The Truth in LOVE

The Truth in LOVE


Sandi M. Saunders: 'The right's empty harangues are getting tiresome'
Date: Sunday, October 10 @ 09:46:35 EDT
Topic: Conservatives And The Right


By Sandi M. Saunders, Roanoke Times

The right-wingers have perfected the old saying about "a lie told often and well." No one can argue that the right has been anything but a raving success with its politics of denigration.

If you are not pro-life, you are pro-abortion; if you are not pro-death penalty, you are pro-criminal; if you support civil rights for all, you support deviants; if you respect all religions, you are anti- Christian; if you support women's rights, you are a femi-Nazi; if you are concerned about saving our one Earth, you are an environmentalist-wacko. Last but not least, if you are a Democrat, you are a Demo-crazy.

No gray; just black and white. Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Neal Boortz, Michael Savage and Bill O'Reilly have long daily rants of nothing but hatred, distorted or out-of-context "facts" and insulting comments, yet they label the left as hate-filled.

Their base may consider them the Holy Grail. But the next time you hear any of this bunch hurling invective and insulting anyone who dares to disagree, stop and force your brain to imagine your child on the receiving end of their diatribe. If you wouldn't want someone you loved to be treated with such disrespect, maybe you can start to see the forest for the trees and realize that disdain and contempt is neither enlightening nor inclusive.



The next time Hannity uses various phrases to describe the "evil" of our/his enemies, you might recall our own history and admit that evil has existed and even thrived here in America during our comparatively short history.

Remember that once people of a different race were chattel to be sold, abused and even killed without so much as a thought. Remember that once people held a lynching and then took pictures and had a picnic. Remember that even after a horrible civil war, we still chose to separate, denigrate and devalue those who were "different." Remember that even today in America, a black man can be dragged to death behind a truck, that a young gay man can be beaten and left on a fence to die.

Remember that Timothy McVeigh looked red, white and blue to everyone - until. Remember that if you do not support tax cuts for the wealthy and loopholes for corporations, you are anti-business. Remember that if you do not believe we should be in another ill-fated quagmire, you are unpatriotic.

Obviously, the right believes you can support our troops only by believing they should be in harm's way because the president says so. Such support and respect was never evident during President Clinton's two terms.

The right never let up on "Slick Willie," not for war, not for a personal matter, not for a moment, not even now. President Clinton needed to be investigated back to his youth at taxpayer expense, but President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney should be followed blindly because they say so. We are just hatemongers whenever we ask for the truth or full disclosure. Hypocrisy is by far the biggest Republican value.

Sen. John Edwards had a very valid point about the two Americas. No surprise that the right has chosen to present a perverted version of his meaning. But the truth is simple: The America you live in will affect your choices.

In my America, I go to the doctor when I can afford it, not when I want to. In my America, I go to the dentist when I can afford it, not when I have a toothache.

In my America, I juggle the electric, phone, insurance, house and car payments. In my America, "the bills" decide how much I can spend on groceries, dinner out or a movie; "the bills" decide if I get to take a vacation, buy a new outfit, get a check-up or do without. In my America, my beloved son-in-law from Pakistan has to explain to the FBI why he bought a camera and a printer at an electronics store.

Don't misunderstand me, I have a good and happy life, and I wouldn't be wealthy for more than a minute if I won the lottery tomorrow. What I am saying is that my life experiences impact my decisions on who I believe would be the best person to care for my county or my country.

If you live in the other America, if you have never had to do without real needs and not just the extras, if you have never felt disrespected for being poor or different, then you have no real concept of the other America, and you should not assure me that the best choice for you is also the best choice for me. I know better.

Everyone should feel confident that the "news" one gets is as objective and fair as is possible. If you listen only to conservative radio, watch only Fox News or read only The Wall Street Journal or other right-wing vendors, you cannot say you are truly informed or remotely objective.

It doesn't take a genius to recognize the most egregious right- or left-wingers for what they are. But it is not always as easy to separate the propaganda from the truth. Distorted facts, out-of-context quotes, dishonest ads and dishonest candidates are not rare, but they are dangerous.

Caveat emptor - buyer beware - is truer in politics than in used-car purchases. We are on our own, we must stay vigilant and we must not let the slick ads, spinmeisters and pundits convince us that the emperor's outfit is flattering.

While he is not perfect, he is figuratively and literally head and shoulders above Bush, and my bottom line is that John Kerry will be a better choice for my America.

Saunders, of Hardy, works for a construction company.

© Copyright 2004

Reprinted from The Roanoke Times:
http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/commentary%5C11936.html