JULY 18, 2019 – My favorite lines in the classic, Lost Horizon by James Hilton, are spoken by Chang, an initiate of the lamasery in Shangri-La, to-wit:
If I could put it into a very few words, dear sir, I should say that our prevalent belief is in moderation. We inculcate the virtue of avoiding excesses of all kinds—even including, if you will pardon the paradox, excess of virtue itself.
The lines remind me of my dad, who espoused moderation to such a degree, he was an extremist about it. Classic example: up at the cabin, on a hot, humid, breezy day, he’d open the porch casement windows slowly, moderately just a few inches. When I asked why not wider, he’d say, “If ya open ‘em wide up, you’re gonna let all kinds of dust and dirt into the cabin.”
Dad was conservative politically. Given his refinement and reasonableness, I often wonder what in the world he would have made of the current president. One thing I don’t have to wonder about is what Dad would have thought of “the Squad.” He definitely would not have approved.
There I stop and ponder, because I think Dad represented a huge swath of the American electorate—still in play today. And as much as I hate to contemplate it, I think if Dad were alive today, he’d plug his nose and vote for the re-election of President Nonsense or, more likely, simply not vote for president.
When it comes to some aspects of the progressive agenda, I “get it.” If you think climate change is real and caused by human activity; if you believe that within 20 years earth will be “GAME OVER” if we don’t do something drastic now, then, to borrow from Barry Goldwater, “Excess in the name of saving the planet is no vice.” Likewise, if you’re a black person who suffers under the legacy of institutionalized discrimination and who has been told since the end of the Civil War to “Hang in there; change will come, so be patient,” you’re not going to be a big fan of someone like Senator Joe Biden. In fact, you might think that none of the “progressive” Democratic candidates is progressive enough for your vote.
But no policy within 10 miles of any part of the progressive agenda has a chance if the current regime is given another four years. Our Republic is already damaged goods. Much of the damage can be undone—even by a conservative of yore (if there is still such a thing). But if the president is re-elected and the Republicans hold onto the Senate, then our country will be “GAME OVER” even before earth folds.
Progressives need to face the stark reality that a material chunk of the electorate are “extreme moderates” like my dad was. Accordingly, if “GAME OVER” is to be avoided, Chang’s imperative—avoiding an excess of virtue—needs to be heeded. “Perfection” mustn’t be the enemy of “essential.”
© 2019 Eric Nilsson
