But I think we can all agree that some instances of hypocrisy are more egregious than others. And when a particularly horrifying example occurs, it makes me that much more unlikely to listen to the hypocrite's complaints, whether they have a valid point or not. For example:
- If you're a farmer that accepts hundreds of thousands of dollars in subsidies, I'm not at all interested in your opinion of "big government," "excessive spending," or "the welfare state." I myself believe that subsidizing U.S. farms may have some value in terms of our national security, but you have no credibility when you bitch about "Welfare Queens" out of one side of your mouth while feeding at the public trough out of the other. Actually, this applies equally to anyone who feeds at the public trough, not just farmers. You're not special, honeybunch - if you deserve a little help from the government, you shouldn't be acting all judgey about others who need it, too.
- If you're a senior citizen who makes their way in part with Medicare, I don't want to hear about "socialism," especially as it relates to medical care. Because really, how come it's okay for you to receive care at taxpayer expense, but it's not okay for some poor dude to ensure his kid gets treatment for her leukemia from the same pool of money?
- If you complain about your antagonists' manners, accusing them of lying, playing dirty, or attacking "off-limits" targets, you best look to your own house for similar behavior before you open your mouth.
9 comments:
When the ScatterKat and I took our roadtrip to the mountains a couple of weeks ago, we dined in the little restaurant up near the top of Mt. Mitchell. And while we were there, we somehow got into a political discussion or debate with a biker over his views of small government and hopes that Obama would be defeated in November (it started with him asking us which way we thought North Carolina would go in November and went downhill--no pun intended--from there).
Bear in mind: this gentleman (and he really didn't seem a bad sort at all) was advocating for small government in a state-owned restaurant in a State Park accessible only by a road built by Franklin Delano Roosevelt in the middle of a National Forest.
The irony did not pass notice.
I'm a fan of "keep the government out of my medicare!"
I try to be a good DIL, I really do, so when I was getting 5 or 6 emails a week from the MIL about Obama being the anti-Christ (defined as 'not white') I tried, oh how I tried to just ignore them. Finally, I shot her off a short, relatively polite missive informing her that if she wanted to see Social Security privatized, Medicare made into a voucher system, and healthcare reform and Planned Parenthood and school lunches and unions and birth control done away with, then by all means keep right on voting Republican, because they consider them "entitlements" and they hate women and anyone who isn't white and straight, and so far Obama has been the only thing stopping them from doing all of this shit. Now, this is an 83 year old woman on Medicare, SS and who has a gay child. I ranted a bit more that they want to also give the richest people and corporations extended tax breaks, making up the difference by slashing all those programs and raising taxes on the middle class. I haven't gotten any political shit from her since.
And then, there's crap like this.
Nathan, that's exactly right. Although there are other examples from the left that are almost as egregious.
The main problem is that the farmer knows how much those payments help them and help keep their industry afloat, and the medicare and medicaid recipients see what would happen to them if they didn't have those programs. Both know that without those programs life would be so much worse. So in both cases they view that their programs are part of the "system" and are fair and right. However, all those other undeserving people, what we spend on them isn't fair nor right and is just government waste.
Steve, the cognitive dissonence is certainly apparent - it's the "fuck you, I've got mine" attitude that's so very offensive.
It's all a them Welfare Queens takin' all our good money.
Although where all of these Welfare Queens reside is beyond me.
Park Avenue, 'natch.
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