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OpEdNews Op Eds    H2'ed 7/23/14

Normalizing Militarized Culture

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Message Bruce K. Gagnon
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Texas Governor Rick Perry guarding the border with Mexico to prevent children from entering the US

The eternal race for president is on. Those first out the gate for the 2016 national election include Hillary Clinton and Gov. Rick Perry from Texas. Looming in the shadows is former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (brother of G. W. Bush). The oligarchy will run two horses in the race - one from the Democrats and one from the Republicans - ensuring they pick a winner no matter who prevails.

With our mounting economic and environmental crisis the answer from the ruling oligarchy is more militarization. The photo of Rick Perry above is illustrative of that fact. Everything in America is stage managed - an endless public relations campaign -- Disney style. We are being led by this PR campaign to support a particular direction and it ain't for our benefit.

During times like these the message is widely sent out to all crazies, lunatics, and violent elements of society, those who have been in hiding because their views are not acceptable in a stable and peaceful culture, that they can now come out from behind the curtain. Thus we have recently witnessed the 'open carry' rallies where gun advocates take their weapons into hamburger joints and low-end department stores. The ruling oligarchy wants to normalize the militarized culture.

Now is the defining moment. If good hearted people shirk during these important times then we will hand our children a future certain to be one of chaos and madness. If we each help push back against this cultural disintegration then just maybe we have a chance to hold back the tide.

Gov. Perry has been assigned a certain role in this public production. He gladly accepts it. Hillary Clinton also welcomes her assigned role with open arms.

We don't have to take a seat on this run-a-way train. We can resist by making better choices of who we support and how we respond to Mr. Big's plan for our future.

Most people want to be on the 'winning' team - its part of the cultural indoctrination that we've learned to swallow. Sometimes though picking the 'losing' side helps advance social progress by the sheer pressure that is built up by those collective forces. Those who demanded the eight-hour work day, unemployment insurance, child labor laws, women's right to vote, government control of banking and industry, direct election of the senate, and much more never formally took power but helped create the movement to force the oligarchy to compromise on these crucial issues.

That is our task again today as we resist endless war, work for a sustainable future and a fair and sharing society.
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Bruce Gagnon is the Coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space.

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