Not Just The Party Of No

It's a common belief that, to solidify power over people, there needs to be a common enemy. After 9/11 that enemy became the loosely-defined "terrorists," but it hasn't always been that way. Naomi Klein persuasively argues in Shock Doctrine that neo-liberal economics - the theory that government regulation of any kind is harmful to the economy, a theory that has resulted in the economic ruin of developing nations in Latin America, Africa, and Asia - could not have succeeded without outside threats. One example she cites is former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's breaking of labor unions and abolishing rent controls, something she believed at the beginning of her term to be impossible in a democracy. But once she added a perceived threat, in this case war in a British territory, democratic process was put on hold, and amid the confusion of British citizens was able to enact her radical and harmful economic policies.

This long held tradition of "othering" in order to gain power would, of course, not cease in the 21st century. And here we turn to the current Republican party and one of the most offensive campaign ads I've ever seen (and I've seen this one):

The Republican Party is no longer simply the party of no, doing everything it can to make the Democrats look incompetent and then blame them for not accomplishing anything - a formidable strategy. We saw them after 9/11 become the party of fear, taking away our 4th amendment rights in the name of national security, spying on us, and throwing us into indefinite wars with irrelevant nations despite warnings from the international community and the UN. Basically, 9/11 allowed the government to circumvent the law momentarily.

Well, the momentary chaos is over and fear mongering, while still effective, isn't working quite like it used to. "Othering" terrorists, Middle Easterners, and Muslims isn't enough anymore. So they have turned to Americans themselves, completing the transition into a full-fledged Party of Hate. In Rick Perry's ad, which hardly stands alone, the target of their hate is homosexuality. A staple for religious fundamentalists, denying rights to homosexuals has long been on the conservative agenda. Now, many gay rights activists wonder why conservatives would focus so intently on the sin of homosexuality while ignoring other strange biblical decrees given the same emphasis in the text, such as stoning adulterers or not wearing clothing made from more than one material. Others wonder why the party of "family values" is riddled with sex scandals (in both the straight and gay varieties). So who are these people to deny gay rights? They're hateful breeders of hate, plain and simple. If we hate gay people enough, people like Rick Perry reason, then there's a chance we might forget reason and actually vote for people like Rick Perry.

And thanks to all that hatred, another gay teenager has committed suicide because of bullying. The hate-mongering is working, folks.

The other major target of Republican hatred (besides Democrats, Socialists, Liberals, Immigrants, and Communists) is, as I've said many times, the poor. And, by extension, Occupy Wall Street.

So say "so long" to the party of "no" and the party of "fear." Now we can expect a reign of hatred and intolerance should one of the Republican candidates take the White House next year. Happy holidays.