Most of us are aware of and pretend to detest the barefaced instances of that hypocrisy by which men deceive others, but few of us are upon our guard or see that more fatal hypocrisy by which we deceive and over-reach our own hearts. Laurence Sterne, 1760
Failed Conservative Values: Steve Reed on Hypocrisy
My name is Steve Reid, and I believe that’s a myth. There is nothing of the sort of conservative values. They are a total lie. I think that they’ve had 12 years to show their stuff, and they’ve failed miserably.
Hypocrisy. Definitely. Well to put it in kind of a humorous way, I believe that they are so busy trying to get into everyone’s bedroom, that they’re in the men's restrooms at the same time. And I think they are just bizarre. They are corrupt.
We all have our problems, I’m sure, both parties, but I don’t see the Democrats pointing fingers all the time. I see the Republicans pointing fingers every time. And when you point fingers, you’d better have a clean past, and you’d better live up to what you are pointing your finger at.
They do not do that. Most of them who point their fingers the most are those who have the most things to hide in the closet.
A metaphor for Failed Conservative Values?: I’m sure that they could probably relate to a construction equipment called the Back Ho where they keep digging themselves into a hole every single time that they want to build something.
Self righteousness is a mask for hypocrisy and self importance. Carlos Castaneda
Hy·poc·ri·sy Definition
- a pretense of having a virtuous character, moral or religious beliefs or principles, etc., that one does not really possess.
- a pretense of having some desirable or publicly approved attitude.
- an expression of agreement that is not supported by real conviction
- insincerity by virtue of pretending to have qualities or beliefs that you do not really have
Hypocrisy From Wikipedia
Hypocrisy is the act of preaching a certain belief or way of life, but not, in fact, holding these same virtues oneself. For example, a teacher telling students they should not plagiarize, while secretly being a plagiarist himself. Hypocrisy is frequently invoked as an accusation in many contexts.
For linguist and social analyst Noam Chomsky, hypocrisy, defined as the refusal to "...apply to ourselves the same standards we apply to others" is one of the central evils of our society--promoting injustices such as war and social inequalities in a framework of self-deception, which includes the notion that hypocrisy itself is a necessary or beneficial part of human behavior and society.
Oh, look! This one offers a course in hypocrisy.
Every man alone is sincere. At the entrance of a second person, hypocrisy begins. Ralph Waldo Emerson
Some Questions for Discussion:
- What examples do you have of conservative hypocrisy?
- What is the progressive alternative to self-righteousness and hypocrisy?
- How have conservative values failed?
