“The 2012 Republican primary season has featured many head-scratching moments. From audiences that cheer the macabre and the cruel, a fratricidal nomination process in which the front runners seem intent on destroying one another, and a collective descent into madness where the most fringe Right wing values such as nativism, conspiratorial Birtherism, old fashioned white racism, and puritanical Christian theocratic identity politics are on full display, it seems that the bizarre has become the new normal,” writes Salon magazine.
“Since the election of Barack Obama, the Tea Party GOP has embraced a kamikaze-like politics in which they are willing to destroy the proverbial village in order to liberate it. This appetite for destruction has reached a fever pitch during the last few weeks. Rick Santorum and the Republican Party have called for limiting women’s reproductive rights under the guise of defending ‘religion’ from the ‘tyranny’ of the Obama administration.
“A Federal Judge was caught forwarding an email to his friends suggesting that Barack Obama’s conception was the product of drunken sex between his mother Ann Dunham, and a dog. And Rush Limbaugh launched a viciously misogynistic attack on Sandra Fluke, a private citizen, who dared to testify before Congress in defense of a woman’s right to have equal access to birth control.
“On the surface, these incidents appear to be unrelated. They are simply the desperate graspings and mouth utterances of an increasingly fringe and desperate Republican Party which is determined to defeat Barack Obama by any means necessary.
“However, these events are all symptoms of a bigger problem. In the Age of Obama white manhood—and a particular type of conservative white masculinity—is frightened, unsettled, and terrified of its obsolescence. White (conservative) masculinity finds itself in an existential crisis.”
The rest of the article is here.
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I think the election of President Obama was equivalent to the 60′s for many conservatives. It made their heads explode and they have gone off the rails.
I agree with you Ben. I see a relevance to the 60′s with the Sandra Fluke incident too. The thought of anyone having equality regardless of gender, race, faith, etc. appears to be too much too bear. Oppression is something I never understood and most likely I never will.
The older white conservatives, its as if they’re trapped in the Courland Pocket and they don’t even know it. It wasn’t any overwhelming liberal army that pushed them there, it’s the unstoppable forward motion of time and the evolution of the culture has them backed into a corner where they have become more and more irrelevant, relics of a different time and they can’t grasp what has changed. Which doesn’t mean they can’t throw some bombs every now and then, but so what, its meaningless, the battle front has moved past them. Urrah!
The evolution of Mad Men through each season becomes a metaphor about the current status of white male conservatism. As the show progresses through each year, Don Draper and company become more and more out of step with the times. They become desperate and that is the current situation with many white males.
Great analogy, Stephen.
We’re currently working our way through the 56 episodes of “Mad Men” available on Netflix through our Roku box. We’re getting very close to canning the satellite, just need a few more programming additions to Intertube streaming. Another example of evolution.
An article announcing season 6 in the SF Comical yesterday proclaimed “Mad Men” to be the best show on television. I’d have to agree.
Lead, follow, or get the heck out of the way!
“Game of Thrones” is very entertaining as well, and selling a lot of DVD’s of its first season.
Men may be surprised to learn that there are a lot of us women finding one of its stars, Peter Dinklage, a very attractive and sexy actor.
He’s a dwarf, so it would appear size doesn’t always matter in the case of a compelling, intelligent person.
Size, I have heard, is the classic theoretical motivation behind some racist white men’s psychological fear of black men.
They are afraid they won’t measure up and all their women will leave them for superiorly endowed males.
Isn’t that about the silliest thing you ever heard?
Sad thing is, it’s probably true.
Good thing us “progressives” still believe that small is beautiful!
Its all about size. Just look at the square footage of houses built in the last 20 years. Do Americans really have to live in 3500 sq. ft. five bedroom house and watch 60″ televisions? I guess many feel they do, at least until the bank takes everything back.
You are spot on Judith. Game of Thrones, season 2 begins April 1st. Peter Dinklage is one of the hottest humans on the planet. Between he and Christina Hendricks on Mad Men I’m all set.
Kate
I have just watched my first Mad Men episode. From the workplace scenes to the smoking gynecologist, it’s like reliving the 60′s.
I know people find MM wildly entertaining and nostalgic, but so far it’s just making me uncomfortable and angry all over again.
If you had to live through it you know what I mean.
It does remind me however, that as far as women have to go towards achieving social equality, we have still come a mighty long way, baby.
I have to wonder how the Republican’s can sit down and look at the Rush episode and call it a “win” for their party?
I equate it to someone who get sprayed by a Skunk (while out fishing), then down not catch a fish, but still calls it a “worthwhile” day.
This type of action seems to be the new “normal” for the Republican party.
These guys are Presidental Obama’s re-election committe’s dream.
The President doesn’t have to spend a dime to make them look foolish as they are quite proud of embarrising themselves on a regular basis.
Advantages: Obama will have much more dinero in da Bank
Disadvantages: None!
Speaking of Conservative Christian Right Wing Republican Straight White American Males—I wonder if they will all reject the effort to curtail speak on the Sierra College campus.
http://www.sacbee.com/2012/03/22/4357112/amid-abortion-flap-sierra-college.html
Steve,
This is the essence of the rumination’s great divide debate. Two completely different worldviews talking about the same event, what a contrast. One side is talking about empowerment and social justice for women while the other side is talking about being pro-abortion. Since I am definitely with the former I see the latter as a political stunt to influence opinion and force the conversation to their position. As for tax payers dollars being used for the event couldn’t we argue the same for church’s who receive tax exemptions. I don’t mind churches existing because I think they do more good then bad but think it becomes a very slippery slope when they start using the tax dollar position.
A bit late for a comment, but I’ve been holding back, but can hold back no longer. Back in 1965, when I graduated from high scool, it seemed that the religious and not so religious got along just fine, w/o being at each other’s jugulars all the time. But then along came another Great Awakening, a mew generation of ‘Jesus Freaks’ as we called them as the movement grew with the likes of Rev. Moon, and all kinds of others.
Now, in spreading the good news, also came involvement in politics once again, to forcibly not only spread the good news, but make even non-believers live by the precepts of the good news, one of which was that there was no choice. This Ukaze, or state sanctioned dictum, could and did have tragic consequenses for families, including my own, but the good news spreaders didn’t care. Santorum has basically said as much. I think he’d turn the U.S. into a giant monastary akin to Umberto Eco’s one depicted in his book, In The Name of the Rose, a dour, purgatory devoid of humor. Legislate that all babies be must be born even though it is known that the poor child has zero chance of survival and risks the life of the mother .And the trauma of a natural birth, then an hour later, a natural death, a lifespan shorter than a TV sitcom, but long enough to plant the seeds of destruction to a marriage for a momentary peek at a little girl that had no brain. But it’s God’s will, their Gods will, the God that is suppossed to be separated from the laws of the State. That type of thinking forced Roger Williams to flee Mass. and form the colony of Rhode Island and got the Puritans evicted from the Neatherlands. But they keep reforming and coming back, sticking their dogma in places it doesn’t belong, no matter who objects or gets hurt. Oh how the evangelicals must pine to attack Jeruselum again.