America at the threshold: IRS, Social Security and Leftism

If you have argued with a Liberal, you probably already know what Ann Coulter means by claiming that the third rule in such arguments is "Outrage the Enemy." This is a variant on the age old tactic "get him mad and he will make a mistake." Well, the left is crazy mad so we must be winning. We've mentioned this phenomenon before, but here it is again:

Townhall.com 's The Conservative Log

It was Allen's conservative op-ed in the LAT that triggered the good Susan's meltdown ...Allen's original op-ed was about how there seem to be few female public intellectuals these days, largely because those females who would be public intellectuals will only write about women's issues ...

In an op-ed piece in today's Washington Times, George Washington University Law School Professor and syndicated columnist Jonathan Turley seethes over Estrich's vicious attack against LA Times Opinion Editor Michael Kinsley. Apparently, it wasn't enough that she's been complaining that the LA Times hasn't published enough articles by women - and refuses to publish her work (see recent article by Suzanne Fields). Now, Estrich has gotten personal, and really crossed the line.

Turley writes that Estrich used the fact that Kinsley is suffering from Parkinson's disease as "easy fodder for her attacks on the newspaper." She stated that Kinsley's failure to publish women like herself is evidence that "your illness may have affected your brain, your judgement, and your ability to do [your] job." Estrich went on to warn Kinsley that he is "digging a grave for [him]self" by refusing to publish her feminist tirades. If that's not bad enough, as Prof. Turley writes, there's more:

"Described in the press as "belligerent" and "semiliterate," Ms. Estrich's tirades became increasing unhinged after it became clear that Mr. Kinsley would not yield to her ultimatums. Indeed, at one point, Ms. Estrich went to all caps in offering Mr. Kinsley "ONE MORE CHANCE BEFORE I GO PUBLIC." Before one charity event, she asked menacingly, "you want me to work that dinner about what an [expletive] you are?" After descending to calling Kinsley a "jerk," "fool" and other names, Ms. Estrich turned on Times Editor John Carroll when he complained to her that her attacks on Mr. Kinsley showed "extravagant malice." She responded by claiming defamation and telling him to expect a call from her lawyer."

Leftism is in its death throes and America stands at the threshold of greatness. If we have the resolve, we can slough off the decrepit Liberal policies that have held us down for so long and set free our citizenry. The youth of today may yet be the greatest generation. Without anti-Americanism, anti-globalization, anti-capitalism and so on, these kids may bring freedom and prosperity to the entire globe.

The first step is crossing the threshold. Bush 43 may go down in history as one of the greatest presidents precisely because he was willing to step out of the past and into the future. He abolished the rotten foreign policies of RealPolitik and Stability in favor of freedom for all. Now he turns his attention to the domestic cobwebs of the IRS and Social Security.

The problems with the IRS need hardly be mentioned, but do we have the courage to fix them? As usual there is healthy debate among conservatives while much of the other side resists change. We need reform and we should take no half measures. Abolish the IRS and all income taxes and switch to a consumption tax. This is radical, but so was the Bush Doctrine. Here is a summary of the idea, but I'll add this: a consumption tax is highly visible and would be much more difficult for Congress to game.

Social Security, though, is more likely to be reformed since the President has made it a center piece of his second term. This may also have more fundamental and far reaching effects. It will likely increase personal saving rates beyond the private accounts and that means more capital investment. This in turn will fuel the national economy which means more jobs and higher wages and so on. Again, the key to long term success may be avoiding half measures. Cato's plan is the most radical, but the most likely to succeed.

Radical conservative reforming of these two programs will unleash the energy of the American people and allows us to lead the whole world into a safer and more prosperous future. Let us take the step forward, cross the threshold, and enter a brave new world.