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To The New Conservatives (Thoughts to consider for saving this last bastion of freedom)
By Hank Martin

With the explosion of the TEA Party movement, and all of the other movements that have appeared on the political landscape in the last two years, there exists a temptation to desire and wish for, a viable third party movement. I myself have been less than impressed on occasion, as to who and what we have been presented with, in regards to the choice of who we have to represent us, and to be the voice of “We the People.” That having been said, it is unfortunately a simple fact of life, the current American system is a two-party system. Long ago, both the Republican and Democratic parties created and designed a system that by its very nature precludes the possibility of a third party becoming victorious in a national election. Sure, third party candidates can and have won elections in local and state competitions, but the notion of having a TEA Party candidate or any other non-Republican or non-Democratic candidate win the oval office is just not a realistic expectation. As effective as third parties have been, they simply lack the resources of finances, volunteers and time. Without which, you lack the capacity to obtain all of the minimum number of signatures in each state, in order to qualify in every state, much less overcome the obstacle presented by the Electoral College. So, as wonderful as it no doubt would be, thinking in terms of an alternative to the two primary and established parties, is neither logical nor realistic.

That having been stated, what is the alternative? Simple really. The energy of the various grass roots movements need to be focused on changing the existing parties. Now, we know that the only possible party that we can hope to effect change to, in order to make it work for “We the People” is the Republican Party. Obviously, the liberal Democratic Party is simply too far gone to ever be able to properly represent the many of the once silent majority of Americans. So what has to happen? How can the Republican Party find itself again, and be a strong advocate for those conservative principles that Ronald Reagan championed? As Reagan himself once stated, the problems may be complex, but the solutions are relatively simple, if we are wise enough to apply them. So what then am I suggesting? What could I, a forty-seven year old “commoner” or member of the “multiple masses” out here in flyover country possibly contribute in the way of ideas? Well, what this recession has taught me is that when you strip away all of the hype and labels and ideology from folks, you have what you have always had. What God himself commenced in the beginning of all of human kind in the Garden of Eden? You have mothers and fathers struggling together, trying to survive in this world, and to provide for their children the love and provision of material needs in order to live. If that one point alone could be accentuated, then the Republican Party could easily find itself growing in members. But first things first. Let’s address the eight hundred pound elephant in the room, (pun intended) that no one seems able or willing to talk about: the apparent inability of the Republican Party to reach and attract minority voters. In many conversations I have had with fellow conservatives, they simply cannot fathom this paradox. After all, the Republican Party was established in 1854 as the antislavery party, and it was the Republican Party that delivered the legislation and the votes required to make The Civil Rights Act of 1954 a reality, which despite Democratic obfuscation, was signed by President Johnson. One of the attributes of growing up as a bookworm, you stumble across historical nuggets that most everyone else either forgets, or is simply not taught. One of those nuggets is the fact that the KKK was the domestic terrorist arm of the Democratic Party, and that it was the Republican Enforcement Acts of 1870 and 1871, that allowed for a method to reign in the KKK violence. It is also interesting to note, that the NAACP was founded by the Republican Party on Feb 12, 1909, the 100th birthday of Lincoln. So how is it then that despite the pioneering ways that the Republican Party forged freedom for African-Americans, they so willingly give allegiance to the very party that sought to prevent them from acquiring the civil rights they now enjoy? You can thank President Herbert Hoover and his mistake during the 1927 Mississippi Flood. The flood covered some 27,000 square miles of land, destroyed crops and fields, and killed more than two hundred people. It also displaced more than 700,000 individuals, nearly half of whom were African-American. Herbert Hoover was in charge of relief operations during this crisis. Unfortunately, many of the African-Americans who were living at the established relief camps were mistreated. Hoover, with his eye on the oval office, suppressed the stories of abuse, by negotiating with Tuskegee Institute President Robert Morton, promising him that if elected president, he would give special attention to the needs of those displaced in the relief camps. Morton did not organize opposition to Hoover, and when elected president, Hoover broke his promise. Morton then made it known how the Republicans had betrayed the African-American people, and FDR freely accepted their votes in protest in 1932, and the Democratic party has been accepting them ever since.

Perhaps the most logical and sound course of action is the Biblically mandated notion of forgiveness. The Republican Party must acknowledge the sins of its past, and seek forgiveness for it, conversely, it must extend to the African-Community its forgiveness for their present situation. One that finds the African-American family in ruins, thanks to well meaning but ill implemented policies of the liberal left over the years. In this current crisis, we can no longer fall for the divisive speech that attempts to continue to stir up racial tensions amongst the people. Yes, all of our ancestors got here in ships. Some ships separated in time by a few generations. That is of little consequence, as we are all in the same boat now. We all want a prosperous and promising future for our children, to achieve that, we need each other.

This same philosophy can be applied to the Hispanic Community as well. Who is the most opposed to granting amnesty to illegal aliens? Who is the strongest supporter of border enforcement and immigration enforcement reform? Those Hispanics who have entered this country the correct and legal way. Conservatives need not have yet another Herbert Hoover moment and address this issue boldly and directly. It would also behoove conservatives to have a presence in these communities regularly, and not just at election time. Like the old adage states, “They don’t care what you know, until they know how much you care.”

Another issue that creates much division amongst conservatives is the issue of abortion. Undoubtedly as much a powder keg issue for our time, as slavery was in times past. It seems that the manner in which we are going about attempting to solve this problem is doing more harm than good. Before I continue, let me state unequivocally, that I am absolutely and utterly opposed to abortion. It offends me as a Christian. It offends me as a human being, and is an affront to mankind. However, when we recognize that abortion is an industry, albeit a bloody one, it is an industry nonetheless. It would not exist, if there were not a need for it. I think it necessary to reevaluate our approach to this heart wrenching issue. I can recall being summoned before the elders of a church that I was attending at the time. They expressed their concerns over my apparent lack of zeal in protesting the local abortion clinic. At that time, it was located up on Pantops Mountain here in Charlottesville. I explained to them that I did not agree with their tactics. In the first place, I knew myself well enough to know that if I were to be manhandled during a “peaceful” protest, as I had witnessed them being handled on the news, I seriously doubt that I would have been able to be so docile. Therefore, while they were at home eating chicken and biscuits, and marveling at their bravery, I would still be in lock-up looking for bail money. Secondly, it seemed to me that we are letting the males off pretty easy with the manner in which the young women are forced to bear the brunt of circumstances alone, through an act that required the participation of two people to create. Where was the push amongst these men to require accountability from the young men that had gotten these young women into this situation in the first place? Thirdly, where was the compassion? The Christ that I know and follow meets people where they are in life. To the woman at the well, his final words were “Go and sin no more.” It was not hollering and yelling “Adulteress”. That resolved nothing. Likewise, what good was it doing, and how was it advancing any good cause, to stand out front of the clinic, armed with signs, forcing young women to run the gauntlet of signs and accusations of “baby killer”. I’ve no doubt that by the time a woman gets to the front door of an abortion clinic; it is the final act of desperation. No doubt her family has abandoned her, as well as the young man who contributed his share of the DNA to make the birth possible. How was further traumatizing the woman going to help?

I countered with the argument, that every man in that room, had room in his homesto take in an unwed mother. I submitted that perhaps the cause would be greatly advanced, if a young woman could be given the choice of being taken in, her physical and financial needs met until her child was born and could be adopted. Needless to say, this was not the “rolled up sleeves, hands-on” solution that they wanted to hear. Far easier to just yell and feel proud. So what am I trying to convey in relating that story? Let the statistics speak for themselves. According to Operation Rescue, recent data reveals that out of all the abortions performed, Protestants made up 42% of all abortions. Catholics made up 27%. So 69% of all abortions are made up of supposedly Christian teens. I can’t help but to wonder if there were more compassion and forgiveness amongst the families that consider themselves Christian, the abortion industry would be out of business without all of the acrimony and political wrangling currently associated with the issue? So while I am not saying that this issue is not important, I am saying that we can not hang our hats on just this one issue. We have to acknowledge that a lot of the responsibility for this issue begins at home, around the dinner table. It is simply not realistic to think that this battle can be won in the capital building or the sate houses alone. A proper context must be kept, and unity of matters such as freedom and constitutionality held paramount.

Lastly, nobody wants to be a part of a negative experience. I recall going on a field trip in middle school. The lead teacher assembled all of us together in front of the Quick’s buses and started telling us all what we can’t do and won’t be doing on the trip. By the time she had finished, none of us wanted to get on the buses. Why? She had covered every issue and topic so well, that we all would have just as preferred to stay at school, where we knew we could do some things. Conservatives tend to easily espouse what they are against, but have a more difficult time espousing what they are in favor of. I was engaged in conversation with a conservative once; he stopped and asked me what was wrong. I explained to him that the manner in which he is putting forth his stance on issues, made me feel as if I was having simultaneously, a root canal and a vasectomy, both without the benefit of anesthesia! When asked what a conservative is in favor of, the list should be quick to repeat:

  • Freedom!!!
  • Increased prosperity through reduction in government.
  • Budget Control through either line item veto, or repealing the 1974 Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control Act.
  • Improving Education by returning control to local and state authorities.
  • Abolition of congressional earmarks.
  • Immediate drilling into known natural gas and oil reserves in the U.S.
  • Immediate fast tracking of designing and construction of nuclear reactors.
  • Legislative reform-No minutely overwritten bills that require passage to be read and understood.
  • Immigration reform-known illegals deported.
  • Secure Borders.

Pick two or three issues and go from there. Remember, Reagan entered office with three things on his agenda: topple communism, reduce the size of government, and lower taxes. Many of us have seen the past, and it worked. It can work again. But the conservative mindset has got to be expanded somewhat, or else, we’ll see the tremendous gains garnered so far, laid waste. If that happens, we may indeed never again have the opportunity to fight for freedom.

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Rob Schilling is founder of the multi-award-winning Schilling Show Blog and News, proprietor of Schilling Show Media; host of both the Schilling Show Unleashed Podcast and WINA's The Schilling Show heard weekdays at noon; husband; father; worship leader, Christian recording artist and Community Watchdog.

12 COMMENTS

  1. A realistic approach and understanding of what we face today. This brief treatise should be soberly studied by those on the right, the left ad the center of the aisle. In short, We the People” want no more hypocrisy!

  2. The Republican Party must acknowledge the sins of its past, and seek forgiveness for it, conversely, it must extend to the African-Community its forgiveness for their present situation. One that finds the African-American family in ruins, thanks to well meaning but ill implemented policies of the liberal left over the years.

    This is a little hard to follow, Hank. Are you saying the Right should forgive lower-class, dysfunctional African-American families for what upper-class whites government policy makers did to them? Can you imagine how racist that would sound to black people?

    In this current crisis, we can no longer fall for the divisive speech that attempts to continue to stir up racial tensions amongst the people.

    It’s easy for people who haven’t suffered violence and discrimination, and whose ancestors didn’t suffer violence and discrimination for generations, to criticize the people who have suffered. In some cases the poor treatment they complain of today may be imaginary, but put yourself in their shoes with their history and you should be able to understand their misperception, and in general understand their residual anger where it does exist.

    Anyhow, I don’t hear any mainstream voices stirring up racial tensions anyhow. I’m white, and I don’t hear anything offensive. If you’re taking offense, perhaps you have some unacknowledged racial resentment yourself.

    Yes, all of our ancestors got here in ships. Some ships separated in time by a few generations.

    What a stunningly insensitive thing to say. Yeah, they all came over on ships. Our white ancestors boarded those ships willingly. Their black ancestors were captured, enchained, and thrown into crowded holds in the bottom of the ships where they’d either die or barely survive to be sold into slavery.

  3. This is a little hard to follow, Hank. Are you saying the Right should forgive lower-class, dysfunctional African-American families for what upper-class whites government policy makers did to them? Can you imagine how racist that would sound to black people?

    The Republican Party must acknowledge the sins of its past, and seek forgiveness for it, conversely, it must extend to the African-Community its forgiveness for their present situation. One that finds the African-American family in ruins, thanks to well meaning but ill implemented policies of the liberal left over the years. In this current crisis, we can no longer fall for the divisive speech that attempts to continue to stir up racial tensions amongst the people.

    Yes, that is exactly what I said. Thanks to the malevolent manipulations of the liberal left, whose attempts at building into society, an automatic voting block, whose actions thereby destroyed the African-American family structure thus creating, in your words, a “dysfunctional lower class” , needs to be recognized, and forgiven. Going back to statistical abstracts, the black family was intact until LBJ declared war on poverty. A utopian idea, but like a poor marksman who keeps missing the target, the war only succeeded in destroying the traditional family structure. Single mothers raising fatherless children in one generation, filled our prisons with their sons in the next.

    It’s easy for people who haven’t suffered violence and discrimination, and whose ancestors didn’t suffer violence and discrimination for generations, to criticize the people who have suffered. In some cases the poor treatment they complain of today may be imaginary, but put yourself in their shoes with their history and you should be able to understand their misperception, and in general understand their residual anger where it does exist.

    Ken, my life’s experiences make me uniquely qualified to answer this. You see, I have suffered violence and discrimination. I know full well the results of repeated physical attacks, as well as the unseen emotional scars of that verbal abuse can generate. I awake every morning, and my body reminds me of the price paid for my experience. I know full well the unfairness of being discriminated against. I have, on more than one occasion, been denied opportunities for advancement in the work place, simply because I was the wrong color or sex needed or required, to fulfill the ever menacing legislative quota of the liberal left. Been there, don that, got the T-shirt and a post card. Was it unfair? Yes, but so is life. Did it hurt? Yes, but I could not nor would not allow the past to stifle my future. The learned philosophy? Five words; Get Over It, Move Forward. By your logic, my great-great grandchildren should be able to reach back through time, and use my experiences as an excuse for their actions. This manner of though is both illogical and unproductive. It certainly would make my progeny vulnerable to the political manipulations of some future liberal do-gooder, who veils his desire for power and control in the guise of concern and sympathy. My beyond the grave question for my progenyh would be, ” I had my problems, but what is your story?”

    What a stunningly insensitive thing to say. Yeah, they all came over on ships. Our white ancestors boarded those ships willingly. Their black ancestors were captured, enchained, and thrown into crowded holds in the bottom of the ships where they’d either die or barely survive to be sold into slavery.

    My ancestors did not walk aboard willingly. Their economic circumstances forced them to take drastic measures. And this is where the failure to teach history is so obvious. Not every European American came here to find gold or to plant tobacco. Remember, up until 1676 and Nathaniel Bacon’s rebellion, white slavery made up a significant portion of the colonial work force. It was Bacon’s rebellion that turned the powers that be, from servitude of whites to servitude of blacks. Of course, King George III was just as happy with this, as his brother had great financial interests in the newly formed slave trade.

    I also had family who lost land to the federal government, when FDR bowed to the northern business cabal, and pushed out more that 500 families to create the Blue Ridge Parkway. Should I have stopped attempting to move forward, and cite my victim status from the above two examples? Or should I seek to forgive, remove the bitter cup of resentment, and get over it and move forward? We’ve seen how well the one method works, so it would seem forgiveness is worth attempting.

  4. Thanks to the malevolent manipulations of the liberal left, whose attempts at building into society, an automatic voting block, whose actions thereby destroyed the African-American family structure . . . . . . “The Republican Party” . . . “must extend to the African-Community its forgiveness for their present situation” ?? That makes no sense at all. I hesitate to use the word “racist” because it conjures the spectre of hatred, which I’m not accusing you of, but to “forgive” people for something done not by but to them is bizarrely patronizing at best, and indicates a lack of empathy that is typical of racism.

    I have suffered violence and discrimination. I know full well the results of repeated physical attacks, as well as the unseen emotional scars of that verbal abuse can generate. . . . I know full well the unfairness of being discriminated against. I have, on more than one occasion, been denied opportunities for advancement in the work place, simply because I was the wrong color or sex needed or required, to fulfill the ever menacing legislative quota of the liberal left.

    Most people have been hit and/or called names at one time or another, many of them often. Have members of your family been lynched? Been called “boy” when they were grown men? Forced to sit in the back of the bus? Been denied access to _all_ well-paying work? Have you stopped to think that there are still many black people alive today have experienced all this, and may more who’ve heard of it from their own family members? The fact is you don’t know what it’s like to be a member of a minority race that suffered systematic oppression and persecution for many generations. You whine that governmental attempts to redress intergenerational crime and tragedy, because they have caused you a much lesser degree hardship, are “menacing,” but you knock the victims of the real tragedy, the effects of which are still playing out, for not just forgetting about it. That’s a form of racism.

    My ancestors did not walk aboard willingly. Their economic circumstances forced them to take drastic measures.

    So life was tough and they had to make a tough choice. Africans sold into bondage didn’t _have_ a choice. Your ancestors didn’t experience capture and bondage, then death or slavery. The two experiences are not at all analogous, and your attempt to equate them is incredibly insensitive, emotionally primitive. You’re like a little kid on a schoolyard who shrugs off a playmate’s tears because he hasn’t yet learned empathy.

    Should I have stopped attempting to move forward, and cite my victim status from the above two examples? Or should I seek to forgive, remove the bitter cup of resentment, and get over it and move forward?

    Yes, there are bitter blacks, and you equate your difficult life experiences with the much tougher ones many of them have had, say “well I’m not bitter,” and presume to judge them for being so. But not everyone who seeks and demands justice is bitter anyhow. Again, your inability to tell the difference indicates a lack of empathy, a lack of willingness or ability to see a person for who they are, that is typical of racism.

  5. I never ceased to be amazed at how well individuals “know” so much that is incorrect. Your attempt to discredit one’s life experiences, demonstrates the lack of “tolerance” displayed, when an individual voices an opinion that differs from the politically correct norm. I am reminded of Clarence Thomas, Alan Keyes and Paul Harris, whose experiences are deemed void, when it proves liberalism wrong. So allow me to set some facts straight. I have no doubt that some sagacious, yet specious arguments will be made. I lived it, and I KNOW the truth. I shall not attempt to cast any more pearls before swine, but in order to clarify, this needs be said.

    Yes, perhaps, some people have experienced various degrees of teasing, etc. This was not what I was referencing. Have you, or others that you know of, been shoved down a flight of stairs, the results of which left both knees torn up and swollen to the size of watermelons? Did they experience a resulting back injury, that not only destroyed a planned military career, but that after more than three decades, still negatively impacts the ability to live life? Did they repeatedly have their personnel property stolen or vandalized? Were they restrained by a mob, kicked and beaten with resulting injuries requiring surgery to correct? Did they stand beside the coffin of their best friend, who could no longer stand the battle, and after seeing no actions taking place by those in authority, found the only way to make the pain stop, was to take his own life? It is absolutely vulgar to attempt to trivialize ones experiences, in order to make them “fit” into the liberal box of ideology.

    Racist, my experiences in this community have shown me that there is only one color that creates all the other issues. The green dollar bill. I am sure that it would make your rebuttal so much easier if I were, but again, you are dead wrong. Growing up, I had more friends of color than I did of my own racial heritage. Why? Because my fathers trade was not the cool thing to be. I got on my bicycle and rode two miles up the road to play. It mattered not to me what color they were, the only thing that mattered, was that I was accepted. No doubt I was a sight to see in that time period, being the only white kid running around amongst the black kids. None of us considered this as an anomaly. Of course, back then, we all shared the common concept that all blood is red, and that the Son of Man shed HIS, for us all. This was in the late 60’s and 70’s. So why is it that racial tensions are as they are in 2011. Could it possibly be related to the fact that Christ has since been told to get out of the public arena? Could it be that green loving power hungry individuals, of both races, see financial gain in the continuing pitting of one ethnic group against another?

    I am sure that no doubt you have had opportunity to encounter individuals such as you descried above. However, that description in no way shape or form is applicable to me nor my experiences. There are many others out there as well, who would no doubt be extremely offended at the seeming insensitivity and emotionally primitive nature of the remarks. But, again, if we apply forgiveness, get over it, and move on, society can continue to climb, not stumble.

  6. I’m not trying to discredit anything, of course. I take issue with a lot of politically correct rhetoric, including rhetoric about Muslims and low-income blacks, and I respect the opinions of many people I disagree with. Your comments were insensitive and so illogical as to sound suspiciously like unconscious racism.

    How in the world are your experiences evidence of “divisive speech that attempts to continue to stir up racial tensions amongst the people” ?? How in the world do they make sense of kooky logic like African-Americans-stand-in-need-of-forgiveness-for-what-the-Left-did-to-them? How in the world are they commensurate with systematic bigotry and oppression?

    You should also know that the African-American community experienced all that you did and worse for generations. I don’t doubt you played with black kids. As I said, I’m not accusing you of hatred. But when I point out how ridiculous some of your thinking is, and you don’t address my point itself but come back with non sequiturs, you just prove my point.

  7. My point is, as originally stated, that as long as one person or group of people, fail to extend forgiveness to another person, or group of people, then the evil of resentment and hatred can and will be utilized as a tool to serve to oppress everyone, while profiting a few. The money earned by Jessie Jackson and Al Sharpton, is just as dirty as the money earned by the David Dukes of the country. What would happen if we were to witness a reconciled culture? A lot of people’s power base would be eliminated. What if we were to solve the problem of abortion, through compassion and adoption? A lot of doctors would have to find new ways to make their BMW payments. This is my point. Forgiveness solves many problems, and I have experienced its freeing and healing freedom. It can be done. It must be done, or none of us will ever see the peace we desire or the future we want for the generations that follow us.

  8. Patriot, I’m sorry, but you’re flunking Ethics 101 here. There is little chance of reconciliation as long as you equate a former leader of the Klu Klux Klan, a group which used violence and the threat of violence to suppress minority rights, with leaders of that minority using peaceful means to expand those rights. I think both Jackson and Sharpton deserve criticism for some of the ways in which they’ve gone about their goals, and you can take issue with some of their goals. But their overall goal is equal opportunity, not just technically under the law, but in actuality, and that’s admirable while Duke’s racial resentment is not. The former have legitimate and enormous historical grievances; the latter does not. I’m all for forgiveness but it starts with an honest assessment of the wrongs done. It’s bizarre to think that asking the victimizers to forgive the victims will aid in reconciliation.

  9. Very well, lets just continue repeating the same insanity for another two or three generations. Our great grandchildren will have so little to show for it, but those who profit from our inability to forgive, will be laughing all the way to the bank, or whatever institution will be in place by then.

  10. As I said, I’m all for forgiveness, but in this case 1) the forgiveness you’re calling for is not on “our” part, it’s on the part of the people who’ve been done wrong, and 2) you confuse – willfully, it seems – holding a grudge with calling for justice. Is it not possible that many people in the NAACP, for example, and may white progressives, don’t hold any grudge in their hearts, but just have a different view of what justice and equal opportunity entail? Is that not possible?

  11. Ken, the forgiveness and the societal cooperation to which I am attempting to address is so wonderfully and eloquently displayed by the people of Japan. Who could have known, that a week after this editorial posted, a living breathing example of what I am trying to convey, would appear. Look at the order and the discipline, and the unified spirit that the Japanese people display. My gosh, we can’t have a blackout in the state for a couple of hours, without riots and looting, etc. We trample pregnant women and the elderly underfoot on the day after Thanksgiving, for a deal on a plasma television. They have different sects and populations, just like us, yet they seemingly have forgiven past transgressions and have moved forward. They seemed to have bee able to forgive our actions in WWII, in as much as they have not told us to take a hike with any of our relief efforts. Do you think that if a magnitude 9.0 quake hit anywhere in the states, we would witness this level of civility, discipline and sacrifice? What do they have that we do not apparently?

  12. Patriot, I’m all for forgiveness, but not for lecturing people we’ve hurt about how they ought to forgive us. Yes, the self-control the Japanese are displaying is amazing, but it’s not based on forgiveness (and their forgiving us might have something to do with all the investments we made in their economy after World War 2, and all the money that trade allows them to make from us). I wish we valued order and respect the way they do – in that sense, I’m a conservative – but it’s that aspect of their culture, the fact that they’re a shame society, which would seem to account for their good behavior now.

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