May 29, 2016 4:59 AM

Texas: Where everything is bigger- even the self-righteous Conservative belief in their moral superiority

(A WWJD tip o’ the hat to Jim Parker for this idea)

It’s not really news that the latest Republican Party of Texas platform has some offbeat ideas in it. That’s always the case. The platform is the state GOP’s biennial gift to political reporters and columnists. What is news is that every single one of those ideas — sound and/or unsound — was approved by the delegates at this convention. They didn’t vote on the platform as a whole. They voted to approve every single plank — 266 of them. If history is any guide, the party’s candidates will pick and choose from the list, grabbing the ideas they like, ignoring others and distancing themselves from the entire platform, saying something like this time-tested line: “That’s just a snapshot of the sentiments of the GOP delegates at that time.”

Having previously lived in God’s Country Texas for 10+ years (3,722 days…not that I was counting), the idea that Texas Republicans can be and very often are bat$#!& crazy hardly moves the needle for me. I became inured early on to the idea that the Lone Star State is run by people who believe Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a dinosaur…and that the separation of Church and State is something important only to losers and Liberals. After all, as ANY good, God-fearing, Bible-believing, Conservative, patriotic Christian KNOWS to be true with every fiber of their being, America is a Christian nation. If there was any justice in this world, ‘Merica would be ruled by biblical principles…and we’re be far better off for it. [Insert allusion to The Handmaid’s Tale here]

I could expend a good deal of time, energy, and brain cells belaboring the silliness, shortsightedness, and religious arrogance of Texas Republicans, but to what end? I’m but one voice in the wilderness trying to do the moral equivalent of pissing into the wind. I’ll leave the heavy lifting and analysis to those with the gravitas, time, and desire to do it. Me? I’m just going to revel in the abject silliness of one of the most openly bat$#!% crazy state political parties out there. Too many Texas Republicans couch their bigotry, hatred, and self-righteousness in high-minded rhetoric, deception, and/or denial…and the wear it like a merit badge. The Texas Republican Party puts itself and its wacky self-righteousness front and center. It’s almost as if they don’t much care how anyone else might feel about their beliefs. They truly don’t…’cuz God’s on their side, don’tchaknow??

When it comes to the Texas GOP’s out of touch self-righteousness, it’s generally best to let the party’s platform speak for itself:

  • “Pursuant to Article 1 Section 1 of the Texas Constitution, the federal government has impaired our right of local self-government. Therefore, Federally mandated legislation, which infringes upon the 10th Amendment rights of Texas, should be ignored, opposed, refused, and nullified. Regulation of Commerce in Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution has exceeded the original intent. All attempts by the federal judiciary to rule in areas not expressly enumerated by the United States Constitution should be likewise nullified. Any federal enforcement activities that do occur in Texas should be conducted under the authority of the county sheriff.”….

In other words, Texas Republicans endorse posse comitatus and consider the county sheriff to be the most powerful law enforcement authority in the land. They reject any and all efforts of the federal government “not expressly enumerated by the United States Constitution” to be null and void. In other words, Texas Republicans believe they have they right to pick and choose which laws and which parts of the Constitution they’ll adhere to and which they’ll ignore.

A more cynical sort might look at this and think that they feel compelled to follow only the federal laws they find convenient…and that’s not so very far from the truth.

  • “We oppose the appointment of unelected bureaucrats and we support defunding and abolishing the departments or agencies of the Internal Revenue Service, Education, Energy, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Health and Human Services, Labor, and Interior (specifically, the Bureau of Land Management), Transportation, Security Administration, Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and National Labor Relations Board. In the interim, executive decisions by departments or agencies must be reviewed and approved by Congress before taking effect.”….

Of course, they have no problem expecting- nay, demanding- the federal government respond to their needs post haste…they just refuse to acknowledge its authority in most areas.

  • “Homosexuality is a chosen behavior that is contrary to the fundamental unchanging truths that has been ordained by God in the Bible, recognized by our nation’s founders, and shared by the majority of Texans. Homosexuality must not be presented as an acceptable alternative lifestyle, in public policy, nor should family be redefined to include homosexual couples. We oppose the granting of special legal entitlements or creation of special status for homosexual behavior, regardless of state of origin. We oppose any criminal or civil penalties against those who oppose homosexuality out of faith, conviction, or belief in traditional values.”….

Except that “equal rights” aren’t “special rights.” No one- not even Texas Republicans- gets to proceed from the belief that some folks are by Biblical definition second-class citizens and therefore not entitled to the same legal protections good, god-fearing, right-thinking heterosexual Christians claim as their due. Never mind that the “alternative lifestyle” they condemn so freely has little, if any, direct impact on their lives. Authoritarianism is predicated on controlling all- even those whose thoughts and actions have no impact whatsoever on the safety and/or well-being of the majority.

Texas Republicans appear to believe they- and only they- have the right to establish their heterosexual, uber-Jesus-y lifestyle as the One, True, and ONLY morally acceptable and permissible lifestyle. The idea that some might choose to think, believe, live, and/or love differently is deemed highly offensive and damaging to the moral well-being of good Christians like themselves.

  • “All innocent human life must be respected and safeguarded from fertilization to natural death; therefore, the unborn, the aged, and the physically or mentally challenged have a fundamental individual right to life, which cannot be infringed.”….

Right, because “smaller government” can and should be taken to ipso facto mean “small enough to fit into a woman’s uterus.” ANY right thinking American knows that ONLY Conservative White males are equipped to make decisions involving matters of female reproductive health.

  • “We oppose environmentalism that obstructs legitimate business interests and private property use, including the regulatory taking of property by governmental agencies. We oppose the abuse of the Endangered Species Act to confiscate and limit the use of personal property and infringement on property owner’s livelihood. “Climate Change” is a political agenda promoted to control every aspect of our lives. We support the defunding of “climate justice” initiatives and the abolition of the Environmental Protection Agency and repeal of the Endangered Species Act.”….

Why would you choose to protect the environment when all righteous, worthy Christians are going to be summoned to Heaven during the Rapture? Why should the environment be exploited for all it’s worth when it will be left for sinners, homosexuals, Liberals, and other moral reprobates?

  • “We oppose government regulations that coerce business owners and employees to violate their own consciences, beliefs, and principles.”…. “Overturning Obergefell v. Hodges- We believe this decision, overturning the Texas law prohibiting same-sex marriage in Texas, has no basis in the Constitution and should be reversed, returning jurisdiction over the definition of marriage to the states. The Governor and other elected officials of the state of Texas should assert our Tenth Amendment right and reject the Supreme Court ruling.”

If a godly Christian considers doing business and/or providing services to the LGBT community to be an egregious violation of their sincerely held religious convictions, they should be able to turn those they consider sinners away…right?? After all, isn’t that what Jesus did when he chased the moneychangers out of the Temple?

Besides, if a Christian can’t take a stand for morality and godliness, if one-man, one-woman can’t be established as the only permissible definition of marriage, then the godless Liberals and atheists will have won.

  • “We urge the enactment of legislation addressing individuals’ use of bathrooms, showers and locker rooms that correspond with their biologically determined sex.”….

Because “smaller government” means establishing “potty police” charged with ensuring that dress-wearing male sexual perverts aren’t marauding through public restrooms and changing facilities and assaulting our vulnerable wives and daughters.

  • “We oppose mandatory pre-school and kindergarten.”

Who needs edumication when wee haz Jesus? Besides, we turned out just fine…right??

  • “We strongly oppose all laws that infringe on the right to bear arms. We oppose the monitoring of gun ownership, the taxation and regulation of guns, ammunition, and gun magazines. We collectively urge the Legislature to pass “constitutional carry” legislation, whereby law-abiding citizens that possess firearms can legally exercise their God-given right to carry that firearm as well. We call for the elimination of all gun-free zones. All federal acts, laws, executive orders, and court orders which restrict or infringe on the people’s right to keep and bear arms shall be invalid in Texas, not be recognized by Texas, shall be specifically rejected by Texas, and shall be considered null and void and of no effect in Texas. Firearms and ammunition manufactured and sold in the state of Texas are not covered under the Commerce Clause (Article I Section 8 of the United States Constitution) and therefore are not subject to federal regulation.”….

It’s true; as any right-thinking, red-blooded Conservative patriot knows, ONLY a good guy with a gun can stop a bad guy with a gun. When you deny us our God-given right to carry any type of firearm we deem necessary for whatever reason(s) we determine to be appropriate, we’re one step removed from seeing this country become Soviet Russia, comrade.

If we can’t defend ourselves from deviant sexual predators enabled by the self-interested dictates of a tyrannical government, then America will cease to be the beacon of freedom and liberty it’s always been. The Black Guy in the White House © may not have taken our guns yet- BUT HE WILL, AND SOONER THAN YOU MIGHT THINK. Texans must remain forever vigilant against this assault on a basic, God-ordained American freedom…because if they don’t, Satan’s minions- led by the LGBT community- will have won.

You’ve been warned. Time to strap on the armor of God, y’all….

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on May 29, 2016 4:59 AM.

Yes, we have the right to vote...but that doesn't make America a democracy was the previous entry in this blog.

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