I just do not get how "true" conservatives see every last sodding thing as
the probable end of America.
Now, on the morning that President Obama is preparing to address the situation in Syria, Scott Brown is up with a new ad in New Hampshire that criticizes both the president and Mr. Brown’s Democratic opponent, Senator Jeanne Shaheen, over the crisis.
“Radical Islamic terrorists are threatening to cause the collapse of our country,” Mr. Brown says. “President Obama and Senator Shaheen seem confused about the nature of the threat — not me.”
This notion of "radical Islamic terrorists" as existential threat to the nation keeps getting repeated over and over; it's not enough that they are bad people doing bad things, it's not enough to say they're killing people and seem to have little notion of how to "govern" the regions they have taken over other than killing people, they have to be
this close to causing "the collapse of our country." Really? We've gone all this time fending off threats, we're the world's most powerful and influential country, but
this is the thing that's going to bring us down? Or is it just that Scott Brown, or Lindsey Graham, or the vast gaggle of conservative dead-enders always need
something to be the thing that's nigh-on about to cause "the collapse of our country," and "radical Islamic terrorists" was just the first thing they picked out of the hat? It could just as easily be "all these children crossing our southern border without the right paperwork are going to cause the collapse of our country," it's all the same crap.
And, for good measure, Mr. Brown — like Gov. Rick Perry of Texas before him — also tries to tie the terrorist threat to the nation’s southern border, despite scant evidence that any terrorists have been sneaking over from Mexico.
“I want to secure the border,” he says. “Keep out the people who would do us harm.”
Oh, of course.
Here's the whole problem with announcing that this or that is about to cause the "collapse" of America: It's the laziest possible argument you could possibly muster. It's an outright declaration that you either (1) know nothing about the "bad" topic other than it is "bad" or (2) do not give a flying damn or (3) consider the people voting for you to be so very brick-stupid themselves that shrieking at them about the end of America is the only way to rouse them from their drooling stupor. What's that, you say? I will have to battle my way through roving post-apocalyptic salvage gangs if we do not immediately reform certain regulations pertaining to the Eggplant-Implant Bank? Well then we must urgently do whatever it is that you just said right now, because I am a savvy voter who truly gives a damn about these things!
If you can't think of a better argument than "because if we do not do what I say the nation will collapse," shut up. Christ, man, at least show a little self-respect. If you really think that America is so fragile that every last little thing is likely to be the straw that breaks our back, perhaps you shouldn't be a member of our government. Go into shrieking radio punditry instead, the pay's better and you can pipe up with lazy proclamations of imminent doom twenty times a week for all anyone cares.