Around the Web on The Schiavo Tragedy

by DemFromCT

So many people saying so many things. 'principled conservatives' seem to be making a reappearance... on the libertarian side of the equation. However one feels about the issue, and we all have strong feelings (I'm not a Christian, but I think allowing her to die with dignity (and without a media road show preventing everyone else in the hospice from doing the same) is a Christian thing to do), any politician trying to use this situation for their own benefit (hello, Tom DeLay) will get slapped by the American public. And any 'cause' that has Randall Terry as a spokesperson, no matter how noble in intent, is tainted beyond recognition.

Republicans have a problem, the likes of which they may not even realize. But despite the Peggy Noonan and NRO slant, the rule of law has been upheld and like it or not, a civilized nation needs to balance a culture of life with a culture of liberty and choice, under the rule of law.

Remember our brief peri-election discussion about the legitimacy of the 2004 election? Everyone wanted to see that whoever won would be noted as legitimate for the good of the country. Events in FL seem calmer today, but the country is watching to see if the rule of law is respected. Let's hope it is.

The GOP can go for their pet judges now, but this hurts, not helps, the chances of the extremists getting in. My opinion.

As for the media, Dave Neiwert has a nice discussion of the media balance lacking in the coverage, and the consequences:

The vultures are already coming to roost. Hal Turner has been calling for the use of force to "save" Terri Schiavo, and killing anyone who interferes. And sure enough, someone has already been caught putting out a bounty on Michael Schiavo, while another man was arrested for stealing a gun in hopes he could "take some action and rescue Terri Schiavo."

As John Cole has been pointing out, genuine conservatives should be as horrified by these events as liberals -- and at some point, must come to grips with the fresh monsters in our midst. All of us: citizens, politicians, the media.

It won't happen, though, until we recognize the current model of "balance" for what it is: an open invitation to the spread of lies and misinformation. And get back to the time-honored traditions of striving for the truth. 

Let's be clear in advance, btw. No one wishes to see the above happen on either side. No way would it be helpful or a Good Thing (the same little minds think progressives want to see US soldiers hurt or killed becuae it's good for politics and bad for Bush) to have the rule of law overturned. But there's reason for concern, and one might suspect with recent D.C. performances, the consequences of selfish manipulation is not always self-evident.

[UPDATE]: This comes from MSNBC's First Read:

As emotions run higher in Pinellas Park and elsewhere, we'll repeat what we said on Friday -- that anything that happens as a result could, by association, further affect how the public views the President, GOP lawmakers, and the party.  At the same time, anger among the protestors is increasingly being directed at the Bushes.  In retrospect, while any long-term effect remains TBD, the GOP's involvement is looking increasingly lose-lose, at least for now.

As noted before, this issue is not looking anywheres good for the GOP and for either Bush, with downside potential remaining very high. In addition, as pointed out in the link, taking valuable media time away from the Social Security corner Bush has painted himself in is an additional problem for the Huckster-In-Chief.

Comments

[DemFromCT]

Note Ron Brownstein today:

"My sense is this is one issue where everybody understands the other point of view," said David Winston, a Republican pollster. "But clearly people don't want government being involved in decisions like this."

While noting diverging opinions on the long-term effects, I think Brownstein and many mainstream reporters are just incapable of forseeing the damage done to the GOP. hedge your bets, say the analysts, while criticizng Dems for doing the same. But only one of the parties has declared a culture war on your privacy.

[DemFromCT]

this also from First read:

The Raleigh News & Observer says "some analysts contend that the president's dramatic reaffirmation of his close ties with the Christian right may erode his appeal to centrists, including Republican moderates in the Senate." The story also notes that "Frist's effort to preserve Schiavo's life could help him with conservative religious voters during the 2008 presidential primaries."

Yeah, and his selling out the Schiavos could also hurt him, as well as hurt him with the more rational amongst the primary voters. And do we really think that social conservatives will pick the charasmatically challenged Frist over anyone else?

[RonK, Seattle]

One of the pillars of GOP support is getting whittled away from both sides. A lot of commonsense Lifers have their doubts about saving the body Schiavo used to live in, and the ultra-zealots will never think the party in power did enough.