Only the state can engage in the practice of human sacrifice with impunity; yet without the willing labors of the masses, wars cannot be fought. Patriotism and pride, or hunger and fear work well enough, but nothing compares to pure hatred as way of creating popular support for a war. Wars cannot be arranged without the cultivation of hatred and fear of the "others" those who are not like "us." Vicious old men, safely quartered far from the actual danger of a battlefield, convince the young and strong to kill and die in the service of their power. Some use visions of paradise after sacrifice, others use sentimental and patriotic rhetoric, or even promises of strength, honor, monetary rewards and great success in life for survivors.
Recently America was attacked by someone or something, for reasons I cannot honestly claim to know. I personally suspect that this war crime was a genuine terrorist attack by religious fanatics. I also leave open the possibility that arrangements were made by persons unknown to ensure that the attack would be successful and that the devastation would be complete and visually impressive.
Whether the profiteering and misdirected counterattack that ensued afterwards was premeditated, or simply a brilliant opportunistic response to an atrocity is something that might matter in a court of law. The fact is that we don't really know.What we do know is what happened next. The War State and its primary beneficiaries had a field day. A brilliant series of war crimes, political crimes, thefts and con games ensued. The audacity of the gang using the hapless and gullible figurehead George W Bush, AKA "Chimpy," exceeded anything that this nation has seen during my lifetime. At the end of this orgy of looting, killing, and desecration of the constitution, Chimpy was anathema even to his own party.
Even with no "smoking gun" the trail of money and dead bodies leads to certain people and places; the following is mere speculation on my part supported only by circumstantial evidence:
Somewhere in a back room, persons rarely if ever seen in public discussed how
to handle the negative publicity and growing anti-war and anti-authoritarian
sentiment.
Particularly troubling was the concept of "libertarianism" finding its way into the mainstream media. Suddenly, it was not necessary to be a "liberal" or a "leftist" if one wanted to oppose the war state and its crimes. The candidate Ron Paul, an intellectual with a genuine knowledge of history and a common-sense view of recent events spoke the unspeakable, and people listened. The nominal "right" was in danger of falling under the control of persons opposed to war, and in favor of the restoration of civil liberties. [Note: I'm still undecided about Ron Paul]http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/541801/ron_paul_libertarian_dreams_and_corporatist.html
They made a strategic decision, to let the masses have their temper tantrum, to allow them to elect a "liberal," even a woman or a person of color. The frustration with Chimpy and the Gang would be taken out on aging and expendable members of the club, and fresh new faces would emerge from the rubble, ready to lead the inevitable backlash.
"Let them have their way; no matter what the new regime does, things will get worse. As always, any change significantly affecting the power structure will be obstructed by any means necessary. The focus of the war will shift, and will again escalate, and the masses won't care. The unemployed will be angry at whoever appears to be in power, regardless of how the economic devastation started, and those who are still employed will live in fear, work harder, complain less, and productivity will rise.After four years of this, they will be glad to have us back, and by the time they realize that they have yet again been duped, we will have again achieved record profits and body counts."
The strategy succeeded. The even dealt with the annoying problem of "libertarianism, through the classic Orwellian tactic of redefinition(newspeak). They distorted and removed basic principles of libertarianism systematically; eventually, the word became synonymous with less exciting and romantic sounding terms, including the vulgar Marxian pejorative for the market system, "Capitalism."
They restored the myth that property rights can exist separately from civil liberties, self ownership, and privacy. A confused reactionary populist movement seized on elements of this new definition of "libertarianism" and called itself the Tea Party in commemoration of a pre-revolutionary tax protest.
The Tea Party co-mingled the legitimate discontent of decent people with the sheer hate-ridden ignorance of others, and a modern day "peasant rabble" marched onto the battlefield, lead by cynical career political operatives, who carefully avoided all issues unrelated to money and power. A streak of radicalism remained within this divided movement, but the power brokers laughed with contempt, even as they used this movement to their advantage.
We can sit and watch now as the first wave of the backlash hits, and the War State begins to regain its public support. It was there all along, never really lost any power, but somewhere along the line, its masters sensed the possibility of a possible impedance to their agenda, perhaps a drastic reduction in funding by a government actually intending to cut spending. Whatever threat existed is eliminated for now.
I'm not here to sell hope now, because a sense of hopelessness is called for. We need to stop hoping that "things will change," or that a leader will emerge; someone we can elect who will fix things for us. Whatever it is that must be done, it is up to each one of us as individuals now. As the hate-mongers, greed-freaks, control addicts, and professional sadomasochists rub their hands together with glee, neither do we need to live in fear.
It should be clear by now that our federal government is too hopelessly befouled with corruption and incompetence to be counted on for help with anything, when it comes to repairing the damage that has been done to the economy. As for our rights as individuals, regardless of religion, political affiliation, race, gender, sexual preference etc, it us up to us to defend them each and every day of our lives; the courts and elected officials will only recognize these rights when it becomes impossible not to. Ballot initiatives are too slow, and allow for tyranny of the majority. Economic tactics hit hard and fast, and do not require a numerical majority to succeed.
Corporations and religious groups have used these tactics to their advantage repeatedly; they are also vulnerable to them. A church can't function without a congregation; a corporation can't survive without laborers and consumers, and lately it seems, without government subsidies. Just thinking very carefully about where you are willing to work and where you are willing to spend your wages is a good place to start. Defend your own rights, because authoritarian religions, business and government will try to violate them.
Although we may not live to see it, if the planet survives long enough War State will in be relegated to a museum of historical deviance and horrors. The Neocons, Neofascists, Stalinists; and the Jihadi - Muslims, Christians, and Jews- of the extreme religious right, sense the coming their own doom; the terror and misery they spread, and the hatred that drives them is rooted in fear. They have much to fear, and even more that they simply do not comprehend.
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