If I am pessimistic about the future of liberty, it is because I am pessimistic about the strength of the English-speaking nations, which have, in profound ways, surrendered to forces at odds with their inheritance. “Declinism” is in the air, but some of us apocalyptic types are way beyond that. The United States is facing nothing so amiable and genteel as Continental-style “decline,” but something more like sliding off a cliff.
‘The superpower will have advanced from a nation of aircraft carriers to a nation of debt carriers.’
Boom!
‘Dependence’ is right!
I’m a little off topic here, but not quite.
Yesterday, after the pep rally I had a discussion about people, and how they react to incidents such as Arizona, Katrina, and the oil spill. The disagreement was my wife’s belief that the government should have done more. She said “if Opera could send relief, then why couldn’t GWB?”. Now, once the fact that GWB’s hands were tied by Louisiana’s Governor Blanco, I quickly changed tact and made the following statement: “what seems to be the root disagreement here is that you, unlike me, have what appears to be a belief, or faith, or expectation that the government can do something efficiently during such a crisis”. Then I asked her: “what makes you think that the government can do anything right? Especially handling a crisis?”.
We need to get it through the heads of our friends, families and peers that THE GOVERNMENT NEVER GETS ANYTHING RIGHT, NOR DOES IT DO ANYTHING EFFICIENTLY! To expect anything different, crisis or not, is the very definition of insanity.
We must simplify our message, to something similar to what I’ve said above, and beat our friends, families and peers with this stick until they get the message. The rest, is just semantics.JMO
disclaimer: I am no way condoning the beating of your wife, friends, family or peers with this POV
As usual, Steyn is bang-on. The future of the Republic and consequently, Western civilization, is now in the hands of the “colourful rabble” known as the Tea Party along with their less Walmartian-like supporters. The US is the only anglosphere remnant where citizenry take to the street to protest the State’s over-reach as opposed to the usual dependent-de-jour protests for more loot. To the extent that the politicians respond to this movement in massively slashing spending and future borrowing is there any hope that this can be reversed.
The 1945 election of the Labor Party after WW2 pretty well sealed the fate of the UK into its long state of decline.
Labor quickly nationalized their major industries which in only 5 yrs (1945 to 50) but that nanny state socialist destruction is taking decades to undo.
Machiavelli’s ‘The Prince’ has a chapter of advice for princes (or govts) that are ostentaciously lavish with their subjects.
And the end result is no good for anybody.
When the leaders eventually run out of money and gifts for their sujects, as they all do, they have to become misers to save money and immediately become scorned and hated by their subjects.
It will be interesting to see how the increasing federal govt austerity works out in the USA.
And that was a great piece of work by Mr Steyn.
To avoid becoming clinically depressed when reading Steyn’s doomsday articles consider them as worst case scenarios. There is a large range of outcomes that are equally possible.
Demographic shifts can work for conservatives, not just against them: 60’s Hippies will eventually disappear, socialists and feminists didn’t bother to have kids, public service unions are being reined in, voters are moving to low-tax states, etc. Then there is the Tea Party, a spontaneous movement that completely caught the establishment off-guard. Closer to home, even pinko Toronto has elected a conservative mayor and immigrant voters were a big part of that surprise victory. Conservatives do have the potential to grow. History is full of unexpected events that no one could have predicted.
The exception is debt and education. These two areas need immediate attention. What we need is competent money managers who will ruthlessly cut both the size of government and the regulations that strangle growth. The power of the teachers unions needs to end by opening up education to competition. I doubt that trend towards courses on victimology and class hatred would continue if parents were given a choice.
Decline isn’t inevitable. Canada’s financial situation was quite bleak not so long ago and it looked like Liberal governments would continue indefinitely. Now, Canada is looking pretty good financially and the Liberal Party’s strength has been reduced to three cities.
BTW, Steyn seems to be MIA again. His site hasn’t been updated in days and few other conservative blogs are as amusing as his. Damn.
Printed for reading later.
Time perhaps to check out Oswald Spengler’s Decline of the West (1920), which I attempted to read after the 1987 stock market crash. Shudder: I was only 38 at the time, no wonder I got nowhere with it.
I do recall two totally unrelated things tho:
1) to the Chinese all western music sounds like march music (g-d that made me chuckle).
2) leaders arise out of the river flow of history … they don’t actually create that river (which if true, perhaps nullifies out Tommy Douglas … not dead enough meme).
According to some recent articles, Decline is a tour de force covering art, architecture, pottery, literature, history … pretty well everything.
I also seem to remember that Spengler argued that it’s a organic process and that there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it — like a human growing old and dying.
It would be most interesting to see ET hold forth on Spengler’s Decline.
Well, he’s just scared me half to death but at least Mark Steyn is writing again.
I noticed that he’s been MIA as well. But after writing this piece maybe adding a few cents to the useless jaw waging about Tucson didn’t seem too significant.
Mark Steyn is brilliant – perrhaps more so than ever –
and depressing, of course.
Indiana Homez’s question to his wife: “What makes you think that the government can do anything right? Especially handling a crisis?” reminds me of a turning point in my life.
I’m of hippie age but never was one. But, at about the age of 19, like everyone else I knew at university, I believed I’d never have to worry about any personal catastrophe because “the government will step in and take care of it”.
Then, one day before I turned 20, out of nowhere it seems—I’m a financial ignoramus to this day—I had an epiphany. My brain (maybe it was more my spirit) said to me: “The government’s going to look after you no matter what is a crazy idea. Forget it.”
My university friends are all socialists and we remain on good terms personally by not discussing politics. I’m on Mark Steyn’s side. I’m sure all my old friends think he’s a lunatic. Aren’t they in for a surprise?
anybody got an updated list where and when americans have meddled militarily in foreign lands?
it’s quite sizable. maybe this ‘cliff ride’ will put an end to that kind of thing.
I watched Steyn on an episode of Michael Coren once.
“It is pathetic but unsurprising how ignorant all these brave “anti-fascists” are. But there is a lesson here not just for Britain but for the rest of us, too: When a society loses its memory, it descends inevitably into dementia.”
Truer words…………
anybody got an updated list where and when the Soviets/Russians/ChiComs/Cubans have meddled militarily in foreign lands?
-for reference see American list.
“anybody got an updated list where and when americans have meddled militarily in foreign lands?”
Yeah:
France – 1918
France again, 1942
Italy, see above
England, see above
Belgium, Holland, Germany, Tunisia, Morrocco, see above
Philippines, 1944
China, see above
Marshall Islands, see above
Korea, see above
Australia, see above
Japan, see above
Not complete, but it’ll get you started.
“it’s quite sizable. maybe this ‘cliff ride’ will put an end to that kind of thing.”
Yeah, I hope so, too. It’d be much more efficient if the only other languages spoken on this planet besides English were German and Japanese.
Beagle. So you have a list. Check it twice. Decide who is naughty. Decide who is nice. If you are lucky, Uncle Sam is coming to town.
“The way things are going in Britain, it would make more sense to remove the word “balls.”
Absolutely vintage Mark Steyn.
It’s the party system, stupid.
Don’t give up on America yet, we just dealt a massive blow to Liberals back in November, and hopefully we can finish them off in 2012.
You see, they have awoken the sleeping tiger aka The Tea Party, and through the help of all the Tea Parties ‘We The People’ now understand the House of Representatives controls the purse strings. And if they cannot get the job done, or go back to business as usual we will send them packing. Furthermore; controlling the lower house every two years is a whole lot easier than trying to control a two-term President, or Senators from the original 13 colonies.
Have faith Steyn, we are Americans, we came here to escape tyranny and we will not be put under the sword again, especially by this particularly evil group of Liberals, and by God if they try to taint the voting process we can tar and feather the jackasses then run em out of town.
,
hello empire, you too speedy.
I was thinking more along the lines of central america ie Nicaragua during the somoaza (sp) dictatorship. you know, to prop up the exploitation by United Foods and their plantation system.
whatever happened to that fambly?
another example would be Philippines and marcos and his missus. you know, the one with the collection of 8,000 pairs of shoes.
all propped up by a succession of democrat and republican white houses.
of interest to tea party fans.
and republican fans and lobbyist fans.
rollingstone.com/politics/news/matt-taibbi-the-crying-shame-of-john-boehner-20110105?print=true
(from the link):
“Boehner was soon caught literally handing out checks from the tobacco lobby on the floor of the House. This was 1995; the House was voting to consider an end to federal subsidies of the tobacco industry, and Boehner, at the time the fourth-ranking Republican in the party hierarchy, went on the floor and handed out, by his own admission, “a half-dozen” donation checks from the tobacco lobby to various members.”
Wow, 2 whole examples, eh beagle?
So if the regrettable status quo of these nations are America’s fault, why is it that the mother tongues of these people is Spanish and that despite them both having rejected American involvement a number of years ago they are no better off?
Perhaps there are other factors at work that you haven’t considered.
Hello, beagle. I guess chronology just ain’t your thing.
Somoza came to power AFTER the U.S. withdrew the Marines from Nicaragua. Are you suggesting that the United States should have intervened militarily to depose him? Why are you Canadians so warlike?
Although, such an intervention would have shortened the Sandanista reign, when Nicaraugua was a happy place, where children laughed and played beside chocolate rivers and ran through candy meadows with gumdrop smiles. Much like life in present-day Venezuela.
As far as the Philippines – the U.S. OWNED the Philippines – purchased from the Spanish. And then GAVE it to the Filipinos. And here’s the really inconvenient (for you) part:
Ferdinand Marcos was ELECTED president. Sure, he turned into a dictator, but once again, why do you feel you can just send the United States military into a country to overthrow whatever government you don’t like?
Did the U.S. also “prop up” Corazon Aquino when she was installed during a military coup?
For that matter, is the U.S. guilty of “propping up” any government that it DOESN’T topple through invasion?
In that case, YES, I am disgusted at how the United States propped up the Trudeau and Chretien regimes. Clearly, force was called for and yet the Americans did NOTHING.
Full disclosure – I am an American living in Ontario. I’ve been looking for a decent conservative blog to frequent that talks aboot (see what I did there?) Canadian politics.
I think this is it, but as I’m discovering, Canadians’ favorite topic is America and Americans.
Sigh…
Pure Steyn. Pure brilliance.
Empires were great not just because they had armed forces but because they had a purpose. If the purpose of one state is to coddle and feed every whim of an idle loser, why defend it? It’s already gone.
The left inevitably shows its true arrogance and intolerance of dissent.
Dictators at heart – everyone of them
Welcome Empire of Jeff, and get used to it.
Everything we do as Canadians is held up against the actions of our neighbours to the south, and vice versa.
Always has been. It’s the United Empire Loyalist (a.k.a. inferiority) complex.
Fortunately we’re not as severely afflicted by it out West.
I think this is it, but as I’m discovering, Canadians’ favorite topic is America and Americans.
Sigh…
~Empire of Jeff
Welcome to SDA Empire of Jeff.
We’ll be talking about Canadian conservative issue soon enough.
We care about American conservatives too.
Our solidarity with the conservative ideas of “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” and ” Working to roll back socialism and expose it as a failed philosophy” mesh with what’s going on in America lately.
We’re well aware that our fate is inextricably intertwined with the U.S., 80% of our exports go there, and we have a saying “When America sneezes, Canada catches a cold”.
God Bless America.
Empire Jeff
It’s slim pickings for Canadian Political news lately. It comes in ebbs and flows.
Ya’ll stay tuned ya hear.(do you see what I did there?)
That’s cold, Indiana Homez.
Funny, though – I’m from Louisiana and I never knew what a hick I apparently sound like until I moved up here. The kids are going native: one of my four year-olds tacks “eh” onto half her sentences, whether it’s warranted or not.
“Somoza came to power AFTER the U.S. withdrew the Marines from Nicaragua”
hi jeff.
google ‘contras ronald reagan’
that particular white house chose to do its meddling by proxy.
etc etc etc all over the world.