Powerline does such a great job dismantling the “arguments” of Lee Feng that there is little to add but there is something I want to say concerning this:
There is definitely some dream-fulfillment going on here, but it isn’t Harry Bradley’s. What is the sum and substance of Think Progress’s expose? Governor Walker’s position is endorsed by a majority of Wisconsin voters, as well as several conservative groups, some of which have gotten modest amounts of support from conservative philanthropists. In what world is that some kind of scandal?
Certainly not in the world of Think Progress, which is entirely a creature of the billionaire left. One curious feature of today’s left is its obsession with “astroturf.” There is a reason why lefties who work for billionaire-funded web sites like Think Progress constantly talk about astroturf: it is the world they live in. They are paid by rich liberals, and the demonstrators who are bused in to left-wing protests are generally union members who are paid to attend. No one on the left does much for free. So lefties find it hard to understand that ordinary citizens (“Tea Partiers”) will turn out at rallies without being paid, that conservative voters vote on principle, not financial self-interest, and that conservative activists act out of conviction, not because they are subsidized by a sugar daddy. Failing to understand that conservatism–unlike liberalism–is a movement of principle, not self-interest, they are constantly looking for the elusive, non-existent money trail.
I recently experienced an entertaining example of this phenomenon. A local columnist who was laid off by the Minneapolis Star Tribune went to work for a web site called MinnPost, which is funded by liberal sugar daddies. He is one of a number of former Strib employees who now work for rich liberals at this site, which may or may not be different from what they were doing at the Star Tribune. Anyway, this reporter referred to me as “one of [Bill Cooper’s] high-profile investments.”
When I see this it gets my blood up. Liberals tend to assume that we conservatives are rolling in it.
Let me tell something to Mr. Feng and Powerline’s pal who got laid off and covered. I have a $1200 mortgage and additional bills each month that total about $2700 not counting local taxes (including gasoline, electric etc). I don’t own a flat screen or high def TV, There isn’t a car in my family newer than a 2000, my cell is a trac-phone because I can’t afford better and at the moment my youngest isn’t being taken for his permit because I can’t afford the $600 for the driving lessons mandated by Massachusetts. My wife has been putting off getting a new set of glasses because right now $400 is a fortune. If my oldest didn’t have an academic scholarship he’d have to work full time because we wouldn’t be able to afford to pay for State College.
Our income currently consists of my wife’s unemployment, $900 in monthly rents (before expenses), whatever I can sell for ads for DaTechGuy on DaRadio minus the cost of the show and whatever comes in via DaTipJar (which has amounted to a whopping $10 this year so far).
Every day I go door to door trying to sell ads for the Radio show. At CPAC I spent an inordinate time in the vendor area pushing the show, yesterday I put another 30 miles on the car with zero ads to show for it. I’m taking in before expenses (but after the cost of the show) less than I did when I was on unemployment. Each month paying the bills is an adventure.
Is there some sour grapes here? Yeah I guess there is. It grates me to hear this stuff from people supported by rich patrons. I suspect that if I suddenly flipped I would find all the patrons I wanted to pay me to document my revelations of the perfidious right.
I WISH I had a conservative sponsor paying just 40k a year. Such a sponsor would mean I wouldn’t have to choose between covering the rallies in Boston today or going door to door to sell my ads. Mr. Feng feel free to send my name to the Koch brothers, the Bradley foundation, and any other conservative foundation you want. Then when you write about me being financed by conservative foundations I’ll say “Yup”.
Of course my father who worked harder than I ever will likely have to would likely answer. “Stop complaining and get to work.” He’s right.
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