Daniel A. Bosh – 6/19/07

This page was last updated on June 19, 2007.

Blame conservatives for decay; Daniel A. Bosh; Beaver County Times; June 19, 2007.

If you’ve read Bosh letters over the years, you recognize him as a died-in-the-wool socialist. In the 2004 presidential campaign, Mr. Bosh was a Democrat national delegate committed to Dennis Kucinich. I could be mistaken, but I believe Mr. Bosh is a fulltime employee of the Steelworkers Pension Trust. There’s nothing wrong with that except it means Mr. Bosh isn’t an impartial observer when it comes to labor union issues.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“The writer of the June 7 letter ‘Centrism created this mess’ has been misinformed.”

[RWC] I get a kick out of Mr. Bosh referring to anyone as “misinformed.” As you will read below, Mr. Bosh’s letter is one unsubstantiated talking point after another.

“The mess this country is in has been created by conservatives. In fact, the way the country is being run is a conservative’s dream, but a nightmare for ordinary people.”

[RWC] If Mr. Bosh really believes “the way the country is being run is a conservative’s dream,” he is clueless about conservatism.

“The list of conservative policies implemented by conservatives in the last quarter century is extensive.”

[RWC] “Conservative policies” is almost an oxymoron because truly conservative “policies” are rooted in freedom, or a lack of policies as used in this context. It is liberal policies that attempt to tell people what to do and how to do it. For example, conservatives believe in equal opportunity while liberals believe in equal outcome (so-called affirmative action programs). Equal opportunity is about freedom, while equal outcome is about curtailing freedom via government rules.

By the way, if you’re expecting to read “the [extensive] list of conservative policies implemented by conservatives in the last quarter century,” don’t hold your breath. As noted above, this letter is simply a litany of talking points.

“Shifting of more wealth to the rich has been a high priority in conservative regimes that want us to believe that CEOs who make 400 times as much as their employees are 400 times smarter than the rest of us and work 400 times harder.”

[RWC] Exactly what policies did what Mr. Bosh alleges? Was it the income tax cuts that resulted in “the rich” actually paying a higher percentage of income taxes than before (The top 5% pay over 54% of taxes paid.) and the bottom 50% of taxpayers paying less than 4%?

“Conservatives have attacked public institutions like education, collective bargaining, anti-poverty programs, environmental protection - every function of government except those that benefit the rich exclusively.”

[RWC] Note Mr. Bosh didn’t name the functions of government “that benefit the rich exclusively.”

Conservatives don’t attack education. What conservatives tend to attack is unbridled spending on public schools and colleges. In the case of the feds, the Constitution doesn’t mention education as a federal responsibility so no federal taxpayer dollars should be spent on it.

Conservatives have no problem with collective bargaining. What conservatives tend to oppose is forcing employees to join a labor union as a condition of employment and forcing employees (via dues) to support political candidates chosen by labor union management.

Regarding so-called “anti-poverty” programs, they don’t work. If they did, wouldn’t we have declared victory over poverty decades ago? All government run anti-poverty programs accomplish is rewarding bad choices.

Conservatives don’t believe in “environmental protection?” Yep, that’s right. We conservatives want to drink polluted water and breathe polluted air. What hogwash! What conservatives oppose is the use of environmental regulation as a means to promote other economic, political, and social agendas.

“Federal regulatory agencies established to enforce the law are run by the very people from whom the public is supposed to be protected.”

[RWC] Not exactly. True conservatives would eliminate unnecessary “regulatory agencies,” eliminate unnecessary regulations from the remainder, and enforce the remaining regulations.

Does Mr. Bosh mean labor union management runs the Labor Department?

“Jobs are being exported to foreign countries where people are most vulnerable to exploitation.”

[RWC] Riddle me this Batman. If this statement is true, how can unemployment be so low (4.5% in May 2007) even with 12+ million illegal aliens consuming jobs?

“The president is regarded as royalty, not to even be criticized, while ordinary citizens are deprived of basic freedoms like privacy and the right to vote or to speak out.”

[RWC] “The president is regarded as royalty?” Except during his recent visit to Albania, by whom?

Not even to be criticized? Is Mr. Bosh serious? Can Mr. Bosh name any outlets that aren’t criticizing President Bush for something?

Even if it were true, true conservatives aren’t into silencing speech. Things like the “fairness doctrine” and the McCain-Feingold bill come from liberal thinking, not conservative.

Note Mr. Bosh provided no examples to support his statement that “ordinary citizens are deprived of basic freedoms like privacy and the right to vote or to speak out.” Indeed, his own letter is proof the allegation is false.

“Our troops, whose purpose is to defend the nation, are sent to risk their lives to invade and occupy countries that are not a threat to America, and they are rewarded for their service by being sent into battle inadequately equipped and returning home to cuts in benefits.”

[RWC] “Not a threat to America?” Like Kosovo?

In case Mr. Bosh missed it, many leaders of his party – including presidential candidates and decidedly not conservative – voted in favor of the Iraq War Resolution.

“It is impossible to list all of the injuries caused by conservative regimes, especially when it seems that each week brings news of another disgrace and another attempted cover up.”

[RWC] Hmm, I wonder why Mr. Bosh failed to identify any of the disgraces and “attempted cover ups.” Perhaps there were so many he couldn’t choose. <g>

“The decay we are witnessing in our country has definitely been caused by conservatives who, while very poor at governing, are very good at propaganda.”

[RWC] The letter refers to all the “conservative regimes” “in the last quarter century.” History tells a different story.

When Ronald Reagan was in office, Democrats held the majority in the House (from 56% to 62%) for his entire administration and in the Senate (55%) during his last two years in office.

Democrats held the majorities in both houses for the entirety of George Bush #1’s administration. Further, as his son, President Bush #1 was not a conservative. He was a Republican who supported some conservative positions and some liberal positions.

During the Clinton administration, Democrats held the majorities in both houses during Mr. Clinton’s first two years in office. Though Republicans (not conservatives) held the majorities (max of 55%) in Congress during Mr. Clinton’s last six years in office, they weren’t anywhere near enough to override vetoes.

As I noted above, the current President Bush is not a conservative, and neither was Congress even when Republicans held the majority. President Bush and most congressional Republicans are simply Republicans who support a mix of conservative and liberal positions. No conservative would have supported the McCain-Feingold bill, the No Child Left Behind Act, expansion of Medicare spending, an open border, et cetera.

Of course, had we elected full-blown conservatives to the presidency and Congress, and had they governed according to conservative principles, Mr. Bosh still would have written his letter. Based on this and Mr. Bosh’s at least seven previously published letters to the Times since September 2004 and his seven to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette since 2000, I believe it’s fair to say conservative principles [individual liberty/responsibility, free markets, limited government (not no government), et cetera] tend to be the polar opposite of the centrist/liberal/progressive/socialist positions advocated in his letters.