"I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue." ~ Barry GoldwaterToday marks the 50th anniversary of Barry Goldwater's clarion call for liberty in his 1964 acceptance speech for the Republican nomination. In today's world of mealy-mouthed political talk, much of which rings hollow, listening to Goldwater's message a half a century later is like a breath of fresh air, a thirst quenched in an arid desert of deceit (i.e., our D.C. cesspool).
To garner a better understanding of the full context, listen to the message Goldwater had for the establishment of his time that led up to those famous words...a message that rings so true with those of our time...TheHill: But the words were no less scary to politicians less than a year from President Kennedy's assassination. The establishment Republicans, then known as Rockefeller Republicans, played the same cozy games with their Democratic masters as the establishment Republican class does today with crony capitalist beneficiaries of big government.
The proposition of Goldwater's greatness wasn't over his ideas or any articulation of freedom, although it was those exact things that caused the uproar.
No, Goldwater's ideas were not on trial; instead it was the very concept that a man standing up for his beliefs without apology or compromise is heroic and great simply due to this clear-eyed piercing of the veil of big government political conformity that was in dispute.
The abstract of standing and fighting for freedom against insurmountable odds, never backing down, giving no quarter in spite of the temptation to compromise to gain political favor...
A great man who refused to blanch in the face of the beginnings of the overarching welfare state. A great man who declared, "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. ... [M]oderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."
A man who stood up for liberty, no matter the personal cost — Barry Goldwater was a great man, whose Tea Party fruit spring from the tree of liberty he planted 50 years ago.
And let me remind you also that those words were inspired by similar ones of Thomas Paine, echoing that Founding Father's sentiment (how extreme!)...
"Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is a species of vice."It is such principle that today's Republican Party, specifically its leadership, crucially lacks. However, the courage and vigilance of such a man as Barry Goldwater have not only inspired conservatives from Ronald Reagan to Ted Cruz, but have also invigorated a movement to push against the tide of today's moderate collusions and proudly fight for the sake of liberty once more. Thank you, Barry Goldwater.
H/t: ML
Related links: THE VINDICATION OF BARRY GOLDWATER: The man who made Reagan possible
Barry Goldwater, Father of the Tea Party
Mr. Conservative: Barry Goldwater at the 1964 Republican National Convention
Extremism In The Defense Of Liberty Is No Vice
Firing Line with William F. Buckley Jr. "The Future of Conservatism"
