PrintJuly 7, 2010
Sour Grapes
I was at the local grocery today picking up a few things...some bread, milk, and the like. I also decided to pass on refined sugar for a change and get some green (or "white") grapes. I like grapes. They taste good. The green skins are a little sour, but I don't care for seeds so I avoided the red grapes. No big deal, right?
Wrong. I get to the checkout counter and have almost finished my transaction when a liberal lady (they're easy to spot in Austin, judging from the wild eyes, crazy clothes, and tattoos) strolls up to me and says with knowing authority, "The Red ones are sweeter!" Her attitude and tone clearly conveyed to me that (1) I must be an idiot for buying green grapes, and (2) I clearly made a mistake, but fortunately, she was there to correct me.
Now, she may have honestly meant well, but there were two facts about the situation that frankly ticked me off. The first was that I already knew red grapes are sweeter; the second was my annoyance at her supreme arrogance in assuming what I bought with my own money, for my own purposes, was any of her business. Her advice was unwanted and unwelcome.
I ignored her. When she spun on her heel and left, upset that I did not heed her advice, I shook my head to the assistant manager who was cashiering and said, "There's something very wrong with this town." He graciously tried to make amends by suggesting, "I like the green ones, myself."
What I wanted to do but didn't, out of simple courtesy to the manager and the other patrons in the store -- was to make a scene. I wanted to call her over and talk with her...briefly and directly.
What I wanted to say to her was, "My mother is 79 years old and a cancer survivor. She likes red grapes but can't tolerate them anymore. She can't digest the skins after the doctors had to remove two feet of her intestines in a second emergency surgery that ultimately saved her life. My sister has multiple sclerosis, and her hands shake uncontrollably. She can't hold red grapes long enough to remove the seeds and has great difficulty when swallowing. She often coughs violently because of the MS, so she could choke to death on the seeds. I bought these groceries for them. As for me, I just don't like seeds."
What is it about liberals that compels them to be such obnoxious, self-righteous know-it-alls? Does it ever occur to them that there might be a reason for the things someone does?
Just as this lady did not give a second thought to the idea that I might have a reason behind my purchase, liberals feel compelled to tell us they know better without ever asking a question. They do so without giving a second thought to why conservatives might disagree or believe as we do. They do so without investigating whether our belief system might even be a better fit for them.
Having digested their entire belief system based upon liberal schooling and having maintained their slanted viewpoint with liberal media, the idea that their own ideas could be misguided has never occurred to them. Their liberal mindset precludes that possibility because their entire ego is tied up in it. If their ideas are wrong, then they are wrong, and their words have no value. Questioning their own value system, therefore, usually elicits anger or violence from them.
Instinctively, they know their reasoning is flawed and cannot stand up to the light of day. This is one of the reasons Rush Limbaugh enrages them so. The press and the Left continued vilifying Ronald Reagan, even though he enjoyed immensely popular and was elected twice by landslides. Yet they refused to acknowledge the country's wholesale rejection of Carter and of Mondale. So the Left still fear to question their own beliefs and cling to the thoughtless, emotional arguments they were taught as young skulls full of mush.
Liberals would much rather lecture than learn. They feel they already know everything, and therefore, they no longer need to learn. However, they also feel compelled to push their "wisdom" upon others -- whether they want it or not. We see it all the time from Stewart, Garafolo, and Maher. Conservatives, on the other hand, know we never stop learning.
I have found that conservatives usually arrived at their destination by long and arduous questioning of their own belief system. As I told a liberal friend of mine, "I didn't become a conservative by accident. It was a choice." We know that if our belief system cannot stand up to our own questions, then it is of no value. Conservatives have this conviction because we have tested our theories. We have beaten the metal with hammer and tongs to remove the impurities and shape our armor. We know we are right because we have examined both sides. We found the Left dangerously lacking. Conservatism works. Conservatism offers real hope. Twenty years of unbroken prosperity under Ronald Reagan proved this in fact as well as theory.
Conservatives are grounded in the principles of faith ingrained in the Constitution, which were argued and tested by great and learned men who acknowledged both the need for a representative federal government (Alexander Hamilton) and the need to limit that government from gaining too much power (George Mason). The result was a brilliant compromise the world dubbed "The Great Experiment." A revolution later, followed by two hundred and thirty-four years of prosperity, we have reached a turning point in our Great Experiment. We are now threatened by real crisis from within.
The shortsighted liberal left, who fear questions, responsibility, and honesty only slightly less than they fear discussing real solutions to real problems, are hell-bent on destroying this nation financially. Their own value systems and beliefs are the true culprits, but you can't convince them of that.
Unlike in previous decades, however, the mask the Left wears so well has been removed. The Tea Parties helped make that happen. The Left and the media have been exposed for the frauds they are, and they've spent too much time in the sunlight now to ever go back into hiding. They have shown themselves to be wolves in sheep's clothing, and they have no one's interest at heart save their own. They've proven repeatedly that party loyalty is more important to them than the prosperity of their own country.
Come November, the liberals' lecturing and platitudes will fall on deaf ears, for they too, will be ignored.
Richard Pecore is a Texas lawyer who regularly contributes under the pen name Richard in Austin to Sibyl West's www.ramparts360.com.
