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3.27.10
My friends -
This probably is the last political posting to my little list of colleagues, because I am not a young Turk or a warrior for some ideological, economic, political or social Truth. I am too old, too cynical, too disillusioned, and have read too much history, to see much merit in self-immolation in the fires of the radical right. Surely the Good Fight must be fought, but after writing thousands of words and scores of essays, I now must leave the fray and assume the mantle of Curmudgeon Emeritus.
I know that our nation does, and has done, things that I believe are wrong. But the reflexive trashing by the radical right of any divergent points of view, with no dialogue and the refusal to compromise (e.g., the Republican lockstep vote re health insurance, and the forthcoming spate of Supreme Court lawsuits) troubles me. The open expression of dissent has become very problematical, and there is little or no rational exchange of ideas. One group's hero is another group's Antichrist. Extermination, not cooperation, seems to be the rule.
The radical right sees our nation as in grave peril. The radical left sees our nation as in grave peril. The middle-ground moderates (a vanishing species) see our nation as in grave peril. The only thing we all agree on is that one way or another we seem to be going down a slippery slope into a really terrifying abyss. Everybody feels threatened, the barricades are being manned (perhaps literally, certainly figuratively), but rational dialogue has been stilled andno one appears willing to stay one's hand.
Paramilitarymilitias appear to be proliferating and arming themselves for violent civil confrontations. Thisonly can end in the further fragmenting of our society, brutal repression, the final suspension of civil liberties, and much bloodshed. The National Rifle Association and thefear-mongering demagogues have sown the wind, and I fear that we all shall reap the whirlwind. Tragedy, to coin a phrase, on an epic scale. We have not seen the arming of citizens with the expressed purpose of defying and/or displacing the federal government since the run-up to the Civil War (although we could have come close in 1932-34).
I believe that Churchill once observed that no technological tyranny ever fell because of internal dissent. Orwell had something to say about that in "1984." But history shows us that although a few individuals might learn from their mistakes (albeit rarely), governments and politicians do not. Despite the ghastly lessons of history (e.g., the wars of antiquity, the Spanish Inquisition, the Thirty Years War, the Napoleonic invasion of Russia, the American Civil War, World Wars I and II, the Holocaust, Kosovo, Darfur) we seem to learn nothing, and as a species we appear doomed to repeat our mistakes, like caterpillars going round and round the rim if some hideous glass.
I truly believe thatour species has a deeply flawed DNA.
For a really chilling perspective on why absolutely nothing has changed with regard to the political confrontations in this country, I urge you (really implore you) to read William Manchester's incredible two-volume study "The Glory and the Dream: A Narrative History of America 1932-1972." (Little, Brown & Co., 1973).
What simply stunned me as I read it is thatit was impossible not to think that I was reading about current events. Just by changing a name here and there the scenarios are eerily contemporary. All the hate, suffering, blindness, prejudice, demagoguery, greed, corruption, violence (domestic and international),financialruinof ordinary people, etc., etc., that grace our present scene were present in the 1930's.
Of course there were people of kindness and compassion then, as now; of course there were persons of good faith who counseled honest dialogue then, as now; of course there were people who were able to think beyond their own greed, hates and prejudices then, as now. But the extraordinary level of invective; the utter disregard for human suffering; thechorus of self-serving demagogues; theharnessing of the mediato theservice of special interests;the cynical manipulation of truth; the betrayal of trust by elected officials andthosewho heldthe reins of political power, personsof whomone had expectations of basic, if not impeccable, integrity;therelentless suppressionofthe reasonable aspirations of ordinary citizens to lead secure and productive lives (thenthe struggling labor movement, nowuniversal health care); the pervasive corruption in high places; the looting of corporations by their own officers;this sorry chronicle continues unchanged and unabated to this day.
I think that this history frightened and discouraged me more than anything I have read in many years. I was naive enough to think that because of Social Security and Medicare we fundamentally had changed. I was wrong.
Yes, I do think we are in trouble. I would not want to be a teenager facing the world as it will become. But I also do not see any resolution, although many on all sides of the political/religious/economic/ethnic spectrum will claim that their flavor of hate, intolerance and violence will cleanse our society and bring stability and order. It is an ancient and utterly discredited claim, but we always have followed one Pied Piper or another, and that seems to be bred into our DNA. That, and an unlimited capacity for cruelty and violence.
Given our unprecedented and terrifying technological power, I really do not see a way out. Please reflect that less than 200 years ago we fought the War of 1812 with sailing ships-of-war, muzzle-loading cannon, and sabers. Napoleon hadn't met his Waterloo (that happened in 1815). Sailors died from scurvy, which was invariably fatal and easily prevented (why Brit seamen became known as "limeys"). Ninety-six years ago we embarked on the mindless slaughter of WW I, with machine guns, aircraft, Krupp artillery, and poison gas. Seventy-one years ago we repeated the imbecility on a grander scale with WW II. That enterprise featured carpet bombing of cities by British and American air forces, and ended with the use of nuclear weapons against civilian populations. Do you really believe that in the last two centuries we have evolved one whit as a species? That our incredible technology has been delivered into responsible hands? Not ruddy likely.
So, as the passengers on the Titanic said to one another, I wish you well. With any luck I shall shuffle off this mortal coil before the sea levels rise and millions of desperate, starving people fight each other for high ground and access to clean water. But I am old and tired and I have the notion that I see things too clearly to enjoy the comfort of optimism. Even the idea that Jesus will return at the head of an avenging army, and that blood will run as high as horses' withers, smacks less of the divine and too much of our human way of solving things.
We have had enough of armies and killing - - we need kindness and peace, not bloodshed and vengeance
So, Hail and Farewell! I guess that this is my swan song with regard to generally posting political screeds. Eighty years old (yes, 80) is old enough to realize, sadly, that very little, if anything, is going to change, and that in my dotage I really want whatever peace and quiet I can find. So I will try to keep my head down (more or less). I am not huddling in a corner with a bottle in my hand a la Miniver Cheevy, and my body chemistry seems to preclude remaining silent for more than ten or fifteen minutes. The didactic mode seems to be my natural métier. But there is a difference, as my father used to say, between one and forty. I simply am weary of storming the ramparts.
Several of you have been quite appreciative of my efforts, and I value that. I don't want to turn away from these friends. If a few of you still want to read some of these essays (or brief commentaries by me) then drop me a line and I will think about possibly, just possibly, resuming a very short list. But you must promise not to forward them with my name attached. Wimping out? Perhaps. But I have fought my battles, and enough is enough.
God bless you all,
RR
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