The way forward

So ends eight years of a Republican Presidency. Despite some threats to the contrary, democracy has prevailed, the people have spoken, and Barack Obama is to be the 44th President of the United States of America. He didn’t even need to commit voter fraud or have thugs standing outside polling booths to achieve it. Congratulations to Obama and to the Democrats.

Where does that leave conservatives? We now find ourselves looking to Canada as the last of the Anglosphere to retain a conservative government. That is a scary thought. There is much to look forward to though. If we were to ape the immature antics of our leftist opponents, it would be time to break out the papier-mâché and begin construction of Barack Obama’s head in effigy to march in the streets, block traffic and protest against an election stolen by ACORN and a biased media. That is not the way ahead though. The conservative movement in the west is in dire need of some self-reflection and a new approach. In Australia particularly, the ALP sold themselves as economically conservative. They are working very hard to disprove that platform, but the voters were presented with a choice between a stale incumbent and an alternative that promised not to spook the horses. There wasn’t a lot of difference between the two parties, so people went with the shiny new option. In the US it was a little different, but both campaigns sold an idea of change. Obama did it better, largely because he wasn’t in the same party as the incumbent. Conservative parties throughout the west need to reevaluate their tendency to avoid taking a responsible stand on the issues and pandering to a populist approach dictated to them by the media cycle. We are currently seeing the results of a decision making process driven by polls and sound bytes here in Australia. It is creating more problems than it solves. The opportunity now exists for the respective conservative parties to rethink the policy outcomes that they stand for, as well as the platforms they need to run on to achieve them. A little time on the bench for a breather and a chance for the incumbents to demonstrate the folly of their ideas might be a good thing in the longer term.

In the meantime, we are now the opposition; an important role in any democracy. We are the voice of dissent. It is our responsibility to highlight the flaws in any new legislation or policy direction. I am going to enjoy the ride. I am already pointing out that I voted for the other guy in the domestic political farce that has developed over the last 12 months. Republicans should enjoy doing the same.

The video below is from the BBC series “Coupling”. It illustrates that point very well. I apologise for the watermark and the aspect ratio, but this clip is not on the net and I had to use some freeware to convert it to a usable file type. Watch it all the way through and enjoy a lefty head explosion.