The Bush administration has done more to reshape the United States in the image of the Soviet Union than I would have ever believed possible. We’re not there yet, but we’re certainly moving in that direction. Our current president and his cronies have done vast damage to our nation.
However…
Many of the Bush-bashers on this board demonstrate a blind, foaming-at-the-mouth lack of reason when attacking the administration’s actions. Anyone who points out flaws in these attacks (such as John Mace or Airman Doors, neither of whom supports President Bush) is instantly labeled a Bush apologist by the rabid crowd and their points ignored. This does not help our cause.
I’m not saying you have to agree with the views of someone more conservative than you are. But I do think you owe it to yourself to take the criticisms of your attacks as an opportunity to refine those attacks and make them more effective. “Bush is evil!” doesn’t sway anyone’s opinion. “Bush did a, b, and c, which is horrible because x, y, and z” is much more likely to capture someone’s attention.
I am not naming names because I have seen many people here ignore reasonable critiques of their complaints about Bush. You want to fight against what Bush and his political allies are doing to the U.S.? Great! I submit to you that it is your patriotic duty to listen to criticisms of your arguments against the Bush administration, evaluate them fairly and factually, and use them to refine your arguments. Ad hominem attacks will not help. You need to demonstrate that the truth and the law, not just hatred, are on your side. That is how we will persuade reasonable people.
Some Bush supporters on the board seem to dismiss all criticism as knee jerk Bush hating in much the same way as a lot of attackers of John Mace and Airman Doors act.
I don’t hate Bush, that would be like hating Pinochio when its Geppeto who is to blame.
But GeeDub is a very polarizing figure, provoking extreme reactions (for purposes of discussion, I’m lumping him in with his supporters…probably not entirely fair.) Is this an accident, do you think? Does one off-handedly equate one’s political enemies as being pro-terrorist? I rather doubt it.
We must therefore assume that it is a well-considered strategy, considered and approved by a crack team of cynical political operatives. Because? Because it works. They must think so, otherwise they wouldn’t be doing it.
You hear it quite a bit. “Well, sure I disapprove of Bush, but I cannot bring myself to vote Dem because of all the hysterical Bush-bashing yadda blah yadda blah…” Pure buttwhistle. Our civil discourse is equally a casualty as our rule of law, and we know who’s fingerprints are on the murder weapon.
Those who lament the demise of moderation and civility have a point, and I share thier dismay. But if they wish to pretend that the left has some equal share of responsibility for that demise, they are full of crap. They would have us sip our luke-warm tea with our pinkies politely akimbo while they heap abuse on our values, our patriotism, and our reason. They urge us to unilateral disarmament while they manuever for a back stab.
They deserve neither our respect, nor our moderation.
Elucidator, I just have to say that I saw your sig line and I love it. Is it self-written or a quote?
/hijack.
As to the OP, I’ve gotta agree, although I unfortunately seem to be in the “irrational” camp. I don’t like Bush, and I’m not sure why, he just seems really untrustworthy and kind of goofy to me.
Then again, I don’t go around blasting people for liking him, either. I just shake my head and waaaalk away.
I’ve been called a traitor, both on and offline, by the lying warmongers who are destroying our country. The time for moderation of rhetoric is long over. Those who defend this administration have the blood of tens of thousands on their hands. And if the push towards war with Iran isn’t stopped, that number could go much, much higher, and the consequences defy the imagination.
And I’m supposed to refrain from calling them names, because that would be bad.
I’ll raise my hand. I used to be non-partisan/apolitical. But at this point I intrinsically doubt anything this administration says, if they told me that they had solid evidence that the sun was going to come out tomorrow I would check to see if there was going to be overcast skies or a day long eclipse. I don’t think I’m a kneejerk liberal because I have lingering doubts about the death penalty, gay rights, abortion, religion, torture, wiretapping, and global warming.
Frankly I wouldn’t hate Bush very much if I didn’t feel he had lied to America to get us into a war that was costing hundreds of billions of dollars, almost every last shred of international goodwill we have (people are still nice to us because we are the most powerful nation in the world, but its not always goodwill), thousands of American lives, tens of thousands of Iraqi lives, increased violence worldwide, and the list goes on and on…
I have no faith or confidence in this administration or any of its cockamanie schemes, theories, or rationales and I don’t understand how anyone else can have any faith or confidence in this adminsitration.
It’s not just Left vs. Right. There are those in the middle who can be persuaded, people who don’t support Bush but are made nervous by unreasoning screed. I’m not asking you to respect Bush and his ardent supporters. I’m asking you to examine critiques of your arguments (often by people who don’t support Bush) and see if there is a way to apply your powers of reason to make your arguments stronger. I do not ask you to remove emotion from your arguments, but I do expect that when someone points out a factual problem you address it on a factual level. If someone makes a reasonable point and you screech at them, you can expect to lose ground with them and with anyone observing the exchange. You can gripe all you want about the demise of civility, but if you froth equally at those who attack you indiscriminately and those who seek to engage you in rational discourse, don’t be surprised when the rational person dismisses you as a crank.
No! You’ve missed my point entirely. I don’t expect you to be civil to someone who calls you a traitor. I do expect you to be civil and reasonable to someone who is civil to you in pointing out flaws in statements you make against the Bush administration. You will not persuade the former no matter what you do. You might persuade the latter if you’re not too busy convincing them you’re a loon.
Yes, I am. You can take my sincerity at face value, or go pound burdocks.
I have only one compunction: truth. If you have the facts to back you up, scream yer bloody head off! Happily, we do. The Forces of Darkness scream lies, we scream truth, and the angels are with us. I will never condone a lie, but I don’t have to, the truth is far damning enough.
I look forward to the day when the scoundrels are routed and we can return to at least occassional civility and polite discourse. But the moment is too crucial, there is too much at stake. If the Bushiviks are not thoroughly repudiated, they will take it as a mandate, a landslide of overwhelming approval. For these people, 50.0001% is a crushing landslide, if it goes their way. Goes against them, its just some mid-term statistical blip, never mind, stay the course, damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead.
The road is uphill, polls and approval ratings notwithstanding. They have the money and they have the organization, and they have the cynical expertise. This will be a very, very tough fight!