paraphrastic redux - sfa - September 2004

Frank's Kansas

Part Two - The Fury Which Passeth All Understanding

Chapter Six - Persecuted, Powerless, and Blind
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[paragraph# (page# first word)] 

240 (p113 how)

 It is plain that the "corporate world has" harmed the interests of
 Kansas conservatives, and yet there is not general resentment of this
 among the conservatives. [How can this be? asks Frank.]

241 (p113 at)

 Many Kansas conservatives consider the most important class distinction to 
 be based on such qualities as consumer preference and religion rather than 
 occupation or income, and they consider their own class to possess the more
 "authentic" qualities of unpretentiousness and humility. Thus, poor workers 
 and their rich bosses can be in the same class.
 
242 (p114 this)

 Usually, when conservatives condemn "class warfare" they are not condemning 
 conflict (in which they freely participate) among classes as distinguished 
 in the paragraph above; rather, they are usually referring to classes 
 divided by individuals' places in free-market capitalism.

243 (p114 we)

 In addition to consumer preferences and religion, other markers of class that
 have been claimed by conservatives are: producer vs parasite; hardworking
 vs comfortable; and common vs snobby. 
 [I am not sure I understand the claims of the rest of the paragraph; 
  despite having distinguished two different senses of class in the previous 
  two paragraphs, Frank describes as "paradoxical" statements of some 
  conservatives that exploit one kind of class division (by supposed 
  "authenticity"), while they claim that the other kind of class division 
  (by income, say) is immaterial.]

244 (p114 the)

 Many backlashers think a "liberal elite" controls government, schools and 
 culture in America, and and that this elite is "overeducated" and holds the 
 beliefs of the ordinary masses in contempt.

245 (p115 the)

 The incoherency of the concept of "liberal elite" has been demonstrated
 many times.
 
246 (p115 yet)

 Still plenty of people believe the liberal elite exists.

247 (p115 here)

 [Frank quotes a description of such an elite by Gordon Liddy, and summarizes
  it as saying liberals are parasites.]

248 (p116 from)
 
 Many conservative writers, including David Brooks and Ann Coulter, regularly
 revile the personal tastes and pretensions of the supposed liberal elite.
 They contradict themselves when they style themselves as "outsiders" to the 
 power structure while promoting the Republican party, which has long been a 
 tool of the privileged.

249 (p116 the)

 [Frank elaborates para248 by mentioning some common targets of these writers.]

250 (p117 whatever)

 The theme common to these writings is that liberalism is a bizarre affectation
 of rich people. Also, many conservative writers claim or assume that there is
 an important characteristic of individuals that is reliably indicated by
 whether one appreciates NASCAR races.

251 (p118 apparently)

 Anti-union policies promulgated by the Reagan administration contributed to 
 the loss of union power and helped the rich nationwide. One of the earliest
 applications of these policies was the elimination of a union bargaining unit.
 In 1985 Ann Coulter's father assisted as a corporate lawyer in arranging for
 this union decertification. [Frank thinks that this illustrates a typical 
 working-class tolerance for economic abuse from persons that share their 
 cultural working-class tastes. The inference seems to be that Ann Coulter is 
 appreciated as an ideological or cultural ally by some working-class people
 despite her approval (indicated in the next paragraph) of what her right-wing 
 father did to economically harm some working-class people (and more of them
 as the effects of the precedent-setting event spread).]

252 (p118 Coulter)

 Economics is insignificant in Coulter's notion of class, and she thinks that
 it is merely liberal propaganda to suggest that economic considerations might
 inform any significant notion of social class. 

253 (p119 thanks)

 Some conservatives think that liberalism dominates and pervades national 
 culture and life whether or not elected officials are liberal.

254 (p119 conservatism)

 These conservatives think that most Americans are conservative and that they 
 are oppressed by liberalism through media and in schools.

255 (p119 all)
 
 Most backlashers that speak and write publicly employ a rhetorical device
 previously employed by leftists, namely, they speak or write as though 
 promoting the interests of weak victims (conservative in this case) of a 
 corrupt establishment. This despite plenty of Republican legislation favoring 
 the powerful.

256 (p120 conservatism)

 [Frank describes several conservative self-characterizations as oppressed
  victims of liberalism. He mentions Blake Hurst, Ann Coulter and some
  contributions to online "Listservs".]

257 (p120 on)
 
 Ralph Reed, David Horowitz and John Leo have each produced books that
 express pride in the subversiveness of conservatives.

258 (p120 the)

 The conservatives promoting victimhood are not trying to change the 
 conditions about which they complain, but are instead stoking grievance
 for other purposes.

259 (p121 even)

 The backlash has achieved almost none of the cultural changes is has promoted,
 for example in the areas of television and film, gender roles, and 
 intolerance of homosexuality.

260 (p121 nevertheless)

 Most leaders of the backlash choose impossible cultural goals for public
 promotion, in contrast to their political goals which they often achieve
 with great skill.

261 (p121 as)

 The backlash aims to foster indignation, often experienced deeply by 
 conservatives, about cultural matters it does not aim to change. 

262 (p122 televised)

 A central rhetorical device used in various venues by backlashers is to 
 accumulate vast numbers of petty complaints about ubiquitous problems 
 attributed to liberalism. The Bill O'Reilly show is popular because of 
 this practice.

263 (p123 you)

 Author Bernard Golberg and editor Emmett Tyrrell engage in this practice.

264 (p123 the)

 Gary Aldrich did this in extreme with his 1996 book Unlimited Access.

265 (p124 the)

 Aldrich is popular among backlashers because they are easily irritated
 by ordinary events. [Frank describes several petty complaints, some
 even paranoid, made in Unlimited Access.]

266 (p124 although)

 Part of this practice of complaint is to attribute people's irksome
 superficial behavior (including poor driving, cutting in line, and talking 
 with food in ones mouth) to a careless, irresponsible, irresistible liberal 
 force acting through media and courts.

267 (p125 viewed)

 Backlashers consider these liberal influences bizarre and oppressive,
 and have a deluded sense of what could happen under them.

268 (p125 of)

 Most populist conservatives doubt they can win their cultural battles
 with liberalism, and so cannot blame elected conservatives for being
 ineffectual, and cannot consider even electoral victories as significant
 progress toward their cultural goals.

269 (p125 this)

 These conservatives dominate American politics, but still consider themselves
 ineffectual against liberal influence and subtle manipulations of government.
 
270 (p126 liberals)

 [Frank describes an article by George Gurley in which he relates an inability 
  to answer an outburst about Margaret Thatcher from a liberal at a party.]

271 (p126 powerless)

 Liberals lack power, and the Republican Party "represents" power.
 Many conservatives think they may not speak freely among liberals.

272 (p127 none)

 This sense of stiflement does not extend to speaking about economics, and 
 some conservative speak freely about it, but economics is simply not an 
 important subject for many conservatives, including Hannity, O'Reilly,
 Coulter, Limbaugh and Aldrich.

273 (p128 to)

 Most backlashers consider business to be beyond politics and social criticism.
 Ann Coulter has implied that only liberals are interested in the Enron affair.

274 (p128 this)

 Most active backlashers aim mainly to encourage conflict between the social 
 classes they conceive as distinguished independently of economic elements. 
 While the elite in this classification might be liberal, and the Republican
 party may support the cultural values of the non-elite, when one considers
 the other social classification distinguished by political and economic power,
 which is a far more significant class-system in America, the Republican 
 party serves the interests of the power-elite created by the corporate world.
 
275 (p128 the)

 Most fundamental backlash claims are wrong because of economic facts.
 The coverage presented by news organizations is mostly NOT slanted to
 the left.  This can be inferred from who owns the new organizations and
 from their coverage of business news.
 That university campuses are NOT typically dominated by leftists can be 
 inferred from the existence or activities of their economics departments
 and their business schools.
 Conservatives are NOT powerless victims because the business community is 
 their "basic" historical constituency, and businessmen are not powerless 
 victims.
 That GW Bush is NOT a "man of the people" can be inferred from his family's
 economic position.
 That popular culture is NOT a product of liberalism can be inferred from the 
 fact that, for the most part, the networks, movie studios, publishers and 
 record labels are commercial.
 
276 (p129 indeed)

 Backlash conservatives habitually fail to notice significant economic facts 
 largely because they have been trained by exposure to popular American 
 entertainment and advertising, which underemphasizes the "world of work". 
 They have internalized the separation of business from politics maintained
 in the news media.

277 (p129 in)

 Many complaints and criticisms of the backlashers are like old leftist
 ones except liberalism is faulted instead of capitalism.

278 (p130 even)

 [Frank quotes a few lines published in 1930, written by Mike Gold, a critic
  for the Daily Worker. Frank then indicates a few textual additions that he
  thinks would produce a text typical of backlash condemnations of liberals.]

279 (p131 one)

 The old left explained phenomena as economic class struggles.  
 The backlashers attribute disturbing phenomena to manipulative liberals,
 even ignoring sophisticated academic studies.

280 (p131 backlash)

 The backlashers attribute American culture to conspiracies.
 Emmett Tyrrell is one of the "premier intellectuals" of the right, and
 he has identified liberalism as the source of an essentially unanalyzable
 "fog" of cultural elements that pervasively politicize American life.
 Leonard Peikoff has proposed that early 20th century American culture	
 resulted from a political project making America more like Europe.

281 (p132 Ann)

 Ann Coulter thinks that the major news media are simply a propaganda tool of 
 the unprincipled left, deployed to reduce the influence of Republicans.
	
282 (p132 but)

 Older critiques of supposedly liberal media stated that money was the motive
 for their misrepresentations.

283 (p132 such)

 Coulter, in contrast, says they simply aim to promote liberalism per se.

284 (p132 the)

 The cultural features to which backlashers react are largely the result
 of business conducted ultimately in order to profit Wall Street bankers.

285 (p133 the)

 American culture is made by TV, whose content is caused by "the market". 

286 (p133 ordinary)

 American culture makes many working-class people feel inadequate and stupid,
 and they have no power "over" that culture. Advertisements and sitcoms
 condemn or belittle having various of their typical traits.

287 (p134 conservatives)

 Some conservatives identify and exaggerate legitimate but small grievances
 held by working-class people against American culture. But they typically
 misidentify their causes.
 For example, "hypercapitalist heroes" rather than leftists promoted less
 formal white-collar business attire in the 90s.

288 (p134 but)

 Many backlashers reject analyses of culture based upon economic social 
 class distinctions and other generally accepted methods of social science.
 They reject standard explanations of basic historical facts and the possibility
 the free market forces might sometimes produce worse effects than would
 alternative economic arrangements. 
 They think liberalism is a social force that is not the product of other 
 social forces, and that it propagates itself dishonestly without regard to 
 outside calls for justification.
 
289 (p135 when) 

 Earlier Republicans were more responsible and considered serious claims of
 liberal bias in the dominant media to be paranoid.

290 (p135 today)

 Now "conservatism" takes paranoid conspiracy theories of a liberal media
 bias seriously; indeed, all other backlash rhetoric rests on the claim of
 such bias.

291 (p135 conservatives)

 Conservative politics has largely achieved its economic goals. Backlashers
 continue to blame liberal culture for oppression, and indeed there is
 no significant political or economic force left to designate as oppressors
 of conservatives. Some conservatives either have inferred that culture
 is to blame since there is no other plausible candidate, or else have
 insincerely claimed to believe it because they think others would not
 find other suggestions plausible anymore.

292 (p136 not)

 Conservatism is incoherent unless a liberal, pervasively corrupting, cultural
 influence exists.

293 (p136 the)

 Two factions joined to create the "Great Backlash". One comprised Republicans
 traditionally promoting the interests of business. The other was a working-
 class group, many of whom wanted to preserve "family values".  The business 
 promoting group has profited greatly from the conservative revival.

294 (p136 but) 

 But the others are mostly worse off now, and business is mainly responsible 
 for the culture that many of them resent.

295 (p137 by)

 Most "backlash thinkers" believe the culture industry is liberally biased 
 and is unresponsive to market forces. And they infer this as a necessary 
 consequence from their other conservative beliefs rather than on a more 
 direct basis.

296 (p137 few)
 
 Most of the writers discussed in this chapter are sloppy thinkers, whose 
 theories are implausible and whose books are replete with error, omission
 and misinterpretation. This is of no concern to their backlash readership,
 whose resentments are misdirected by an elaborate theory from the true 
 culprits.  The non-economic class division formulated and given priority 
 by this backlash theory has, by appreciating and exploiting the cultural 
 resentments harbored by many blue-collar Americans, made the Republican 
 party attractive to them.


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