Liberal Unhappiness: Thirty Year Research
 Custom Search THE WEEKLY STANDARD The Angry White Liberal He's back. by Matthew Continetti 08/31/2009, Volume 014, Issue 46 Excerpts: We've spent the month of August talking about alleged right-wing rage, but it's really time we started discussing the Angry White Liberal. When things aren't going his way, the Angry White Liberal wails and gnashes his teeth, rends his garments, and hurls invective at the opposition. His rhetoric and prose is so heated, it's gotten to the point where you need to put on oven mitts before opening the paper. He is so convinced of the righteousness of his positions that he lashes out uncontrollably at anybody who disagrees with him. For the Angry White Liberal, dissent is anathema. Antagonism is illegitimate. Only conformity to prevailing liberal opinion is enough to still his rage. It's been awhile since the Angry White Liberal was spotted in the wild. He's been in hiding since 2006, when the electorate started handing victory after victory to the Democratic party. For a while there, whenever a liberal surveyed the political scene, it looked as though the country had finally come to its senses. Americans no longer deigned to elect conservatives to high office. In 2008 voters fell for the dulcet tones of a young, charismatic liberal senator from Illinois. A "new progressive era" was about to begin. James Carville's latest book, published earlier this year, promised to explain "how the Democrats will rule the next generation." Then something bizarre began to happen. As Barack Obama's presidency unfurled, his approval ratings fell. The public showed skepticism at his major initiatives. The federal government bailed out GM and Chrysler overwidespread public opposition. The costly economic stimulus bill appeared not to be working. The climate-change legislation that the House of Representatives passed on a party-line vote was D.O.A. in the Senate. And even though "health care" is not the top voter priority, even though the budget deficit stands at more than a trillion dollars, President Obama decided that this was the moment to remake one-sixth of the American economy. Full article Matthew Continetti Weekly Standard AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE Why We're Happy By Arthur C. Brooks Monday, June 16, 2008 Reader's Digest (July 2008) Publication Date: June 16, 2008 Excerpts: You want to be happy. I'm going to make this assumption, and I think I'm in pretty smart company to do so. Socrates once asked his students, "Do not all men desire happiness?" A student answered him, "There is no one who does not." If Socrates was right, isn't it reasonable to assume that a decent nation will, at minimum, create the conditions in which its citizens can best pursue happiness? In the Declaration of Independence, the Founders didn't treat happiness as some fuzzy concept; they believed that people wanted happiness and had the right to pursue it. Along with life and liberty, happiness was the connection between the Creator and our nation's destiny, and the ability of its citizens to pursue and achieve happiness was a measure of the effectiveness and morality of the state. According to hundreds of reliable surveys of thousands of people across the land, happy people increase our prosperity and strengthen our communities. But today's leaders and policymakers seem to have forgotten this. To hear politicians talk about gross domestic product, health-care reform, and Social Security, you'd think that this nation's Founding Fathers held as self-evident that we are endowed by our Creator with the ability to purchase new, high-quality consumer durables each and every year, or to enjoy healthy economic growth with low inflation and full employment. The Founders didn't talk about these matters, not because they're unimportant, but because they believed happiness went deeper. Pew Center research shows that liberal unhappiness, when comparing liberals to conservatives, has prevailed over a fairly long period. Election Outcomes? Democratic victories in elections do not swing the happiness gate back to Democrats (liberals). Liberal Unhappiness Conservatives still find more happiness in their lives during years of Democratic rule, going back as far as 1972. The study shows that Republicans were happier than Democrats by fairly large margins during the Clinton and Carter Presidencies. Conservatives generally have more wealth than Liberals. When making comparisons of poor and middle class Republicans, to Democrats who are poor and middle class, Republicans still hold a significant edge. Poor Republicans are happier than poor Democrats; middle-income Republicans are happier than middle-income Democrats, and rich Republicans are happier than rich Democrats. Different Promotions Each Week This Week 7% Off Examine The Delicious Homestyle Dinners Under "Our Menus" FDR's years as President, apparently ingrained the idea into millions of minds, that government could solve problems not otherwise solvable. This certainty persisted with many of us for years. Reality however, and empirical evidence convinces us otherwise, unless one clings steadfastly to the nanny state mentality. Zell Miller, a lifelong and steadfast Democrat states that Democrats today practice the motto of the old commercial, 99 and 44/100 per cent pure, meaning they are not willing to compromise. Zell Stated “If they get 7 out of 10 issues their way, that's not enough. They need all 10 or they lash out at those who disagree.” From: Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) Under God...Under Attack Inside the Issues with Alan Sears
Full article To Allan Sears-Alliance Defense Fund Excerpts: The anti-religionists, represented by well-known atheist Michael Newdow and others, have filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire to challenge the inclusion of the words "under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance. You remember Mr. Newdow. He's the same one who sued Congress and the Elk Grove Unified School District in California, demanding the removal of "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance to our nation's flag. In 2005, he sued President Bush to prohibit a minister from delivering an invocation at the President's inaugural ceremony. FFRF is also no stranger to the spotlight. Just last year, in Hein v. Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc., they challenged the funding of a White House initiative that informed both faith-based and secular organizations about federal funding for programs that help the poor.
largest return, on the Internet-Learn More-Click Photo Full article Arthur C. Brooks American Enterprise Institute Liberal Unhappiness To Pew Research Center Liberal Unhappiness Liberal Unhappiness
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