Reagan said it…we should say it too.
Posted on October 22, 2009 by Mary Grabar
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SOCIALISM! As I was teaching “The Speech” last night it struck me that in 1964 Ronald Reagan was not afraid of using the S word. Yet, “conservative” (by Daily Kos standards) columnist Kathleen Parker, in a column likening Glenn Beck’s program to a “sideshow,” cited a count of the number of times Glenn Beck used “adrenaline-pumping words” like “socialism.” Heavens! Ms. Parker, who manages to throw together political tidbits, pop culture, and Maureen-Dowd-like witticisms, dismisses attack-dog Anita Dunn’s praise of Mao Zedong with, “’For such times, God invented the word oy.”
Read “The Speech,” people. Look at the facts and examples Reagan used in 1964. Our situation is worse today. (A couple of my students mentioned that the speech is relevant now.) Look at the comparisons Reagan made between the plight of the average American regulated and taxed to death to the ideals of our founders. And then don’t be afraid to use the word “socialism.” And don’t listen to the Rockefeller Republicans like Kathleen Parker and David Brooks. Remember, they did not win in 1980.
Tags: political speeches, Reagan, socialism
Comments (1)
Right again, Dr. Mary. Kathleen Parker is a phony, a media-designated “conservative,” kept around to keep real conservatives out of the discussion. Others of this type are David Frum, David Gergen and Bill Kristol. I tell everyone to read you instead of Kathleen Parker and her crowd.