Author Archives: Lib-Whisperer

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About Lib-Whisperer

Hello and thanks for visiting the Lib-Whisperer blog site. The Lib-Whisperer is the expression of personal opinions. I hope to grow the site as time goes by and enthusiasm grows. I am sarcastic by nature, but always well intended. I am an admitted history & policy-wonk. I enjoy discussions with people who are curious, flexible and above all else, informed; willing to have their convictions tested through polite fact-based discussions. I’m informed through studying the works of giants like Bastiat, Montesquieu, John Locke, Adam Smith, Thomas Sowell, Milton Friedman, Washington, Jefferson, Adams, our U.S. Constitution, The Federalist Papers, the pamphleteers & landmark SCOTUS opinions to name a few. The Lib Whisperer site hopefully offers insight into the core principles & ideology of a segment of American citizens who believe urgent course changes are necessary to guide our country toward fiscal responsibility, national security, Federalism, conservative values and true representative government. A foundational belief I hold is constituencies constantly form & harden around single issues. History is replete with examples that prove these singular constituencies are routinely high-jacked by traditional established groups and purposely used to divide folks along narrow ideological lines. We must find ways to re-unite citizens who have allowed themselves to become labelled and isolated, and worse, conscripted & unknowingly aligned with larger ideological groups that espouse the need to destroy our country’s historical foundation. For example, witness the origins of the Tea Party and what it eventually became. Mocked & derided by the traditional Left, and then co-opted by the traditional Right. The high-jackings are not always sinister; rather, they are a more a consequence of natural human behavior. There is power in groups, and existing groups who are organized, funded and like-minded typically see new ones as either threats or opportunities. If they are threats- they need to be diminished and eliminated; if they are opportunities, they need to be purposely subordinated, conscripted and melded with the larger group. The intrinsic threat of a new group is it will siphon off members from the established ones. Power, money, prestige and influence moving en masse away from traditional groups is a powerful motivator. Our nation’s two party political-system is a perfect example of hardened constituencies. Labels- once adopted by individuals provide comfort but can induce a subtle intellectual laziness, diminish curiosity, and polarize the adopter. Fiscal cliffs, nuclear Armageddon, financial system instability and corruption, porous borders, the collapse of our public education system, endless wars on drugs, terrorism, polarized ineffective leadership…this is what we are greeted with each day. The future for our kin hangs in the balance; we cannot continue to do things the same way and expect different results. Better ideas are required to solve our problems. Agreeing on what hasn’t worked seems to be a good place to start. Thanks for joining me in the modern “public square” to make sense of all of this.

…all that was missing were bare-chested men, bear-grease and chain link fencing‏

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Hi Debate Fans!

Vice Presidential debate viewers were treated to a raucous & bawdy ninety minute political cage fight last night. I for one was not disappointed. I imagined viewers ahead of the fight downing Five-Hour-Energy, hoping to peak their prurient interests at the opening bell, then leaning forward at the edge of their seats throwing air-punches as the titans-of-talk duked it out. At the end, all that was missing was each side’s prep team rushing the stage and hoisting their sweaty battered man above their heads whooping it up with victory cheers while parading him around like a closing scene from any Rocky movie.

The pre-casting was classic- Biden as the wily aged master-grappler begging “put me in coach” in the aftermath of his hero’s crushing upset days before, and Ryan as young Luke Skywalker, brandishing his newly minted light–saber to fight the Dark Side.

I must admit that my guess’s about tenor and tactics ahead of the opening bell were not correct…I didn’t think think we’d be watching Masterpiece Theater, but I didn’t foresee a public rehearsal for this coming weekend’s most cringeworthy Saturday Night Live skit.

Each side’s candid thoughts about the outcome will have to be consigned to the realm of the unknowable given the outrageous stakes and obvious bias. I think we witnessed a draw, but context for this conclusion is important. We have to remember that this gladiator spectacle was not produced for the true believers, rather, it was choreographed and staged for the undecided’s & independents (U&I’s). I now digress for a brief rant on U&I’s.

…I’d like to see a bunch of these self-proclaimed hand-wringers verbally rubber-hosed by a debate moderator until they spill what has them so confused less than three weeks ahead of the election. In an election replete with vivid differences on policy, practice, philosophy and character, the U&I is effectively stating “I watch the candidates and they all make so much sense that it’s tough to decide who to vote for”. Who are these idiots? It reminds me of the classic trope of cognitive dissonance…someone stating- “I feel strongly both ways”. So, and I know that this is a big leap, I want to believe there can’t be this many complete numbskulls turning out to vote (sadly I know the truth). Since I practice my own brand of self-deception, I deny that roughly 10% of the citizenry are this rudderless and ill-informed, there must be wolves among the sheep. Here’s the dirty little secret of most of the publicly self-procalimed U&I’s…while they publicly wear the U&I label for status, they are in fact disguised true believers- Why do they do this? Simple- by announcing U&I status, they claim the intellectual and moral high-ground. “I’m serious, fair, open-minded, thoughtful, intellectually curious” etc. In fact, for the impostors it is a way of donning the cape of intellectual and moral superiority, waving and hand and making a disgusted face while dismissing contrary points of view as “uninformed, racist, elitist” etc, while all the time pulling a virtual straight ticket handle when the curtain closes and secrecy abounds. Strip these charlatans out of the swing-voting equation.

It is worth focusing on the reduced sub-set- the true U&I’s, because a really close election may swing on their truly fickle decisions. Each watched the debate hoping for an “A-HA” moment. A portion of them probably saw Ryan last night for the first time in a substantive non-campaign speech setting; some would have been impressed with his calm demeanor and command of facts. Others would have been assured that Biden is a tough, seasoned, trust-worthy wise sage convincing them that the country is on a one-way trip to the middle-class renaissance, and you don’t pull your prize pitcher in the middle of a no-hitter. Since the true sub-set of “real” U&I’s is so small now, and decreasing rapidly as each day to the election is crossed off the calendar, it is no surprise that the public polls are shifting toward reality- a neck-and-neck race. With no clear winner last night, recent momentum would seem to favor Romney/Ryan. Our country is now debate-obsessed since superman tripped on his cape. The next two debates will settle the question. Will the hero of the down-trodden get his mojo back and pull the mask off of the super-villain during one of the fight scenes, exposing the acid-scarred pasty white face with the permanent snarl? Can’t wait to see.

Do me a favor, when you run into someone who claims U&I status, ask them two questions: first, if I put you on a lie detector, would it be revealed that you actually have a practical record of overwhelmingly favoring one political party over another even though you claim U&I status?…and two, if the answer to question one is no, what in hell are you still confused about?

LW