Ed Rawlins on the RNC/ Limbaugh debate

[Marvin S]

Serious question, Marvin: What is a Republican? What is a conservative?

There is no one size fits all as individuals are subject to different life experiences, some experiences making an imprint & some not. We all have different views based on those experiences, but I believe it important that there not be a desire to control others law abiding actions, except where necessary. It's the definition of necessary that creates controversy.

When you say Republican, I think of Ed Rawlins, Charlie Crist, Dick Lugar, Bush the elder, etc.. They are decent folks and if the ran the local bank, I could leave my money with them. Certainly, I'm not philosophically in sync with them all the time, but I like to hear their viewpoints.

I would be less than lukewarm to all of the above, though each may have some individual deeds worthy of praise. I consider them left of moderate Republicans.

Being a nice person does not excuse a lack of fiscal competence (Read My Lips) or failure to be a good manager when in higher office. I personally like Jon Kyl who was included in the list of 6 Senators & something like 50 Representatives who scored 90% or better on Club for Growths Fiscal Responsibility list. BTW - Ron Paul, the darling of the uninformed, was in the 65% range so he is not as anti spending as he would want one to believe.

When you say conservative, I think of William F. Buckley. Certainly a learned and articulate spokesman for conservatism. I am not from the same social class, so my starting point is different than his, but I found him quite thought provoking.

Steve Forbes, Editor of Forbes & former POTUS candidate is what I would call a bright moderate Republican. Having read the magazine pre-Steve until now, he is a true spokesman for most of what is good about business in America.

I truly enjoyed National Review with Buckley at the helm, it appears the magazine is continuing that tradition of high quality written articles. One should subscribe for nothing else other than to improve their vocabulary. Many of the articles are thought provoking though they may be somewhat contrary to one's established train of thought. I expect to read "God & Man at Yale" when my table clears somewhat.

My own personal thought process, though trending more conservative yearly after having voted for Stevenson in '52 (didn't believe a military person should be POTUS), really came about while reading "Conscience of a Conservative" by Barry Goldwater in the early '60s. It allowed me to be exposed to a sensible approach to governing & what has transpired since then says Goldwater was correct. This would be a different world today had the election gone differently.

Then there is Limbaugh who people call a Republican, and says he is not, he says he is a conservative. To me he sounds more like a bitter, mean barroom blowhard that is impressed with the sound of his own voice more than with the sound of his thoughts.

These people are entertainers, the mention of his name probably drives Limbaugh into ecstacy, but when he is not patting himself on the back he can be very informative & would have to be considered the best of the radio babblers. You have to admit he is stuck on himself. But he drives a large audience & moved McCain in the right direction during the campaign for POTUS. McCain went from unacceptable to somewhat so because of that move, John just wasn't comfortable with it. Mrs. McCain would have made a better POTUS than any of them.

I listen to very little radio or watch little TV - Sports & the market are what interest me - occasionally a sitcom. & Yes I do try to do a little dog training though distances to acceptable training areas make that harder to accomplish all the time.

The rest - Hannity, O'Reilly, Coulter, et al are pseudo conservative, they'd be liberal if there was any money in it. Their worthy of little comment.

Who I do like to read are Thomas Sowell, Michael Barone, Mona Charen, Virginia Postrel (former editor of Reason) & on occasion Michelle Malkin though she can go where I'm not interested in going. Anything by the 1st 4 is worthy of one's time.

Can you help me out here Marv. Which is which?

I'm not sure what I've posted will be helpful but it is a subject that is hard to put into words. There probably is no perfect Conservative Republican, the closest has probably been Goldwater. & he had a libertarian streak which is admirable.

[subroc]

...Then there is Limbaugh...To me he sounds more like a bitter, mean barroom blowhard that is impressed with the sound of his own voice more than with the sound of his thoughts...

chuckling

LOL

that voice reverberates in about 20,000,000 homes

chuckling

Rush Limbaugh, the boogie man of the left

Hey Sarge, should our elected officials enact legislation to force radio stations to give equal time to other political positions, on moral issues, philosophical issues and the like that differ from Rush?

[zeus3925]

Nah! He's an entertainer isn't he--just like Michael Moore? I boycott Moore's movies and Limbaugh's sponsors. But, if you live in an an area deprived of diversion, who am I to cut off your jollies?

[zeus3925]

There probably is no perfect Conservative Republican, the closest has probably been Goldwater. & he had a libertarian streak which is admirable.

It is interesting that the term Libertarian keeps cropping up often when they express exasperation with the traditional parties. Libertarianism sounds an awful lot like anarchy. In fact, its roots are from the extreme left. Is there an understanding of the philosophy among conservatives or is it a term just thrown in for effect?

[subroc]

It is interesting that the term Libertarian keeps cropping up often when they express exasperation with the traditional parties. Libertarianism sounds an awful lot like anarchy. In fact, its roots are from the extreme left. Is there an understanding of the philosophy among conservatives or is it a term just thrown in for effect?

I expect it is the smaller goverment aspect of libertarianism that is appealing to many republicans.

[Uncle Bill]

I expect it is the smaller goverment aspect of libertarianism that is appealing to many republicans.

That, along with their passivism. You'll find many among the consciencious objectors in our military. They can make a good arguement for not funding a military, or finding any reason for going to war; Alan Alda's Hawkeye character in MASH was a good example.

One of my favorite deep thinkers and entreprenuer, Bill Bonner is another excellent example. Reading his material is like following Ayn Rand's objectivism philosophy, and not buying into her atheism arguements.

One area I can buy into the libertarian view is with their belief the Bill of Rights was an oxymoranic addition to our Constitution.

It's always a crap-shoot to 'get-on-board' completely with many of those we have much in common with, Joe. Just about the time we think we have the perfect individual to espouse our views, they become a Newt-type, and you wonder what the hayel were they thinking???

And while I can pretty much agree with many of Marvin's views, his statements concerning Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter not having strong conservative basics, is absolute trash....and a perfect example of how the phrase "eating our own" is established. It's understandable that an egoist has a hard time dealing with another equally strong minded and opinionated point of view.

UB

[Marvin S]

These people are entertainers, the mention of his name probably drives Limbaugh into ecstacy, but when he is not patting himself on the back he can be very informative & would have to be considered the best of the radio babblers. You have to admit he is stuck on himself. But he drives a large audience & moved McCain in the right direction during the campaign for POTUS. McCain went from unacceptable to somewhat so because of that move, John just wasn't comfortable with it. Mrs. McCain would have made a better POTUS than any of them.

Who I do like to read are Thomas Sowell, Michael Barone, Mona Charen, Virginia Postrel (former editor of Reason) & on occasion Michelle Malkin though she can go where I'm not interested in going. Anything by the 1st 4 is worthy of one's time.

And while I can pretty much agree with many of Marvin's views, his statements concerning Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter not having strong conservative basics, is absolute trash....and a perfect example of how the phrase "eating our own" is established. It's understandable that an egoist has a hard time dealing with another equally strong minded and opinionated point of view.

UB

UB - not interested in a urinating match with yourself so would ask you to read the above quote - hilited for your benefit - & tell me where I did call RL anything other than conservative. There was a time, when there were not so many available sound bites that Rush's program was quite interesting with the subject matter being a general discussion of issues relative to the COTUS. Rush's historical knowledge is an interesting listen. But with all the material available today & the existing POTUS & his minions providing more hourly Rush is in a feeding frenzy. I do read the Limbaugh Letter & find it informative, just don't listen to his radio program that much.

As for Ann Coulter - I find her message abrasive. & I did read one of her books, not exactly a literary masterpiece. Any of the three ladies mentioned in my original post & quoted are a huge cut above her. If you at any time subscribed to Reason while Virginia Postrel was the editor you would know what I meant, she kept the content relevant. When Nick Gillespie assumed the position the quality went downhill fast. I do not think doing drugs is victimless, nor do I accept their premise of staying out of issues beyond our borders.

Delivery of a message is extremely important - You of all people should know that - changing stations is one key punch away. The majority of intelligent people in our society are naturally conservative, it is a better way of life. A poorly delivered message is more of a detriment than the failure to deliver any message, please remember that when listening to one of your favorites. Be capable of critiquing those who don't do their job.

Have a nice day -