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Crunchy-Con ping...
Posted on 03/07/2006 6:08:18 AM PST by Mr. Silverback
If you encountered someone who made his own granola, bought his veggies at a food co-op, wore Birkenstock sandals, and wanted to save the environment, if you’re like me, you’d probably think, well, there goes a lefty, or a liberal, or maybe an aging hippie. But the author of a new book says someone like that is just as likely to be a conservative Republican. In his book, Crunchy Cons, journalist Rod Dreher writes about a group of people he calls “crunchy conservatives,” a group that includes, among others, “hip homeschooling mamas,” “Birkenstocked Burkeans,” “gun-loving organic” farmers, and “right-wing nature lovers.”
What Dreher, a Dallas Morning News columnist, means by “crunchy conservative” is someone who rejects the “consumerist and individualistic mainstream of American life.” This rejection distinguishes their worldview from that of mainstream liberalism or conservatism, which, in Dreher’s estimation, are both “essentially materialist ideologies.”
The result of this materialism is “a society dedicated to the multiplication of wants and the intensification of desire, not the improvement of character.” What sets Dreher’s “crunchy cons” apart is the extent to which they have recognized the corrosive effects of a culture that is both materialistic and pornographic, and they are prepared to do something about it.
They all start at the most basic level: marriage and family. Of course, the liberal and the conservative mainstream both affirm the centrality of the family. After all, apart from some radicals, everybody is for the family, right?
Well, not like the “crunchy cons” are. People like Caleb Stegall, a Kansas lawyer who is profiled in the book, don’t just talk a good game when it comes to family—their lives testify to its importance. They walk away from prestigious jobs and sacrifice a second income in order to make the time to raise families correctly.
This emphasis on family and instilling character is why many crunchy cons homeschool. As a Manhattan mother of five told Dreher, homeschooling shows her kids that their well-being is what’s most important. Instead of working to give them more “stuff,” she gave them more time instead.
This de-emphasizing of “stuff” is another hallmark of Dreher’s Crunchy Cons. It’s not because they reject capitalism or seek to appear “holier-than-thou.” It’s because they understand the importance of postponing gratification in building character. They know that people accustomed to satisfying every material want are not likely to exercise restraint in any area of their lives.
This emphasis on restraint cuts across the grain of a culture where people are taught to regard anything that stands between them and their desires as a kind of “tyranny.” So it comes as no surprise that most of Dreher’s “crunchy cons” are Christians.
That’s because Christians understand—or should, at least—how pervasive what writer Dan Knauss calls the “porno-culture” is. This pervasiveness is why protecting our kids requires diligence and commitment. Dreher’s “crunchy” conservatives—mostly “crunchy” Christians—are reminders of what the apostle Peter meant when he called followers of Christ a “peculiar people.” And it’s why these “hip homeschooling mamas” and “right-wing nature lovers” are worthy of our respect, no matter what they wear on their feet or how much granola they eat.
Home schooled kids will be running the country in 20 years. Count on it.
There are links to further information at the source document.
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I know people like this through Church connections. The ones I know aren't hard-core conservatives--for example, welfare doesn't frost their buns nearly as badly as it does mine--but they do believe in giving generously, and don't believe in giving away other people's money. Similarly, they believe in being "good stewards" of the planet, but they don't go in for Greenpeace. They don't believe in adultery, but they also don't believe in stoning. "Conservatives in birks" is not a bad description of these folks.
Disclaimer: I own a pair of cork sandals, but they aren't birks. I don't wear them, though, because sandals seem to promote stinky feet like crazy.
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Crunchy-Con ping...
There are many ways to reject mass-market, no-brain popular culture.
See you at the chamber music recital...
"...if you’re like me, you’d probably think, well, there goes a lefty, or a liberal, or maybe an aging hippie.."
I guess I'm not like him.
Actually, I'd be resisting the urge to punch that hippy filth in the face as hard as I could. That kind of dicispline requires alot of concentration, and would be all I was thinking about.
Own any Earth Shoes ?
What makes you think these people have HBO?
I'm seeing the rise of the Limbaugh Babies now! And loving every minute of it. My out-of-college kids are probably a little more conservative than my hubby and I.....and that's going some!
Ahh, you ought to try Birkenstocks! They are really, REALLY comfortable! I'm not in that guy's book, but my family could be. Been home schooling for 16 years, we make do or do without. My kids are old enough to appreciate their upbringing and have thanked us for it.
Birkenstock ping.
My wife and I fit the description of "crunchy cons," and I guarantee you that we are *at least* as conservative as you or anyone on the list. As with any ideology, there are degrees of difference -- I'm sure you're right about the people you know, I just didn't want you to think that we are all conservative-light.
I second that...conservation is conservative.
bump
“gun-loving organic” farmers, and “right-wing nature lovers.”
You rang? LOL!
Please add me to your ping list, Mr. Silverback. :)
Some schools of conservatism (such as the European kind) have always had a deep distrust of "alienation from nature." Unfortunately, they also tend to interpet such alienation as Jewish (some idiots even claim that Jews have never practiced agriculture).
It always burns my biscuits when conservatives imply that nature is "the enemy" and that only man was created by G-d. Who created nature . . . the Devil?
I resemble that remark! ;o)
I believe you. I was only referring to those acquaintances of mine; they're conservative enough to disapprove of welfare queens, but they're rather bemused at how spitting angry I can get about such things.
I just didn't want you to think that we are all conservative-light.
Fair enough. I think the religious angle plays an important role. It seems to make them reluctant to take the revolutionary viewpoint, even though it's also what makes them disapprove of the status quo.
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