Several recent letters to the editor published in the Omaha World-Herald's "Public Pulse" feature have claimed that the reason the Republican Party is not doing well right now is that the GOP is not far enough to the right. They point to John McCain's loss in the presidential election in November as proof that "moderate" Republicans cannot win.
Boy, are some people unclear on the concept! McCain's thumping was due primarily to two things: (1) his "all-over-the-place" reaction to the economic crisis last September; (2) his being saddled with the uber-right wing Sarah Palin as a running mate. In neither instance did McCain come off as a leader with a calm and steady hand, a rational thinker who'd make sound decisions based on facts and not on careening emotions.
Still, I cannot help but think that it's not a bad thing that the hard-core GOP toadies want to move the party even farther to the right than it already is. They would only increase the level of their marginalization from the mainstream of American politics. And while that may mean we have to listen to their excessive bleating and whining, all out of proportion to their actual numbers, for a time, it would be worth it to me--for the long term health of the American body politic.
We need people in office who can have principled, civil, on-the-facts differences of opinion, yet who are willing to work together for the larger good of the nation as a whole, not a bunch of crybaby "my way or the highway" children throwing tantrums.
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I made the mistake yesterday of weighing in on the Yahoo! News item about CBS golf analyst John Feherty's recent in-print stupidity. Feherty opined that if any American military member found himself trapped in an elevator with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid, and Osama bin Laden, and he had a gun and two bullets, he'd shoot Pelosi twice and strangle Reid and bin Laden.
I pointed out that not only are there many, many members of the American military who are not ultra-right zealots, but that every member of the American military, whatever his/her personal politics, would take offense at the notion that he/she would kill elected American political leaders. All military personnel take an oath that recognizes the military is subordinate to the civilian authority in our system, and they all believe fervently that the way things change in America is via the ballot box, not the bullet.
A response to my comment said, and I quote, "your wrong," and that conservatives were on the correct side of history. Really? Is that why we're still living in a slave-owning monarchical system where no one can rise above the station of his/her birth no matter how creative and intelligent s/he is?
Besides, I find it difficult to give credibility to anyone who does not know the difference between "your" and "you're." I AM a historian. I've taught history. I study history every day of my life. I've forgotten more history that that commentator will ever know. That commentator needs to take Mark Twain's advice: when given the choice, keep your mouth shut and let everyone think you're an idiot rather than open it and remove all doubt.
However, I, too, should heed another of the sage Twain's directives: never teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.
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