2 March 2008
Hope Through the Illusion of Change
Posted by Joy Bischoff under: Constitution in Peril; Guest Blogger; Judaeo-Christian Values Under Attack .
Guest Blog by Charles A. Castleberry
One thing that differentiates the Democratic message from that of Republicans is HOPE. Perhaps it is merely an illusion, but its adherents do receive hope from the messages. Perhaps the Republican Party can learn some valuable lessons from its friends across the aisle.
Lifting up the downtrodden, promising help to the helpless, hope for the hopeless and peace to a troubled world are admirable wishes and goals. The mere recognition and mention that people are downtrodden, helpless or hopeless in America and abroad provides a foundation for politicians to provide leadership. They speak of solving these problems… speak of change… provide messages of hope and brotherhood… however their solutions inevitably lead to increased bondage, more pain and loss of hope.
We might compare people who suffer from these ‘hopeless’ conditions to drug addicts (include those who are related to affected persons and feel guilt because they do not likewise suffer). Drugs offer a temporary illusion of wellness or euphoria, but the underlying problems only increase with abuse. Like a manic depressive, the deep lows and euphoric highs begin to control their lives and they will do anything to get a fix. Enter the benevolent local pusher to provide the ‘cure’. It is often too late before those who are hooked realize their ‘benevolent friend’ is no friend at all, but is instead their worst enemy.
Like drug pushers, political ‘pushers’ paint a bleak and painful picture, then offer solutions with a delivery that engenders a feeling of hope and euphoria. Like the Savior of old they say, “Come follow me,” and promise solutions that will bring peace and hope; offering an end to suffering. Their solutions are counterfeit and eventually lead to greater lows, like a druggie experiences, but the promise of the higher highs is too hard to resist, let alone recognize for what it is. Their proposals are not based upon personal and social virtue; nor upon personal and community commitment, involvement or responsibility. They generally are no more than a flattering way of saying, “Let me take what you have and I will give you what you need; no pain, no worry.”
Let’s compare the traditional Republican approach to pain and hopelessness. It is perceived to be no more than an appeal to “Act like a man. Go to work and be responsible. If you let the government take care of you, you will lose all self respect and be of no value. Solutions are not in government, but will be better found in corporations that provide jobs so people can help themselves. Some may suffer because they are not responsible, but they will be better for the suffering.”
This perception of the Republican message is somewhat akin to an Old Testament approach. It sounds severe, but when fully understood is actually more compassionate and offers the greatest hope for Americans and all mankind. It is based upon proven principals of personal accountability and community service. In contrast, the Democratic delivery sounds more like a New Testament approach… Just believe. Follow me and I will make your burdens light. Love your neighbor as yourself.
The problem is… these politicians are not offering the saving message of the Savior that leads to a better life and promise of eternal blessings. Their solutions are counterfeit and may be likened to the anti-Christ. They sound wonderful, and they are wrapped in flattering words that are pleasing to the ear. They tend to play on our fears then portray themselves as the only answer. Promises, promises, promises… believed and embraced by millions.
When Jesus Christ says, “Come follow me”, we follow. But when any other man extends his hand and says the same, look to see what he has hidden in the other hand behind his back. Too often it is shackles and chains. Easy solutions to world problems generally do include shackles and chains for somebody.
Human nature does not change. The message of hope presented by democrats will continue to be embraced. The messages of ‘peace through strength’ and the rest of the republican mantra will continue to be presented by opponents and mainstream media as selfish, old fashioned, uncaring and out of vogue.
The label ‘democrat’ might just as well be ‘liberal’, while ‘Republican’ may be ‘conservative’. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that conservatives actually offer a better way, but do not deliver the message in a compassionate and compelling manner. Until this is realized by party leadership, more and more individuals will continue to be charmed by lies and empty promises from the left. They will embrace the easy or popular way, damn the consequences.
Let us recognize the suffering of the poor and the helpless. Let us look for peaceful solutions to world conflict. Let us be compassionate. But let us offer solutions which are based upon real American values. Values which lead to lasting hope, true peace and real prosperity.
29 Comments so far...
Hope Through the Illusion of Change Says:
2 March 2008 at 12:25 am.
[…] Dcypl.com wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptHope Through the Illusion of Change Posted by Joy Bischoff under: Constitution in Peril; Guest Blogger; Judaeo-Christian Values Under Attack. Guest Blog by Charles A. Castleberry One thing that differentiates the Democratic message from that of Republicans is HOPE. Perhaps it is merely an illusion, but its adherents do receive hope from the messages. Perhaps the Republican Party can learn some valuable lessons from its friends across the aisle. Lifting up the downtrodden, promising hel […]
E.E. Says:
2 March 2008 at 12:34 am.
It’s true that we need to stop looking at the other side as evil and see if there is anything good we can emulate. We do need a message of hope and when we blend it with true principles then we have a recipe for happiness. Teaching self sufficiency doesn’t have to be harsh, it can be uplifting and filled with hope. I use to teach at summer girl scout camps and when those girls learned new skills they were so excited and felt so great about themselves. Having hope in God and in yourself from development is a lot better than a hope in someone coming along to give handouts.
Mac Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:05 am.
There you go. The Democratic Party, the counterfeit drug of hope. Good analogy with the drug pushers. Fits Obama to a T
Jesse Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:58 am.
Rush has been making me nuts lately by saying he doesn’t believe in hope. Getting out the message the republicans don’t believe in hope is not doing us any favors. It is so wrong that the party that has so many Christians would be perceived as having no compassion. You are right that we need to give our message in a better way. Faith HOPE and charity. Why do people forget the hope part? Rush said that only applied to religion but I thought religion was suppose to apply to life.
Iffer Says:
2 March 2008 at 12:02 pm.
I really liked this. I agree with Jesse that religion is supposed to apply to life. People go to far when they try to separate state and religion. Personally i want my leaders to believe in God, and practice religion.
M.G. Says:
2 March 2008 at 2:26 pm.
The title says it all.
Joy Bischoff Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:13 pm.
I borrowed a comment that someone made after an Obama article. It illustrated the point made in the above article and also how tired people are that they want to turn over their right to govern to a strong king-type leader. Very disturbing trend here.
Comment:
Honestly, when selecting a president, it’s about leadership skills more than anything else. For years I was a rabid Republican who would vote the party line because of fears of “socialism”. Now I watch our Republican president spend more money (outside of the war budget, so don’t use that excuse) than President Clinton did. He’s not veto’d a bill yet. There’s no law he’s not liked.
The biggest boost America can get will come from a charismatic leader who can rally the people together. Pride in our president and our country will restore hope and every facet of our lives.
For this reason, as a life-long Republican, former member of the Republican Central Committee in California and U.S. Navy vet, I’ll be casting my vote for Obama this year. For the first time in a long time, I’m excited about our future!
Paul, Jupiter, FL
Angela Rogin Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:28 pm.
Okay right. Hitler had leadership skills and he got everybody pretty excited. Their illusion of hope became a delusion in no time at all and so would we if Obama gets in. We already know McCain will pull the rug out from under any promises he makes to us crazy conservatives.
Chuck C Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:31 pm.
I think maybe we should just hibernate for four years. Frustrating times ahead… I’m skeptical that we can get traction to elect enough good members of Congress to balance things.
Cavetrollhead Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:38 pm.
I see another big problem with the Republican rhetoric also. That is that the poor are poor because they are not working hard and the rich are rich because they work hard. This is traditional rhetoric that doesn’t make sense to a lot of people, including me. There are people who know that this is not strictly the case. Some are poor because of health problems. Some are poor because of extreme bad luck. It happens. Some are poor because they take on responsibilities to help other people in need and find themselves destitute.
The idea that republicans use to say the rich are rich because they have earned it and the poor are poor because they haven’t earned any better, is just plain wrong in many cases. I have brought it up before on this site, but remember Jesus’s parable about the Rich man that refused the poor man Lazurus. This was the lesson being taught there. The rich man (who took the attitude that he deserved his riches and Lazurus deserved his poverty) went to HELL.
King Benjamin teaches the same doctrine in the book of Mosiah (book of mormon)
The reason Federal Welfare is not a republican, or traditional American Value is because it doesn’t work- not because some people don’t need and deserve welfare. These things need to be addressed at the local level. They need to be handled first in the private sector and then, only if that fails, at the local Gvt. level. The Feds should keep out of it.
Federal programs turn people into numbers and are harder to administer on a case by case basis. Everything is done according to blind policy. This makes them easier to exploit and makes them less effective in helping those who really are in need it. They also make people more selfish because they pay their taxes and forget it and don’t become involved.
Joy Bischoff Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:41 pm.
Hey wait a minute, we talked about this. Bears hibernate and we’re no bears. We’re soldiers. So we try to get good people elected even if chances are small. But what we really focus on is educating ourselves and spreading the messages we came up with together on this site. And there are other people trying to do similar things. We unify wherever we can find common ground and fight the trend to separate into camps armed with antagonism toward each other. We have to have a net in place to help catch people with things crumble. We have lots of work cut out for us. We do just what you said in your article. We spread the right kind of hope and we do not give in to discouragement. Show the action behind the words, chin up and be of good cheer all. Why should we be surprised when we see prophecies from scripture come to pass? It means those prophets were right and are also right that good wins in the end. It’s a great time to live. If you don’t give up then you are all heroes.
Cavetrollhead Says:
2 March 2008 at 3:45 pm.
We need to focus, like chuck said before on congress. Here in Utah people are tying to replace Mathesen because he is a democrat, but I think we need to get rid of the Luke warm republicans. Anyone know a good candidate to bump off Hatch and Bennett? Our house of reps are pretty good round here though, so maybe Mathesen is a good target. How do you spell his name, mathesen Matheson? My spell checker doesn’t like either one.
E.E. Says:
2 March 2008 at 4:53 pm.
Cave, I used to live in Utah and I noticed that the good republican candidates were all made to look like extremists even though most of them weren’t. It’s a real problem there. Luke warm is just the way to explain them.
Saddened Says:
2 March 2008 at 7:09 pm.
I think that when people are afraid they don’t really hear the message and they are easily fooled. They cling to whoever seems strong and calming. That’s why Hillary is losing ground, IMO. Obama has this kind of paternal way about him that makes people want to just follow. It’s spooky.
Chuck C Says:
2 March 2008 at 7:27 pm.
I was being facetious about hibernating. No sunshine soldiers here — just wanted to spur some conversation. Cave and Joy are right… time to arm ourselves with good information and marshal our forces for a good fight!
Joy Bischoff Says:
2 March 2008 at 7:47 pm.
Yeah, Chuck! Glad to see a strong soldier. Want to carry my pack for me? It’s a long march.
Chuck C Says:
2 March 2008 at 8:19 pm.
Sound-off; 1 - 2;
Sound-off; 3 - 4;
1 - 2 - 3 - 4; 1 - 2 — 3 - 4.
Hup 2 - 3 - 4
Stumpy get your _ _ _ up off the floor
5 - 6 - 7 - 8
Robin don’t be late
Mac and Jesse follow me
Iffer and M.G. hold the glee
Saddened get out of your sack
Won’t get much done while on your back
This is no dance, it ain’t no samba
Come on troops let’s beat Obama
Marching sure is lots of pain
They say the cure is John McCain
This old pack sure weighs a ton
Be lots more with Clinton on!
Joy and Cave let’s get to work
We’ve lots to do to beat THAT jerk!
Sound-off; 1 - 2;
Sound-off; 3 - 4;
1 - 2 - 3 - 4; 1 - 2 — 3 - 4.
Mac Says:
2 March 2008 at 8:23 pm.
I want to follow Iffer. I saw her picture. I’ll carry her pack for her.
Chuck C Says:
2 March 2008 at 8:25 pm.
OK Iffer, time to let hold of the glee! Mac says you’re a BABE!
Cameron Says:
2 March 2008 at 9:02 pm.
I’ll march but not if we’re marching for McCain.
Stumpy Says:
2 March 2008 at 9:09 pm.
Back off Mac. Iffer is ridin on my donkey. Her nose is sensitive and you stink.
Iffer Says:
2 March 2008 at 9:35 pm.
Sorry Mac, but i have to go with Stumpy on this one…. He has a nice as…i mean donkey..
Mac Says:
2 March 2008 at 9:45 pm.
Stumpy you’re going to have to choose between Pickles and Iffer. You can’t have both of them.
Stumpy Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:17 pm.
Me and my shotgun says I can Mac. Go find somebody cheesy and mix it up.
Cameron Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:24 pm.
Mac ole buddy, take my advise and let Stumpy win. It’s less painful and it’s inevitable.
Mac Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:37 pm.
Hey Chuck, got a white flag on you?
Chuck C Says:
2 March 2008 at 10:48 pm.
Alright guys! No white flags here! This is serious busi… I just got it Stumpy; Mac and ‘cheesy’!… ness. Good night all.
Pickles Says:
3 March 2008 at 2:15 pm.
Hah, I won’t share Stumpy. Iffer better take a hike on her own.
tony Says:
6 March 2008 at 1:06 pm.
you can have stumpy pickles…. iffer is all mine.
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