THIS QUITE USEFUL little essay by James W. Ceaser -- "The Great Disappointment of 2013: What happens when a political messiah fails?" (weeklystandard.com, March 3, 2013) -- borrows ideas from a classic text of social psychology -- the book that invented the term cognitive dissonance -- and applies them to . . .
. . . Obamism.
The cynical architects of our nation's lurch to the left -- among whom I count Barack Hussein Obama, his own sorry self -- will not be affected. Cynicism is sufficient armor. Nor will the client-state leftists. Nickel-and-dime greed and massive ignorance will insulate them. Nor will liberal racists and progressive ideologues.
But what about the good-hearted Americans who took Mr. Obama's greasy bait? Who saw in him the apotheosis of their own goodness? How will they respond to the evident failure of Obamism to fundamentally transform America for the better, evidenced by the slow-rolling disaster that is Obamacare, the new-normal jobless economy in a political economy designed to keep it that way, and the national debt set to crush and impoverish the lives of our children and grandchilden?
What, in other words, about the good liberals?
Mr. Ceaser says the three classic mechanisms for reconciling the conflict between ideas and reality -- cognitive dissonance -- are acceptance ("He was wrong; I was wrong to believe him."), denial ("He was right and is still right, and I am right to follow him."), and deflection ("He was right, but bad old Republicans prevented him from succeeding.")
(The parenthetical quotations are my inventions, not Mr. Ceaser's words.)
The only honest, moral, and emotionally healthy response, dear liberal friends, is acceptance. Admit it was all a big mistake, then move on to do what you can to repair the damage.
How many leftists will admit their error? Very few, I'm afraid. Only the ones who are both intelligent and honest.
Intelligence alone is not enough, of course, as demonstrated by the vicious daily attacks by the big-brained columnists and cartoonist at the Houston Chronicle on conservatives, the very people who got things right in the first place. They exemplify, and ever will, deflection on steroids.
As a declinist, I expect cynical leftists, client-state leftists, liberal racists, progressive ideologues, and unregenerated true believers to prevail, if not in the next election, in time.
Our schools and universities, our media, our vulgar popular culture -- all have set America's course toward Obamism, even as Obamism's failures manifest themselves to all who will see.
And these same institutions have set our course away from classical liberalism (democracy, free markets, property rights, the rule of law, in which they believe not at all), traditional social structures and values built on marriage and the family (ditto), and traditional religious faith, by which I mean the Christian faith (double ditto with sprinkles on top).
Speaking of the Christian faith, for those who cannot or will not open their hearts to the truth that is Jesus, I would appeal for a decent respect for the utilitarian good done in this world by mass adherence to basic Christian doctrine: that human nature is fundamentally flawed (foundational to the U.S. Constitution and the very puropse of law itself), that God loves the world and sent Jesus to redeem it (believers' source of purpose and existential hope), and that the moral values of the Christian faith produce better neighbors, on balance, than the modern pagan alternative.
Not perfect: better.
The moral capital created by generations of Christians in America -- ingrained character traits such as keeping one's word, showing up for work on time and working hard, taking responsibility for one's self and family, saving money, being faithful to spouse and children, helping others -- is is our nation's seed corn. Obamism is consuming and thus destroying it.
Our nation is run by a president whose word is no good. He sees lying as a useful political strategy (which, on the evidence, it has proved to be), not as a moral wrong (which it most decidedly is).
Confronted by further evidence that Obamacare reduces the incentive to show up for work at all, much less on time, the left celebrates the freedom not to work.
Mounting welfare rolls testify that the state, not the individual, is primarily responsible for us and our families (families, of course, being entirely optional and infinitely malleable).
Likewise, the theology of Obamism teaches that the state alone is responsible for helping others, Christianity's "least of these."
Witness the miserly pattern of charitable giving -- both in time and money -- among Democrats and liberals, as classes, and the relatively more generous patterns of charitable giving among Republicans, conservatives, and Christians. As I said, not perfect, just better.
Liberal friends, it's time to change sides. Do it now.
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