Things I don't understand about the conservative arguments:
1) What is the plan after you cut funding for education so much that teachers are getting paid basically nothing and our public school system collapses? The answer can not be private schools. If that is the answer, you have no idea how good you have it. Where will the kids go whose families can't afford private school? Why would you want to eliminate the thing that will make America the most competitive? And the real thing that sucks is that the best teachers aren't in it for the money. All of the teachers I know love their students and are passionate about wanting them to succeed. The money is second. Of course they wish they were making more so their lives were easier, but the kids are the most important part of the job. Maybe a business man can't understand that. But their is more to a job than the money you get every two weeks. So what exactly are we as a country going to do when the public school system collapses?
2) Why do you insist on calling yourself pro-life? That bothers me so much. I know a few conservative people who are really pro-life, but the Republican platform and base are not. Pro-life means that you are anti-death. So, fine you are anti-abortion that's pro-life. But what about the death penalty? What about war? What about poverty? What about health care? What about hate crimes? So basically your plan is to save all the babies, and then have them live in a world where they might die before they see age two because their mom is too poor to feed them or take them to the doctor. (fact: Flint has one of the highest infant mortality rates in in the country) You want this baby you saved to grow up uneducated and more likely to turn to crime, putting him on death row and killing him that way. You want people who are different to be able to be killed for who they are. You want to send 18 year old kids overseas to die for oil. These thing are not pro-life. At least you saved a baby, but that baby will have a horrible life and die early.
3) What is the problem with taxes? Do you understand how taxes work? Everybody pays money into a pot and now we can buy something for everyone to use. Firefighters, police officers, schools, roads, public parks, all things that you use and need are paid for with taxes. I don't understand the "we can't have universal health care because it will raise our taxes" argument. Of course it will, but guess what, now everybody gets to use it. Even drug dealers and murderers deserve a little bit of healthcare, we need to have it available so people don't die. Nobody deserves to die, especially just because they didn't have access to a doctor. Not even criminals or lazy people. We need these public services, we all use them. It doesn't make any sense to have to pay to have someone come put a fire out. You're not understanding what it is like to be poor if you think that is ok.
4) Why do you need to say you are for religious freedom? It is impossible to be for religious freedom, but then also not want those darn Muslims to have a mosque near you. You are not for religious freedom, you are for Christian control. And, since you also might call yourself a constitutionalist, lets talk about the constitution. It says pretty clearly that congress shall make no law respecting one religion. So that means that Muslims, Jews, Christians, and all the other religions get to be free to worship and practice their religions. It does not mean that Christians get to rule the country and make everyone live the morals of Christianity.
5) Why are you REALLY against marriage equality? Do not say anything about slippery slopes. There are already thousands of same-sex couples living essentially married (sharing a house, finances, children, love, etc) and in states like Mass, Iowa, NY, etc same-sex couples are getting married. And nowhere have I seen an outbreak of people wanting to marry dogs, toasters, monkeys, couches or whatever else is supposed to happen once people can get married. There is no slippery slope, that argument is invalid, try again. Because the Bible says so? OK but we just covered the whole religious freedom thing, so you can't really stop someone from doing something just because it is against your religion. So why is it? Because same-sex couples don't count? Because it grosses you out? Because it makes you feel uncomfortable? I really want to know, because so far it just seems like conservative people are against it because it's weird to them.
6) So, you hate marriage equality. That's fine, but why are you against hate crimes laws? Do you want gay kids to get killed? Or black people? Or Latinos? I really really don't understand that. What about hate crimes laws could possibly be bad?
7) Why do you hate women? Oh, I know, you don't hate women, you love them. As long as they are controlling themselves. If you don't hate women why did you block the Lily Ledbetter act? Why should women not get paid the same amount as men? Why should women have to justify the crimes committed against them? Why are women at the hands of men for the decisions they make? Do you want women to get paid less in order to encourage them to stay home? That is obviously not working, and it's not really fair to women who you claim to love. (who you are should not be a factor of how qualified you are).
Those are the top 7 things I don't get about the conservative thought process. There are millions more. But I just really don't get it. I try to understand where everyone is coming from, but seriously, conservative people, you are making it really hard.
Money is power. Control the money and you have the power.
ReplyDelete1. I think there is a battle for control of money under the guise of idealism on both sides of this debate. The "conservatives" seem to want to control it at a private level and dole it out as it fits their agenda (i.e. educate those who will help us in the future). That smacks of classism if not outright racism. The "liberals" seem to want the money to be managed by the unions. In both cases it is a misdirection of our attention so both "sides" can do a money grab.
2. As for pro-life it is an opportunity to polarize the electorate using Karl Rove’s divide and conquer method. The "conservatives" have hi-jacked pro-life and to some degree Christianity. It is true that there are very few people who are truly pro-life in politics. Those people could not get elected. Anti-abortion is just an easy rallying call like saving baby seals. It is much harder to do the right thing with the worst society has generated. I do not have faith that anyone in politics is truly trying to create a more pro-life society.
3. Much like answer one it is important to note that money is power. I don’t think any of the politicians on any side ever want to stop the flow of money to themselves. A tax cut means move the money “here” and tax raise means move the money “there”. The author of this blog may be a bit naïve to think anyone in politics is altruistic.
4. Here is a simple matter of democracy. The constitution bans the concept of a federally mandated national religion. The laws we live by are simply a by-product of the fact that the majority of the electorate is Christian. If society as a whole moves towards moral relativism then that will become the law of the land (which would be a moving target based on the perceived morality of the moment).
5. This goes back to money. Keeping as many people off the insurance roles and such is a huge money savings. Exciting the homophobic feelings of enough people will accomplish that money grab.
6. This is one I don’t get. I have not found a way that it is financially advantageous not to pass hate crime laws.
7. As for not passing the Ledbetter act that is a blatant money grab. Marginalize and minimize as much of society as possible. Pay them as little as possible.
So I wish there were some grand evil scheme that I can say I have uncovered watching all this crazy left-right stuff take over the mind share of America. At bottom it appears to be an attempt to get the common folks to bicker with each other while the boys and girls in leadership on the right and left keep rolling on.