I am a life-long conservative alarmed at the direction I see the country taking. I see the modern progressive movement as not so much an evolution of traditional liberalism, but an outgrowth of fascism. I will address this and other issues. Hopefully, there will be some lighthearted moments as well.
I’m old enough that I remember Martin Luther King. I read about him in
the newspapers. I saw him on television. I heard his “Dream” speech. I
wept when he was murdered.
I have no patience for those who claim
that America is just as racist as it was in years gone by. I remember
those days. I remember federal troops in Little Rock. I remember Gov.
George Wallace blocking the school door. I remember Sheriff “Bull”
Conner and the fire hoses being turned on marchers in Birmingham. I
remember the Freedom Riders. I remember separate drinking fountains and
“white only” signs. I remember the fear. I remember the hate.
But
mostly, I remember the sound of a Georgia preacher’s voice calling out.
I remember him calling out, not just to his followers, but to his
enemies as well. He told us that we were better men and women and that
hate and fear shouldn’t divide us. He reminded is that we were all one
people, regardless of skin color or religion. He didn’t defeat his
enemies; he converted them.
That voice was heard. In 1964, the
Civil Rights Act became the law of the land with the support of more
than 80% of the Republicans in Congress and slightly more than 60% of
the Democrats (among those opposing the measure were Klansman Sen.
Robert Byrd of West Virginia and Al Gore’s late father who was a senator
from Tennessee).
Those were heady days. Then the dream started
to sour. Government programs aimed at aiding African Americans ended up
causing mortal harm. The welfare structure effectively destroyed the
black family. Other programs, such as affirmative action, conveyed the
message to both African Americans and others that blacks were incapable
of competing. Some claimed it was needed to fight vestiges of racism
against minorities, while completely ignoring the success of Asian
Americans, some of whom in modern times faced incarceration solely based
on their ethnicity.
Whatever the intent, the effect was to make
African Americans dependent upon government largess and intervention
rather than encouraging their own genius.
What was perhaps even
worse were Dr. King’s successors. They stood in the footsteps of a giant
and were found wanting. His inheritors stood at the threshold of
greatness … and stepped back.
Instead of following Dr. King’s
message of inclusion, they preached a message of separation and
divisiveness. Instead of finding strength in self and family, they found
dependence upon the government.
Some of their leaders,
specifically Jessie Jackson, Cynthia McKinney and Al Sharpton, have
preached a strong message of anti-Semitism. Many leaders have refused to
denounce or even distance themselves from such vile demagogues as Louis
Farrakhan.
As a nation, we honor Martin Luther King. His spirit
soars in the heavens with angels, while many of his successors slither
in the mud with an entirely different creature.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for ... This week’s “What A Maroon” Award goes to...
ROSIE O’DONNELL
The gaffe-prone comedienne strikes again. The 9/11 denier who said that Christianity is as threatening as radical Islam, that gun owners should be jailed and that American troops were terrorists, has put her foot in her large mouth once again.
This time, she told Joy Behar on “The View” that former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, “Perhaps he should read a history book.”
O’Donnell, who hold a diploma from Commack High School, apparently is unaware that Gingrich not only reads history, but is the author of 25 books. In fact, he is a historian, with B.A. and M.A. degrees in history from Emory University and a Ph.D. in modern European history from Tulane University. In addition, Gingrich taught history at West Georgia College.
O’Donnell should read a bit herself before opening her mouth about other people.
For her appalling ignorance and arrogance, Rosie O’Donnell richly deserves the What A Maroon Award.
WHAT A MAROON!
In honor of the great American philosopher Bugs Bunny who first coined the phrase, I’ve decided to present the “What a Maroon“ Award each week to the politician, organization or celebrity who makes the most sand-poundingly stupid statement of recent days.
I've often stated my belief that
socialism and fascism are just two sides of the same coin. In the 1920s
and '30s, the German Nazi and Communist parties often joined forces when
protesting against the democratic Weimar Republic.
Communists and Nazis frequently found common cause. Witness the infamous Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact of 1939 where Hitler and Stalin agreed to partition Europe. The American Nazi Party and Communist Party USA announced their support for the Occupy Wall Street movement.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you've all been waiting for ... This week's "What A Maroon" award goes to...
LAWRENCE O'DONNELL
MSNBC libtalker Lawrence O'Donnell, infamous for his emotional outbursts and flights of fancy, lit into Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain. O'Donnell accused Cain of being a draft dodger during the Vietnam war.
O'Donnell asked Cain,
Can you explain how you avoided military service during the Vietnam War and during the draft and why you should be Commander-in-Chief if you did successfully avoid military service during the war that came during what would have been your war years, how you, after avoiding the Vietnam War, why should you be Commander-in-Chief?
The libtalker dismissed the fact that Cain spent the war years working for the Navy Department working on specialized weapons system or that he refused a critical skills deferment and was in the draft lottery like most American men.
Not good enough for O'Donnell who responded, "I am offended on behalf of all the veterans of the Vietnam War who joined, Mr. Cain. The veterans who did not wait to be drafted like John Kerry who joined."
Of course, he neglected to mention that Kerry also jumped at the chance to leave Vietnam before his tour was over, leaving his comrades behind, unlike John McCain who refused early release from a North Vietnamese prison camp hell hole. Or that former President Bill Clinton was an admitted draft dodger, that Vice President Joe Biden took five deferments to avoid Vietnam service or that the current commander in chief, Barack Obama, refused to enlist for service in the First Gulf War.
Even more interesting, O'Donnell himself failed to mention that he avoided military service during Vietnam by accepting a college deferment.
O'Donnell reveals himself to be a hypocritical partisan hack. His real reason for attacking Cain is that the Republican presidential hopeful is an African-American who dared to stray from the Democrats plantation and think for himself. That is unforgivable in the progressive narrative.
Even by MSNBC standards, O'Donnell's attempted character assassination of an honorable man was reprehensible.
WHAT A MAROON!
In honor of the great American philosopher Bugs Bunny who first coined the phrase, I've decided to present the "What a Maroon" award each week to the politician, organization or celebrity who makes the most sand-poundingly stupid statement of recent days.
I'm a “recovering journalist” who is at last free to express my personal views. I was a rarity in newsrooms — a conservative. I'm a member of both the National Rifle Association and the American Homebrewers Association.
