For two generations after the Civil War, the Republican Party routinely won elections by running against the Confederacy and Jeff Davis (with a healthy dose of anti-Catholicism thrown in for good measure). One particularly inventive GOP candidate even took to carrying the alleged shirt of one of his martyred comrades around to his stump speeches. At the emotional climax of his rant against the treasonous Democrats and their papish ways, he would thrust the soiled, ragged garment over his head for the audience to see — thus the phrase "waiving the bloody shirt."
It was a powerful bit of theatre. But as the veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic aged and died and the wounds left by the war either healed or scarred over, the message gradually lost its kick — even among the GOP faithful.
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[I]f we’re lucky, very lucky, what happened then may happen again, making this election the last (and hopefully futile) wave for the Vietnam War’s version of the bloody flag.
The Bloody Shirt
A curious time warp argument by Billmon. The problem of course is that counter culture hatred is not as dead as it may seem. A large percentage of AM radio still has a steady diet of 60′-70’s fare – that would be like in 1970 finding the majority of radio fare still playing Rudy Vallee and The Andrews Sisters, which definitely was not the case. While much of the counter-culture has been absorbed into the mainstream, like Jimi Hendrix’s Star Spangle Banner soundtracking a Mountain Dew commercial, it still serves as a testament to its latent viability ( even though the content has been appropriated). Not to mention the connection between the Vietnam war and the one in Iraq and Afghanistan – both of which we’re on the verge of loosing, for very similar reasons. McCain will indeed use the Weathermen, to some advantage, because most Americans STILL need a weatherman to tell them which way the wind blows.
Posted by: anna missed | Aug 26 2008 7:58 utc | 1
The 50s are still seen as a golden age when everyone was happy, healthy, young, rich, and smart. The 60s radicals destroyed that era and lost a war to the red commies to boot. They destroyed everything clean and good about America.
Well, that is the myth that still holds power over the older set in the USA — and those old folks vote!
Posted by: Buckaroo | Aug 26 2008 9:53 utc | 2
Hopefully “those old folks” will croak soon. I’m afraid the people in this country are just too stupid to ever learn the truth for themselves, though. I see young people just as ignorant as I remember older folks being in my youth. There ought to be a certain intelligence level cut-off for voting. Don’t let the morons vote and there wouldn’t be much support for the corporate candidates we are allowed to “choose” from.
Posted by: JimT | Aug 26 2008 12:45 utc | 3
actually, its doubtful that the McCain/Rove team is any match for an Obama team thats going to fight back.
Posted by: jony_b_cool | Aug 26 2008 12:49 utc | 4
The notion that there was once a golden age of prosperity, loyalty, and normalcy is a powerful story in almost any culture — until (so the myth always continues), it was destroyed from within by traitors, by the laziness of the population; and by a vicious external enemy. All was lost.
Those who keep the spirit of the Golden Time alive dream of leading a rising to reestablish what they claim are the benefits of that wonderful time (most of which will accrue to them, the leaders).
As long as humans societies venerate power above wisdom, and those which grow fat from the misery inflicted upon others are viewed as models of the highest form of culture — some poor sods will buy Stars-and-Bars decals for their pickups, and wish it was always midafternoon on July 3 in 1863.
Posted by: Jemand von Niemand | Aug 27 2008 0:25 utc | 5