The American people have just beaten back the latest—and we hope the last—attack on decent democracy by the rabid right. Now it is time to turn this defeat for Republicans into a complete rout for Conservatism.

If America wants to regain its prosperity, recover its birthright, and untarnish its honor, it must repudiate Conservatism once and for all. Failing that, the nation will remain mired in fruitless bickering, falling farther and farther into decline.

The reason? Because Conservatism is not a political philosophy, not an ideology, not a world view; it is a vice. All of its manifestations—refusal to pay taxes, intolerance of opposing viewpoints, pugnaciousness, "small government" anti-federalism, xenophobia, tribalism, and so forth—all of them are simply different faces of selfishness.

Today we cut the ribbon on the demolition project that will raze the temple of Conservative selfishness. Tomorrow we begin to swing the wrecking ball. We will show clearly and distinctly, in a way that no decent person can deny, that Conservatism is intellectually, morally, and emotionally bankrupt.

We will do this systematically. Conservatives believe in seven Major Myths that prop up their house of selfishness. Over the coming weeks, we will demonstrate methodically that these Myths are untrue, venal, and immoral. The critique will be thorough and unstinting. By the time we are done, every decent person following these articles will understand fully the depth of Conservatism's incoherence, disingenuousness, and immorality.

We understand that a critique, no matter how devastating, is not the path to transformation. Very few people are secure enough to change their minds upon being told that they are wrong. On the contrary, most people harden their attitudes in the face of refutation. But critique is the indispensable groundwork that must be done by those who would catalyze change. If you hope to render Conservatism harmless you must not remain under the delusion that it is an ethically legitimate view of life. It is nothing of the kind. It is immoral from top to bottom, and you need to know that if you are not to become confused in your efforts against it.

But the practical task ahead is to convert working-class Republicans (who used to be called "Reagan Democrats" in the 1980's, because they swallowed Reagan's Kool-Aid sweetened with the treacle of non-existent Republican benevolence toward the working man) away from the mindset that has governed their thought and action for more than a generation. This can only be done positively, by gradually showing them how much more beneficial progressive policies would be to them and their families than the Conservative fantasies they have adopted.

You cannot create the positive account, however, without knowing the negative reality. You must know why Conservatism is so thoroughly wrong in order to tell the story of why progressivism is so thoroughly right.

Tomorrow we will begin the demolition project by introducing the seven Major Myths that underpin the immoral superstructure of Conservatism.

You are welcome to join us in the weeks ahead, as we tear down all the buttresses of Conservatism, and then begin to create the positive story that will crush the head of the snake once and for all.

See you back here tomorrow morning.







