Cronkite Calls for Military Coup
Well, no, he hasn't actually suggested that the military overthrow the government of George W. Bush, he's only challenged the wisdom of the method by which Mr. Bush came to office: Democracy.Last Friday, on CNN's Larry King Live, Cronkite relieved himself of the opinion that American voters are incapable of voting correctly:
We're an ignorant nation right now. We're not really capable, I do not think the majority of our people, of making the decisions that have to be made at election time and particularly in the selection of their legislatures and their Congress and the presidency, of course. I don't think we're bright enough to do the job that would preserve our democracy, our republic. I think we're in serious danger.Video link HERE (this quote is about 58 seconds into the clip, which begins with an ad to pay the bills). Or check today's Washington Times.
Now it has long been a given among the unhinged Left (which today seems to include most elected Democratic officials), that the only possible explanation for repeated electoral defeats is the ignorance and gullibility of the majority of American voters. See, for example, the book "What's the Matter with Kansas?," the thesis of which is that Kansans would elect Democratic candidates if only those damn Jayhawks were wise enough to know what was good for them.
But it is a dogma seldom articulated with such blunt clarity, since to do so naturally invites rude questions: "And what do you propose as an alternative to representative democracy?" Nor do we suspect that it would be a successful marketing strategy for Democratic candidates to solicit votes by advising prospective voters that their alternative to voting Democratic was to conclusively demonstrate themselves to be ignorant buffoons.
So it simply will not do to dismiss this outlandish riff as the irrational rambling of an aged, infirm mind. The story is that Larry King did not find the statement sufficiently bizarre to provoke even mild inquiry, let alone firm objection. Perhaps a gentle follow-up question as to whether Cronkite really meant to say that those who had elected Mr. Bush were stupid? Nada.
But the real story will be the fact that no mainstream media outlet will pick this up and run with it, inquiring of Cronkite what exactly he actually advocates as an alternative to voting, and hounding Democratic pols to issue firm denunciations. Will Brian Williams ask Nancy Pelosi if she agrees that the majority of voters in America are stupid? Will Bob Schieffer, heir to Cronkite's chair, sadly commiserate with Harry Reid that "Many observers wonder what Cronkite could have been thinking in condemning American democracy in such harsh terms."
Nope.
Do we imagine that we would hear nothing but the calm chirping of crickets were Brit Hume to suggest that the failed public school system of Massachusetts, having produced an ignorant electorate, is obviously the root cause of . . . .We didn't think so.
Presented for your delectation by the Gentleman Farmer at 6:11 PM
Comments on "Cronkite Calls for Military Coup"
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Yeoman said ... (3:18 PM) :
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Chris said ... (5:40 PM) :
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Anonymous said ... (7:05 PM) :
post a commentBut why would we be surprised?
There's a general consensus that Walter Cronkite, because he sounds so good, and had such an air of authority when a newscaster, must be right. But this is hardly first time he's weighed in to the left in such a manner.
Recall that it was Cronkite who, after North Vietnamese army was defeated in a final desperate suicidal offensive in 1968, which they themselves concluded had been the end of their ability to fight, declared that it was proof it was time for the US to leave the war. Granted, guerilla wars are never clear as to their state at the time they are being waged, but Cronkite had a major handing the NVA a victory when it was defeated. That'd he conclude democracy is defeated, given that, isn't much of a surprise.
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Perhaps "almost ignatius j." should go back and read the post, think for a moment, and then post another comment.
The Founding Fathers certainly sought to create a structure that would act to dampen the effects of popular passion; and require that only notions expressed widely and consistently would find their way into law and government policy. Ultimately, however, all political power came -- in their view -- from the people. Senators were to be selected by the states, by whatever political method each state thought best, but one in any event that would have reference to the voters. The Electoral College was intended as a method for assuring that the chief magistrate was NOT a person of purely local or regional appeal (such as Mr. Gore, wildly popular in New York City, San Francisco, and Boston, but otherwise not so much).
What Cronkite complains about is the fact that the people, in exercising their political power, have failed to do so to obtain a result thought by Cronkite to be wise. He attributes this divergence between his political opinion and the political opinion of a majority of voters to the ignorance and stupidity of the voters. That they're right -- and he's wrong -- or that the majority is nonetheless entitled to its view, does not seem to have crossed his mind. Or that of AIJ.