Ralph Nader was recently interviewed by Chris Hedges. Here's a few excerpts. Nader "feared that the population was so effectively anesthetized by mass culture that it might not rise up against the elites. The US has developed a society...living in virtual reality...wallowing in text messages". He worries "as long as 10 to 15% of the American people are well off" and the contented classes aren't upset, the system is in lock."

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Ralph Nader in November at Harvard Law School

Read Chris Hedges interview [1] with Ralph Nader. It's a stunner; a must read.

Much of what Nader said struck this reader, too much to list here. Here's a few selected excerpts.

Most worrisome, Nader "feared that the population was so effectively anesthetized by mass culture that it might not rise up against the elites".

"The U.S. has developed a society...living in virtual reality swinging between big-screen TV and their cell phones. They're wallowing in text messages".

"Great changes start with people in the 20's. But look what you've got now...cell phones available to any child."

Nader worries "as long as 10 to 15 percent of the American people are well-off the elites will have enough support to continue the assault".

"As long as the contented classes are not upset, the system of control is in lock, like connecting gears."

To this septuagenarian-whose early enlightenment began in the late 1960's and early 70's against the Vietnam war- I could not then imagine some 45 years later the general passivity of many/most Americans to the injustices heaped upon them by the elites that as Nader says they "might not rise up against".

How could this have happened?

Well...I do have my own hypotheses and at the top of the list was Congress ending the draft after the US unceremoniously left Vietnam in 1973.

Congress witnessed the demonstrations and protests against the war and vowed that wouldn't happen again and in one fell swoop removed a main group that had participated in resistance to the Vietnam war.

Today "Veterans for Peace" are at the forefront against our wars most of whom came from that Vietnam war generation. They are to be admired along with the few who have come back from Afghanistan and Iraq wars and have spoken up in the few demonstrations against our wars. Unfortunately they are a small minority.

But now since the end of the draft pretty much the only ones entering our all volunteer military are white rural kids and poor minorities from the inner cities in late teens and early 20's whose work prospects are few.

In suburban areas high school ROTC is offered only in less affluent areas where military recruiters can indoctrinate the few to consider joining the military after graduation. ROTC is certainly not offered in the more affluent area high schools.

Now with an all volunteer military, there's little resistance to America's wars particularly from the age group that would naturally resist war if they were subject to have to fight in them. Bradley, now Chelsea Manning being the exception and he paid the price being locked up for 7 years for disclosing and exposing US military war crimes in Iraq.

Today any ideas of re-instituting the draft would be met with incredulous eyes. It ain't gonna happen.

To this observer, the proliferation of Smartphone's and texting is the ultimate distraction away from reality. Everywhere in the public sphere younger-a few old-people are frantically texting and or gazing into their cell phones. Hardly a group ready to rebel against the injustices occurring today which they simply ignore.

As to the "contented classes" as Nader describes them, they are invested in the current system whether they admit it or not.

They may not be working directly in the defense industry, in high level security or surveillance, work for the NSA, CIA or the other 15 intelligence agencies but they do benefit handsomely from the current system whether it be in universities, medicine, the law, corporate management positions, insurance, real estate, Wall Street et al.

With their higher paying positions, marriage, children, mortgages and other bills they are not going to jeopardize their security to rebel against the system they depend upon that sustains their lifestyle.

They may be intellectually against our wars, appalled by our use of torture, Guantanamo holding innocents for years to the malfeasance of the big banks, but again the "contented classes" rationaize and ignore all the bad news. They're not going to rebel against a system that sustains them and their family.

The mostly white supremacist elites know in order to keep the working classes and minorities at bay they must continue to use the old divide and conquer strategy, keep poor working class whites antagonism toward immigrants for taking their jobs, insinuate fear of all Muslims as terrorists and if the poor whites aren't "materially successful" they have only themselves to blame for their plight.

Instead of buying into this white supremacist elite divide and conquer strategy there needs to be a class struggle by most whites, blacks, browns, Muslims in solidarity with each other focused on the real culprits the CEO's of giant corporations, the heads of the military/industrial/political complex, Wall Street banksters and billionaires in control in order to forge a class war against these elites.

The focus needs to be on the real malevolent forces, the elites rather protests remaining singularly focused on one dimension issues i.e. opposition to Trump, the environment, LGBT, abortion, Black Lives Matter, $15 minimum wage, opposition to fracking, anti war, overturning "Citizens United" et al. All these groups need to be interconnected with each other as well as with working class peoples, their loss of jobs and middle class income, outsourcing of those jobs, affordable health care. As long as the majority of people and their issues and concerns remain separate and disconnected of the others this feeds right into the elites divide and conquer strategy keeping them firmly in control.

Something Nader feared; the population might not rise up against the elites.

[1] "Hedges interviews Nader: RIP American Democracy", by Chris Hedges, OPEDNEWS, January 1, 2018

Authors Website: dglefc22733@aol.com

Authors Bio:
Retired. The author of "DECEIT AND EXCESS IN AMERICA, HOW THE MONEYED INTERESTS HAVE STOLEN AMERICA AND HOW WE CAN GET IT BACK", Authorhouse, 2009