An Answer To an Open Letter

Hannity the Blind, originally uploaded by Wazdat!.

The Problem Is, The Blind Arrogance of The Right!

I just read from The Moderate Republican where Dennis posts "An Open Letter to Democrats from a concerned Republican". Well Dennis, here is my reply:

The problem with your party is that it has been taken over by ideologues of a totalitarian leaning bent, and that being so, moderates of your party have about as much chance of fighting the Right Wing as a Quaker did against Nazi Germany. The truth is, that up until recently, your wing has allowed the conservatives to walk all over them, and you hadn’t the nerve to oppose them. You say you are a person of color. On how many hands can you count the number of “persons of color” in positions of influence in your party. We at least have Jesse Jackson, Kweisi Nfume, Vernon Jordan and Al Sharpton. Also, there are times when race issues become entwined with labor issues, and the right to work will be upheld by people of any race, religion or sexual orientation. This usually happens in the Democratic Party. Can the Log Cabin Republicans say the same?
You accuse us of offering “no ideas” of our own. You say: “The Baby Boomers are getting ready to retire and that will put pressure on the system.” I’m afraid that you’ve allowed yourself to be confused by your leaders. Can we start with the simple notion that there is NOTHING WRONG WITH SOCIAL SECURITY? Nothing that a few tweaks and simple mathematics can’t solve? Look, simply pay down the deficit like President Clinton did. A small raise in the Income Tax (yes, you’ll have to do that). Raise the cap on Social Security. If we do it now in small increments we will avoid a whole lot of pain later. Those of us who can, should have a reduction on their benefits, without raising everyone elses. And let US THE PEOPLE DECIDE WHAT THE SLIDING SCALE SHOULD BE, not the denizens of a back room in the White House or the Capitol Cloak Room.

I’m sorry that you don’t like Howard Dean, but now, more than ever, we need a truth teller.

Dean is simply saying what most of us believe. We are witnessing a time when the rabid ideologues of your party are threatening the foundations of our democracy with things like permanently prolonging the most extreme parts of the Patriot Act. We have witnessed the temerity with which they tried to destroy the checks and balances system of our government, and are even now attempting to co-opt the judiciary. The unbridled corruption of the Right with their corporate networking, and the quid pro quo’s with which they buy one another, launder money, and funnel it to maintain power has turned the Capitol into a brothel. The New Boss Tweeds are Tom DeLay and Bill Frist, and the RNC is their Tammany.

You say: “I'm busy trying get my own party to become more sensible, so I can help you. So, you need to do this. Please stop speaking to the converted and make a choice to reach out.” But we are reaching out. Every time we point out the hypocrisy between what the Right says, and what it does, we reach out. We ask the American people to be honest. Every time we point out that nothing has been done to improve the day-to-day life of Iraqis, while our boys die there needlessly in a war that in no way was meant to better things there, and that the cynical way they conduct it has created the largest terrorist boot camp in the world, we appeal to American’s mercy, common sense and reason!

Let’s be honest. A party whose Majority Leader can bully Congress and contort it to defend him at any price, a party that thinks nothing of creating such abominations as Camp X-Ray, Baqubah and Abu Ghraib cannot in any way “become more sensible”. Your best bet is to come over to our side. Be a moderate Democrat. At least here you’ll have more influence. Listening to people is part of the ideology.