Wednesday, August 29, 2012

The Debating Game


In an old episode of the TV show, Monk, the detective is staying at a bed and breakfast where he had once honeymooned with his now deceased wife.  Usually a loner, he ends up having dinner with another guest and has too much to drink.  In the morning he tries to seek out that man, only to find that he has disappeared and all of the other guests claim to have never seen him.  It later turns out that the other guests had discovered the man was a thief carrying a large sum of cash, so they killed him for the cash and then denied his existence to a mystified Monk in an attempt to get away with their crime.  Before he could solve the mystery of the man’s disappearance Monk first had to understand and deal with the conspiracy of lies that stood in his way.

A similar scenario plays itself out every day in this country whenever conservatives try to debate contentious issues with the Left, debate being the cornerstone of our political system.   One recent example is the debate over voter ID laws.  It is incomprehensible that people do not understand the logic or accept the reasoning behind voter ID laws.  Voting integrity is fundamental to the democratic process and the requirement of ID, which almost everyone already has, is the most minor of requirements.  But democrats engage in a charade of pretending not to understand or agree, and as I watch such debates on TV the absurdity of their position is always captured in the look of disbelief on conservatives’ faces.  It is the same look of disbelief that showed on Monk’s face as he tried to comprehend the behavior of people he knew to be lying.

This is our world, our reality.  We play the game, according to the rules of polite society, of trying to reason with and persuade people who have no intention of playing by those same rules and whose only real goal, in essence, is to get away with their crime de jour.  In the case of voter ID laws, it is patently obvious that the real intent of the Left is to (A) compromise the integrity of the process so that fraudulent votes, which favor democrats, are less likely to be discovered; and (B) to not lose part of their voting base that they assume is too lazy to bother with getting an ID.  But knowing how unacceptable these reasons sound, they lie about their motives, making the “debate” completely meaningless.

And how about the debate over “free” contraception?  Sandra Fluke, the newly contrived heroine of the democratic party, talks indignantly about “women’s rights” and the faux “war on women” as a means to justify her crime - stealing from others to pay for her birth control.  Her lie, which says that free contraception is a woman’s “right,” is just like all other lies that hide the intent to steal behind the banner of “rights.”  It is a declaration of intent.  Regardless of the law, regardless of the Constitution, regardless of the opinions of those who will be stolen from, Fluke and her fellow democrats intend to take they want.  Any pretense at debate about it is just that – pretense.

We have to engage in the debate.  We have to make our case.  But we don’t have to play along with the lies.  Instead of arguing about voter responsibility and how easy it is to get an ID, we could say, “You’re trying to encourage voter fraud, THAT is your real goal, and we aren’t going to stand for it.”  And instead of arguing over the phony war on women and the imaginary difficulties of obtaining birth control, we could tell Ms. Fluke, “You want contraception paid for by people who don’t know you, who have no control over your behavior and who don’t owe you anything.  How ‘bout you get a job or keep your knickers on.”

More importantly, though, we have to recognize these charades for what they are – subtle declarations of intent to steal and to undermine our Constitution and our society – and we have to act accordingly.  Let’s get serious about people who are elected or appointed as judges, because they will be deciding whether or not we can pass laws to protect voting integrity.  And maybe we should pass some laws of our own, such as a law against any mandate that requires birth control (or anything else) be provided for “free.”

In the episode from Monk, it wasn’t long before he realized the uselessness of arguing over whether or not the man who disappeared had actually ever been to the bed and breakfast.  He knew the truth.  Instead he solved the case by first proving that the other guests were lying, and why.  It’s time to take a page from his book.

7 comments:

  1. Yep. Well said.

    I really laugh at some of their nonsense. The "right to free contraception" is really a howler. People have a "right to eat", too. Probably even more of a "right" than free birth control pills. But I never hear anyone, even from the Left, saying that hungry people have a "right" to walk into a grocery store and just help themselves to "free" food. Why is that, I wonder...?

    As to voter ID laws, so far the courts have upheld them, and I don't see that changing. The Constitution gives the states the right to regulate their own voting procedures, so there's very little in the way of federal issues for the socialists to hang their hats on.

    It's also a ridiculous argument on its face, because how does ANYBODY function in any way in today's society without a proof of ID? How do you bank? Or buy or drive a car, or get on a plane, or get a book at the library? It's absurd, and the law -- and the people -- recognize it for what it is.

    Also, the rartionale the Left uses is absurd. Are ONLY leftist poor people the ones too stupid to have ID? Poor conservatives all still manage to get ID, and therefore it's a conspiracy aimed at defeating Democrats? That makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, unless the Democrats are tacitly admitting that leftist poor people are too stupid to be let out of the house without a leash.

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    1. Thanks, Brian. Those are all good arguments but a determined leftist never lets that get in his way.

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    2. A determined leftist never lets any thought or logic get in their way. That's how they can be a leftist.

      Facts to leftists are like kryptonite to Superman.

      :-D

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    3. You kind of sound like Chris Christy there, Brian. Hee hee hee.

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    4. FYI Bryan -

      “Texas' top attorney told Fox News his state will appeal to the Supreme Court after a federal panel of judges on Thursday rejected the Texas law requiring voters to present photo IDs before casting a ballot.”

      http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/08/30/federal-court-rules-against-texas-voter-id-law/?test=latestnews#ixzz254ryK6zY


      Voter ID wasn’t really the point of my post, just an example I was using, but it’s interesting nonetheless.

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  2. RE Sandra Fluke:

    Social Democrats always argue that the government should not come between a woman and her doctor on the issue of abortion.

    But they seem to believe that the government SHOULD come between a woman and her insurer on the issue of contraception.

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    1. Whatever's convenient, that's what they stand for. Thanks for your comment, V.L.

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