Rush Limbaugh’s depravity is the endpoint of conservatism’s long journey into the heart of darkness

[marmar]

from In These Times:



How Do You Like It Now, Republicans?
Rush Limbaugh’s depravity is the endpoint of conservatism’s long journey into the heart of darkness.

BY Theo Anderson


Echoes from the early 1960s grow louder every day in this election cycle.

Half a century ago, three men who largely defined the modern conservative movement–William Buckley, Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan–were approaching their prime. Goldwater would win the GOP nomination in 1964 and lose the general election badly, but his campaign laid the groundwork for Reagan’s win in 1980. As the editor of the National Review, Buckley provided the intellectual heft that helped legitimize both politicians.

In the crucible of the early 1960s, Buckley, Goldwater and Reagan faced a profound moral test. They failed it, spectacularly, and their failure has had lasting consequences. While the conservatism those men fashioned went on to dominate the GOP, the movement has never really found its moral bearings. And much of the dysfunction and weirdness now evident in the GOP primary, and within conservatism generally, can be traced to the original sin that corrupted postwar conservatism at its birth. Conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh’s depravity–newly on display last week when he called a woman who dared to testify in Congress in support of contraception coverage a “slut”–is in fact the destination toward which the movement has been heading all along.

John F. Kennedy loomed large in conservatives’ consciousness, naturally, but it was two Republicans–Nelson Rockefeller and Dwight Eisenhower–who really focused their minds. They expected Democrats to pursue the New Deal model of wealth redistribution, but it was maddening to see a Republican passively accept an activist role for government, as Eisenhower did during his two terms. ................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.inthesetimes.com/article/12830/how_do_you_like_it_now_republicans

[southernyankeebelle]

1. Thanks for sharing the article. Pretty well covered the ignorance of the republican of today.

[tk2kewl]

2. This Goldwater quote defines conservatism as I see it:

“(E)xtremism in the defense of liberty is no vice,” as Goldwater said in his acceptance speech at the 1964 Republican convention. “And … moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue.”

They simply frame everything in terms of the ultimate fight of good versus evil and then, for them at least, nothing is out of bounds. For them the ends always justify the means. As another small minded prick from the right once said, "You're either with us or you're against us."

[Skittles]

3. endpoint? LOLOL

NEVER estimate the ability of the Greedy Old Pig party to go lower, lower, LOWER

[Blue Owl]

4. May this be the beginning of the end...

No money? No Ru$h.

[Doctor_J]

7. Leaving us with only a few thousand just like him or worse

smell the coffee. this is NOTHING.

[Doctor_J]

5. More denialism from the starry-eyed left

every time one of them crosses the (next) line, the rest ramp it up and gather even more votes. I remember a year ago when Beck losing one radio affiliate was billed as a "major victory". A huge reason we have been getting clobbered for 20 years is the refusal to face what we're up against, and what it will take to get them out of our society.

[GETPLANING]

6. You are right

Conservatives are always at war with something. Women, workers, minorities, voting, unions, the evil liberal media, gay people, non-christians, you name it.

And they are at war with us. It's time to declare war back.

[relayerbob]

9. But ...

Beck is off the tube.

It's not so much a refusal to face what we're up against as it is a refusal to stoop to the kind of hatred and vitriol they use. Can good win over evil? Not if it has to reduce itself to evil - and even then it would not win, as evil has too much practice at ... evil.

We need to continue to educate and expose the darkness to the light. While we have a very long way to go, overall this world is much less violent and evil place than it was even a hundred years ago, or even a generation ago. I know it's hard to believe, since we see so much evil broadcast everywhere. We just have to keep up the pressure and accept that the battle is not a sprint but a marathon of epic proportions.

http://news.yahoo.com/bombings-beheadings-stats-show-peaceful-world-134625326.html

[Doctor_J]

12. And so will read our epitaph

When the 21st century version of Milton Mayer writes the US equivalent of "They Thought They Were Free", one of the frequent laments will be, "But we thought we won when Beck was kicked off Fox News", or "I thought we won when Limpbaugh lost some advertisers", or "The boycotts seemed to be having an effect". And they will seem just as ridiculous as the woes of the "good Germans'" in TTTWF

[BlancheSplanchnik]

8. "Limbaugh’s depravity–newly on display"... *newly* ?? Really?

His depravity has been on display for YEARS!!!!

Repudiation is what's new.

Finally! Better than never.

[Uncle Joe]

10. I believe the author's analysis hits the nail on the head.

Thanks for the thread, marmar.

[Lil Missy]

11. kick for later