10.18.2005
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West Wing Dreamin'
As a former victim of the Inside-the-Beltway culture, I enjoy the fantasy show about what a Democratic administration would be like if it were led by a morally straight and academically brilliant version of Bill Clinton. The West Wing is an interesting show, if only for the insights it gives to the world of Hollywood liberals.
In truth, the West Wing is a liberal's wet dream. Here we have Josiah Edward Bartlet, Jed, presented as a devout Catholic from an olde-tyme family in New Hampshire who is moral, upstanding, and a Nobel laureate in economics to boot. Wow. Bartlet is played by a lefty's lefty, Martin Sheen, but he does make a convincing president. At least if one suspends disbelief long enough to imagine that such a man could actually gain the Donk nomination in the first place.
This season's episodes are focused on the very end of Bartlet's two (!) terms, and the presidential race between a devout Catholic and an agnostic. In the dream world of the liberals, of course, it's the Donk who's the Catholic, Matt Santos, played by Jimmy Smits. Santos is moral, upstanding, and is distinguished primarily by not having a Nobel prize. Oh, did I mention that he is Hispanic? "Santos" kind of gives it away, I thought. Don't you see how open-minded we Donks are? We up and nominated one of them...
Santos is rather sanctimonious about things, generally, and comes across as having the kind of naiveté one might find in a candidate for treasurer of the 7th grade. But he's likeable, nonetheless. Hey, it's only a television program, right?
Well, Santos stepped in it during the most recent episode, when asked "Do you believe in intelligent design?" Santos replied, brilliantly if evasively, "I believe in God, and I'd like to think He's intelligent." This causes shock and awe among the loyal Donk staffers, both in the Santos campaign, and in the West Wing. OhMyGawd, doesn't Santos know that our party's base are atheistic baby-killers? He said he believed in G - O - D. In He-Who-Must-Not-be-Named.
OK, maybe they didn't say it quite like that. However, the subtext being pushed by the liberal writers here, not terribly subtle, is that Democrats can also be devout Christians. And that Republicans, in this instance Arnold Vinick, played by Alan Alda, are free to be non-Christians.
This is fascinating, turning the real world upside down. An entertaining show, the West Wing is. But let no one confuse it with anything remotely approaching today's reality. I told you that West Wing was a Donk's wet dream, didn't I?
In truth, the West Wing is a liberal's wet dream. Here we have Josiah Edward Bartlet, Jed, presented as a devout Catholic from an olde-tyme family in New Hampshire who is moral, upstanding, and a Nobel laureate in economics to boot. Wow. Bartlet is played by a lefty's lefty, Martin Sheen, but he does make a convincing president. At least if one suspends disbelief long enough to imagine that such a man could actually gain the Donk nomination in the first place.
This season's episodes are focused on the very end of Bartlet's two (!) terms, and the presidential race between a devout Catholic and an agnostic. In the dream world of the liberals, of course, it's the Donk who's the Catholic, Matt Santos, played by Jimmy Smits. Santos is moral, upstanding, and is distinguished primarily by not having a Nobel prize. Oh, did I mention that he is Hispanic? "Santos" kind of gives it away, I thought. Don't you see how open-minded we Donks are? We up and nominated one of them...
Santos is rather sanctimonious about things, generally, and comes across as having the kind of naiveté one might find in a candidate for treasurer of the 7th grade. But he's likeable, nonetheless. Hey, it's only a television program, right?
Well, Santos stepped in it during the most recent episode, when asked "Do you believe in intelligent design?" Santos replied, brilliantly if evasively, "I believe in God, and I'd like to think He's intelligent." This causes shock and awe among the loyal Donk staffers, both in the Santos campaign, and in the West Wing. OhMyGawd, doesn't Santos know that our party's base are atheistic baby-killers? He said he believed in G - O - D. In He-Who-Must-Not-be-Named.
OK, maybe they didn't say it quite like that. However, the subtext being pushed by the liberal writers here, not terribly subtle, is that Democrats can also be devout Christians. And that Republicans, in this instance Arnold Vinick, played by Alan Alda, are free to be non-Christians.
This is fascinating, turning the real world upside down. An entertaining show, the West Wing is. But let no one confuse it with anything remotely approaching today's reality. I told you that West Wing was a Donk's wet dream, didn't I?
posted by Jack Rich at 9:56 AM
I was born, grew up, and went to school in the Bronx, New York -- on the wrong side of the
tracks. Got the chance to go to college, so instead of joining the NYPD (the obvious career choice at
that time and place), I became an engineer. Spent
some years designing things that go boom (or things that take things that go boom to their destinations...), principally for our military.
Also took an interesting career turn and for some years was in charge of counter-terrorism for my agency...so I learned something about guns. And when to use them.
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