Anger and Apathy

Thomas Sowell had a column today in which he made some comments about the "angry Left." For many on the left wing, difference of opinion leads not only to passionate debate, but to downright hostility. Sowell sees a kind of furor on the part of some liberals that could almost be classified as hatred--hatred of politicians they don't like, of views with which they disagree, of traditions and concepts they find distasteful. I think Sowell is largely correct. Tolerance and respect for those ideas and spokesmen of varying opinions seems largely missing on the radical left. On the other hand, however, those of us of more traditional or conservative views seem largely to be basking in apathy. Oh, we talk to each other about our misgivings concerning immigration reform, terrorism, and other issues. And in the church, we are concerned about deviations from theological orthodoxy. But we really don't do much about any of this. True, conservatives have turned out in large numbers during recent elections; but as soon as the elected officials seem unwilling or unable to deliver on their campaign promises, we crouch back into our little holes, whisper to our friends, and essentially behave ourselves. This isn't all necessarily bad. Traditionalists and conservatives are, by our very nature, non-activists. We don't demonstrate or stage civil disobedience. We don't make noisy protests. For the most part, we don't even walk out of our existing organizations or institutions and form revolutionary new political parties or church groups. We pay our taxes, obey the law, and try to adjust to the things we don't like--pretty much the way mature adults are supposed to behave. But there comes a time when apathy must be replaced by decisive, principled action. We don't have to get angry. We don't have to "make demands." We just have to be willing to do and say what's right, no matter what happens. As we used to say in the Presbyterian Church, we have to be willing to defend that which is true and virtuous and godly, "whatever persecution ... may arise" on that account. There will come a time when we who hold traditional views of law and politics and Christianity will have to pay a price. I'm not talking about being fanatics or extremists, or eccentrics. I'm just talking about standing for those principles, values, truths, and ideals of law and order that have been commonly understood during most of American and western civilization. Many of us who are now considered out of step with our culture used to be in the mainstream. I believe it's time we take back the mainstream, the high ground, the American and Christian culture our ancestors fought and worked so hard to establish. The "Angry Left" cannot be allowed to let their anger rule the day.