In Defense of Logic -By The Reluctant Republican
The problem with the "race card" it that it ultimately obscures the truth on both sides. Obviously racism is still a major issue in America, and it would be foolish to suggest that it won’t be a hurdle that Obama will have to deal with at least on some level. However, my problem with liberals is that race is ALL they want to focus on. They use a very simple and often effective, but fundamentally flawed "if/then" "logic". Racists dislike Obama. Therefore, if you dislike Obama you are a racist. That is ridiculous, offensive, and intellectually lazy. Furthermore, it obscures the reality that even the presence of racism does not necessarily negate the validity of an argument or a truth. Mark Fuhrman showed himself to be (at least to some degree) a racist. But guess what? O.J. still killed two people.
To answer some charges levied again the Reluctant Republicans directly:
The Supreme Court: Many people would argue that the Supreme Court is ultimately a far more important position to be held than the presidency. Firstly, they are appointed for life. Secondly, they have the power to in many ways "control" both the legislative and administrative branches of government through their rulings. So, no, I do not take lightly the appointment of Supreme Court judges, and neither should anyone else.
Iraq: No. I do not have a direct, immediate family member serving currently in Iraq. The Reluctant Republicans, myself included though, have the absolute deepest respect and reverence for those who do and for those who serve.
"Tax Brackets": Let’s be clear here also. We come from nothing. No one affiliated with the Reluctant Republicans comes from any form of "wealth"…at all…to even the smallest degree. We aren’t a bunch of upper class snobs looking down our noses at the "common" people. (We leave that to wealthy liberals). We are hard working, risk taking Americans. I, myself, spent my entire childhood and a portion of my adult life well below the poverty line. In more recent years I have ventured into the entrepreneurial world and found varying degrees of success including coming extremely close to losing everything. I have been a conservative since I was old enough to think logically. That includes years where my "tax bracket" was different than today, and it will include years in the future where it is different again. I, like most true conservatives, do not change positions based on conveniences of the moment. Perhaps you should revisit my "Politics of Self" posts (part one and part two) to deal with that issue again.
Race: Yes, I myself am of a fairly dubious and fairly generic "white" ethnic background. But that does NOT mean that I intrinsically "fear" and or am "uncomfortable" with a "black" president. I happen to hail from the once great state of Ohio. In our most recent gubernatorial campaign I could not have been more excited to have Ken Blackwell as our Republican candidate for governor. Blackwell was a dream candidate for a true conservative, and he happens to be black. The fact of the matter is that true conservatives couldn’t care less about race. We care about issues, policies, and positions, regardless of race. In February of this year, Ken Blackwell wrote an op ed piece called "The Real Obama" in which he calls for people to see through Obama’s rhetoric and recognize his policies and aspirations for the liberal drivel that they are. Is Ken Blackwell, a black man himself, "afraid" or "uncomfortable" with having a black president? Is he a racist and a bigot?
McCain: This site is called "Reluctant Republicans for McCain" for a reason. We are not now, nor have we ever claimed that John McCain is the "ultimate candidate" or even that we really like him that much. We have simply decided that there are some things about him we can support and that he is the better of the two available choices.
Finally, let me say this unequivocally, we do NOT care what color Obama, McCain, or anyone else is. We care about issues, policies, and ideals. And for those reasons alone, we are dedicated to defeating Obama.
Conservatism Lives!
