Liberal Lamentations

Liberal Lamentations
Cal Thomas
November 8, 2004

Reaction by the losing side in last week's presidential election would be startling if it weren't predictable.

One liberal acquaintance, who had predicted John Kerry would crush George W. Bush, raised the ghost of Adolf Hitler and the Inquisition in the same sentence: "It's 1933 again" and "the theocracy is coming."

Writing for the leftist Web page Slate, Jane Smiley expresses a theme heard often among many liberals: "The election results reflect the decision of the right wing to cultivate and exploit ignorance in the citizenry." Other disparaging labels, including "stupid" and "moron" were hurled at Bush voters by various lefties. If so many people - more than 59 million - who voted for President Bush are stupid, what does this say about our costly and monopolistic public school system?

The New York Times' Thomas Friedman wrote a column headlined "Two Nations Under God." He, too, detects the strong odor of a coming theocracy. Can the beheaders be far behind?

Other columnists - from Maureen Dowd to Paul Krugman - were apoplectic in their response to Bush's impressive victory. They demonstrate how clueless they are about a majority of Americans whose worldview differs from their own. Some commentators suggest Kerry lost because he wasn't liberal enough. Maybe Vermont's Ben and Jerry would make a better ticket next time.

The condescension and elitism expressed by the left displays intolerance at its worst. The left is again exposed as hypocritical, preaching tolerance and inclusion, but practicing intolerance and exclusion of all ideas not in conformity with their own. Has it never occurred to liberals that they might be objectively wrong?

The left's last gasp to salvage something from the election is the suggestion that having prevailed, the president should now "reach out" to opponents and "heal the rift." Does the left reach out to the right when liberals win elections? No, they exercise the power they've been given, and Republicans should do the same. If the left has hurt feelings, let them seek counseling from Dr. Phil.

Perhaps the biggest myth perpetrated by the media is that we are a divided nation. Several publications printed a remarkable map that breaks down the vote county-by-county instead of state-by-state. It shows an enormous sea of red (Bush counties) with only tiny patches of blue (Kerry counties) in the usual places where elites and other condescending liberals reside. If you study this map, you have to conclude that America is not becoming more divided; it is slowly, but perceptively, becoming more conservative and Republican.

President Bush made significant and historical gains with minority voters and women. Exit polls revealed the president won 44 percent of Hispanics (up from 35 percent in 2000), 11 percent of African-Americans (up from 9 percent in 2000), 25 percent of Jewish voters (up from 19 percent in 2000), and 48 percent of women (up from 43 percent in 2000).

The president says he believes he has a mandate to proceed with the agenda he outlined during the campaign - winning the war on terror, stabilizing Iraq, reforming Social Security, making his tax cuts permanent and putting judges on the bench who believe in the Constitution and not what they think the Constitution says.

The left has lost. The '60's are over. A majority of the public is tired of being forced to accept every ideology, sexual depravity and secular idea the left wishes to shove down their throats. The election showed they have pushed back.

It's difficult to select a favorite line from all of the insulting and insane comments made by liberal commentators, but Garry Wills had one of the best. Writing in The New York Times, Wills said: "Can a people that believes more fervently in the Virgin Birth than in evolution still be called an Enlightened nation?"

Maybe so, if you consider what a higher and really intelligent authority says: "The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'" (Psalm 14:1).