A Few Last Words Before The Year Dies

This is mainly a political blog. At least, most of our Gentle Readers come here for the politically focused material, if I can judge by the comments and the emails. So I hope it won't dampen anyone's New Year's Eve spirit to receive a few more politically oriented thoughts before the ball drops.

I don't want to cut into anyone's inebriation schedule, so I'll strive to be brief.

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First, we took a body blow in November, but not a knockout punch. Our main political difficulty arises, not from any fault in ourselves, but from a lack of character in our elected representatives. ("Our" meaning Republicans who claim, often falsely, to be attached to the principles of Constitutional government.) The majority of the Republicans we've sent to Washington have proved spineless, faithless, or both. That's the worst of the 2012 political news; nothing else comes close to it.

If there's a remedy for the stupidity and flaccidity of the Stupid and Flaccid Party, it lies in sweeping out the ruling cadre, which has demonstrated a complete disinterest in anything remotely resembling Constitutionally limited government. It's not enough to support sound conservatives for Congress...or for the White House. They must also have a party to back them, which the kingmakers of today's GOP do not.

Concerning the Evil Party, nothing can be done.

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Second, it's vital for conservatives to remain connected and engaged. Even those of us who have no interest in running for office or working directly for a political organization should make an effort at this. The effort required will be greater than in previous years, because the Left has increased its own efforts to separate and discourage us.

Disheartening conservatives -- persuading us that there's no hope, and no one we can trust to have our flanks -- is the Left's new grass-roots priority. Their strategists have realized that the successes of 2010 flowed directly from conservatives' grass-roots energy. They have a number of tactics deployed: some through the Mainstream Media; others through the Web. If you're attuned to their objective, you'll recognize them when you encounter them.

Don't let them affect you. Knowing what they're after makes it much easier.

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Third and last for 2012, draw strength from the knowledge that, as Margaret Thatcher famously said, "The facts of life are conservative." That's because conservative political stances flow from the laws of nature:

• No one is entitled to anything but his natural rights.
• There is one and only one natural right: the right to be left alone.
• No man is guilty of what another man has done.
• You will be treated as well or as badly as you treat others.
• The family is the indispensable building block of all healthy societies.
• Justice can sometimes be delayed, but no one escapes his deserts forever.
• You cannot consume what has not been produced.
• We are more reliably punished by our sins than for them.
• Debt is always paid: if not by the borrower, then by the lender.
• Those who criticize most and demand most are the ones doing absolutely nothing.

These things are the bedrock of all conservative belief. The Left seeks to deny each and every one of them. Yet they are written into the fabric of reality...which is why Leftism always brings degradation, deterioration, and despair.

Keep them front and center in all your thinking.
Never compromise on any of them.
Always point out the ways Left-induced disasters flow from policies that deny or disregard them.
And remain positive.

Happy New Year.