Not Falling For It This Time

Abigail and Dolley readers I have been an intense observer of politics and the media for many years - no more so than when I became a Tea Party Member in the early months of 2009.   Plugged into the 24 hour news cycle for four years was illuminating, because I understood what was going on I could easily pick out spin and lies when they were spoken from a podium or a news desk.  Thus, I can no longer be led about by my nose.

My friends over at the Patriot's Business Alliance, hypothesized that the 2012 election would be the last time major media controlled the narrative.  They were right.

George and I were discussing this morning how people are not buying the story the media is selling.  His theory is that the electorate have watched their candidates be skewered by false narratives spun by the establishment and the media.  As supporters of these candidates they know the truth and not the sound bites and have been infuriated by the personal destruction of men and women they supported.

Think about the last Presidential election, were you a Michelle Bachmann fan?  How did you feel about her treatment?  How about the Newsweek cover that made her look like a lunatic or a Iowa State Fair picture that made her look like a porn star?  Her campaign was scuttled while in its infancy.

Then let us talk about Herman Cain... A strong man of integrity and intelligence.  Surges in the polls in October with smart ideas about revamping Social Security, creating jobs, and turning the country from a left wing course that had us reeling.  Well, since he was a Black Man, it was easy to create a sex starved predator image.  Vindicated well after the fact, a good man's reputation and his family were drug through the mud on the way to anointing the impotent establishment candidate Mitt Romney.   

A Good Man Drug Through the Mud

Finally, let's look at Newt Gingrich.  Long term readers will remember that Newt was my candidate of choice.  I wrote in detail about my thought process, my support of Newt, and in the end the utter annihilation of an excellent candidate.  The destruction came from all sides, Romney's carpet bomb negative barrage of false campaign ads, the Fox News hatred of him and negative coverage, and then finally what was a death blow at the time, Beck's character assassination.  Had Newt become President, the country and the world would be a vastly better and different place.

Destroyed by Negative Ads

This story is repeated over and over again - Sarah Palin and Dan Quayle were absolutely destroyed by the press and the elite.  Even folks like ultra liberal Howard Dean have seen momentum destroyed by a single incident, gaffe or not, that sunk their careers and bids for public office.

The infamous Dean Scream

The cumulative effect on the public is disillusionment and resentment.  How many people have watched their candidate of choice destroyed?  With the rise of the internet, alternative media, and cell phone video cameras discerning individuals can do their own research.  When a story comes out, they can find the source material and review it for themselves - thus, the ability of pundits and SuperPacs to set the narrative are greatly diminished, to their utter horror, I might add.

They are desperate!  The Huffington Post broke a story this week where GOP elite and tech ultra rich met in secret to decide how to stop the rise and nomination of Donald Trump.  Fifty four private jets... they will lie, cheat, and steal to insure they stay in power.  The illusion of political parties, is just that, an illusion.  What we see today is a ruling class, an elite, who will do or say anything as long as the cash cow of unfettered government spending continues to line their pockets.

The thing is, the American People aren't falling for it this time.  

The Destruction of America - Right Before Our Eyes

About 2 am on Election Day 2012, I crawled out of bed praying fervently that the news was better than it had been when I went to bed.  I opened my laptop and on the screen was a picture of the Obamas, walking on stage as a family with the headline, "Four More Years."  I wept bitterly, as you would over a terminal cancer diagnosis for a loved one.  It was in that moment that I realized that we were not going to remain the shining city on the hill, the beacon of light and hope for the world - we were going to fall away (2 Thessalonians 3).

Up until that very moment, I believed that the United States would cease to be a player in the End Times because the Rapture would wipe us out.  Who could have ever imagined we would be where we are today?  When Obama was first elected, I was sick to my stomach.  Speaking to my Sister the morning after, she confirmed that the Holy Spirit inside of her recoiled at the man, mine always has.  I have never listened to a speech of his; he has been in the public arena since 2007 and have never been able to hear him without major warning bells reverberating through my spirit.  The optimist in me hoped that it would be like the Clinton years and that the favorable press coverage would encourage the economy out of the downward spiral we were experiencing in the days after the crash.  I was wrong.

Where Are the Political Posts?

Some of my long term readers will recognize that the Abigail and Dolley of today bears little resemblance to the blog of 2009/2010.  Born out of the Tea Party, Dolley was actually launched on a collaborative site founded by several conservative friends.  That blog was literally stolen and this site was born.  So you may wonder, "Why don't you write political posts any longer?"

The short answer is that I no longer believe that it makes a difference.  I began to cool off considerably after the rally of 2010 failed to produce a halt to the destruction of the country.  2011 was an extremely trying and difficult time for me personally and I had enough ageda of my own without rallying around the flag.  I engaged for the 2012 election and fought hard for my candidate, Newt Gingrich.  Toward the end, I even got on board the Romney train and supported his candidacy.

Two major occurrences soured me on politics forever.  The first was about a week before the election when I posed the question to my fb friends if anyone was actually still undecided.  The answers were amazing... I realized that all of my writing, all of my persuading, all of my educated had been for naught.  I had dozens of friends who had not been positively influenced by my four years of crusading.  The second occurred about 2 am on election morning, I wept for my lost country but have never looked back.

You see, I believe that the only hope for this lost world is found in the salvation of Jesus Christ.  The 24 hour news cycle is not going to save us, the turning of the tides is not going to happen because we are simply too close to the end of the church age for that to occur.  Daily we are seeing the fulfillment of prophecy and the foundations and systems for the last kingdom are being laid before our eyes.

I now view world events through the lens of a Watcher.  I stand on the wall and call warnings but even these are now quieter.  My prophetic zeal changed no one's minds either, it was simply just more noise to my friends and family.  So I simply write about my journey, about our business, about my life walking with the Lord.  At the end, it is Christ and Him crucified that has the power to save, I am merely a humble servant trying to make it through the day.

Big Bird Gate and the Lunacy of the Left

Abigail and Dolley readers it is not surprising that the Left has seized upon a single item in the Romney debate and run with it.  Yes, I speak of Romney's insidious plans to cook and eat big bird.  That's right, you caught us.  We Righties want to destroy all that is good in this world and we are starting with Big Bird.  Now you've got to admit, the yellow dude has had it coming for a while now, I mean he teaches dirty little children to say their ABC's and we are against people learning to read.  We long for the day when only the elite had access to education and it was a crime to teach slaves to read....Yes, my friends we hate Big Bird and we are going to destroy him.

Big Bird on the Menu

Probably one of the best lines in the debate for O was when he asked if Romney was keeping his plans secret because they were so good.  In fact, this is EXACTLY why all conservatives running for office HAVE to keep their plans secret because the leftist media and politicians use every specific agenda item, turn it into a bludgeon, and beat candidates about the head and shoulders with it.  John Sunu put it well when he described this secrecy as a negotiation tactic for working with the other side of the aisle.  He then cleverly added that Obama had no clue about how to do that....

Finally, sitting on my couch watching the debate on Wednesday night, I kept looking at my husband with glee and saying, "Romney is kicking his ass!"  In retrospect, it would have been more apropos to say, "Obama is getting his goose cooked."  For most assurredly, it was Obama on the menu.  This is something we conservatives have been longing to see for five years.  Thanks, Mitt we look forward to calling you Mr. President.

Throwing Us a Bone

Abigail and Dolley readers I have to say, I have never been a fan of Mitt Romney.  During the primary and debate season, I developed a distaste form him that was substantial.  The smarmy and dirty tactics he used to bury my candidate enraged me and I often proclaimed that I would never vote for the man, ever.  Alas, perhaps time heals all wounds and the specter of a Romney Presidency seems far less disastrous than four more years of Obama.  Add in the Tea Party favorite, Paul Ryan and all of a sudden pulling the lever for Romney in November seems a bit more palatable.  It is eerily like McCain/Palin... I voted for her, not him. 

American Tea Partier like the Highland Scot?

Abigail and Dolley readers while I have had to withdraw from politics for my own self preservation, I have to note the death of the Tea Party.  With the withdrawal of Newt Gingrich from the Presidential race, we say good bye to the once mighty Tea Party.  Granted, we are still here, but are defeated once again.  Betrayed by the leaders we have elected and outspent by the mega rich, we are the Highland Scots of America.  Much maligned, misunderstood - considered barbarians and the unwashed masses.  Were we living in 18th century England, the world might watch in horror as we were slaughtered without quarter on the bloody field of Culloden Moor.

Ironically, much of the South, are direct descendants of those displaced Highland Scots.  It seems it is in our blood to fight against an oppressive government and to loose.  I am thoroughly demoralized by the victory of Willard "Mitt" Romney, a Lowland pretender if there ever was one.  I think the word of the Lord to the Laodician Church sums up my feelings about Mitt Romney quite accurately:

¹⁵ “I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! ¹⁶ But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! ¹⁷ You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked.

Even worse than Romney, who at least for this analogy is a Scot, a Lowlander, but still a Scot.  We have Obama in Washington and he is truly equivalent to the (German) Hannover King - not American by birth or heritage, he was installed by the power brokers to keep control and was just as abhorrent to the 18th Century Highland Scots as Obama is to us conservatives in the 21st Century.

If you know your Highland Scot history, (which being a Romance Novel junkie, I do), you may know that while the defeat in 1715 and 1745 were devastating, it was the subsequent years that were the final blow to the Highland Scots.  Their leaders were stripped of power, their way of life destroyed, they were displaced and deported.  It is estimated that only 10% of the inhabitants of the Highlands today are actually of Highland blood descent.  They were wiped out.

Only the Lord knows what the future holds for us modern day Highlanders aka Tea Partiers but from where I am sitting folks, we are in deep shit.

Political Purity, Flip Flopping, and Changing Positions

Abigail and Dolley readers, I have been a busy girl.  Since declaring myself a supporter of Newt Gingrich, I have become a social media warrior for the cause.  Much of my creative energy, writing, and talents have been given to persuading my fellow conservatives to join me.  I believe I have been moderately successful in this endeavor.  None the less, my sweet little blog has been terribly neglected and I shutter think what my once so important Google Analytics would tell me if I had the heart to look!  I will strive to do better.

Now, on to the subject of the day:  the consideration of political purity, changing positions, and flip flopping, all of which are playing a part in this primary season.  Many will hold up their esteemed candidates and declare ideological purity.  They claim that purity to cause and ideals must trump governmental compromise.  They proudly proclaim that their candidate never strays from absolute purity.  They fail to recognize that purity and inflexibility in our form of governance translates to ineffective and non-existent leadership.  Purity of purpose leaves no room to actually accomplish the things we elect leaders to do.  The purists do not seem to understand that even the Founding Fathers had to compromise, flex, and sacrifice some of their beliefs to actually get things done.  The case in point, the northern delegates that were against slavery.  If they followed in the "Purity" model, they would have never compromised and then where would we be?  I guess speaking with English accents...

Then we have the flip floppers.  These are the political animals that hold no position or conviction other than the ones help by whatever audience they are addressing at the time.  They stand for everything and hence stand for nothing.  The flip flopper does not hold a firmly held conviction and it is said that a double minded man is unstable in all of his ways.  The flip flopper is the lukewarm drink of water that voters spit out of their mouths in disgust.  These political opportunists are interested only in power and position.  They care for nothing except their own personal aggrandizement and as such must be rejected completely.

Thus, we are left with the Position Changer.  This is the politician who once believed, spoke, or campaigned for an issue and has since changed their mind.  The purists rail against this claiming that the perfect candidate would never do such a thing.  The flip floppers gladly post videos showing the perceived flip flop and accuse the Position Changer of being a pot calling the kettle black, yet therein lies the rub.  People change.  People grow and learn, adapt and study, they take some ideas and strengthen them and they take others and say, "No, upon further review I don't believe that anymore."  Contrary to showing weakness, those who can grow and learn from their past positions show an emotional and intellectual growth that the purist lacks and the flip flopper will never know.

Given the choice between the three, I will take the position changer because at least they have thought about it.  They have studied it and examined it and researched it - whatever that may be.  Typically they have the intellectual honesty to say that in the past they were wrong, they made a mistake, and here is why they now believe as they do. The position changer is also in the unique position to engage with others who believe as they used to about and issue and come to a solution that solves the problem and moves the country forward.  That my friends is what we elect them to do in the first place.