Gentle readers, do not despair at our criticism of media controversialist Glenn Beck's rally in Washington yesterday. We gladly affirm that the rally was exceptionally well attended and sounded themes that ought to become a bigger part of the public agenda.
We think this speaks more to the public's pressing awareness that these themes need to be rearticulated, reclaimed and reinvigorated. We, of course, agree.
Our scorn is for Mr. Beck only. He is no real leader of conservatism. While his instincts may be directed rightly, he is a clumsy spokesman for the movement, never really stating clearly why what he says matters to all, not just those already inclined to agree with him.
So don't go gettin' all excited about this thing. Be glad that people care, but be concerned that "movement conservatism" lacks the leadership to make its case to the public at large, even when they're inclined to agree.
3 comments:
Did you just quasi apologize? I didn't think you were harsh enough. Beck is inflammatory and divisive. And not everything he touts is worthy of our intellectual mastication. He's bad for Christians, especially the ones who drink his cool aid.
Being SWNID means never having to say you're sorry. We anticipated an invalid rejoinder to our prior statement and issued a preemptive correction.
... "movement conservatism" lacks the leadership to make its case to the public at large ... .
I'm not sure intellectual conservatism is in any better shape in that regard. Too many disagreements, too many factions.
In fact, I'm not even sure what conservatism is supposed to be any more. It seems as though the only thing self-described conservatives can agree on is a free-market economy, which, ironically, is a tenet of classical liberalism.
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