The Other McCain

"One should either write ruthlessly what one believes to be the truth, or else shut up." — Arthur Koestler

Demons of Left-Wing Paranoia

Posted on | July 17, 2014 | 45 Comments

The top item at Memeorandum this morning was an MSNBC article attempting to inspire fear that last week’s Hobby Lobby court decision could End Democracy As We Know It, or something.

Small children and fools may be frightened by such stuff, but if you’re old enough to have followed politics for two or three decades, you recognize the routine operation of the Fear Machine that Democrats crank up every time they’re worried about losing an election.

The semi-annual Parade of Spooky Right-Wing Phantoms is interesting chiefly for the way the villainous reactionary danger changes from day to day and year to year. During the 1990s, the rotating cast of demonized scapegoats included:

  1. Fundamentalist theocrats whose conspiratorial blueprint could be found in the writings of R.J. Rushdoony;
  2. Militia kooks who listened to short-wave radio broadcasts;
  3. The Reverend Sun Yung Moon;
  4. Right-wing billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife;
    and
  5. Newt Gingrich.

Over the years, the cast of characters in this Pageant of Evil has changed several times. Ten years ago, the Left was all about fighting such dreaded demons as Halliburton, Karl Rove, Big Oil and “neocons” (a liberal euphemism for EVIL GREEDY JEWS). Nowadays, the exaggerated object of imaginary fear is usually the Koch Brothers.

After a while, you notice that the list of bogeymen that liberals want you to worry about never includes actual Bad Guys — drug gangs, carjackers, child pornographers, pimps, serial killers, Islamic terrorists or dangerous foreign governments. No, it’s always some far-fetched Republican conspiracy they’re worried about.

The Existential Menace to Democracy As We Know It is necessary to the campaigns of Fear and Hate by which the Party of Evil mobilizes its core constituents: Fools, thieves, radicals and perverts.

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By the way, please excuse the paucity of new blog material Wednesday. Monday’s 3,000-word “Sex Trouble” essay about radical feminism was so popular — a sidebar headline at Ace of Spades HQ and an Instalanche, among other encouragement — that I spent most of yesterday working on a follow-up. Work like that takes time to research and write, and so the long silences are inevitable. Also, yesterday I spent a couple hours babysitting my 8-month-old grandson while my wife, daughter and daughter-in-law were out doing various errands.

Keeping the heteronormative patriarchy going is a full-time job, and I appreciate the discussion in the comments, as well as the readers who hit the tip jar. Expect a few more hours of silence today while I finish up the next installment in the series.





 

Category: Democrats, Liberals

Comments

45 Responses to “Demons of Left-Wing Paranoia”

  1. Dianna Deeley
    July 17th, 2014 @ 2:14 pm

    Wow, Stacy, he’s growing so fast! And so cute!

  2. Demons of Left-Wing Paranoia | That Mr. G Guy's Blog
    July 17th, 2014 @ 2:18 pm

    […] Demons of Left-Wing Paranoia. […]

  3. Mike G.
    July 17th, 2014 @ 2:24 pm

    Aren’t grand kids fun? Just had 2 of mine for an over nighter Tuesday night because their Mother was going to be on TV the next morning and she couldn’t find a babysitter.

  4. Finrod Felagund
    July 17th, 2014 @ 2:56 pm

    No apology or excuse is needed. I for one appreciate your writing whenever you choose to share it with us.

  5. Quartermaster
    July 17th, 2014 @ 4:03 pm

    What I see tin the pic is the next generation of heternormative patriarchal oppressor. Mentor him well.

    By the way. I’m not doing anything political this fall. The Koch’s haven’t sent me a check in months and I’m thinking they forgot me.

  6. concern00
    July 17th, 2014 @ 5:44 pm

    Pictures of babies and young children should come with a mandated trigger warning. Such things are inherently offensive to the LGTQIWTFOMGBBQ crowd.

  7. Mike G.
    July 17th, 2014 @ 5:52 pm

    Hey! Us BBQers resent that remark. Who else but the kiddies are we gonna get to eat our burnt offerings from the grill?

  8. Mike G.
    July 17th, 2014 @ 5:54 pm

    They’re all cute at that age. It’s only when they hit the ‘terrible twos’ when they can become the spawn of Satan, as it were.

  9. K-Bob
    July 17th, 2014 @ 6:52 pm

    Grandspawn, more like.

  10. K-Bob
    July 17th, 2014 @ 6:58 pm

    Bottom line is that the crapflood from the left never stops.

    The entire reason the left exists is that two types of people are drawn to a leftist mindset:
    1) People who want power over others
    2) People who want someone else to take care of them

    So demonization is the currency of the left. It’s what forms the bond between the power-seekers and those with no sense of responsibility.

    Even if the entire polity of non-leftists were to vanish and go elsewhere to start a new colony, the leftists we left behind would still be doing their best to lay the blame on the long-absent right, decades into the future.

  11. K-Bob
    July 17th, 2014 @ 7:10 pm

    O/T:

    Johnny Winter, RIP

  12. Pinker
    July 17th, 2014 @ 7:58 pm

    The right will never be absent enough, and will always exist to turn working, and middle class voters against their own economic interests, and toward the interests of the rich that do nothing but harm them. when you look at a state like Mississippi, which is the poorest in the nation, and most dependent on government, but they’re also the most conservative, it’s truly baffling as to why? the only answer is the right wing mind game which uses shame, and appeals to the basest fears of the other .

  13. pinker
    July 17th, 2014 @ 7:59 pm

    And speaking of hobby lobby it’s mind boggling how conservatives get women to vote against their own interests as well.

  14. Matt_SE
    July 17th, 2014 @ 9:18 pm

    Just like happened in that conservative bastion: Detroit.

  15. Matt_SE
    July 17th, 2014 @ 9:23 pm

    But you have no special standing to be discoursing on the middle class. No…for that, we need to turn to the real salt-of-the-earth Democrats:
    Bill and Hillary! Clinton, Al Gore, Tom Steyer, George Soros, Bill Gates, the entirety of Hollywood, Michael Moore, Mark Zuckerberg, etc.

    I love hearing from them about the plight of the “common man.”

  16. Matt_SE
    July 17th, 2014 @ 9:27 pm

    But not you, sister! You’ve thrown off the chains of the oppressive patriarchy, and are here to lecture us about the evils of conservatism.
    Will we be getting the lecture about how penis-in-vagina is always rape? Cuz we’ve already heard that one.

  17. Matt_SE
    July 17th, 2014 @ 9:27 pm

    But not you, sister! You’ve thrown off the chains of the oppressive patriarchy, and are here to lecture us about the evils of conservatism.
    Will we be getting the lecture about how penis-in-vagina is always rape? Cuz we’ve already heard that one.

  18. Jeb Bush 2016 | Batshit Crazy News
    July 17th, 2014 @ 9:49 pm

    […] Yeah Jeb: It is an act of love… We definitely do not need more of the same… Update: TOM: Demons of Left Wing Paranoia Wombat has some Sci-Fi Book suggestions (and if is fantasy to figure Jeb has a legitimate shot) […]

  19. RKae
    July 17th, 2014 @ 10:31 pm

    My employer-provided health insurance does not cover naturopathy, homeopathy or acupuncture. So you know what? When I choose to go to a naturopath, I pay for it. I’ve never felt “oppressed” or that there was “a war” on me.

    Why is this stuff not covered? The belief system that rules the company.

  20. pinker
    July 17th, 2014 @ 11:12 pm

    One you can’t even address what I said because there’s no rational answer for why dirt poor people on government subsidies would vote republican, and two, I’m not a democrat, but besides Bill Clinton creating new work requirements for welfare the Democratic Party hasn’t conducted a full out campaign to destroy government benefits or subsidies for those who need them, or done nothing for the last six years but suggest that all we need is tax cuts for the super rich.

  21. pinker
    July 17th, 2014 @ 11:16 pm

    don’t be such a sensitive little flower. I’m not here to do any such thing, either. it’s just to impossible to understand how any woman could support a party that sees her as a lower life form, something to fear, and works tirelessly to hurt her? and FYI, I think penis is a-ok. there’s just no way I would ever have arc with a conservative. your ideology indicates you’re selfish, and boring in bed.

  22. pinker
    July 17th, 2014 @ 11:17 pm

    *sex

    goddamn auto fill!

  23. Matt_SE
    July 17th, 2014 @ 11:53 pm

    “…how any woman could support a party that sees her as a lower life form, something to fear, and works tirelessly to hurt her?”

    Are you referring to JFK, Ted Kennedy, LBJ, or Bill Clinton? All men who were documented misogynists, but nary a peep of complaint from the women in the Democrat party.
    They must’ve been busy fixing them sammiches.

    Of course, the Obama White House still pays its female employees less than the men.

    The only grievance groups more cock-whipped than Democrat women are minorities.

    “and FYI, I think penis is a-ok
    .”
    Then you’re not a feminist.

    “there’s just no way I would ever have [sex] with a conservative. your ideology indicates you’re selfish, and boring in bed.”
    True; I’ve never been into midgets and nipple clamps.

  24. pinker
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:05 am

    yeah, a few prominent democrats who philandered(republicans do the same)is the moral equivalent of creating policy that hurts women as a group by restricting body autonomy, blocking legislation to equal pay, and fighting so insurance companies don’t cover birth control. keep trying! I never said I was a feminist(or a democrat yet you keep insisting) and you don’t need to be one to realize the Republican Party is hostile to women. And the idea that all feminists hate cock is just stupid.

  25. Matt_SE
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:11 am

    “…there’s no rational answer for why dirt poor people on government subsidies would vote republican…”

    There’s at least three reasons:
    1) They would have more self-respect if they weren’t on the dole,
    2) They would be more responsible, productive citizens, and
    3) They will fare much better than the rest when the money runs out (which will be happening much sooner than you think).

    “…new work requirements for welfare…”

    Which Obama gutted…

    “… the Democratic Party hasn’t [blah, blah, blah]…”

    No, they’ve just used the welfare state to re-enslave the blacks, and turn the rest of the people into indentured servants to the state.

    “…or done nothing for the last six years but suggest that all we need is tax cuts for the super rich.”

    That’s awesome. Remind me: after the greatest collapse of the U.S. economy in modern history, how many bankers did the Democrats prosecute?
    Who do firms like Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan donate the most money to?
    Which party put the insurance companies in charge of healthcare, with promises of bailouts if things didn’t go smoothly?
    Democrats: the party of millionaires and billionaires.

  26. pinker
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:13 am

    Yeah, my definition of boring is you not being into nipple clamps! and way to go on completely sidestepping how conservatives get people to vote against their own interests and activist government for the sake of the super rich. liberals win in the end because by definition conservatism
    seeks to block progress, but it can’t be stopped forever.

  27. Matt_SE
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:22 am

    “…on completely sidestepping how conservatives get people to vote against their own interests and activist government for the sake of the super rich.”

    That response is posted below. You need to re-read your post above to see what I was responding to.

    “…seeks to block progress…”
    Can you define “progress,” please? I need to know what it is I’m trying to block.

  28. Matt_SE
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:39 am

    “yeah, a few prominent democrats who philandered…”

    And the entire party that supported them. What was Hillary’s! term? “Bimbo eruptions?” In reference to women that her husband had victimized.

    “republicans do the same”

    But we kick them out of office, usually.

    “…restricting body autonomy…”

    The only restriction ever comes when abortion is in play. In which case, we view it as one person’s rights (the mother’s) against another person’s rights (the baby’s).

    You make it sound like Republicans are against pap-smears.

    “…blocking legislation to equal pay…”

    The wage gap is largely a feminist myth. What we oppose is special rights for grievance groups.

    “…so insurance companies don’t cover birth control.”

    Again, only in the case of abortifacients. In that case, it’s a problem of forcing people to violate their religious beliefs. Hobby Lobby still covers 16 of 20 types of birth control…though you’d never know that by listening to leftist hysterics.

    “…I never said I was a feminist or a Democrat…”

    You just talk like one. You’re probably an “independent,” in the same way that Bernie Sanders is an “independent.” (Google him)

    “…And the idea that all feminists hate cock is just stupid.”
    Just the ones at the top of the “profession.” The ones that set the agenda and matter. Everyone else is a poser.

  29. Adjoran
    July 18th, 2014 @ 12:53 am

    That’s the best age, up to about the time they learn to talk back. Enjoy it!

    The Left has to have an Enemy. Whether it is a Capitalist Warmonger, internal “wreckers” and saboteurs, or Goldstein himself (Immanuel, or Jeff, may even be the same guy), some Great Villain must be set up and endowed with powers far beyond any reality (like the Koch spending, which is a fraction of Soros’, but it treated as if it puts all others to shame).

    Then the Great Villain is attacked, the base rallied around the standard, and of course blamed for all the failures of the socialists when they have wielded the power they demanded and promised would give results.

    You have to hand it to the feminists, though. Declaring the Villain to be all Men with Penises was brilliant, they won’t run out of fundraising appeals any time soon.

  30. Matt_SE
    July 18th, 2014 @ 1:08 am

    I have a clever plan for that: we all cut off our penises!
    That’ll show them!

  31. Adjoran
    July 18th, 2014 @ 1:09 am

    One of the greats. Maybe Hendrix was able to do more on a guitar, but in a different way.

    RIP, Johnny.

    Every now and then I know it’s kinda hard to tell
    I’m still alive and well
    Still alive and well

  32. RKae
    July 18th, 2014 @ 2:00 am

    Ah, the old “you’re probably boring in bed” comeback.

    Genius.

    Because, of course, you tell everyone that they can’t live without getting laid, and then that instantly becomes insufficient. The thing you told us we couldn’t live without is suddenly laughably dull. It must be modified. It must be made interesting because it’s not naturally interesting.

    When the left completely takes over, we’ll all be measuring our dicks to choose our leaders, because sex is all we’re about.

    Cave men – that’s what the left wants: brainless beings that screw and shit.

  33. K-Bob
    July 18th, 2014 @ 2:20 am

    Yes, I can tell your mind is quite boggled.

    If you had courage, you’d be protesting the people who mutilate young girls and force them into burkas. But no0O0o, you’re here making stupid accusations based on the usual lies of the left.

  34. K-Bob
    July 18th, 2014 @ 2:24 am

    Progress, straight into totalitarianism. You folks love the lash, apparently.

    Women know they are far safer being free to protect themselves along with conservatives and libertarians. Hanging out with leftists is almost a guarantee of rape.

    Hanging out with conservatives is a guarantee of being able to own and use a gun. THe self-interest aspect is obvious: Never trust a “progressive.”

  35. K-Bob
    July 18th, 2014 @ 2:26 am

    Nice, mindless parroting of talking points. Zero fealty to the truth, but that’s to be expected.

  36. DeadMessenger
    July 18th, 2014 @ 2:52 am

    The leftist agenda here is to deindividualize us all, so the can turn the entire country into the Zimbardo Stanford Prison Experiment.

  37. RKae
    July 18th, 2014 @ 3:22 am

    Anything new is “progress,” huh? As long as it destroys tradition, it’s “progress”?

  38. RKae
    July 18th, 2014 @ 5:07 am

    You could fix that old wage gap if women chose dangerous jobs; jobs that require an orange vest so you don’t get flattened by machinery; jobs in the rain, snow and sun; jobs that are “icky” (where it’s not carpeted and climate controlled).

  39. eponymous1
    July 18th, 2014 @ 8:29 am

    Do you get your political ideas from the latest “relevant comics?” It sure is a comic-book — er… comical perspective.

  40. Griffonn
    July 18th, 2014 @ 8:48 am

    Is this guy serious or parody?

    I like the line about “voting against their own interests”.

  41. eponymous1
    July 18th, 2014 @ 9:12 am

    He read a review once of “What’s the Matter with Kansas,” and thought it profound… LOL

  42. Quartermaster
    July 18th, 2014 @ 9:21 am

    You go first and we’ll see how things work out.

  43. Quartermaster
    July 18th, 2014 @ 9:28 am

    Being middle class myself, the main faction that stands foursquare against my interests is the left, represented mainly by the DimoKKKrap Party, but also includes the GOP establishment (GOPe).
    The primary explanation for some one like yourself is a serious lack of critical thinking ability. Sadly, it doesn’t take a lot of thought to realize what I said above is true.

  44. Quartermaster
    July 18th, 2014 @ 3:47 pm

    That too.

  45. GrandsonOGrumpus
    July 19th, 2014 @ 8:33 am

    The difficulty, w/someone as mentally be-fogged as him is that any rebuttal, (even if extensive statistics, references, footnote to sources are included to allow vetting) become classified as “RW Talking Points”, and so, there is no way to discuss a subject intelligently. All facts, in a Progressive’s “mind” are as pliable as putty and situational— and always in service to that Progressive’s immediate goal.

    In short: they’re exceedingly dishonest people.

    It’s the same as a discussion to change the religion of the discussion members among the truely religious of very different faith. There’s no way to gain a foothold, b/c facts and proofs are irrelevant… they “know” their religion is the correct one.

    For Progressives, enslavement of their fellow man (for his own good, of course) is their religion.

    Convincing them that water’s wet is an impossible task… and a waste of lifetime.