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The Rumors of Liberty's Demise Have Been Greatly Exaggerated

We often hear the lament that the progressivists control over our society's major institutions places the advocates for individual liberty at a serious disadvantage in the marketplace of ideas. We would do ourselves a disservice by ignoring this fact. We do ourselves an equal disservice, however, by obsessing over it.

Let's face the facts. The progressivists' control over certain institutions gives them certain strategic advantages. In the short term, their strategic advantages make our job more difficult in certain areas. Bottom line:

They control the public schools.

They control the universities.

They control the entertainment industry.

They control the major newspapers and magazines.

They control the mainstream broadcast media.

Truthfully, there is little that can be done about this in the short term. To the extent we can do anything about it, such efforts are not a particularly good use of our very limited resources. For the time being, the progressivists will continue to control these institutions and use them to amplify their influence over public opinion.

We need not pretend otherwise. We face experienced, well-funded, well-equipped enemies. Lamenting this won't change it. It is a strategic reality we simply build into the equation and move forward.

Compounding all this is our own situation. We are inexperienced, sparsely-funded and underequipped. Truth be told:

In terms of SIZE and POWER, we're nearly as outmatched as David against Goliath.

When it comes to NUMBERS, we're nearly as outnumbered as the Greek volunteers at Thermopylae facing King Xerxes' vast professional army.

As far as RESOURCES and EXPERIENCE go, we may be less prepared than Washington's bare-footed militiamen at Valley Forge.

In terms of COHESION and UNITY, we may very well be as bad off as Sam Houston's infighting coalition of backbiting irregulars facing Santa Anna's unified professional army.

As to STRATEGIC POSITION, we are every bit as surrounded as General McAuliffe's battered, frost-bitten troops at Bastogne.

And all of that might give cause for deep despair if not for the fact that the every one of those stubborn underdogs ultimately prevailed--and so will we.

In every case above, the underdogs enjoyed their own advantages and they made the most of those advantages. And we will do the same.

While we must be realistic about what we're up against, I recommend we not give our enemy more credit than they deserve. The resources held by the other side, while still considerable, no longer hold the power they once held. Consider:

The lefties control the big three evening news desks--resources that become less relevant every day in an age of internet, talk radio and cable news. People no longer rely on the big three for their news anymore.

The lefties control the major newspapers and magazines, but that's easily addressed, if need be. If you want to control a magazine company, you could probably go buy one; Newsweek was recently sold for $1.00. Same with TV Guide.

The top 10 most-viewed cable news shows are all on FOX News. Every single one.

The most-listened-to talk radio hosts are Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Mark Levin, and Michael Savage.

The most-read political websites include Drudge, Newsmax, The Blaze, Washington Times, Free Republic, National Review and Town Hall, all conservative.

The lefties' pitiful management of the public schools is fueling substantial growth in private schools and homeschooling and a continuing call for increased education options for the poor.

The lefties' mismanagement of the universities is pricing themselves out of the market. A university diploma is no longer the good investment it once was--and the people are catching on to that fact.

None of this is to say that we can afford to kick back and relax. We can't. They won't rest, and neither can we. Stopping the progressivists will take sustained, unrelententing pressure. It will take tireless dedication and continuous effort.

And here's the part that some don't want to hear, but it's the truth: IT WILL TAKE TIME.

It took us OVER A CENTURY to get ourselves into this sorry state, and it will take at least DECADES to get things back on something resembling a correct path.

There is no silver bullet.

There is no magic elixir.

There is no quick fix.

There is, however, a cavalry that can--AND WILL--ultimately save the day.

The cavalry is US.