January 02, 2008
Keep hope alive
Kim Du Toit explains why there's still hope for conservatives, responding to something said by a despairing fan of limited, very, very, small government.
The argument is that the ever-expanding powers of the state have proven impossible to trim, government agencies and quasi- (or not so quasi-) socialist programs doing their best to entice otherwise stalwart, self-supporting Americans onto the Gummint teat, where they can suckle on the "free" money transferred from the greedy, capitalist pigs at the top of our unjust economic pyramid to the ever-expanding ranks of "Victims," thanks to the efforts of selfless Democrats, social do-gooders and their Republican-in-name-only enablers.
Du Toit takes a measured look at the problem and concedes that, yes, in many respects it's true that trying to trim the fat from government is like playing whack-a-mole, but that the incrementalist approach has produced real results.
Take, for instance, gun control.
Now ask yourselves this question: during the current political campaign, has any major political candidate among the
socialistsDemocrats breathed as much as a single word favoring gun control? And one more: has any Republican candidate with a history of favoring gun control ever spoken to the NRA, back-pedaling, pandering like hell and begging pardon from a suspicious and hostile audience, like No-Guns Giuliani and that worm Romney had to do?Gun control is no longer a political issue in this country, except as political suicide when a politician attempts to enact it. And that situation came about not just because of the NRA or whoever: it came about because We The People finally woke up and realized that gun control is a blow to our freedom. And that awakening came because of the many thousands of people like me, who refused to knuckle under and meekly resign ourselves to a fate like that of the modern-day Britons.
Thirty years ago, you couldn’t carry a concealed gun in this country. Now, it’s legal in nearly 80% of the states.
Let me remind you all: had we gunnies tried at the outset for all-or-nothing Vermont-style carry (ie. with no license required), we would have failed outright. Instead, we got a half-victory; and yes, the thought of having to ask the state for permission, and pay for the “privilege” grates me as much, or more, than anyone else. But I can carry a gun without being arrested—and as the righteous Shootings show, that ain’t nothing.
And when the GFW fears of “mayhem in the streets” has proven to be so much crap, then we can work on getting permits changed to (say) 10-year permits instead of five, or “lifetime” permits (as has already happened in Indiana), then we can move towards “no permits” (as Alaska has already done).
That, my friends, is how gradualism works.
He's right; there has been a sea change on the gun control issue, turning it from a sure-bet for liberals in the '80s to a poison pill which no national candidate has wanted to swallow, at least since Bill Clinton admitted that the issue cost Dems control of the Congress back in '94.
But I'm not as optimistic as Du Toit.
Notwithstanding some small victories, things like GOP presidents signing the ADA, No Child Left Behind and other expensive programs designed to turn local problems into federal ones, all while ignoring truly national issues like -- erm, what do they call it? -- illegal immigration leave me feeling forlorn.
Sigh.
At least there's an election to distract me.
Oy.
Posted by Mike Lief at January 2, 2008 07:09 AM
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