Myth America: A Stand-up Tragedy

SAVE AS FAVORITE

VIEW FAVORITES

By Mickey Z. (about the author) Page 7 of 9 page(s)

opednews.com Permalink

For an example of such terror, I’ll look back to the “good war” (a phrase in which Studs Terkel said the noun and adjective don’t match): In early 1945, US General Curtis LeMay and his 21st Bomber Command laid siege on the poorer areas of Japan’s large cities. On March 9-10, the target was Tokyo, where tightly packed wooden buildings took the brunt of 1665 tons of incendiary bombs. By design, the attack area was 87% residential. By May 1945, LeMay’s campaign had killed an estimated 672,000 Japanese civilians. An aide to MacArthur called the raids “one of the most ruthless and barbaric killings of non-combatants in all history.” Secretary of War Henry Stimson worried that US would “get the reputation for outdoing Hitler in atrocities.” LeMay himself said: “I suppose if I had lost the war, I would have tried as a war criminal. Fortunately, I was on the winning side.”

The men that devised and carried out this attack are generally considered to be part of this country’s greatest generation yet, by any sane definition, what I just described is terrorism.

No matter what you call it, there is an alternative to terrorism. It’s called justice. But to seek justice, we must first recognize injustice—even if we play a direct or indirect role. To do that, we have to open our eyes and then take action.
To do that, we have to maintain what Gramsci called the "pessimism of the intellect and optimism of the will."
To do that, we have to become aware of ourselves as potential agents of collective social change.
To do that, we have to remember that the few successful movements in this country’s history—civil rights, women’s suffrage, labor—prevailed in part because they utilized tactics that were outside of what was permitted at the time.

Now, I’m gonna go out on a limb and take a guess that the world has more than enough corporate lawyers, investment bankers, Wall Street executives, and real estate brokers. If you agree, clap your hands. (Much applause)

Okay, time to play another hunch I say the world could never have enough dreamers, poets, artists, activists, romantics, visionaries, fighters, militants, rebels, radicals, and non-conformists. (Loud applause)

How many non-conformists do we have hear tonight? (Most people raise hand) Okay then, I’d like you all to take the non-conformist pledge with me. Raise your left hand and repeat after me.

I am a non-conformist (everyone repeats)
I think for myself (everyone repeats)
I do not repeat what people tell me to say (laughter)

We need more non-conformists and we need more saints. When I say saint, I am using Kurt Vonnegut’s definition of a saint as someone who behaves decently in an indecent world. Therefore, I ordain each and every one of you a saint—or at least, a saint in training—and starting right this second, you must start acting decently in this terribly indecent world.

Because everyone has something to offer. We all have boundless compassion, creativity, wisdom, and courage. We can each inspire ourselves and others toward peace, justice, and solidarity. We can all rediscover the subversive pleasure of thinking for ourselves.

But consider yourself warned. Now that you’ve listened to all this, you’re committed. As Arundhati Roy sez: “The trouble is that once you see it, you can’t unsee it. And once you’ve seen it, keeping quiet, saying nothing, becomes as political an act as speaking out. There’s no innocence. Either way, you’re accountable.”

I know it’s not easy. Author E.B. White once said: "If the world were merely seductive, that would be easy. If it were merely challenging, that would be no problem. But I arise in the morning torn between the desire to improve the world and a desire to enjoy the world. This makes it hard to plan the day."

Well, to make it a little easier to plan your day, I’ve enlisted the help of some friends:

Albert Einstein sez: “The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.”
Voltaire tells us: “We’re all guilty of the good we didn’t do.”
MLK says: “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is this: What are you doing for others?”
Noam Chomsky reminds us: “We are responsible for the predictable consequences of our actions.”
Three simple words from Gandhi: “Action expresses priorities”
And finally Kurt Vonnegut tells us: “There is no reason good can’t triumph over evil, if only angels will get organized along the lines of the Mafia.”

Clearly, the old strategies are not working but until our tactics evolve, we remain accomplices to the perpetual global crime we call civilization. What kind of tactics? That’s up to you but, before you rule anything out, consider this: Let’s say I step out side get some air and see one of you lying on the ground. Standing above you is a large, menacing man with bad intentions and clearly, he has incapacitated you with a surprise blow. Your eyes meet mine and you indicate you need help.

I could pray. I could meditate. I could chalk it up to bad karma. I could ask you to recognize that the attacker is a human and tell him that you love him. I could blame patriarchy, the Republicans, or gangsta rap. I could ask myself: What would Jesus do? What would the Dalai Lama do? What would Oprah do? I could try to remember that excellent saying about non-violence I got from my Pilates teacher.

OR: I could stomp my foot to draw his attention downward and promptly whip out a finger jab to his eyes. When he brings hands up (too late) to protect himself, he leaves his mid-section exposed. I kick him in the balls—doubling him over—then grab him by the hair and bring his face down into a powerful knee blow. Then I’d grab the victim get the fuck out of there as fast as we can.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9

http://www.mickeyz.net

Mickey Z. can be found on the Web at http://www.mickeyz.net.

The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
and do not necessarily reflect those of this website or its editors.

Contact Author

Contact Editor

View Authors' Articles

Book Recommendations for "Corporations Culture Death"

Studebaker: The Life and Death of an American Corporation (Midwestern History and Culture)
by Donald T. Critchlow

$39.95
Lowest New Price $89.92
Number of pages: 273
Publisher: Indiana University Press

Armageddon U.S.A.: A Chronicle of America's Genocide Phenomenon and Its Culture of Death
by Ronald, Ph.D. Campbell

$36.99

Number of pages: 576
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation

Engulfed: The Death of Paramount Pictures and the Birth of Corporate Hollywood
by Bernard F. Dick

$37.50
Lowest New Price $26.95
Number of pages: 280
Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky

Final Curtain: Deaths of Noted Movie and Television Personalities 1912-1996
by Everett Grant Jarvis

$21.95
Lowest New Price $35.10
Number of pages: 411
Publisher: Carol Publishing Corporation

View All Book Recommendations

Share this page: (what's this?) Tell a Friend:

(More...)