Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Down with College!



In his quest to win the Michigan and Arizona primaries Tuesday and ultimately the GOP nomination for president, Rick Santorum has found a new target: higher education. Speaking Saturday at the Americans for Prosperity forum in Michigan, Santorum did his best at tossing red meat into the rapacious crowd:

"President Obama once said he wants everybody in America to go to college. What a snob!" He cited elitist "liberal college professors" in their "indoctrination mills." And he outrageously charged that the reason Obama wants everyone to attend college is that he "wants to remake you in his image."

Welcome to the new Republican Party. The party of homophobic, xenophobic, racist, anti-science, anti-education invective and hateful demagoguery. The party of mean and nasty and anti-accomplishment. The party that its iconic hero, Ronald Reagan, wouldn't recognize if Santorum himself fell on him.

Santorum, the candidate with undergraduate, MBA and law degrees, believes blue-collar youth should not share his college aspirations. Keep 'em stupid, is his new mantra. Sure, it's easier for the smart college guys like him to manipulate the dummies who don't know any better. Because a stupid electorate is an electorate that'll vote for hate-speaking boneheads like him. Wow. Nothing says "Oval Office" like "strive for mediocrity."

Santorum also criticized John F. Kennedy’s speech that the separation of church and state is "absolute," saying it made him "almost throw up." He also has said that Obama has a "phony theology" and that his policies "don't follow the Bible." One thing's for sure: if JFK were around today I suspect he'd puke knowing that a narrow-minded, ignorant racist ideologue like Santorum was seeking his job.

But Santorum's not the only lunatic in this nut house. There's Newt Gingrich, and his reprehensible comments that Obama's an "anti-colonial Kenyan" who is "the most dangerous president in modern American history." And Ron Paul who, when he's not writing/publishing newsletters with racist rhetoric, is busy sounding like the crazy old grandpa at the BBQ. And Mitt Romney, the Massachusetts moderate who in a flash has become the biggest anti-abortion, anti-immigration, religiously dogmatic "severely conservative" strapped-to-the-roof-dog in the race.

What's that sound you say? That's the sound of a roaring engine as the Republicans drive off the political cliff.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

The GOP is not conservative enough!

Buggy whips for all! Air conditioning is not an American value! End all construction regulations, build whatever you want where ever you want, Destroy the printing presses!

Anonymous said...

The snob wrote the article. While I am no supporter of Santorum, especially of his "throw up" comment over church-state separation, I do believe he is partially right when it comes to higher education. Not everyone is made to go to college. In fact, many "blue collar" workers I know make more money than the college-graduates I know, and are just as intelligent and free thinking (maybe more so). While the college-bound are piling-up debt for tuition, the “lowly” diesel mechanic is building his/her financial life one paycheck at a time. As the college-bound are learning the differences between Keynesian and laissez-faire economics the blue-collar workers are producing real value, fulfilling needs for other people through their goods and services.
So stuff your supercilious attacks on the so-called blue collar "dummies", up your a$$ (the unedited version). You say "keep em stupid", as if only the college experience could give them the type of enlightenment you could approve of. You apparently are so college educated that you can't even recognize your own social bigotry against the alter-educated working class. How “xenophobic“of you.

The Ostroy Report said...

You've missed the point. Why am I not surprised? Yes, not everyone is college material or meant to go. And yes, blue collar jobs are extremely important in this country and provide a great value and service. Which is why my party, not yours, is the one which throughout history has supported and fought for their rights, their pay and benefits, and their need to unionize. But back to the main point. While we're not all meant for college, we should all at least initially, have aspirations for our children beyond blue collar jobs. Are parents snobs for wanting a better education and life for their kids? Really, this is truly an insane debate...