In the New York Times Book Review Rick Perlstein talks about how fifty years after William F. Buckley purged conservatism of the likes of the John Birch Society the extremist wing nuts have returned to the pages of the National Review with conspiracies like for instance the Muslim Brotherhood being in the Obama Administration.
Bill Buckley made conservatism inviting but not today they are something to be feared and loathed appealing to fringe elements of society ignoring the vast middle or moderate majority of people. But the same can be said now of the left where the fringe has also exercised control. Here you will find people that believe that the downing of the World Trade Center was planned by our government.
And that is the common ground of the fringe elements on the right and left is a hatred for our government. The government that freed the slaves, gave us social security and medicare, defeated fascism and communism, put a man on the moon so on and so on.
Well it is time for the vast middle that is capable of working with each other whether conservative or liberal to purge their respective wings of the lunatic fringe. This means getting people to vote in primaries, sacrifice their careers to run for office and write letters to the editor.
When these things are done then our nation will have its health restored which today is as sick and dysfunctional as the Roman Senate before Augustus came to power. SPQR