Moving, Moving, Moving Right

I had a discussion over a year ago with a friend who was very worried about how far right the US might swing before it began to swing back--if ever it did--toward the left, and how much toward the right each subsequent swing was taking us in general. I think I was being optimistic and naive at the time, thinking that the pendulum had to swing back sometime soon. I still want to believe that, but I don't know about the evidence--it's a pretty jumbled bunch of stuff to look at. People are starting to call Bush Jr. on some of his shit, yes, but we still have new Abortion Bans; and the calling Bush Jr. on stuff really does feel like too little, too late, especially when any of the Democratic hopefulls (and the party in general) isn't offering us much in the way of truly liberal movement. Reading The End of Faith by Sam Harris makes things worse for me emotionally, because I get to read facts like 64% of Americans believe that there is a literal Satan and that we have to, as a country, fight him.

I'm not in the give-up-and-move-to-Canada mindset or anything (particularly since Canada just elected the most right-wing group of people it ever has, apparently); I think that the freedoms we have still lend themselves to some truly progressive possibilities, and the backlash against Bush Jr. doesn't mean nothing at all. Still, more and more I'm turning pessimistic as regards long-term prospects 'round here.

Which is why it's always nice to have somebody like Don Asmussen to give you a funny take on it all...



Filed under:Comics as Life and Politics