Letters: Deconstructing conservatism

WHEN LETTER-writer Stuart Caesar parrots the conservative money-interest's line that every thing President Obama is trying to accomplish is somehow equal to "socialism," what is he really saying?

When a conservative calls something "socialism," all they really mean is that someone other than themselves or their big-money friends stands a chance to make a portion of the profits. Liberals may be starry-eyed and naive, but at least they are not petulant and greedy.

If you want to know what the U.S. Constitution says about the duties of the president, check out Article II, Sections 2 and 3.

While it's true that the president's duties have become more complex since the Constitution went into effect in 1789, I'm not sure that just "cutting taxes" and "killing terrorists" are the president's sole duties, even if that's what Stuart Caesar believes.

Let's say Mr. Caesar is right - wouldn't it be really helpful to make sure the person is actually a "terrorist" before we kill him?

But then, that means we would have to follow the legal procedures outlined in the Constitution because we are, after all, a country that prides itself on following the law.

And since the rights listed in the Constitution have served us well for the last 200-plus years, there's no reason to assume they will fail us now.

Right?

Sadly, that's not what this new breed of aggressive, self-proclaimed "patriots" believe.

Be wary of anyone who reflexively calls any attempt to improve the lives of U.S. citizens "socialism" or thinks the only way we can rightfully honor the Constitution is by actively ignoring it.

I ask all decent, intelligent and thoughtful Americans to stand up to these fools. We have a glorious and successful history on our side.

All they have is Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin.

Michael McGonigle

Philadelphia