Make no mistake about it, there is a cultural counter-revolution going on this country. Centrism of the bargain-minded Joe Lieberman variety is dead. There is no center; the center is nothing but a corpse being fought over a few hyenas. The Praetorian class knows this instinctively, in a time of maximum ideological ferment; the center is a particular electoral cohort to be dragged as far to the right as possible-nothing more.
And yet the above counter-revolution has many of the aspects of an old-fashioned civil war-one directed by and large at the so-called “baby boom generation”. Generational conflict, the need to humble and disenfranchise and entire electoral cohort forms the crux of Praetorian ideology. This war has two axes, an assault on the entitlements expected by said generation, notably their social security benefits, and the perennial fight against the egalitarian ideas espoused by the Woodstock Nation.
The Praetorian Class sees what happens here at home to be a perfect extension of their bumptious and bellicose foreign policy notions. Martial, and even strident, the Praetorians themselves as individuals are curiously light in combat experience. This however does not prevent them from questioning the patriotism of men shot and tortured in service to the republic. They can do this because, as a class they are inheritors of a periodic domestic war psychosis…they are fighting the “enemy within” and therefore are allowed any excess.
As ideology goes, the Praetorian Class is less animated by ideas than by an interlocking series of cherished myths.
There is the myth of Small Government: This is a notion that somewhat contradictory, movement conservative leadership is supposed to somehow shirt the alleged federal colossus down to a size where is will somehow function efficiently, or else said government will become so emasculated the polity will somehow “go elsewhere” for services once provided by the public sector. Neither notion has much basis in reality, most small government is preached as a justification to either rig the tax code in favor of the rich or simply abolish taxation as means of public funding.
There is the myth of Christian Politics: SOMEHOW, the New Testament with its Praetors and Pharisees is an infallible guide to contemporary politics right down to the micro level. This is an absurd notion in every way. Revealed religion in this context is mostly used as get-out-the-vote/fundraising engine. The Praetorians love Christian Politics precisely because of its blind zeal and simplicity. The Praetorian intelligentsia is also all about zeal over critical thinking so this is a good match.
There is the myth of Rugged Individualism: Freed of the chains of statism, man is supposed to become a sort of free market superman, seeking profit and growing the economy at no expense to anyone. Rugged Individualism is a old American faith going back to Rutherford B. Hayes. Its biggest supporters tend to be market worshipping autistics….but many entirely normally people buy into it without delving too deeply into what it all means.
And there is the myth of Grievance: Somehow the Praetorian Class has acquired a belief that they have been discriminated against by certain ever changing elites. Grievance also cloaks the pseudo-populism that infects the Praetorians especially around election time. To hear them tell it this collection of millionaires, radio talk show tyrants, “embattled” columnists, fixers, and politicians are a marked hunted breed.
All these myths, run together in hopes that this will produce a New Kind of Man, a “homo conservatus”. This would be a sort of ideology-forged American Robot infused with perfect moral transcendence via conservative values.
None of this is ever going to happen, any more than Snoopy the Easter Beagle will come dancing up my front stairs some Sunday Morning. But it’s the actions the myths relentlessly inspire that is the key here. A lot of our money is going to be wasted and many lives ruined before the myth of “homo conservatus” is laid to rest.
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