utterly reprehensible behavior. Parents teach their children to accept responsibility and to apologize when they are wrong. Teachers tell their students, "nobody's perfect, ask questions, admit mistakes, it's the only way you learn." In our professional, working lives, we are expected to conform to certain standards of behavior, like accepting responsibility for error, admitting mistakes and working to correct them, and making amends for any damage we've caused.
In Conservative politics, however, to admit wrong is anathema. It is considered "weak," it is sneered at, disdained, and held in contempt. It is unacceptable.
If the Conservative movement insists on behaving with such childish obstinacy, I think scorn, ridicule and condescension are the least they can expect.
Perhaps I can better illustrate my point with a little allegory. Here follows:
The Guest, the Owner and the Firefighter: A Conservative In Action
One day a Guest comes to your house and says, "Hey, I need a place to live. Can I live in your house for a while?"
"Sure," the Owner responds, being a generous sort. "But please take care of it. It's my house, you know. It's important to me."
"I'll take care of it, says the Guest, "I promise."
The Owner hands over the keys and the Guest moves in. A few days later, while the Owner is away, the Guest pours gasoline in every room of the house and then lights a match. The house goes up in flames.
"Look what you've done to my house!" the Owner cries. "It's gone! You destroyed my house!"
"No, I didn't," the Guest replies. "I didn't do anything at all to your house. It just burned down. There must have been something defective about it."
The Firefighter says, "Actually, gasoline was poured in the house and then set on fire. The signs are everywhere. The evidence is unmistakable."
The Guest snorts dismissively.
"What do you know?" he sneers.
"Well, I'm a firefighter. I'm trained to do this. This is a clear case of arson, and I'm sure you are responsible."
"Listen," says the Guest, "You weren't there, your training is inadequate, and clearly your opinion is hopelessly biased. Even if I did pour gasoline and light a match - which, by the way, is an inexcusably condescending thing for you to say - my actions in no way led to the actual burning down of the house. That's simply impossible."
"By the way," the Guest says to the Owner, "That pile of shit over there that used to be your house? It stinks. It's an eyesore. Clean it up and remove it, now, fast, before I call the police and have you hauled into court for ruining the neighborhood."
The Guest walks away, leaving the Owner and the Firefighter stunned. A few minutes later, the Guest turns up at another house.
"Excuse me, do you mind if I stay in your house? I'll take very good care of it, I promise."
For more from this writer, please visit: http://bareleft.blogspot.com