Now media conservatives are beginning to talk about how the Conservative establishment should be doing what we’re doing already:
It’s time for conservatives and what Kurt Schlicter calls the “Normals” to have an entertainment industry of their own. Hollywood has effectively divorced conservatives (and the Normals). And after a divorce, as they say, “living well is the best revenge.”
The question is how. It’s not easy and one of the big reasons is the conservative world itself. Conservative financiers abjure the arts — indeed they seem even to fear them — unless it’s putting money in their local philharmonic to have their name on a plaque in the lobby. Problem is, we all love Beethoven but he doesn’t need our help at this point.
Conservative fat cats also put a ton of money in think tanks that aren’t particularly effective. I don’t mean to unnecessarily diss those tanks. Some of my best friends are, etc., etc…. but the truth is, one good movie or television series is worth more than a hundred, or even a thousand, position papers when it comes to moving society. Andrew Breitbart couldn’t have been more right when he said: “Politics is downstream of culture.” (He could have added education, which is in a sense part of the culture, now more than ever working hand-in-hand with entertainment for bad ends.)
What is needed here by investors on the right is a little guts for a change. It shouldn’t be so hard, but somehow it is — or has been. It’s obviously true that film, theatre, and publishing are risky investments, but the center-to-right audience is huge. Plenty of “proof of concept” exists with films like The Blind Side, Lone Survivor, and American Sniper — just some examples of box office smashes that fit that profile.
Not one word about Alt-Hero, Rebel’s Run, or any genuine alternatives, of course. And remember, this guy was given seven (7) million dollars by a billionaire investor back in 2004. Did he make a movie? Did he start a film studio? Did he even publish a single comic book? No, he spent it on a wildly overpriced blog.
On the plus side, however, it must be admitted that Mr. Simon was laudably open about the nature of his operation from the start.
