Lettuce--Your Latest Taste of GOP Hypocrisy

It seems that every day, in every way, it gets harder and harder to top the mindboggling examples of Republican hypocrisy.  Our "National Security President" is now directly involved in selectively leaking classified information; our "smaller government" party is now ballooning the deficit and wiretapping domestic-to-domestic calls; and our "moral values" leaders are nothing more than shoplifters and pedophiles.

All this, of course, falls into the well-established realm of IOKIYAR hypocrisy (It's OK If You're a Republican).  But what is even more compelling to me is the way not just these people themselves are absolved by their supporters of stunning levels of hypocritical guilt, but the way that their very ideologies themselves run into conflict with one another--in ways that would make any otherwise honest person's head explode.

One such case came up recently in Dubai Ports Deal, and I explained it in my diary Ports, Inc.: Welcome to Flatworld.  In short, the ship of neo-liberal free market global corporate ideology was dashed squarely on the rocks of national security when it came time for an Arab national company to control our port security.  Although a few big-business Republicans claimed that handing over our ports to Dubai was just peachy in our brave new world of corporatocracy, most couldn't support it and still maintain the façade of being strong on national security.  In other words, just sheer hypocrisy.

Well, today's example involves lettuce.  Yes, lettuce.  I've been noticing a distinctly lettuce-flavored meme running around right-wing politics lately, and I figured it was worth checking out--and it is.  It's amazing what can happen when you do a google search for "pay more for lettuce"...

------------------------------------

You see, free market Republicans claim that everything can be solved by an unbridled free market--especially to provide lower prices.  A short list:

the corrupt and evil community-destroying practices of Wal-Mart are okay because, well, they offer lower prices in the free market.

The trade deficit with China is okay because, well, they sell us cheap crap at low prices.

NAFTA and CAFTA are great ideas even though they depress American wages because we get lower prices at our stores.

Unions are evil because union labor increases prices.

Exploitation of third-world children by the globalized labor market is okay because it leads to lower prices.

Propping up corrupt Saudis and evil regimes in the Middle East is okay because it lowers oil prices.

And God Forbid ANYONE should ever consider RAISING TAXES--that's the people's money.  When we liberals say they would rather pay higher taxes to get better services, a Republican says that we're suckers at best, and evil at worst.

But apparently not when it comes to lettuce.  Not these days, anyway.

crank, one of the editors of RedState, said this today in RedHot:

Most Americans will pay an extra $.25 for a head of lettuce so that bands of illegals don't loiter in a Home Depot parking lot, and so that their fundamental sense of justice isn't violated every time they drive by a construction project.

Really, crank?  What about paying an extra $.25 for a head of lettuce so that grocery store workers can keep their unions???  No, I'm sorry--that would be a commie moonbat plot...

From an online glowing GOP review of the anti-immigration book Whatever It Takes, Craig Matteson says:

If we have to pay more for lettuce and other produce to be honest in our employment practices, I am all for it.

Really, now? would this honesty in employment practices include, say, not making children work 12 hours a day in Indonesian sweatshops? Or is that just my bleeding-heart liberalism talking?

Or try this: from a comment by Amethyst on a blog post titled Illegal immigrants keep food cost down:

And that money you save on a head of lettuce just goes for taxes to support these freeloaders.

I'd rather pay more for lettuce.

Interesting...so you would also be happy to pay more for hardware supplies to keep Wal-Mart out of your community, right?  No, I didn't think so.  You'll just pay more to keep them wetbacks out of your America.

From Richmond City Watch, ym gives us:

I'll happily pay more for lettuce and Big Macs in exchange for this country

to get SERIOUS about border security and immigration law enforcement. It will be offset by my paying less for health care, incarceration and education benefits for illegals.

So you would also be happy to pay higher taxes for HillaryCare in order to save the boatloads of money you spend on prescriptions and insurance premiums, right?  No wait, that would make your head explode...

-------------------------------------

It's all hypocrisy, you see.

Killing grocery store unions is good because it lowers prices--unless there's an illegal immigrant involved, in which case we should raise the prices.

Globalization with NAFTA and CAFTA is good--even though it depresses American wages and takes American jobs--because it decreases prices.  But if there's an Mexican involved in depressing wages and taking American jobs, well batten down the hatches and raise the prices!

Propping up Saudi Royals is great because it keeps prices down on gas--but God Forbid there should be an illegal working at the station; in that case, we'll be happy to pay an extra $.25 on that Twinkie.

-----------------------

So welcome to your new GOP overlords: a grand intersection of corporate feudalism, xenophobia, racism, and SHEER MIND-NUMBING JAW-DROPPING HYPOCRISY.