Alright, I’m back to the internet community after a long hiatus and filled with more self-righteous political fury than ever. I’d like to start off by apologizing to my loyal fan base for leaving you for so long without a blog entry that pushes every envelope and crosses every line there is. I’ve been very tied up between work, family issues, and taking care of my move to DeKalb this summer. So as to regain my place as most controversial blogger on the web I’m going to start out on my most hated of enemies: conservatives.
There is one sound byte that has bothering me like the itch on that one place on your back that you just can scratch. That sound byte is of our president approving of Donald Rumsfeld despite several retired generals stepping up and voicing a need for Rumsfeld to resign. In his response Bush almost completely disregards the opinions of these generals and makes a statement along the lines of, “I know what’s best for the country and I’m the one who gets to make the decisions.” This embodies part of what I believe is wrong not just with today’s government, but with today’s culture. This is not the kind of statement I expect out of one of this nation’s leaders. He is basically saying he doesn’t care what the people think; he’s going to do whatever he wants. Furthermore, it demonstrates his lack of understanding for the democratic process. He is not THE ONE that gets to MAKE THE DECISIONS for this country. Most sixth-graders could tell you that he is the head of the executive branch of our government, one of three branches designed to have enough authority to prevent the other two from becoming corrupt and abusing their power. The position of president is not an end-all for all issues that face this country. There’s a word in politics for someone with that type of power: dictator. If Bush can’t tell the difference between a dictator and a president maybe it’s time for a change of leadership.
Like I said before, though, this problem extends further than politics. It’s an issue of mindset. Bush is of a conservative mindset. I have observed much of the conservative mindset lately and I have noticed that part of the impetus for this mindset is a resistance to change. Inherent to this resistance is a tendency to react to opinions counteractive to your own with rash and totalitarian comments, i.e., “I get to make the decisions, not you”. These comments often have no rational thought behind them being that they are meant to counteract rational thought and discussion. This is because the conservative usually doesn’t like to even think that they are wrong. They are so afraid of their own fallibility that they try to remain completely ignorant to it to the point of where they try to suppress the opinions of anyone that might make them question it, even if to a small degree. I believe this mindset is unhealthy not only to those whose opinions are being suppressed, but to those suppressing them. I don’t think there is any debate as to the first part. This country was founded on the belief that all people should be able to express themselves and their beliefs without fear of repercussion. An extreme conservative mindset creates an environment which is detrimental to the opinions of people who differ from the established mindset. This environment is the exact opposite of what the government should be trying to create. Our government should be trying to encourage free speech and debate over issues. Instead it’s going in the opposite direction trying to discourage free thinking and speech for fear of losing power. Instead of politicians debating what’s best for our country they lobby for political high ground and try to disguise their agenda with propaganda and political clichés like, “for the good of the people,” and, “to ensure the safety.”
“So what’s the answer?” you ask. Well that’s a good question and I have a good answer. As I see it conservatives are fighting to resist change. They want everything to stay the same. They wish to live in their own little world. I say, let them. Things don’t work that way in the real world. We live in an ever changing world and we are forced every day to adapt. Instead of fighting a never ending war with them to try and move forward, let them do their thing. Instead of letting them hold us back, we should rid ourselves of them and send them into exile in some little corner of the globe. Now I know this sounds very extreme and repressive, but I look at it this way: They refuse to accept others’ opinions. They live to exterminate opinions which differ from theirs. Liberals, on the other hand, work towards an environment which allows all opinions to flourish and coexist. I’m speaking not of political liberals or conservatives, but of anyone who fights for a liberalism or conservatism as an ideal. Liberals wish to discuss issues so as to find a way to reach a mutual understanding where as conservatives wish to impose their way on others in all walks of life. They do so to keep their world just like it is, so why not let them do just that. They just cannot be allowed to do so within a civilized society. Let them create their own totalitarian society wherever they want, just as long as they stop trying to repress those who wish to think for themselves.
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