Posted on 10/08/2013 6:14:46 AM PDT by reaganaut1
A classical liberal was characteristically guided by disinterested logic and reason. He was open to gradual changes in society that were frowned upon by traditionalists in lockstep adherence to custom and protocol. The eight-hour work day, civil rights, and food- and drug-safety laws all grew out of classically liberal views. Government could press for moderate changes in the way society worked, within a conservative framework of revering the past, in order to pave the way for equality of opportunity in a safe and sane environment.
Among elite liberals today, all too few are of this classical mold — guided by reason and empirical observation. By far the majority are medieval and reactionary. By medieval I mean that they adhere to accepted doctrine — in this case, the progressive doctrine of always finding solutions in larger government and more taxes — despite all the evidence to the contrary. The irony is that they project just such ideological blinkers onto their conservative opponents.
(Excerpt) Read more at nationalreview.com ...
The motto of all liberals is “With my guilt and your gelt, we can do anything!”. The coalition of deluded whites, minorities, government workers and people dependent on the government has been a disaster for America. The worst fears of the founders are coming true. The Constitutional Convention was acutely aware why historic attempts at democracy whether it be Greece, Rome, the Hanover league, Florence etc failed. Eventually the grasping get control of the government and public purse, and ruin everything.
“Among elite liberals today, all too few are of this classical mold — guided by reason and empirical observation.”
Few? How about none, at all, zero? VDH is being far too kind.
I have always believed that the franchise would be restricted to people who do not receive money from the government. That would, of course, horrify most FR types because they point to our troops, but you have to include them, too, or it is not a principle, only a tactic. Limiting the franchise that way would remove the overwhelming pressure to spendspendspend. If you get money from the government then you want to keep the government giving you money. It is not a healthy incentive.
Liberals lost it totally way back in the last century when they bought into the slogan, “No Enemies To The Left.”
VDH ping.
I disagree. The troops “provide for the common defense”. It doesn’t get any more legitimate than that. They don’t “receive money” in the same sense that people getting food stamps or Social Security do.
bttt
This is a priceless description and portrayal of the warped and completely hypocritical liberal mind ... sort of like the obese friar with a neat tonsure.
Sheer poetry.
The column is worth reading. Try it.
I did read it, and I agree with you. Just about everything VDH writes is worth reading. I also commented on one very specific part of it. Did you not get that? I quoted that specific part. I’m not sure how somebody as smart as you missed that.
As I said. A principle is ironclad except for one’s own preferences. No? Same thing with Natural Born Citizen. That is ironclad unless it might take one of ours out of contention. There are no principles on most of the right and principles are not even relevant to the left.
This was sent to me by a fellow FReeper. I’m so glad he sent it because I might have missed it otherwise. This is excellent and I hope lots of FReepers read it and disseminate it. I’m going to send it to several local talk show hosts and maybe even a national one or two. Post it on my FB page; although, I don’t think any of the people that need to read it will. And post it to conservative pages on FB. Right on VDH! You took the words out of mouth/mind and twisted them into intelligence and poetry. ;)
There's gotta be one...dontcha think? ;)
Now that is going to leave a mark. But it gets better:
The non-medieval mind always fails to perceive the romance of the poor, and fails to hanker after the tastes and culture of the lord. Translated, that means he is the uncouth ignoramus who has no clue what Sidwell Friends or the Menlo School is, no grand strategy of how to get Junior into Princeton or Stanford, no idea what a Hobie or Cannondale is, but maybe knowledge of a handgun, a jet ski, a camper, or any other of the many superfluous appurtenances that are proof that the tax rate is too low.
Guilty as charged, M'Lud. As a proud bitter clinger to my middle-class antecedents I find myself mystified by the practices of my betters, owners of a thousand dollars' worth of hi-tech camping gear who will nevertheless pitch it in a dry wash during the rainy season. It is as if the real world pays insufficient respect to the culturally enlightened.
It is always fun to read an articulate rant. VDH is sounding a bit angry here, angrier than usual, but then that appears to be true of a lot of us. Angry enough? Time will tell.
But if only “receives money from the government”, then even the President would be ineligible to vote.
Yes.
Read the comment section. NRO gets more trolls than here.
Even some “conservative” commentators were chiding VDH for using the term “medieval” because they don’t understand his meaning.
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