Soundbite: “The Right Is On The Wrong Side Of History”

by Joe Coscarelli | 9:37 am, January 9th, 2010

» 5 comments

“The right is on the wrong side of history. The demographics of the country are rapidly changing, young people are becoming increasingly liberal on social issues, and rigid, dogmatic religious stricture is loosening its grip on the throat of our culture.

The right has seen the enemy, and he is the future.”

— New York Times op-ed columnist Charles M. Blow, as quoted in a new column about the future of the Republican party. Sure, Gallup polls indicate that more people classify themselves as “conservatives” and the Republicans will likely pick up seats in the mid-term elections, but, “This is a limited, emotional reaction,” Blow writes.

It’s a response to the trauma that is the Great Recession, the uncertainty and creeping suspicion about the risks being taken in Washington, a visceral reaction to Obama and an overwhelming sense of powerlessness and loss.

Simply put, it’s about fear-fueled anger. But anger is not an idea. It’s not a plan. And it’s not a vision for the future. It is, however, the second stage of grief, right after denial and before bargaining.

Read the full column here.

Charles Blow, Charles Blow op-ed, Charles M. Blow, Future of the Republican Party, GOP, Republicans, The Future of the GOP

Pat Doherty

Yet another wonderful self-rationalization by a liberal shaken to his core that Obama is falling flat on face. I always love it when some Manhattanite pseudo-intellectual plays the paint-by-numbers psychology game about millions of people he’s never met and has no interest in knowing. Blow was on Hardball a few weeks ago spewing the same nebulous BS, blithering like a fool while Ron Brownstein laid down the cold, hard facts about the Democrats’ dramatic loss in popularity.
J Baustian

Charles Blow writes: “So what’s [the Republican] battle plan to fight back from the precipice of irrelevance? Moderation? A stab at modernity? A slate of innovative ideas? No, their plan is to purge the party’s moderates and march farther down the road to oblivion.”

Mr Blow fails to recognize that the philosophical debate is not between Democrats and Republicans, but between totalitarians and libertarians…. and of course in this he is not alone. With the change of a few words, his article could have been written in the 1920s, when fascism and socialism were the wave of the future and capitalism was on the road to oblivion.

Denial and anger are natural responses to the fear that something horrible is happening and there’s nothing we can do to stop it.
Ted

Right on the money. The teabaggers are the face of the conservative movement, good luck with that….uh, not that I’m complaining.
Floorplay

Calling Republicans representative right wing is like calling Ayn Rand a commie.

Moreover, I say: to hell with all political parties and their lemmings.

Allan Wikman
Kingston, NY
ChrisNH

So, this Blow-hard writes for the New York Times? Well, that explains it!