American pundits are missing the bigger point about the Republican shutdown of the U.S. government and the GOP’s threatened default on America’s credit. The real question is not what policy concessions the Tea Partiers may extract, but rather can a determined right-wing white minority ensure continuation of white supremacy in the United States
For years, political scientists have been talking about how the demographic changes in the United States are inexorably leading to a Democratic majority, with Hispanics and Asian-Americans joining African-Americans and liberal urban whites to erode the political domains of white conservatives and white racists.
But those predictions have always assumed a consistent commitment to the democratic principle of one person, one vote – and a readiness of Republicans to operate within the traditional standards of democratic governance. But what should now be crystal clear is that those assumptions are faulty.
Instead of accepting the emergence of this more diverse and multi-cultural America, the Right – through the Tea Party-controlled Republicans – has decided to alter the constitutional framework of the United States to guarantee the perpetuation of white supremacy and the acceptance of right-wing policies.
In effect, we are seeing the implementation of a principle enunciated by conservative thinker William F. Buckley in 1957: “The white community in the South is entitled to take such measures as are necessary to prevail, politically and culturally, in areas in which it does not predominate numerically.” Except now the Buckley rule is being applied nationally.
- Voter suppression
- Gerrymandering
- Filibustering
- Disenfranchisement of Washington, DC residents
- Resurgence of Jim Crow justified on Libertarian grounds
- Rightist Supreme Court and much of judiciary
- Prison system and prison privatization with quotas
- Well-funded right-wing propaganda machine fed by right-wing think tanks
- Rump politics
- Hostage taking
The White Man’s Last Tantrum?
Robert Parry, Consortium News
Liberalism holds that all are created equal. Conservatism holds that some are better than others.
Certainly a white men's tantrum, but probably not the last. The "traditionalists" are going to fight demographic change (read 'loss of privilege') tooth and nail until they are beaten or die off.
What is also concerning is the polarization of the white West and the non-white rest. Anyone with knowledge of the life sciences knows that there is something visceral about this that unless controlled with lead to deadly conflict over which genes will continue and which won't.
See also:
AlterNet
Understanding the Culture of White Right-Wing Rage That Produced the Govt. Shutdown
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com
See also:
AlterNet
Understanding the Culture of White Right-Wing Rage That Produced the Govt. Shutdown
Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com
John Boehner and Mitch McConnell and Karl Rove and the other so-called Beltway pragmatists of the Republican Party have relied on angry white people for political victories for decades. They placated them and pandered to them and fed them an extensive line of bullshit, and absolutely could not afford to alienate them, but were scared of them the whole time. (Many Republican operatives will tell you, way off the record, that the Republican base is crazy.) Now those white insurrectionists have risen up and taken their former leaders prisoner, which carries a certain poetic justice. They “want their country back.” Failing that, they want to let the fire burn.
11 comments:
Complete BS.
It's yet another "anyone who criticizes Obama is a racist" ad hominem attack.
The real issue is that BOTH PARTIES want austerity.
Everyone on this forum knows that Obama has the power to end the debt debate either by minting Pt coins or by refinancing the debt as consuls.
Everyone knows that Obama had the power to end the Bush tax cuts for the rich simply by doing nothing and letting them expire, yet he chose to make most of them permanent.
Everyone knows that the sequestration was the Obama administration's idea.
And so on.
It's not about R's vs. D's. It's about the 1% vs the 99%.
It's not about R's vs. D's. It's about the 1% vs the 99%.
Yes, and how do the 1% get the 99% to support their agenda in a representative democracy, which is against the economic interests of the 99%.
Wedge issues and exploitation emotion, difference, appeal to tradition, religion, etc.
I think that Parry has this about right. The reason that a lot of people who themselves would be benefited by social programs vote against their economic interest is that don't want "their taxes going to pay for" the takers, whom they identify with non-whites. This is the basis of the GOP Southern strategy initiated by Nixon and now coming to head. It's basic in the playbook.
Very true, Malmo's Ghost. But there are differences. The GOP's present state is the outcome in large part of Nixon's Southern strategy, as well their exploitation of low information voters who vote single-issue.
The Democrats have been more successful in maintain at least a semblance of unity, but I think that after the Clinton and Obama administrations, they face the possibility of a progressive revolt that similarly divides the party.
As things get tougher, more and more people are waking up to the fact that they are being taken by the 1%. There are two answers to that, one is radical and the other reactionary.
This is likely to be the political conflict of the 2020's in the US as new generations of voters take center stage and the baby boomers begin to decline in political significance after having been the dominant social, political and economic force since coming of age.
Tom,
I wish Ralph Nader was 50...
There's an opening for some people. Vacuums tend to get filled.
Who? Give me hope.
I'm with Dan on this one...
tbere is a bipartisan majority that wants austerity...
rsp,
Obama knows this. His strategy and the strategy of many Dems is to peel off enough moderate Republicans that disagree with the more extreme base to win contested elections, which, of course, the presidency is, as well as some Senate seats. There are few purple House seats left. But with the current demographics, the population figures are on the side of the Dems. The country is becoming more socially liberal as each new generation comes of age. The Den strategy is to be socially liberal and fiscally conservative enough to attract moderate Republicans who tend to be fiscal conservatives but social moderates or even liberals.
tbere is a bipartisan majority that wants austerity...
It's probably going to take Dems out of power and another crisis for a strong progressive wing to rise up to the surface.
Almost all the "progressives" today are fiscal conservatives.
"Everyone on this forum knows that Obama has the power to end the debt debate either by minting Pt coins or by refinancing the debt as consuls."
There is also another alternative that would at least provide a temporary solution that would give policy makers about 3 years of breathing space to fashion pro-growth economic policy rather than austerity.
Treasury, Fed and Congress could declare that the $2 trillion of Treasury securities held by the Fed from its QE asset purchases do not apply to the debt ceiling because it is debt that the government owes itself. The Fed remits the $100+ billion of interest on those holdings right back to the Treasury. This would reduce debt outstanding to about $15 trillion which is well below the $16.7 trillion debt ceiling.
I brought this proposal to my Congressman, John Tierney D6 MA at a public meeting on Saturday and he listened with interest and said he would research it and asked me to send him more information on it.
Non-black Non-Whites are the most conservative part of the current Democrat coalition. They tend to be more fiscally conservative, mildly pro-business and socially conservative and more religious than most Dems. When things get dicey, like they are now, we always see these appeals to fear (of racism) emerge from democratic operatives in the media. Fear of and hatred of whites and revisiting the systems of racism and suggestions of widespread bigotry is powerful and a strong reminder of why it is important to be vigilant against it: Support Dems! The Republicans are actually Whitey and The Man! LOL What complete drivel. The extreme racial divide at present and unprecedented support of virtually all non-whites for Obama suggest there might be something different about him than candidates in past elections. Normally the Elephants and Dems split on factors besides skin color alone. I'm trying to think what is different about Obama. *scratches head* hmmm. I don't know. What could it be. Gee. Hi IS smart and sassy!
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