Thanks to a Facebook friend who alerted me to this video of Rick Santorum, speaking to the Values Voter Summit on Saturday:
The money line: “We will never have the media on our side. Ever. We will never have the elite, smart people on our side. Because they believe they should have the power to tell you what to do. So our colleges and universities, they’re not going to be on our side.”
(I’m assuming he’s excepting the Jerry Falwell-founded Liberty University, the logo of which can be seen on the wall of sponsors behind Santorum.)
The temptation here is to laugh at the inside joke we all see — who wouldn’t want to be on the side of the smart people? And if the smart people aren’t on your side, is it because you’re stupid? Aren’t social conservatives also trying to tell us what to do, or rather not to do, by banning abortion and gay marriage? And what’s up with this anti-intellectualism that seems to permeate the “values voters” movement, anyway?
But we should resist making that joke. I know plenty of conservatives who are very smart, not least of whom are my colleagues on the Review-Journal‘s editorial page. We happen to have an ongoing disagreement about the role of the government in American life, but I don’t think my position on the issue makes me any smarter or better than those who disagree with me.
Then again, my R-J colleagues and most of the conservatives I hang with are more libertarian-leaning. Santorum doesn’t really have much respect for them, as he goes on to say this:
“The basic premise of America, and American values, will always be sustained through two institutions: the church and the family. And so economic conservatives and libertarian types can say, ‘Oh, well, we don’t want to talk about the social issues.’ Without the church and the family there is no conservative movement, there is no basic values of America in force and there is no future for our country.”
OK, now you can see why smart people will never be on poor Rick’s side. Because smart people realize that we can have moral values apart from religion. (By the way, need it be repeated that the murders of a U.S. ambassador and several others — including a resident of the Las Vegas Valley — in Libya this week were inspired by religious values?) Smart people realize that liberals, libertarians and most other people can have strong family values, too. (Look at Rep. Ron Paul; he’s been married to the same woman for 55 years and they have five kids, one of whom is a U.S. senator.) Smart people realize a conservative movement can be built on an economic message, without the need to address social issues. (A government big enough to prohibit abortion in all cases and ban gay marriage or drug legalization is certainly a government big enough to spend us into bankruptcy, is it not?)
My theory is that Santorum fails to understand these things because he fails to grasp the basic essence of what America is all about: A melting pot of people from around the world who sought out freedom in a country that respected individual rights and wisely divided the powers of government to prevent tyranny, both from the government, and from the will of the majority.
And the citizens of that great country, religious and non-religious alike, through their identity as Americans, set about every day, every year, every election to struggle a little further toward their ideal of a more perfect union, and in the process have built a pretty damn great country.
Smart people get that. And yes, smart people will never be on Rick Santorum’s side, in part because he’s not smart enough to consider the possibility that maybe he’s on the wrong one.
UPDATE: David Weigel of Slate has another perspective on the Santorum remark.
No matter the religion, fundamentalism is bad. People like Rick Santorum don’t get that.
But if that pew quiz was in any way accurate, I lean Libertarian.
Enjoyed the article, Mr. Sebelius. But I’m laughing here because of two things you didn’t point out. But they are already assumed and you can figure them out if you look closely at Santorum’s speech.
First thing is that he basically called the audience he was speaking to…um….dumb. Basically, he said thank God you people are stupid and will vote how we tell you to vote.
Second is…he insulted the audience. Totally slammed them in an offhanded manner.
AND THEY DIDN’T GET IT!
It flew over their heads like a 747 jet airliner!
It’s like they clapped and cheered because he called them dumber than rocks.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not sitting here exulting in the fact that it they have proven that I am somehow smart. Because believe you me, I’m not a rocket scientist. But what’s funny is I pride myself in the fact that I am able to intelligently diagnose, ascertain, and am clearly able to tell shit from shinola.
Santorum’s audience ain’t got that down yet. They seem to be sorely lacking in that expertise department.
Frothy Rick is in front of a group of people telling that smart people will tell them what to believe, and that is a bad thing, but The Church is telling them what to believe in the next breath kinda making the logical deduction that The Church is not filled with any smart people. Hilarious!
Good find, Mr. Sebelious. Great column. You are obviously one of the smart ones.
Indeed, Colin and Chandler. But Rick was also speaking their language. St. Paul (a highly educated man in his own right) wrote to the Corinthians, “Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the week things of the world to shame the strong.” (I Corinthians 1:26-27). And again, earlier in that same passage: “For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to use who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Corinthians 1:18)
So, although to outsiders Rick seems to be insulting his audience, he’s really reinforcing a notion from the Bible, that worldly knowledge and wisdom is not always an asset in the church. I’ve always struggled against this idea myself, figuring that God gave us minds and expects us to use them, including when reading his book. And his book — especially the parts in which Jesus walked among us — is silent about the whole idea of using the power of government to make people behave as Christians. Mostly, it says if you convert people to Christianity through the power of their own free will, then more and more the ills of society are eased.
Sadly, I think Rick missed this lesson, too.
Thanks, Jerry, although to be honest I don’t consider myself especially bright, and I know many of my commenters would support that notion!
In Lebanon the moderate Sunni, Shia, Druze, Christian were on one side and Hezbollah and Right Wing Catholics (Michel Aoun) on the other. Birds of a feather.
Santorum is in bed with the Taliban’s morals.
Oh and by the way Israel has it’s share of extremists. Rabin assassination by right wing religious nut (who was allowed to get married and conceive a child while being “punished” for his crime.) And don’t forget the ultra-orthodox who spit on women they deem immodestly dressed.
Let’s not forget the “Diller’s a killer” brand of “prayer warrior’ abortion doctor murders as well the Waco Wackos who get their anointing for their murderous rampaging.
Onthat note, Ed. I second you.
Santorum is close to a fundamentalist position on religion. A bad thing.
Seems to fit this thread.
The essence of Christianity is told to us in the Garden of Eden history. The fruit that was forbidden was on the Tree of Knowledge. The subtext is, All the suffering you have is because you wanted to find out what was going on. You could be in the Garden of Eden if you had just kept your fucking mouth shut and hadn’t asked any questions.
– Frank Zappa 1993
And this.
So, when Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden, if you go for all these fairy tales, that “evil” woman convinced the man to eat the apple, but the apple came from the Tree of Knowledge. And the punishment that was then handed down, the woman gets to bleed and the guy’s got to go to work, is the result of a man desiring, because his woman suggested that it would be a good idea, that he get all the knowledge that was supposedly the property and domain of God. So, that right away sets up Christianity as an anti-intellectual religion. You never want to be that smart. If you’re a woman, it’s going to be running down your leg, and if you’re a guy, you’re going to be in the salt mines for the rest of your life. So, just be a dumb fuck and you’ll all go to heaven. That’s the subtext of Christianity.
– Frank Zappa
Not so sure Zappa had a handle on fundamentalism but he sure could nail the lid on the bottomline.
Far be it from me to disagree with noted theologian Frank Zappa, but it was not the tree of knowledge. It was the tree of knowledge of good and evil. The fruit was nothing special; the act of disobeying God occasioned the fall of man. It doesn’t matter why they did it (whether they were deceived by argument, or simply trying to please one another), but they sinned by disobedience, and thus sin entered the world. Or so St. Paul explained hundreds of years later in his epistle to the Romans. Had Adam and Eve not sinned, they would not have been denied knowledge. (In fact, we’re told Adam named all the birds, beasts and livestock — certainly not a task for the stupid, as anyone familiar with scientific taxonomy knows.) But of sin, they knew nothing, until they sinned against God. This act occasions the rest of the Bible, the story of God trying to reconcile humans from their original sin.
Zappa was (and is) known and respected world wide. He found himself at the crux of many biscuits. Calling it the tree of knowledge doesn’t change the message.
For all your Christian teachings you are quite the legal eagle of scripture. How about being open and accepting? Or is that somehow a bad thing?
Not that I am some kind of world traveler but it seems to me success should not be a reason for denigration via religious or any other means. Success should be applauded, especially when that success came from clear and clean effort.
Zappa was very successful, does this make him somehow wrong? Or is it your interpretation of the teachings and being a stickler for the wordings making him wrong?
Fundamentalism sneaks up silently from the back and the dark.
Perhaps it would be a better use of your teachings to find a way to compromise and converge his thoughts (and those of others) with your own. Thereby not being so locked into your teachings but being open to integrating the thoughts of others with your own, using your teachings as your anchor.
Growth, that thing not mentioned in the tree.
BTW some say it was not an apple but a pomegranate. I can go for that, those things taste great but they are mighty hard to eat.
Oh this should please you, Zappa did not like Reagan.
The last election just laid the foundation of the next 500 years of Dark Ages.
– Frank Zappa, in 1981
And another:
If you wind up with a boring, miserable life because you listened to your mom, your dad, your teacher, your priest or some guy on TV telling you how to do your shit, then YOU DESERVE IT
– Frank Zappa
I would add if your life is not boring and you followed the advice of those people then you still deserve it and good for you, you had good people giving you advice.
Dweezil Zappa is a good example of that.
Please note, Steve, these are not “my teachings.” These are things I’ve learned long ago in college, from professional theologians. You’re free to have your own views, of course, and I do not seek to persuade you on this, as I don’t on any other matter.
Of course, I was not denigrating Frank Zappa’s success. You either misread that or are trying to create an argument ex nihilo. But I do note that his expertise is not in theology, an area in which I have more than a passing knowledge. But again, feel free to take his word over mine, or anybody’s for that matter.
To accuse me of fundamentalism almost brought a smile to my lips.
I did not accuse you of fundamentalism, I said it sneaks up in the dark from behind.
Fundamentalism is based on the words. When one idolizes the words then those words become fundamental. We see the results all over the Middle East.
No they are not your teachings, they are what you were taught and you adhere to them. Those Professionals would (or should) tell you to listen and be open to new ideas and thoughts or they would be idolizing words….
I note Zappa had expertise in life, that is experience (the crux of many biscuits). Something that cannot be taught.
I also note you do not continue to attempt to make the message wrong simply because Zappa left the words “good and evil” out of his quote.
I am agnostic, Steve. You are not going to get bible quotes from me. What you will get is other ideas and other views on what life is for us. And I am not trying to change you either, your beliefs (and what your were taught in college) should encourage that all by themselves.
here you go again stevo, giving yourself & all your brainless people slapping you on the back way too much credit. our nation was founded on basically 2 principles; freedom & GOD. saying that, we give anyone who wants to come here the right to worship as they please. the problem is all these people & you want to change true american beliefs & take our GOD & freedoms away. the heathen worship & killings of innocent americans in the middle east was not done for religious reasons & all you so called intellectuals know it.
Daniel, your lack of appreciation for both America and God notwithstanding, you’re still welcome in the America of reality, in which the rest of us live. You do amuse me, however: How exactly could anyone “take God away”? He’s the all-powerful, all-knowing, omnipresent creator and sustainer of the universe, upon whom we all depend for our very existence! One could no more take God away than one could stop the Earth from rotating.
Romney has now called 47% of Americans freeloaders and victims who want entitlementes. He trashed Latinos and working people in a speach to the very wealthy and the Venetian Hotel last time he was in Vegas. He said he would do nothing for th 47% of people that do not pay Federal Taxes. Romney has lost the election.
Realist speak here, Romney never had the election Ed.
But it was the Democrats and Liberals who created all those takers and they are real people. Three generations of families on the government dole. And the large majority are democrats. We are paying people to keep voting for other people that keep us paying out the dole money. Its a viscous circle and it is totally unsustainable.
Daniel, contrary to what Muslims have turned Islam into, the USA is truly a nation tolerant of all religion.
We are even fully tolerant of Atheism. All here are welcome as far as religious beliefs are concerned.
Daniel, your words are quite intolerant and you have every right to express this. But think man, what are you doing for the cause with those words?
steve, if i try to express my beliefs any further, i’m sure you or somebody will find a way to be offended. that’s why this great country is on a downhill slide; we have to conform to every bleeding heart & victimized avenger (and there’s many of them) or else!! heaven forbid anyone says how they truly feel anymore. what “cause” are you talking about anyway, yours & stevo’s?
Much better Daniel. Those are words I can support. Being offended is part and parcel in a country with true freedom of speech. (and expression)
As for the cause, I believe you are most likely a conservative. A conservative smarting under the current state of affairs.
I merely suggest you read what you write and ask yourself if your words would move you. I try to do this myself and if you have read my prior posts you would understand.
Call it the golden rule.
I just want get my voice heard and I believe the best way to do that is to treat others the way I wish to be treated.
Believe me, Steve Sebelius reads all of these posts and the ones on the RJ too.
He may believe we all 100% rely on government but I prefer to think government relies 100% on us. After all, Daniel, just where would government be without us?
Daniel: Feel free to express yourself any way you wish. I don’t believe you’ll offend me.
Steve: If you haven’t realized it by now, we — all of us — are the government. The persistent Republican meme of us versus them has never been true.
You call that a Republican meme. That is funny. But it fits you Steve S. I call it a Harry Meme. The us Vs them thing fits Harry much better. Mitch McConnell is trying to catch up.
And just where would government be without us?
See that? I just have to sit back and let the opposition make my case for me. :)
You’ve sadly missed my point. Again.
You too babe. Sadly. Again.
what do you get when you put to Stevens in a room? An argument.
steve’s in a room
Romney’s ideas are much like those expressed by a certain German leader in a speach to industrialists. The losers of socirty should not be allowed to rule.
So it is only natural that when the capable intelligences of a nation, which are always in a
minority, are regarded only as of the same value as all the rest, then genius, capacity, the value
of personality are slowly subjected to the majority and this process is then falsely named the
rule of the people. For this is not rule of the people, but in reality the rule of stupidity, of
mediocrity, of half-heartedness, of cowardice, of weakness, and of inadequacy. Rule of the
people means rather that a people should allow itself to be governed and led by its most
capable individuals, those who are born to the task, and not that a chance majority which
inevitably is unsuited to these tasks should be permitted to administer all spheres of life.
Speech to Industry Club of Dusseldorf 1/27/1932
http://www.nazi.org.uk/military%20pdfs5/The%20Nazi%20Germany%20Sourcebook.pdf
1) People who insist on drawing comparisons of U.S. presidents and/or presidential candidates would be funny if they weren’t so sad.
2) But it does appear Romney is going all Ross Perot on us.
3) Basic difference of the “Steves”. One appears to believe all good comes from government and the other does believe all good that can come from government is provided by the people who enable that government.
4) We are not owned by the government, we own the government. But our government is becoming a money pit and is in need of a serious credit card slash and burn. Before it crashes and we all burn.
Wow, Ed. Just wow. I didn’t quite appreciate Romney’s remarks either, but I don’t think the comparison is apt. Romney’s not trying to kill the people who won’t vote for him.
Just read the CityLife link and you still have it backward. Government by the people, for the people. No people by the government, for the government. We are the government, it derives its powers and services from us. Not the other way round. That is why we all pay for the use of infrastructure. When our government starts insisting it can tell us we have to pay for services, even if we don’t use those services, then we are not the owners anymore. If I don’t drive a car I don’t pay gas taxes and am not required to “chip in” for those that do drive a car.
I could go on as long as you did for that article, but it comes to mind that even as I like to read your words I will probably disagree with many of them and you will disagree with many of mine.