Will Hines

williebhines:

So when Santorum says “conservatism” what he means is “anti-gay marriage” and “talking about Jesus a lot as if that were the official national religion.” Not worrying about what words are supposed to mean, but that’s what he’s trying to communicate when he says “conservatism.”…

Yes! I see that. I do think “big government” and “christianity” are more specific ways that certain candidate use to separate themselves regardless of Obama, but yes his “otherness.”

The illusory appeal of the past is something that is very ingrained. I hear it all the time in every arena, always put in vague terms so you can just infer your own specifics. “America.. the way it USED to be.” I agree “the 50s” has come to mean a certain type of prosperity and safety — but very often used by people who were not teenagers or even alive in the 50s.

The Way Things Used To Be — one of the most manipulative and subjective things to say, which seems to always be appealing. Everyone bitches about their own childhood, but seems to want the childhood that existed before them maybe?

I’ve lived in Greenpoint/Williamsburg for 10 years and heard many people complain about “the way this neighborhood USED to be” from people who have lived here much less! The neighborhood was fundamentally the same 10 years ago, I think.

I’ve been at UCB for, what, 12 years? And people have talked about “the way Harold Night used to be” pretty consistently.

Grrrr. THINKING! SPECIFICS! ACCOUNTABILITY!