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Condescension being a hallmark of liberalism is an age-old discussion. Yet, after Hillary Clintons stinging 2016 defeat to Donald Trump, some are wondering if their attitude to people who dont think, act, or live like them might be an issue in terms of bridging the cultural divide we have (i.e. urban vs. rural). Business Insiders Josh Barro, who also hosts Left, Right, and Center on KCRW, commented on this issue and offered ways in which his fellow Democrats can stop being so annoying. There are parts with which I disagree - namely that were a socially liberal country. I still think were right-of-center, but Barro is blunt and straightforward in his assessment that liberals have just become insufferable in their intolerance towards people who dont live in the urban bastions of progressivism. As a result, they have become the moral busybodies that was often a criticism of conservatism. Barro calls this particularly problem within liberalism the hamburger problem. And by cultural disconnect, hes not talking about policy stances either, which is often an excuse for liberals to think that theyre not out of touch.

Suppose you're a middle-income man with a full-time job, a wife who also works outside the home, and some children. Suppose it's a Sunday in the early fall, and your plan for today is to relax, have a burger, and watch a football game.

Conservatives will say, "Go ahead, that sounds like a nice Sunday." (In the Trump era, they're not going to bother you about not going to church.) But you may find that liberals have a few points of concern they want to raise about what you mistakenly thought was your fundamentally nonpolitical plan for the day.

Liberals want you to know that you should eat less meat so as to contribute less to global warming. They're concerned that your diet is too high in sodium and saturated fat. They're upset that the beef in your hamburger was factory-farmed.

They think the name of your favorite football team is racist. Or even if you hate the Washington Redskins, they have a long list of other reasons that football is problematic.

Beyond what you're doing this weekend, this movement has a long list of moral judgments about your ongoing personal behavior.

The SUV you bought because it was easier to install car seats in doesn't get good enough gas mileage. Why don't you have an electric car?

The gender-reveal party you held for your most recent child inaccurately conflated gender with biological sex. ("Cutting into a pink or blue cake seems innocent enough but honestly, it's not," Marie Claire warned earlier this month.)

You don't ride the subway because you have that gas-guzzling car, but if you did, the way you would sit on it would be sexist.

No item in your life is too big or too small for this variety of liberal busybodying. On the one hand, the viral video you found amusing was actually a manifestation of the patriarchy. On the other hand, you actually have an irresponsibly large number of carbon-emitting children.

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Liberals like to complain that working-class voters who back Republicans have voted "against their own self-interest," by which they implicitly mean economic self-interest. This idea could benefit from a little introspection.

Do liberals go into the voting booth and choose a candidate based on a narrow conception of economic self-interest? Of course not.

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Objectively, you would think the groups most substantively exposed to risk from the Trump presidency are low-income people who face benefit cuts and members of minority groups against whom he whips up and indulges negative sentiment.

Yet, as the Republican pollster Patrick Ruffini has pointed out in his analyses of turnout in House special elections, the "resistance" surge in Democratic turnout relative to Republican turnout is occurring almost entirely among college-educated whites. That is, the people most alarmed by Trump seem to be the ones who stand to lose the most cultural power, not those who stand to lose the most materially.

Barro later goes into how liberals can fix this perception that could hurt outreach initiatives since whether they like to admit it or not, Democrats need to win back white working class voters (i.e. Trump voters). One is working to diffuse the high tension on cultural issues and recognizing that this is not a sign of defeat or compromise. Actually, this can be applied to a whole host of issues that liberals will fight to the death on, like immigration. Here's the rest of his advice on what liberals should do to temper their cultural intolerance:

Don't tell people they should feel guilty. As I discussed at the top of this piece, Americans are broadly open to liberal positions on cultural policy issues. Over the last few decades, they have increasingly internalized the idea that the government should let people be free to do what they want in their lives. So embrace that ethos by emphasizing how liberal policy positions would let members of all sorts of groups live their best lives, protected from discrimination and harm. Don't tell people they should feel bad about living their own lives as they want.

Say when you think the liberal commentariat has gone overboard. While former President Barack Obama has urged people to eat less meat, usually the leading voices of the new liberal moralism are not politicians. Less-smug liberal commentators will usually protest that these voices are marginal, especially the college students who get so much attention on Fox News for protesting culturally insensitive sushi in the dining hall. If these voices are so marginal, it should be easy enough for Democratic politicians to distance themselves by saying, for example, that some college students have gotten a little nuts and should focus on their studies instead of the latest politically correct cause. Showing that you also think liberal cultural politics has gotten a little exhausting is a good way to relate to a lot of voters.

Offer an agenda that provides benefits people can see as mattering in their daily lives. If you want voters to refocus away from petty cultural fights and toward public policy, it's not enough to turn down the temperature on culture; you need a policy agenda they can relate to. I wrote in December about some ideas to do this though of course, you could also make such an agenda in farther-left flavors.

Don't get distracted by shiny objects. If the government can't do anything about the problem you're discussing if it's purely a matter of the cultural discourse should you spend your time on it and risk alienating people on the opposite side of the issue? Probably not.

You can debate among yourselves if this will actually take hold with Democratic Party leaders and the elite that keep the war chests funded. Right now, lets say its very possible that these could take hold. Democrats have no economic message for the 2018 midterms at present. Theyre divided, leaderless, and searching for a route to political revival. You never know what could be added into the mix, if they ever get to itfor a winning political message. At the same time, theres plenty to suggest this wont happen. The number of rural Democrats on the Hill is slim. Overall, theyre pretty much a species on the verge of extinction. They were all but wiped out in 2010. In Appalachia, a once robust bastion of Democratic support among working class whites, Hillary Clinton only won 21 out of its 490 counties. Thats a total collapse and Democratic elites may not want to even bother with rebuilding the party apparatus out there, though its necessary if they want to expand the map, especially for state and local races which are key to keeping a talent pool well maintained for future national races. Also, these people dont think white voters matter, which was crystal clear with the Clinton campaign.

Condescension seems to have its roots in American liberalism. Whenever its mentioned I always think back to the story between an aide and Adlai Stevenson, who, like Clinton, is also a two-time presidential loser; Stevenson ran and lost twice in 1952 and 1956. The tale goes that the aide was confident of a Stevenson win, saying to the Democratic candidate something along the lines of Mr. Stevenson, you have the thinking people on your side to which Stevenson replies, ah, but I need a majority. Snobbery and condescension may have always been ingrained in liberal politics, but social media made this virus airborne.

Even The New York Times Noticed the Dems' Obstructionism

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Business Insider: Liberals Can Win Again If They Stop Being Moral Condescending Busybodies - Townhall

Corporate Australia is facing criticism from the Liberal Party for not providing greater support.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull reportedly told a group of chief executives at a private dinner in Sydney on Monday night they needed to do more in terms of donating to the party and getting behind the government's pro-business policies.

The Australian Financial Review reported one source saying the prime minister had been "testy" about the point and was "determined to pursue anyone who should be putting their hand in their pocket".

Mr Turnbull was forced to chip in $1.8 million of his own money to keep the Liberals' 2016 election campaign afloat.

Liberal MP Jason Falinski said Mr Turnbull had a right to be angry with corporate Australia.

"The business community has just simply vacated the field," the NSW MP and former Liberal executive member told Sky News on Wednesday.

"What is business doing in terms of arguing against the bank (royal commission), arguing for business tax cuts, arguing for industrial relations reform - I can't see it."

He said the "massive behemoths" in the banking sector were not making the case for better financial regulation.

The problem had existed since the 2007 election, which was won by Labor on the back of a multi-million-dollar union campaign against the Howard government's WorkChoices laws.

"In the 2007 elections unions put in tens of millions of dollars into the campaign and where were they (business)? Still arguing about whether they should put in $50,000. Nothing has improved. It's just go worse," Mr Falinski said.

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Liberals cry poor over corporate support - NEWS.com.au

Retired army general Jim Molan, who is an architect of the governments border policies, said other Liberal party state divisions were doing better than NSW because their constitution allowed forms of plebiscites. Photograph: Dan Peled/AAP

Preselection candidate and retired major general Jim Molan has dared the New South Wales Liberal party to expel him by speaking publicly to broadcaster Alan Jones.

Ordinary Liberal party members are not entitled to speak in public on party matters but his comments come as the party prepares for a bruising fight at the weekend futures convention to discuss the partys constitution.

An architect of the governments border policies, Molan is one of a number of high-profile members who accuse the moderate or left faction, including the former NSW minister turned lobbyist Michael Photios, of wielding too much power in the party.

They are turning up the heat in a campaign to win support for the Warringah motion, hatched in Tony Abbotts seat by his federal electorate conference president, Walter Villatora. Abbott has spoken out in favour of reform since losing the leadership. A former member, John Ruddick, has predicted a split if the rule change does not happen.

John Howard originally proposed the rule change in a review of the party after he lost government and has since backed the change. Other high-profile supporters include the monarchist and legal academic David Flint and the assistant cities minister, Angus Taylor, who says people are regularly barred from joining the party in order for powerbrokers to maintain control.

If passed and accepted by the partys governing body, the state executive, the Warringah motion would give ordinary members a vote in local preselections for all MPs and office bearers.

Molan said while he respected the prime minister and the premier, the members had a right to seize back the party.

This party is not owned by the prime minister, its not owned by the premier or elected parliamentarians, much less its not owned by factions, its owned by us, the members, Molan said. There is a great old military philosophy of what you walk past you condone.

Tony Abbott urged Liberal members to vote for the Warringah motion because the NSW party had too many lobbyists and factional warlords.

That means one member one vote for all positions, particularly the preselection of candidates because at the moment weve got too many lobbyists, too many factional warlords who are pulling the strings, Abbott told 2GB.

We dont want our party to in any way resemble the faceless men of the Labor party and if we want the Liberal party to be a better party, I think weve got to get out there on Sunday in particular, and vote for one member one vote.

Molan urged Malcolm Turnbull and the NSW premier, Gladys Berejiklian, to use their authority to ensure there were no last-minute motions and that the conference was conducted fairly. Turnbull has previously supported more open preselections in NSW.

Fifteen-hundred members have registered for the event where the prime minister will speak on Saturday and the premier on Sunday.

It begins with a party state council meeting on Friday night, followed by a day of debate before the motions are discussed on Sunday.

After a video on what it means to be Liberal, debate topics include Future challenges and Does gender really matter? On Saturday afternoon, members will discuss how the party can remain relevant, winning back the youth from the left, social media in modern campaigning as well as preselection.

Opponents of the change in preselection rules suggest it will lead to branch stacking. The Liberal backbencher Julian Leeser and the assistant immigration minister, Alex Hawke, have suggested compromise motions that impose waiting periods before members can vote, activity tests and a grandfather clause to protect sitting members. Both MPs have been contacted for comment.

Molan described alternative motions as the plebiscite you are having when you are not having democracy.

Its not a play to replace the current lobbyist influence, leftwing faction with a rightwing faction, Molan said. All factions within this party over the last number of years have been as bad as each other.

Molan said other Liberal state divisions were doing better than NSW because their constitution allowed forms of plebiscites.

If it was a fair contest, one person one vote, we will get through this contest no problem at all because it is what the people want, Molan said. Brave elected members of parliament who have worked for their people over time should have nothing to fear by sitting in front of their people and saying vote for me.

The NSW Liberal party was contacted for comment.

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Jim Molan dares NSW Liberals to expel him by speaking to Alan Jones - The Guardian

All women are witches would be a truly provocative premise. But what is a witch in 2017? The author of Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive, dishes up different definitions, framing a witch-as-everywoman thesis to suit the modern day feminista. The witch is less a sorceress driven by the Devil or a terrible crone from a Russian folktale, more a politically engaged Pagan with a tumblr account. Author Kristen Sollee of Slutist.com earlier reclaimed slut for the womens movement but she didnt stop there! Sollee settles on a vague and inoffensive meaning of witch, n.: embodiment of a powerful femininity rooted in the earth, which transcends patriarchal influence. And her storyahem, herstorystarts with the sacred whores of Mesopotamian temples and culminates with Hillary Clintons presidential campaign.

An unbroken chain of nasty women joins the modern slut, who shalt not be shamed, to the witch, whos been maligned for millennia. (The witchs broom? Not just a broom, Sollee winks.) Her titular sex-positivity is about as subtle as the Slut Walks her website sponsors, vaguely political displays in which scantily clad hipsters take to the streets, daring the people of Santa Cruz to objectify them. And then a tenuous transition from the chapter Hillary Clinton: Wicked Witch of the Left to a celebration of the slut as the witch of the twenty-first century sets the archetype at war with itself.

Clinton, while no friend to the loose woman, came to own her witchery through frequent comparisons to Hermione Granger, the studious tryhard of young adult fiction fame. Vermont senator Bernie Sanders, whom Clinton beat by one type of black magic, hosted a link on his official website to a donors Bern the Witch fundraiser until a Clinton supporter complained and the Sanders campaign removed it. Shes a witch with a capital B, to Rush Limbaugh. Compared to the ubiquitous b word, Witch adds an element of supernatural evil that has no male equivalent in common use, writes Sollee.

This is the archetypal witch that sowed deadly paranoia in Salem circa 1692 and helped propel Stevie Nicks dark desirability. The essence of witchinessnow relieved of dark age superstition and the incumbent death sentence when a witch was discoveredstill evokes a secret, something shrouded in taboo and therefore unspeakably cool. Stevie Nicks wrote Rhiannon about an old Welsh witch, dresses in billowy capes and black velvet, and called her first solo album Bella Donna (otherwise known as sorcerers berry,) the plant belladonna brews a sinister sleeping potion). She denies rumors that shes a practicing pagan, and she wasnt oppressed by the patriarchy in any well-known way (although Sollee suggests otherwise without explanation, thickly worrying that she and other 1960s and 70s rockers allied themselves with witchcraft in a time when doing so was dangerous, and could even threaten their creative careers); Nicks was and is a performer who gives the people what they want, without giving too much away.

Sollee gets closest to the central contradiction in a meditation on the witch-slut dichotomy as a matter of concealment by degrees. She quotes fashion historian Valerie Steele on the attraction of concealment, as Sigmund Freud and Casanova knew it, and the neo-Victorian aesthetic [of] having the body all covered, draped in a mercurial black. Both sluts and witches thrive in high fashion. What distinguishes a slut from a witch? While more fabric often means more witchy, leaving less to the imagination is the sluts job. The slut lays bares what the witch keeps hidden. Denuding the witch demystifies her, and stripping away the mystique that made witchery alluring in the first place debases her to slut statuswhich, for the slutwalking sisterhood, is one kind of victory. Bur undressing witchy women, what Sollee aims to do, wont dent an historical sexism already in steep decline.

A commitment to intersectionality is non-negotiable, Sollee clarifies early on. But in one not so intersectional instance, Sollee invites us to look for the heiresses to Salems survivors among our sisters, How many of us are the granddaughters of the witches they could not burn? No skin off my nose, but surely only the WASPiest witches can trace their matrilineage to Cotton Mathers Massachusetts. Insistence on a trans-inclusive intersectional redefinition of witch in the age of social justice contortionism further confuses the witch-as-everywoman ideal: This book specifically looks at the indivisible links between the witch, femininity, and womanhoodwhich includes trans women and anyone on the feminine spectrumand the persecution women have faced as a result of their perceived connection with witchcraft.

There are now more women out there than ever casting spells and doing spooky things with pentagrams, apparently. Technology is just another tool at my magickal disposal. If I can conjure spirits with an old root and a circle of salt, why not through a website? witch Melissa Madara told Sollee in a survey. Internet witches hexed President Trump earlier this year in a spellcasting campaign to bind his harmful agenda and drive him from office. Amid the mercurial topography of the arduous journey toward gender equality, stands the witch, a beacon in blackand a loutish president has revived the call, Sollee writes. Trump tweets, meanwhile, about investigations into his administration's ties to the Putin regime as a witch hunt. Appropriating witchery is another problem, the unpacking of which leads our author to the broader commercial appropriation of a mercantile feminism marked by mass-produced This Is What a Feminist Looks Like t-shirtsand the ethical imperative that witch-identifying women use their magic toward anti-capitalist ends. (Although if I were a witch, I think Id use my powers to turn a profit.)

Its also clear that the archetypal witchs dark mystery shares an etiology with what Betty Friedan in 1963s Feminine Mystique called the problem that has no name. Whenever women collude, however inconsequentially, we get to enjoy a semblance of covenish conspiracy. And wherever women are excluded from public life, their sisterly camaraderie gleans an aura of mystery from menssometimes fatalsuspicions. (Women are still persecuted for sorcery in nations where superstition trumps gender equality.) Imagining devilry at the root of whatever escapes his understanding, man conjured the witch.

Excepting the occultists, the Wiccans, the truly weird, witchiness for most women can be a fashion choice or an otherworldly quality observed in an otherwise normal acquaintancemy grade school art teacher, for example. (Witches were also called intuitives," Sollee notes the euphemism multiple times.) Women dont go around worrying if their witchiness is showing, but if the witch in all of us remains, its still something of a secret. A wisp of wildness, the thread of a confusing Virginia Woolf passage slipping ecstatically away from sense and order, a womans wandering mind straining to catch up with itself. Progressive gender discourse prefers to deny indivisible gender, but according to Witches, Sluts, Feminists: Conjuring the Sex Positive, womens untraceable transcendent powercall it what you willhas persisted through millennia of persecution. Heres betting itll outlast the Trump administration, and the gender fluidity fad too.

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Liberals Love Witches - The Weekly Standard

In approving a $5.3 billion transportation package, Oregons state legislature passed the first bike tax in the nation. And in a state thats known for its cycling culture, its not sitting well with riders or sellers.

If Democratic Gov. Kate Brown signs the legislation, as shes expected to, a $15 tax on the sale of adult-sized bikes valued over $200 will go into effect Jan. 1, 2018.

The tax will be collected at the time of sale and will go toward projects that expand and improve commuter routes for nonmotorized vehicles and pedestrians.

Even still, cyclists arent happy.

BikePortland publisher Jonathan Maus called it an unprecedented step in the wrong direction.

We are taxing the healthiest, most inexpensive, most environmentally friendly, most efficient and most economically sustainable form of transportation ever devised by the human species, Mr. Maus said.

Oregon Republican Party Chairman Bill Currier blasted what he described as Ms. Browns endless obsession with finding new and innovative ways to take money out of the pockets of Oregon taxpayers.

She just continues to view the people of her state as nothing more than a piggy bank to fund her efforts to impose job-killing policies, said Mr. Currier in a statement. Now add anti-healthy, environmentally-unfriendly policies to that list. (The Washington Times)

Supporters note that there is no sales tax in Oregon so its not as though riders will be hit twice at the register.

Other proponents of the tax argue bikers arent paying their fair share.

Democratic state Rep. Earl Blumenauer defended the tax on bikes, for example, telling BikePortland that its a modest fee in the overall infrastructure package.

One of the arguments we hear repeatedly is that cyclists dont have any skin in the game so theres been blowback, Blumenauer said.

I hope people will take a look at the big picture and see how it all evolves and realize that if were going to be players in the bike/ped space, its important to be part of the whole process, he added.

Even The New York Times Noticed the Dems' Obstructionism

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Liberals vs. Liberals: Oregon's Bike Tax Isn't Going Over Well Among Riders - Townhall