I tell people I was a liberal until my early twenties. The fact is, it was a slow slide, starting from when I was 15 or so, until 1984 – when I voted for Reagan (and made sure I told nobody about it). When I was 17 in 1980, I wrote the “Federalist” party platform at North Dakota Boys State; it was all full of “redistribution of wealth” and “comprehensive programs”, and probably qualified me as a McGovernite. By 1986, I was a conservative talk show host of sorts.
There were six people I credit with the change:
- Jimmy Carter: The “Malaise” speech was about the first thing that started souring me on liberalism.
- Ronald Reagan: I don’t think I need to explain.
- Alexandr Solzhenitzyn: If One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich and The Gulag Archipelago couldn’t convince one of the evil of the left run amok, what could?
- Fyodor Dostoevskii: Crime and Punishment is the universal excoriation of the moral vacuity underneath socialism.
- Paul Johnson: Modern Times pretty well gutted the historical record of liberalism’s “achievements” that I’d been given in high school (even in my relatively-commonsense rural district).
and finally…
- P.J. O’Rourke: Because after all of the above, I still needed someone to convince me that it was OK to be a conservative and play my music too loud; to assure me that conservatives were the kind of people I really wanted to be.
Oh, yeah – O’Rourke is coming to town:
P.J. O’Rourke, best-selling author and America’s leading political satirist, will be speaking at the University of Minnesota on Tuesday, April 29th at 7pm. The event, titled “Yes, I’m Still a Conservative, Damnit!: An Evening with PJ O’Rourke” is hosted by the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities chapter of Collegians For A Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT).
The event will be held at Northrop Auditorium (84 Church St. SE) in Minneapolis. The event is free and open to the public, with a special gift to the first 1000 attendees. No tickets will be issued.
With more than one million words under his byline and more citations in the “Penguin Dictionary of Humorous Quotations” than any other living writer, P.J. O’Rourke has established himself as America’s premier political satirist. He is the best-selling author of 12 books, including “Parliament of Whores”, “Give War a Chance”, “Eat the Rich”, “The CEO of the Sofa”, “On Wealth of Nations” and “Peace Kills”. Both Time Magazine and The Wall Street Journal have labeled O’Rourke as “the funniest writer in America”.
They left out about 200 other countries, but we’ll give ’em points for effort.
Be there!
Hmmm, I can attend this.
As far as being conservative but still cool (see reference above about playing your music loud)…..I used to know some of the guys that played in Duluth bands in the 1990s. Many were closet conservatives. And some not so closet. Most just didn’t see the need for nanny state. And in certain neighborhoods in Duluth, you lived amongst those who really knew how to work the system to get lots of free stuff from the gov’t.
I read One Day In The Life of Ivan Denisovich in junior – er – middle school, but did not have the context to make the connection. I thought it was the Eeeevil Republicans who would put us all in gulags. Reagan changed my mind. Clinton confirmed the change.
Mitch,
You profess expertise on LOTS of things you know little about, sorry, but your title here is absurd. cough*17 instruments*cough, White Phosporous *cough*Fisa*cough*Iraq*cough*Naval Pilot programs*cough.
Honestly, it’s an affliction of both wings of the political spectrum, and, as I’m a sad testimony to, occassionally the middle as well.
As far as Reagan goes, while I think he’s a darned site better than BushCo (btw, here’s yet another link that’s a chink in the armor of the “business President” mystique – http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/04/21/cbsnews_investigates/main4032921.shtml) – by the same token, Reagan oversaw the largest tax increase in US History to that point – and it is what made Soc.Security solvent at least through 2042 (or so). He had plenty of warts, maybe you don’t see them.. ok..
As far as Carter goes, since you credit Reagan for the economic successes that Clinton experienced, how do you not blame Nixon and Vietnam, and an oil embargo for ‘malaise’? I don’t think one federal program after another necessarily solves anything, but neither do I think that NO regulation, NO program is any less paternalistic than creating one at every turn. Carter was President during an enormously timultuous economic time – and really had little opportunity, outside appointing Paul Volker, to affect the economy. And lest you forget, it was Volker, not Reagan, who tamed inflation, following Carter’s recommendations to jack up rates – which was painful as hell, and you may not have liked it and got off the bus as a result, but it damned well worked, and Reagan (your hero) gave Volker ALL of the credit in the late 80’s for that particular success, which is why Volker was renewed.
So, again, while you can claim you don’t claim expertise, your comments above give an impression of having expertise about the period of Carter and Reagan that your changes in opinion don’t jibe with. You certainly endeavor to give an impression of expertise, imho. It’s not a mortal sin, but the left is hardly HARDLY alone. There are dozens of issues on which the right says things that amount to..”but but but, you’re forgetting blah blah blah” which is typically minutae that doesn’t amount to much (though not always), and certainly amounts to attempting to claim expertise. If you think not, go review the Dover ID trial.
BTW Mitch, after Solzhenitzen came to the US, he became the antithesis of his original writings. He was much more an anti-communist than he was an anti-statist. Let’s remember that he condemned someone for revealing a secret state bombing plot, he condemned protesters for protesting a state war that was opposed by the people. Conflating Gulag Archipeligo as reflecting a state bias in the US, is simply on it’s head. Solzhenitzens’ comments AFTER he came here simply don’t align with opposing a state. He became a rabid anti-Soviet, not a rabid anti-statist, imho.
Take
A
Breath
Oh yuck, someone just crapped cerebral diarrhea all over the comments. Back to the main thesis:
When I was starting out as a young bookseller back in 1990, a customer approached me and asked for a copy of P.J.’s “Republican Party Reptile” — the old paperback edition with Eisenhower in a mohawk adorning the cover. I found the book and placed it directly in her hands. She smiled and thanked me; it was a book she was looking forward to reading, because it makes fun of Republicans. “Republicans must really hate him!” she said of the book’s author.
I opted not to set her straight on that matter. Who’d want to discourage a sale? I’d like to think that, perhaps, she read the book and underwent a conversion. P.J. O’Rourke is missionary.
You profess expertise on LOTS of things you know little about
The irony of that statement preceding the preening, self-important, pseudo-intellectual twaddle that is Peev’s trademark psychosis is truly delicious.
By the way, Peev, have you finished eating that fart yet?
P.J. O’Rourke is more of a south park conservative or libertarian all though he self identifies himself as a conservative. Which is cool, since I am the same way.
Also, anyone who thinks the only difference between President Carter and President Reagan is the period of time in which they governed is insane. Or doesn’t remember much of the 70’s and 80’s.
http://www.careerbuilder.com/monk-e-mail/?mid=26866668
Anybody else read Peev’s comments like this?
http://www.careerbuilder.com/monk-e-mail/?mid=26866668
I hate to make a Traffic Whore comment (but I will none the less):
http://baddablogger.blogspot.com/2008/04/peev-you-ignorant-slut.html
Back to O’Rourke…
A left-leaner friend of mine bought me my first O’Rourke book for Christmas some years ago, knowing his reputation as a great political satirist willing to go at the whole spectrum. She made it very clear she wasn’t simply sending me a book that “slammed” Republicans… she was making it clear that she knew I had a good sense of humor, and that she “got it”.
I’m not sure she really does “get it”, but she was making a Hell of an effort… and it was a good book. Of course, it’s not “Parliament of Whores”, but I had to start somewhere.
Damn it! I’m determined to get this link through!
http://www.careerbuilder.com/monk-e-mail/?mid=26866668
Oh, sure. NOW my comments are approved, so I look like a repetitive, SitD-obsessed gomer like Peev. Great. Thanks.
You profess expertise on LOTS of things you know little about, sorry, but your title here is absurd.
It’s a P.J. O’Rourke quote.
cough*17 instruments*cough,
I play ten instruments. True fact.
White Phosporous *cough*Fisa*cough*Iraq*cough*Naval Pilot programs*cough.
Huh?
Seriously – is there some point to that last little outburst, or are you dissociating?
As far as Carter goes, since you credit Reagan for the economic successes that Clinton experienced, how do you not blame Nixon and Vietnam, and an oil embargo for ‘malaise’?
I do. They were part of the noxious stew that led to the malaise.
Next question.
I don’t think one federal program after another necessarily solves anything, but neither do I think that NO regulation
…that’s so far off topic I really can’t carry on with it.
So, again, while you can claim you don’t claim expertise, your comments above give an impression of having expertise about the period of Carter and Reagan that your changes in opinion don’t jibe with.
In your opinion.
You certainly endeavor to give an impression of expertise, imho.
No, I endeavor to start conversations, and I’m never intimidated by not being an expert.
It’s been a very useful trait in my life.
For all the great terms that P. J. O’Rourke has come up with, my favorite is “Perennially Indignant.” Those two words boil down the Left so well.
I’m awfully fond of:
“The Democrats are the party that says government will make you smarter, taller, richer, and remove the crabgrass on your lawn. The Republicans are the party that says government doesn’t work and then they get elected and prove it.”
Well, that and:
“Remember, your body needs 6 to 8 glasses of fluid daily. Straight up or on the rocks.”
Among my many favorites:
“I have only one firm belief about the American political system, and that is this: God is a Republican and Santa Claus is a Democrat.
God is an elderly or, at any rate, middle-aged mate, a stern fellow, patriarchal rather than paternal and a great believer in rules and regulations. He holds men strictly accountable for their actions. He has little apparent concern for the material well-being of the disadvantaged. He is politically connected, socially powerful and holds the mortgage on literally everything in the world. God is difficult. God is unsentimental. It is very hard to get into God’s heavenly country club.”
“Santa Claus is another matter. He’s cute. He’s nonthreatening. He’s always cheerful. And he loves animals. He may know who’s been naughty and who’s been nice, but he never does anything about it. He gives everyone everything they want without thought of a quid pro quo. He works hard for charities, and he’s famously generous to the poor. Santa Claus is preferable to God in every way but one: There is no such thing as Santa Claus.”
Or the other:
“I was having dinner…in London…when eventually he got, as the Europeans always do, to the part about “Your country’s never been invaded.” And so I said, “let me tell you who those bad guys are. They’re us. WE BE BAD. We’re the baddest-assed sons of bitches that ever jogged in Reeboks. We’re three-quarters grizzly bear and two-thirds car wreck and descended from a stock market crash on our mother’s side. You take your Germany, France, and Spain, roll them all together and it wouldn’t give us room to park our cars. We’re the big boys, Jack, the original, giant, economy-sized, new and improved butt kickers of all time. When we snort coke in Houston, people lose their hats in Cap d’Antibes. And we’ve got an American Express card credit limit higher than your piss-ant metric numbers go. You say our country’s never been invaded? You’re right, little buddy. Because I’d like to see the needle-dicked foreigners who’d have the guts to try. We drink napalm to get our hearts started in the morning. A rape and a mugging is our way of saying ‘Cheerio.’ Hell can’t hold our sock-hops. We walk taller, talk louder, spit further, fuck longer and buy more things than you know the names of. I’d rather be a junkie in a New York City jail than king, queen, and jack of all Europeans. We eat little countries like this for breakfat and shit them out before lunch.”
“Of course, this guy should have punched me. But this was EUrope. He just smiled his shabby, superior European smile. (God, don’t these people have dentists?)”
Not to abash Mr. O’Rourke, but “Your country’s never been invaded.” is of course incorrect. First we had that little unpleasantness with the British in 1812 where they burned the White House down. Then there is the ongoing invasion we euphemistically call “illegal immigration”.
Since today is Earth Day, here’s what P.J. had to say about that, circa 1990:
The average Juan and the average Mobutu out
there in the parts of the world where every day is
Earth Day, or Dirt and Squalor Day, anyhow,
would like to have a color television, too…. I
wouldn’t care to be the skinny health-food nut
waving a copy of Fifty Simple Things You Can Do
to Save the Earth who tries to stand in Juan’s way.
Well, Kermit, the White House was more of a raid. The actual invasions included Detroit, Lake Champlain, and western Pennsylvania. There’s some pretty interesting history involving naval battles on the Great Lakes and Lake Champlain during that war. It’s funny most folks like to ignore a war that is arguably one of the most important in forming the role of the Federal Government.
Then there was that little matter of the Mexican American war, too. Texas wouldn’t say that they weren’t invaded.
There’s also Alaska and the Philippines in WWII, if you count territories and not just the country proper.
I think this was P.J.’s
“Business might pull over to the curb, but it is government that loiters under the streetlight flashing its cleavage.”
Government cleavage.
*shudder*
I almost died laughing when I read this one on the bus: “A Jamaican fruit bat looks like a colonel in the rat air force.”