Letters to the Editor
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The more things change the more they stay the same.
I for one minute do not believe that the Conservative Movement is stupid. After all, they have gotten everything that they have sought. Where is the stupidity in that? Conservatives have so overtaken the levers of power that the whole spectrum of politics is shifted to the right. How, why or when this happened is worthy of another column.
The problem as I see it is not the conservatives but the weak, ineffective and unorganized liberal/libertarian majority. This is the same group guilty of voter apathy and silent/empty protests. Unfortunately even if push comes to shove this group simply does not have the steely fortitude to push for good and just policies in the face of arrogance and self-righteousness of the right wing. The appeal of "having bigger balls" will always draw newcomers to the conservative movement. This might is right attitude is pervasive throughout American history and shows no sign of abating even with a failed war policy. This is the empire mentality so sneered at by the rest of the world.
Americans and their elected officials need a shrink. The machismo and testosterone of the right wing is an aphrodisiac to the unthinking population. Electing Hillary will not dilute these attitudes because she offers much of the same, much like Margaret Thatcher. To overcome this slow march to even greater hawkishness requires public understanding of how authoritarian mindsets work, temporarily starving the congressional-military-industrial complex, greater overall education, denying a voice to the extremist evangelical movement, a stronger press, and a open, honest, public discussion of the culpable activity the White House so far denies (to name a few). Really, it all disgusts me and Americans should be ashamed.