It Takes a Pillage
Hey, you. Yeah. You.
I got a tip for ya': careful starting your car.
The United States is coming across as just too friggin' annoying, having done nothing to assuage the world's virtually unanimous concerns about what ails it, starting with the biggies like a thoroughly destabilized middle east and a thoroughly destabilized climate, to say nothing of just being a swaggering, destabilizing, obnoxious bully in general. Led by the swaggering, destabilizing, obnoxious bully-in-general George "Dude, Where's My Codpiece?" Bush, this nation is cruisin' for a bruisin', an internationally funded coup d'ta-ta that finally lances the boil of America (read: Neo-Conservativism) throbbing on the global community's neck.
It's not so hard to ponder. America doesn't corner the market in mob hits or covert ops to take out a person or persons or organizations that have gone too far. Every country worth its salt has some covert corps smearing burnt cork on their faces, wearing stealth balaclavas and practicing killshots on watermelons. Each patriarchal nation has its Rambos, its Bonds, its Nick Fury: Agent of Shields. And each has a sense of their own place in the scheme of Things International. And their patience might be coming to, let's say, an end.
This is by no means an advocation of such executive action. Nor am I saying I myself would immediately roll over onto my back exposing my three rows of nipples and give permission to any real threat to my liberty to tickle my soft, pink belly while they rape and consume all I hold dear. It's merely a hypothetical postulation. But it can't be an idea that hasn't been floated by governments both friendly and unfriendly: to terminate us with extreme prejudice. It's had to be an option placed on the proverbial table. After all, if the increasingly tenuous balance is upset, if potential profits are hindered by the out of control, cut-and-run behavior of one of the corporation's key players, then all alternatives must be considered. It isn't personal. It's business.
What's even more distressing is that along with the naturally occurring bloat of intoxicating arrogance that comes with being a super power, its certain demise is most probably counted on, indeed a basic element of the plan formulated by its current leaders, who pride themselves in seeing clarity in chaos, profit in instability. It allows the said profiteers the opportunity to escape out the back while everyone else is frantically forming a bucket brigade.
9/11, Katrina, Osama, Global Warming: for Neo-Conservaties these events couldn't have come at a better time. Like Dr. Frankenstein flying giant kites to harness the lightning of an approaching storm, these men were ready, patiently waiting for the inevitable. And their patience paid off, successfully animating an unholy creation, a stitched-together terror of the worst pieces of human nature: war without end, profit without pause, intellect invalidated. Not that America has the corner on that market either. There are plenty of other societies that are far more brutal and far less subtle. But this country was always supposed to be better than that. It left such cynical acts to the despots and tyrants it professed to despise. It was born to set itself apart from the all too common temptations to control destiny, and the only way to do that was to wrest people's hopes for freedom and peace from the fists of the merciless and the arrogant (see "The United States Constitution").
But there are some who simply don't see it that way, who in fact feel the urge to control at all costs. It's not the so-called Islamo-fascists that hate our freedom, it's the Neo-Conmen who do. Because without a people enslaved by doubt and fear, their outdated but nonetheless effective manifest destiny tactics have little traction. Which is why they relish force majeure. God is their ultimate back-up plan. And since it's quite possible they have Him in the bag, too (the jury's still out but it ain't looking so good), then we might as well get used to the idea that the destructive actions of the few of them will have dire consequences for the compliant rest of us. And to look over our shoulders.
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The sad thing is that when this nation crumbles, those who caused it will be safely tucked away in South America, living high off of the Freidman hog
Yes, sad isn't it the ones responsible for this mess will walk away with pockets full. No accountability, no criminal charges, they will just walk away, leaving the kool-aid drinkers to attack whoever we elect to lead us out of this madness! Yep, it's sad.
Great piece Steven. Over at FireDogLake a couple months ago, Mike Farrell was nice enough to take questions on a Sunday afternoon. I wondered what could be done to get the likes of Neocon Bill Kristol off of our public-owned airwaves.
Mike said that people like him end up destroying themselves. I hope that's the case 'cause Fox News seems to have a never-ending supply of dough to keep the BK Killer on, slinging his shameless war propaganda at America.
- Tom
Sectors of the better international community taking matters into their final vestige of rationality for the good of the planet? Well, if you have to, you have to.
Wow...you just get better and better Steven...I don't know how you do it...but you do..The sad thing is that you nailed it...and you are right the Neocons don't want any of us to have freedom and our civil liberties are trashed, and they don't seem to even notice that the rest of the world is horrified- and they say they are doing it in the name of God ( what God and WHOSE???) and yet, here we are...staring Fascism in the face everyday...so what do we do ? How do we fight back...someone above suggested a screen play for you- you are talented enough- you know that....and you have a knack for the flow of ideas and dialogue- that is all you need for a great screenplay...oh, and a story...at this point we ALL have stories under This Regime...I am just a humble blogger, but come see me over at http://watergatesummer.blogspot.com/, I am enigma4ever, and I have stories and great people that hang out there...more folks that would tell you to keep speaking the Truth...we need your Voice...
We have been betrayed Steven..
We are being betrayed daily by the international fascist corporate bankers The Bilderbergers control even who it is we are allowed to vote for..
We must Repeal the Federal Reserve Act, and give America back to the people..
Nationalize the America Oil Industry..
Restore American sovereignty..and Independence..
You know, if nationalizing the Oil industry in Iraq is good enough for them, then it's good enough for US....heck-we'll just go ahead and write up that contract for "services" from that "private industry" and they can pay US for the privilege spelled out in that there 'private' contract.
Seems like 'fair trade' to me.
It's been good for Alaskans.
Just because you've been to Hollywood doesn't mean you aren't correct.
nicely said msliz.
Good post Steven! Your ironic wit, coupled with your knowledge of the issues always gives me that bittersweet feeling of rage humor, which is magnified by my helplesness to change the situation! Short of we-all-know-what, there seems to be no way of dealing with the ongoing debauchery effectively.
It is sad that that we must continue to carry this rage, with no immmediate hope of rectification. Face it: we can't even say what we really mean anymore, for fear of retribution. Anyone disagree?
I think that is the major reason that progressive blogs are so full of rage, and so void of real solution. We are truly powerless when the people we elect will not do our bidding, and solutions seem impossible.
We can't even agree among our progressive selves about who is the real rectification candidate! (There can only be one best qualified).
I hope beyond all hope that we can find the strength to forget the personalities and frivolities of the candidates for once, consider the issues, consider the candidates platforms, and come together as a progressive movement in undeniable force to elect the person who will get the job done.
My hopes are with Kucinich. The man, the plan, the time.
Kucinich is an important voice, but very unelectable. I don't see him getting the nomination. I think Hillary is the chosen one. Mainstream media is promoting her as the Democratic leader. I want AL GORE!
lets not forget that Bush was the chosen one also by the MSM look at how that worked out!
Steven:
An incisively brilliant surmise of our new American credo under the 'Boy Kingster':
It Takes A Pillage to wean a nation from our predilections of power, mayhem, prejudice and manipulation of the human species.
Oh, yes, other cultures, nations and groups have attempted these scurrilous attacks upon our species BUT no society has been as SPECIOUS and sinister as we have in this dawning of our new age:
THE INQUISITION HAS RETURNED WITH A VENGEANCE!
America, under the cruel and calculating DECIDER, has become the TERRORIZER of NATIONS
all the while believing WE HAVE BEEN GIVEN SOME DIVINE RIGHT TO 'PILLAGE' the cherished resources, national treasures, fragile environment, vulnersble economies and frightened children and peoples of the world who live in the proximity of that which our CORPORATE FASCISTS WANT!
This DECIDER has taken ALL THAT WAS CHERISHED IN OUR NATION, most assuredly our children, young adults and young parents who are being FED INTO HIS MANTRA OF TERRORISM, and we have allowed HIS DELUSION to become THE FIERCE FANGS OF OUR ARROGANCE THAT TURNS PEOPLE OF GOOD WILL AGAINST US!
The ONLY THING that could SAVE US has been shredded upon the ALTAR OF AVARICE and disassembled by FEAR and SUSPICION so CORPORATE FASCISTS COULD PILLAGE WHATEVER THEY WANT AND MAKE US LIKE IT!
We have met the ENEMY, STEVEN, and it is US-
BECAUSE we have allowed THE WORST IN US TO BECOME THE MOST OF US!
Thank you, Steven, for your analysis of corruption that exposes our paralysis of character!
Another one outta the park, Steven! Congrats!
....they say that patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings....
..."will have dire consequences for the compliant rest of us."
And your prescription for the state of compliancy?
We're going down all right. Built-in structural trade deficit of 750B/year combined with a hemorrhaging, out of control budget deficit. Broken military. Overextended empire. Things that can't go on forever don't.
And the beat goes on............
If one took a Roman citizen of that eras empire, or a Englishman, Frenchman, Spanaird during their hey day of empires and transported them to today they would likely be shocked that their great empires had fallen, and their arrogance of their time had passed, just as all empires of known history have fallen upon their own greed, arrogance so shall this one, sadly we are the citizens who will suffer this fate...., no doubt the citizens of all past empires did not think it would happen, but history does repeat itself..., we cannot dominate a world with 6 billon people, we are a nation of 300 million, and sheer numbers will prevent us from forever dominating the world, if we do not wake up and kick these leaders out of power, we will suffer the sad fate all past empires falling into ruin and dispair...
Geezuzz, don't you think we are nearly at the point of past empires? I do.
The citizens are sadly, but absolutely doomed.
The people's votes mean nothing to congress, the administration or the supreme court.
You are of course right within an epoch history will repeat itself, but we approach the end of the epoch and many underlying issues are being laid bare. Not just here in our culture but planet wide. Rationalism alone will not suffice, for there is a deeper context being revealed that will affect an outcome, positively for the species or the species will simply perish.
This is a moment like the great enlightenment.
In physics I believe it would be referred to as a "phase transition".
Same raw material-different reality. Our world view is about to change...radically. The need to dominate, moral values, the continued evolution and virtual future of humanity are all on the cusp. The types of individuals we have identified as "leaders" come from an outmoded and in todays circumstances, failed ideation or world view such as expressed in the concept of "empire".
We alone, as individuals must reserve the strength, passion and will to persevere through these, the last dark days of failed human strategies and obsolete world views.
If we can do this a new form of knowledge and understanding and new perceptions will shortly be available to us. If this sounds "new agie" to some, so be it. A moment ago that ice was water, same matter different reality.
It was S.H.I.E.L.D., not Shields.
None the less, if one goes around pickin' fights with anyone that looks cross ways at one, one day,
you'll pick the one guy who's waiting for ya...
Another excellent column
"the boil of America (read: Neo-Conservativism) throbbing on the global community's neck."
I think the location of that boil is considerably further south.
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