The Current Problem for True Believers

It seems that in my lifetime I have drifted from the mainstream in my political beliefs. From the knees of my parents I learned that the "New Deal" saved the nation from depression and helped create the new middle class. The big tent of the democratic party got so big that not everyone wanted to be sheltered by it. As with any movement, the worst thing that can happen is success. Success breeds a complacency and a lack of forward motion that usually puts out of the fire of belief in the soul of the movement.

Once the idea of women's liberation and black equality became a reality, the house was built and the only thing that remained was maintenance. But as most of us know building the house, erecting something completely new, is exciting. Painting and fixing plumbing leaks is not so exhilarating. It also became apparent that moving out of the tent and into the house produced some restlessness in some who were surprised and disappointed with the facade.

There came a time of "to much change and the domination of the extreme left wing" that created something called "Regan Democrats". Personally I saw these people as individuals that never were comfortable with the objectives of liberty and equality particularly when it visited their backyard. School desegregation and single mom's became a rallying point about which these folks could jump ship and sail with folks who gladly pander to their fears and made them feel good about their prejudices.

Liberals became the scorn of the establishment and government was the problem. To much government at a cost too high became the underlying cause of all our problems and the only way to reverse things is to starve the beast, that is not fund the programs that were at the seat of the problem.

The "New Deal" was welfare with another name. An incentive killer in that it discouraged work and took money out of the system that could better be used to invest in businesses that would produce jobs. The "Trickle down" theory of economics became the buzz word. This is a variation on the old Calvinist-Social Darwinian thinking that basically says that if you let rich people keep their money, they will invest it wisely and the benefits will flow to those around them. After all they were smart enough to make the money, who better to trust the future with than those who have already succeeded. Oh Yeah, there is a little of that God stuff in there also. God rewards those on earth as well as in heaven who obey him.

I could write a book on the failures of this kind of thinking, but let me shorthand it by saying that it's to bad that the good Christian, God fearing, patriotic citizens that bought this line of crap weren't better served by the fornicating, draft dodging, grafters and crooks that they voted into office.

By now it's obvious that government is still the problem. The disdain of the New Deal has brought about the destruction of the middle class, more money for the rich and a switch from social welfare to corporate welfare. Some of us pay less taxes. We have reduced the size of government and regulations. We now have tremendous debt and more scandals with regard to lack of oversight than we have ever had.

True Believer's are still trying to sell their program, but the big tent the right built is leaking and some of their people have left the comfort of their belief and are questioning the man behind the curtain. Once the lop of thinking is no longer closed, people can stray into area's the mind managers would prefer they not go.

Tell me is your life better than it was eight years ago?