The War on Conservative Women and S.E. Cupp

My only limited interaction with S.E. Cupp has been on twitter. From her site bio on RedSECupp.com:

S.E. Cupp is author of the new book "Losing Our Religion: The Liberal Media's Attack on Christianity," which comes out April 27th (Simon & Schuster). She is also co-author of "Why You're Wrong About The Right," which was published by Simon & Schuster in June of 2008. "After two terms of George W. Bush, it’s harder than ever to know what it means to be a conservative, though for a working definition, this book is an excellent place to start.. Cupp and Joshpe have thought it through, and write with the sort of easy wit we could use more of on the right." -- Tucker Carlson.
S.E. is a political columnist and culture critic.

She has a much larger following than this blog, or even the San Diego Local Order of Bloggers. So, this post is more for me than her. She was able to answer the recent attack on her via Glenn Beck. Further, even feminists have come to her defense, which is rare for conservative women. The View came to her defense. Of course, NOW has remained silent as she is not a liberal woman.

If you do not know, Hustler magazine used Photoshop to create an image of S.E. Cupp with a penis in her mouth. They published it in their magazine along with attacks on her conservative views. Hustler claims, "It's Satire," but this quote from the article explains the motivation in full:

S.E. Cupp is a lovely young lady who read too much Ayn Rand in high school and ended up joining the dark side. Cupp, an author and media commentator who often shows up on Fox News programs, is undeniably cute. But her hotness is diminished when she espouses dumb ideas like defunding Planned Parenthood. Perhaps the method pictured here is Ms. Cupp’s suggestion for avoiding an unwanted pregnancy.

They want to shut her up. By "they" we mean "progressives" or "liberals." So they have targeted her public persona and career. S.E. is an attractive woman who often goes on MSNBC and HBO's Real Time to engage with the left. Her public persona has been carefully and skillfully crafted to take advantage of her looks, likability and wit. S.E.'s credibility is her career and that is what has been assaulted.

We politically active types know about S.E. Cupp, but the public at large does not. Their first perception of her will be shaped in light of this fake picture. It is truly a disgrace and injustice!

On the left, they are defending Hustler by pointing to comments made by Rush Limbaugh toward Sandra Fluke. Comments made without deliberate effort, and then apologized for. They are tweeting and posting justification due to jokes about Michelle Obama's large posterior. Progressives are following up on President Obama's #WarOnWomen campaign, equating the defense of abortion and government interference into what we eat with creating fake porn photos. They deny that an image is worth a thousand words.

What if this image was of Michelle Obama, or for that matter Barack Obama? What if the gay marriage debate was approached in this way by conservatives?  Socialist/progressive issues that can be portrayed with vile images.

This debate goes to the core difference between the philosophies of the conservatives and progressives. Philosophies that differ fundamentally on the idea of peace and the very nature of successful debate.

Conservative peace is equilibrium between those who disagree. You can disagree with me and we can
still find peace.

Progressive peace is when no one disagrees.  If you disagree, there will be no peace.

If you subscribe to the progressive view of peace, then anyone who disagrees is trying to assault or change some part of you. They are trying to force you into submission. Peace through subjugation.  This helps explain why "liberals" in our lives are so unwilling to listen to facts and reason.  Debate is not just confrontation, it is assault.

It has been a personal mission of mine to find a way to get through to progressives and liberals. A mission much like S.E. Cupp's journey onto left-wing media outlets. My only successes come from reaching people at a deep interpersonal level.  When you present progressives with a reasonable argument from a credible, likable source or kindly point out that they are wrong or on the wrong path, they get defensive and try to "shut you up, like S.E. Cupp."

Remember this the next time you see a peace symbol. Consider how the peace you envision can occur. It may not be the peace you imagine.