There is a common mantra that the Republican party is repeating these days. They say that the country is headed toward being a socialist state. What is interesting is the limited understanding or the concept and the notion that perhaps what they mean to say is “fascist state” without even realizing that it is their very system of governance that is ushering it in.
Last week, a caller on 1450 KZNU asked me for my out-of-the-gate prediction for the 2016 presidential race.
I said that it will be Clinton and Bush with the added caveat that the insolent child billionaire will not take his toys and go home when he does not get the nomination, but rather will spend his money running on the independent ticket. Not to win mind you, but to be an insolent child, and the byproduct will be the nuking of the Republican platform.
In other words, Hillary Clinton is who I think may well be the next POTUS. It might surprise you to know that this worries me some.
The conversation continues about the state of the Republican Party, and I asserted then, as I will here now, that the party is in some serious trouble.
The reason is two-fold, and the first is something we discussed on the air, where I asked, “Which version of the party is the ‘one true version,’ exactly?”
The similarities of the party and the western Christian church are striking, don’t you think?
All claim a central theme, yet each have a differing version of what the “pure bloods” think and do. Step out of line in the party and you will find out what most Christians already know about their groups: they slay their own.
But make no mistake of it: if faced with the evil dread of the Devil or, paradoxically, the left-leaning liberal, they will lay aside their differences, right?
Nope. The infighting among the Republican Party is so out of control right now that they can hardly see the damage they are doing to themselves in the larger picture. They are double-minded and unstable in all they do. And they cannot agree on just about anything except, “We’re gonna hate us some gays, pro-choicers, and people who dare think that the gun situation needs some shoring up.”
But the second, albeit more serious, condition the party is in has more to do with a set of fundamentals that are in direct contradiction to constitutional principles they claim to be trying to restore.
Here are some the tenets they uphold and believe, by the people’s own volition or by force, should not be questioned:
-The government should be based on religious doctrine (the Bible)
-Women are not equal to men
-Homosexuality should be outlawed (or at least hidden and not given any rights)
-Empirical and peer-reviewed science should be rejected in favor of religious doctrine and dogma
-There should not be separation of church and state
-Religion should be taught in school and not questioned
-Science should be tolerated in school but not taken seriously
-Abortion should be illegal despite the rulings of the highest court of the land
The list could go on, but this is enough to make the assertion that what the Republican Party actually stands for more aptly resembles Sharia (Gasp! Muslim?) law than it does anything set forth by the founders.
And to make matters a little more relevant here locally, this is the embodiment of the mentality of Utah, arguably the most fundamentally right-wing state in the union save Texas.
But what is absolutely hilarious is how the people of this state out of one side of their mouths argue the merits of the Constitution but then turn around and grab their ankles, while demanding that everyone else does too, and take it in the proverbial keister as the legislation in this state governs by those very unconstitutional tenets.
Right down to the local elections here in St. George, you will find a stronghold of sorts that keeps such ideas in play. But get this: less than 30 percent of the actual populace of the city votes in local elections.
This makes it all but categorically false to say that the current leadership represents anything close to the concerns of the population at large.
I used to think that this was attributed to a lazy constituency. But it occurred to me this year—when we all witnessed the powers that be here do things like systematically and illegally sacking a college professor, abdicating any semblance of due process, and quite literally fabricating things to make their felonious actions stick—that it might not be laziness or even apathy but rather abject fear that by speaking up one will suffer the same fate.
And this is but one example of what is becoming realized to be a host of them. In other words, this is the modus operandi of the local power structure.
Suppose I am right about that. What is that exactly?
F-A-S-C-I-S-M.
Yep. I said it. Deal with it.
See you out there.
Interesting read. The Democratic Party could use a little sprucing-up, but the Republicans are politically bankrupt. They have no one who should be allowed in charge of bringing together a nation that they, themselves, fractured. The Republican party abandoned Americans almost eight years ago when they scuttled the wants and needs of “we the people, ” and became the party of obstructionism. That is the one thing they all managed to do together.They have busied themselves telling us how bad things are and who to blame, but have yet to come up with much in the way of novel ideas on how to Improve our lot as a nation and as individuals. The best candidate for president may still be out there somewhere. Look for the person who looks good by their own thoughts, words and deeds, not by trying to make the opposition look bad.
Late Saturday, early evening… Deseret Industries, in the non-fiction stacks, I found an old blue book by Sinclair Lewis titled “Elmer Gantry”. Incredibly it was a first edition and was in solid condition. Needless to say I will not quote from the book. However, your view of Republicans is incorrect at best and is skewed by your media bias. The Republican Party is definitely fractured – and actually morphing….. Trump vs. Clinton – UNLESS there is a legalistic breakdown… Then it is anybody’s race. 🙂
“is skewed by your media bias.” this state is a talking point for the republicans. the media is not that liberal. Your are a victim of the conservitive media. Dallas nailed it. The conservatives want o shovel their christian values down our throats.
While I generally agree with Dallas about the trajectory of the Republican party both nationally and locally there are a couple of issues where I do disagree. If more than 70-percent of the electorate don’t vote then absent substantial and valid polling we don’t know whether local elected officials represent the beliefs of most of their constituents or not. Abject fear of reprisal may prevent publicly taking stands opposed by the local power structure but the anonymity of the voting booth should not prevent unhappy voters from trying to effect change. The low voter turnout could be laziness, or lack of interest, or acceptance of and agreement with the status quo. I don’t get a sense of sufficient outrage at the status quo to stir people to take action. Also, a feeling of futility about the ability of a single person to really make a difference.
Nice piece.
The Western Freedom Festival, its County Comissioner tax funded organizers and their Koch and Ken Ivory backing in the name of “patriotism, heritage and christian values” says it all.
Attend the “event” 10/23 for a hoot.
http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/09/04/constitutional-crisis-in-the-heart-of-dixie/