Next time you hear or read some rightwing nut denying climate change, or pushing any of a myriad of their other ignorant positions, remember there is actually a method to their seeming
madness.
Of course the ones who profit directly from and spend millions on denying climate change, are the fossil fuel moguls (aka Koch brothers and pals). Making changes necessary to clean up their act and/or losing share to alternative energy would cut into their bloated profits and probably mean our lovely Republicans would want even more taxpayer money for subsidies (aka corporate welfare). Therefore they keep up the silly propaganda about some vague big liberal government plot which of course stokes the racist hate at the heart of all the paranoid terrors they feed the base through the fox "news" echo chamber.
Second on the right wing denial list and the one they are most aggressive about, denial that they are racists. They use some of the most absurd, weak deflections imaginable, like simply "projecting' their own flaws onto Democrats. It often starts with the tired old "Democrats started the KKK"! Of course the fact that that was 150 years ago matters not in their limited view. If you then mention that the Dixiecrats migrated to the GOP starting in the 1950's and their defection accelerated after Strom Thurman switched to the gop in 1964 as republican Richard Nixon was pushing the "southern strategy", they usually start churning out right wing blog links which supply pretzel logic denials, followed by a few insults containing the usual "stupid libs" or "socialist B.S." from them as they try to distract and deny.
If you then point out the long list of lies, insults and racist signs at tea party rallies, comments that are readily available and easily found on the web, the wing-nut will usually revert to the old faithful "that's just lies from the liberal media"! If you then point out that most large media outlets are corporate owned and the largest media group in the country is probably Rupert Murdoch's group which includes fox, you usually get a garbled laundry list of "lame-stream media", "scientists and college boys" rhetoric, claiming "they" (libs) are all in on the whole 'big brother socialist, terrorist lovin' plot' that the Kenyan thug who stole the White House and is using the hated "Obama care" to destroy the constitution and enslave us type response.
My takeaway from all this is, reasonable debate is not possible with the "new" Republican party. They have no interest in facts, history or logic. The adults and thinkers in the GOP have been driven out or capitulated to the tea party, tucked their tails and joined in the assault on reason. We are in a serious battle to salvage our democracy from the plutocratic puppet masters and their racist foot soldiers. We have already lost much with their push to make voting harder & weaken the VRA, destroy unions, buy government (citizens united), weaken Social Security and cut help for seniors, children, vets and the poor. All this as they fight to protect corporate welfare. This is a war we must all be willing to get involved in. For too long too many Democrats and Centrists have passively sat on the sidelines allowing the loudest voices (that would be the tea party) to bully, insult and lie their way into power. Of course having so many cowardly media sources that simply give these fascists a pass and fail to hold them accountable for their lies and racism is also a large part of the problem.
I am sorry to say that I also blame President Obama for sitting on the sidelines, not fighting from the get go for the progressive agenda and remaining quiet for over three years as the outrageous "kill granny" type lies were screamed non-stop and took root in the American psyche.
Second on the right wing denial list and the one they are most aggressive about, denial that they are racists. They use some of the most absurd, weak deflections imaginable, like simply "projecting' their own flaws onto Democrats. It often starts with the tired old "Democrats started the KKK"! Of course the fact that that was 150 years ago matters not in their limited view. If you then mention that the Dixiecrats migrated to the GOP starting in the 1950's and their defection accelerated after Strom Thurman switched to the gop in 1964 as republican Richard Nixon was pushing the "southern strategy", they usually start churning out right wing blog links which supply pretzel logic denials, followed by a few insults containing the usual "stupid libs" or "socialist B.S." from them as they try to distract and deny.
If you then point out the long list of lies, insults and racist signs at tea party rallies, comments that are readily available and easily found on the web, the wing-nut will usually revert to the old faithful "that's just lies from the liberal media"! If you then point out that most large media outlets are corporate owned and the largest media group in the country is probably Rupert Murdoch's group which includes fox, you usually get a garbled laundry list of "lame-stream media", "scientists and college boys" rhetoric, claiming "they" (libs) are all in on the whole 'big brother socialist, terrorist lovin' plot' that the Kenyan thug who stole the White House and is using the hated "Obama care" to destroy the constitution and enslave us type response.
My takeaway from all this is, reasonable debate is not possible with the "new" Republican party. They have no interest in facts, history or logic. The adults and thinkers in the GOP have been driven out or capitulated to the tea party, tucked their tails and joined in the assault on reason. We are in a serious battle to salvage our democracy from the plutocratic puppet masters and their racist foot soldiers. We have already lost much with their push to make voting harder & weaken the VRA, destroy unions, buy government (citizens united), weaken Social Security and cut help for seniors, children, vets and the poor. All this as they fight to protect corporate welfare. This is a war we must all be willing to get involved in. For too long too many Democrats and Centrists have passively sat on the sidelines allowing the loudest voices (that would be the tea party) to bully, insult and lie their way into power. Of course having so many cowardly media sources that simply give these fascists a pass and fail to hold them accountable for their lies and racism is also a large part of the problem.
I am sorry to say that I also blame President Obama for sitting on the sidelines, not fighting from the get go for the progressive agenda and remaining quiet for over three years as the outrageous "kill granny" type lies were screamed non-stop and took root in the American psyche.
We all need to get off the couch and get involved, be LOUD and do everything possible to get out the vote 2014!
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