On Being the Good Guys
As the lady said to Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol: “You fear the world too much.”
You fear the left will subvert the rules of freedom. And sure, they sometimes will. You fear they’ll win elections by cheating. They’ll sometimes do that too. You fear they’ll ruin good people with false charges. We know they’ll do that.
But all the same, it’s our job to beat them, not to become them.
Being the good guys means fighting for what you stand for and standing for what you fight for. It’s harder than being a bad guy precisely because your belief in honor and morality restricts your actions — and because your losses are so devastating to your sense of justice. But it’s not a prescription for surrender, not at all. It doesn’t mean we have to accept the left’s idea of what our values should be. (Every time Maureen Dowd calls a right winger unChristian, I get coffee in my nose.) It doesn’t mean we have to lie down and take their hate. (If Truth is a hammer, every leftist is a nail.) It doesn’t mean we don’t realize that there are emergency situations in which we have to consider breaking our own rules. (Of course we should waterboard people like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Brian Williams.) It doesn’t leave us helpless. In fact, it girds us in our own values.
So don’t be so scared of them. They’re mean and low and dirty, some of them, but the truth is on our side and the truth is a powerful weapon. While nice guys may finish last, good guys frequently kick butt.
No no no! In real life it would mean innuendo. That’s all. When you are confronted with a policy that may be well intended, but has horrific consequences, focus on those consequences. That’s the only realistic way to fight fire with fire. This is a media battle, remember. It’s what the left does and conservatives should do that too.
So call them out on Global Warming. Make it clear that those C02 regulations are not intended to lower the sea levels, but to centralize power and to make Americans poor. The poorer the people are the more dependant they become, the more powerful the democratic party gets. Tell the voters that entitlements are not to help people but to buy votes. That the desire to legalize illegal aliens is to gain new voters. All the time focus on how the Dems try to increase their power. It’s all about power.
They accuse you of opposing abortion because you hate women. You are greedy, you want dirty water and air, you are racist and a religious nutcase. Turn the tables on them. All that feel good stuff they are sprouting is only intended to increase their power. The benefit of this line of arguing is that it’s true. All leftist policies are intended to fundamentally change the balance of power in their favor. They are totalitarians. This is serious. Stop trying to be nice.
I don’t think Mr. K was talking about being “nice,” but about being effective while not becoming the enemy. The ugliest thing about lefties is their need to slime everyone they disagree with. We can counter what they say — with well-targeted facts — without having to slime them. Point out that a vote for Obama, for instance, is a vote directly against the interests of the poor and unemployed and back it up with stats the O administration is itself putting out. Even Biden admits that the last four years have been disastrous. Ask — politely — why anyone would want to vote for four more years of poor- and jobless-hurting policies? It’s not necessary to call lefties “stupid,” but it’s a matter of survival to point out to everyone that their policies are.
I think Solidarność agrees with Mr. Klavan.
Help spread this story, it is a problem for Obama and his pals.
As Obama’s cover story comes down, the curtain goes up on the USAO’s cover-up of J.J., Jr.’s role in the Blago story
http://illinoispaytoplay.com/2012/10/05/as-obamas-cover-story-comes-down-the-curtain-goes-up-on-the-usaos-cover-up-of-j-j-jr-s-role-in-the-blago-story/
To give up on morality, is to give up on America’s vanguard position in the history of civilization. I find Teeboom’s analysis of the Left faulty, for it assumes that they are not sincerely concerned with the poor, women, and minorities, but are devoted solely to total power for themselves (like the Devil?). Team Romney has different social policies that, in their view, will uplift those who have suffered under our system. Romney does not demonize the opposition, or call them liars.
In order to win, conservatives and independents should lean on the 18th century conception of morality, which rested on popular consent in the formulation of social policy. I summarized that claim here: http://clarespark.com/2011/08/01/alexander-hamiltons-rational-voice-of-the-people/. And elsewhere on my website. See http://clarespark.com/2012/01/28/popular-sovereignty-on-the-ropes/. Our Constitution was conceived by moralists wishing to uplift the People. No reason to concede morality to the enemy.
“I know that sort of thing sounds like tough, realistic talk to some people, but in my humble O, it’s actually fearful and weak — not to mention ineffective strategy. * * * But all the same, it’s our job to beat them, not to become them.”"
In an imperfect world, Machiavelli says, good men bent on doing good must know how to be bad. And because we all share the social world, he adds, virtue has little to do with the individual perfection and everything to do with political result. Thus, for Machiavelli, a policy is defined not by its excellence but by its outcome: if it isn’t effective, it isn’t virtuous. – Robert D. Kaplan, paraphrasing Machiavelli.
I’m not interested in the US being the most virtuous loser on the ash heap of history. I want the American experiment to survive and flourish and win out over the Marxist/Communist rent-seekers and all their group-rights toadies.
But is becoming the Marxist/Communist Rent Seeker actually wining? Part of what makes the good guys goo is that we persevere because we know that we are right. We know that our side will prevail and that we can’t be defeated. Sure, we lose battles, but we know in the end, our side will win.
This is the chief difference between us. The fear their side will lose and we know our side will win.
That sounds all very well, until you recognize that Machiavelli was a pre-Enlightenment totalitarian, who was prescribing a system commanded by fear; this is not what Judeo-Christian morality is based upon.
All you’ve done is re-cast Alinsky’s philosophy; what works is good, what doesn’t, isn’t. Morality, in contrast to ehtics, is neither consensual nor, often, pragmatic.
You can’t beat overcoming evil with good- it’s God’s way, which is always higher and often makes no sense to us.
You used a picture of Gary Cooper in High Noon to illustrate your point. Cooper didn’t just face his 4 enemies down and blow them away with his superior gun play like Clint Eastwood might have done. No, he did something much more closer to reality: he used his wits to misdirect, confuse, and ultimately triumph over his foes. And for all that, his Quaker wife had to finally step in and pull his chestnuts out of the fire. He didn’t exactly overcome evil with good. But he didn’t fight dirty, either.
Will Kane’s actions were similar to the Luke’s Unjust Steward, whom Jesus commended for having the smarts to salvage a potentially catastrophic situation. As a Christian, I must of course be above even the suspicion of evil, but politics is a little different. It’s a rough game, and I don’t see anything wrong with using your wits to misdirect and ultimately overcome your opponent. There’s a fine line there between playing dirty, and just outsmarting the opposition. Lincoln was a master at this, dealing with a cabinet of highly gifted, ambitious men. He pulled some classic maneuvers to keep them in line. Romney did a pretty good job of it last week, too. He’ll be a good president.
I agree with most of what you write Andrew but I have a bad feeling with this concept of the good guy. We are all fallen creatures. In my opinion there is no such thing as good guys but there are alot of bad guys. There was only one truly good guy in mankind’s brutal history and the people of that time crucified Him. I’m sure most of them thought of themselves as good. It would not be any different today if it were to repeat itself. We are not inherently good, the good cause makes for the good fight and we just have to choose. The good cause makes us do the right thing and for awhile we are in sync with the Creator of all that’s good and right. Afterwards we fall back to our true nature, but that moment of being “good” lingers and gives us true insight of what it is and the courage needed for the next fight if it be for a good cause. All this talk of good makes me want to be bad, see what I mean?
“All this talk of good makes me want to be bad, see what I mean?”
Actually, I don’t, unless you mean that the bar is set so high, there is no point in trying. Whether someone is a good guy or not is not determined by his own perceptions of himself or by the cause but by his actions and whether they are in line with principles that apply across the board to everyone.
Yes, people slip but good people work at not repeating their mistakes.
But we do make the same mistakes over and over, the human race has a slow learning curve. There is good and evil in the world, always has been and will always be and that’s a fact. Free will allows us to choose which, but we can be easily led by both. “Principles that apply across the board to everyone” require the Law and the power to enforce it. Justice is relative to those who hold the power for they hold the scales, but Truth is real and absolute. Truth is the defining factor. Truth doesn’t need us but we need the Truth. We are not good in and of ourselves, that’s a prideful heart whispering into the ear of one who’s about to fall and we all fall, all of us, but another chance to get it right forces us to stand up otherwise we will lay there and give up. Good guys can do bad things and bad guys can do good things. It’s not about the being, it’s about the doing. It’s about the power of Redemption.
I was disagreeing with Mr. Klavan until I got to this part:
“Of course we should waterboard people like Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and Brian Williams.”
—-
Well all right then, carry on.
But I was *so* looking forward to hearing the lamentation of their women.
Well played, sir. Almost made me snort my sip of water.
While we have truth on our side we are also afflicted with passivity and a Mayberry mentality that prevents us from pushing our views unless we have assurance everyone will still like us.
The Left is playing by Prison Rules and we are playing by Mayberry Rules. Our side hides in school rooms, union meetings, and elsewhere. We listen to talk radio but we need the host to tell us how to defend tax cuts and private health care when talking with others.
2 liberals in a group will eventually dominate the group. A group with 30-40% conservatives may never even have the conservative view expressed openly. In fact, every conservative in the group may think he is the only one. When the liberals routinely resort to false accusations and personal insult, it is no longer tolerable to remain nice. Argue with a liberal every day. Never let a liberal idea be expressed anywhere without a firm rebuttal.
Yes, but Jesus also said
“”The kingdom of the father is like a certain man who wanted to kill a powerful man. In his own house he drew his sword and stuck it into the wall in order to find out whether his hand could carry through. Then he slew the powerful man.”
Huh? Where in the Bible did Jesus say that? Nowhere. Or were you being sarcastic?
Jesus never said that. That’s why it is NOT in the Bible.
You have quoted a non-Canonical verse. The so-called Gospel of Thomas, from which you have pulled this quote, was unearthed in the 20th century. It never made it into the Bible, so I would be very careful about attributing this saying to Jesus.
Why don’t you quote the Koran next time? If its angry sayings are morally questionable, at least its literary authenticity is not.
Around 325 the “Gospel according to Thomas” along with many other early Christian writings, including the “Book of Enoch” referenced by Jude (Jude 14), was excised from Christian teachings and the Bible as we know it. These decisions were made by men and for religious/political reasons similar to decisions made by our supreme court of today. Whether these writings should or should not be referenced is still a matter left open for debate, as are many decisions of the court.
As I was writing the above comment I was struck by the parallels between the early Christian teachings and the Bible as we know it and our Constitution as it was originally intended and understood and as it exists today. Both documents, or sets of documents, existed for 200 – 300 years before being altered by “wise” men following their own political agendas.
[W3]
I am no Biblical scholar, but it wasn’t a “Bible” until it was canonized. Thomas may or may not have been one of the many books containing stories about the early Church and Jesus that were circulating throughout the Christian communities. Politics may or may not have been involved, but I doubt that the selection process was a popularity contest–I trust the discernment of the early Church fathers.
I respectfully disagree with your Constitution/Bible analogy. The canonization of the New Testament was a sifting process, culling the uninspired from the inspired accounts of Jesus. The Constitution was a culminating document produced from the fruits of Western civilization’s progress in the field of political science.
No, it wasn’t;
http://www.askelm.com/restoring/
Not so fast, buddy boy. Nicea categorically did not create canon; even the canons of the council declare that the only agenda was rubber-stamping what had been received as canon. And there are NO quotes, paraphrases, or allusions to GoT in ANY patristic writings.
The only folks who have ever considered it in any way “christian” are moderns such as you who prefer a created Jesus rather than the one who actually lived and died under Tiberius.
I’d be more inclined to trust the Gnostic gospels than the authorized texts. The latter were then and perhaps still are highly political in their purposes.
You are certainly entitled to your opinion, though I am inclined to consider it spurious. Do you have any facts to support your position?
Of course you would, accepting the word of God would require you to confront God’s condemnation of your sin.
But then anyone can simply fling mud and reject historical documents with no argument whatsoever; or do you in fact have a single shred of evidence that the NT documents are in fact political wrangling?
This verse demonstrates pretty well why it does not belong in the Bible.
Being a parable, the one who wishes to kill a powerful man would be God, making the powerful man Satan(?) And God wishes to kill him, so he tests a wall in his own! house, to see if he can maintain control of his own sword, as he thrusts through surreptitiously.
Frankly, as a parable, it fails pretty spectacularly, even aside from the highly dubious theology.
I am sorry, but none of this fits the character of the God of the Bible or Jesus’ depictions of the kingdom of heaven.
The gulf between liberalism and conservatism is so wide I see little danger of conservatives becoming like liberals. This is not about the way we fight but what we fight for. Don’t look for any Presidential candidate with an R giving a hate speech against blacks like Obama did at Hampton U.
One of the best speeches a the Republican convention was by Susannah Martinez, the Governor of New Mexico. it is really worth Googling if you missed it. in it she described meeting with a Republican who told her what Republicans stood for. The punch line had to do with a shocked Martinez turning to her husband and saying “We agree with all that so……I GUESS WE ARE REPUBLICANS!” Sadly, the Republicans have generally made such a poor case for themselves, many people who might be Republicans are voting Democrat. They think Republicans are mean, or elitist, or…. something they know they don’t like. Today independent minded black people are catching on to the (harder and harder to ignore) fact that the Great Society has not worked out well for them. If we explain ourselves well (see Mitt Romney, 1st Presidential debate) you may be surprised to see that the so-called Democratic base is actually built on sand.
MORE: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/twitter-explodes-after-black-actress-endorses-romney-as-the-only-choice-for-your-future/
This sounds nice in theory, Andrew, but this is one of the few times I have to disagree with you. The best example against what you say in politics is Sarah Palin. She was very nice, bright, witty, decent, and a wonderful person. And what did that get her in 2008? A one-way ticket to political oblivion. Once the media and the Democrats were able to define her as an airhead and an idiot, she never recovered from that. She may be the nicest and most decent person in the world, but after the mainstream media and the Democrats got through with her, she’ll probably never get elected to anything ever again. Kind of a hard price to pay for being decent, don’t you think?
Romney reminds me of the Quakers that Herman Melville wrote about in his book Moby Dick. Seems like many of the owners of the whaling ships were Quakers and people thought that odd that Quakers would be involved in such a violent business as whaling. But Melville said that nobody ever should have underestimated either their toughness or their vindictiveness. In short, Melville said that they were “Quakers with a vengeance.”
That is what Romney needs to be. He needs to be a Mormon with a vengeance. All smiles and grins and kind words on the outside, but with a knife in his hand and cold, calculating toughness on the inside. This is presidential politics we’re talking about here, not running for class president. Even Ronald Reagan had his tough side. Just listen to any of this speeches he made against Jimmy Carter. We cannot afford to be seen as weak or too altruistic. That only gets you guest appearances on FOX News, like Sarah Palin. Oh, and where is she today?
Art Chance, are you out there this morning? Fill us in on the “real” Sarah Palin.
She’s not holding office in Alaska anymore, and that’s really all I care about. It’s kinda’ fun watching her throw spitballs out in the Lower 48, and she really knows how to live rent-free in the Lefties’ heads, but she’s best left to bonb-throwing; she ain’t much on that actually governing stuff.
If that be so how do you explain the following:
http://conservatives4palin.com/2012/06/governor-palins-executive-accomplishments.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
Tough and decent are not antithetical. And i believe toughness should be a required characteristic of the President of the US. It is a tough world out there and we have seen how far being “nice” has gotten us……
Sarah is a great example of how hateful and indecent the left is. She may never hold elective office but she is NOT ruined.
She recieved millions in book deals etc… Sarah is fine!!
“… Sarah Palin. Oh, and where is she today?”
Why, it seems that she is quite instrumental in the re-population of both the Senate and the House of Representatives, thank you very much.
“So don’t be so scared of them. They’re mean and low and dirty, some of them, but the truth is on our side and the truth is a powerful weapon. While nice guys may finish last, good guys frequently kick butt.”
The truth was on the side of the Jews as they were being gassed in the concentration camps. You want goodness? AFTER WE WIN. And they are DESTROYED. Evil will never be awed by goodness and back down. And evil, if unchecked, is a cancer. It spreads.
Sometimes you astonish with your naivete.
But we didn’t gas the Germans. Because of that, we were able to get many allies. Even the Soviets accepted aid from us because of their desperation, but also because of our goodness.
No, we bombed the hell out of them instead. To pay back for what they did. It this a DUH moment for you? Should we have just all gone Gandhi?
I think this leaves out two key components that can disarm ideological opponents who have good intentions if a different vision. Humor and descriptions of consequences grounded in history. Both used to tell a story.
Many times Leftists have spent their lives without ever having any idea what produces the wealth and revenue that pays their salaries or created that foundation or that regulations can strangle the private sector. It is our job to get through that destroying the private sector and capitalism and market exchange and the Division of Labor will haunt us all. Because that is certainly what this transformation vision is pushing when you go back to its beginnings and then trace it through its various incarnations and goals. No ambiguity in the least.
Snark is our friend in such a tale of potential and accelerating woe.
I would posit the saying “good guys finish last” does not mean the good guys lose. Just means when we are done, it is over.
Mr. Klavan,
I am completely with you.
Truth will out. In fact, has already begun to out following the famous debate.
If I may add, as a foreigner, this is bigger than the US elections.
It is going to be the final undoing of the “Big Lie”, no matter how many millions of dollars will be spent on TV ads propagating this Big Lie.
It is going to be a celebration of the common sense of the common man and woman.
Okay, Andrew. It is agreed that we should not involve our cause in the sewer of Chicago-like politics as the left has done. But we sure as hell have no need to continue to put up with the disgusting jelly-spines that comprise the Republican leadership. Should Romney win then the very first action that we conservatives must demand of our allies in congress is to show John Boehner and Mitch McConnell the door. This would send the newly-elected president, the party leadership, and the world a message. Otherwise we will sail along in a complacent “go-along-to-get-along” mush and gain nothing. My fear is that should Romney win we will sink back into our “nice” posture and begin to believe that the battle is over instead of having just begun.
I would like to see your next essay describe the steely-eyed, determined, and sometimes not so polite force that we are going to need to be to ultimately destroy, and I mean DESTROY and not accommodate, our leftist enemies both in politics and the media. (I like the Brian Williams weatherboarding idea!)
Exactly…we dont have to descent to their level of lies and imorality, but just when ARE we going to play tough with the truth?
Call out the media for giving “Tawanna Sharpton” the air of mainstream credibility he doesnt deserve. His White House visits should be an acknowledged shame and a “fearlessly valid” campaign topic.
Call out (and loudly) the spin-miesters that refuse to acknowledge obvious black hate-crimes while focussing on imaginary Racism everywhere else (Philly Polling/Zimmerman)
Go for the throat on Gunwalker, Cash For Clunkers, Solyndra as symbolic ideological acid tests for the culture of corruption and stupidity they represent.
47% is the TRUTH, and raising capital gains hurts everyone because its WRONG.
These are garden variety household arguments Republicans have been bullied on, afraid to “make waves” over, lest they be “misunderstood” or called “racists”.
We need to play tough, Chicago Tough, on all of these now and forever.
Call THEM liars. Call THEM thieves. Tell THEM tax cuts are not “paid for” by the government, as if my own money is a gift from them to me.
Thats not “descending” to their level, its upping our own game on THE TRUTH we abandoned long ago out of fear. Trying to compensate all “mild -n- smiles” in front of a hostile media to reach a lazy electorate will not work.
Being kind and nice in a fight gets you f*cked by the bad guys, each and every time.
Gary Cooper didnt bring roses at High Noon, he brought A GUN.
That doesnt bring him “down” to their level, it enabled the Good Guy to WIN.
12. No, the truth was not on the Jews’ side during the Holocaust. They were in denial about their predicament just as much as the German people embraced the lie. Truth says, “They’re going to kill us anyway, so we have nothing to lose by rushing the guards. We outnumber them 100 to 1, so even with their guns they’re no match for us. They may kill some of us, but we can beat them to death while they’re reloading.”
Sobibor should be taught like Washington Crossing the Delaware…
Oh crap, they dont teach THAT anymore either…
Never mind
“It doesn’t mean we have to lie down and take their hate. (If Truth is a hammer, every leftist is a nail.)”
Grandfather sang it under the gallows
Hear, gentlemen, ladies, and all mankind
Money is good and a girl might be better
But good strong blows are delights to the mind
There, standing on the cart
He sang it from his heart
Those fanatics all that we do would undo
Down the fanatic, down the clown
Down, down, hammer them down
Down to the tune of O’Donnell Abu.–YB Yeats, Three Songs to the Same Tune
On a personal note, I prefer the framing hammer. Please go to a public venue today and help to frame the dialogue. :^)
To all those who are bothered by Andrew’s column,
May I suggest arguing against what Andrew actually wrote, not against what you think he wrote. I am beginning to question your ability to read.
Mr. Klavan, I agree with you. Many years ago, my Sunday school teacher told me,”Remember. One candle destroys destroys the darkness.”
But, I must say, it is so very frustrating to observe our ideological opponents lie, steal, cheat, and, sometimes, murder to achieve their ends.
Never forget that in any moral or ideological conflict, there are plenty of unaffiliated spectators that you can potentially recruit as allies. These people are watching what both sides do, and deciding which one to support based on what they observe.
If you want to attract those potential allies, you have to SHOW that you stand on the moral high ground. Just saying that you do counts for nothing. You will be judged on your ACTIONS, so you have to DEMONSTRATE that you’re better than your opponents. The difference must be clearly visible.
Adopting the dishonest, vicious, and underhanded tactics used by the other side is the surest way to obliterate that visible difference. If you act just like your opponents, onlookers will say, “Both sides are the same. Why should I support one over the other? What difference does it make who wins?” And they’ll be right.
If you abandon your principles in favor of a win-at-all-costs mentality, you are announcing to the world that the only thing you care about is power. Well, the other side feels the same way. So why SHOULD anyone support you instead of them? Because you promise them more free stuff? The other side will try to outbid you, and that won’t end until your entire society is bankrupt. Congratulations! You’ve destroyed the village in order to save it. Now what do you do?
“Never forget that in any moral or ideological conflict, there are plenty of unaffiliated spectators that you can potentially recruit as allies. These people are watching what both sides do, and deciding which one to support based on what they observe.”
First off, this battle is quickly moving beyond the “moral and ideological”. Second, as was the case in the American, French and Russian revolutions, many of those “unaffiliated spectators” never did or will affiliate. Frankly, the “lukewarm” just don’t matter much once things move beyond the “moral and ideological” and into the physical arena.
IMHO, the survival of western values, being able to pass to my kids and grandkids a constitutional republican form of government and free enterprise capitalism are worth fighting, killing and dying for. I felt that way 45 years ago when I enlisted in the Marine Corps and went to Vietnam and continue to feel that way today. We are rapidly reaching the stage where the only thing that really matters is what you do when Big Brother comes to your door.
But thats just it…
We don’t HAVE a win at all costs mentality…
We dont have anything CLOSE to that.
We chose a pleasant, polite defeat last time, as Mr. McCain refused to truthfully confront the Marxist and his Media machine…
We have abandoned The Truth to Their Narrative, afraid to ruffle the easily frightened squishy undecided. Our strategy is to “hope” a little of the Dirty Truth about these characters somehow leaks out around the edges (with no connection to us!) and by osmosis, gain a few more supporters and squeak by to “victory” without angering The Beautiful People
And so we have Romney, an entirely decent, honest and quite capable fellow, in a DEAD HEAT with the most viciously anti-American commie mouthpiece empty suit to ever hold that office…a DEAD HEAT because we are, and have been for a least generation or two, simply afraid of ever telling The Truth.
THAT is the problem. We’re not saying lie, steal, cheat, slush fund, voter fraud like them …but somehow when it comes to fighting back, the prevailing opinion is that simply Telling The Truth has become the “Moral Equivalent” of underhanded conduct and will “degrade” our position….
And we simply give them a pass, when we SHOULD be kicking their ass, in a bare knuckle, take no prisoners flat out BRAWL over The Truth….
Without ever feeling the need to apologize for it.
Exactly…
One example is John Mccain who refused to mention the evil people in obama’s background, especially jeremiah wright. He also loved to go after our own, conservatives, for the fun of it. We don’t need to axe our own people over innocuos gaffes whenever the democrats say we should, example, Trent Lott after Strom Thurmonds birthday party while the democrats closed ranks around Bill “the serial sexual predator” clinton, and Ted “remember Mary Jo” Kennedy. Those are some examples of Republicans needing to stand their ground against the leftist mob.
Perfect examples of the “we’ll show THEM who’s got the Moral Highground!” mentality that backfires every single time..
They hate us.
Period.
Nothing magnanimous or self sacrificial on our part will ever change THEM.
That we continuously waste time, effort, and resources to TRY and do so, is part of THEIR PLAN TO DEFEAT US.
We need to just tell the damn Truth about who these people are, warts, commie/racist associations and all, and just and leave it there.
Even if they call it “hate”
No apologies, no explanations, no attempts to curry favor with the beautiful people.
They will edit the tape to make you look even weaker and more foolish.
Remember Nancy Reagan?
“just say no”
get out and VOTE. Its not a game, its real life. we cant beat them up, we can vote, we can know TRUTH when we see it and repeat it often.
God Bless America.
W
Another glowing example of why I love reading your work (and watching your video).
Thanks Andrew!
You are a most fortunate man in possession of a most admirable mind and code of honor. Thank you for the further encouragement to stand firm, stand tall, be steadfast.
Why not remember that means justify the ends and not the opposite.
The Left forgets that people remember, and when the time comes, will act according to their values and not the left’s. There will be no ‘tu quoque’ here.
On the other hand, by doing Lefty stuff, showing your contempt for others’ humanity, you will lose any claim on others. They may not use the methods, but indifference is fatal to the believer.
Sorry but if you want to use Marquis of Queensbury rules in a street fight or bring a knife (or just your bare hands) to a gunfight be my guest. If you’re not willing to do what it takes to win, you’re fighting the wrong war.
Andrew, I hope you will continue this discussion; I need it. I would never have defined being tough and fighting back as adopting the evil ways of our enemies. Does tough love go beyond disciplining a child for bad behavior? As Christians, are we diluted into thinking that by letting evil have its way with us that we are good witnesses and may show them “The Way”?
We are being controlled not by God, but the sophisticated, psychological mind games originating with the early communist and developed by Russian applied psychologist. Today, we have been sold by TV, Movies, Education, Religion that to be good, we must be tolerant to the point of giving up our lives, our children, and our faith.
I have been duped in this war that uses our best cultural values to give us guilt and weakness to defend ourselves, our country, our culture. Are we substituting what we learned in a Christian culture that drifted until we aren’t obedient to God.
Thank you for your help and the help of all those making comments.
I really thought you had it, until you didn’t. Sorry, neither perceived necessity nor convenience is not acceptable criteria for the abandonment of moral or ethical behavior.
Nothing unethical about an Ambush when youre fighting a war…
Kill them when their pants are down, and their rifles are leaning against a tree…
kill them unarmed, and unprepared…
You OWE THAT to men youre leading…
You OWE THEM the best opportunity to prevail against the enemy,
with MINIMUM of risk to themselves.
Shouting out “To arms you bastards, and fight us like MEN”
is a diservice to your cause, and to the men of your command.
It is a Fools Pride….
It will get you killed, or sacrifice to some other child their Good Father,
who’s life YOU held less dear, then that of a wretched and Godless enemy bent on enslaving us all.
Using “their” tactics does not make us “them”…in war OR politics.
“Finally, all of you, have unity of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or abuse for abuse; but, on the contrary, repay with a blessing.” 1 Peter 3: 8-9
Like the passage instructing us to “turn the other cheek,” this passage is directed to Christians in their normal social setting. This passage tells us that we should not repay evil to a friend, wife or husband who has wronged us is a social or personal way. This passage is not a law against self-defense in the face of tyranny – the evil of murder or mass-murder; it does not direct Christians to make themselves a doormat for tyrants; it is not an establishment of pacifism.
We are repeatedly instructed to “hate evil” in both the Old and New Testaments, and Jesus advised his followers to buy swords – presumably for the purpose of self-defense.
“Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God.” Thomas Jefferson
Well, Old Blue-Light, you sure nailed that one….
Old Blue-light,
You nailed that one to a fence!
No, that is not what “turn the other cheek” means.
First, use the whole quote, or it does not get understood. “When a man slaps your right cheek, turn the other cheek.” In those days, you did not slap a man with your left hand, because that was the hand you used to wipe your a**. It was unclean. It was not done. It would get you ridden out of town on a rail. Therefore, the only way to slap a man’s right cheek was the backhand.
The back of your hand was reserved for uppity women and older children, to keep them in line. It is a man’s weakest blow. You do not use a strong forehand against women and children. It’s too powerful. To slap a man thusly was to treat him as a woman. Beyotch!
So, turn the other cheek meant to stand up, get in his face, and force him to slap you like a man, not a woman. You don’t have to stand tall in this world, but you do have to stand up!
As to the article, Mr. Klavan, I disagree. One has to assiduously weed one’s crops, or the weeds will eventually take over the crops, and you will starve to death. We are long past due weeding out these vile progs. It is time to go after them everywhere.
We have to kill the tort business. Trial lawyers support Dems. We have to forbid lawyers from serving in other than the juiciary, too.
We have to destroy the union, absolutely wipe out their ability to contribute to campaigns and provide ground troops.
We have to go after the racist groups like La Raza and Black Panthers.
We have to cut the money off from the universities. Quit slopping thise hogs. Also, kill the k-12 monopoly.
We have to cut out civil service rules, fire a bunch of deadwood Leftists.
We have to go after all the corrupt people. start with those in government who leak secrets, like the folks who leaked Joe the Plumbers tax records, or Obama’s opponent’s sealed court records. Make them pay.
We have to undo the propaganda Media by auctioning the airwaves to the highest bidder. Disallow tax benefits for money-losing newspapers and magazines, because these are just Leftist propaganda machines with an unfair advantage. Use anti-trust laws wherever possible.
Go after the power bases and their money. Weed them out. Use whatever herbicide you have, and do not be nice about it. Do not hold back. Destroy them root and branch. Be ruthless, because we are dying here.
“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ But I tell you not to resist an evil person. But whoever slaps you on your right cheek, turn the other to him also. If anyone wants to sue you and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. And whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two.” Matthew 5:38-41
MM: “So, turn the other cheek meant to stand up, get in his face, and force him…”
Your discussion of forehand vs. backhand slapping is interesting, but to say this passage advises social aggression is a violation of the self-evident social pacifism in this New Testament moral teaching. From the context it is clear that “turning the other cheek” relates to social pacifism, but it has nothing to do with submission to State tyranny, and it has nothing to do with pacifism during war; it simply instructs Christians to behave gracefully and peacefully in social situations when treated wrongly.
But wow!!! The rest of your discussion is just awesome! Thank You!!!
How is war NOT a “social situation”?
http://www.amazon.com/Christian-Attitudes-Toward-Peace-Re-Evaluation/dp/0687070279/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=2S4D83UBFN0FM&coliid=I2FLFINYTZ0V2D
Find it, read it, and learn the true power of the spirit.
By social situation I mean normal social interactions during peacetime, such as family life, worship, occupation, recreation, etc. War is different. We as Christians are not commanded by God or Christ to submit to the evil of tyrannical totalitarian government; on the contrary, we have been commanded by God to hate evil, and that sometimes means an obligation to wage just war in defense of our sacred God-given rights to life and liberty.
I’m always wary of Scriptural interpretations that make one passage contradict the rest of the book.
Yes, indeed, the entire quote, which begins; “Resist not evil…”
With no references your analysis is bunk. And the recontextualizing is worse.
Please go re-read Stephen’s stoning in Acts; he didn’t stand up to the Sanhedrin, he did not resist them; he died, forgiving them their evil.
As indeed the author and finisher of my faith did.
Yes, it most assuredly is; you are adding words to Scripture, at the peril of your soul, and those whom you presume so to teach (There is absolutely nothing in the text that suggests such a truncating as you lay out here).
And, to accept your false argument, please to explain the ubiquity of martyrs during the first two centuries; or do you not know Tertullian’s line, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church”; a truth being played out daily in lands where Christians do not have the luxury of voting themselves comfortable, powerless lives.
Such perverse theology is faithless, to God and to Christ’s own suffering.
The evil we are commanded to hate is that within ourselves, not that which we fight with weapons spiritual, since our fight is not against flesh and blood.
That god of which Jefferson wrote IS NOT the God of Abraham, either, so please do not bring him into such conversations again, it’s embarrassing.
Can we at the very least…make fun of them [lefty loons] though? Hehehehehehehehe.
They’re mean and low and dirty, some of them, but the truth is on our side and the truth is a powerful weapon.
Yes, but what’s the point if the truth is only on one side and the other doesn’t even get a whiff of it?
To get that message out nowadays one has to fight the MSM. They won’t do it willingly so one must force them to give the truth coverage, not by behaving like the left, but by choosing representatives who have the courage to face up to the media and agressively force them to take notice, (while not forgetting to have a video-cam for the record as the media is as slimy as a slug.)
There’s an inherent problem with your thesis, namely who decides what’s evil? If a murderous burglar breaks into your home is it OK to shoot them? The burglar says “no” and if you’re not very careful your thesis leads to surrender because those who are intent on evil always declare any resistance to them as evil. The essence of Political Correctness, after all, is that it’s evil to disagree with me. Or, perhaps more to the point, “Do No Evil – Vote for Obama”.
Besides, the truth only trumps evil if you know the truth and the sad reality is that scads of Republicans are only Republicans because the incumbent was a Democrat. They don’t know the truth so their only response to lies is (crickets), thus ceding the field to evil. It’s great to be aloof and above the fray up until the fray destroys you.
It’s fine to “lose with honor” if the contest is meaningless, otherwise it’s important to remember George Orwell “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.”.
AK: “And what exactly is our argument in favor of conservatism then? What exactly would we be fighting for?”
We, Modern Conservatives, are in a struggle for the self-evident moral truth that all individuals are endowed by their Creator with equal unalienable rights to life, liberty and the fruit of their own labor in pursuit of happiness. This was the struggle of our Founding Fathers – the Classic Liberals.
“All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.” Edmund Burke
“I can not praise a fugitive and cloistered virtue, unexercised and unbreathed, that never sallies out and sees her adversary, but slinks out of the race, where that immortal garland is to be run for, not without dust and heat.” John Milton
Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.
Luke 22:36
For all who draw the sword will die by the sword (Matt. 26:52)
“Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him. And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. But Jesus said to him, ‘Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels?’” Matthew 26: 50-53
Jesus did not tell his follower to do away with his sword. Jesus simply told the man to put the sword back into the sheath – to be a pacifist in this particular situation – because it was not God’s plan at that moment to use the force of arms in the physical defense of Jesus Christ. Jesus gave the man a warning not to use his sword as a tool of aggression, but He was not instructing His follower to be a pacifist when the follower himself is confronted with violent evil. Jesus instructed his followers to buy swords – no doubt because Jesus understood that His followers might need swords as a tool in their own physical self-defense.
Robert E. Lee was a gentleman, fought as a gentleman for a cause he believed in, was loved by his soldiers, respected by his enemies, and revered by the people of the South. He was forced to surrender to lesser men. ???
[W3]
Lee was waling on the Union pretty good till Lincoln found Grant. He may have been a gentleman, but he knew how to fight and how to kill. He didn’t “lose” the war because he was a gentleman. He lost the war because the South was an agrarian, pre-industrial society short on manpower.
Gen. Meade might disagree with who was whipping on who. In strictly military terms Lee never had a chance in Hell and he knew it; he lived in the Yankees’ minds and tried to take advantage of their psychological weaknesses. He almost pulled it off in ’62 but Little Mac got that copy of G.O. 181. The ’63 Pennsylvania Campaign bought the Confederacy another year. The fighting withdrawal from the Rappahannock in ’64 gave the Confederacy almost another year. Confederate political authority couldn’t find allies with their pro-slavery position and the fact that they’d withheld cotton from the market. If in ’61 or ’62 they’d declared the Southern ports duty free and thrown all their cotton on the market, y’all might talk different.
Beg to differ.
Lee was winning as long as the Union army didn’t fight like the mission was to break the Southern resistance and recoverthe South. All Lee had to do was what Giap did: make the pain so great the Union would abandon attempts at a military victory and negotiate the dissolution of the Union. Despite the lost order, Antietam was a draw cleverly capitalized on by Lincoln. Gettysburg was a draw when Meade made the strategic decision not to pursue Lee’s army like Lincoln wanted him to.
Here is something we can do that follows your strategy Mr. Klavan…on Supreme court nominations the Republicans should no longer just allow hard left judges to pass through the senate. The Republicans have a philosophy that as long as the judge isn’t a criminal, the President gets his appointment. The democrats…no conservative judges if they have the votes to stop it. That is why we always here that “our” judges won’t get through and it encourages “our” Presidents to pick moderates who will eventually become liberals on the bench. From now on, the Senate Republicans should stop hard left judges from being appointed. It isn’t unethical, and it isn’t a criminal act. It is in reality, defending the constitution.
It’s not so much that truth is a powerful weapon. “Truth” is not powerful at all. Rhetoric is powerful. Intelligent arguments are powerful, if you are dealing with intelligent people. “Truth” doesn’t really do anything.
But the fact is that if conservatives betray their principles liberals win and that’s it. It is only by remaining faithful to the truth that conservatives can retain their honor. Faith, honor, duty, morality – these are all extremely powerful.
Basically truth is like a really nice edge. It doesn’t do much just sitting there in the sheath, but if you put the right weapons in skilled hands and then add truth – lookout mama.
“It’s harder than being a bad guy precisely because your belief in honor and morality restricts your actions — and because your losses are so devastating to your sense of justice. But it’s not a prescription for surrender, not at all.”
No, it’s a prescription for losing, in the current political circus. To win, we don’t need to fight dirty, we don’t need to lie and cheat. But we need to stop pulling punches, something Republicans have been doing for decades.
Look….being “good” doesn’t mean being “nice”.
The other side really truly believes they have a monopoly on being “good”. That’s why they can shout it from the rooftops about how wonderful they are and how EEEEVILLLL!! the conservative/libertarian side is.
So, when they start up with crap about abortion rights…..hit them with sex-selection abortion. “So, you are perfectly fine with aborting a healthy girl because she’s the wrong gender? How is THAT in line with women’s rights when 20 million women and girls are missing in Asia alone?” or “You DO realize that Margaret Sanger was a eugenicist, right? She really didn’t want black people having babies….and considering where Planned Parenthood clinics normally are, looks like the apple didn’t fall far from the tree. Why do you hate black babies so much? I think they’re adorable….”
Watch them stutter just like the O-man. They’ve never thought about it deeply at all. They will have little, if any, defense, especially if you look up at them with big, soft, baby animal-style eyes while waiting for their answers.
You literally can do this ALL night.
“What do you mean, Democrats care about civil rights? Do you realize how warrantless wire taps have skyrocketed during Obama’s term? He’s authorized 60% more of them than even Bush did!” (Tell ‘em that’s what the ACLU says. They’ll be speechless.)
Bring up drones. Go off about how “good thing the rest of the world loves us, or maybe they would be attacking our embassies…..oh, wait…..”. Bring up the deficit or unemployment. Gitmo still being open is a good one, too.
Don’t answer their questions about Big Bird losing funding. Bring up a new topic. “Yeah, kids should really be watching Sesame Street instead of being child soldiers like they are in the Sudan. Did you know that President Obama has refused to impose sanctions on the Sudan and Libya for three years now over the issue of child soldiers?”
Bring up how the nation’s first black president has outdone himself in putting young black men in prison, and black families back on welfare. Earnestly ask your Democrat friend why Obama hates the inner city so much, since the schools suck even more now than they did even ten years ago.
Stay away from anything tax related, or about Obamacare. Yes, I know you are dying to bring them up, but don’t give them a chance to regurgitate talking points that they’ve heard for the past three years. Give them something out of left field that they aren’t ready to defend.
Try really hard not to laugh during their extended brain farts.
Are you gonna change their minds? Probably not. They would have to rethink their whole world view, and they aren’t ready for that yet. The hardcore ones are still trying to process what happened in the debate to the ONE.
But you just might demoralize them to the point where they stay home……and if enough of them do, even the Democrat Party apparatus can’t come up with enough “cadaver-Americans” to take their place.
And the independents might (for once) put the racist/sexist/incompetents labels where they rightfully belong.
Whoop! Whoop! Excellent post, Lili!!!!!
Great points Lilly, but they wont work.
Facts and Logic are kryptonite to liberals…
They are in their soul, supremely selfish and shallow people, so nothing that’s “actually” fair or decent can penetrate their heads. Its just not possible.
Abortion allows them to screw indiscriminately without consequence.
Their rabid “defense of choice” in all circumstances is their necessary religion of moral superiority, to insulate them emotionally from the all those dead babies. Liberal men LOVE abortion, as they can pressure, con and connive ever younger girls into giving it up. (Adult Administrators supplying condoms in Grade Schools? Hello?)
Planned Parenthood allows them to live in gated, lilly white communities while throwing lip-service to the “needs of the poor” they fastidiously avoid all contact with.
Ditto for Jails, Food Stamps and Welfare…its mostly “affluent” white liberals who (not so secretly) want the “average ghetto black” to BE in jail, or STAY the ghetto, subsidized and lazy, and thus far, FAR away from them… but they will, out of a need for political cover, engage in the safe and chic’ championing of the likes of an Abu Jamal to prove their “street cred”, or of a Jullian Assange to prove their “anti-war” stick-it-to-the-man talk truth to power fantasy.
Liberals are evil people, their entire worldview is an artificial construct to conceal and camouflage their selfishness nature. It is rigidly institutional, and will be defended to the death. It is a belief system, a defense mechanism that allows them to be complete selfish assholes, AND feel SUPERIOR about their supposed “empathy” for their fellow man.
Powerful stuff that “sells” really, really well.
Its like Heroin. Once they get a taste, they stay on it just to avoid the pain and sickness of withdrawal.
It is a thankless and usually fruitless task to try to reason someone out of a position that they didn’t reach by reason in the first place. Liberals are protected from having to change their minds by the sheer strength of the emotional appeal of their own comforting ideas, and so arguing with them never accomplishes much.
You’re missing the plot.
I’m not trying to “reason” them out of what they believe. They can believe whatever stupid thing they want. They’ve been this resistant to reason for years. The chances of them suddenly seeing the light and coming to their senses is admittedly small.
Since most of them are still intellectually children, consider this the time they find out there is no Santa, no Tooth Fairy and no Easter Bunny. Remember it being kind of a disappointment to find that out when you were a kid? THAT’S what I’m aiming for.
I’m hoping to demoralize them to the point where they just can’t bring themselves to pull that lever for Obama. If they vote for Roseanne Barr, I consider that a win. She can’t win anyway. Let them “protest” and vote for that idiot, or some other third party. Let them stay home because they are just too depressed to go to vote for their boyfriend.
And let the fence sitters who only care about who is “kewl” doubt what they’ve heard on the media. They wanna stay home, too, because all the candidates suck? Fine by me. Enjoy watching Honey Boo Boo reruns and leave the decision making to the adults.
A couple of votes here and there that the Obamanauts were counting on, either staying home or voting for someone more “pure”….when Romney wasn’t going to win their votes anyway? Yeah….that’s a win.
It’s not just enough that Romney voters get to the voting booth. It also helps if the ones voting for the Lightworker fail to show up, too. Obama did a lot of the work for us right there with his horrible debate performance, so…..why not give it an extra shove or two?
Wait, so you’re saying no death threats to Obama supporters?
Personally I believe in fighting the libs like Stone Cold
Steve Austin. Kick their butts (metaphorically) and leave
them lying. You don’t have to be dishonest to do that,
just willing to fight and not back down.
I suspect I’m one of very few here who has been in actual adversarial situations with lefties, and I’m not talking about flame wars on blogs.
The difference between being a “Good Guy” and a “Bad Guy” is a Good Guy knows when he’s doing bad.
I did battle with them for 8 years as a government employee. The younger folks in the office were liberals, some of them quite active in politics before coming to work in Washington. One thing that always frustrated the living daylights out of me was why facts meant more to me than they did to the liberals. I’m smarter now. Now I know about George Lakoff. But I don’t have the stamina to deal with such relentless fools anymore. Talk about a Chinese firedrill!
Andrew, I love you, but I wouldn’t want to be in a foxhole with. You get too heady sometimes. With the enemy rushing at you with a bayonet, you’d hesitate.
NOW IS NO TIME TO HESITATE!
It’s a time to fight with whatever means you have, even if it means out-shouting the radical left.
Just like the squeaky gate gets the grease, the voice of reason needs to be screamed from the hilltops sometimes. There is No other Sometime greater than this.
I must respectfully disagree. To quote Clausewitz, “War is the continuation of policy (politics) by other means.” In other words, I agree with him and find no difference between politics and war. Just as we had to become as cruel as the Japanese to defeat them in WWII, we will have to be as cruel as the Democrats are in order to defeat them. Otherwise, we will continue to watch their cancer spread throughout our nation, just as we Conservatives have done for the last fifty years, championing our “virtue” the entire time. When Moses and Joshua carried their superior culture into the promised land, I must remind you that it was done with the sword. We must be as brutal as these two men of history with our own political sword, and adopt Democrat tactics to defeat the Democrat Party.
Yes! Lets not be afraid of the Left. Lets stand on our values and our God. Thanks for the encouragement Andrew. I am a teen and I really appreciate how you stand up for my generation who haven’t gotten a chance to let our voices be heard yet.
I know this is NOT on TOPIC but have your heard anything about the THE LAST THING I REMEMBER MOVE? I hope you release something about that soon but I won’t hold it against you if you don’t… =D
Thanks, Dan. The latest news I have on the movie front: there’s now a script the producers like… it’s supposed to go into the studio for approval and changes… as of last week, it still hadn’t gone in. It’s a slow process!
I think like anything else, it’s a question of demarcation. You can’t forget what you’re fighting for, but you can’t bring boxing gloves to a gunfight either.
It’s all about the gray area – how far is too far?
Andrew, please read your colleague, Bill Whittle’s essay regarding the iterated prisoner’s dilemma. You have to repay each breach of fair play with your own breach in retaliation, but only once. Then, you go back to playing nice – until the next breach, whereby you must retaliate again.
This is the most successful strategy for survival and prosperity. So when you ask, “They butcher the Constitution so, by gum, we’ll butcher it right back?” The answer is yes, you must “tit-for-tat” them so they’ll learn not to “tat” in the first place. Otherwise, you perpetually play the sucker.
Thank you Mr. Klavan for insight and integrity. Your prose are nourishment for a hungry people.
God bless you.
Mr. Klavan’s insight and wit distinguish all his commentaries, but with this one, he had me from the picture of Gary Cooper as Sheriff Will Kane. Well stated and powerfully reinforced with that image, it feels like this election is “High Noon” for the republic.