Constitutional Double-talk & The GOP

The conservative movement in this country, whether you refer to it as the GOP, The Tea Party movement or the Libertarian Party, is constantly talking about their steadfast loyalty to the U.S. Constitution and how the Liberal or Progressive movement is intent on destroying it.

At the same time, every time I turn around, I'm hearing of another constitutional amendment being proposed by a conservative from one of these movements. Here are just a few;
Amendment to ban flag burning
Amendment to ban gay marriage
Amendment to ban abortion
Balanced Budget Amendment
Amendment to insure the right to school prayer
Amendment instituting term limits for congress
Amend or repeal of the 14th & 17th Amendments
etc............

If they really believe in the U.S. Constitution, why are they so intent on changing it every time they disagree with what it says? They act like amending the constitution is an easy thing to do when in fact, it's quite difficult. They even go so far as to campaign on promises to make these amendments if elected, as if they could. What a bunch of double talk.

At this point I'm really surprised that they haven't come right out and said that we need to "Start With A Clean Sheet Of Paper" with regards to the constitution. Seems like they really liked that phrase during the health care debate and with all their proposed changes to the constitution, it now seems applicable.

When they promise to Amend the constitution, nothing could be farther from the truth, but at this point that seems to be the norm for the conservative movement.

The problem here, and with the illusion of widespread hypocrisies in a group as big as the conservative or liberal movements, is that everyone is different.

Not everyone in a big group is the same. Most of them disagree on vast amounts of issues within their own ranks.

You will find brilliant people, and idiots, in any large gathering of people.

This is important to understand because it explains why such blatant hypocrisy or double-thinking can come out of a group.

You put totally different points of view into a pot and mix them up, and that is how it comes out.

Also your average idiot will mix these ideas and merely repeat them like a robot. Where as if you meet one of the smart folks in those movements, they will be spot on in their thinking and observations.

This works for all groups political, religious, hobbies, etc.

Everyone is different.

Hey Liberal! Do you want to get into monetizing debt?
No, I didn’t think so….
At least when the other side gets done doing whatever it is you don’t like we still have a country and a currency.

reply to post by muzzleflash


You're quite right. It just seems recently that every time one of these conservative movements disagree with constitutional law, they propose amending it to fit their beliefs.

Now, if they believe in a particular provision of the constitution, they will fight to the death to defend it. but as soon as it steps on their toes, then it's time to amend it.

I'm surprised that they haven't yet come up with a constitutional amendment that would ban the building of a mosque within 100 miles of ground zero.

Originally posted by Steve8511
Hey Liberal! Do you want to get into monetizing debt?
No, I didn’t think so….
At least when the other side gets done doing whatever it is you don’t like we still have a country and a currency.

Both parties ruined this country actually.

Please don't turn this into a right vs left mud slinging match.

Let cooler heads prevail.

reply to post by Steve8511


I guess you think that it was the poor that drove us into the debt situation we're currently in. I wonder where they buried all the money.

pot calling the kettle black in here

democrats have done such a bang up job on the constution as well





i getting tired of the republicans crapping on the constitution threads

cause seriously you have no room to talk

I have the ability to argue any point why what is and has happened.
But the reality is such now it is all too late and it is too broken to ever have what we once did as a country.
The small arguments are just distractions for the simple. Prepare for the collapse while you can…

reply to post by Steve8511


You could be right as it seems that the republican platform is morphing into a "Rewrite The Constitution" platform that may indeed lead to the creation of something like the United States of Texas. I mean who knows?

I'm to the point now that I can't stand the GOP. I used to deal with it but I just have no use for Christian Right crap anymore.

reply to post by Flatfish


Yeah, those damn conservatives actually attempting to change the Constitution the right way through the amendment system.

They should take the route of the progressives, through unlawful legislation and court activism.

That would show em, huh?

Originally posted by Flatfish

At the same time, every time I turn around, I'm hearing of another constitutional amendment being proposed by a conservative from one of these movements. Here are just a few;
Amendment to ban flag burning
Amendment to ban gay marriage
Amendment to ban abortion
Balanced Budget Amendment
Amendment to insure the right to school prayer
Amendment instituting term limits for congress
Amend or repeal of the 14th & 17th Amendments
etc............

Most of those movements within the GOP are attempts to legislate religious beliefs. These are all things that were once social mores in this country but the religious groups lost the social battle over them, thus they now resort to trying to use government force to impose their views on the larger society. Much like the Dems have been trying to do with the social conventions that the average american doesn't agree with.

I believe that agendas like these are the reason that the GOP lost power during the last presidency and why they didn't have a chance in the last presidential election. The people are getting tired of attempts to legislate morality.

reply to post by muzzleflash


Therein lies the issue of republicans and democrats. You need the big tent and support every idea on your side of the spectrum. Unfortunately, this leads to voting for someone that you only 'mostly' agree with.

I'd like to see something like Europe has, more room for viable third parties. Which brings me to this; according to Wikipedia, we have two major parties, three 'third' parties and two dozen 'micro' parties in addition to the numerous regional parties. The country has been conditioned into voting for R or D, our electoral college supports and maintains the two party system.

reply to post by neo96


Yeah, because there's just sooo many threads about those terrible republicans compared to the few threads about that terrible president and his cronies Pelosi and Reid.

reply to post by soontide


That's because candidates have begun to listen to the loudest constituent as opposed to the well-spoken agreeable types.

See the GOP wouldn't be so bad if they weren't so dang evil. I mean the basic theory of Conservatives isn't bad, it's that whole "hate every other race but Caucasians" and the "bomb the living [snip] out of every other country on Earth" and the whole "Screw your rights!" things.

Oh and I forgot that whole GOP thing of "screw the poor" and "screw the disabled" and let's see, "screw the children" and "screw the middle class", and do I need to go on?


[edit on 8/12/2010 by whatukno]

reply to post by Tyrannyispeace


I think that it is primarily the GOP that is putting forth unlawful legislation like the Arizona "let me see your papers," SB1070 bill or the Prop 8 prohibition of gay marriage in California.

You may have noticed that both of these bills have been stayed by the courts due to questions concerning their constitutionality. The republican party then starts shouting things like "it's the fault of activist courts," when in fact the so called activist federal judge they are speaking of was first nominated by Reagan, rejected for being to conservative just to be reappointed and approved at a later time by George Bush Sr..

It's not the democrats that are destroying America, it's the republican party's hypocrisy and hatred coming back to bite them in the ass. If they can't have it their way, they would just as soon see the country fail.

reply to post by Flatfish


Gay marriage would NOT be even a concern if their were NOT tax breaks for being married.

Marriage has NOTHING to do with government.

The ONLY reason that anyone is even arguing about marriage is because the government licenses it.

Remove the licensing and there would be NO problem.

But no, let us argue about a DAMN license to do something that is lawful to do without.

Are you beginning to understand that the WHOLE problem is that government has their damn nose in EVERYTHING except what they are supposed to do. Namely in YOUR two examples, STOP AN INVASION!

reply to post by Tyrannyispeace


I agree that the real issue is about equal rights and not sexual orientation but it's the neo-con christian right that keeps sticking their noses in other peoples personal lives. They are insistent on forcing everyone else to conform to their religious views as if they had a monopoly on morality. In doing so, they believe that anyone that doesn't agree with them is not entitled to equal rights so they try to legislate against them.

reply to post by Flatfish


EVERY religion has it's zealots.

The WHOLE problem though is that GOVERNMENT interference in EVERYTHING is the vehicle for their power.

I tend to look at the source of the problem instead of the symptoms.

Sort of being a REAL doctor of sorts. If you treat the symptoms, the underlying disease is NEVER solved.

If the government did not LICENSE marriage, there would be NO disease. Hence no symptoms.

When did licensing of marriage begin? That would show you exactly when this became a problem. Take a look into history and tell me what you find.

It is congruent or analogous to the problems with drug prohibition. Just the same thing. Licensing of drugs by the government and then the prohibition of people's choice.

Where NOW the government decides on who is going to marry.

Control. Period.

reply to post by Tyrannyispeace


I don't know exactly when the federal government decided to start licensing marriage but I would be willing to bet that it did so at the prompting of the same neo-con christian movement to insure that the "moral" people of this nation are afforded rights that they can deny to the so-called "immoral" people.

Rights like having your employer based health care policy extended to your spouse or having the authority to make health care decisions for your incapacitated spouse, etc... If they can deny your ability to marry the person of your choice, they have denied you of your rights.

I think it's really about their "I'm better than you attitude."

It's cognitive dissonance. Plain and simple. And a lot of times they don't even know they have it.

The real issue lies with only a subset of people. And only they know who they are...we don't unless we get to know them personally or on the forums where they express conflicting opinions. That's where the fun starts.

But yes, there has been a lot of this going on recently. Many of the same people who let "Bush" stomp all over the Constitution are now horrified because they view it as "Obama" doing it. Cognitive dissonance in their heads they're trying to reduce by justifying, blaming, and denying that they may have been wrong.