UPDATE by Brian: Robert is too modest to pimp his dKos diary on the FP, so I'll do it for him. Please give it a rec, as the story is certainly worthy of additional eyeballs.
It's understandable that conservatives bristle at being called to account for the catastrophic outcomes of their ideological agenda. The devastation wreaked on the Gulf Coast by Hurricane Katrina irreparably damaged the Bush Administration and set the Republicans on the long road to losing the Congress. Millions of Americans saw the effects of Grover Norquist's "drown government in a bathtub" strategy. The Register's editorial pages, long devoted to a similar anti-government, anti-tax, anti-union agenda, have a clear interest in distancing themselves from last week's disaster.
But their editorial defense does not quite achieve its objectives. The Register does not rebut the fact that OC firefighters lacked necessary equipment that Measure D would have funded. More importantly, the editorial actually reinforces my core argument - that the conservative agenda the Register and others in OC promoted is intended to leave Californians lacking adequate fire protection and placing their safety in the hands of a private market.
The city of Brea continues to set the stage for a massive theft of property, a "taking," but is trying to craft its action in such a way that the city won't have to pay for what it takes. The City Council agreed Tuesday to postpone a decision on changing the zoning in a hillside portion of the city, as staff develops more "flexibility" for owners. But a very troubling process is moving forward.
The city attorney, council members and members of a no-growth group closely allied with city officials are all touting their commitment these days to "compromise." But don't think that after five years of depriving owners of their lawful right to develop their land that officials have suddenly gained any newfound understanding of the concept of individual freedom.
So does Brea hate "invidual freedom"...
Or are they really respecting freedom? Follow me after the flip for more...
If many principled conservatives can't even stomach Arnold's tired old rhetoric, then why should progressives be satisfied with his "moderate" charade?
