Cliches conservatives say

May 06, 2012|Clarence Page
  • Jonah Goldberg's new book takes on the political cliches that many people utter as a substitute for original thought.
Jonah Goldberg's new book takes on the political cliches that many people utter as a substitute for original thought. (Handout photo)


That would explain his new book, which takes on one of the world's least threatening problems, the political cliches that many people utter as a substitute for original thought.


As such, he focuses on the cliches that trouble him most, and they happen to be those that he has heard uttered by liberals. That's sort of like reading Playboy for the articles; it's interesting, but something important is missing.


But the more of Goldberg's book I read, the more appreciation I feel for the pithy power of the bumper-sticker truisms he ridicules.

I like, for example, the old chestnut, "Better 10 guilty men go free than one innocent man suffer." Goldberg responds, "So you won't mind if those 10 guilty men move next door to you?" Sure, but why blame the innocent guy for the 10 guilty guys next door? I would blame our criminal justice system for its failure to do what taxpayers pay them to do: Protect not only our lives and property but also our constitutional rights.

This barroom argument would not annoy me as much if there were not 289 exonerations of convicted individuals thanks to DNA evidence since 1989, according to the Innocence Project. The DNA era confirms some of our worst fears: We're getting the worst of both worlds; innocents are suffering while the guilty go free. And Goldberg gets to joke about it.









•"America: Love It Or Leave It." Funny, but I haven't heard that one much since President Barack Obama's election. Can we bring it back?


That was a joke. It's not a cliche, yet. But give it time.


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