When one declares oneself to be a conservative, one is not, unfortunately, thereupon visited by tongues of fire that leave one omniscient. The acceptance of a series of premises is just the beginning. After that, we need constantly to inform ourselves, to analyze and to think through our premises and their ramifications. We need to ponder, in the light of the evidence, the strengths and the weaknesses, the consistencies and the inconsistencies, the glory and the frailty of our position, week in and week out. Otherwise, we will not hold our own in a world where informed dedication, not just dedication, is necessary for survival and growth.

William F. Buckley Jr., Feb 8, 1956, NR

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

A Post to Jennifer

This is an open post to Jennifer, who is one of the creators of Conservative Convictions and has now decided to leave it.

I tried to figure out what the problem was, so I scrolled down and found your last post here, Jennifer. The one titled “Short and to the Point.” I think that semantics is what is causing the problem. Let me try to explain. You write that you “have been reading over and over on conservative blogs that they wish Obama complete failure, but I truly wonder if they understand the ramifications of what they are saying. If Obama fails in keeping us safe and protected, then that means that you are in essence asking for another 9-11.” That’s true, Jennifer, but I must explain that although I hope he keeps us safe I hope his socialist policies are a “complete failure“ and I believe we are on the same exact page. I think that’s where the misunderstanding lies. We conservatives can’t wish for him to succeed when that would mean his socialist policies succeed and there are scads of them, but that doesn’t mean we don’t want him to keep this country safe. So, just like Rush Limbaugh, I hope he fails too, as long as his success means his socialist policies succeed. There are going to be some people, including conservatives, who will disagree with that. It's okay. It's the way I feel and I have a right to my opinion, as you have a right to yours, as they have a right to theirs.

I read the comments in the “Short and to the Point” post and can see why you felt you were under attack. I personally believe it is a matter of misinterpretation of what you wrote. I don’t hate Obama, but I do hate his politics and absolutely hate where they are leading this country! I want to make it clear that there were also some things that Bush did and didn't do that I also hated, and although Obama isn't directly responsible for the mess we are in now, what he has tried to implement since he has been in office will prove to be a disaster.

You are one of the creators of this blog and one of it’s most valuable writers. I don’t know why you believe you aren’t eloquent because it isn’t true. Your opinions and insight are needed every bit as much as anyone's. I hope you will reconsider and return, and I have to tell you that if you don’t, it is truly our loss! Whatever you decide to do, I wish you the best in all that you do. Although I know that you have already given this a lot of hard thought, please think about it a bit longer. It's my belief that you are appreciated far more than you know!

God bless you.

14 comments:

Pistolmom said...

Wow, Very true.

www.freedoms-fight.blogspot.com

Pistolmom said...

www.mytitleofliberty.blogspot.com

TAO said...

I cannot answer for Jennifer...

But I can only wonder, "Where did you think the stupidity of the last 20 years would lead?"

Our government has pandered to the big money interests of Wall Street for years and did anyone back then wonder what would happen when the whole thing blew up?

Everyone assumed that we had gotten so smart that we had conquered the fear of economic downturns but all we had actually done was create a perfect storm.

We are propping up AIG which has 55 trillion dollars in credit default swaps out there right now and what happens if they implode?

Good people are losing their jobs, their retirement, and their homes. Hardworking Americans are struggling to make ends meet while having their pay cut and or hours cut.

So, 53% of Americans decided last election that enough was enough.

Lower taxes, less government spending, and free markets are not what the public wants to hear at this point in time. In fact they have heard those terms batted around for years only to find themsleves in the situation that they are in now.

Thats the failure of conservatives and conservative thought...and all we have now is a hope that Obama fails.

If he fails do you really believe Americans will seek out a conservative? What if Americans decide that obama was too conservative?

THAT IS A SCARY THOUGHT but a realistic one.

Our job losses keep mounting and our economic dilemma keeps getting bigger.

So, what does a country with a GDP of 14 trillion in 2007 do when facing a flood of bad debt to the tune of 55 trillion do?

Lower taxes? Cut government spending? Sit around and do nothing until the tide turns?

What if the tide does not turn?

At some point and time all the vicious attacks have to give way to rational thought.

For twenty years I have worked harder than anyone to keep my company growing and stable. I remember what business was like in the early 80's with high inflation and that was nothing compared to what I am having to deal with today. I have lost three subcontractors and two competitors literally overnight. At one time I provided a secondary income for most of my employees and now I am their primary source of income. In just a matter of two months.

I do not want Obama to fail; now I may not believe that his plans will succeed as much as he believes they will but that is not wishing him failure.

If he fails I fail. Its that simple...that is something all of need to think about.

Gayle said...

As I said in my post, TAO, I completely detest socialism which means I detest big government. I also said you are entitled to your opinion, and I certainly am entitled to mine and Jennifer is entitled to hers. You have the right to believe the way you do, and I have the right to believe what I believe. Socialism has always failed historically and I don't see why anyone would think it would work now. But it's not my intention to argue these points with you or anyone else. My post is directed to Jennifer and I only hope she will read it.

TAO said...

Then Gayle,

If you express something publically then you are inviting a response.

If you wanted to communicate with jennifer privately then you should have sent her an email.

Anonymous said...

Gayle, Thank you for the very nice post and your comments. It's very hard to explain everything I am feeling, but I will try.

I was a bit naive coming into this blog and I thought it would be an excellent place to learn and grow and discuss different ideas and opinions. I am the first to admit that I am not as knowledgeable as I would like to be and I won't preach to anyone about what they should or should think because that's just plain ignorance and arrogance. It seemed like every post that I wrote or even Robert for that matter got attacked, not by other authors, but by conservatives that thought we were either too open minded or weren't conservative enough for them. I soon realized that kind of conservatism wasn't for me. Conservatism meant small government, not small minds and I was rather shocked and dismayed by a lot of the comments we received here.

I don't want a lot of Obama's policies to succeed. They go against what I believe, but at the same time, if his policies fail, where does that leave us, in practical terms. I am close to losing my house, not because we bought something that we couldn't afford but because my husband's work has been sketchy at best with days off and pay cuts. So my biggest issue with failure is at what cost? Do I honestly need to lose my house, for ideology? I think it is very easy to say things but when you are living them and wondering how you are going to pay your next mortgage payment, you take a more practical and realistic look at things. This stupid stimulus package was a horrendous mistake in my opinion. It never should have passed to begin with, but now that it has, how do I wish it to fail, when that means that my husband will probably lose his job and then we will probably lose our house.

I think that is the difference between what I am feeling compared to some others. I want conservative principles back more than anyone and I am hoping that after 4 years of Obama that we are ready with responsible alternatives. I think there has been a lot of misinterpretations on this blog starting with Robert's post Call to Conservatives. After that things just really started going downhill. Robert got hammered for his use of the word support. I guess I am just so tired of the name calling and the bickering between all the conservatives when we have the same goals. I honestly will think about returning, it's the least I can do, because I truly want this blog to succeed. I think somewhere along the way, the blog lost the whole point of it. To debate and discuss ways to bring conservatism back to the GOP. I honestly don't think there is a right and wrong answer here. It's just a matter of seeing things from a different perspective. I truly appreciate your post and your friendship.

Pasadena Closet Conservative said...

I'll repeat what I wrote in my comment to Jennifer: we need her voice! I hope she'll reconsider.

Anonymous said...

As TAO said, "I cannot answer for Jennifer"

Well maybe I can .. As I have been reading these posts here it seems to me that this blog is trying to reach to many thoughts of opinion, it is impossible to please both sides.
The conservatives just can not agree with libs no matter how hard we try to.
So it leads to fustration and thus to arguments. It will never be any other way.
If you look at a libs blog, you will ALWAYS find that they name call and put down conservatives every chance they get.
So in winding up this post I would say that maybe it was wise for Jennifer to go her own way. I just took a look at her new blog and I thought it was a really good one. I think that she will be happier there with people that think like she and I do, as would most conservatives .
I wish her the best of luck.

Anonymous said...

So, 53% of Americans decided last election that enough was enough.

Apparently not. Once again, there were two horrible choices: dumb, and dumber. The GOP brought the election results on themselves by selecting a candidate who was not substantially different than his competitor. I should also add that when you look at Members of Congress, there is little difference between democratic socialists, and republican socialists.

Consequently, we have exactly the same kind of government we've had in the past twenty years ... irresponsible, arrogant, and decidedly socialistic. I don't blame the politicians; they are simply taking advantage of an excellent opportunity to enrich themselves at our expense. I blame the American people who can no more explain the essential differences of free-market capitalism and socialism, than identifying by name the individuals who represent them in congress.

Had enough? Hardly. We need much more pain and suffering. And thanks to a system that offers up either a marxist or a socialist, Americans chose for themselves the candidated guaranteed to provide the most pain.

Good job, America.

Joe said...

"Lower taxes? Cut government spending?"

Yes!...that's it!

Lowering taxes and cutting government spending WILL stimulate the economy, because then the people will get to decide how to spend the money THEY earn, instead of letting the government spend money they neither earn nor know how to spend effectively.

Remember, every dime of money given to AIG, et. al., is money taken from OUR pockets, rendering us less able to spend money WE (and your employees) earned.

Joe said...

Oh...and Jennifer, I understand your position, and enjoy your new blog.

Gayle said...

Jennifer, I understand and thanks for coming in and responding. I know it's the conservatives who are frequently arguing here that is causing you grief. It bothers me too. It doesn't make any sense at all, unless perhaps some of them are not truly conservatives. I've wondered about that. My idea of conservatism is also smaller government and lower taxes, the complete opposite of what's going on now.

Tao, the reason I posted this publicly is because I was hoping that the conservatives posting comments here would come in and support Jennifer. Because your comment had nothing whatsoever to do with Jennifer, it looks as though I was wrong about that. Also, I seriously doubt the majority of Americans are going to conclude that Obama is too conservative. If they do, they're completely nuts!

As Jennifer already answered my post and explained her position, I will comment here no further. I'll visit her when I have time on her new blog, and hope that this blog can return to the reason it was created in the first place.

Blessings.

Anonymous said...

I think you may have nailed it Gail! Support I extended to our President was to BETTER this country. Socialist policies will NOT do that. Thus I do hope, pray, and everything else possible that our country, OUR COUNTRY does NOT become a socialist nation.

"What he has tried to implement since he has been in office will prove to be a disaster" - COMPLETELY AGREE! Every time he opens his mouth the stock market falls and falls and falls.

Sometimes the best thing to do is to do nothing at all. If you keep scratching at a scab - it will never heal.

Gayle said...

I can't believe there are no new posts here. I have hardly had time to post on my own blog, but where is everyone? Is this blog dead?