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August 26, 2003

HORSEFEATHERS "LIBERAL CANT" AWARD

Horsefeathers maintains that liberalism has become the ideology of utopian fantasists who regard human nature as naturally benign. Destructive behavior is caused by deprivation--poverty, lack of education, and psychological misunderstanding. The preferred stance to take is a therapeutic one. Thus, when murderers come to kill us, it's best to treat them empathically, to acknowledge the legitimacy of their anger. They are simply "acting out" some grievance that needs to be addressed. Or they misunderstand our benign motives which we need to explain more clearly. Christianity, once the repository of a darker view of human nature, has been permeated by this sunny, utopian therapeutic fantasy. A perfect encapsulation of the liberal world view, is the letter sent to Kofi Annan by the Anglican observer to the United Nations: "..We are deeply saddened and concerned that terrorists do not appreciate (our italics)the sincere objectives of the United Nations to bring about peace and security to the world and especially in Iraq and the Middle East..." And the therapeutic answer follows: track down the terrorists and..."minister to them and all people to appreciate the work of the United Nations in promoting peace in the Middle East."
The full text of the letter is here

Posted at 09:05 AM by

Comments

Don't understand how a sappy and insipid condolence letter (well meaning I am sure) is evidence of, or relevant to the great liberal threat.

Slow day?

Posted by: ESP on August 26, 2003 02:09 PM

"Horsefeathers maintains that liberalism has become the ideology of utopian fantasists who regard human nature as naturally benign."

I hadn't read this letter yet when I wrote my passionate diatribe Peter Mullan's film! I agree that many manline churches
were " once the repository of a darker view of human nature" but now " have "been permeated by this sunny, utopian therapeutic fantasy."

This is especially true of the old line Protestant Churches but I think you go too far with this statement (remember you live in Gomorrah I mean Pompeii I mean Brooklyn, New York....). There are still hundreds of millions of Christians who believe and partially understand the doctrine of Original Sin.

Any religious who thinks we can practice diplomacy on Al-Qaida and Murder-Suicide Inc. ought to have his head examined. But then I have always embraced a "muscular Christianity". The father of one of my son's friends is a Naval Chaplain to US Marines. To him the US Marines are Knights doing battle against the forces of evil and a suicidal cult of death.

My basic response is "to do unto others before they do unto you". You can't minister to a mad dog or a dragon you can only kill it. The only therapy a terrorist needs is life inprisonment in Antartica or the far side of the Moon or if we are in a generous mood a tow-missle or m-4 sniper's bullet in the brain. There is such a thing as a just war and we are in it right now.

Sappy Wimp Big Liberal Dean-Sausage Democrats just leave me cold. Thank God for Lieberman or the Democrats would be almost beyond hope.

Posted by: Ricardo Munro on August 27, 2003 01:59 AM

Ricardo, given the alternative represented by the current administration, maybe you should feel cold. Lieberman won't win the nomination, and you'll be either left with what we have now, or Democrats you can't tolerate.

Posted by: Frank on August 28, 2003 11:24 AM