Is This Conservativism?

Ok - there's a good reason for the picture.  Hang in there and read on...

Last night I attended a "Freedom Alliance" concert in San Diego hosted by Sean Hannity and Oliver North.  There were special appearances by Fred Thompson, Jon Voight, Lee Greenwood, Montgomery-Gentry, and even Michael W. Smith.  It was a time filled with parachuting Navy SEALS, George W. Bush / Hillary Clinton impersonators, country music, and local talk-radio personalities.  The goal of the concerts is to raise money for the children of soldiers killed in battle - and to date they have given over $1 million in scholarships.  Amen to that.

Now on to the picture.  When we were walking to our seats we noticed that there were huge silhouetted woman decals decorating the stage.  We later learned this was part of the Montgomery-Gentry country music act.  Fair enough, but imagine the jarring disconnect of this backdrop while Michael W. Smith sang Gospel music.  I'm sorry, but it was too big to miss.  Add to that a bunch of ass-kicking "my town" song / talk, and you have yourself one heck of an interesting experience!  Go America! (?)

Now here is my quandry.  Is this the face of main-stream conservativism in America now?  Power, sex, country, and... Jesus?  Let me say it again - POWER, SEX, COUNTRY, and JESUS.  Just to be clear - I like Sean Hannity and Oliver North for the most part.  I understand their deep frustration with the radical liberal agenda that is eroding our freedoms.  However, I wonder if these guys realize how a concert like this "presents" to the watching world.  Again, they've raised a million dollars for scholarships and I haven't.  I get that.  I'm just struggling with the ethos of this thing.  If this is what conservativism is now, we're in big trouble. 

There's a place for fun, power, country, and even sex.  I don't think I'm a prude.  But as an American citizen who happens to be heavenly citizen I am left a little concerned.  What say you, Americans?

Comments

[Theisens]

You could probably draw a lot of similar parallels from this and the church. A lot of the things they are doing are totally grandstanding, and over the top. But then you have them raising $1 mil for kids.

I think it's just a result of "conservatives" not wanting to "liberal". A fight that continues in the church as well.

As far as the backdrop--they know their audience. I mean, look at the music (country, M.W. Smith? Gimmie a break.)

[John]

Yeah, unfortunately, this is often the case. Reminds me of college. A lot of good friends were frat boys/Young Republicans who were brought up Southern Baptist or PCA, and would defend God or America in a heartbeat (sometimes with questionable antics like ripping signs from Iraq war protestors). The same boys liked their binge drinking, occasional trips to "gentlemen's clubs" when out of town, and (in some cases), casual sex. And I can't say I wasn't guilty of some of this myself at times. Sad but true... Maybe we need a fresh start with Ron Paul or something...

[Troy Greene]

Bret,
I have noticed this as well. I read CNN.com for one of my news sources and recently I went to Foxnews.com to see an article and was surprised by the semi-nude links that seem to plague its conservative news. Very interesting. Check out the differences btw the two. What is the link with sex and political conservatives?

Peace,
Troy

[ryan]

Honestly, it strikes me as little more than standard fare co-opting of religion for political ends, and that in a very American way.

all the things you note can be linked by by a general nostalgia for 'when times were better' (or at least constructed to be).

In American public discourse--now and earlier--Christianity has mostly been allowed as either a vague morality, or an even more vague appeal to God (for whatever cause). Appeals to Christianity in a more full orbed sense has generally been frowned upon (at least). And in America, these appeals have usually been made for various Nationalist agendas a la Manifest Destiny, American Exceptionalism, and the like.

But this history is also home to an unquestioned Patriarchy that at it's worst had a tendency to treat women as little more than sexual objects; or if not that, be taken up with the cult of pure womanhood, only to denigrate most actual women, and justify male behavior.

[al]

First time posting here...

Boneman (I assume this is the proper address),

As the saying goes, Politics makes for strange bedfellows.

In America we tend to compartmentalize much of our life. The Lordship of Christ is put into a separate category of our being. We are then taken aback when things don't work out that way in reality.

Many Christians think that they can keep their politics and their faith ontologically separate. What happens in real life is a grafting in of the gospel into politics, making it a part of the whole.

This would be great if the gospel were dominate, but the fact is when we (Christians) enter politics we do everything we can to keep Christ separate... from actually taking over. It happened to the liberals with their state as savior theology and it has happened to conservatives and their moral majority.

al sends

[Michael]

When Fox News' morning show started featuring Mancow out of Chicago, it became apparent what conservatism had become: flag-waving perverts who throw in Jesus to make the cause righteous. Country music has become the same thing. You can enjoy the Garth Brooks'shagging-in-the-bed-of-your- truck music and then throw in a little Brooks and Dunn "Only in America," with a little George Strait's "A Father's Love" sprinkled in, and it's like we've been to church. Rah. Rah. I can't say that Hannity's "bomb the hell out of 'em and let God sort 'em out" conservatism is all that attractive.

[Andrew Matthews]

Wow. It is for these reasons that I take Dennis Prager over Limbaugh and Medved over Hannity. Because liberalism is now aligned with America haters, everyone with patriotic sentiment comes over to the Republican party's big tent.

Part of the reason for the naked woman decal is its association with truck driver and biker red-neckism that has gone mainstream. It is a recognized symbol of the white American under class.

As long as the Republican party plausibly remains the patrotic party and continues to identify itself with working class
"values," we can expect to see more of the same.

[DooDah]

> Are you saying she should wear a burka?
> I've heard Sean Hannity interview Franklin Graham - I'd rather look at the silhouette!
> This is why you should listen to Michael Medved instead -- he only has one kingdom!
> And where was Michael W. Smith positioned when he played?
> Actually, if you stare intently at the silhouette for 30 seconds, and close your eyes, you'll see a picture of Jesus forgiving the woman caught in adultery.