The Guardian Jan 16, 2002

[barbara100 at jps.net]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/bush/story/0,7369,634169,00.html

All I am saying is give protest a chance 

Hans Nichols 
Wednesday, January 16, 2002 
The Guardian 

In matters of war and peace, we conservatives have come to rely on the left for dissent, as a regulator on our bellicose throttle. There seemed to be plenty of protesters during the Vietnam war and enough of that lot were still kicking when the US invaded Grenada. By the time the Gulf war rolled around, those zany dissenters even had a fresh batch of slogans. Clever. But today, I barely hear a murmur. The silence is deafening. Where have all the flower children gone? 

Not that I'd agree with them. By strange happenstance, my own views on Afghanistan, September 11, and al-Qaida tend to parallel those of the Bush administration. While I'm not entirely comfortable with the mass detentions and suspension of civil liberties, I can be convinced of their practical necessity. As New York political bosses used to say: "What's the Constitution between friends?" 

Still, I'm a bit confused about what's actually going on. And the American press isn't about to tell me. Reading the London papers, one wonders if they are covering the same war. Sure, the battles have similar names, but reactions on the home front are markedly different.

Imagine our collective shock and confusion at having our conservative ideas suddenly dominate the mainstream. To be honest, it's downright disorienting. We're used to forming our opinions by opposition. On a typical morning, I'll glance at the New York Times leaders just to know what not to think. I don't know what to make of agreeing with them. I suspect a cruel heist.

[
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Poor Sontag was left gasping: "I thought we were a rowdy, rambunctious, quarrelsome democracy. But it turns out we have increasingly become incredibly conformist, and very afraid of debate." Sontag would be wrong to suggest that conservatives are afraid of debate. I can assure her that conservatives are raring to go, especially with crowds of students ready to shout down their opponents. It's those on the left who seem timid in voicing their views. With Sontag as an example, their reluctance is understandable. Still, I wish I knew what the left was really thinking about now. It's awfully cold and dark in this conservative media box. Wake me in the spring. 

 Hans Nichols writes for the Washington Times. 


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