Some thoughts on… Conservative Rage

Muslim rage has been a topic of conversation for the past few months.  Syria, Libya,  Yemen, Pakistan are examples of countries where citizens have expressed fury at the government leading to political instability.  Some have speculated that this may be a common theme across Muslim countries where the population feels it is losing control of its destiny.  The attribution that Islam is a contributing factor to the unrest seems simplistic, especially given that we are facing similar rage here in the United States.

Despite a tough economy, the overwhelming win for Barack Obama, may be less a nod towards the achievements of the President, and more a rejection of the policies espoused by the Republican Party.  The systematic disenfranchisement of ethnic groups, women, gays and lesbians, had a backlash in the election this year.  The vote was a clear renunciation of the call for continued “traditional American achievement” which could be interpreted as older, white, male conservative achievement.

In addition, future demographics are not in the GOP’s favor.  Their current constituency was on obvious display at the Republican National Convention this year, where the audience’s homogeneity was a prominent point of discussion. Unless a more centrist candidate comes forward, it may be difficult to sway the younger generation of voters who see the party as an out-of-touch, aging grandparent.

So now, it is conservatives’ turn to be angry.  Many feel they have lost their country and don’t see what can be done to regain the past glory.  What can the conservative party do to regroup and be a strong voice in politics again?  Let’s see what the Arts have to say.

Bring it On is the story of competing high school cheerleading teams, based on the film franchise.  One school is white, upper-class headed by an ambitious Eve Harrington, a young ingénue willing to do anything to win.  The other is an urban, multi-racial one that is more disjointed in leadership.  The themes for the musical are not new.
What is new are Lin-Manuel Miranda’s rat-a-tat lyrics evoking our culture and lingual diversity while at the same time complementing traditional musical-fare, along with the skyrocketing choreography of the teams.  Miranda may be the heir to Sondheim.  The parallels to the current election are apparent, but the twist is that in the end, the rich school wins the top prize.  The learning is that the top dog may still be successful, but the victory is tainted by the deals made to get there.

Bond is back in Skyfall, which one-ups Casino Royale. The movie takes on the question of the utility of a beat-up and broken, cold-war era spy in a cyber world.  The 50 year series needed a re-boot and with Sam Mendes direction, it got one.    Bond’s hand-to-hand combat has little use, in a world where economic markets can be destroyed by the click of a button.  A poignant scene is when the new Q (played brilliantly by Ben Whisaw) who is half Daniel Craig’s age provides him only with a gun and remote tracking device –  no more fancy cars, no more shooting pens that are old-fashioned and redundant.  Bond’s job is just to pull a trigger and know when to do so.  The movie demonstrates that there is still a role for an old spy, but he needs to be surrounded and supported by the younger generation.

The revival of Cyrano de Bergerac, is an opportunity to see the historic play, updated with a fresh translation.  The story of the dare-devil swordsman with the heart of a poet and the nose of a pig is always timely.  His love for Roxanne which is translated through the cipher of a younger, more handsome cadet is heartbreaking and humorous.  In this production, Douglas Hodge brings the panache and energy required for a larger than life character.  As the story ends, Cyrano decries the things in his life that he fought against -

prejudice, cowardice and compromise. He promised never to surrender to these ideals, and because of this he dies having spent his life paying visits to his true love as no more than a friend.

Rage is an easy outlet, but eventually reflection will be needed to regain a strong voice.  The GOP will need to drop its alliance with the far right and rediscover its more centrist voice.  Like Romney, if a future candidate makes deals with ultra-conservative but promises to govern from the center, the populace will distrust her ability to do so.  It will need to embrace the new America, which is different from the traditional America.  This includes a younger generation that overwhelmingly supports gay rights, a Hispanic population that demands fairer immigration laws, and women who refuse to lose their reproductive rights.  Not compromising may be a good ideal for a fighter and poet like like Cyrano but not for a political party.  Otherwise the GOP may be become as obsolete as a pocket pen with shooting bullets from the 1960’s.

November 11, 2012