Former Republican Party chair Michael Steele tells us the culture wars are mostly done, at least in Washington, D.C. You might agree with him or not, but hear him out. Mr. Steele's argument is that the culture wars this time are playing out differently, in a way that involves you:
What you're seeing now is something a little bit closer to home, which is a state-by-state approach, discussion, argument, however you want to put it, that's occurring at the state level, which is where I have always believed it should be. These decisions affect communities closest to where people are. And that's where you're seeing this played out.
Take Kansas, for one, where legislators now have a clear runway for new restrictions on abortion. Or Georgia, where a new bill would ban the procedure after 20 weeks. Or Arizona, where the legislature is considering a measure to allow concealed weapons on college campuses.
I'm wondering how you see the culture wars where you live -- please hit the comments, and leave links if you've got 'em. They're a huge help.
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There is a culture war going on in Indiana, where the legalization of marijuana is becoming more of a reality.
Already Hamilton County is effectively decriminalizing it due to budgetary reasons and the PAC Re-Legalize Indiana has gained some traction in the State House. They're far from legalizing, but it's starting a debate among Hoosiers.
http://www.indystar.com/article/20110127/LOCAL0104/101270463
http://www.mlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/01/sen_mike_green_ready_for_debat.html
maine legislators are trying to enact arizona-like immigration law.
http://www.sunjournal.com/state/story/976358
Iowa state house says "watch what we say, not what we do" (gay marriage)
http://iowaindependent.com/51490/iowa-gop-says-focus-is-economy-despite-push-for-gay-marriage-ban
http://www.americanindependent.com/158498/could-the-legislature-push-fetal-personhood-amendment-onto-ballots
The Nebraska Legislature has already introduced an Arizona-style illegal immigration bill, and there were some protesters out yesterday:
#rally-opposes-immigration-bill
In that article, you can also follow a link to the bill text.
http://tinyurl.com/4hrracf
"Bradley H. Jones Jr., a Republican state representative, said the Evergreen Solar case was one of “leading with your heart and not your head."
What he meant was: "...Lead with your wallet not with your heart..."
Heath Shulers Anti Gay church in my town of Asheville NC. You would love this little city in the woods. Dont let this church fool you Asheville is a mecca in the woods for many a freak. The people who go to this church live outside of the city. They call us Trashville.
http://www.queerty.com/anti-gay-north-carolina-baptist-church-stealing-modern-familys-marketing-20100821/
http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/111973514.html?elr=KArksi8cyaiUjc7YUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aU7DYaGEP7vDEh7P
Ellison and Bachmann share a border, but not much else.
http://iowaindependent.com/46519/anti-retention-leaders-iowa-just-the-start-of-gay-marriage-battle
Thank you for addressing the programs that are on the chopping block as a residual recommit to the culture wars. The very idea that cutting support for research or stopping the funding to institutions that allow educational and mind broadening experiences at local cultural heritage institutions throughout the country is essential to our broader national Health is absurd. The effectiveness of these programs and the economy of these programs is a model for other more wasteful programs in the country.
Let us not forget that those children who are home-schooled often attend museums and landmarks as a means of completing their educational and historical knowledge goals. Perhaps an investigation into the number of home-schooled children who attend museums and landmarks that receive funding from the NEA, IMLS, Zoos arts and Parks grants, etc. could be a means of bringing to more conservative communities the impact that will be felt in home-schooling efforts if these programs are cut. The message is that these institutions should be generating their own funding however by-and-large, they do generate their own funding through endowments and benefactor gifts with minimal matching or term-grants from Federal granting agencies.
Please bring this issue forward more. The professional list-serves in fields affected by these desired cuts are exploding with questions of how they, already on shoestring budgets, will continue to protect the documents, objects and images of our cultural heritage if they see further cuts. Thank you for addressing this. Millions of librarians, museum professionals, park service workers, landmark preservation personnel, conservators and archivists are deeply concerned about these issues and have yet to see them receive much voice on a national level.
http://www.sunjournal.com/state/story/976358
maine legislators trying to enact arizona-like immigration bill
Well CT is not a state known for battles on social issues but The Family Institute of CT is waging a campaign ("40 Days For Life") where they send volunteers to abortion clinics to block walkways and shout at women seeking services.
I am always surprised at the lengths people will go to dictate what other people are required to do. I suppose it is the training we receive from religion, which is still the major controlling entity of masses of people. I think of the first person living in a tiny community of humans who realized that they could not work as hard and would receive extra food and drink because they told a good story around the fire- and wonder what they would think of the resulting social dictates and structures and religions that evolved out of the human need to hear those stories. When will people stop being so unsure of themselves and shed the need of being told what to do by other people?
Iowa state house says "watch what we say, not what we do" regarding economy/gay marraige.
http://iowaindependent.com/51490/iowa-gop-says-focus-is-economy-despite-push-for-gay-marriage-ban
In Wisconsin our new Republican overlords haven't gotten to the culture wars yet. But given the break-neck pace at which Scott Walker has been ramming through his pro-corporation bills (see link below), I imagine he'll be getting around to the pro-evangelical, "pro-life," anti-gay stuff in another week or two.
http://www.postcrescent.com/article/20110121/APC0101/101210462/Wisconsin-Governor-Scott-Walker-pushes-legislation-in-blitz-unlike-other-states
In my small midwestern suburb, a city council member floated a proposal to change the name of our town to that of the megachurch which he and other council members belong to.
Tea Party backers voted to close our library. I can't figure out what they hate about books. Is it because some books may talk about evolution, the fact that the world is round, not flat, or the fact that the earth revolves around the sun and not the other way around?
When the Right talk about values in my town, they tried to use the phrase "Judeo-Christian," until the local rabbi told them to knock it off and stop trying to hijack Judaism.
My town is a mess. It's run by the Tea Party, Religious Right and Libertarians. They are sinking us into the ground with their anti-tax views. If we can't raise taxes, we can't salt or plow our roads, fix potholes, etc. Combine that with a lack of a public library and my town will eventually fail. Who's going to want to move here? That is what the culture war has done to us.
Watch Iowa - first in nation caucuses, federally funded culture war experts FRC Chapter "Iowa Family Policy Center" leading charge against gay marriage, abortion and tossing around "personhood."
Money has come not only from Federal Government to Iowa anti-gay group but anti-gay powerhouses donated to oust 3 Supreme Court Justices that allowed gay-marriage:
Former Huckabee State Chair - Bob VanderPlaats - leading "The Family Leader" (fka Iowa Family Policy Center) on a 99 county tour targeting remaining justices and leveraging "momentum" of 2010 elections:
I'm from Texas.... I think I pretty much covered it. Oh, and our funds that support community colleges and stuff? That's looking to be cut when we could pay for it FIVE times over with the rainy day fund of 9 BILLION dollars (mwuahahahaha). This would mean that if we funded education alone, community colleges wouldn't have to close for the next ten years. This is happening at a time when college enrollment is rising...in a state that doesn't do so hot.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7392245.html
Oh yeah, and the Repub mayor of Enfield CT tried to ban the showing of "Sicko" in the public library.
http://www.courant.com/hc-green-sicko-0128-20110127,0,5780514.column
Anti-sharia amendments in places like Wyoming and South Carolina, following Oklahoma's lead in the '10 election: http://billingsgazette.com/news/state-and-regional/wyoming/article_8c294286-29da-11e0-b8b8-001cc4c03286.html and http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0111/Antisharia_in_South_Carolina.html?showall
i have noticed that Republicans are intentionally ramping up the culture wars, especially when more than one Republican ,including a state rep here in AZ, started making loud noises about the 'holocaust' created in the last decades ,due to abortion. these are not protestors, these are legislators, BTW.I though, aha, they got nothing' , so they are fanning the flames as fast as they can to reignite all these issues.
My state, Arizona , is headed off the deep end, with Sen Russell Pearce and the Goldwater Institute calling the shots
The local Tea Party shows up at EVERY meeting held by a state rep in this area. they have predetermined questions and talking points , which they receive from places like the Goldwater Institute as well as the National Tea Party, and they are not shy about applying pressure. the rest of us, the majority ,are going to have to start doing the same thing. it will be rancorous, you will be bullied and shunned, but we have to start doing this.
Not sure why links didn't show up - apologies for multiple entries here:
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2011101230306
http://iowaindependent.com/46519/anti-retention-leaders-iowa-just-the-start-of-gay-marriage-battle
http://washingtonindependent.com/97563/federal-grant-agency-for-faith-based-organizations-lacks-oversight-transparency
http://iowaindependent.com/50094/vander-plaats-plans-99-county-tour-targeting-remaining-judges
http://www.bleedingheartland.com/diary/4537/new-abortion-restrictions-could-stall-in-the-iowa-house
I have no link to share, but Michigan is one, big culture war. We have Ann Arbor, where I live (referred to as "Little Russia on the Huron" by conservative talk show host and U of M football announcer Frank Beckman). The school system is excellent, the hospitals are cutting edge, and the general attitude tends to be very progressive. The same can be said for most of southeastern Michigan.
Further north are the very rich, the very poor, and the Michigan militia, who think we in the more urban areas are a bunch of potheads and welfare queens. There's a somewhat notorious KKK outpost near Howell, MI. The attitude held by both the rich and poor, ironically, is anti-union, very fundamentalist, anti-gay, anti-choice, etc. Michelle Bachmann came to talk there, if that says anything.
And there you have Michigan, the country's only mitten-shaped swing state. I think it will go red in 2012, personally, with the republican governor and the redistricting that's about to happen. Hopefully, I'm wrong.
This is the article where AZ Rep. Linda Gray says Roe v. Wade was a factor in Tucson shootings . (Actually Jared Loughner is evidently anti-choice, not that it matters)
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/25/linda-gray-roe-v-wade-arizona-shooting_n_813388.html
And here's another example of local action on state law, affecting our federal right to choice
www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/.../20101029arizona-abortion-rule-licensed-physician-required.html