BENEATH THE SPIN • ERIC L. WATTREE

Limbaugh-Beck and the GOP Patriots Against America

If anyone had any doubt about whether or not the GOP has become anti-American, all doubt should now be laid to rest. Rush Limbaugh, the titular head of the Republican Party, slipped into an altered state of bliss after hearing the news that the United States lost its bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics. The man was completely beside himself with glee. God only knows what would have happened if we'd also been attacked - his body fluids would've had to be cleaned off the studio floor. I watched the video of Limbaugh's antics over and over again in total disbelief. It's literally unbelievable what's happened to the Republican Party.

This man is not a true Republican, and comes nowhere close to representing conservative values. No true conservative would celebrate an American loss of anything, no matter what the competition, who we were competing against, or what the circumstances were surrounding the competition. You can say what you want about the Republican Party and conservatism, and I've said a lot of mean things, but a true conservative ALWAYS comes to the defense of America.

For those progressives who are too young to understand my breaking ranks to come to the defense of conservatism, it's important to understand that as a baby boomer I know and understand the conservative mind-set, because as baby boomers we all started out raised as conservatives - society was geared that way.

For baby boomers, the first thing we did when we arrived at school was to recite the pledge of allegiance; the second thing was to recite the Lord's Prayer. Then after the Lord's Prayer it was social studies, where we learned that America never loses, has never done anything wrong, and anyone who said differently was evil. That's conservatism, and I believed every syllable until I became old enough to start thinking for myself.

During the fifties all children were raised with the very same values. So just like any other child in America, I pulled for the cowboys against the Indians, and rode with John Wayne as we single-handedly slaughtering the bad guys - which was anyone who didn't happen to look, think, or act like us. And as I looked up at the screen, even as a Black child, I was completely convinced that I was a part of "us." It was only later in life that I began to recognize that I represented "them."

It was only due to the shock of that recognition that many of us became progressives. We made it our mission in life to turn the conservative myth of America into a reality. So the difference between true conservatives (as oppose to racists) and progressives wasn't a disagreement over the American ideal, but whether that ideal was a reality.

So I throughly understand the conservative mind-set - been there, done that. Conservatives can be insensitive, and in my opinion, delusional about what America represents, but the Republican Party has always been fiercely patriotic. So I can say without hesitation that Limbaugh, Beck, and these current batch of demagogues who currently run the GOP are definitely NOT true conservatives, or conservatives of any definition.

There was a time when a Dick Cheney wouldn't have even been able to work as a gofer in the Republican Party. A true conservative would've never put up with a man who took five deferments to avoid defending this nation then publically admitting that he didn't serve this country because "I had other priorities." Yet, in today's Republican Party he was able to make that statement without a bit of shame, even as he lectured America on patriotism. A true conservative would never tolerate such a man - one who, now that he doesn't have to put his own life on the line, wants to teach us how to protect America. Such a man would never be allowed to carry the Republican banner.

Can anyone imagine Cheney telling General Eisenhower that I didn't defend my country because "I had other priorities"? Ike would have told him in no uncertain terms that there ARE no priorities more important than serving your country. And there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that if Ike had been president, Cheney would have been unceremoniously shot for outing a CIA agent. Because Ike was both a true conservative, and a true American. He had an unwavering set of convictions that didn't vary as the wind blows, and more importantly, he had the courage of those convictions. Unlike Beck, or Rush Limbaugh who avoided serving this country by claiming a boil on his ass, Ike was the kind of man that one could have serious disagreements with, but still feel compelled to call sir.

And this is not just hyperbole. Think about it. Is there anyone who was alive during the fifties and sixties who believe that conservatives would have allowed the Republican Party to be taken over by draft dodgers, and worse yet, allow draft dodgers to send our troops to a senseless death? I don't think so.

Even as a progressive, as a former marine I think I'm safe in going on record for Ike and every American in Arlington Cemetery as saying that it is unforgivable that America let our young troops and their families down by letting this bunch of demagogues send these young people to an untimely grave. And for what? The horrible, and inescapable fact are, they died for no other reason than to enrich a bunch of cronies who made it a point not only avoid their own military service, but also made very sure that their children avoided it as well.

Conservatives? No, I don't think so. These are a bunch of conspirators against America who used the nation's pain over 911 to victimize this nation and accommodate their own greed. Like the vultures they are, they decided to not let a good crisis go to waste.

And they knew exactly what they were doing. As the bodies of our brave young troops were carried off the battlefield, they were honored in secret, because the dishonorable men who sent them to their deaths didn't want America to see the true price of their vulturous greed. For if these young people did indeed die for this country, and not simple greed, where were the bodies of the sons and daughters of those who sent them? Aren't they also patriots, and don't they also love this country? Of course they do, but their job is to luxuriate in the lobbies to country clubs giving lip service and drinking toasts to the brave sacrifice of the dead little people.

So does this batch of GOP scoundrels truly love America? Let's take a look at that through a simple analogy. For the sake of this discussion, let's think of America as a football team. Suppose a member of our team didn't like the coach and was angered because he had to ride the bench during the Super Bowl. What would you think of him if he started openly pulling for the other team, then once our team lost, he ran out on the field and started dancing and celebrating? Could he ever convince you that in spite of his actions, he loved our team? I don't think so.

Well, that's exactly what's taking place in America with Limbaugh, Beck, and all of their new-and-revised Republican colleagues. So as progressives, we should stop referring to these insurrectionist turncoats as conservatives, because by doing so we do a gross disservice to a long and honorable tradition, and a LOYAL opposition - even though we may seriously disagree with the tenets of that tradition.

If these neo-fascists were truly representative of conservative thought, Barack Obama would not be in office today. Let there be no doubt about it. This man was not elected by progressives alone.

Eric L. Wattree

 wattree.blogspot.com  

Religious bigotry: It's not that I hate everyone who doesn't look, think, and act like me - it's just that God does.