We fight the culture war for the hearts and minds of the people, but the battle each day is for their attention. MSM, giant champion of the left, has all but vanquished conservative ideas from the battlefield. He has an election as a trophy of his power. If the ideas of life, liberty and property are extinguished, our republic will end in socialist misery. We must make a stand. We can be David. We have our stones, our ideas. Here is a sling.

I have argued that we lost the election because of the press. Yet many conservatives are tying themselves (and each other) in knots over why we lost; too far left, too far right, a poor candidate, a poor campaign, a poor message, on and on.

All the while, we ignore the real answer that’s all around us. Literally. It’s like forgetting you’ve been swallowed by a whale. The msm is all around us every day, in too many ways to even comprehend. We often hear that its day is over; its power is waning. Yes. And the orbit of the earth is waning too. The msm is all encompassing, all left leaning, and all-out to destroy conservatives.

It is a strange truth that just knowing the press is biased, as most people do, doesn’t really weaken its influence! Why do they have so much power? Why do people still listen to them? Because no matter how badly they do their job, right now they are the only ones doing it.

Our freedom requires, and our constitution expressly protects, a free and fair press. Our Founders built the government on four giant pillars; The Congress, The Court, the President, The Press. The press is meant to be a check on authority, and a watchdog, an impartial observer of campaigns and elections. It’s supposed to hold all sides accountable to the same standard: the ideals that make our Republic work. Without the Press-Pillar, it falls as surely as it does without any of the other checks on power; the Judicial on the Executive on the Legislative on the Judicial.

While our current msm still looks like a press-pillar; in reality it has abandoned its sacred post, and become a mouthpiece for the leftist movement. Make no mistake: Journalism may be dead but the Press is alive and unwell. The Left and its media are taking us step by step down into socialism, stealing our dignity and freedom, and creating an all-powerful State. They have successfully decided a presidential election! Now they want to silence us. If they can shut down our budding media, we lose our speech, and perhaps the war.

Some say it’s too late already; the Press-Pillar is crumbled, and the tilting Republic falling down with it. It’s not too late. Our shining city can be saved! But if we’re going to save it, WE must replace the fallen pillar ourselves. We must overthrow the leftist stranglehold on American Media. We must and we can! But like David, we have to concentrate our attack.

We have begun to build our own media, but we are still a puny David! We have Talk radio, Fox News, the Washington Times, a few newspapers and magazines, and a few Sites and blogs on the web. With that we dare challenge Goliath; ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, almost all TV stations in the country; NY Times, the AP, almost all newspapers across the country; Time, Newsweek, Us, People, O, almost all magazines everywhere; Science Journals, Medical Journals, Law Journals, University Journals; Move On, Daily Kos, Democratic Underground, most of the web; and ALL of Hollywood

It looks overwhelming. To overthrow their control of the daily American narrative seems impossible, inconceivable! It may be impossible, the way we’re doing it. Were trying to go toe-to-toe, head to head with the giant! How’d that election battle work out for us?

David left the swords and armor behind. He didn’t try to fight on his enemy’s terms. He used his own best weapon, on ground of his choosing, and he made a very carefully aimed attack.

We have to modify our battle plan. Yes, we must completely replace the left wing msm. But we don’t have to replace them all, all at once, everywhere. This is important: We don’t need the whole map right away, just pieces of it. We can start with a just a few regions, in a few states. Say, some of those that just turned blue. Maybe a few states that are barely still red, trying to hang on. We need to find that electoral majority on the map and get in THERE! Buy up the newspapers and magazines; buy the TV and the cable and the radio stations and start BEING the Press-Pillar! Think what we could do. People are hungry for this! We could change the whole environment for conservative people and candidates. Put lefties on the defense for a change. Make them defend their stupid ideas to the people, before they get elected! On a level playing field, people choose conservative ideas and candidates.

Conservatives take heart and stand up! Our ideas are right. They are true. They are the principals that founded this Republic. They are exciting! They are inspiring! They have moved people to greatness! They are in fact the ideas Americans LOVE! They WANT our ideas! They NEED our ideas! They just rarely get to hear them any more.

The Press-Pillar doesn’t allow it.

Our ideas can’t be heard in newspapers, or magazines, or broadcast, or cable, or advertising, or music, or movies, or schoolbooks. Not from churches, or from congress, or from courts, or from presidents. Not Allowed. Not the ideas of John Locke, or John Adams, or Thomas Jefferson, or Thomas Paine. No speeches from Washington, or Henry, or Lincoln, or Garrison. Not the voices of Winston Churchill, or Dr. King, or Billy Graham, or Ronald Reagan. Not to be heard. Not to be thought. Silenced by the MSM.

Yet these are the foundation of the Republic. These are the ideas that inspire, that set people free, that allow them to govern themselves, well and properly. Our people need them once again, need to hear them, live by them, govern and be governed by them. Look what has happened in their absence.

Our children need heroes, as we all need heroes, and we used to have them. Columbus, the Pilgrims, Paul Revere, Harriet Tubman, Mother Theresa, Astronauts, and Soldiers. Our heroes should be exalted as examples by our press, not ruthlessly debased. 

Imagine if we could give a conservative hero like Sarah Palin the kind of press she deserves! Imagine what good it would do for our sprits and our souls. Imagine us giving the Dodds and Franks and Schumers and Mahoneys and Stevens the press they deserve. Root for the good guys and defeat the bad guys! Biased? Yes. Biased in favor of the great and right principals. That’s how it’s supposed to be!

If it is to be, it is up to we. We must become the Press-Pillar.

My concern right after the election has been that conservatives must know why we really lost if we are going to win next time. My original premise was that we did not lose because of our candidates, but because of the overwhelming and open bias of the press.

Yes “we” (true, informed conservatives) want conservative candidates; that is critical because our principals are what will save our nation.

However, the wide middle in America is not AS conservative as we, and will accept a much wider range of candidates, as long as those candidates seem to be at least center to center-right. This is why we have had the spectrum of presidents from Reagan (strong right), Bush 41 (center right) Clinton (center left), George W (right), and now Obama (center Marxist). Clearly the American people do not REQUIRE our president be a Super Conservative!

On the other hand, they very plainly do NOT want a liberal. This is why liberal democrats must run to the center right in the general elections.

Here is where the press comes in. In a follow up I asked anyone who thinks we lost because McCain was a moderate to answer this question: If the press had actually been fair & balanced, and had reported fairly, and exposed the real Obama, would he have won the election? Does an acorn grow a fruit tree?

Besides, there were many strong, very conservative candidates around the country who were also attacked relentlessly by the press and who lost. Yes, a very conservative candidate with the S on his chest can overcome the media bias, but there’s only so many Reagan’s around. For most conservative candidates, elections today are like a track race where the distance is the same for both runners, but the hurdles are set at ten feet for one, and two feet for the other. The press kills most conservative candidates. Look what the media is doing to Sarah Palin TODAY, RIGHT NOW. They are RIPPING her apart, and she’s not even running! Right now they are doing to her what they have done to W for eight years; DESTROY. They know she’s a star. Think about it. The media have the ear of the American people and they are Serpent, whispering their poison against Palin.

There is a refrain going around that the msm is dead. This is a very dangerous thought, and obviously untrue. Last time I checked, ABC, NBC, CBS, MSNBC, NY Times, WAPO, on and on all across the country, are still alive and working for the left. Remember, this is The Fourth Estate, an integral part of our democracy. Read what the founders say about a free press. Yes, it has gone intentionally left, and it is somewhat weaker than before, but it is still hugely powerful and influential with most Americans.

Sean Hannity says that journalism is dead. Amen. More and more journalists agree, like Michael S. Malone, the msm has lost its credibility. Yes, we have a New Media; talk radio, and the rightosphere on the web. It is growing, but it is only in it’s infancy, and it’s about to come under major attack by congress. Speaking of which, that should really tell us something about how important they think control over the press is!

Leftists, aided by the press, are stealing our freedom step by step. We must fight the left wing press. We must continue to build our own media infrastructure, and NOT so we can talk to ourselves! We must be able to influence the wide middle if we hope to win elections. There IS a way to do it! To be continued…

Like a lot of people out here, Rush is a hero of mine. To root for him is to root for all of us conservatives. More than any other living person, he is our champion. We have felt his ups and downs as our own. Lately though, a little concern has been nagging my mind and has finally coalesced with the latest bailout money being aimed at the auto industry. Is GM using big ad buys to mute criticism from Rush and Sean?

In a nutshell, GM has big ad buys on both shows, not merely commercials, but live endorsement spots, highlighting their new hybrid and flex fuel vehicles, and have begun the run-up to the Volt, the all-electric plug in. The hosts are driving demo models of these cars, and talking them up, and Sean said he bought the Escalade hybrid. Nothing wrong with this in itself, I’m glad for them to get the accounts. But it seems to me that rather than pushing these cars, they should be mocking them instead.

Lets face it; these kinds of cars are built around some decidedly UN-conservative ideas. Flex fuel and hybrid vehicles are made for one objective: Save the planet from “global warming”. They are more expensive to buy, and ethanol is more expensive due to lower mileage AND government subsidies. It has also been shown pretty convincingly to be an environmental hoax, and though a boon for certain farmers, it has driven up food costs throughout the world. By the way, where is the vast demand for these cars? There has been a small group of buyers who always loved the idea of the hybrid, and high gas prices temporarily drove up demand for better mileage cars. Still, they are only about 1% of the market. When gas prices are reasonable, what people really want (and buy) are larger, safer cars.

I haven’t heard Rush play that hilarious Shanklin parody, “In a Yugo” lately, but it really captured the essence of the issue. There have always been good reasons to be skeptical of small cars as a way to save the planet, most particularly that we “save the planet” at the expense of human lives, lives lost due to higher fatality rates of small cars. These lives are literally human sacrifices to Mother Earth.

Government carrots and sticks drive Big Auto in a direction most people don’t want to go. As they invest more in factories for these cars, fueled by government incentives, they will need to defend the systems they build; that is, flex fuel and electric. Is GM likely to support “Drill Here Drill Now” to bring down fuel prices? Doubtful. Ironically, building the Volt now seems especially risky in light of Obama’s promise to “bankrupt coal” and cause electricity prices to “skyrocket”. How long before the carrots and (mostly) sticks are aimed at consumers, by Big Government protecting it’s share of Big Auto?

I see a conflict coming for Rush and Sean. Pelosi has already hinted that bailout money will be buying even greater control over the Auto industry. Goodbye, Suburbans! This will certainly result in an even bigger disaster for Big Auto. More than ever, we need Rush and Sean to stand up against this terrible idea. Are they still willing to criticize these cars and the government policies driving them? Has it already had an effect? It seems only Mark Levin has not thus far been a part of the GM ad campaign. (Intentional?)

For now, the election has probably killed any real chance for an energy independence policy built around developing our domestic resources. If the Big Auto gets re-tooled around insane environmental ideas, it will only serve to lock in insane energy ideas. Conservatives can’t afford compromise on energy independence. Rush, Mark and Sean have been leaders warning about nutty environmentalism, and advocating for domestic energy. Now they seem to be lending their voices to the global warming hoax.

Will two of our best voices on the issue be silenced by Big Auto money?

I’m seeing this argument all over, on the web and even talk radio: We lost because our candidate wasn’t conservative enough. A real conservative would have won. The American people want a Reagan. This is dead wrong. And I can prove it.

We have to get this right. We MUST. We have to know why we actually lost if we are to turn this around.

For the record: I DO NOT PREFER MODERATES! I am a right-wing Christian conservative down the line.

Here is the basic argument: The press likes moderate republicans because moderates can’t win the general election. The press picked McCain because he was the most moderate and therefore would lose. McCain lost because the voters did not get excited about his message, it wasn’t conservative enough. So, since there wasn’t a real conservative, they picked a very liberal candidate instead. Say what???

They say that most powerful lie has lots of truth in it. Yes the press wanted a moderate republican, only because there was no liberal republican. The press wants moderates because they hate conservatives. And maybe they do think a moderate will lose, but in truth, if he wins he’s not AS BAD as a conservative (to the press). So far this is true.

But why would a moderate lose the election? Here’s where the theory goes wrong. Here is where we conservatives are getting this ALL WRONG.

Do republicans risk losing elections by nominating moderates? Yes. But get this right. Moderates lose the BASE, not the wide middle. For obvious reasons, including ground organization, and sheer numbers in a close election, candidates cannot win without their base. This is the ONLY reason moderates lose. They risk losing the base; no money, no work, no turnout.

McCain did not lose the base. Palin rescued the base for McCain. The American people DO NOT automatically reject moderates, and love strong conservatives. They elected Clinton; they elected Bush 41; for goodness sake they just elected Obama!! Think about it!

If you think a “real” conservative would have won, look down the ticket! There were plenty of REAL conservatives running for congress, governors, state houses, on and on. In my town, we had several very strong conservatives run and lose, in one case, to a very liberal incumbent who has been mired in corruption! All over America, with a few notable exceptions, conservatives lost.

But why is that, if as we say (and I believe) most people are mostly center right? Seriously, is it because the people are saying, “If I have to vote for a moderate instead of a strong conservative, I’ll vote liberal instead”? Ridiculous!

We lost because the MSM is still VERY powerful. It is the fourth branch. It is extremely and openly biased. It is the reason our President is unpopular, the reason Democrats escaped blame for the meltdown, the reason Obama got glowing coverage, and the reason McCain Palin got relentlessly torn down.

The press is the reason we lost.

11-5-08

So.

Republicans have lost. Big.

Today the post mortems begin. That is to be expected and is necessary. But conservatives must beware of commentary on the right and left that misses what really caused the loss. Very plainly, we did not lose because of our candidates, our ideas, or marketing or packaging. We lost because of the Fourth Estate. If we do not combat and defeat the left-wing MSM monster in America, we will be a permanent minority.

Conservatives and Republicans have already been arguing over the questions:

Could another, more conservative, Republican have won?

Did McCain run a poor campaign?

Was he hurt by his choice of Sarah Palin?

Did social issues hurt McCain?

Was he too much a moderate?

Is America really more left-center?

These are important questions and part of the struggle for our identity. But they have nothing to do with why we lost.

Byron York at NRO has an excellent analysis of the election result and what McCain was actually able to accomplish. McCain managed to capture around 46% of the vote, much higher than either Bush 41 in ’92 or Dole in ’96 achieved, and in spite of much more difficult obstacles; a very unpopular president, a shaky economy, an unpopular war, and finally the economic meltdown.

On the face, McCain lost the election for two reasons, one, we can broadly call Bush’s unpopularity (the war, the economy et al). Reason two though is that Obama was very popular, even apart from the unpopularity of Bush, and despite quite a number of issues that should have seriously tarnished his image; very small very liberal record, radical associations, tax and spend, redistribute wealth, kill coal and raise energy costs, etc, etc.

What do these two items have in common? What if, just if, Bush’s low ratings and Obama’s high ratings were actually due to a very, no, extremely liberal, biased, agenda-driven press? What if?

Conservatives, ask yourself: has the war on terror really been a failure? No! We didn’t start it, but W found a way to fight it, move the battlefield far from home, prevent further attacks here, and liberate Iraq in the process! But after all these years of the press daily hammering away at the war of course he’s unpopular! And when the war was going well, like after the surge, they simply made it disappear! And what about the economy, especially the housing meltdown? Conservatives, was it really W’s fault? He warned about it and tried to get reform and was blocked by Democrats. Imagine if the story was the other way around! But the press has covered for the democrats and blamed Bush day after day after day after day. Of course he’s unpopular on the economy! The press has been campaigning against McCain for eight years.

Look, to illustrate, lets have a little game, shall we? Just for fun, try to imagine the last few days of the election, but with a conservative press. Can’t quite get your mind around it? I know; it may take a drink or two, but humor me. For the sake of brevity, we will just imagine it with the players we actually had, otherwise we get too much confusing back-to-the-future time-space warping…

“John McCain and Sarah Palin campaigned today in New York, traditionally safe Democratic territory, stumping for Republicans who hope to overturn control of the House and Senate. They were joined by President Bush, whose record approval numbers and success in Iraq are widely credited with carrying McCain to what is looking like a landslide victory. McCain’s own approval numbers have steadily gone up, largely due to of his leadership on the highly successful surge in Iraq. Introducing McCain was female Iraqi businesswoman Huda Fakri, whose amazing story and expressions of gratitude to America has been moving crowds at campaign stops.

“Even so, Democrats would probably not be defending states like New York except for the economic emergency caused by the housing scandal. Although not yet directly implicated, Obama has seen his numbers plummet along with congressional democrats, as the investigations and trials have exposed corruption between Democrats and officials at Fannie and Freddy.

“Obama himself campaigned today in Michigan, which early on was thought to be receptive to Obama’s ‘change’ message. However, at least according to the polls, Obama’s plan for higher taxes and massive spending has not resounded with voters, nor have continuing revelations of his past associations, all of which seem to paint a picture of a candidate firmly left of the electorate. Reporting for CNN, this is Wolf Blitzer”

Five more minutes Ma, I’m having the best dream…

Republicans needn’t bother arguing whether this candidate or that could have won. There is NO Republican dream ticket as far as the press is concerned. The good news is that the country is center right, as proven by the fact that liberal Democrat candidates must move (way) to the center in the general campaign, (where their true record and positions will be hidden by the press). But we cannot hope to communicate with the people through the current MSM.

McCain was not the most conservative, but he clearly was acceptable to America. After all, they accepted Clinton when he moved to the center. Palin was also acceptable, at least as experienced as Obama, and did the job of shoring up the base. As far as his campaign, again, considering how well he did do, ask yourself this: If Bush had the approval rating he really deserved, was reasonably popular, was not being blamed for the economy, and the press was NOT shilling for Obama, but thoroughly vetting him, would McCain have won? Absolutely.

Why did McCain lose and Obama win? Very simply, the press. Not just during the campaign. Every day, all across the country, in every state and city, for about, oh, forty years now, the MSM report on how bad conservatives are and how great liberals and Democrats are. They cover for corruption for democrats, and attack and blame and belittle Republicans. The real miracle is that Republicans ever win at all. It gets more blatant each year, and now Democrats are openly threatening the most successful conservative information medium, talk radio. If we lose our budding attempt at a “new media”, conservatives will be a permanent minority.

Conservatives need to take a fresh look at the MSM. The effects can no longer be shrugged off glibly, saying simply “We all know they’re biased,” or “Reagan got around the press”. Sure he did, but most of the thousands of candidates who run every election cannot be a Reagan. Nor should they have to be. And by the way, it’s much more than that. The press in our country is supposed to be a check on politicians. This is never more important than during campaigns. There is simply no penalty for lying during a campaign. The only remedy is the vote. But when one side can count on cover from the press for ANY statement, no matter how untrue, and protection from any charge, no matter how true, the people have NO remedy left.

Conservatives can spare themselves twisting into knots over what candidates can win. Our ideas are true; they are the same that founded the republic. Our ideas work, they are proven, exciting, and they are acceptable to the majority of people, at least today. A few more years of socialism may well destroy people’s willingness to accept the ideas of personal freedom and responsibility. But today, our problem is not our candidates, or packaging, or marketing. I do not know how to solve this problem, but the first step is to recognize the real reason we lost.

“The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles. Freeman and slave, patrician and plebian, lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in a word, oppressor and oppressed…” Karl Marx, The Communist Manifesto, 1848.

Proletariat vs. Bourgeois, Oppressor vs. oppressed. Businessman vs. worker. Rich vs. poor. Almost* everyone in one camp or the other; the oppressed masses or the oppressing few. This is the dirty old window through which the left still views humanity; how Obama views humanity. Obama knows class struggle.

Thus it was that when Obama met Joe the Plumber, he was able to place him in the proper camp within a matter of seconds, the space of one question from Joe.

To the casual class-war practitioner, Joe fits neatly among the oppressed masses. He is after all a tradesman, working with his hands for an hourly wage, and all for the benefit of some oppressing businessman. But Master Class Warrior Obama was not fooled by appearances. Obama answered as if Joe already had his means of capitalist production (business) and was already oppressing the proletariat (his employees).

How did Champion Obama so quickly recognize Joe as an enemy of the masses, and consign him to the proper camp? Class-war privates, pay attention if you ever hope to become lieutenants.

Joe’s question revealed his dream, his hope for a better life, his entrepreneurial spirit. It showed most especially that he was not of the dependant class, that he intended to make it by his own hard work. He did not ask for Obama’s help, he just wanted Obama NOT to impede him.

Big mistake. Because while almost* everyone is in one of the camps, Obama is in a very, very special group. History doesn’t really name his group, but call it the Hero group, the Rescuer group, the Anointed group, the Savior group: and it’s very small indeed. In Marx’s book, the Communists were the heroes; the Ones who would gather the oppressed masses into a class, give them their identity, and lead them to rise up and punish the oppressor class.

Joe wasn’t one of the downtrodden masses wearily awaiting rescue from Robin ObamaHood. For that crime, Joe the Plumber became Joe the Bourgeois. Ooh, sorry Joe. Wrong camp. And yes, in fact, Obama does want to punish Joe (his minions started that right away).

Because Joe is the oppressor, his imaginary employees, the oppressed, and Obama the One, the savoir of those imaginary oppressed.

Dear Mark,

First let me say that even though you are called the Great One, you do not get nearly enough recognition and praise for your brilliance AND especially your good looks. Ha!

I have been listening intently to your shows as you discuss this election and its dramatic ramifications.

We are, many of us, as you are, acutely aware of the precarious moment. America’s gradual slouching into socialism is about to become a headlong plunge. Hayek and history have well warned that socialism itself is but a step on a path leading inevitably to dictatorship and tyranny.

Yes, Obama and a 60-seat senate Democrat majority will take that plunge. But the best argument you can make for McCain is that he will buy us time. Delay the looming disaster.

But my friend, you are wrong. The Titanic has already struck the iceberg; you want to wrestle over the ships wheel.

You have used the term soft tyranny. Mark, my beloved Brother, we are there! Now!

Talk Show Host: Listen now to me.

I am Joe the Plumber, Joe the Father, and Joe the Citizen. Every day, I try to raise my family, run my small business and TRY to enjoy the blessings this magnificent country affords. But I am slowly being bled to death by a thousand cuts of a hydra headed government.

I read the list of grievances in the Declaration of Independence, the very causes that propelled the Revolution, and I can only smile. Read it! Seen in the light of what we live with today, it’s practically petty!

·        Today, government bureaucrats at every level have dictates for almost every aspect of our lives.

·        Public schools fight me for the mind of my children, and government challenges my right to raise them according to my conscience. Not under Obama, but now, TODAY!

·        Consider the matrix of regulation on the use of private property, and the attack on property rights through environmental regulation and exploding use of eminent domain, TODAY.

·        Free speech is under attack by PC thought police, and our right to actually use free speech in the most important way, politically, has been sharply curtailed by the court we have- TODAY.

·        The government is attempting to intimidate church pastors and members from speaking out and acting upon their religious faith- Not in the future- Now.

·        It is nearly impossible to operate a business today without running afoul of any of the myriad regulations enforced by an army of government officers. It literally KILLS the spirit of entrepreneurship, and it gets worse every day, right now!

·        Hidden taxes, regulations, and un-funded mandates are everywhere making daily life a struggle for survival in this nation of bounty.

• And talk about eating our substance! The Founders never even dreamed of the level of confiscation of lawfully earned income as we have right now, TODAY. Are total taxes 40%? 50%? Are we thus only 50% slaves?
• Look at Leviathan, the Federal Government. Enumerated powers indeed! Is there ANY matter into which Washington will not insert itself? Jefferson warned that when Washington directed the planting and the harvest, we would soon lack bread. See: Current Financial Meltdown.
• What of the courts? They are right now rendering our legislatures moot, making law from the bench, completely unconstrained by the Constitution or the will of the people.
• And what of our so-called “free press”? They are FAR more disgraceful than any communist controlled organ ever was, because they go along freely, spouting the lies of those that slowly bind us.

So. Can things get worse? Oh yes, much worse. It has happened in other countries. With or without Obama, our freedom to travel, to choose jobs, to own any property at all, to speak and worship and raise our children, even to read and think freely, all these can and will be lost soon, or perhaps sooner, if we don’t radically change the situation we are already in. The ship is sinking! In fact, torpedoes are in the water that soon will finish us off. The current financial crisis is but a shadow of the looming Social Security time bomb. Does anyone think McCain will save us from that? Electing John McCain does not save the ship. At best he slows the sinking. He will pacify us for four more years. In this way he is WORSE than Obama.

I for one am tired of the socialism we already have! I’m sick from the tyranny already poisoning me! I can’t stand four more years of this growing menace! The change we need now is a New Revolution. We don’t have ten more years to get ready to fight. It’s time to fight NOW! We still have a chance! We can reclaim Liberty! We can fight, not with guns, but with words and deeds. Our model is not the civil war but the civil rights struggle. With real leadership and coordinated effort, a kind of massive sit-in, we could make a stand, we could halt this poison tide! Not four years from now, or ten years from now. NOW!

Besides, what is the option? We are now in the midst of a slow motion surrender that ends in the death of our republic and serfdom for us. How much longer before we do fight? I hear a thundering voice echoing down through history. What would Patrick Henry say today?

“When will we be stronger? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, morally and mentally? Do we effectively resist the growing tyranny with our whining on the radio, or hugging the phantom hope of a future conservative savior, until we are bound hand and foot? We are not yet weak; if only we make use of what God-given spirit we have left. Millions of people, armed with the holy desire for Liberty, and in such a land as this, are invincible to tyranny! Besides, the fight is not ours alone. God Himself, who raised up this nation, will fight with us to save it! Besides, we have no choice. Tyranny has already engaged us in the fight. There is no retreat except into submission and slavery. Our prison is built, the war is inevitable; and let it come! I repeat, Sir, let it come! Why do we stand idle? What is it some will have? Material wealth? Personal peace? At the price of slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I don’t know what others may wish, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!”

Mark, I write this to you because you have expressed with crystal clarity the situation we face, if not the reality of where we already are. You have promised to fight if Obama wins. You have promised even to fight McCain if he wins. I heard you say you would fight to rebuild the conservative movement. Well if I may be so bold as to paraphrase you, “Quit talking you Big Dope!” Start fighting NOW! And don’t worry about rebuilding the “movement”. Screw the “movement”!

Conservatism is alive and well, out here in America. If you want to do something, a bunch of us are ready! We don’t need another think tank! We need action. You want to stop this march of tyranny before it strangles liberty once and for all? Then stop writing books and make a plan of action! We need revolution now! Maybe if enough of us business people stopped sending in tax payments, we could bleed the feds dry! Or maybe we all move to Texas so we can own at least one state. We need a plan and we need leadership and most of all we need action. During the Revolution, they communicated through Committees of Correspondence. Today we have talk radio, but how much longer? You say you will fight those who want to destroy talk radio through the fairness doctrine. Well dammit, why don’t you use it while you got it! You guys remind me of what Lincoln said to one of his generals, along the lines of, “If you aren’t going to use the army, could I at least borrow it?”

Joe the Plumber dreams of buying a business that makes a little over 250K, and rightly wonders whether Obama will tax him more than McCain. I am sure “Senator Government” will indeed raise taxes and regulation, but in truth, if Joe knew what I know, he might reconsider the whole thing, no matter who gets elected.

Running a small business in America is already excruciating.

Start with the money. Contrary to the attacks of Jackass Joe Biden, there are plenty of plumbers and other small business people who make over 250K gross. But what you keep from that if you play by the rules will usually be about 50K. That would be a 20% margin, (um, that’s profit Mr. Biden). And as your gross revenue goes up, normally your margin goes down.

So, all those dirty, rotten, greedy business people “making” 250K, are really only keeping around 50K. That’s $962 per week before taxes. Hate to break the news to Joe the plumber, but that’s only $24.00 per hour. I don’t live in Ohio, but I bet plumbers there make pretty close to that amount, working for someone else.

BUT WAIT! It’s only $24.00 an hour if he works a 40-hour week. Ask ANY businessperson if they work only 40 hours per week. When they stop laughing, you will find 60 hours is probably below average. But 60 hours makes the hourly rate $16.00, BEFORE taxes.

$16.00. Hey Joe Biden, know any plumbers who make $16.00 an hour? Anybody think Biden’s ever personally hired a plumber?

So most likely, when Joe (the plumber) starts out, he will take a pay cut. That’s despite the fact that he will now have TWO jobs. That’s where the 60 hours comes in. Job one is still being an actual plumber in the business he just bought. It’s too small for him not to work full time, so figure 8-10 hours a day. Job 2 is- Run the business (in your spare time). That is; answer phones, make sales calls, create bids, plan jobs, order materials, hire employees, supervise workers, maintain equipment, manage various insurance policies, especially workers comp, pay bills, customer service, make payroll each week, and collect payment from customers, just to begin.

But the real joy of business is the next layer, dealing with the government. Start with a Federal Tax ID; then get your various business licenses, which usually renew annually. Check out zoning requirements and environmental laws. You will have forms for state and federal taxes either quarterly or monthly. You will have withholding; state and federal, social security, Medicaid, unemployment, etc., and deposits, reports and payments to be filed monthly or quarterly. God have mercy on your soul if those reports are late or incorrect. More forms when someone claims unemployment; (yes, the guy you fired for stealing the copper), sometimes government hearings for same. Maybe you will meet your states labor board. You will have to collect back child support, and tax garnishments of deadbeat employees. They will then quit, and apply for unemployment. More paperwork. Next, deal with OSHA, DMV, DOT, on and on and on. I’m not exaggerating, there’s much more.

After all this, its income tax time. If your lucky, you can keep keep half of what you finally can call income. That is, half of  that 15-20%.

This is how it is TODAY! It’s hard for me to get really frightened about Obama’s coming “socialism”. I happen to know we’ve got it already. Joe the Plumber, be careful what you wish for.

Why do many conservatives have such a difficult time clearly and effectively articulating their opposition to gay “marriage”, especially when large majorities of Americans oppose it? If asked why, most of that majority would likely answer simply “because it is wrong”. It is precisely because many “conservatives” will not use that answer that they are not winning the issue.

Liberals want a debate about things like whether it’s better for society for gays to be married rather than (I suppose) prowling the streets, or whether a gay marriage is better for raising children than say a “domestic partnership”, or whether gay partners are harmed in legal matters such as property and medical decisions. But while both sides of these arguments may gain sympathy, or sway opinion, they don’t win the debate.

If they are to change the law, liberals must fight on different ground; that preventing gays from any aspect of traditional marriage, including the name, is wrong because amounts to a denial of their rights, and that it is discrimination. Ironically, this is the very ground upon which their entire premise can be effectively destroyed, but it’s ground many conservatives have given up.

Conservatives, listen up. What, exactly, do liberals mean by “wrong”?

Yes, they are actually saying that discrimination against gays is morally wrong. They mean it is morally wrong in the same way that racial discrimination is morally wrong. They mean it in the same way that beating up someone just because they are gay is wrong. Wrong, Morally wrong. They mean it in the very sense that conservatives believe; that there is actually a right and wrong. Absolutes. They say it that way, and they mean it that way. They just don’t believe it.

You may be thinking, “that’s pretty cheeky, homosexuals using morality to defend gay marriage!” If so, give yourself a gold star. Arguing that “discrimination” against gays is morally wrong presupposes that there is such a thing as morals in the first place; that is, a set of absolute right and wrongs. In this issue, as many others today, liberals use arguments based on morality to advance ideas and causes that destroy the very idea of morality. Liberals certainly do not accept the idea that homosexual behavior is immoral. How do they get away with this “selective moral enforcement”? Because conservatives today do the same thing.

Morality predates law, and is the basis for law. It’s how we judge law, along with the Constitution, which is itself based on higher morals. This is our whole system. A thing is not right merely because it is legal. Liberals are arguing for a change based on the idea that the law is wrong. Morally wrong. This argument works well in America because the vast majority of us believe (vaguely perhaps) in an absolute standard that is higher than the law, and that if the law is in conflict with what is right, right must prevail and the law should be changed. Thus Californians will vote November 4 whether to change the gay marriage “law” as proscribed by their Supreme Court because it conflicts with what many believe is right.

Although liberals use the moral argument, they certainly do not believe in it. Today’s liberals have utterly repudiated the very concept of an absolute right and wrong and only use it to the extent that it works for their agenda today, this minute. They are lying, but it doesn’t matter; there’s no such thing as wrong. If conservatives began applying the moral argument as underpinning all law, the liberals would be forced to abandon it immediately.

Liberals could not effectively argue that there is a higher moral code that should prevent “anti gay discrimination” in the law, but that says nothing about gay behavior. It is that moral code which gives us the very definition of marriage in the first place. Approached from the other end, if liberals will not accept the moral code that defines real marriage, they cannot use that moral code to decry discrimination. If they cannot use the moral code to challenge the law, they are left with only the law as final arbiter, (in which case they should accept that the law says marriage is between one man and one woman). If they want to say “It is wrong to discriminate against gays in marriage laws,” then the obvious answer is, “No, homosexual ‘marriage’ is wrong. Morally wrong.”

Why then don’t conservatives just get right to the point? Why don’t they stand up and say that if morals are destroyed in one part, they are destroyed in total, and the rule of law with it? In part, it is because the same moral code that says marriage is one man-one woman also says that a marriage is supposed to be for life. It says we are to remain faithful, for life. It says we are to be sexually pure, including what we look at. We are not to abandon our children in divorce, etc., etc. Moderate conservatives do not want to be held to the whole moral code any more than liberals do.

There is one aspect of the absolute moral code that moderates find, well icky. Of course in order to have a higher law you must have a higher law Giver. The founders were not squeamish about acknowledging the source of our rights and law; we “…are endowed by [our] Creator with certain unalienable rights.” This is the foundation of our rights, our constitution and our laws. Without the higher law, revealed by God, there is really no solid reason to deny gays “marriage”, or polygamists, or on and on.

The truth is, gay “marriage” cannot begin to damage marriage the way forty years of liberal attitudes about sex and divorce has. It is only the next logical step. It will however make repairing the institution much more difficult. Our entire culture will continue it’s downward slide until real conservatives take up the fight on the right ground.