In the piece to which Peter links below, David Brooks writes:
And what was most impressive was her speech’s freshness. Her words flowed directly from her life experience, her poise and mannerisms from her town and its conversations. She left behind most of the standard tropes of Republican rhetoric (compare her text to the others) and skated over abortion and the social issues. There wasn’t even any tired, old Reagan nostalgia.
And here’s Peggy Noonan in today’s Wall Street Journal:
Which gets me to the most important element of the speech, and that is the startlingness of the content. It was not modern conservatism, or split the difference Conservative-ish-ism. It was not a conservatism that assumes the America of 2008 is very different from the America of 1980.It was the old-time conservatism. Government is too big, Obama will "grow it", Congress spends too much and he’ll spend "more." It was for low taxes, for small business, for the private sector, for less regulation, for governing with "a servant’s heart"; it was pro-small town values, and implicitly but strongly pro-life.
This was so old it seemed new, and startling. The speech was, in its way, a call so tender it made grown-ups weep on the floor. The things she spoke of were the beating heart of the old America.
How funny that those things that seem so fresh to those guys are the sort of things that we in the hinterlands hear from conservative women (and men) around us all the time. Sarah Palin did a better job articulating those things than my friends do: no doubt about that.
Yet, really! Small town values and conversations -fresh, new, startling? Hah!
I remember and old Alan Drury novel with a similar story to what we are living now. It is has been so many years since I read it, I would have to go search the local library to see if it still on the shelves. Old things become new - political America should be laughing at itself.
Yes, both old and new at the same time. I do think Brooks and our Peter L sometimes overstate the extent to which the culture war is going to go away or can be transcended. Who is more of a culture warrior than our Peter? Still, The freshness and nobility of ordinary life is the very future of post-modern conservatism, as new generations recover their sight and trust it. And one sees how to live from examples, and Sarah is a fine one, and a fine one to look at and to admire, too!
Brooks no more speaks for Conservatives than does the rest of NYT's editorial writers. Safire must be "spinning" in his grave. Noonan? The most pretentious, self important opinionater extant, outside of Obama! Camille Paglia, all tho' wrong on most issues, as is Noonan,is so much a better read the WSJ should dump one and hire the other!
Noonan/Brooks! Now there's a ticket for defeat!
Took my family to the Palin/McCain rally in Albuquerque yesterday. The BASE was clearly energized by Gov. Palin. McCain has become overwhelmingly acceptable to conservatives because of his Palin pick. They both largely rehashed their convention speeches, but it didn't matter, the newly re-energized party faithful were animated. Robert Duval(!) introduced Sen. McCain.....with a great deal of personal enthusiasm. He reported that his old friend Will Brimley urged him to meet McCain....that he'd find him a man of his word. The crowd ate it up. The {political} talk after Mass today was all about the Palin factor. People will work for McCain because of her, and her promise. One very involved local activist (scheduler for Rep. Pearce, who's running for Pete Domenici's seat) predicted that Palin will be president in 4 years. Just a taste test from the right in NM over the past 18 hours.....
Palin's best tactic when she "debates" Joe Biden will be to let him debate himself. Just cede all her time to him. He'll eagerly.....destroy himself.
The winner between Brooks and Noonan was.....Charles Krauthammer.
Neither Brooks or Noonan have had a handle on conservative thought in America for the last 10 years.
Maybe it's the Peter Principle -- one eventually gets promoted to a position they aren't capable of performing.
Noonan should have retired after the peek of her speech-writing career and Brooks is the media's token "conservative" dweeb tool. But I guess it pays the bills.
Nothing either of them have to say is of concern to me personally. Unfortunately, they are the media's parade pieces supposedly representing the right.
Not.