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Silence Is the Order of the Day
The longer the internecine Trump Wars go on, the more and more exhausted I feel. The divide on the right is more cultural than it is policy based — a divide that it is now clear can’t be bridged in the short term. This is not helped by the President’s apparent need to shoot himself in the foot on a weekly basis. With each new political crisis, whether deserved or not, each side only seems to dig itself deeper into the trenches which sprung up during the election.
There is a lot in the last four months for all of us to be happy about, from the good, to the great, to the unbelievably spectacular, but this post isn’t about that.
We’ve had an … interesting couple of weeks at Ricochet. The roller coaster that is the Trump Administration has taken us all up and down so rapidly many of us have severe whiplash. We’ve attacked one another over what ultimately amounts to differences over style rather than substance. It’s become to quote the vernacular: boring, repetitive, and tense.
More and more I’m getting the sense that former NeverTrumps should just remain silent on the news of the day. If the administration is going to implode, it will do so without our input; there’s nothing to be gained for anyone — ourselves, Trump-supporters, or the Administration — by repeating ourselves. And, we’ve been wrong often enough of late that we shouldn’t assume it is going to implode and, honestly, I hope Trump pleasantly surprises us again. Unfortunately with the way things are going around here, I fear that the end result of such a disaster will be for us to blame each other. That will only turn the disaster into a catastrophe.
It’s also very true that former NeverTrumps have used up all their political capital when it comes to criticizing the style and tactics of this President. Our criticisms and concerns over the latest raft of dubious decision making was always going to fall on deaf ears. As a friend of mine put it today: If you’re the one who said “Don’t marry that guy” and stayed away from the wedding, no one’s going to listen further.
What then is left to us? We can attack the left for what is clearly their rapid descent into violent wackiness. We can defend the right from some of the more insane conspiracy hit pieces. Most of all we should go back proposing and discussing ideas. Whether under Trump, Pence, or whomever follows in 2020 or 2024, the Right will need new ways to cope with the challenges of the day, and Ricochet is a great place for those ideas to be hashed out.
Published in General, Politics
And talking about Giraffes, because it’s a Ricochet thing.
And if nobody else is going to say it, I will. Good post, Jamie. It sums the current situation up very well, and contains an insight some have yet to see.
Could be I’m agreeing with you for the first time in a very long time, but what you say is spot on. It’s time to lay down our swords and march together against a common enemy.
I don’t think you understand quite where I’m at. I’m not going to march with you. I’m not willing to die on the Trump hill. I am willing to get out of the way and work on the areas where I think I can be of more help for what I believe. Unfortunately that isn’t often this Administration of late.
So Jamie, can you give us an idea of what this would look like. What areas would you work on in spite of the current administration. What are the things we can do, for example, that would have us heading in a better direction?
Serious question (I was away for a while and I’ve only been back for a couple of weeks), what has been different about the last couple of weeks?
Good question:
1) I think that free traders like me need a new answer for those that are caught out by the displacements that come from the free market working itself out.
2) I think that we need new answers on Tax Policy: namely that the standard supply side answer that Tax Cuts are always stimulative in excess of the revenue lost is no longer applicable. We need to move past the Laffer Curve, a brilliant insight at 70% tax rates, but a dangerous gospel in the 30s. Instead I’d like us to focus more on simplifying and broadening the tax base. I’d love to see actual proposals for a flat tax, or even better a consumption based tax.
3) I think that we need to seriously address the disruption coming from the coming AI revolution. I could be completely wrong on this, but the more and more I read the more I think this could be a technological revolution unlike any we’ve seen before.
I think it was the speed at which new political developments came at us.
Or that false narratives came at us and some folks treated them as something serious.
I could only wish, with all my heart, that we all see our common goal is defeating the anarchists on the left who are attempting to destroy our culture and our laws.
Do we really want to turn this thread into us going at each other over this yet again?
I would much rather have disagreements over ideas than over whatever nonsense the President is getting up to this week. I suspect that we will disagree heartily over what those ideas need to be, but I’m willing to stand down and remain silent on the Presidents penchant for nonsense.
Nope.
Most of them aren’t anarchists. They are exactly the opposite.
Neither do I. It’s time for handshakes all around.
The point of this post is what I was sort of getting at with my Trump Coin post.
No one can be in the fray all of the time, particularly when it’s unproductive. It’s appropriate to take a few steps back and evaluate the situation and recalibrate.
Secret handshakes?
I like Vox Day’s prescription:
“Jump on the Trump train, find a turret, and always shoot left!”
One thing I like about the alt-right is that they support their allies even when they don’t agree 100%. I think this is a healthy attitude and one that will ensure their continued growth.
I’m actually calling for the fray to end, at least when it comes to Trump’s missteps. Let him sink or swim on his own. The rest is boring, repetitive and tense.
I can’t agree with this. I will not defend a man or an idea that isn’t in line with what I believe. I will stay silent and let the chips fall where they may.
No, I think just regular ones. So we all remember that we are on the same team.
That’s funny, because it was the alt-right that told me “Your name is on a list, and you will be dealt with after the election.” I do not know what list my name is on, nor do I know what it means to be dealt with. I already couldn’t get in to the lady’s room at target, so…
Nope, nope. Sorry. We said we weren’t doing it.
I don’t want the thread to descend into this even if I agree with it.
Yeah, imagining Spin in the ladies’ room…
Who told you this?
I think this sums up why traditional conservatives and libertarians can’t be trusted when the going gets tough.
And this is exactly what I was trying to avoid. Sigh.
Jamie- the ‘problem’ starts with the terms of discussion; ‘Never Trump’… what part of that statement is ambiguous? It sets the stage for contention… so understand the starting point of almost every ‘Never Trump’ discussion, its a negative intro to try and still explain why you are ‘Never Trumpers’ but mean well.
BTW- most folks see Trump for what he is- a hyperbolic narcissist but in the choices given he is the less worst choice.