Dissident Patriot

Been thinking about the concepts of “loyal opposition” and “dissident patriots,” and having just seen his Columbine movie, I quite liked Dissent Magazine’s take on Michael Moore’s failures. He’s really emblematic of the left, to me, and the article has a much more nuanced feel for what I have been groping for when I said “most protestors are idiots” or whatever.

Getting arrested isn’t a powerful symbol anymore. Conflict and protest don’t win hearts and minds the way they did in 1960 when it suddenly became apparent that the police were turning dogs on unarmed protestors. It was certainly something when everyone knew that Nice Kids did not get arrested, that an arrest, even without conviction, barred you from Good employment, and so forth. But now, not so much. Now, it’s not really a big deal to rack up that symbolic arrest. The police have a whole procedure for putting you in jail for an afternoon and letting you out with a small fine that covers the cost of disposable plastic handcuffs and gas for the paddy-wagon.

I do feel the frustration of not being able to convince people of the obvious truths before them: Our Leader is turning this nation into a kleptocracy, and our rights are malleable and disappearing fast.

Them Democrats better get their asses in gear and start promoting fiscal responsibility and exposing Bush for the puppet he is. I just wish the citizenry were more economically and mathematically astute– they’d see through this a lot easier.

Well, at least there’s some positive news on the horizon: new research says video games are good for hand-eye coordination.