I love South Park. I was exposed to it by a group of my favourite students, and I seriously doubt the premise of this article, that the series promotes "conservative" political principles: all those kids are pretty radical politically (for instance, they loathe Bush and his war). However, I do agree that the program skewers mindless ideological leftism and statist political correctness; but, really, how many young "leftists" expect anything good to come from big government nowadays?
I understood that, but I think there's a "left" libertarianism and a "right" libertarianism, and I think I and my young friends belong to the "left." You know, "pro-choice," "pro-gay rights," and not terribly impressed with "states' rights," because "states' rights" turn out to be a form of locally imposed authoritarianism that can be MUCH more repressive than federal stuff.
Sounds pretty South Park to me. Except that none of the States acting alone did Ruby Ridge, Waco, or Iraq. Not to mention Hiroshima, Dresden and stuff.
I think I agree with you entirely that each and every one of those things were monstrous atrocities. However, they were also examples, on a grand scale (numbers of innocents killed) examples of what local governments and industries do to individuals EVERY DAY. (Believe me, I know this; I grew up in the American South, in the middle of the civil rights struggle, when the Feds were the only protectors of civil rights workers, against the daily threat of MURDER perpetrated by locals and the constabularies that were in cahoots with them. The "States' Righters" of that day and age were, indeed, genocidal killers.
Reminds me of the story of one of those civic clubs that only allows one member of each profession, which was in a quandry when a local clergyman was made a bishop, and they already had one. The solution was to classify them Religion, wholesale, and Religion, retail. Perhaps nations and states can be similarly classified as Violence, wholesale, and Violence, retail.
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branchandroot
Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 06:50 am (UTC)Re: Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 07:00 am (UTC)Re: Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 07:18 am (UTC)Re: Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 07:28 am (UTC)Re: Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 08:42 am (UTC)Re: Young "leftists" aren't old "leftists"
Date: 2004-04-27 08:56 am (UTC)