There are probably hundreds of thousands of men and women who, because of political differences, maintain minimal or no contact with their parents and, even more cruelly, do not allow their parents to have any contact with their children — their parents’ grandchildren.
Probably an unprecedented number of Americans with grown children will be alone this Christmas because their children will neither visit them nor invite them for the holiday dinner.
In some rare instances of horrific parental behavior, this may be excusable, but when the reason is politics, it is inexcusable.
I know of this firsthand. Parent after parent calls my radio show, often close to tears, sometimes actually sobbing, pouring their heart out to me about being alone on holidays despite having children and grandchildren.
In virtually every case, the parent is conservative, and the child is on the Left. I assume there are cases of grown conservative children who won’t allow a liberal/Left parent to see his or her grandchildren — but I have never heard of a single such case. It is almost impossible to imagine a conservative adult depriving his or her parents of access to their grandchildren because the parent(s) voted for President Joe Biden. Moreover, if there were such a person, every conservative I know would vociferously condemn this individual.
Why is this happening?
No. 1: No accountability
The further left you go, the less likely you are to believe that you are accountable to an absolute moral code, let alone to a Giver of an absolute moral code. On the other hand, conservatives, certainly religious conservatives — who are people who believe in a God-given Ten Commandments — believe that they are obligated to honor their parents irrespective of such things as political differences.
While on rare occasions it may be morally necessary, there are few actions meaner than ending all contact with one’s parents and depriving them of access to their grandchildren. But on the Left, this is not uncommon, and immeasurably more common than on the Right.
The fact is that leftism often produces mean people. There are decent and indecent liberals, and decent and indecent conservatives. But many leftists are indecent — and leftism makes them so, whereas neither liberalism nor conservatism makes people indecent. Leftism breeds ingratitude, victimhood, moral arrogance — and therefore cruelty. The Democrats’ treatment of then-Judge Brett Kavanaugh was one of innumerable examples. The screaming shutdowns of conservative speakers on campuses is another. And cruel treatment of parents is yet another.
No. 2: The inadequacy of the conscience
The Left proves the utter inadequacy of the conscience. To cite the present example, the adult children who deprive their conservative parents of contact with the parents’ grandchildren have a perfectly clear conscience. All those secular people — including secular conservatives — who argue that God is unnecessary because it is enough for people to answer to their conscience are spectacularly naive. The consciences of most people who do evil are blissfully untroubled.
Most religious people who have done — or at least not resisted — evil also have undisturbed consciences. But to return to our present example, religious people who believe they have to answer to God for their behavior are likely to treat their parents better than those who do not believe so. They believe that God commands them to honor their father and mother. There is no such command on the Left.
No. 3: College
Millions of young Americans who graduate from college are, morally speaking, worse people than they were when they entered college. How many parents believe their child became a finer — or even a happier — human being at college? How many parents believe their child became a worse — and less happy — person?
You almost have to be a college graduate to shun your parents and deprive them of their grandchildren because of political differences. If you had asked most of these college graduates before they enrolled in college who, because of political differences, won’t see their parents for Christmas if they could imagine never talking to their parents because of political differences, most of them would probably have deemed the question absurd. After four years of college indoctrination — essentially consisting of hatred of nonleftists — the question is no longer absurd.
On the Left, it is a grave sin to abuse the Earth. Not one’s parents.
The left sees those who disagree with them as evil. The right sometimes sees those who disagree with them that way but more often than not they see those who disagree as mistaken, The right tends to be more open to diverse opinions, the left is more “My way or the highway:”. The right generally is for freedom and with freedom comes the freedom to have different opinions. The left is totalitarian it is for control to force people to believe and obey their doctrines.
This is a perfect example of the truism. Every time a rightist complains about others it’s actually a confession. We have countless hours of video showing MAGA chuds for what they are.
Meta
Apple
Google
Amazon
Are they the chuds you are talking about?
©J.P. Sears
So you are pretending to be so stupid you don’t even know what MAGA is? That’s not the flex you think it is. Instead watch the MAGAs try to storm the capital. That was their high water mark and they utterly failed.
no link provided to the countless hours? Gee, I wonder why. (rhetorical)
Look up the terrorists who tried storming the Capital. You’ll see all you need.
I basically see Leftists as evil if they are adults. And low IQ– or just non cognitive imitators who literally repeat scripts and never search for truth– even from.their own personal experiences. They are probably more likely to be alcoholic and drug users due to their constant self-lying.
Lets apply the truism to your… comment… and, uh.
You are in serious need of mental healthcare.
Leftists have bought into the Nanny Government system. They have need of substances to sustain their dependency madness and to deny their God given consciences. They prefer contact with those who agree with promoting WOKE politics. Add on a propensity for the ever more popular vaping of powerful doses of THC, at 50 times the potency of the ’70s “marijuana joint passers” who voted to legalize “medical marijuana” and the entry of Mexican drug cartel business into the mainstream of American cities and you have a building drug dependency among many Leftists. Add on young male consumption of lethally violent video gaming and you have a building pathological paranoia of traditional conservative Christian and Jewish MAGA people. Add to that a reflexive hate for those who dare to call sodomy sinful, let alone the promotion of drag queen shows for children, and you have “something going on”. These Leftists will then use the conveniently censored online services to justify their insistence that in dealing with their pious parent, THEY are the mentor, and the parent is the child. It’s a perfect recipe for ending all human contact between these Leftists and their parents.
What’s scary is how many leftists are intelligent, yet still swallow all the crap.
Woke institutions of “higher” indoctrination” are using the NAZI method to brainwash gullible minds into zombies with the same mindset that the Nazis installed in the willing minds of their soldiers.
The leftist elites divide, they divide using sex, skin colour, and class (being part of the ruling class doesn’t count if they are part of it) and instil fear into the plebs (us)
Convid? Climate hysteria? BLM? All created to instil fear and division.
Leftist who further cancel culture take seriously who they support even in non-political situations. They can’t buy a slice of bread without knowing if the baker is woke. They are committed to using every avenue of pressure to isolate and bankrupt those they see as opposing their values.
It’s not that they don’t have a conscience, it’s that they feel guilty about the wrong things. It’s not that they don’t have values. Their values are screwed up. They hate human nature, what they call whiteness, capitalism, the nuclear family, and reason properly understood. They have a faith but it is not your faith.
I’ve met members of religious cults who were estranged from their family. I once sat next to a member of “Jews for Jesus” and he told me he would have nothing to do with his family, which allegedly try to have him deprogrammed. Scientologists, Hassidic, and others often have estranged relationships. But nothing compares with the woke leftist faith for the scale of ostracism that we see today. This faith is the most dogmatic and hate-filled yet.
Dennis Prager is as usual being dishonest and evasive. He as always, in order to defend Judeo-Christian religious conservatism, presents a myopic, heavily edited, skewed, prejudiced, viewpoint. He leaves out of his presentation those facts about Judaism and Christianity that contradict his claims about how RATIONAL, tolerant, understanding, and benevolent Judaism and Christianity are.
He is clearly arguing that Judaism and Christianity lead to the reason-based value of tolerance for differing views. Judeo-Christian faith produces peace, love, and understanding.
Those two irrational religions clearly do not produce peace, love, and understanding. Their histories of two-thousand years of enmity and persecution are proof. Contemporary Jewish and Christian orthodox sects are proof that when the individual does not adhere to the irrational orthodoxy of the religion they are roundly criticized, persecuted, and punished. And if they do not recant and beg forgiveness for their blasphemy and heresy they are banished and excommunicated from the religious community for life. The Hasidim and the Amish are perfect example. The more serious and devout the irrational religious belief is the more intolerant the believers become. Unreason of any kind produces unreasonable people….
But Dennis Prager doesn’t want to present that ugly reality of orthodox religious life. He wants to have his cake and eat it too. He STEALS the products of reason (tolerance and reasonableness) and attributes them to his new-fangled, New Age conception of his “Judeo-Christianity”. Not even realizing, not even being aware, or maybe just evading, that his New Age, SYNCRETISM, of his Judeo-Christianity, this truce between two opposed faiths, is only made possible when REASON is diluting, leashing, dominating, and subordinating faith.
Let religious faith have the upper-hand over reason and the Christians will have the Jews back in the ghetto in no time.
Part 5
“But Dennis Prager doesn’t want to present that ugly reality of orthodox religious life. He wants to have his cake and eat it too. He STEALS the products of reason (tolerance and reasonableness) and attributes them to his new-fangled, New Age conception of his “Judeo-Christianity””
This is utterly RICH coming from someone whose dogma quite literally steals credit from the countless, largely unremembered people who did things like invent and refine the windmill and attributes them to an Aristotle who thoroughly looked down upon practical business and experimentation. You quite literally tried to claim that Protestantism was a product of “Pagan” logic rather than Christian faith, while conveniently ignoring how many strands of Protestantism if anything were even more spiritual and less rational (such as Martin Luther’s idea of “Sola Fide”, Faith Alone). You quite literally project your own failures onto that of your rivals.
Prager is far from perfect, but not many are. However, he knows history, philosophy, and theology far better than you, Peikoff, and Rand put together..
Part 6
. Not even realizing, not even being aware, or maybe just evading, that his New Age, SYNCRETISM, of his Judeo-Christianity, this truce between two opposed faiths, is only made possible when REASON is diluting, leashing, dominating, and subordinating faith.”
Yeah, except even your own illogical dogma gives a central role to Thomas of Aquinas, who very much had them co-exist without reason dominating faith, if anything the opposite. So you can’t even stay consistent with your own dogma.
“Let religious faith have the upper-hand over reason and the Christians will have the Jews back in the ghetto in no time.”
People have had no shortage of reasons to put Jews in ghettos even without religious faith or Christianity. Just ask thE Nazis.
It’s not unusual to find the various sects of Christianity harshly criticize each other. I’ve seen it in the comment sections of many conservative website. Devout Catholic vs. Lutherans vs. non-denominational fundamentalists! It’s not clear how they accept Prager who doesn’t believe in the divinity of Jesus. Is that not important?
There seems to be some amorphous conservative Judeo-Christianity that is somehow in opposition to mainstream left-leaning Churches and liberal Jews. I can’t see how Prager finds this as a foundation for a worldview let alone a ethico-political philosophy.
In the 1950s there was talk about some generic Christianity. It never made sense. Many notable religious conservatives in the 1950s converted to Catholicism. Russel Kirk did. Frank Meyer did on his death bed. Robert Novak converted. Buckley, Pat Bucannan, Burnham, Bozell Jr, and most of the National Review crowd were already Catholic.
Goldwater was nominally an Episcopalian but he was more a libertarian and parted ways with the fundamentalist wing of the Republican Party.
I don’t see this generic but devout Judeo-Christianity umbrella providing much of a cover. It is vague, there is no high priest, no liturgy, no temples. It is just defined by what it is not … woke leftism.
There is a little bit of truth in your statement. The term Judeo and Christian are two very opposite concepts. They can no more be merged than Islam and Scientology. They both accept the Old Testament but that is where the common ground ends. One is based on morality and the other is based on faith. All might be on the path to truth where the heart finds peace. Regardless of this, calling people names because their path is unfinished demeans the whole landscape. At least they are seeking peace for the soul unlike secular humanists who make no such journey. Their hearts have never sought truth just all relative values that they create. Prager is a moralist which isn’t a bad thing because the codexes of Law of Moses protects the privacy of everyone. The real problem today is the confusion of approbation lust with humility. Almost all education in America ignores independent thought and embraces academic bullyism. This only requires that your opinion of yourself drastically exceeds the opinion that more grounded people have of you. The artificial values that we create will only survive a short lifespan. They will not be valid anywhere except in your own imagination forever. With our last breath self delusion will cease to exist. Arrogant people have no mourners.
ding ding anti-Semite bell rings. Yes, I said that word. I will repeat it anti-Semite.
And again anti-Semite. Did you hear me? the word is anti-Semite. and no., you will not bully me!’
(&Finally get lost. No one even reads your logorrhea babble here).
Ah yes, this again.
Part 1
“Dennis Prager is as usual being dishonest and evasive. ”
This is rich coming from a proven liar and illogical charlatan citing provably debunked, pseudo-intellectual gurus like Peikoff and their bad historiography.
But by itself it is not necessarily WRONG.
“He as always, in order to defend Judeo-Christian religious conservatism, presents a myopic, heavily edited, skewed, prejudiced, viewpoint.”
Oh, but ignorantly insisting there was a “thousand year Christian Dark Ages” after the fall of Western Rome is not presenting a myopic, heavily edited, skewed, prejudiced, and outright fallacious viewpoint that even most freaking Marxists and self-righteous atheists aren’t quite daft enough to claim?
You can’t even provide accurates.
” He leaves out of his presentation those facts about Judaism and Christianity that contradict his claims about how RATIONAL, tolerant, understanding, and benevolent Judaism and Christianity are.”
Fair, and I have tried to avoid ignoring such a things such as addressing the often cultlike and unthinking actions of many, the elevation of faith over reason, and so forth. I just seek to accurately portray them.
Part 2
“He is clearly arguing that Judaism and Christianity lead to the reason-based value of tolerance for differing views. Judeo-Christian faith produces peace, love, and understanding.”
Whereas you want to claim that everything that has made the modern world good originates from Aristotle, who for all of his great achievements was still bigoted, superstitious, and contemptuous of one of the most fundamental tools of reason: experimentation.
“Those two irrational religions clearly do not produce peace, love, and understanding. Their histories of two-thousand years of enmity and persecution are proof. ”
Firstly: seeing as how you have demonstrated great illiteracy about said history, your claims on that matter can be safely dismissed.
Secondly: The evidence one can get from those histories is not as convenient as you like, especially given the gradual growth in peace, love, and understanding as virtues. That does not mean they are blameless or their adherents were without sin – VERY far from it – but the idea that people needed excuses to engage in enmity and persecution is handily debunked by looking at the long duree view of human history for dozens of thousands of years.
Part 4
“The Hasidim and the Amish are perfect example. The more serious and devout the irrational religious belief is the more intolerant the believers become. Unreason of any kind produces unreasonable people….”
Then I challenge you to identify any unreasoning person.
Also the Amish and Hasidim are vocal contradictions to your claim that unreason produces violence. But consistency is not your great gift.
“Also the Amish and Hasidim are vocal contradictions to your claim that unreason produces violence.”
Look up domestic violence in such communities. My experience is with the Amish. Sexual abuse and domestic violence are endemic.
Well well well. If it isn’t Dan Goebbels. Getting lonely at the lack of attention?
“ Look up domestic violence in such communities. “
Oh I have..
“Unfortunately My experience is with the Amish. “
Unfortunately, you have such a long history of naked and proven dishonesty and refusal to acknowledge facts that nothing you write can be taken at face value:
“Sexual abuse and domestic violence are endemic.”
They are certainly problems like in different societies, but by historical barometers they are comparatively mild. And at least as importantly the Amish have an institutional way to escape the community if one so chooses. Obviously not everybody who suffers or probably should takes it, but it is an option.
And the ugly reality you don’t want to address is that domestic abuse and sexual violence have been common throughout a lot of human societies, but the rejection of organized violence is remarkable.
But God forbid Dan Goebbels acknowledges things with those that displeases Dan.
Oh, look my cyber-stalker has crawled out of the slime.
“Unfortunately, you have such a long history of naked and proven dishonesty and refusal to acknowledge facts that nothing you write can be taken at face value:”
Yeah, you keep saying that but just can’t prove it. Like any fascist you rely on lying.
“They are certainly problems like in different societies, but by historical barometers they are comparatively mild. And at least as importantly the Amish have an institutional way to escape the community if one so chooses. Obviously not everybody who suffers or probably should takes it, but it is an option.”
You obviously know nothing about the Amish. All you care about is lying and childish name calling.
“He is clearly arguing that Judaism and Christianity lead to the reason-based value of tolerance for differing views. Judeo-Christian faith produces peace, love, and understanding.”
Yes, Christians and Jews have believed in and practiced tolerance for differing views for at least the last 50 years. The world was better off because of this than it is today when the totalitarians preach hate and division.
“Yes, Christians and Jews have believed in and practiced tolerance for differing views for at least the last 50 years. The world was better off because of this than it is today when the totalitarians preach hate and division.”
Run that by a local atheist and watch the reaction…
Prager, as I see in virtually all of his writings and podcasts, appears to consistently emphasize that Religious Beliefs (specifically his) are the Root Of All Good in the world, and to not follow his suggestions is the Root of All Bad In The World.
Yeah, I’m looking through My atheist prism, but I really think that Prager believes that he is not looking through ANY such prism.
The up and down votes for THX and others who express similar views on the subject just imply to me that most of the readers of Prager’s output agree strongly With Prager and are not exactly interested in discussing or even considering any alternate viewpoints.
Gee… sounds just like what they’re accusing all Leftists of, doesn’t it?
And I’m NOT a Dem, Rep, Lib or Con. Neither ‘major’ US political party has stated beliefs that I can Wholeheartedly agree with or support. I’m pro-Choice, Anti-abortion, pro-Free-Market Capitalism, VERY anti-Socialism and Big Government intrusion into Economic OR Social/Cultural beliefs and processes, etc., etc…
See my chart at https://www.plusaf.com/aboutme.htm and understand why I can barely claim to be an ‘Independent.’
🙂
“Leftist who further cancel culture take seriously who they support even in non-political situations. They can’t buy a slice of bread without knowing if the baker is woke. They are committed to using every avenue of pressure to isolate and bankrupt those they see as opposing their values.”
Then you should have no problem providing 20, documented examples where those poor, long suffering righties got “cancelled”.
Start here: https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2022/09/09/us/oberlin-college-bakery-lawsuit-payment-reaj/index.html
One down. Nineteen to go. Oops, bad luck for you. I actually read the article. The title of the article should have been a warning:
“Ohio bakery awarded $11 million in libel lawsuit against Oberlin College over alleged racial profiling”
The financial loss was some lost business due to protests and the college not buying baked goods from the bakery for three months.
That ain’t worth $11 million dollars.
For their part all three students accused by the store had to plead guilty to charges.
So, you’re 0 for 1. Get back to work.
There’s lots of clouds to bury your head within, climate change being one.
Apologies if this comment confused you, Merry Christmas.
Part 3
Put simply, Northern European warbands had raided, pillaged, and sacked for thousands of years without hassle. What was remarkable was the attempts to put limits on that such as through the Truce of God movement, which was one of the key foundations of international law as we know it, even more relevant than the sort of crude Greco-Roman codes of war.
“Contemporary Jewish and Christian orthodox sects are proof that when the individual does not adhere to the irrational orthodoxy of the religion they are roundly criticized, persecuted, and punished. And if they do not recant and beg forgiveness for their blasphemy and heresy they are banished and excommunicated from the religious community for life.”
So in other words, “Contemporary Jewish and Christian orthodox sects” have leaders that behave like Ayn Rand did when her husband had the audacity to see someone else as she did, or when someone else criticized her.
Truly shocking. If only Christianity and Judaism had something to say about the fallible nature of humanity and the possibly toxic influences of ego.
The “faith” such people have is the worst kind of cultic dogmatism opposed to all scientific objectivity or liberal dialogue.
Increasingly, everyone needs to consider whether they money should go into that college in any form. If that needs saying no to the child or grandchild – so be it. First, there are considerable good reasons to question the actual value of a college program today, but second there is no good reason to pay for an product that defames you. And if asked – say it plainly to that wannabe ‘student’ why the college isn’t going to receive good money for bad deeds.
College appeals for contributions will be based on what alumni used to see when they attended during the era of relative liberal academic rigor. The academic rigor has been substituted with Communist indoctrination. Such an institution is no longer worthy of being called academic, and deserves no funding. That turns out to be OK for these institutions. They get massive Federal grants that make the whole machine run with no accountability to alumni one way or another.
My family has rejected me because of their rabid liberalism. It does not trouble me. My family are deluded imbeciles. I welcome the hatred from the left. It is a badge of honor.
Then Denis Prager wants to stomp your guts out. You have violated the command of god and should be sent straight to hell.
This begs the question why FPMers have liked your comment. By your own belief system you are the worst of the worst.
Beautiful demonstration of leftist elite behaviour, attack the person not his views.
Merry Christmas
You have rocks in your head. The OP is clearly in violation of the 5th Commandment. By Prager’s own professed beliefs he should be punished up to and including murder.
That guy holding the vile rainbow banner can’t be from TX. Y’all is singular, all y’all is plural and all y’all’s is plural possessive. From someone born American and by the grace of God Southern.
Visits to college campuses during the selection process are disheartening at best. College campuses are all woke, to one degree or another, some more blatantly so. So much money to be spent on indoctrination and the loss of one’s child.
Communists glory in the pain of others. They’re as shallow as can be.
Set your expectations accordingly.
One of Satan’s favorite tools is division. He promotes it primarily through sewing resentment among people. Jesus came to stop all that.
It appears to me that the parents are at fault. Crying and whining indeed! They created little jr. and now do not appreciate the results of their labors. Being accepted by the pack is a primordial urge but I still have my own standards as should these children.
You are overlooking the powerful need of social acceptance from friends and coworkers and most especially spouses. Many liberal women, who in spite of being liberal, marry conservative men because they are on the whole much better providers than lefty men. The women are unable to connect the dots between their decent conservative men and their conservative politics, and set about to change them.
You are correct that acceptance is THE most important thing in society. However, creating a situation by poorly rearing your children and then refusing to accept the consequences is rather irresponsible and shows a lack of maturity that is reflected in your offspring.
Sadly, I no longer speak to my mother. My sisters and I were all sent to therapists as kids and they all told us the same thing: to distance ourselves from.our parents. At the time, I thought the therapists were out of order, but now I understand what they were saying and wonder if my life could have been much better if I hadn’t spent years trying to get water out of a rock- or whatever the saying is.
Our parents were in love with themselves and in love with their political opinions which they non-stop bloviated about. My mom worships Planned Parenhood and hates her own kids. I invite Dennis to enjoy that sort of a family and to write about it.
Growing up being taught leftist ideas nonstop is antithetical to life- which is why my mother has no grandkids. Her sole goal in life was climbing the corporate ladder which she did till they knocked her off cause she cost too much. That’s when she realized that no one at the office was her friend. But hey, these parents ain’t deep so they learn life lessons the hard way.
You are openly violated the 5th Commandment. According to Prager you are the worst of the worst. If he actually believes his own bilge Prager should call for your death. That is “Judeo-Christian” values.
No, she was honouring her parents, going to therapy was her way of honouring them and now she has the knowledge and strength to move forward, she has learned that it’s ok to change your mind and views, one day you might too.
Merry Christmas
LOL! This just proves you don’t believe your own dogma. Gotta love the rank hypocrisy of FPMers. Whenever something runs contrary to your beliefs to drop them like a hot iron. It shows that your position is dogmatic rather than based on a consistent (or even coherent) worldview.
Sorry to hear and I know many who had to distance themselves from their parents for their mental sanity. I did in my early 20s and that helped me establish a relationship after that. Not everyone is so lucky.
David Horowitz had a rough going with his parents once he moved to the right. If I remember correctly he never regained a closeness with his father.
I tend to give parents the benefit of the doubt as they too usually have suffered but they have to make some effort to be accepting. I don’t agree with Prager if he is preaching unlimited duty-bound submission to one’s parents.
May God give you grace and mercy in your sadness!!
Im so sorry. God have mercy.
For the rest of you, DO NOT send your children to the government schools, or the universities.
And have as MANY BABIES AS YOU CAN
Dan Foster, please out yourself for the sake of hunanoty and decency. You are a depraved sick POS!
Too much of a coward to directly reply to one of my comments. I welcome FPM hatred because I know what FPM scum love.