Abandon Ship

[Iason Ouabache]

In what is most likely a coincidence, in the last 2 days both Andrew Sullivan of The Atlantic and Charles Johnson of Little Green Footballs have decided to part ways with the American Right. They gave very similar reasons for jumping ship: lip service to small government and fiscal responsibility; hatred for blacks, hispanics, women, homosexuals, anyone that looks funny; anti-science craziness, torture, Rush, Glenn Beck, etc.

http://andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/the_daily_dish/2009/12/leaving-the-right.html

http://littlegreenfootballs.com/article/35243_Why_I_Parted_Ways_With_The_Right

The American right wing has gone off the rails, into the bushes, and off the cliff.

I won't be going over the cliff with them.

Looks like the purge is becoming a huge success!

[Cainad (dec.)]

Looks like SOME people won't get invited to that "Purity Ball"

[Cain]

I'm pretty sure that the Right is cheering hugely now.

As I understand it, Sullivan was thrown under a bus ages ago for his opposition to torture (for which is batshit insane support for invading Iraq could not make up) and Johnson...well, Johnson was the sort of guy who was fairly decent pre-9/11, went more than a little batshit for several years, then woke up and saw the sort of clowns who were siding with him were the equivalent to the Islamic fundamentalists he hated, and decided to rag on them as well.

Basically the guy always hated fundies, but got sidetracked or blinded for several years into thinking that most of them were from the Middle East.

[Cain]

Although, Johnson's commentators on the other hand....what a bunch of clowns.  I just read through the responses to that post, and they seem to think there is some sort of "principled conservatism" that still exists, and is somehow tied to Goldwater and Reagan.  In other words, the two original wingnut idols are the holders of Really Real Conservatism (for realness) which has been sullied by the antics of Beck and Palin.

Sorry, but that is the original state of the conservative movement.  You either have frothing lunatics or you have evil bastards.  Or both, if you're lucky.  The only time they can ever be made to act decent is when their backs are to a wall with the threat of popular revolt.  British and Canadian conservatives aren't any better, they're just savvier, because public opinion and institutions are slanted in a more liberal/social democratic direction.  They'll hook up with Nazis and conspiracy theorists and religious nuts when it serves their interests, but they'll keep quiet.