New York values …

When Ted Cruz accused Donald Trump of having “New York values” the media went nuts.

That’s because Cruz was attacking them as well as Trump. 

Trump countered Cruz by playing the 911 card.  You know, how much New York suffered, the bravery of the people to rebuild and go on, the heroic first responders, yada yada yada. 

The media ate that up. How dare anyone criticize New York after all it’s been through? That’s been the standard theme New York – more specifically New York City and New York politicians – has been using for more than a decade to squeeze more and more out of the rest of the country.

911 was more than a decade – and billions of dollars in Federal aid – ago.  Millions went to the families of the people who had the misfortune to be in those buildings that day. Millions more went to provide additional health services to first responders and others who claimed to have suffered lingering health issues from the attack.  Millions went to help the “economic revitalization” of lower Manhattan.  And on and on.  The total was more than $20 billion. 

And you know what – New York politicians continue to complain and demand more.     

There’s no doubt that it was tragic so many people died in the World Trade Center. But the same day people also died at the Pentagon.  And in Shanksville, PA.  However, the only thing that matters to the media is what happened in New York. 

Ted Cruz backpedaled a bit and tried to make this about liberal values. Too bad.

Intentionally, or unintentionally, Cruz hit on something that was a dog whistle to a lot of people in this country, me included. 

New York values -- to me -- have less to do with “liberal” values in general, and more to do with the arrogance and condescending attitude the media and others in New York continually display toward the rest of us.

To them, the United States is essentially the New York City metro where they work, Connecticut where they sleep, Massachusetts where they vacation, DC where they grovel, and parts of California striving to emulate New York City. The rest of the country is filler, with frontier outposts of civilization here and there – usually where some Democrat mayor is driving a city further into the ground, or where college students and academics outnumber the rest of the local population.   

If they were to draw a map of the country every place outside those outposts would be labeled “There be monsters here”; meaning of course that this would be where the unenlightened live. 

That would be the rest of us. 

You know, the ones who simply want to be left alone to live, work and worship as we wish as long as we don’t physically harm others.  The ones who don’t want our taxes used to support policies we find intrusive, unwarranted, and frankly stupid. The ones who don’t want to work our asses off only to have our money taken away to be given to people who refuse to work at all. 

And the ones who believe in our right to protect ourselves, the government’s responsibility to protect our borders and our interests here and abroad, and politicians’ and the courts’ responsibility to follow the Constitution. 

Much to the chagrin of those with New York values, we still believe in helping ourselves and others in need, rather than expecting government to fix everything.  We are courteous to others, unlike them, too.  We also believe there is a right or wrong; breaking the law and getting away with it is not to be admired, but admonished.  We take responsibility for our own actions and can’t understand those who refuse to do the same. 

I guess all that makes us the unenlightened.

New York values have nothing to do with being pro-choice or pro-life, opposed or in favor of gay marriage, or being a liberal or conservative.

It has more to do with arrogance, an attitude of entitlement, and a belief that the end always justifies the means no matter what. People with New York values are by their nature bullies; they try to intimidate into submission anyone who disagrees with them.

When Cruz accused Trump of having “New York values” he was probably closer to the mark than he realized.  The shoe fits.

The reaction by Trump and the media also shows their New York values, as well.  The media really don’t understand the rest of the country; they don't comprehend that much of the rest of the country doesn't live in awe of all things New York. I'm not sure Trump does either -- he keeps bringing up how rich and successful he's been by being a tough negotiator.  

The media are obsessed with Trump because they have a love/hate relationship with him. They love Trump because he says stupid stuff and his supporters still cheer, confirming for the media that Republicans in general are ignorant, racist, bigoted and uncultured. They hate him because every time they point out his stupid, mean-spirited comments, or he attacks the media, his apparent popularity rises.

Trump is everything New York values are all about.  The media simply do not know how to deal with one of their own successfully whipping up the unenlightened using the same playbook.

It’s more than a bit scary to them. 

However, the more Trump defends his New York roots, the more he distances himself from the values of the rest of the country – you know, that place between New York and California, and outside the decaying big cities.

There are a lot of people out here in the wastelands. And we might vote.