The Pink Flamingo :: The Conversion of St. Paul the Apostle

Jesus said to the twelve, "See, I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves; so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues; and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the Gentiles. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved." Matthew 10:16-22

ANYONE CAN CHANGE
I don’t mind admitting right now I am very discouraged. I feel as though those of us who are ‘normal’ Republicans are under assault, from the right. I feel battered and betrayed. I’m beginning to feel like the hard-line conservatives have become abusers. They are using the language of abusers. They are using buzz-words abusers use to belittle someone. I think it is time for a change.

A friend sent an email to me this afternoon, from someone who was near and dear and very hard-line anti-immigration. After I finished the article about detainee abuse from ICE and the private companies it has left me depressed. My mother called about something and I read a bit of it to her. “What had happened to this country?”

What has happened to this country?
All I know is there is only one hope for conservatives. They need to get their souls right with the Lord and have a Saul of Tarsus moment where the persecutor becomes the persecuted and the TRUE BELIEVER. If Saul of Tarsus can change from monster into the person who basically changed Christianity from a small localized sect into the great religion we see today.

Galatians 1:11-24

I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ. You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in Judaism. I was violently persecuting the church of God and was trying to destroy it. I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were already apostles before me, but I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus. Then after three years I did go up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and stayed with him fifteen days; but I did not see any other apostle except James the Lord's brother. In what I am writing to you, before God, I do not lie! Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, and I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea that are in Christ; they only heard it said, "The one who formerly was persecuting us is now proclaiming the faith he once tried to destroy." And they glorified God because of me.

CHANGE
We have some Narcissistic Conservatives who are going to need to change or they are going to be left behind. I honestly think more than a few have gone so far on immigration that they are going to be responsible for the deaths of many, many innocent children. Indeed, the deaths have already begun. I don’t know how these things work, but I don’t think I would like to hold an anti-immigration stance that will insure the death of more than a few innocent children.

HOW MCCAIN COULD CHANGE
Listening to a few minutes of Michael Reagan in the Durango today while I was running errands, it suddenly dawned on me why conservatives are so upset. They are begging for a leader. Republicans, as individuals, don’t really need a leader. The party organization is structured in a way that everyone knows their place in a well oiled machine. Conservatives on the other hand, are crying for someone to hold their hands and lead them to the promised land flowing with tax cuts and honey gathered by the hands of minimum wage workers who are all completely legal. The problem is, this isn’t going to happen any time soon.

Rush Limbaugh is leading his sycophants down the path of utter defeat in November. He is doing it for one of two reasons, either power or personal greed. Michael Reagan wants a brokered convention where Newt Gingrich is anointed the successor his father. That’s not going to happen, I hope. Gingrich is a divisive figure. He can’t possibly win a general election. Besides, he is tainted with corruption, implied or otherwise.

And then there is the cast of lesser runs such as Coulter, Malkin, Hannity, etc. None of them are capable of leading my toy poodle, Rumsfeld to the corner to piddle, let alone lead a party. So, where are we?

I could go around wringing my hands and screaming about the sky falling, but that’s not my way. I have a much better idea.

There is only one logical answer to this whole problem. I think it is time for John McCain to play Ted Williams. He needs to take his time at bat, step up to the plate, and knock it out of the park. On the way around the bases he needs to expectorate at the Commissioner’s box where Harry Truman is sitting.

I am using the Red Sox analogy because John McCain’s most worthy opponent is the number one Yankee’s fan. (It’s a baseball thing). I am not suggesting the worthy Senator expectorate on anyone (including Rush Limbaugh) but I am using a figurative metaphor. When I am backed into a corner and need to search for verbiage and meaning in life, I always go back to my beloved baseball.

I don’t mind admitting I am very angry and upset with the way the world is going today. Fortunately I’ve realized I am not the only one. I think there are a great number of us who are just plain annoyed, tired, and downright mad about conservatives, the way they are acting, and the fact that they need to get over themselves and stop hogging the spotlight. There is only one way this is going to happen.

Sometime within the next forty-eight hours Senator McCain needs to deliver a very serious speech basically doing the Napoleon thing (I know, it’s a bad analogy) and literally crown him-self as the titular leader of the Republican Party. All he needs is one very good speech, where he plays Michael Corleone and just eliminates the competition in one fell swoop.

With luck you are comprehending my analogies by now. Basically Senator McCain needs to step up to the plate and take ‘em out and he needs to do this by Sunday afternoon at the latest, so he can hit the Monday talk shows and media.

Rush Limbaugh needs to be stopped in his tracks. So does Sean Hannity, Laura Ingraham, Michelle Malkin, Hugh Hewitt, and Ann Coulter to name a few. Somehow he needs to (in a loving and kindly, non-threatening manner) eviscerate them. But – it must be done in a polite, non-threatening manner.

Senator McCain needs to establish once and for all that he is going to be the leader of the GOP. I think it might help some of these rudderless conservatives deal with life. There are those who read this who will disagree with me, but I think one of the problems is we are dealing with a group of people who are followers. If they were individuals and were leaders they would not cling to an ideology but would work within the party structure. As for the “leaders” of the ideology, they aren’t leaders, they are celebrities grubbing for money, nothing more nothing less. They need to be taken to task and held accountable for their repugnant actions.

There is one other possibility at play here. Someone is handing our precious celebrity conservatives their talking points. I have an idea who is involved. I think the idea that these same people criticize the Clintons for their Soros connection are completely disingenuous and intellectually dishonest. Michael Medved calls these people “stinking, lousy petty demagogues.” I just can’t think of a better comment about them. I honestly feel someone is promoting this hatred. It isn’t normal and it isn’t rational. They now have all their little lemming conservative followers all hopped up over McCain by telling lies and half-truths.