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Fighting Fatalism
Like many right-of-center Americans, I fell into a months-long funk when Barack Obama was re-elected. I understood voting for a charismatic cipher in 2008 after years of war, scandal, and a financial collapse. It would have been hard for a Democrat not to win, especially with the cheerleading of newsrooms and popular culture.
But 2012 was a different matter altogether. The voters knew who Obama was. They lived through four years of economic stagnation, failed foreign policy, and the callow dilettante presiding over both. They saw the backroom deals and the trillion wasted on a fictitious stimulus, but the American people didn’t care. They agreed with Mitt Romney on nearly every issue, but Obama made failure look cool. They applauded American decline and signed on for another four years.
Week by week, I slowly got over my 2012 fatalism. I focused on the small victories conservatives could win in the states and school boards. I saw a rising tide of right-leaning problem solvers in governors’ mansions and statehouses. And despite the bad rap many millennials get, I met so many young people who got it. My inherent optimism slowly returned.
But Thursday, Bush-appointed Chief Justice Roberts decided for a second time that the economic and moral garbage fire known as Obamacare be rubber-stamped — the law and the English language be damned. The American people will continue to suffer under this monstrosity (my family lost our plan) while liars like Gruber, Pelosi — and yes, Obama — give high fives and cash bigger checks. The bad guys won again and fatalism is hard to fight.
The U.S. has spent six years tossing matches at the Middle East powder keg, encouraging petty expansionists like Putin, and almost begging China to replace us as hegemon. Our national debt is higher than our gross domestic product and politicians from both parties demand we spend more. Beijing has stolen the most personal of information from 18 million federal employees and Washington insists we hand them our medical records as well.
It’s hard for freedom-loving Americans not to be fatalistic. To declare America over and seek greener pastures or just drop off the grid. Personally, I can’t run to a virtual Galt’s Gulch since my kids and other younger generations need me to at least try to stop the slide if not reverse it. So I remind myself of the times America faced tougher trials: the world wars, our nation’s founding, and the fight between the Union and the Confederates (if I’m still allowed to use that trigger word).
Despite the multiple crises, our betters are screeching about utter nonsense. Whether a flag should be displayed in an iPhone game, whether people can choose their race and gender, if old ladies should be publicly flayed or just put out of business for not baking a cake.
Eventually the electorate will come to its senses — I mean, they have to, right? As Glenn Reynolds often says, “what cannot continue, won’t.” But what cataclysm will it take to shake us out of our navel-gazing, microaggressed, Brawndo-swilling stupor?
An even worse financial collapse than in 2008 with no borrowed money left to rescue the banks? A deadlier act of war than 9-11? And if either happens, God forbid, will Americans just use the moment to blame each other in even uglier terms?
My ultimate hope, as a Christian, is knowing that God is in control. Being a student of history, I know that cultures have endured far worse calamities than our comfortable decline. But I want to know how you keep your hopes up. Fatalism will never win hearts and minds, let alone elections, so do you have advice on keeping political setbacks from dragging you into despond?
Maybe you take a break from the news (this website excepted, of course). Do you hug your kids more? Slam three shots of bourbon? I’d rather be a Reagan than an Eeyore, so let me know in the comments.
Published in Culture
One thing that was so disappointing from Roberts and Kennedy today was that there was a chance to have some different states try different health care ideas, but even that is not to be allowed. There was an opportunity to allow states that have health care exchanges to try different things. I guess those state exchanges will all be federalized and abolished. Do Roberts and Kennedy understand anything about freedom and economics? Why did Roberts take the job, if you was always going to defer to the president? That’s not how separation of powers works; friction is required.
Do we really even have state governments anymore? I’ve never paid attention to state government much. They never seem to have any power anyway…
James,
Better. I’m not convinced, but better. I see increased lawlessness, increased arbitrariness, and increased centralization -I see it stretching back 4 decades, and for all the little wins here and there I think the elected dictator is around the corner. Those foreign policy successes happen against a backdrop of increasing Congressional inaction. The president starts the wars and Congress refuses to stop them. That the president does this with the blessing of the people is not actually a comfort -even if I approve of the wars. Abortions are down because 20-25% of our people don’t have sex regularly, which is not a healthy society (sex is up in marriage, but marriage itself is down). Gun rights are protected right up until the mob figures out how to do for guns what they just did for a flag on a Confederate War Dead memorial (and again, that I agree with the mob does nothing for the fact it was a mob). And we vote and we vote, and still we are going to break the trust-funds in 2033, and we can’t even get our own party to agree on a solution.
In two decades, when the bills come due, we’ll be an old and decrepit society at each others’ throats to keep the sense-blitz coming so we don’t have to think about it any more.
But I hope you’re right. I will not march on the armory tonight.
не знаю
Lenin correctly foresaw the apathy of the populace and overcame it. Can we do the same and undo 100 years of progressivism and worse?
I recently visited Jefferson’s Monticello (before the present kerfuffle) – at his grave I felt a profound depression.
Next day I visited Madison’s Montpelier. It had a much lighter feel. Especially in the little upstairs room where he contemplated and drafted the Constitution.
Now, whenever a feel like Jon (which is most of the time) I think back to Madison’s view of the Blue Mountains of Virginia – this remains a stunningly beautiful country.
And I also see a little hope in Mr Delingpole’s England, where they were presented with Socialism, pure and simple, and turned it away.
Jefferson had great faith in an educated American electorate – that’s where he went wrong. He didn’t foresee Prof Ayers and his disciples.
Oh, and yeah, they both had many slaves – get over it – dude, that was years ago!
Wut?
Do you have any metric for this, because in general I’d say that the evidence went the other way. We have far greater access to information today and greater access to the media, political system, and such. We have more lawyers, per capita and even more so absolutely. All the conditions that ought to point to a system in which bureaucrats lack arbitrary power over us have increased. Body cameras are more common, and camera phones near ubiquitous.
Well, in some fields. School choice is one area where the dial seems to be turning the other way. States lead more environmental law than they did thirty years back (I’m not sure of your “decades” timeframe), particularly California. I get at least as upset about the national speed limit as the next man, assuming that the next man also really dislikes North Carolina’s politicians (Senators Liz Dole, Kay Hagan, Robert Reynolds, Sam Ervin, Everett Jordan; even today, they have Reps. Walter Jones and Mark Walker) In the last decade, what major expansions of Federal power have there been?
In terms of funding, there doesn’t seem to be all that much difference. In terms of state reform, states don’t seem much more hindered.
It’s true that we’ve had in many ways a less than wonderful Congress for the past decade or so on foreign policy grounds. Still, they were better than usual for the decade before that. Both Iraq Wars and the Afghan conflict were Congressionally authorized.
The success in the Middle East came, in large part, because the Surge worked, which was a tremendous political achievement. Congress actively funded it, however much they may have wished not to. Congress constantly promised to cut aid, too, but much of the success came from Congress deciding not to do that. Congress passed a bunch of Free Trade Agreements in the Middle East under Bush, which helped. Congress has also helped by repeatedly reauthorizing most of the PATRIOT Act.
The success I was talking about with China, the TPP, is Congress’s gift. Congress has also been helpful in improving relations with India and supporting the creation of the modern form of AFRICOM, both of which are helpful in containing China on a grand scale.
It’s also down because clinics have been closed, and conservatives have been successful at passing laws in ways that make abortion appear repugnant (the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act didn’t have much direct impact, but symbolic things can be important, if not as important as substantive things).
They had a go at that after Sandy Hook. The result? More gun rights.
In 2005, we had the first President elected to reform Social Security fail because he didn’t have the Congress he needed. In 2010, we got the House we needed. In 2014, we got the Senate we need. If we get the White House in 2016, we should have all our ducks in a row; the Ryan plan just needs 50 Senators and a House Majority, and we currently have that.
Me too. Unfortunately I read a lot about the Roman Empire, and when I go to places like Rome or Constantinople (I’ve been to both in the last 6 months or so), I get really melancholy when I think, “it’s happening again”….
Optimism? Now where’s that cup of hemlock…..
Aw screw it. The best revenge is to live well.
Well if they want to be consistent, they should start from this premise:
And they should respect the role of the state Legislatures (and state voter initiatives) and not undo the traditional marriage laws they drafted.
That’s if they were being consistent, mind you. I’m not holding my breath.
Sometimes, when I’m very lucky and get the chance, I compose music. That is another world entirely. Work (especially math) can also send me off into my own little world. Reading books. Writing about plastic flamingos…
To be honest, as much as I read about economics, law, conservative culture, and certain aspects of political philosophy, I’m just not a political news-cycle junkie. Electoral politics? I know there are people with a greater inclination toward that aspect of politics than mine, so I leave them to it.
Getting back to music, even running a scale or arpeggio – mentally rehearsing the scale degrees – helps. Let yoga types have their mantra. The scale degrees are mine.
Not that kind of lawlessness, the executive order type.
OLC is sending my institution “Dear Colleague” Letters and deliberately avoiding the APA public comment period. At all levels, but especially the Federal, agencies are finding ways to avoid public comment, even in illegal ways. We do nothing to stop it. It will continue.
1973 is what I had in mind. I’d accept 1976.
State budgets consist of 3 parts: healthcare, police, and education. Between the DoJ, IRS, HHS, and Common Core, we’re getting clobbered on all three. But hey, we have discretion for the remaining 10% of our budgets.
I share your appreciation for Bush, both of them. Before or after, though? These exceptions prove the rule more than I like.
And when we get them, the Republicans will suddenly find a problem, just like they did on the 20 week abortion ban.
Don’t mind me, I’m just eeyorish today.
That great Italian expression, meno male also fights despair. Literally translated “less bad”, it’s a sigh of relief – of gratitude! That great joy that comes when you know things could have turned out so much worse. And for once they didn’t.
Besides, meno male is responsible for one of the most hilarious political campaign jingles (or rather extended musical numbers) ever produced, Meno male che Silvio c’è:
There is no way to watch that music video without blissing out on the sheer absurdity of politics. I especially appreciate how the words are given, karaoke-style, so that everyone can sing along!
Liberating, wasn’t it? Here it is again with English subtitles, so you can see what they’re saying:
Which states are on a trajectory towards Grexit status? Greece has an S&P credit rating of CCC. No US state has a credit rating worse than A- (Illinois), and 49 states have better than that. California (A) and New Jersey (A+) round out the ratings worse than AA- (Arizona, Michigan, and, thanks to Sabr not winning the 83 votes required to turn things around, Kentucky). 44 states are AA or better.
Illinois is in genuine trouble, but not on a Greek scale. California has actually improved a little, surprisingly. For comparison, Poland, which is one of Europe’s more successful economies, is on the same rating as Illinois.
Chicago is in real trouble (hence, in large part, Illinois), but I can’t see anything approaching Greece.
Sabr, you’re just secretly emo. It happens :-)
The courts do seem to be helping with that.
I’m not familiar with the current Administrative Procedure Act controversies. Could you expand?
Is there a specific DoJ reform you’re concerned about? Healthcare I can see. Race to the Top is mostly in the past, and wasn’t entirely unhelpful from that perspective; the big reforms in education have been decentralizing, with school choice becoming massively more common and home schooling resource support increasing. I recognize that that doesn’t help if what you want is more power for state government bureaucrats, but its good if you want decentralized government, freedom, and quality education.
Reagan? Or do you just mean Clinton and Obama? Clinton got specific funding for Kosovo, as did Obama for Libya (and Obama got formally rebuked, 268-145, by the House for exceeding the WPA there). I noted a some foreign policy successes coming from Congress under Obama, though, and Clinton had some, too (WTO, NAFTA, not ratifying Kyoto).
The abortion ban was really, really, dumb, the worst of the House’s moments for preferring the perfect to the good. We could have gotten a bill passed with broad rape exceptions and saved the lives of some kids. Instead, they made Ellmers (North Carolina, again), and Walorski look pro-choice by treating the details of the rape exception as a sine qua non.
Happily, the Ryan Plan pushers are less nuts than that. If some Representative wants to make a symbolic change to the budget, they can make some symbolic changes to the budget.
Incidentally, we’re getting much of the benefit of the federal law by passing the same law in the states. 11 of them already, and Ohio looks to be making it 12. Sadly, Kentucky isn’t on the list. Remember the 83.
Furthering your point James, Obama also sought Congressional approval for action in Syria — and didn’t get it. Hardly a sign of a weak or rubber-stamp legislature.
Here’s the academic treatment. The part I am personally familiar with is part III. The OLC letter isn’t a rule, so there was no comment on it. However, if we do not follow it, the Dept. of Ed can yank scholarships. Even our ability to challenge it is questionable, because, not being a rule, the courts tend to give automatic deference to it.
Additionally, there have been cases following in the wake of Mass v. EPA where agencies find someone to sue them to make them do what they wanted to do without having to seek public comment.
I don’t actually like the APA, but I prefer it to outright circumvention.
At the present time, it’s just the reaching into local departments that happened over the summer, but I expect there to be more following in the model.
I like school districts. The ones I talk to, though, do not tell me of decentralization or school choice. They tell me of more mandates from DC, more pressure to adopt standardized curricula, and more paperwork to keep the DoE folks happy. The DoE is also making noise about the funding mechanisms again, viz a viz Serrano.
Not tonight, James. I’m in no mood.
And he threatened to do it anyway right up until polls read 2/3 of Americans opposed it. He didn’t react to the Congressional threat, he reacted to public opinion. This is mob-rule by elected dictator. It isn’t the type of deliberation the system is supposed to encourage.
I agree that fake consent decrees are a terrible thing. Mass v. EPA was a genuine limitation on the executive branch though, no matter how horribly decided it was. Utility Air Regulatory Group v EPA saw an attempt to cheat, but it was mostly defeated. In Re Aiken, similarly, seems reasonably decided; the ultimate non-compliance seems to be because Congress defunded it, and seems like a legitimate response to defunding.
The FDA procedures do seem obnoxious (I’ve heard complaints about this bit before), but it seems extremely likely that, in the event of a GOP win this cycle and 2018, there’ll be some substantial reform of the FDA. Who doesn’t hate it?
Basically, I think that a lot of this is because we’ve had a President since late 2009 who can’t and won’t deal with Congress. I expect we’ll see a lot less strain on the Constitution after 2016. Even Clinton seems unlikely to be as bad in that particular way, and a Republican would obviously return us to much more convivial relationships.
Hasn’t that sort of thing always happened? I wasn’t a fan of the specifics, but investigating racial abuse by local police forces is sort of the point of the Civil Rights Division, no? It doesn’t even seem Constitutionally suspect (it’s pretty much exactly what the 14th Amendment’s enforcement clause envisioned, as I understand it).
Right: Kentucky is awful on this stuff. One of ten states not to have charter schools, very little school choice, with no private school choice. Most of America is improving, though.
I can also see that if you prefer school districts to school choice, excessive expansion of school choice might seem negative, but it’s not centralizing, even if it does take power away from state governments.
Fair enough. It’s also less fair than some of my jabs; there’s every change Bevin could add Kentucky to the list.
I think he probably had the authority to do it without asking Congress, but he decided to go for humility/ wanted an excuse to do an indefensible thing and knew Congress would stop him. I think he pushed for it for a while for political purposes, but the moment he asked for Congressional support, he wasn’t going to go in without it. I mean, he could, and he did, make noise about supporting the FSA and such, but he didn’t follow through on that with any actual action.
I couldn’t agree more, but not because the trends are really in our favor. The turnaround is still a long way off.
Look, Jon, anybody who expected the Roberts court to overturn Obamacare was kidding themselves. So is anyone who expects the electorate to suddenly wake up and start acting responsibly, for that matter.
It’s important to recognize what’s really going on. The West is currently in the middle of an ascent of the left, which always means theft. The progressive project has always been to transfer wealth, power, and status from the productive to the persuasive. It has never had any other goal, and everything it does is to that end.
One encouraging sign is the collapse of the legal profession’s bubble. Lawyers are the very exemplars of the persuasive. They’re not exactly falling on hard times, but their superiority is eroding.
Another positive trend is the pain of student loans. Most of those loans people are suffering to pay back were taken out in pursuit of persuasive lives, not productive ones. Let them suffer.
The left’s base isn’t going to suddenly wake up and get straight; they’re going to remain mendacious fools. But they will vote their immediate self-interest, and the trends of the past hundred years really are unsustainable. If we work to prevent them from stealing to the extent we can, that may be enough.
That might be funny to watch after a few drinks. I wasn’t expecting anything good from the Supremes on Obamacare, but I’m still disappointed it wasn’t 5-4. Looking for a little amusement.
There are those who fight on out of conviction.
There are those who persevere through faith.
There are those who “fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds’ worth of distance run.”
And there are those like me who are just too stoopid to quit.
I try to avoid “news” and commentary that’s not new or is the same thing over again.
James, thanks for proposing the present over-abundance of lawyers as a good thing. That gave me a chuckle.
And then the Patriot Act, as if limitless domestic surveillance and mock warrant proceedings are a good thing (let alone creation of the HSA and TSA).
And then again with the Ryan plan, which pretends Republican control for decades at a time.
Also, have you considered that economic ratings aren’t exactly objective? Rating poor degenerates and rating your top clients (insane, but productive) requires a degree of political jiggery.
You make good points and I admire your well-informed optimism. But at the end if the day I see two political sides pursuing totalitarian government, a culture that thinks insults are the height of humor, and fully half of Americans not even willing to tolerate opposing arguments.
To be honest this past week has been pretty rough, I had considered a post about how much I feel like just checking out and ignoring as much as I can. But over the last couple of days I’ve moved from that to just being pissed. It’s not the best reflection of my being a Christ follower but I’m feeling a little less sermon on the mount and a little more tossing tables and whipping (expletives) out of the temple at this point.
What happened was that the collapse of the U.S.S.R–which was caused by Reagan’s strategy–rendered the world so non-threatening that the voters felt it was safe to elect a Democrat again.
IMO the focus should be on
1) GOP primaries – scare our reps into putting up a fight, or replace them with those that will
2) Article V movement – only true way to take power away from DC
At least this clarifies my view of the future. I don’t have to save for college for my little boy. I will groom him to get a government job so he can be financially secure and get all the best waivers and exemptions from the bureaucracy. And maybe he can get me in on some of the graft, cronyism and special favors. Maybe by that time, we will have fully descended into third world banana republicanism and he can have a second income of outright bribery. Sorry, I didn’t mean “bribery” but rather “fee”.
I am working on a 5-10 year plan to expatriate. I don’t think the child which is presently under construction has a future here.