Rick, we hardly knew ye
He’s out of the race.
I liked Rick Perry. But he never really caught on, for whatever reasons. I think there just wasn’t anything that special about him compared to the many others, plus there were some lingering memories of his rather embarrassing errors last time.
“We have a tremendous field of candidates ”” probably the greatest group of men and women,” Perry said. “I step aside knowing our party is in good hands, as long as we listen to the grassroots, listen to that cause of conservatism. If we do that, then our party will be in good hands.”…
“It’d be easy just to keep going, be easy to go do the debate next week, be easy to keep going to Iowa and South Carolina and other states and everything and taking your money and dragging it out,” said Dallas businessman and longtime Perry donor Roy Bailey.
But, Bailey said, Perry “could see it was pretty obvious to him he wasn’t going to be the next presidential nominee from the Republican Party.”
And he was smart enough to know it, and to get out.
“You’ve got to know when to hold ’em
Know when to fold ’em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run..”
I like Governor Perry. Whatever he decides to do next, he will be a success. He’ll also live longer and sleep better. And that’s not a bad thing.
Roger Simon writes,
…But more importantly, it makes me think about how our presidential election system actually works. Does it get us the best man or woman? Does it even come close? It’s not only because I know Rick Perry that I suspect he might have made one of the better – perhaps even the best – presidents of all those running in both parties.
Of course, no one could possibly know the truth about these things. No one. All we have is our guesses. But it is clear that in this year of the non-pro, voters were not excited by the record of a man who was governor of one of our largest states for fourteen years, a period during which that one state, Texas, generated more than a third of the nation’s private-sector jobs.
Maybe that says more about us than it does
about Rick Perry.
And I feel the same way regarding Walker.
Perry is an honorable man with an admirable record. Of the 17, he probably was near or at the top of the list as to who would actually perform the best as president. Walker would be near the top, as well.
As a presidential candidate, however, Perry was less than mediocre (Walker is only slightly better). His abysmal performance four years ago was likely insurmountable. Still, I’d rather the remaining junior league five drop out, as well as Huckabee and Paul.
Now the other Rick, Huck and Lindsay need to get out.
Agreed, Cornhead. Along with Pataki. Gilmore’s bizarre non-campaign can be safely ignored (as CNN is doing). Jindal can then be promoted to prime time, eliminating the “kiddie table” debate
The rest of the field that doesn’t have a chance need to follow Perry’s example. That screws up the RNC’s playbook but Trump and Carson have already screwed it up. Jeb was supposed to be polling around 20% now, making him look good compared to the rest of the field. Not happening. The GOP is reaping what it sowed.
In 2010 the conservative base delivered the house to the GOP. In 2014, the conservative base delivered the senate to the GOP. What did that base receive? Nothing but betrayal. Obamacare still stands. Spending is still out of control. Illegal immigrants are flooding across our borders and getting amnesty from President Obama. The military is being slashed. Obama is betraying our allies and supporting our enemies across the world. Most of those conservatives we voted for have acquiesced without a fight. When Cruz stood on conservative principles to try to defund Obamacare, he was excoriated by the GOP elites.
The current GOP elected officials are not conservative. They ran as conservatives, but they turned into RINO´s as soon as they landed in DC. Peter Schweitzer documents the utter corruption of both parties in his book “Throw Them All Out”.
Trump is not a conservative. Agreed. He´s an egomaniac. Agreed. He is a bull in a china shop. Agreed. He used to be a Democrat. Agreed. His positions change with the tides. Agreed. He insults everybody who disagrees with him. Agreed (it’s part of his charm).
But he speaks his mind and the first thing he spoke about was illegal immigration. He made it an election issue, and suddenly, a majority of Americans agree with Trump. Illegals comprise 3.5% of the population and 35% of the prison population. An astonishing 62% received welfare benefits in 2012. Illegal immigrants have murdered as many as 50,000 Americans since 9/11. How many of the rest of the GOP field stepped into that minefield, knowing the shelling they would get from the media elite? None. Trump stomped straight into that minefield. And he stuck to his guns, unlike Ted Cruz, who whiffed on a question about deporting illegals with anchor babies. Bravo, Trump!
The GOP elites are running around like headless chicken trying to figure out how to capture more of the Hispanic vote. Short answer: they can’t. Same with the Black vote: they can’t. Except, guess what: Trump is doing well with Hispanics and Blacks. McCain and Romney both lost because they lost the conservative base – they stayed home on election day.
Trump’s slogan is perfect for the times. That is why he is where he is in the polls. He could crash and burn, like Gingrich and Cain, but he has far outlasted their brief surges in the polls. So far, he has spent almost nothing on his campaign. He get’s free airtime that other candidates can only gasp at. What happens when he starts spending serious money?
What is Trump running as? An American.
Nothing became Perry in this race like the leaving of it.
Glad to see I’m not the only one with this thought. I knew Perry wasn’t going to win, but I keep thinking, at the end of all this we’re supposed to have a candidate who could be trusted to run the country well, right? Perry’s more optimistic about this than I am. Either the polls are really wrong (and I suspect they are) or the Republican voters aren’t looking at the right candidates.
I’m a Republican, which means I’m used to seeing my party establishment ruin things. But it feels like this time around, the Republican voters could be the ones at fault. The party has an embarrassment of riches polling at 3% or less. Some of it is the candidates’ fault. But the voters better step up.
I don’t know that this is the case, but I was never convinced Perry had the “fire in the belly” he needed to win the nomination or the general election. As humans we reach a lot of conclusions based on non verbal cues, and the cues I got from Perry were that he was not serious, had not studied his briefing book, and would be a poor candidate. Sadly, W had some similar cues — his sometimes goofy smile and the way he cocked his head to the side, for example — but in the end a lot of voters got beyond those issues. Not the case with Perry.
F:
When I met Perry at an Iowa rally he seemed disengaged. Carly was getting all the attention from the crowd and maybe he was jealous.
What irks me is the bottom feeders who know they have zero chance, but stay in just to trade clout for administrative positions and to boost their name recognition. They hinder making the conservative case to the voters solely for personal gain.
The debates will remain a Jerry Springer panel until they are whittled down enough to let issue differences dominate.
Trump isn’t going to win the nomination, either, but he’s still in the race.
Uffdaphil – Who do you mean? If you’re talking about the lowest-polling candidates, I don’t think they’re harming the conservative cause. For example, Jindal just did the party and the country a favor by calling out Trump. And if you’re looking at the top 8 or so, I can’t say for sure that they don’t have a chance. In a normal year, no, but this year isn’t proceeding normally.
I thought Perry did decently in the debate. But Fiorina did better. Perry seems to have been aware that it was happening, too, since he said good things about her during the debate.
My one problem with Perry was his “heartless” comment during the 2012 debates. It wouldn’t have made me not vote for the guy. But it was something that always made me wonder whether he was really willing to go the distance in dealing with illegal immigration. And it kept him off the top of my list.
I blame all those conservatives who stayed home because Romney was a RINO. Having both houses of Congress doesn’t do much if you don’t have the presidency.
Mr. Frank:
That is a very succinct and excellent way to put it.
And yet, those same people are mostly angry at the GOP for not magically stopping Obama. They do not acknowledge the extreme limitations of a majority Republican Congress with a Democratic minority prepared to block anything, a Democratic president prepared to veto anything that might get through, and not enough of a majority to override that veto.
“We have a tremendous field of candidates – probably the greatest group of men and women,” Perry said.
Really? Really? A demonstrably untrue statement.
Of the 36 declared Republican Presidential Candidates only 15 have any national recognition. Of those 15; 6 have demonstrated themselves to be RINOs ( Bush, Christie, Graham, Kasich, Pataki, & Rubio). 2 are far too religious (Santorum & Huckabee). Paul advocates nutty positions and Trump is a one issue, self-important idiot (Megan Kelly and now Fiorina).
That leaves 5 conservatives; Ben Carson, Ted Cruz, Carly Fiorina, Bobby Jindal and Scott Walker. Carson has NO relevant experience, Cruz has made mortal enemies of the GOP leadership, Fiorina has no government experience, Jindal has gotten no more traction than Perry and Walker vacillates between strong words and evasion.
“I step aside knowing our party is in good hands, as long as we listen to the grassroots, listen to that cause of conservatism. If we do that, then our party will be in good hands.” Rick Perry
Both quotes by Perry demonstrate why he never got any traction with conservatives. He’s too PC. Clearly, he’s unwilling to offend anyone. Which speaks to a lack of commitment to conservative principles.
As the above demonstrates, when closely examined, the GOP does not have a strong field. Its like holding the Kentucky Derby with a field of ‘maidens’ (yet to win a race).
Plus, how can Perry claim that he ‘knows’ that i>”our party is in good hands” when he must know that the party establishment does NOT ” listen to the grassroots, listen to that cause of conservatism” that in fact, grassroots conservatism is anathema to them.
Rick Perry may well be a nice guy and is likely comfortable as a conservative but he either hasn’t a clue as to the GOP’s RINOdom (unlikely) or he’s just another self-serving politician like Rubio. I suspect that conservatives sense that about Perry.
Mr Frank,
Having both houses of Congress doesn’t do much with the presidency, when there’s no will to reverse the ship of state headed for the rocks. McConnell and Boehner have repeatedly demonstrated that to be the case. Romney is a consensus builder, such a man does not drag the GOP kicking and screaming into saving the country. What such a man does is act as a placeholder. Romney and the GOP keeping things from getting worse is, given the threats facing America an entirely futile strategy.
“those same people are mostly angry at the GOP for not magically stopping Obama. They do not acknowledge the extreme limitations of a majority Republican Congress with a Democratic minority prepared to block anything, a Democratic president prepared to veto anything that might get through, and not enough of a majority to override that veto.” neo
That’s a bit of stereotyping. True of some, untrue of many “angry at the GOP”. McConnell and Boehner haven’t even tried. They’ve done nothing to get on record democrat obstructionism. Done nothing to get on record Obama’s vetoing of popular legislation. And no, one time with the Keystone legislation does not translate to ‘trying’. It demonstrates the GOP being beholden to corporate interests that strongly favor the pipeline, while conveniently allowing the GOp to give lip service to actions conservatives favor.
Many of us utterly contemptuous of the GOP DO “acknowledge the extreme limitations of a majority Republican Congress with a Democratic minority prepared to block anything, a Democratic president prepared to veto anything that might get through, and not enough of a majority to override that veto.” we just don’t think that ‘impossible’ is a justification for not even trying.
You do not overcome impossible odds by ‘acknowledging’ them, you do the impossible by insisting that “failure gentlemen is NOT an ‘option’…” (Gene Kranz “Apollo 13”)
PatD:
Bravo.
GB sez:”Carson has NO relevant experience, Cruz has made mortal enemies of the GOP leadership, Fiorina has no government experience, Jindal has gotten no more traction than Perry and Walker vacillates between strong words and evasion.”
What kind of experience would you like? Are you rooting for the GOP establishment? Happy with those “leaders”?
Trump is many things, but “idiot” is not one of them.
You end up as a Rovian when you complain about too much religion. Christian religion is about morals, too.
Is there even a race with an end or is it all going to be the Emperor’s Illusion fair.
GB –
Huckabee’s conservative bona fides are questionable. In 2008, one of his advisors was caught crowing that their campaign was going to successfully ignore one of the legs on Reagans famous three-legged stool (which relied on bringing together three different types of conservatism) – specifically, the fi-con wing of the party. So you can likely toss him in the RINO category.
Fiorina actually does have government experience, though not of the elected sort. She served on a government panel connected to the CIA, and chaired it for a time. Oddly enough, her time as chair apparently also gave her some foreign policy experience. Make of that what you well.
Frog,
Facts are facts and while the five conservatives have much to admire, politically, their negatives preclude Perry’s categorization of the Republican candidates as a strong field.
Personally, I’d love a Fiorina/Cruz ticket. As a placeholder, I’ll take Walker with any of the other four. My dismissing the RINOs proves that I don’t favor the GOP establishment candidates.
I respect Santorum and Huckabee’s religious sincerity but they are unacceptable to a secular citizenry and far too easy to demonize. Christianity is certainly about morals but a sizable percentage of Christians are literalists, insisting that the Bible is the literal truth and that our laws should reflect dogmatic interpretations of the Bible. Politically, that’s a negative.
Governorship is the traditional experience looked for in a President. Prior experience in Congress followed by election to their state’s Governor is ideal.
Walker’s evasions are very troubling. Jindal isn’t Presidential timber. Cruz has ‘presidential timber’ but would be fiercely opposed by McConnell and Boehner, et all. Cruz would have to govern by executive orders which are easily reversed. Carson and Fiorina are IMO, the best of the bunch but the learning curve would be steep and they have no political capital to use as leverage to move a resistant GOP.
Shoot the messenger if you must but face the facts.
Geoffrey Britain wrote:
Really? Really? A demonstrably untrue statement.
I had the exact same thought when I read that. I know there are certain boilerplate statements one must make in a concession, but this one is a little too much of a reach. And, he is not the first to make an equivalent statement (although I do not have other quotes handy).
I don’t comment much, but I do here on Neo’s blog, because it’s a solid collection of thoughtful people. As I’ve said before, I’m “big” on leadership because that is the basis of an effective executive branch. Despite current trends to the contrary, law is not written from the executive level, but the legislative level. The executive’s job is to help bring factions together, and make persuasive arguments to the legislative branch, and the people. Finally, they have to explicitly indicate to other nations that They Mean Business. The last guy that could genuinely do this was Reagan, maybe JFK before him.
So when I look at this slate, I have Reagan and maybe JFK as my leadership templates (and JFK was too long ago to have any intimacy with, despite my gray hair).
With that, I go down the list:
* Trump – Not even. Monarch or dictator, yes. Certainly not a leader.
* Carson – Nope. Smart, pleasant guy, not a communicator or persuader
* Cruz – Excellent debater and crusader. Love his non-conformity. Strong in the senate. Not a leader (though has some qualities)
* Walker – Not sure he has it under the national spotlight. Maybe someday.
* Fiorina – Yes, but she has a credibility hill to climb. I think much more of her CEO time after understanding Tom Perkins’ statements. Watch this space…
* Bush – No, just, no, and we all know why
* Rubio – Not strong, and too establishment
* Huck – Showman for one faction, no strength
* Christie – Proven windsock
* Paul – Like Cruz, a useful idealist in the senate
* Kasich – (sigh) just, no…
* Jindal – Not on a national level
I actually had Perry in the “yes” column here…he could show it when it counted at the state level, but at the national level, I wasn’t sure he would stand up to a hard wind. I wish he could have (and I also wish he had not tried, and misstepped, in 2012…can’t help but think it was a factor here).
So, by my metrics, we’re down to Fiorina and maybe Walker as credible leaders, and I don’t think Walker’s time has truly come yet.
As Geoffrey asserted, that is not exactly a deep bench by any measure. It should be, but it is not. Unfortunate.
Frog sez:
What kind of experience would you like? Are you rooting for the GOP establishment? Happy with those “leaders”?
Interesting question. At this point in time, “government experience” is an establishmentarianist liability, and I think even some LIV’s are starting to understand this. Someone with a spine, and who can communicate, yet has proven credibility outside the system may just have an advantage.
This is one part of Trump’s pull that is inescapable; he is not bought and paid for, at least. A buffoon with a microphone, yes, but not (evidently) owned by the power in the shadows.
When you guys say “no”, do you mean no I wouldn’t support him/her in the primaries, or no I wouldn’t support him/her in the general?
While I would prefer Walker, Rubio, Kasich, or Jindal getting the nomination, I would vote for any of them but Trump in November.
Mr. Frank Says:
I blame all those conservatives who stayed home because Romney was a RINO. Having both houses of Congress doesn’t do much if you don’t have the presidency.
IMHO they may have said they stayed home because Romney was a RINO but they really stayed home because Romney was a Mormon.
Nick,
I’ll vote for any of the conservatives. A vote for a Bush however is just a vote for a Hillary in pants.
As to why, well I ask you, condemned to death but given a choice between a quick death and a slow, drawn out one, which would you choose?
Hillary is the quick death. Bush et al, the slow one. Either way the republic dies (if it isn’t already). Hillary will help the patient suicide, while Bush is the kind hospice worker, who makes the dying patient as comfortable as possible.
Neo has expressed the hope/prayer that the election of a RINO gives us more time to right the ship of state. That’s valid if you think we have the time. Since there’s every indication that we don’t have the time (Western Civ is being attacked on multiple fronts) there is IMO an element of wishful thinking in that proposition.
But if we actually don’t have the time, then the election of a RINO President confers shared responsibility for the coming debacle upon the GOP. As, given the duplicity of the democrat party and its MSM propaganda organs, a RINO President and Congress will get all the blame and I predict result in a slim majority of Americans (LIVs) doubling down on the democrats.
Result: goodbye constitution, goodbye liberty, hello Marxism.
No, sometimes giving people what they want (good and hard) is the only way to awaken them. Example Europe, where the news reports that mass protests in London demanded that the ME refugees (heavily young men) be admitted by European governments. This in a capital where Mohammed is now the most popular name.
The simple truth is that either we vote in a conservative (last chance) or the end result is the same.
BumsRush,
I for one voted for Romney, accepting neo’s arguments. His Mormonism is irrelevant for me. Of those conservatives angry with the GOP, I suspect as many feel as I do, as are biased.
Geoffrey Britain:
I hope you’re not suggesting that I’ve ever advocated a RINO nominee. I have not. Nor have I ever said a word that indicates support for Jeb Bush; au contraire.
So I want to make it very clear that my support for RINOs only extends to the general, if that person happens to be the nominee.
Also, I said quite some time ago that I do not believe Bush will be the nominee. I have also been very adamant is saying I do not think he should be the nominee.
steve c. @ 4:10 – –
First let me say, if GB says something, that usually means there is no more to add other than “yes”.
But second, I do disagree with GB (and you) on this issue of the Republican field. Using your list – –
* Trump — Not even. Monarch or dictator, yes. Certainly not a leader.
The problem is, he is a leader, just not the leader we want. He is a crude man. Crude men are very often leaders because they are crude men. To use the phrase very loosely, they are idiot savants, uninhibited by what holds back even very ambitious men.
It is impossible to think of a Democrat candidate who could do what he does, because people would be repulsed by the Democrat straightforwardly stating things so intellectually and psychologically repugnant to even most ardent Democrats.
* Carson — Nope. Smart, pleasant guy, not a communicator or persuader.
I refer to Herman Cain not because he is black (has NOTHING to do with it), but because he was a successful man who was Trump before Trump. Cain was the undisputed Carly Fiorina in the business world, the undisputed Trump but more so because he did not start out with a million dollars. In any conversation he was down to Earth and understood the house of cards / emperor has no cloths aching in the American polity.
Carson is a real man. He is a superior man (in the best sense, to all of us). He is (I hope) Cain without the questions. Carson has lived a life so few can claim. I want him to identify his life with America. I want him to be part of us, and he can stand up to any Imam or Eurocrat because of his deep integrity, deep humanity, and deep morality.
* Cruz — Excellent debater and crusader. Love his non-conformity. Strong in the senate. Not a leader (though has some qualities).
An absolute leader, just too subtle for some folks to get it right now. He is the Reagan of our times. Like Reagan, he is drawing it out slowly, letting it play out, an anti-Trump Trump.
* Walker — Not sure he has it under the national spotlight. Maybe someday.
I wish people would focus on the sheer physical courage Walker has shown. It is not enough to say he beat the unions and the Democrats at their slimy game. His life and the life of his family – – not to mention his reputation in our rancid retributive color-ribboned society – – is an active concern, a tribute to his character and integrity, evidence that Walker is a man who unusually puts himself outside and above the gated, dreary selfishness.
* Fiorina — Yes, but she has a credibility hill to climb. I think much more of her CEO time after understanding Tom Perkins’ statements. Watch this space…
Look at this woman’s face. She is serious, she understands, she is human, she is real. Listen to her words. She is a Thatcher.
* Bush — No, just, no, and we all know why.
Bush is noblesse oblige. That is what the Bushes do. I would hate him as president. The Bushes are in a strange Bush bubble. But look at his face, which bespeaks kindness and intelligence, and sincerity. He is a good man.
* Rubio — Not strong, and too establishment
Rubio is young and shows it. He is in need of maturity. But in the meanwhile, he is very talented and full of great possibilities.
* Huck — Showman for one faction, no strength.
A strong person, clever in an appealing way, I would not want him to be president, but he may very well not disappoint me if he were.
* Christie — Proven windsock.
A brilliant man, full of life, a background of actual experience in the daily doings of life, understanding of the nonsense the left throws around.
* Paul — Like Cruz, a useful idealist in the senate.
He has curly hair.
* Kasich — (sigh) just, no…
A decent human being, unlike any Democrat.
* Jindal — Not on a national level.
Should be our next president. A command of reality so superior to any Democrat, so much a part of American history and ethos, so dependable, so human, the present missing something is just odd and bizarre, but not his fault. What a wonderful candidate for president.
The significant thing about the Republican candidates is their appeal as human beings and their definitive superiority to the usual stuff.
Rick Perry was right and I love him for it.
Geoffrey – If you really believe that civilization is on the line, then it doesn’t matter who gets the blame. The end of the republic is such a big deal, and finger-pointing is so petty, that they don’t belong in the same statement.
Hillary Clinton will not destroy the republic, quickly or slowly. She would be bad for it. Bush would be neutralish for it. If Western democracy collapses, it won’t be because of Clinton. It will be first because the citizenry who would vote for someone like Clinton, and second because of the citizenry who failed to distinguish the difference between a Clinton and a Bush.
Trump is apparently a stupid and selfish person who is capable of the kind of miscalculation that could ruin society. It is crucial that someone like him not become President. He’s unique. Other than him, any of the Republican candidates can do a significantly better job than Clinton.
neo,
I was suggesting nothing of the sort and, IMO you have made your positions very clear to anyone who regularly visits this blog.
I did say that I found your argument regarding Romney in the 2012 election to be persuasive and still do. Even a RINO is preferable to a traitor like Obama.
Tonawanda,
A wonderful explication of the republican candidates positive personal qualities. However, as political analysis I find it unpersuasive. But I would be happy to be proven wrong. My skepticism does not sit well with me.
Nick,
I do indeed believe that civilization itself is on the line and further believe that the world faces a potential new dark age. Truly ironic given the equal potential for a period of material abundance heretofore unimagined. See “The G.R.A.I.N. Technologies; Genetics, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Nanotechnology” Combine them with future Fusion reactors and the riches that await mining in the asteroid belt and productivity increases will be logarithmic in magnitude.
I think it does matter who gets the blame because whether a new dark age awaits or a golden age of abundance depends entirely upon whether the American people, after the SHTF… embrace the risk of liberty or the Left’s panacea of socialistic ‘security’ that inherently demands the sacrifice of liberty, which always leads to tyranny.
I would urge you not to underestimate the damage that either a Hillary Clinton or a Biden/Warren administration could do. As one example, Congressionally approved treaties supersede the Constitution and one of Hillary’s pet projects is an end run around the 2nd amendment by pushing for the US to sign on to the UN’s International Arms Trade Treaty.
Are some of you saying that Hilary, Biden, or Saunders would be better than some of the Republican candidates? If so, you’re being foolish. I’d take any of them.
You think Christie isn’t socially conservative enough? So? he’s a fiscal conservative, he’s a national security conservative, he’s pro-life. How many of those is Hilary? Trump is a megalomaniac? Yup, but he’s a national security conservative, he’s a trade conservative, he’s an immigration conservative, and he knows that you succeed by hiring the best brains around, not by thinking you’re the smartest being ever to walk the planet. Does that sound like Crazy Uncle Joe? Carson doesn’t have government experience? You’re saying that’s a fault? You’d prefer an aging Red Diaper Baby? Are you serious?
RINO, schmino! Any one of them is better than Hilary, Joe, Bernie, Fakeahontas, or God forbid, Michelle. Yes we should pick the best candidate, and we have plenty of time to do that, but not voting for whoever the nominee is means voting for a Democrat. And that is suicidal.
Frank and Neo’s reply produced a cavalcade or parsing assessments. None are yet informed by the sheer length of a campaign lasting over a year.
neo-neocon Says (September 12th, 2015 at 2:24 pm(:
“And yet, those same people are mostly angry at the GOP for not magically stopping Obama. They do not acknowledge the extreme limitations of a majority Republican Congress with a Democratic minority prepared to block anything, a Democratic president prepared to veto anything that might get through, and not enough of a majority to override that veto.”
Which suggest we answer an important counterfactual raised by our opponents ‘happy’ all those election cycles in the wilderness? Was it the all-sustaining biased mass media? The hope of a scandal (the Special Prosecutor’s many years hunt for Scooter Libby), perhaps? Or was it the rise of the LIV that rode to their rescue, and nothing else?
What did the Left have that kept them going for years that we don’t?
Geoffrey – If this is the election that decides whether we have a golden age or a dark age, it doesn’t matter if the Republicans get blamed for a dark age, because there is no next election. Public perception only matters if there’s another election on the way. I don’t care about the Republican brand after both parties are gone and there are snipers shooting at me through my windows.
You ask whether I’d want to die quickly or slowly. But that’s not what the West is facing. The better analogy is, if you knew you were going to Hell after you died, would you want to die quickly or slowly? If thing are going to turn as bad as they could, as bad as they historically usually are, then I’d do everything I could to put that off even a day. I like internet access, and affordable food, and not being decapitated.
I should point out that I’m an Armenian by ancestry. To us, the meaning of life is: work hard, take care of your family, worship God, and eventually get killed by Muslims. I’m not a naive optimist. I think you’re a naive optimist if you think that people will have time to talk about political parties after the West dies.
Orson – During the Bush Jr. years, the Left took the House and Senate, then put forward three lousy candidates for their nomination in Clinton, Edwards, and Obama. During the Obama years, the Right took the House, Senate, and state houses and governorships, then put forward 16 candidates ranging from solid to weak. I know it doesn’t feel like it, but we’re doing well.
Nick:
I’m with you on that.
Let me just say, though, that I’ve made that argument on this blog at least since the 2008 election and definitely in the 2012 one. I still make it, but one thing I’ve learned is that the “let it burn” side doesn’t listen; they are in a sense nihilists of the right.
I’ve written several posts about that. Here’s one of them (take a look at the comments there, too).
Neo – I have to wonder if there’s maybe a difference in vocabulary or imagination. What does the burn in “let it burn” entail? If they’re picturing a 20% drop in the value of the dollar and college-campus type speech codes, I can understand the attitude. That’ll teach ’em that they should have voted for a conservative! Oh, hold on a second, there’s a knock at the door. It’s the local conscription gang. I’m apparently a member of the military now, which will entail being raped repeatedly, but fortunately I’m a guy, so I won’t be raped to death. Anyway, what were we talking about?
Elections are meaningless here, and I would have stated the same in 2007. For me, it was never about Hussein. My Eyes saw certain things before that boy came around as Tyrant God King of the Leftist death cult.
To us, the meaning of life is: work hard, take care of your family, worship God, and eventually get killed by Muslims.
I saw computer simulations of what happened to Armenia and the Byzantine Empire to the west, once Islamic Jihad took over Persia and began the countless, numberless hammer blows of raids.
It was like watching a mountain being eroded, except a mountain doesn’t feel pain.
Unlike Gaia computer simulations, these ones weren’t programmed with a predetermined outcome using falsified and fabricated data cheats. The political and religious limitations of Islam were inputted and the warlike outcome was merely thus a result of their expansionary imperative.
Armenia and south of Egypt were the last bastions of what used to be Christianity in the Middle East. Neither Orthodox nor Catholic Christianity, but the one closest to Christ I thought, the Miaphysites.
Also the reason why ISIL has a hard on for the Yazidi is because they aren’t Christians. Rather they are Old Testament believers, similar to the old Jewish faiths, and they also integrated some Zoroastrian beliefs as well. Which is why Islam is going to wipe them out, as they wiped out Zoroastrians. When Islam decides a religion needs to be purged, it will disappear forever more. In time.
Geoffrey Britain Says:
September 12th, 2015 at 10:33 pm
I do indeed believe that civilization itself is on the line and further believe that the world faces a potential new dark age. Truly ironic given the equal potential for a period of material abundance heretofore unimagined.
We are facing a Player Piano world.
The singularity is hitting already. Truly I can’t see much to do for my kids and their friends once robotization is in full swing.
Book: America 3.0 has an optimistic p.ov. … but who’s is to tell what changes in the culture are going to result from the singularity.
Maybe the European Migration Crisis is an early manifestation of the problems to come. Mead is onto something in that piece. It won’t be just the moooslimes.