Conservatism Works

I heard a quote a while back that has always stuck with me.  The great Winston Churchill once said,

"Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." 

I believe the same could be said for conservatism as a philosophy.  One of my friends on social media posted this link:
https://themarshallreport.wordpress.com/2016/01/22/the-conservative-party-has-failed-its-time-to-be-american/
While I agree that we all need to be American and remember why this is so great, we who identify as conservatives cannot abandon conservatism.  In response to my friend's posting, here is the comment I left:

There is no "Conservative Party" but there should be.  The Republican Party has conservatives in it, but is mostly dominated in Washington by fence-riding middle-of-the-road moderates and liberal-lite leaners.  Conservatism hasn't failed because it's never been allowed to be 100% implemented.  The progressive RINOs always manage to gain control and work to compromise with the other side of the aisle, which translates to abandoning conservative principles in favor of liberal-friendly policies.  This article even proves what I'm saying, noting that most conservatives fall in line to join the lobbyists and progressives once in office.  Conservatism didn't fail the people in that case...those turncoats failed conservatism.  If conservatives in Washington would stick to their principles, gain momentum & not compromise, you'd see unparalleled success in this country.

I truly believe this.  While I'm still not sure which candidate is going to get the GOP nomination, I think the best one would be the person who proudly, boldly, and unashamedly carries the conservative banner from the very first to the very last second.

Judge Not Lest Ye Be Judged

I'd like to think that the group of friends that I have in real life and in social media is a diverse one.  We come from all different backgrounds with different likes and dislikes, varied viewpoints and beliefs.  In my opinion, that's the only way to stay true to yourself. If you don't reevaluate your positions based on new information from trusted sources (like friends and family), you really have no room to speak your mind because you're going off of history only instead of current fact.  This makes things that much more frustrating when a person I normally agree with refuses to hear my point of view if mine varies from theirs, which actually happened to me today.

A contact of mine on Facebook posted an opinion in their status, along with a link to an article.  The opinion was stated as absolute with no exceptions, but I saw another viewpoint that I considered to be well thought out and valid.  Instead of welcoming a new vantage point to enter into the discussion, my comment was immediately dismissed as incorrect.   This is from a person who shares my same conservative values, so normally we agree.   But the more I thought, the more I could recall times where I found her viewpoints to be closed-minded and abrasive.  They were based in truth, yet did not come across in a way that invited me to hear more.

Unfortunately, this is why I feel the conservative message falls on so many deaf ears.  Often times the only conservative voices people hear to base an opinion on are the ones who are yelling the loudest.  They don't hear the soft-spoken, level-headed thinkers who prefer to discuss in smaller groups or on a blog that only a few will read.  I'm not saying that some topics don't require a raised voice with a passionate delivery, but for the most part I believe people would rather enter into discussion rather than being scolded.  The old saying about catching more flies with honey than vinegar definitely applies.

To me, this definitely applies to my conservative brothers and sisters who identify themseIves as Christians.  I, myself, am far from perfect (as most who really know me will agree) and I don't really expect anyone else to be either.  But it seems that there are some like my Facebook friend who find it easy to sit behind their golden keyboard and pass judgment, rather than hear something that could slightly alter their thinking.  I'm not suggesting an abandonment of values or ignoring of Christian teachings.  If you see the title of this blog entry, you'll know where I'm headed with this.  My opinion:  God did not put us here to be judges of one another.  He gave us minds to think, voices to speak, hands to hold, and hearts to love.  We should act as examples for others, but not place ourselves on a pedestal so high that others feel it is unattainable.  When we try so hard to preach why we are right, we are doing something wrong by not listening.  If we just took the time to hear someone out, we might just find something that will strengthen our own ideas, beliefs, and thoughts.

Conservatives, liberals, independents, and everything in between, take my advice under consideration.  There are places we can find to agree, but the minute you start acting as if you know better than everyone else and shout your beliefs instead of inviting dialogue, you close the ears of those you're trying to reach.  Try stepping down from behind the bench, Your Honor, and let the judging to someone more suited to slam the gavel.

Totally unrelated side note:  Tomorrow is Father's Day.  A happy one to my dad, stepdad, grandfather, + father-in-law, all of whom are trying every day to show me more about being a good father to my daughter.

Beating a Dead (Dark) Horse

It seems that no matter where I go, I can't get away from him.

News print, best seller lists, Internet, talk radio, News TV, and now on every awards show imaginable, there he is.

I am, of course, referring to media darling and former Vice-President, Al Gore.

Now I know that there are those of you out in this vast expanse of cyberspace that hope Al dusts off the proverbial hat and throws it ever so gingerly into the political ring for President this year, but unless he can find a way to hold up Obama and Clinton for the money already given to them, I doubt he'll find the scratch. Oh sure, he'd get close and with some well-placed Chinese donations, he might attain it, but I doubt you'll see him enter, no matter how tempting it is right now. I must admit that I don't see any front runners in either party right now and it might be that fact that would act as blood in the water for the Gore shark.

What I don't think he realizes is that he's getting the ego-stroking of his life by all media outlets in order to make him think about running. For example, I'm watching the Emmys tonight and he accepted an award for Interactive media with TV (forgive me for not knowing the exact name) for his Current TV. Haven't seen it? Surprise, neither have I, nor have many other people. To paint an accurate picture, picture YouTube for a TV audience, although with less shots to the groin, beer pong tournaments, or rare 80's music videos. As a matter of fact, forget all of those and add small shorts sent in by people with a liberal bias talking about the government, the war, and other topics. Sounds like something I need to watch right now! So, factor in that no one watches this channel, add in that no one knows how things get Emmy nominated, and also the largest fact that this category never existed before, and you get Hollywood trying to get Al Gore in the spotlight again.

Personally, I hope Al finally sets these people straight and tells them that, once and for all, he is not running for office anymore. Unfortunately these people haven't gotten over the "inconvenient truth" that Al Gore lost the election in 2000 and a majority of the American people are smart enough to never vote him in as President ever. Hopefully Al wises up soon, realizes he's being pandered, and tells the left once and for all that he's done running. Then we'll see the sad puppy dog faces and tails between the legs as they scurry off, looking for the next best thing. Fortunately for me and this country, I don't think the next best thing is a liberal agenda.

Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments!!

PS: It's been 3 years since I posted here last, so if I'm a little rusty, take that into account.