Be Like Me Or Else

At Firedoglake, Glenn W. Smith has some thoughts that have long perplexed me too. Just why is it that, for conservatives, liberty means the freedom to “be like me or else”?

While they'd have you believe they're for freedom, individuality and small government, there's nothing these pr*cks love more than authoritarianism, conformity and incuriosity - pretty much everything you could label as 'unAmerican'.

But I differ with Smith when he says “Be Like Me or Else” is a "pervasive motivation among conservatives and some progressives". The whole point of progressive liberalism is plurality and an almost self-defeating wish for everyone to do their own thing - even if that thing is counter to what we believe ourselves. As the past decade shows, it's hard to beat intolerance and exclusiveness with tolerance and inclusiveness.