The Misunderstood Radical Right

The Misunderstood Radical Right

by Cindy Peak

In a recent blog exchange, someone mentioned “the radical right” and I wondered how the other person defined “those people”.  There are probably more than a few of my friends on Facebook who would throw me into that bag!   So I thought I might take a crack at defining it based upon my perspective of what it means to be part of The Radical Right. 

The Radical Right have a number of things in common, but most of it centers on beliefs they hold. Let’s look at those beliefs and see how radical they really are.  (Bear in mind, it may not be the case that all people in this group believe all of these things, but many do.)

The thing I find so curious is that the beliefs aren’t radical at all!  In fact, they are pretty wholesome.  Nothing that would make your grandma blush or your mom wash your mouth out with soap if you talked about it.  Just basic decency.  So perhaps, if we discuss these things calmly, and approach the discussion with an open mind, a less hostile political environment can be gained.  I don’t expect to change everyone’s mind, but perhaps a few will at least consider a different
way of thinking about things, myself included.  And as people comment (and I hope you will), maybe we can reach some common ground of respect, if not agreement.

Since there are so many topics, I’m going to break them down into manageable chunks.  Here is my proposed list of topics.  If you have any that you’d like to add, please add yours to the list by mentioning them in the comments and we will explore them together.  My plan is to post one discussion every week, so hang in there with me. 

And one more thing:  let’s keep the ad hominem arguments out of this.  No name
calling.  It takes more thought, but I know we are up to it!

Here’s the proposed list:

• Constitution and Bill of Rights (this will take more than one week)
• Taxes
• Faith, Secular Humanism, and the Progressive Agenda
• Capitalism (and why we don’t like Socialism)
• Slavery of Yesterday and Racism Today
• Life
• Marriage
• Personal Responsibility
• Charity and Helping the Needy, Infirmed, and Elderly
• Education
• Energy
• Immigration