Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsHilarious Rant - "Scientology for Rednecks: What the GOP Has Become"
As with many religions, political parties have a tendency to start as a movement, transform into a business, and finally degenerate into a racket designed to fleece the yokels. One organization which has gone out of its way to illustrate this evolution is the Republican Party. And it has done so with a national scope and fundraising apparatus that would have made Jimmy Swaggart or Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker mute with awe.
By "Republican Party" I mean both the formal party and its extended apparat: talk radio and the Fox News empire, pressure groups like the Family Research Council, allegedly "educational" 501(c)3 organizations like the Heritage Foundation, direct mail outfits descended from the original Richard Viguerie mother ship, polling firms like Rasmussen's, and the Tea Party itself (the latter nevertheless asserts its non-affiliation with the GOP despite its having sponsored the Florida Republican presidential candidates' debate in 2011).
True believers in this multi-faceted scam are usually careful to make a (false) distinction between the institutional GOP and the so-called conservative movement. The Republican Party and its grandees, according to this fable, are not "true conservatives." By 2008, the operatives of the racket were already saying this about George W. Bush, but that assessment required them to perform the mental gymnastics of forgetting that only a few years earlier, they were eager to nominate Dubbya to the next available vacancy in the Trinity.
Having abandoned the apostate Bush, the true believers were off on a quixotic hunt for the next messiah: Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Hermann Cain, the resurrected Newt Gingrich. Each pasteboard messiah having eventually fallen to earth with a thump, the congregation settled for the colorless but ostensibly electable Mitt Romney (Romney may have been the purest true conservative in the operational sense, given his genius for separating rich donors from their money). That pragmatic decision came to naught in November 2012, but it wasn't long before the faithful, and all the movement's con artists who cling to the faithful like fleas to a dog, were off on a pilgrimage to find the next conservative Wunderkind. . . .
By "Republican Party" I mean both the formal party and its extended apparat: talk radio and the Fox News empire, pressure groups like the Family Research Council, allegedly "educational" 501(c)3 organizations like the Heritage Foundation, direct mail outfits descended from the original Richard Viguerie mother ship, polling firms like Rasmussen's, and the Tea Party itself (the latter nevertheless asserts its non-affiliation with the GOP despite its having sponsored the Florida Republican presidential candidates' debate in 2011).
True believers in this multi-faceted scam are usually careful to make a (false) distinction between the institutional GOP and the so-called conservative movement. The Republican Party and its grandees, according to this fable, are not "true conservatives." By 2008, the operatives of the racket were already saying this about George W. Bush, but that assessment required them to perform the mental gymnastics of forgetting that only a few years earlier, they were eager to nominate Dubbya to the next available vacancy in the Trinity.
Having abandoned the apostate Bush, the true believers were off on a quixotic hunt for the next messiah: Sarah Palin, Michele Bachmann, Hermann Cain, the resurrected Newt Gingrich. Each pasteboard messiah having eventually fallen to earth with a thump, the congregation settled for the colorless but ostensibly electable Mitt Romney (Romney may have been the purest true conservative in the operational sense, given his genius for separating rich donors from their money). That pragmatic decision came to naught in November 2012, but it wasn't long before the faithful, and all the movement's con artists who cling to the faithful like fleas to a dog, were off on a pilgrimage to find the next conservative Wunderkind. . . .
MORE...
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-s-lofgren/scientology-for-rednecks_b_2707087.html
InfoView thread info, including edit history
TrashPut this thread in your Trash Can (My DU » Trash Can)
BookmarkAdd this thread to your Bookmarks (My DU » Bookmarks)
2 replies, 1413 views
ShareGet links to this post and/or share on social media
AlertAlert this post for a rule violation
PowersThere are no powers you can use on this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
ReplyReply to this post
EditCannot edit other people's posts
Rec (14)
ReplyReply to this post
2 replies
= new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight:
NoneDon't highlight anything
5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Hilarious Rant - "Scientology for Rednecks: What the GOP Has Become" (Original Post)
ProfessionalLeftist
Feb 2013
OP
truth2power
(8,219 posts)1. Last sentence of the article...
"And, who knows, another national catastrophe like 9/11 or an asset collapse could once again put them at the helm of the country to summon the demons lurking in the national id."
Exactly what Chris Hedges has been saying for the past several years: When things break down in a society, financially or otherwise, the system "vomits up" some sort of proto-fascist demagogue.
We need to be aware of this.
ProfessionalLeftist
(4,982 posts)2. I'd say things are busting apart all over the U.S.
And teh crazy is spewing out all over the place ie: GOP Teabillies