Why America Feels Like it's Been Ruled by a Foreign Occupier
As Obama takes over the wreckage this country is in, one can't help but feel like something alien to America has been controlling it these past eight years. The wave of emotion that has erupted with the election of Barack Obama reminds me of the Allied victory in France in WWII. After a long foreign occupation in which foreign German interests occupied the agenda of France, French governance would once again be representing the concerns of it's populace. That hope seems to pervade America after it's long neocons occupation. Here are a few of the parallels that I see.
- American Public Opinion Has Been Ignored
Polling has consistently shown that the American government pursues an agenda far to the right of American public opinion. For the slight margin of victory that Bush had in both elections he won, the sweeping changes he pursued illuminate his disregard for the sizable chunk of our society that disagree with him.
When Dick Cheney was questioned on ABC about whether the fact that two thirds of Americans were opposed to the Iraq War had any influence on decision-making, he basically said that the American people get to make their input every four years and after that they can be ignored. The government is there to represent the people and now that it seems like that is returning; joy is understandable.
- Core American Values Overturned
America fought a revolution to have its opinions represented by it's government. That has faded in Bush's term. America set up the UN after World War II to set up international law and put an end to military aggression and imperialism. That went out the window. Habeas Corpus was inherited from England where it originated in the 12th Century. Bush in that sense has embraced the morals of the middle ages. Along that line, America reinstituted the use of torture. England discontinued its use in the 1600's Frederick the Great ended it in Prussia in 1740, Italy in 1786, France in 1789, and Russia in 1801. Besides moral reasons, the practice was written off as ineffective in terms of yielding useful information. This administrations moral conduct is clearly alien to the values of most Americans.
- Basic Infrastructure Neglected
Bridges, roads, and environmental standards have degraded these past eight years. What could be of more interest to a population than the upkeep of these vital elements of society? Clearly the vital interests of the population did not matter. You would have to be completely foreign to what America is not to see it, as basic infrastructure degraded tremendously in Bush's tenure.
- National Resources Diverted Overseas
If you study any foreign occupation, one common thread would be that national wealth would be diverted into foreign lands. While American healthcare, education, and infrastructure languished, we dumped billions of dollars into Iraq and pursued an otherwise aggressive and destructive foreign policy across the world at large at tremendous cost.
On top of that, national debt doubled the past eight years. It's like America lost a war, suffered an occupation and had to pay a 5 trillion dollar indemnity. We're in a similar position to France in 1870 or Germany in 1919 in that our common interests have been ignored, we've pursued an aggressive foreign policy to our own detriment and we are now deeply in debt.
- Propaganda Tuned Up
Bush took the stance of a foreign occupier in his governance- rational argument would never win the minds and hearts of the masses so crude propaganda such as Fox News was trotted out to scare and paralyze America into obedience. The same quest for obedience through misinformation and crude scare tactics are the same you see in the totalitarian governments from South America to Asia that have brought nothing but misery to their own people and the world at large.
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Governing was never the part of the Bush administration's equation. They had an agenda that entailed: massive deregulation to empower big business, bankrupt the treasury to eliminate government social programmes and safety nets (refused to listen to warnings), bust the unions to reduce a large block of democratic voters and inflate the military budget.
Bush & Cheney used the politics of fear and division, weakened our system of government, ignored Congress and usurped powers no other previous president was allowed. Claiming "unitary presidential powers" to implement their agenda unfortunately worked.
Not once did Bush and Cheney make it about the people: not here, not in Afghanistan and certainly not in Iraq. Their decisions were based on politics. They tried to please Wall Street by privatizing Social Security, but failed; but they pleased the republican base by ignoring science; pleased big business by deregulating laws that protect workers, consumers, investors and the environment and passed legislation making it more difficult to sue; pleased the military-i
As a result millions are losing their homes, money, jobs and pensions. People worldwide are suffering and dying. Worse most if not all of this could have been avoided.
Very well said!!
We have certainly had 8 years of horrific leadship lacking any wisdom, nobility, inspiration or permanence. The Bush Adminstration has had a wasteful, corrosive affect on our country and it will take years to repair it. His MISSION ACCOMPLISHED photo op is forever burned in my memory as the most embarrassing and shameful example of American arrogance and political hubris I've ever seen.
During the last eight years, it felt we were living in an occupied land. Not only were politicians not listening, they were making up facts and feeding us simplistic propaganda disguised as news. The president when not harming the enviroment, disregarding science, alienating our allies, and waging war based on lies, then tried to continually reassure us how wonderfully things were going. He ended his presidency with an exclamation point - the total collapse of the economy. Ai-Qaeda could not have done more harm than Bush. It is like he and his conservative minions have waged war against the American people and democracy itself.
During the Bush monarchy, the US has lost any prestige and dignity it had with our allies, and our enemies have rejoiced in that. Our current President, and his henchman Cheney, have made a mockery of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Like so many, I look forward to an administration that holds the opinions and the rights of Americans in high esteem rather than laughingly ingoring them.
So true....an
GWB will go down in the history books as the worst President this country has ever had. But you know, he had to be voted into office to do that damage. Americans voted for him twice. You guys who voted for him are also responsible for this mess. You should be ashamed of yourselves. You all got on that bandwagon and took us down this road.
Well... the majority of us didn't vote him in the first time... Brother Jeb, the RNC and Katherine Harris had something to do with his winning the elecoral vote... he sure didn't win the popular vote. I am glad his reign of terror will end on Jan 20th.
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Your right...an
I thought they were aliens. Like from outer space. Wasn't too far wrong.
In reality, I really thought that Bush was a "manchurian" candidate put in to bring America to its knees. God, they almost succeeded.
A "Manchurian candidate" president would not have done any more harm than Bush did.
I just hope dear Georgie doesn't leave us a nuclear war against Iran to contend with as his parting gesture. I'm convinced the guy is insane or at best has arrested development. We're never going to give future administrations or other countries the right message if we let these sophisticated thugs walk away scott free.
GWB is still doing as much damage as he can while he can - loosening endangered species laws and environmental laws and probably much more. He seems like he wants to be known by his buddies as a great guy who did much for them. What a wicked family the Bush's are. And why did so many of our other representatives go along with GWB all these years? The press as well. What a misery they've made this country. How can GWB and Cheney be anything but shamed by their actions? I wonder if they look at the country now and feel any responsibility. There is a new day dawning but we the people still have an obligation to keep our eyes on the leaders and let's hope the press will be more investigative. Thankfully we have the internet and can see what other Americans really think even if the press doesn't report what we need to know. Despite all the carnage, this pain may be needed to understand the rights we take for granted but which were hard fought by others. GWB needs to be tied up and gagged and placed in a corner where he can do no more harm in the last few weeks of his bumbledom.
Let us not forget that this body of Congress, our "Pontius Pilate" Congress, has stood by and enabled this administration and its corporate accomplices in their endeavors to loot the country. Even now they declare America must tighten our belts while they make sure Wall Street executives get their salaries paid. They too must be held to account for the actions of the Bush administration. Republicans and Democrats alike...
That is very true!
But how?
Republicans have been in total control for 8 years. Democrats and republicans are NOT equal in this mess.
From the theft of the election in 2000, we've been living under a military dictatorship. The signs have been there for all to see.
It's sad it had to come to the complete financial, moral and physical bankruptcy of this nation for people to start to even express an interest.
How many times over the 8 years have I heard people say they don't vote "as a protest" or "it's just politics, I don't pay any attention to it" Like it doesn't affect them!
I would hazard a guess that people are going to be changing their tunes pretty quickly here, they've already started.
When I was active in the netroots at the beginning( before it was even called the netroots), we used to say "talk to people, just keep talking". Many didn't want to talk about it or felt helpless to change it. Well, I noticed attitudes changing in the last year or so...folks actually initiating conversations with me as the situation has spun out of comprehension. I hope we keep it up, because our apathy is what helped cause this mess.
This is not news, to those of us who've been warning of this administration's lawlessness ever since (at least) 9/11 and the so-called Patriot Act.
It's good that you've spelled it out, however, for those in the audience who've been in a propaganda-trance these last eight years. We need to take a long hard look at where we've been, before we can understand where we've come to -- and take an angle on where we'd rather be.
I'm losing my mind. I just read that Bush just pardoned 14 conviicted felons. Read the list and backgrounds, Yes, I know a President can do that. Bush will do more, some very notorious. Yes, I know Clinton did it too, Mark Rich etc. Is this madness? Wake up America. We must have a referendum on this!!! Yes, I know it is in the Constitution. Has anyone ever heard of Amendments? It is time we discussed, considered an CHANGED this idiocy. Tell me where I'm wrong here. And I don't want to hear about correcting ills by the "Decider" as per Constitutional "law".
I hope a full scale investigation is conducted.
The Bush response to Katrina really sent a message to the U.S. citizens: You are on your own.
And how about when Cheney said "so?" when asked about the majority of us getting tired of the financial and personal cost (and the length) of their wars without end?
The lack of interest or compassion for, at the very least, our OPINIONS was so chilling to me. They did feel like foreign occupiers. I am so glad they will be leaving soon.
It was during Katrina that public opinion starting to turn against Bush.
And the torture issue.
I have been saying for some time now that the effects of Bush policies and decisions directly mirror those of an occupying force. Time and time again, Bush's plans and decisions went 180 degrees against not just the will of the people but the overall security of the people. Military, energy, finance, and foreign affairs have now all been destroyed by his singular junta.
The problem has gotten so severe because of weak leaders in Congress, unwilling to prosecute the crimes against the constitution, as well as the media monopolization of airwaves since Reagan.
The last eight years have been nothing short of treason.
Excellent post! The past 8 years have NOT been business as usual in America. Far from it. Paul Krugman (with a h/t to Robin Wells) wrote about it in The Great Unraveling:
"Kissinger, using Napoleon as a case study - but also, Krugman believes, implicitly addressing the rise of fascism in the 1930s - describes what happens when a stable political system is confronted with a 'revolutionary power': a radical group that rejects the legitimacy of the system itself.
This, Krugman believes, is precisely the situation in the US today (though he is at pains to point out that he isn't comparing Bush to Hitler in moral terms). The 'revolutionary power', in Kissinger's theory, rejects fundamental elements of the system it seeks to control, arguing that they are wrong in principle. For the Bush administration, according to Krugman, that includes social security; the idea of pursuing foreign policy through international institutions; and perhaps even the basic notion that political legitimacy comes from democratic elections - as opposed to, say, from God.
In the face of this kind of assault, the body politic is paralyzed; refusing to believe that the revolutionaries intend to "smash the existing framework". Anyone who disagrees with them, any institution that stands in their way, is a thing to be destroyed. I don't think it's coincidence that so many of these guys are southerners. With the judicial coup of 2000, the rebels finally succeeded where they failed in the 1860's. Let's hope we're finally and truly rid
You know, I was JUST talking about this the other day with family. For the past 8 years, I swear this country has been running itself. It doesn't feel as if we've had a leader.
This country hasn't been running itself, it has been run by a bunch of rich jerks who stood to get even richer by running roughshod over everybody else.
And I, for one, will never forgive the Democratic party for just sitting there letting them do it.
I told a friend of mine that there is no one at the helm.
While I basically agree with what Hallmann says, it's important to remember that Bush 'n' buddies aren't a "foreign occupier" - they are home-grown.
Remember back in 1995, when we found out that the Oklahoma City Federal Building hadn't been blown up by foreign terrorists? That almost made the whole episode worse - that Americans were responsible.
If more Americans had voted in 2000 and 2004, it would have been harder for either party to cook the books. The fact that more people participated this year made it harder for the presidential election to be tinkered with.
Of course, that's probably cold comfort to people in Georgia and Minnesota who voted for a Democrat in the Senate race.
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