Senator Jerry Moran (R-KS) thought yesterday was a fine time to get Charles Koch's "mainstream" opinion piece into the public record by reading it in its entirety on the senate floor.
April 5, 2014

You've really got to hand to their little foot soldiers, they're nothing if not completely brazen and shameless in their devotion. Note how carefully Moran inserts that what the Kochs represent is mainstream thought.

MORAN: I happened to be reading the Wall Street Journal this morning, and I noticed a column, an opinion piece written by the chairman of the board of Koch Industries, Charles G. Koch, and I wish to share that with my colleagues today.

It seems to me the things that are outlined in Mr. Koch’s opinion piece, while not everyone would agree, they are certainly within the wide mainstream of American thought and certainly reflect opinions that are worthy of debate and discussion in our country and on the Senate floor.

And what "mainstream" viewpoint do the Kochs espouse?

CHARLES KOCH: A truly free society is based on a vision of respect for people and what they value. In a truly free society, any business that disrespects its customers will fail, and deserves to do so. The same should be true of any government that disrespects its citizens. The central belief and fatal conceit of the current administration is that you are incapable of running your own life, but those in power are capable of running it for you. This is the essence of big government and collectivism.

All right. So a far right, tea party view is considered mainstream. Go on, Mr Koch.

The more government tries to control, the greater the disaster, as shown by the current health-care debacle. Collectivists (those who stand for government control of the means of production and how people live their lives) promise heaven but deliver hell. For them, the promised end justifies the means.

Instead of encouraging free and open debate, collectivists strive to discredit and intimidate opponents. They engage in character assassination. (I should know, as the almost daily target of their attacks.) This is the approach that Arthur Schopenhauer described in the 19th century, that Saul Alinsky famously advocated in the 20th, and that so many despots have infamously practiced. Such tactics are the antithesis of what is required for a free society—and a telltale sign that the collectivists do not have good answers.

And on and on it goes, mostly trying to convince you what great people the Koch Brothers are and not at all "Un-American" or "trying to rig the system", as mean old Harry Reid and others have alleged.

As for Moran, Eric Dolan over at Raw Story noted via Searchlight that Koch Industries are the #1 sponsor of Senator Jerry Moran. Imagine that.

Can you help us out?

For nearly 20 years we have been exposing Washington lies and untangling media deceit, but now Facebook is drowning us in an ocean of right wing lies. Please give a one-time or recurring donation, or buy a year's subscription for an ad-free experience. Thank you.

Discussion

We welcome relevant, respectful comments. Any comments that are sexist or in any other way deemed hateful by our staff will be deleted and constitute grounds for a ban from posting on the site. Please refer to our Terms of Service for information on our posting policy.
Mastodon