In Response to Glenn Beck

He not busy being born is busy dying.

So I began this post with that line from Bob Dylan's, "Its Alright Ma(I'm only bleeding)" only because it popped into my head just now.  But subconsciously I must know what I'm doing, cause it fits with my thoughts.  Sort of.

I was listening to Glenn Beck today, something that I have been doing increasingly more of lately.  Today Glenn Beck was dedicated to burying Newt Gingrich.

Readers of my work likely know two things about me, one is I'm a Newt guy, and two is I'm not afraid to listening to other points of views and acknowledge that ideas make sense to me that aren't stereotypical of the label I place upon myself, politically speaking.

What?

I'm a conservative, that's my label.  But I have views and ideas that are not going to be found on the Wikipedia page on Conservatism.  I'm O.K. with that.

Glenn Beck maybe not so much.

Glenn's villian du jour are Progressives.  With that in mind, I'm sticking with Conservative.  Don't want to get in the cross hairs of Mr. Beck and his media Empire, I might find myself on GBTV or The Blaze, but not in a flattering way.

So Newt is a Progressive,  Glenn told me so, time and again.  Now I must admit, he had me lmao mocking Newt's self described "Real Politik Wilsonian" label.  But other than that, I was not impressed with his dire predilection of what the fate of our nation will be with another Progressive in the White House.

Obama being one, but not the first, and Newt would be another, perhaps the last.  'Cause we couldn't survive another one....

I just don't buy into it.  I don't buy into the hype and fear he attaches to Progressives.

What if it doesn't turn out the way Beck prophetizes?  Through the years I've heard alot of opinions of what the future holds, and except for my uwavering support in January 2006 when I knew the underdog Steelers were going all the way to the Super Bowl, I've yet to hear anyone nail the future down.

That list includes profession seers as well as professional politicians, and not one has been able to predict the future well enough to be impressive.

But Beck has the corner on the oracle market?  I don't think so.

The reality is, and I agree with him, we got Progressives in both parties, totally immersed in the establishment from both the Right and the Left.

That is where we find ourselves,  and if Newt wants to draw himself closer to the Progressives than I would, that is his business.  As a voter it is mine too, its just not a deal breaker for me.

Here's why.  Acknowledging the influence Progressive have in governing and government, I'm looking for the nuance that separates them.  I'm a small government/balance budget Conservative.  I believe Newt is too.  His track record  is good enough for me.  I also believe Newt sees a bigger role for government on many more issues than I do, and that he'll have ties with people across the political spectrum.

While I usually want less government, I also am a "Real Politik _____"(fill in your favorite politician's name that has gotten things done), so that means I'm not damning a politician for compromising in the goal of getting something accomplished.

I played the less progress is good progress game already, its over, the era of reckoning is upon us and inaction is the only terrifying thought I have of the future.

You see, I have this relatively new belief that typically speaking, a man or woman with a family is less likely to intentionally harm the community he lives in.  I find it hard to believe that certain politicians are only in the arena of public service for the express purpose of destroying the public.

In other words, some people maybe screwing up and their ideas have historically been shown to be fruitless, but that doesn't mean they have bad intentions in the first place.

The Constitution, as Beck places it, is the bulwark against Progressives.  Its either them or It in the future.  Black and White.  We either got the Constitution or we got the Progressive agenda.  I used to be a thinker like that,  but I've been busy thinking.  Busy being born each day.

The Constitution is great, and its the best, and all the platitudes, but evolution of government is what it is.  We got Progressive minds  all over, and we also aren't going to get back to that mythical time when it was only the Constitution and no Progressives.  That time, according to Beck, would be over a hundred years ago, before Teddy Roosevelt.

While there are certain aspects of the era that would be appealing, I'm not sure I'd like it over this era.  I'm not big on government, I'm big on getting out of our hole.

Newt did it in the 1990's.  Label him what you want, or accept his own label. I'm not in a suicide pact, I want progress.  If that makes me a Progressive, I may disagree, but know that I only have the best intentions in mind.

That's living in the here and now, not the painted black future or painted white past.