The Hindrocket actually seems suprised at the crazy-talk that the Power Line Boys have been receiving in the email from certain members of the left about the Jeff Gannon story. I’m personally not particularly suprised at the hatred spouted in this type of thing, because one can generally only hate what one does not fully understand, and these letters usually show how little the authors know about the actual position of the political right. The left has gotten so good at attacking the stereotype of Republicans that they have so successfully projected into society through the media over the years that they are completely ineffectual at attacking the real Republicans when they come face to face with them. In this particular letter (where the guys at Power Line are informed that they are hypocrites, and are going to hell “if there is a god”) the writer is accusing Power Line and the right in general of being hypocrites because we don’t match their stereotype of us. What Republican in public office (besides the rabid Alan Keyes type) has ever said that they hated all gays and would not consider talking to one in public? The real answer is ‘none,’ but so many of the left-of-center types believe it is the case that they can easily brand someone a ‘hypocrite’ for saying one thing, and being portrayed as believing another. Isn’t this the sort of stereotyping behavior that the left is supposed to condemn? The same is true of Christianity (which would be a separate topic, except it is brought up by the author of the particular angry rant mentioned in the Power Line post). Christians (in the propaganda-warped minds of those who wish to believe this) irrationally hate all gays. When a Christian is accepting of gays but not of their lifestyle, said Christian is branded a hypocrite.
Democrats are often portrayed as closet-socialists by some of the more radical members of the right, but how would they react if we started calling them hypocrites for speaking out against a socialist revolution in a third world country? (Not that this is likely, but humor me.) They would naturally think we were nuts. We wouldn’t be (necessarily); we would simply be comparing their actions to our preconceived notions of their beliefs, and judging them on it. Things simply don’t work that way.
The sooner the Democrats get out of the clutches of Howard “I hate the Republicans and everything they stand for” Dean and his ilk and return to the table for a legitimate discussion of policies, the better it will be for America. (Howard Dean appears courtesy INDC Journal).