A Liberal’s Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives
November 14th, 2006
To My Conservative Brothers and Sisters,
I know you are dismayed and disheartened at the results of last week’s election. You’re worried that the country is heading toward a very bad place you don’t want it to go. Your 12-year Republican Revolution has ended with so much yet to do, so many promises left unfulfilled. You are in a funk, and I understand.
Well, cheer up, my friends! Do not despair. I have good news for you. I, and the millions of others who are now in charge with our Democratic Congress, have a pledge we would like to make to you, a list of promises that we offer you because we value you as our fellow Americans. You deserve to know what we plan to do with our newfound power — and, to be specific, what we will do to you and for you.
Thus, here is our Liberal’s Pledge to Disheartened Conservatives:I, and my fellow signatories, hereby make these promises to you:
1. We will always respect you for your conservative beliefs. We will never, ever, call you “unpatriotic” simply because you disagree with us. In fact, we encourage you to dissent and disagree with us.
2. We will let you marry whomever you want, even when some of us consider your behavior to be “different” or “immoral.” Who you marry is none of our business. Love and be in love — it’s a wonderful gift.
3. We will not spend your grandchildren’s money on our personal whims or to enrich our friends. It’s your checkbook, too, and we will balance it for you.
4. When we soon bring our sons and daughters home from Iraq, we will bring your sons and daughters home, too. They deserve to live. We promise never to send your kids off to war based on either a mistake or a lie.
5. When we make America the last Western democracy to have universal health coverage, and all Americans are able to get help when they fall ill, we promise that you, too, will be able to see a doctor, regardless of your ability to pay. And when stem cell research delivers treatments and cures for diseases that affect you and your loved ones, we’ll make sure those advances are available to you and your family, too.
6. Even though you have opposed environmental regulation, when we clean up our air and water, we, the Democratic majority, will let you, too, breathe the cleaner air and drink the purer water.
7. Should a mass murderer ever kill 3,000 people on our soil, we will devote every single resource to tracking him down and bringing him to justice. Immediately. We will protect you.
8. We will never stick our nose in your bedroom or your womb. What you do there as consenting adults is your business. We will continue to count your age from the moment you were born, not the moment you were conceived.
9. We will not take away your hunting guns. If you need an automatic weapon or a handgun to kill a bird or a deer, then you really aren’t much of a hunter and you should, perhaps, pick up another sport. We will make our streets and schools as free as we can from these weapons and we will protect your children just as we would protect ours.
10. When we raise the minimum wage, we will pay you — and your employees — that new wage, too. When women are finally paid what men make, we will pay conservative women that wage, too.
11. We will respect your religious beliefs, even when you don’t put those beliefs into practice. In fact, we will actively seek to promote your most radical religious beliefs (”Blessed are the poor,” “Blessed are the peacemakers,” “Love your enemies,” “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God,” and “Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.”). We will let people in other countries know that God doesn’t just bless America, he blesses everyone. We will discourage religious intolerance and fanaticism — starting with the fanaticism here at home, thus setting a good example for the rest of the world.
12. We will not tolerate politicians who are corrupt and who are bought and paid for by the rich. We will go after any elected leader who puts him or herself ahead of the people. And we promise you we will go after the corrupt politicians on our side FIRST. If we fail to do this, we need you to call us on it. Simply because we are in power does not give
us the right to turn our heads the other way when our party goes astray. Please perform this important duty as the loyal opposition.I promise all of the above to you because this is your country, too. You are every bit as American as we are. We are all in this together. We sink or swim as one. Thank you for your years of service to this country and for giving us the opportunity to see if we can make things a bit better for our 300 million fellow Americans — and for the rest
of the world.Signed,
#1 by Still Left Out on November 15, 2006 - 8:43 am
A very good assessment of inclusion ‘across the aisle’. I fully support it and will pass it on. Nevertheless, Michael left out an issue of respecting human dignity ‘across the borders’, both geographical and emotional, real and percieved.
#2 by Richard Warnick on November 15, 2006 - 8:53 am
“I, and the millions of others who are now in charge with our Democratic Congress…”
Michael Moore is not in charge, nor are the Democrats. Just a reality check. But I certainly agree that the GOP might want to stop questioning the patriotism of everyone who doesn’t agree with Bush. Many things could be bad for Bush and good for the country, and if the Dem leadership in Congress is smart enough they might get some good things done.
#3 by Colorado City Cool Guy on November 15, 2006 - 9:31 am
Is G. H. W. Bush still in office?
My wives told me he got unelected last week and Barbara Pelosi now gets to be president of America.
#4 by Bradley Ross on November 15, 2006 - 9:44 am
Moore says, “You are in a funk, and I understand.”
I don’t think he does understand. We have seen a totally different emotional reaction to this election than we saw to the Kerry election. When Kerry lost we saw serious news pieces about people having “post election stress disorder.” I don’t think that the people in the conservative movement have wrapped themselves up as emotionally in election results as we’ve seen in the liberal blogsphere.
Cliff, I’m not sure why you posted this piece from Moore. Reasonable people can disgree, but Michael Moore hasn’t really proven to be reasonable. Nearly every point in his list is factually or logically indefensible. Point 6 was the only one without such a defect that I could see.
#5 by Cliff on November 15, 2006 - 10:28 am
Bradley,
What do you mean when you say, “Michael Moore hasn’t really proven to be reasonable”? I get that people in Utah don’t like him, but frankly, even during the hullabalu surrounding his visit, I took careful notice that no one was able to identify any distortions in his movie of speech. If anything, by now he’s been vindicated.
As your perceptive notion that, “I don’t think that the people in the conservative movement have wrapped themselves up as emotionally in election results as we’ve seen in the liberal blogsphere”, I have to agree.
One of the many great contrasts between liberals and conservatives is the great contrast between liberals and conservatives. You statement begs the question that liberals should be more like conservatives.
By now you’ve probably heard a great many people express horror about the way this country is being run, and flushed down the metaphorical toilet. Why on Earth wouldn’t we be emotional “wrapped up”?
#6 by OneNephi on November 15, 2006 - 2:03 pm
Repugs have not experienced PTSD following the grand “thumpin’” because they are brain dead for the most part – there remains little in their minds to disorder because nothing in their minds was in order to begin with. Almost like entropy has run amok in each Repug’s tiny little brain, creating total and complete disorder – how else can one explain their voting for the Decider in 2004 after experiencing four years of his crap, murder and molestation.
Yup, no PTSD because Repugs were brain dead to begin with – DOA.
PS. Brad, if you are going to criticize Moore, maybe you will consider providing a little counter point to his points. Seems as though that’s the least you can do. Good luck.
#7 by Caveat on November 15, 2006 - 3:48 pm
I second OneNephi’s take on this!
#8 by Bradley Ross on November 15, 2006 - 11:41 pm
I took careful notice that no one was able to identify any distortions in his movie of speech.
I haven’t seen a Michael Moore movie. My opinion of him was formed when I read about his movie “Bowling for Columbine” prior to the release of “Fahrenheit 9/11″. Reading a critique of that movie pretty much told me I didn’t need to spend a lot more time on Moore. After all, time is limited and we ought not waste on time on people who have proven to be unreliable or dishonest.
If you can read the same report I read about Moore’s movie and provide a defense for him, I’d love to hear it. Frankly, in the light of such OVERWHELMING evidence against Moore’s integrity, I think the onus is on his defenders at this point rather than his critics.
#9 by Bradley Ross on November 16, 2006 - 12:43 am
maybe you will consider providing a little counter point to his points
Fair request. I’m ready for bed, so we’ll just look at a couple of these points, in order of appearance.
(1) Claim: In fact, we encourage you to dissent and disagree with us.
Rebuttal: Jim Gilchrist speaks at Columbia University and students rush the stage to forcefully stop Gilchrist from speaking. To quote from the report I just linked: “Moreover, he was assaulted by a group of intolerant student protesters who charged the podium, threw over tables and chairs, and kicked and punched and kicked bystanders.” Another group of university students tried to prevent John McCain from delivering remarks at a commencement speech. They heckled him during his speech and stood up and turned their backs to him. All this because he “didn’t represent their views.” We could go on and on with examples on this point. People on the left regularly try to shut down points of view that disagree with their own. (I should note that it doesn’t matter for the purposes of this argument whether or not people on the right do this; Moore’s statement was about the virtue of the left, not the failings of the right.)
(2) Claim: We will let you marry whomever you want
Rebuttal: This may be a true claim for whomever Moore gets to sign his petition, but I doubt it. He is speaking too broadly to be credible. Does he really support every possible marriage arrangement? Would he allow a man to marry his children to escape the estate tax? Would he allow polygamy? Would he allow you to marry a pet? (Many people consider them on par with humans!) Would he allow you to marry a deceased historical figure? You get the idea. He acts as though he would place no limits on marriage, but that is simply impractical. Any rational person would admit that there must be limits on what we call marriage. The only debate is where to place those limits.
(3) Claim: We will not spend your grandchildren’s money on our personal whims or to enrich our friends.
Rebuttal: I think most every earmark in Congress could fit in this category. Both parties are guilty here. Moore provides no reason to expect that Democrats will suddenly start acting differently now that they are in the majority. (For the record, I hope they do, but I don’t have much reason for hope and Moore doesn’t provide any.)
(4) Claim: We promise never to send your kids off to war based on either a mistake or a lie.
Rebuttal: Well, this certainly puts all the Democrats who voted to authorize the Iraq war in a pickle. And thank goodness no Democrat president had a hand in sending soldiers into Vietnam… Moore’s statement here is really quite silly. He’s asserting that liberals won’t ever make mistakes.
I think that is sufficient (and I’m tired). Look, I know Moore is trying to be flip, but when he throws around so much hyperbole and so little fact, reasonable people have a hard time taking him seriously.
#10 by OneNephi on November 16, 2006 - 9:52 am
Let’s just focus on counter-point #1 (I have to work).
One group of students shuts out Gilchrist and another shuts out McCain. Fair enough, I remember the incidents. What is not so fair, however, is Brad’s attempt to smear the actions of these individuals, by proxy, onto Moore and the signatories.
But let’s assume, for the sake of argument, that such is fair. I guess that means that Bush is not only the Decider, the great “Silencer” as well. Every attempt by the Repugs to silence the the liberal viewpoint goes right to the feet of Bush, by proxy, just as Brad argues proxy should apply to Moore. The refusal of the Repug congress to address the environment, to pass stupid flag desecration laws, to pass stupid marriage protection laws, to engage in corruption, pedophilia, etc., lies at the feet of Bush, by proxy. Wow, Bush is a pedophile just like Foley.
Further, every action by a wayward bishop of the LDS church, and there are more than a few, lies at the feet of Gordon Hinckley – e.g., when a LDS bishop abuses a child, that makes Hinckley a child abuser, too, by proxy. Anytime a wayward bishop suggests a politically motivated viewpoint to the flock, that makes Hinckley a politican, putting the tax exempt status in jeopardy. And everytime a student at BYU plagerizes someones work, that means Samuelson and Hinckley are both plagerists, too, by proxy. The list goes on….
Care to take another crack at #1, Brad?
#11 by Jenni on November 16, 2006 - 10:45 am
I don’t really understand the need to analyze this point for point, but I’m okaywith it if someone wants to take it on. I see it as more of a general statement about the nature of liberals in general than all liberals specifically. None of us on either side fit neatly into the stereotypes.
#12 by Larry Bergan on November 18, 2006 - 3:23 am
Let’s keep in mind that Moore has never actually ever harmed anyone. Sean Hannity’s radio show seems to have been rolled out specifically to get Christians into a war mood in time for the the 2002 election and following 2003 war, complete with patriotic and Christian Crusade music, book signing/war rallies, books declaring war on liberals ect… This wasn’t in fun, or jest. I believe it was a planned and carried out Madison Avenue advertising campaign that resulted in real, actual, life shattering, well, you know, WAR!
Michael Moore doesn’t attack the weak and helpless, as do Limbaugh and all the radio and TV clones who like to portray themselves as public hero’s who make sure the bad people getting entitlements can’t hurt you anymore. Of course, the war profiteers and greedy corporations are never scathed in this gallant march.
Mike goes right in and slays the sacred cows of the rich and powerful. Heston didn’t die either, but he disappeared pretty quickly after the Columbine movie. Kids on the playground who don’t have the bravery to go after the school yard bully will often sit on the side and place themselves about the fray. Personally, I’m glad as hell Mike is fighting for the little guy, and I just don’t see the deceit his detractors do. Bush, and the Republican crony’s he’s put into power are the personification of deceit.
Go see Mike’s movies Bradley, they haven’t hurt anybody yet, and they won’t hurt you, but I guarantee they’ll make you think!
#13 by Caveat on November 18, 2006 - 8:12 am
Do it Bradley.
#14 by Todd on June 29, 2007 - 10:18 am
Just a point I’d like to make about this comment:
(1) Claim: In fact, we encourage you to dissent and disagree with us.
Rebuttal: Jim Gilchrist speaks at Columbia University and students rush the stage to forcefully stop Gilchrist from speaking. To quote from the report I just linked: “Moreover, he was assaulted by a group of intolerant student protesters who charged the podium, threw over tables and chairs, and kicked and punched and kicked bystanders.†Another group of university students tried to prevent John McCain from delivering remarks at a commencement speech. They heckled him during his speech and stood up and turned their backs to him. All this because he “didn’t represent their views.†We could go on and on with examples on this point. People on the left regularly try to shut down points of view that disagree with their own. (I should note that it doesn’t matter for the purposes of this argument whether or not people on the right do this; Moore’s statement was about the virtue of the left, not the failings of the right.
This was done by students, basically still children. The Conservatives that do this to Liberals are adults, elected officials, supposedly mature proffessional people, adult talk show hosts in a public forum. This is not an equal comparison.
BTW I dont vote for parties, I vote for who can do the job, both (
#15 by glenn on June 30, 2007 - 7:40 am
What nonsense given democrat complicity in the effecting of the last 6 years.
Maybe Mike should go on a diet, I hear that carrying all that extra weight leads to diabetes and heart conditions, of which 2 out of every 7 health care dollars is spent in this bloated version of “healthcare”, which in our Country is sick care. It is pretty obvious from Mikes physiology, that he really doesn’t care about health, except about it in his movies.
We get to keep our hunting guns? Gee, wondering upon liberals upset with our adventuring and colonizing ways overseas, has it ever occurred to you that Iraqis’ defend themselves from the very thugs that dems and reps have sent over there, with FULLY AUTOMATIC WEAPONS and whatever they can find? No gun control there.
You would have to be crazy to think that disarming our populace while our example of bloodthirsty behavior stares at us through the TV everyday.
See, I have the sad realization that progressives, liberals, and conservatives are under some misapprehension that this is, or ever was, a civilized country. Having a gun, and being properly trained, has NOTHING to do with hunting. Well hunting the wayward scum traitors of an over usurping government. Fine by me.
Fine by Tom…Jefferson…”The tree of Liberty must be watered with the blood of Patriots from time to time” Or there abouts. Our government should fear the People, rule on their behalf, not over them. An armed angry populace is the best way.