The Rule of Reason - Will We Ever See It Return?
I was at a family reunion over Labor Day weekend, and several issues were brought to mind during political discussions. Some have been ongoing debates here in PF, such as claims that the media leans to the left. My response is that if people think Joe Scarbourough or Tucker Carlson on MSNBC, or even Lou Dobbs on CNN who is against illegal immigration and outsourcing of American jobs (oh wait, that would be liberal because it is pro-labor, albeit American) or Pat Buchanan (and Tony Blankley of the Mclaughlin Group) on PBS is to the left, than I don't want to know how far to the right these people are.
The best rules of thumbs are 1) if you can't guess the party affiliation of a journalist, that's a good sign; 2) news forums with guests who debate different points of view are best, as long as the guests are credible (an area where Faux News fails miserably), and 3) obtain your news from multiple sources, not just one.
Not to digress, another ongoing matter is in regard to the Rule of Reason. Whether it was about Bush misleading Americans in the invasion of Iraq, or Bush's announcement of a guest worker program and path to citizenship (A.K.A. amnesty), the ever enduring response is that all previous administrations did the same.
First of all, Clinton may have initiated amnesty, but rather than learn from this, Bush is repeating the error. In my mind, that is worse. Clinton may have lied about having sex "with that woman" but lying to take our nation into a costly war of attrition is worse. But ultimately it is the same that your mother said to you when you were a child: "So if your friends jump off a cliff does that mean you should too?" It is the faulty logic (or lack of it) in such mentality that since all politicians are bad, the bad behavior is somehow okay.
I left the reunion asking myself why my right-wing family, like all Bush supporters, continually excuse Bush's misdeeds. If Clinton supporters can admit that he lied about having sex, and that lying is wrong, why can't Bush supporters do the same? No, they continue to cling to conspiracy theories that there were WMD, and that the invasion was a necessary strategy, and since the American people (or rest of the world) wouldn't buy into this, it was okay for Bush to...well they won't admit he lied. You can't get them to---JUST SAY IT!
And then I get home and hear about ABC's little problem with facts in their mini-series based on 9-11. It is a reflection of the mentality of the right-wing -- To blame Clinton for everything so as to excuse Bush. They can't even blame them both. They certainly can't blame Bush more, though in reality his misdeeds are far worse. No, they can't admit they voted for an idiot, and take responsibility for the mess that has ensued.
At least they are blaming incumbents in Congress it seems. But will they bring themselves to oust the GOP idiots by voting for Dems? Do they understand the need for balance of power in order to maintain accountability? Or will they remain prideful and entrenched (i.e., stay the course)? We'll soon find out.
In the meantime, when I hear Bush supporters churn out their delusional garbage, I'm going to ask them: If your friends jumps off a cliff does that mean you should too? And maybe they'll see how much they lack the Rule of Reason.
End of rant...carry on...
