Tag: conservatives

culture, current events, politics, psychology, relationships

Going High When They Go Low Isn’t How You Win; You Gotta Fight to Win

Liberals don’t know how to talk to or appeal to conservatives. And for whatever reason, they refuse to learn. Probably because they’re good Americans and in the words of that great American sage and cartoon character, Ed Wuncler, “We’re American. We don’t quit just because we’re wrong. We keep doing the wrong thing until it turns out right.” There’s an interesting interview with cognitive linguist … Continue reading Going High When They Go Low Isn’t How You Win; You Gotta Fight to Win

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter3 Comments
culture, life, religion, thoughts, Uncategorized

In Which I Own the Libraturd Title

I’ve avoided nearly all hot-button cultural and political topics around here for many years now. And I don’t write screeds about how terrible other people’s theology or morality is. Yet, somehow, the overwhelming majority of people who have responded to my writing are not, shall we say, politically conservative. I used to be conservative, but reading the bible has a funny way of changing that, … Continue reading In Which I Own the Libraturd Title

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter1 Comment
politics

Why conservatives should have voted for Kerry

I’m about to break one of my family of origin’s cardinal rules: I’m going to tell you who I voted for long, long ago in the aughts. 

I grew up among very upstanding people who did not break rules and we all know the rules: no talking about religion, money or politics.  (They added in sex as well.  I think a lot of people did.)  And since those were the rules, they didn’t talk about those things.  And on the rare occasions that someone did mention politics, religion or money, they seemed to think that since they were already going to be breaking the rules, they might as well be rude about it.  Which meant that talking about such things seemed very rude indeed.  I never found our family gatherings to be very interesting.

So, I felt very extra brave when I decided to openly campaign for John Kerry in 2004.  (The qxh asked me not to put out lawn signs or window signs.)  I bravely wore my John Kerry for President button to the Y for the kid’s homeschool gym and swim class.  I talked with friends who were confused and frankly a bit appalled at me.  I live in a bedroom community in the great northern tundras of the USA.  I am a Christian.  I homeschooled.  I am pro-life.  I have too many kids.  I voted for Bush in 2000 and would do it again just so we would be spared the trauma of having to listen to the sound of Al Gore’s voice in the days after 9-11.  (Think heartbroken, angry country, smoking ruins, a megaphone and Al Gore. It makes me shudder.)  I was personally insulted by things my fellow campaigners said thinking that everyone there was of a like mind.  But I felt that strongly about it and it wasn’t about hating Bush.  For me it was far more fundamental than that.  It was about expectations; what do we have a right to expect from our government?  Me, I expect the government to make plans to secure weapons in their own war zone. Continue reading “Why conservatives should have voted for Kerry”

Unknown's avatarRebecca TrotterLeave a comment
culture, politics, race matters, Uncategorized

Transcending Race and Delusional Conservatives

The candidacy of Barak Obama has inspired a great deal of talk, some of it self-inflicted by Sen. Obama, about the idea of transcending race. However, as the campaign as worn on, it has become apparent that “transcend race” is one of those phrases which means different things to different people. It seems to be a Rorschach test of wishful thinking in which people see it as meaning what they want it to mean.

I want to address how this issue plays out on the conservative side. The conservative perspective is the one which is closer to what I identify with and I think we have suffered as a nation because of conservatives’ refusal to look at and think reasonably about issues of race.

In regards to transcending race, on the conservative side, I have heard a fair amount of talk which indicates a wish for “transcending race” to mean eliminating race as an issue to which we need to pay attention to or offer consideration for. Because of this, conservatives have often reacted to things like the fact that Obama attends an Afrocentric church as a betrayal of his claim to be someone who can help us move past race. However, this perspective is based on a host of completely erroneous ideas.

The first problem with this perspective is that it presumes that in order to “get past race”, we must embrace a sort of “color-blind” nirvana and assiduously pretend that we have already reached such a place. In large part, this seems to mean that we ought to reject anything which conflicts with the idea that we are and should be completely unaware of race. Continue reading “Transcending Race and Delusional Conservatives”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter5 Comments
current events, politics

Why we’re all a bit gaga over Barack Obama

Now, as some of you might have figured out by now, I tend to be pretty conservative in my thinking. Which means not that I’m always thrilled with Republicans, but that I typically don’t like Democrats so much that I vote Republican (although not for George W. Bush in 2004, I’m proud to say!). However, I must admit that I’m actually kind of excited about the prospect of Barack Obama running for president. I even find myself thinking from time to time that I’d like it if he were elected president. Which is weird because I disagree with almost all of the man’s policies. And I don’t think I’m alone. But I do think I’ve figured out why that is and why it makes more sense than it would seem. Continue reading “Why we’re all a bit gaga over Barack Obama”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter6 Comments