With Palin on the GOP Ticket, a Return to the Culture Wars
But in stoking passions about wedge issues, McCain may jeopardize his appeal to independents
It wasn't supposed to be a culture-war election, and not only because Iraq and the economy had shoved values issues into the background. The Republican candidate, at least back in his early, presumptive days, was notoriously uncomfortable talking about religion, and many conservative Christian leaders were equally uncomfortable about him. The Democratic candidate, by contrast, was at ease with his faith, biblically fluent, and reportedly doing an excellent job of reaching out to the elusive values voter.
But it wasn't just that John McCain and Barack Obama seemed so ill suited to the usual culture-warrior roles. Evangelicals, conservative Catholics, and other values voters themselves seemed to be changing.
Younger ones, in particular, were broadening the agenda beyond abortion and gay marriage and paying less attention to the older, more single-minded leaders of the religious right. No longer would they be part of a single voting bloc, captive to a single party—or so declared a widely circulated "Evangelical Manifesto" signed by a number of prominent evangelical scholars and clergy. Up for grabs, these voters were looking more like other Americans. And for the first time in more than 10 years, a slim majority of Americans, including conservative voters, were saying that they wanted less religion in politics, not more.
But something happened on the way to the party conventions. At a much ballyhooed discussion at Saddleback Church, one of America's biggest megachurches, the Rev. Rick Warren quizzed both candidates on their deepest convictions. McCain came across as confident and certain, particularly on the hot-button question of when life begins. Obama seemed to struggle with nuances. In front of a predominantly evangelical audience, certainty played better than nuance. McCain came out of Saddleback with a bounce and new confidence. Maybe he could talk this talk, after all? And, lo, when the conventions came, there was much faith-related talk as well as some important faith-related choices.
Officially, there might have been even more religion talk at the Denver convention, where a number of sessions led by assorted faith leaders bespoke the Democrats' new resolve to take religion seriously. But those sessions received little attention from the media, which were preoccupied with how Hillary Clinton would anoint Obama as the rightful heir of her devoted flock. In his speech, Obama's vice presidential pick, Joe Biden, an experienced candidate with a solid working-class Catholic background, hewed to his usual practice of keeping his religion to himself. And Obama himself delivered what was, for him, a fairly God-free acceptance speech.
Religion at the GOP's St. Paul gathering played out differently. The convention's opening was preceded by sotto voce concerns from evangelicals and others that McCain might pick an abortion rights supporter, such as Joe Lieberman or Tom Ridge, as his running mate. Then came sighs of relief followed by hallelujahs when a re-energized base learned that the choice was Sarah Palin, who brought hope incarnate, in the exuberant words of Rush Limbaugh, for "guns, babies, Jesus."
A lineup of once-reluctant conservative Christian leaders now came out forcefully for McCain. Even James Dobson, head of Focus on the Family, said that he would pull the lever for the man whom Dobson had earlier said he couldn't support "under any circumstances."
When Palin addressed the convention, she made it abundantly clear why she was there: Alluding to Obama's gaffe about working-class Americans who turn to guns and God when the economy sours, she presented herself as proof that his characterization was not only false but condescending. Proof, furthermore, that he was out of touch with God-fearing heartland America.
McCain hardly needed to say any more on that point when it came time for him to speak. His choice of Palin said it all. Not only was she anti-abortion; she was against it in all cases. Not only was she pro-gun; she was a hunter herself.
The Palin pick was McCain's way of reigniting the culture war, a limited culture war, while not getting too directly involved in it. Depending on how it works out, it will be deemed a brilliant or disastrous strategy. At the very least, it is a risky one.
McCain's senior advisers have themselves admitted that Palin was picked to ensure a strong conservative turnout in such decisive battleground states as Florida, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. She should also shore up traditionally Republican western states, including Colorado, which has shown signs of going Democratic. But if Palin draws too much attention to issues such as abortion, if the culture war heats up and comes to dominate discussion, there is a danger that she could weaken McCain's appeal not only to moderates within his own party but also to independents and conservative Democrats—in short, to the vast slice of American voters that decides national elections.
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AMERICA’S MALIGNANT NEO-MARXIST CANCERS
America suffers from Podhoretz Neo-Con and Leiberman Neo-Lib political cancers, in her executive, legislative, and judicial organs; and in Hollywood and the news media. Their subversion of foreign policy, Christian morality, nationalism, and traditional labor relations are notorious.
The 9/11 Terrorist Spectacle is one of the lesser symptoms caused by their hate provoking foreign military interventions. The un-patriotic and illegal Neo-Con Iraq War in support of Judeofascist Israel is costing over a trillion dollars and killing more than 4,000 young patriots; and doing worse damage to Iraq. The military intervention in Afghanistan is needlessly creating more suffering and hatred there.
Roe vs. Wade is sacrificially killing more than 45 million children by their mothers. Naturally, Neo-Marxists and their following of Christian heretics, not wanting to be stigmatized as morally depraved child killers, want every woman to sacrificially kill her children.
Money scammed and extorted from blue-collar rednecks and school teachers by the Neo- Marxist union lobbies, SEIU and NEA, is electing Congressional political prostitutes who enact legislation that subverts Christian culture, nationalistic unity, freedom from excessive governmental regulation, and capitalistic free enterprise.
These malignant cancers got started in America 60 years ago, when millions of pitiful defeated Marxist refugees from Nazi Germany and Marxist Soviet Union were trustingly accepted as immigrants by inexperienced America, after their rejection by experienced Europe. History suggests that their destruction will inevitably occur, with surprising speed. Russia was utterly devastated by Marxist cancers for two generations, and is very slowly recovering with the gradual introduction of democracy, freedom of speech, nationalism, and Christianity. But Germany under Hitler, and Spain under Franco, quickly destroyed their Marxist cancers, before they could seize control over vital governmental organs. Each healthy nation naturally has a unique defensive immune system for destroying malignant political cancers. England’s immune system is so effective that Marxist cancers are unable to grow.
America’s Constitution is quite extraordinary in that the supreme defensive governmental organ of the People is the grass-roots town militia. When executive, legislative, and judicial organs become tyrannical, militias spring-up over-night in every town to restore freedom and democracy, by guns and gallows revolutionary justice. America promises to put on the greatest revolutionary show on Earth, to the tune of “God Bless America”.
Staunch Protestant, Catholic, Mormon, Evangelical, and Fundamental crusaders in the Cultural War indirectly support the revolutionary militias, when they forcefully condemn the heresies and inter-denominational strife that is destroying America’s Christian culture. The militia man with Freedom of Speech, Freedom of Assembly, and the Right to Bear Arms go into action in a minute, clutching his Crucifix and gun. With Separation of Church and State, his pastor never tells him how to fight for his Country, and his general never tells him how to pray to his Christian God.
Culture wars
The culture war is one that must be fought. While much of Europe and Canada have caved in to the liberal lunatic fringe, we in America, and those of us who are hard line, right wing, conservative evangelicals are on the move with or without the McCain/Palin candidacy. True, we feel encouraged because with the Republican ticket there is a chance for our side to prevail. We have been slugging it out for 40 years with the secular humanists and amoral elements of our society, those in the media and in academia who claim to be "progressive" but promote an anti-Christian agenda, support sexual promiscuity as presented by the cesspool called Hollywood and entertainment media. Does the world think that the media represents American values as sex, drugs, rock music? Does the world think many millions of conservative Americans actually like the way our culture has been stolen and presented on the world stage as sordid as the anti-religious liberals of England, France, and Canada? God help us if we should become like these once great nations that now have no fear of God nor any respect for their Christian heritage and family values. Yes, we care about Iraq and the economy, etc, but we also care deeply that abortion is murder and infanticide, that same sex marriage is a perversion that must not be allowed, and we are willing to continue to engage and confront our society. I do not think there is much will to engage these forces in Europe and Canada, so these countries will continue to decline due to lack of backbone and little resistance by conservatives in these lands.
The Decline of America
As a Canadian its frequently shocking to witness the amount of close minded ideologically driven commentary on many sites (with most preaching to the converted). What I am witnesses is the relative deterioration of the United States through the death of pragmatism. Its all blinkered hate based hysteria at this point. You have an economy is serious trouble with the dollar declining year after year, hordes of debt at both the personal and gov't level. Reputation worldwide is at a relative low (though some improvement lately) and yet we are focused on the "culture wars" in which both sides paint the other as evil incarnate. I witness no willingness to compromise with both sides having a winner takes all mentality. This is resulting in the slow deterioration of a once great country that I used to respect. Its no longer a that shining light on a hill, but an example of regression. If the current trend continues I have a sneaking suspicion more that foul words will be exchanged.
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