I feel as if I'm inside a horror flick. Vampires have taken over the government and are sucking it dry. They sprinkle the populace with media dust which keeps us asleep and satisfied. We go to the movies and eat our popcorn, never noticing our increasing poverty and weakness.
Recently I saw "Invasion of the Body Snatchers", a 1956 film noir which gave me deep insight into what goes on in Washington these days. The body snatchers get you while you're asleep, and you become an automaton, obeying orders which enable the body snatchers to take over more and more people. Those taken over look the same, act the same, have the same memories, but have lost their souls. Rep. John Conyers is the most obvious example; two years ago he was leading the charge on impeachment, but the body snatchers got him last May, and ever since, impeachment is off the table.
We have "Dr. Strangelove" in the White House, heehawing his way to nuclear armageddon, and taking the rest of us with him. Bush threatens to nuke Iraq, while Cheney ominously reminds us that American cities can be nuked. We are hostages to these madmen, with their fingers on the button.
Then there's "The Matrix", which I haven't seen, but understand you are given a choice- if you take the blue pill, you go along with things as they are, but if you take the red pill, you wake up to a horrible reality and have to do something. More and more Americans are opting for the red pill of truth.
My favorite myth is "Lord of the Rings". As a peacemaker, I try to be like Frodo, putting ego aside and working closely with others. Like Frodo, I become tempted to put on the Ring of power and attract the attention of the Evil Eye. Then I remember the swiftboating Nazgul, and I shudder with paranoia. We entered Mordor in 2001 when Bush took office, and are trudging ever closer to Mt. Doom as the calls for impeachment grow.
"The Greatest Story Ever Told" sustained us in the 60's, as we fought for civil rights under the inspired leadership of Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., who, like Jesus, gave his life for truth. The "religious right" deliberately and cynically hijacked the Bible in the late 70's, so that true followers of Jesus are now intimidated and confused.
"The Passion", with its thinly disguised sadomasochism, increased the alienation of many who care about people and the future. The Bible, a mainstay of our culture, tells us to choose life, says that love is the greatest law, and shows the path to peace. It has been hijacked by the warmongering hypocritical Bushites, today's Pharisees. As a result, many progressives have rejected this source of spiritual strength.
Reality today resembles a Robert Ludlum movie, with an international cabal of super-rich in control, manufacturing news and disasters. Truth has become stranger than fiction, and we are turning to reality films. As we choose truth with the red pill, the truth tellers are busy with documentaries like "9-11 Mysteries", "High Crimes", "The Road to Abu Ghraib".
The "Star Wars" trilogy provides us with good role models, as we fight the evil empire, so that the Death Star won't destroy our home planet. Many of those in Washington have gone over to the dark side. May the Force be with all the bloggers, whistle blowers, impeachers, peaceniks and the rest of the Jedi!
In the name of the Prince of Peace, Carol Wolman
