Bobo Has a New Column

Because spending money on endless wars and bailouts for criminals is preferable to taking care of people:

Third, the Great Society. Lyndon Johnson was right to use government to do more to protect Americans from the vicissitudes of capitalism. But he made a series of open-ended promises, especially on health care. He tried to bind voters to the Democratic Party with a web of middle-class subsidies.

In each case, a good impulse was taken to excess. A government that was energetic and limited was turned into one that is omnidirectional and fiscally unsustainable. A government that was trusted and oriented around long-term visions is now distrusted because it tries to pander to the voters’ every momentary desire. A government that devoted its resources toward future innovation and development now devotes its resources to health care for the middle-class elderly.

Take one flawed premise, add a dash of Burke or Hamilton, fold in a few false equivalencies, pretend that the Tea Party and other far right lunatics are a recent phenomenon, punch a hippie, bake at a nice Centrist 325 degrees and, presto, another shitty David Brooks column!

It is very important to remember that David Brooks supported the Iraq War and has been wrong about everything. He exists because people invested in the system need to have a “reasonable” go-to conservative to preserve the Great Lie of Centrism. Period.

Steve in Manhattan
2:00 pm • Tuesday • May 29, 2012
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