What's Really Important I Almost Missed The Real Threat: “liberal thinking!”
I need to thank a fellow Post blogger for setting me straight on a lot of misconceptions I’ve held about what really threatens us as a nation. One of his latest, entitled, “Death by degrees,” has truly opened my eyes and helped me see the error of my concerns. He speaks about the “death of liberty” brought about by a culture of “liberal thinking” which is “eroding away our little freedoms.”
I had missed the “liberal thinking” threat, instead mistakenly concerning myself with the new “conservative” thinking, or is it more accurately described as neo-conservative or Republican thinking? It’s hard to know. Namely, I’m referring to the thinking and policies brought to us by the present Administration and largely enabled by the Republicans in Congress; call it what you will.
I was focused on what I now realize were small things -- illegal government wire tapping, the suspension of habeas corpus, torture and compromise of the Geneva Conventions, the coercion of the phone companies to allow government access to private conversations, political interference by the Attorney General, desire to alter the Constitution to define marriage, and attempts to control what a woman might do with her own body. I was also needlessly worried about tax cuts for the top one percent not needing them, and, coinciding with an illicit war (costing 1.5-2 billion dollars per week), war profiteering, the misuse of billions of dollars, and the loss of billions in cash and large number of missing arms – all resulting in cries to spend less by cutting funds for unnecessary social entitlements like healthcare and education. I was also stupidly focusing on the inability or absence of motivation for our government to safeguard US consumers from toxic products coming in from China, the outsourcing of too many jobs, the sub prime lending fiasco, and rapidly rising credit card debt which has many in serious trouble.
I’m surely grateful for being reminded I was stuck in minutia, and getting enlightened about the “real” threats to our nation and society – required wearing of seat belts and motorcycle helmets, no smoking in public places, protecting people from prejudicial and bigoted hiring policies, sexual harassment in the work place, and requiring restaurants to post caloric content of foods they serve. WOW, was I really focused on the wrong stuff! As you say, we sure are possibly already a “dependent class of jello-spined victimhood obsessed society lurching toward Socialism.”
I had gotten it all wrong. I had thought those seat belt, helmet and smoking laws were created to save lives, and greatly cut the cost of medical care for seriously injured and ill people, ultimately decreasing the cost to society as a whole. I had just assumed that eliminating prejudice and bigotry when hiring or firing, and preventing sexual harassment were just common sense in a “civilized” nation formed on ideas such as equal rights, liberty and freedom for all. Silly me!
And of course people don’t need to be reminded about how many calories might be hiding in that caesar “salad,” or quadruple cheese, meat and bacon avocado covered burger extravaganza. As you stated, this presumption that “we are too ignorant to sort out” the obesity problem is ridiculous. The current statistics on obesity, diabetes and other food related illnesses in the U.S. surely inform us of just how capable and responsible so many Americans are at picking what to eat. Imagine the great loss of freedom involved in requiring a restaurant to simply post general guidelines on the food they serve. This ranks right up there with supermarkets having to disclose the country of origin of a food (something Congress talks about changing) and what chemicals it might contain. Egads, alas poor freedom!
Thanks for setting me straight!
Comments
I am so glad you wrote this blog, Stephen. I too was caught up in worrying about the loss of the wrong freedoms. I can see now that being forced to wear a seat belt is a bigger infringement on my rights than having my telephone tapped and my personal information input to a huge government data base. And I certainly don’t need anyone telling me how many calories are in the food I eat in a restaurant. It is my right as an American to get as fat as I please and the government can just pick up the tab on the resulting health problems. But the most important thing I learned, as a woman, is that I should never have objected to a man’s right to use sexual innuendo, tell dirty jokes, or otherwise exercise his “masculinity” in the office. And of course, my boss had a perfect right to suggest that my career would advance if I went along with a little hanky panky. What could I have been thinking! Thanks so much to you and the original blog writer for helping me to see the light.
Posted by: Trish | January 24, 2008 07:16 PM
Trish, the pleasure was all ours! (smile).
Posted by: Stephen | January 25, 2008 09:34 AM
I have been smacking my forehead due to my concern over all the wrong things: the wiretapping, the lost billions of dollars in Iraq, the loss of diversity in the media, the lying and forgetful Attorney General, the president's constant disregard of Congress..... how silly of me. All this time I should have been worrying about forced wearing of seat belts and helmets and the rights of smokers in public places. *smack*
Posted by: Renee G | January 26, 2008 10:06 AM