Clash of The Cultures

There's a lot of flame-throwing going around between the candidates for President, the press, other politico's, bloggers and possibly even your grandma, but despite outward appearances it isn't really about the candidates. Dick Clarke makes accusations against the president, carried in primetime by CBS News' 60 minutes, (owned by Viacom and publisher of his coincidentally just released book) and everyone seems to think it's going to make some kind of difference. It won't and here's why...

George W. Bush and John F* Kerry are simply proxies for a much greater battle - the battle between two competing worldviews. Without benefit of a smoking gun held by either candidate, none of the things said about them is going to make one bit of difference in their popular support. (or lack thereof)

Let's face it, the polls haven't really changed all that much and they roughly match the proportions demonstrated during the last presidential election. The polls haven't changed because the candidates represent something much bigger than themselves. They represent their respective worldviews. If John Edwards or Wesley Clark had won the nomination I suspect the polls wouldn't be much different than they are today.

So, which worldviews do they represent? You could go back to the 1960's on this one. This Presidential contest is essentially a rematch of that tumultuous time when the "progressives" were battling against traditional values. In general, Kerry represents those who tend to view morals and values as being highly subjective and relative to the situation and culture at hand. They tend to see patriotism as anathema to world peace. They tend to view the average citizen as someone who needs to be cared for by the state. They tend to see the actions of the US in international matters as bullying other nations and imposing our values upon them. They tend to see economic answers in the various forms of income redistribution.

Bush supporters tend to see morals and values as largely unchangeable and absolute regardless of the situation or culture affected. They tend to believe that these values should cut across all nationalities and cultures. They tend to believe that the individual needs to be protected from the over-reach of the state and that individuals will spur on the economy when it is in their own best interests to do so. Globalism and international organizations are viewed with great suspicion and as a threat to the sovreignty of nations. Both sides seem intent on demonizing the other.

As long as each worldview feels that they have a representative running in the election, the particulars don't matter much. Bush isn't going to win by pointing out Kerry's numerous flip-flops and Kerry isn't going to win by portraying the President as a reckless cowboy. The winner of this contest will be decided by whomever can sell their prospective worldviews, not necessarily the candidate, to the so-called swing voters.

It is this fact that makes the matter of media bias so important. Of course, liberal organizations deny there's a media bias while the same idea is practically an article of faith to conservatives. The bias that exists is growing less subtle every day. A few examples can be found, here, here, and here. (If you want examples of conservatives showing a bias over liberals you'll have to find your own examples.)

For Bush to win this election, those on the conservative side must battle for the culture of our nation. We must by legal means oppose attempts to censor and spin the news to denigrate a conservative worldview. We can do this in several ways. A good way to do it is by blogging, but we have to be careful about being too optimistic over the effect our blogging efforts might have. In my experience, usually only liberals read liberal blogs and the same is true for conservatives, which really limits the impact. Another good way is by boycotting the sponsors of television programs and news departments who are blatant in their bias against a conservative worldview.

We can complain to CBS News all day and they won't listen, but when their sponsors start pulling out, they get real attentive. If an actor or actress seems to feel it's their duty to shove their worldview down your throat at every available opportunity then don't patronize their movies, don't watch their television shows, or buy any of the related junk. Even if the movie gets good reviews - don't go see it unless you are interested in being a proud sponsor of liberalism. Also, make sure your congressman and other politicians - especially local politicians know where you stand on these issues. Remember, a common trick of the left is to convince you that everyone ascribes to their point of view and it's only the wackos, the fundamentalists and gun-nuts who don't.

On the positive side, if a television network promotes a program that reinforces your values and beliefs, then support it. Watch the show. Tell your friends to watch the show. Buy their sponsors' merchandise. The same is true for radio talk shows, news programs, and even newspapers. Write glowing editorials saying how brilliant you think they are.

I'm sure there are other ways to fight this cultural war. Probably, slapping a Bush-Cheney bumper sticker or John F* Kerry sticker on the back of your minivan isn't going to do much. The battle needs to be fought for the culture not the candidate. The right candidate will win if we're able to convince enough people of the superiority of our particular worldview. In the meantime, it's easy to get caught up in the controversy du jour, but that isn't going to win elections.

On a side note, I've added Progressive Protestant to my links over there on the side of the page. Yes, they are big fans of John Kerry, but I've decided to overlook this obvious defect in their thinking because they have an interesting blog and because they are brothers in the faith. They're relatively young guys and there's always hope their political beliefs will mature gracefully. I hope you'll check them out.