Jonah Goldberg Admits It September 23, 2005 Jill Compassionate conservatism sucks. Or, as Robin Williams said, “Compassionate conservatism is like a Volvo with a gun rack.”
Bush is a practitioner of compassionate conservatism? Jebus, if that’s compassionate I’m scared shitless of conservatism without compassion.
Yes, but Jonah says that “conservative” never needed the “compassionate” modification. This is the first time I’ve read Jonah Goldberg … and I think he’s got daddy issues! “Compassionate conservatives want the state to be your daddy. The problem: Government cannot love you, nor should it try.” So does that mean government should just give up and spank people instead, JG?
“Here’s my silver-lining hope this hurricane season: George W. Bush’s compassionate conservatism gets wiped out like a taco hut in the path of a Cat. 5 storm.” Is that racist, or just a really flat attempt at cleverness?
I don’t know why anyone on the left is surprised by this. National Review-style conservatives have despised so-called “compassionate conservatism” practically from the outset. NR even did a cover story on “the death of compassionate conservatism” a while back. Of course, the term has different connotations among NR-type conservatives than it does among liberals.
So does that mean government should just give up and spank people instead, JG? Pepper: I don’t presume to speak for Jonah Goldberg, but I don’t think I’d be far off if I said it’s probably his view that the proper role of government is to spank the folks that need spanking, and, with few exceptions, to stay out of the way of everyone else.
What the hell, I’ll presume to speak for Jonah; what’s he going to do, take away my birthday? You’re close. The proper role of government is to spank the folks which tradition and necessity permit the spanking of, and to leave everyone else alone. There may be folks who “need” spanking which the government is nonetheless not empowered to spank.
A Volvo with a gun rack is owned by A) A redneck who knows a good car when he sees it. B) A college professor who likes to shoot (case in point: my father). C) A Swede. Please, people. don’t fall into the conservative trap of thinking in either/or categorical stereotypes.
Please, people. don’t fall into the conservative trap of thinking in either/or categorical stereotypes. This statement fulfilled my entire day’s irony quota, and it’s not even 10:30am.
I think the word “compassionate” was just thrown in there to make it sound appealing to a broader audience. It isn’t the truth, it’s only a label – one that doesn’t fit, for that matter. The truth is that the only compassion they have is for themselves. If there was true compassion, I might be able to get behind SOME of it, but it would have to be a whole lot of compassion. As it is, it’s just another catchphrase like “mission accomplished”.