Let the Hunger Games Begin
I find it near impossible to listen to the 911 calls recording the murder of Trayvon Martin. We are allowed to eavesdrop into George Zimmerman’s call to the Sanford Police; a rumination of an executioners song. The self anointed captain of the neighborhood watch reports he is observing a hoodie clad Trayvon looking suspicious and up to no good. Says Zimmerman, “I don’t know what his deal is. He’s got something in his hand. He’s looking at me. I know he’s up to no good.” The 911 dispatcher asks Zimmerman if he is following Trayvon. Zimmerman answers in the affirmative. The dispatcher instructs Zimmerman, “we don’t want you to follow him.” Zimmerman answers, “they always get away.” Not this time. Next we hear another 911 call from a resident of the housing complex asking police assistance for an assault in progress. This is followed by screams of a terrified child and the sound of gunshots that ended the life of a young boy carrying a can of ice tea and a pack of Skittles.
Its sickening to envision Zimmerman, sitting in his truck eying his pray from the safety of his lair, palming the smooth shaft of his warm gun then commencing a deliberate stalk of a child. Zimmerman’s actions elicits the desperate screams of a frightened child being hunted down; culminating in the execution of a person whose killer is moved by a perception of his entitlement to be the judge, jury and executioner of an innocent boy.
Its even more sickening to think that his behavior is sanctioned by the State of Florida “Stand Your Ground” law. The law entitles citizens to use deadly force to protect themselves in an act of self defense. After the execution of Trayvon, the state corners office performed a battery of drug tests on the corpse of the victim to gather evidence to classify the deceased as a reprobate. None was found. No tests were conducted on Mr. Zimmerman. The killer of Trayvon walked away from the murder of a child without so much as a disorderly persons citation.
Since 1987 Florida has issued over two million permits to carry a handgun. Its a sobering realization to consider the firepower legally roaming the streets of Florida and a body of law that entitles and protects the deadly use of force if one of these gun toting entitle-istas feels the least bit threatened to his person or property.
This is the fruit of a society steeped in a sense of privilege, radical entitlement and fear. A culture and a super structure of law codifying the notion of entitlement and privilege, its Second Amendment protection and its deadly enforcement at any cost is a culture bereft of moral value. The National Rifle Association, lobbyists working on behalf of firearms manufacturers and conservative political groups are vocal proponents in support of America’s gun centric culture. Arms manufacturing to support a vast gun ownership market and to supply the largest military in the world with guns and bullets is a huge business. Gun manufacturers are actively promoting the adoption of Stand Your Ground laws in numerous states. Its a profitable business opportunity for the gun runners of capitalism; sure to result in mounting body counts of Americans. It is also a major driving force as to why America is in a permanent state of war.
The proliferation of Stand Your Ground laws should be viewed against the backdrop of a rising conservative political culture that preaches the sanctity of private property and the right to employ extreme measures to protect that property. All justified under the guise of free markets, virulent patriotism and the God given right to the pursuit of property.
The acceleration of the concentration of wealth into fewer hands has created an extreme political economy of “haves and have nots”. The viral spread of the Occupy Wall Street Movement (OWS) grew as a reaction against the growing bifurcation of America. The power and privilege of the monied classes, (the 1%) enjoys the liberty and freedom only money can buy, while the liberty and security of the remaining majority is continually eroded due to diminished economic capacity and political disenfranchisement.
As the deconstruction of the liberal welfare state proceeds and the social safety net it affords taken down, the roiling mass of the remaining 99% of citizens will be left to fend for themselves, fighting for survival in a Social Darwinist dystopia.
The stirring open to the US Constitution, “We the People” is undermined with a nation populated with “the other”. We no longer share a republican kinship of a free people united under a common Bill of Rights, equally sharing the common liberty protected and assured by a federal government. America is quickly devolving into a confederation of “others” exempted from the common rights and responsibilities of citizenship due to a sense of radical entitlement. The notion that an individual right to a pursuit of happiness trumps all others and must be defended at all costs is killing the republican ideal of free and equal rights of citizenship. It is also the mindset that puts a bullet into the heart of a Treyvon Martin. It is the Rebel Yell that prompts Rush Limbaugh to call Sandra Fluke a slut, the Tea Party to insist that President Obama is not an American, Muslims are Islamo Fascists and illegal aliens are undermining the economic and cultural underpinnings of America.
The dehumanization of people is the driving compulsion that led Sargent Bales to madness. His action was a psychotic attempt to purge his pain by murdering “the thing” he believed lay at the root of his pain. A similar perversion is played out everyday from the safety of underground bunkers in Oklahoma. Here, Air Force technicians guide deadly drones to targets in Pakistan, Somalia and Yemen. They push buttons, delivering death on innocent civilians, creating mounting piles of collateral damage as the unfortunate price foreigners are compelled to pay for the liberty of Americans.
The commodification of humanity escalates as the devaluation of human life proceeds. The mounting human wreckage from the underclass internecine warfare results in either death or prison for combatants. America boasts the largest population of prison inmates in the world. The privatization of this industry is music to the ears of bankrupt state penal systems begging relief and a slice of the growing pie of penal colony profits. In China, the state recoups its penal expenditures by harvesting the organs of inmates. A striking example of taking from the distressed and giving to the society’s elites.
This weekend a sure to be blockbuster movie, The Hunger Games hits the cinema multiplexes. The premiers were sold out weeks in advance. Americans are eager to buy a ticket to watch young Americans driven to slaughter other young Americans in an orgy of Social Darwinist blood lust.
As the liberal welfare state continues to be deconstructed and the services and protections of the social contract eliminated or placed into the profit driven care of private enterprises; the hunger games of distressed citizens will play out in an ugly pantomime of violent civil discourse. Save yourself the price of a ticket to admission to The Hunger Games. We are all players and the game is being played in a hoodie near you.
Music Selection: Taylor Swift, Civil Wars: Safe and Sound
Risk: culture, prisons, social contract
The Party of Values, Thoroughly Bankrupt
Republican’s fancy themselves to be the party of values. They profess to love God and country. They believe themselves to be the real Americans. They are the absolute definition of righteous patriots. They see themselves and their families basking in the light of a celestial exceptionalism. They occupy the center of a universe anointed by the invisible hand of free market capitalism, governed and sanctified by the benevolent love of their heavenly father, Jesus Christ.
Their values are based on a fundamentalist foundation of the King James Bible and the US Constitution as it was originally conceived and authored by the Founding Fathers in 1787. They are resolute in the belief of the correctness of their interpretation of this hallowed literature and remain adamant in how the instruction of these sacred tomes should be applied and implemented to shape and govern our Federal Republic.
If you question the basic supposition of their position they will tarry your thrust by questioning your love of country and your belief in God. Those same questions must be asked of them. The virulent defenders of the cross and crown of liberty consistently undermine the spirit of both. They serve the corporate objectives of church, military and industrial institutions that have formed an unholy alliance to rule and exploit the hearts and minds of an enslaved consumer market that cannot discern the difference between political liberty and a have it your way experience at Burger King.
America’s political ignorance is a poverty exploited by the oligarchs; giving them full sway to control and manipulate the levers of power to secure and advance selfish interests. They cloth their motives in priestly robes, medal adorned military uniforms, Rotarian flannel suits and Joe “the wannabe” Plumber overalls feigning a martyrdom of being crushed by the menacing liberal elites by standing for the values of free markets, Christianity, class mobility and a military spreading the global march of democracy.
The GOP presidential debates provided some telling political theater of how the party of values advanced the cause of individual liberty and governance informed by moral precepts. In one session a gay officer serving in Iraq asked the candidates “now that DADT has been repealed and gay service personnel can serve in the military would they support same sex marriage”. The gay serviceman unselfishly serving his country in a theater of war was roundly booed by the uber patriots sitting in the audience before Rick Santorum piled on and asserted not only would he not sign a same sex marriage bill into law, he would also reinstate DADT.
In another session the question concerning the mandatory requirement to purchase health care insurance was raised. The moderator asked a hypothetical question, “if a person failed to purchase insurance and required a life saving procedure who should pay?” One of the more compassionate conservatives shouted “let him die”. This was undoubtedly the same guy who condemned Jesus for healing on the Sabbath.
Another high water mark of GOP moral turpitude occurred when the debate moderator questioned Rick Perry about the State of Texas position as the leader in capital punishment executions. The audience erupted in cheers. The United States is home to the worlds largest penal colony with an inmate population that exceeds 2,000,000. This belies the myth of the United States as the land of the free; particularly for the people of color who account for the largest proportion of the inmate population. This is good news for the free marketeers as the privatization of prisons is a growth industry. The profiteers of misery require the judicial apparatus of the states to maintain a prison occupancy rate of 90% to assure profitability for private investors. The threat to a fair trial has never been more at risk. This is a business opportunity right up the GOPs free market alley. The devaluation of the rule of law an unfortunate consequence. The value of money trumps the grace of justice.
The GOP’s deep investment in the culture of death mirrors a country thoroughly committed to the continued militarization of the economy regardless of its cultural cost. Republicans eagerly beat the drums of war and use the poetry of destruction to articulate a cutesy point. Remember John McCain using the melody of Barbara Anne to sing, “bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran” The neocons ate it up. The peacemaker may be considered children of God, but in the GOP the business of war and righteous crusades are divine.
Republicans pledge undying fealty to the Constitution and the rights of citizens. One would think that this would encourage vocal opposition to President Obama’s Executive Order to execute suspected combatant citizens without due process in respect to the right of a trial by a jury of their peers. Not a single word has been raised against this grievous violation of a basic constitutional protection. Where are all the freedom loving, constitution waving Teabaggers? It’s a natural extension of Republican’s refusal to recognize the full civil rights of citizens. As in the case of LGBT civil rights, the GOP’s vision of America protects civil liberties only for select citizens they deem worthy. The rights of the republic’s citizens and the rule of law be damned.
It is in this light that we can understand Rush Limbaugh’s misogynistic characterization of Sandra Fluke as a slut. Dehumanizing a group of people as “the other” or “less then” because they hold a contrary position is a dangerous sedition that undermines democracy.
Democracies need its citizens to reach an informed consensus to function. Consensus requires dialog to assimilate disparate views from multiple viewpoints and perspectives. This presupposes that the participants in the discussion recognize and value the rights of citizenship for all participants in the dialog. The highest value in a secular democracy is respecting the equal rights of all citizens. Without this value democracies crumble. Our democracy is in shambles.
This weekend Rick Santorum sat upon the alter at the Greenwell Baptist Church to accept the endorsement of Pastor Dennis Terry for the upcoming Louisiana primary. After laying his hands on Santorum to bless his candidacy, Pastor Terry delivered a sermon that spewed fire and brimstone onto the reprobate head of our secular democracy. “America” he said “was a Christian Nation ruled by Christ the King. He said American’s don’t worship Buddha, Allah or any other false Gods. He said American’s worshiped the God on High, Jesus Christ. And if they don’t like it they can get out.” As a Christian I can’t tell you how much I loathe this blatant bigotry. Jesus was all about inclusion and tolerance and I’m sure he would make short work of this Pharisee. As an American citizen, I can’t think of a more ignorant and damaging characterization of America’s promise and the democratic values it professes to uphold.
GOP wunderkind Paul Ryan, yesterday unveiled a budget that assiduously accounts for the price of every tax loop hole, generous corporate welfare allocation and tax reduction for the wealthy while demonstrating a chilling indifference for slashed social programs and its impact on human beings. Republican’s know the price of everything and the value of nothing. The party of values is thoroughly bankrupt.
Music Selection: Sen. John McCain, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb, Bomb Iran
Michele Bachmann’s Handfull of Subpoenas
Michelle Bachmann recently advanced the idea that the new congress needs to go to Washington with a hand full of subpoenas to fully uncover and punish the criminal behavior of the Obama Administration. Why does she want to do this? Why does the Chairwoman of the Republican Tea Party Caucus think this is a good idea?
During President Clinton’s second term the GOP’s extreme partisanship led to impeachment proceedings and severely hampered the effectiveness of our government and its Chief Executive. This distraction may have made some political hay for Republicans but crippled our Chief Executive’s ability to focus on and deal with the growing terror threat Al-Qaeda was preparing to launch against our country. The GOP’s actions provided support, aid, cover and comfort to the terrorists and heightened our country’s vulnerability to attack. Perhaps we should investigate their activities and motives for effectively becoming a Fifth Column for the Evil Doers?
Earlier in the year, Ms. Bachmann’s suggested to Chris Matthews that we should investigate the UnAmerican activities of congress and senate members to root out and expose those who hate America and are actively working for its destruction. I’m not so sure about this; it may lead to the mass imprisonment of the Republicans who obstructed President Clinton’s ability to perform his duties as Commander and Chief. With the GOP gone it would be impossible to form a consensus to effectively govern the nation so I’m kinda lukewarm on this one. After all President Obama and the ruling democrats rely on the good will of the loyal opposition GOP party to show the country that democracy works and that we can all get along.
But because I don’t think Ms. Bachmann’s idea is a good one doesn’t make it bad. After all I’m coming from a pretty partisan place myself. So in the spirit of consensus building I’m trying to understand why she would propose such a thing. Though its a dangerous and scary place to visit, I have tried to get inside Ms. Bachmann’s mind to understand her reasoning why she thinks the congress should spend the next session investigating members for crimes against the republic.
I have comprised a list of 13 reasons as to why Michele Bachmann and the Tea Party may think this is a good idea for the country. Please feel free to add your own.
1. Because its fun to shut the Federal Government down (ask Newt Gingrich)
2. It will heighten partisanship to levels yet unseen
3. Obstructionism is their preferred style of governance
4. Dissent is dangerous to a democracy
(America is long over due for another round of McCarthyism)
5. Enemy combatants sitting in congress must be imprisoned
6. It will demonstrate reactionary street cred
7. Sean Hannity thinks its a good idea
8. Rush Limbaugh thinks its a great idea
9. Glenn Beck tearfully pleads to show no quarter to “Wilsonian Reprobates”
10. Compromise/consensus forming is for sissies
11. Its how Michele Bachmann Mans Up and shows her pair
12. It plays well on Talk Radio and to the rabid dogs in the TP howling for fresh meat
13. 2012 GOP can say we did our best under trying circumstances now give us the White House and Senate. We’ll finish the job. Rove calls it the Coup de Grace campaign. A final silver bullet to the head of the democrats, democratic consensus and Federalism paid and financed by serious 527 money.
You Tube Video: Edvard Grieg, In the Hall of the Mountain King
Risk: consensus, governance, democracy
A Better Way (3): Vote Green Party
It was the summer of 75. I was going into my sophomore year in college. I just switched my major from business to political science and I was standing in front of a shopping mall on the outskirts of Boston getting signatures to secure ballot status in the State of Massachusetts for the Social Workers Party (SWP) Presidential candidate Peter Camejo. That afternoon as I dodged shopping carts, roller skating kids and big finned cars spewing black emissions from leaded fueled V8’s, I secured over 300 signatures from fellow citizens in support of a ballot listing for a socialist candidate for president. I did so by engaging my fellow citizens in an appeal to their democratic sentiments. I explained to each person who stopped to listen that their signature was an authorization to grant ballot status for the candidate. Signing the petition was not an endorsement of the candidate or his views or an indication that they would vote for him. The petition solely conferred ballot status to the candidate so that his views may be represented in the democratic market of ideas and voted on. Most people readily if not eagerly signed the petition. All felt it was critical that all opinions needed to be heard. For many it was a passionate defense of the democratic process and a celebration of their commitment to the ideals of a democratic republic. I doubt weather today’s voters would be so approachable. The ability to listen with an open mind or being amenable to signing a petition to grant ballot status for a socialist candidate is rapidly disappearing from America’s political culture. Pluralism is under attack. It is being hunted down and eradicated like a species of animal unfit to live in a democratic landscape meticulously manicured by the Glenn Beck’s and Rush Limbaugh’s of the world. Times have certainly changed.
In the interest of transparency and in the spirit of full disclosure I feel the need to admit that I have always been a registered independent voter ever since I was eligible to vote. At the age of 54, I have been an active voter for 36 years and during that time I have rarely missed an opportunity to exercise my right and fulfill my responsibility as a fully enfranchised citizen in a democratic republic.
Like those who signed my petition back in 75 I consider it a privilege and duty to participate in the electoral process. I always believed that free and open elections were a distinguishing characteristic of America. I consider voting a bedrock right that must be exercised to assure that democracy endures. The US Constitution and The Bill of Rights remain the surest guarantor of our democratic freedoms and can only be defended by celebrating our enfranchisement through the consistent practice of voting.
The right to vote was hard won. It was the a fruit of liberty watered with the blood of revolutionaries. It was the full promise of liberation made to former slaves wrested from the peace won from drinking a long draft of wine pressed from the grapes of wrath. Women right to vote was finally won well after the century mark of our republic finally securing true universal suffrage for all citizens. When I vote I believe myself to be honoring the hard fought and dearly won suffrage victory of those who went before. I scratch my head at learning that Meg Whitman only recently realized that healthy democratic societies requires its citizens to participate in the electoral process. The growing preponderance of retired multi-millionaire businesspeople running for office is a curious development. This new breed of politician comes before the electorate speaking about the poverty of the systems political values. Emboldened with a perverse freedom from want these candidates approach politics as the next step in an enterprising career move. Flush with cash channeled from their personal version of the American dream they testify to the sanctity of laissez-faire democracy and are willing to use a portion of their treasure to keep hope alive for a very very select few.
During my 36 year voting career in national, state and local elections I usually vote for third party candidates. I do this because I believe that the duopoly of our political system does not provide sufficient options for a differentiated choice between the two ruling parties. I vote for progressive third parties because I believe it important that we break the stranglehold of the two party system. A precondition to breaking the control of the duopoly is to alter the political psychology of American voters. This takes education, enhanced transparency and the visibility and honest engagement of third party candidates, not their demonization. I try to vote for the person over party and I have voted for a Republican or two over the years. If a third party candidate is not running for office I more then likely vote Democrat because I believe them to be a closer match to the political interests of my social position and political aspirations.
The expansion of choice, the delineation of positions, the articulation of differing visions and approaches to problems are important to the health of a democratic society. The people who signed my petition for SWP ballot status knew and respected the importance that all voices need to be heard. Some as I recall even expressed a dislike for socialism but voiced a love of democracy. By signing the petition they demonstrated their commitment to cherished democratic ideals was greater then their political prejudices; believing that all voices needed to be heard and fairly judged by an open and free electorate.
The deep abiding respect for Americas democratic culture is in dire jeopardy. The sickening video of a Rand Paul supporter stomping on a woman carrying a banner in support of his opponent has become an iconic symbol of American politics. Last week, unlicensed security personnel for Sarah Palin’s handpicked Alaska Senate Candidate Joe Miller, handcuffed and forcibly restrained a reporter who dared to ask Mr. Miller a question. These incidents are being played out against a backdrop of virulent attack advertisements playing in continuous loop on all media channels. The unending stream of personal attacks demonizes the candidates that feature fantastic claims framed by blatant lies in service to a narrow ideology that protects the power and privilege of special interests.
Or consider the surreal parade of “I Am You” candidates. These non-professional politicians speaking the hard truths political correctness refuses to utter, make comical faux pas that reveal damning personal virtues like witchcraft, Nazi affectations, knuckleheadism, opportunism and scoundrelism. This off putting political theater erodes our faith and confidence in democratic process.
One can imagine the enemies of democracy gleefully advancing the careers of the political cretins presenting themselves as viable candidates. These dangerous Fifth Columnists actually endanger democracy. They are so off putting that the electorate will revile from the choices, like in Nevada which allows the voter to pull the lever for none of the above. In fact an insidious Republican PAC is running ads aimed at Latino voters in the Southwest. The ads advise Latinos to boycott the election and vacate the right to vote because the Democratic Party has abandoned them. The advertisement concludes that not voting is the best way to send a message to the Democrats.
One also needs to evaluate and consider the big money moving into the campaign on behalf of the two major parties. The source of “big money” is big moneyed interests. The Supreme Court decision of Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission has unleashed a tsunami of corporate money into the electoral process. The money is buying favor from our elected representatives. Lots of this money is flowing into the campaigns of Tea Party backed candidates who are running under the well worn moniker of Republicanism, exposing the sham masquerade of their avowed independence.
Big money is instilling fear and favor into politicians of the established parties. Donkeys and Elephants are eager to avoid the scorpion sting of big money finance vehicles and are just as eager to mainline the addictive smack of big money contributions. One can argue this has degraded and devalued the significance of our vote but I am here to assert that the value of our vote has never been greater.
Free people deserve more then a choice between the lesser of two evils. If we value our democracy we must not squander our votes on candidates whose interests are antithetical to our own. The Green Party offers a vision and solutions that are not beholden to the special interests that have a stranglehold over our political institutions and economic system. The political pornography polluting our airways is clogging the arteries of our body politic. America can no longer suffer the paralysis of government engendered by extreme partisanship or the promulgation of fear promoted by intractable power elites. America is in desperate need for a cure the lesser of two evils cannot provide. The greater or lesser evil can only be avoided by voting for a progressive candidate not bought or controlled by those who continue to thrive off the misery of our broken system. The back and forth swing of a pendulum that oscillates between the radical conservatism of the Republicans and the ineffectual liberalism of the Democrats united in service to a common master needs to come to a blessed end. America can break with this cycle. A vote for Green is a vote for the sustainable future of a more democratic and just America.
The Ten Key Values of the Greens
Social Justice
Community-Based Economics
Nonviolence
Decentralisation
Future Focus/Sustainability
Feminism
Personal and Global Responsibility
Respect for Diversity
Grassroots Democracy
Ecological Wisdom
You Tube Music Video:
Pete Seeger, Bruce Springsteen, This Land Is Your Land
Part 1: Tea Party Fundamentalism
Part 2: Damnation of the Democrats
Risk: democracy, elections
We Deserve Better (2): The Damnation of the Democrats
A few days after President Obama took office I remember him emerging from a meeting at the Pentagon. The summit was arranged to brief the Commander In Chief on the progress of the wars and to assure the nation that the new president was in-sync with his generals and admirals charged with running the war. Emerging from the highly publicized meeting America’s new war time president stated “as long as the generals take care of what they have to do, we’ll take care of what we have to do.” I found the statement to be unsettling. It implied that the new administration would not alter the course set by the previous administration insuring that the inertia of Bush’s policies and strategies would continue unabated. On another level Obama’s statement also seemed to suggest an abdication. I get nervous to think that the Commander in Chief has ceded civilian control of the greatest military force the world has ever known. The decision to pursue war or enjoy peace is too delicate a matter to be left to the decisions of an entrenched military-industrial bureaucracy. The abdication of assertive control, weather its born from the desire to get along, build consensus or a deep seated need for acceptance has been a disturbing custom of Obama’s presidency and the prevailing characteristic of the Democratic Party.
Obama’s easy surrender to established protocols, processes, precedents has been a hallmark of his presidency. It exemplifies the failure of the Democratic Party’s oppositional legacy to Republican rule during the two previous Bush Administrations. At every turn, the Democrats gave in to the Republican conservative legislative agenda with little or no dissent. The Patriot Act, the blind march to two unnecessary wars, the dismantling of government oversight and regulatory controls on business, the slavish submission to Republican led expenditures or tax cuts in service to corporate welfare and the tepid lip service to the struggle for social justice made the democrats complicit accomplices in America’s dramatic conservative swing.
The democrats failure as an oppositional force to counter the reactionary juggernaut of neo-conservatism has emboldened the reactionary impulses of the ruthless power elites. Threatened by economic distress and disintegration of our political institutions, Americas ruling plutocracy has spawned a malevolent Tea Party movement to crush any progressive populism that may arise to counteract their social position, economic power and political sovereignty. The democrats adamant refusal to stand firmly against the destructive impulses of xenophobia and virulent nationalism has allowed an ugly chorus of fear to become our new national anthem. The resentful voices of suspicion, intolerance and exclusion grows ever louder each day as emboldened Falangists and neo-fascists take center stage on a surreal commercial production of American political theater.
In defense of President Obama his presidential campaign and his administration have expressed a deep desire to pursue a political consensus. This sentiment is admirable and the ability to form a consensus is an absolute and critical virtue to the health of a democratic society. The freedom to express differing opinions, voice dissent, air grievances, petition, ability to listen, interest to hear, converse, change opinions and assimilate these competing impulses to form a consensus to express the common will are what makes democracies imperfect yet the fairest expression of governance. Mr. Obama has sought to pursue and build consensus with an opposition Republican Party that has been nothing short of obstructionist since the democrats assumed control of the Executive office. Rush “Country Firster” Limbaugh said it best “I hope he fails” set the tone and sealed the intractability of Republicans and any possibility of bipartisan cooperation to deal with the critical issues confronting the nation.
Last summers spectacle of town meetings designed to initiate a national conversation on Health Care Reform devolved into a partisan shouting match and an opportunity for the formation of the Tea Party galvanized by propaganda about a socialist takeover of the economy, death panels, and the idea that President Obama was a fascist dictator. At this point President Obama still took the opportunity to sit down with the leadership of the GOP in a televised discussion to initiate a dialog. The Consensus Builder in Chief was rebuffed again. The democrats responded by killing single-payer and backing down on universal health coverage. The watered down health care reform bill accomplished an extension of coverage for more, but not all Americans and eliminated preexisting conditions as a disqualification for coverage while also extending the power of insurance companies by making it mandatory that all tax payers purchase health insurance.
This reform is not a significant ground breaking legislative event. President Obama and the democrats should have recognized early on the inability to work a compromise with the obstructionists in the Republican Party. As is the case with Cap and Trade legislation, rescinding Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, ending the Iraq and Afghanistan war, financial services reform, TARP and the economic stimulus bill; the GOP, “Party of No” has done everything in its power to derail the efforts of the democratic party to address the deep problems confronting America. The Democratic Party should have leveraged its control of the legislative and executive branch of the Federal Government to push through a program for a new America. The pressing circumstances of history required decisive leadership and bold ideas to address the complex problems confronting America. FDR’s “New Deal” or Johnson’s “Great Society” were ideas accompanied by innovative legislation to solve systemic problems. The democrats tepid response acquiesced to the conservative demands of the GOP. The Blue Dog Democrats yelped and barked louder then any rabid GOP hound subverting a robust game changing legislative response to the problems confronting America.
The democrats would again demonstrate their timidity in how they responded to the Gulf Oil Spill. If the free falling economy was the equivalent of economic Armageddon the Horizon Deep Water catastrophic oil spill was its environmental equivalent. In each case President Obama fashioned piece meal responses designed not to offend “free market evangelists” for fear of being accused of over reaching. Both instances provided opportunities to mobilize the nation and its significant resources in these titanic tests of national resolve. In both instances the cojones challenged donkeys failed to seize the reins of state to wield its power. I am still shocked by images of Jamie Dimon and Lloyd Blankfein pulling the strings on Timothy Geithner like a marionette to exact concessions during the banking crisis. Or consider the high profile of BP CEO, Tony “I want my life back” Hayward mounting a $50 million PR campaign to quell any concerns that the benevolence of corporate capitalism will eventually “set things right.” The Republicans turned this into President Obama’s Katrina with Bobby “don’t spend no stim in Louisiana” Jindal taking the EPA to court for declaring a moratorium on deep water drilling. And the fattest of fat cats Republican Mississippi Governor Haley “rebuild the casinos first” Barbour shaming Obama to spend a portion of his non- Martha Vineyard family vacation swimming in the pristine waters of the Gulf of Mexico. It was a PR disaster for President Obama because he failed to act with the resolve or manner of a strong decisive leader.
But now as the midterms approach the democrats must answer to a crumbling alliance of constituencies that they have taken for granted and failed to help. They are unable to see constituents as anything other then a demographic voting block devoid of a face, personality or soul. The democrats see stereotypes not people. Labor unions are blue collar voters that now approximate 7% of registered voters. This year the democratic controlled legislature failed to act on Card Check legislation that would protect the right of labor unions to vote and organize non-union companies. Another important constituency of the Democratic Party is the LGBT community. The military said it would comply with the decision of a California District Court that overturned Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Incredibly, President Obama’s Attorney General appealed the decision and asked the court to reinstate Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Teacher unions are also big supporters of the Democratic Party, but many democrats support school vouchers and Charter Schools and seem unconcerned that financial and institutional support of public schools continues to erode. Working class families and woman are under severe distress as unemployment rates approach 10%, home foreclosures rise , spiraling cost of living increases spike, the cost of sending kids to college slip out of reach and a marked erosion in quality of life and expectations for a secure future and comfortable retirement evaporate. The democrats did little to solve these pressing problems save the offer of cheap lip service that they understand their pain. Charlie Rangel secure in the refuge of his four rent controlled apartments will not feel the cold experienced by a homeless mother and her children this winter; nor will Hillary Clinton lose any sleep worrying about deploying Chelsea to fight an incomprehensible war in Afghanistan.
This mid term election democratic candidates are running away from their unpopular president. They will run on a platform of tax cuts and appear as local election district manifestations of gun toting patriotic Christophanies. The poverty of a party with no conviction of principle is made plain. Having no principles, Democrats have not offered a true alternative to reactionary Republicanism. Nearsightedness has robbed them of a vision for a new republic. They offer no demarcation with the broken policies that preceded their rule. The hallmark of their governance has been the complete compromise with an recalcitrant opposition; content to administer a broken and corrupt apparatus rather then chart a new path. The democrats remain shining examples of self serving politicians retuning to office on mythical inertia to secure rent controlled apartments while public housing remains an endangered and dear want for many. They believe themselves to be righteously led by the presiding shame of a president made possible by an epic civil rights struggle who cannot muster the fortitude or conviction to extend the equal right of marriage for one of his liberal constituencies.
We deserve better.
You tube Music Video: Les McCann, Eddie Harris, Compared to What
Risk: democracy, two party political system, liberalism
Fundamentalist Politics in Nevada
Political operatives circulate this photo in an attempt to taint the reputation of candidates running for office in highly contested elections. It has surfaced again in the Nevada Senate election campaign of Harry Reid and Sharron Angle.
I recently received an e-mail with this lovely image. The e-mail states that this is a photo that captures the 1889 public execution of Remus Reid for horse stealing and other crimes in the Montana Territory Prison. Remus is an ancestor of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. Mr. Reid is running for reelection and is locked in a campaign battle with Teabagger darling Republican Sharron Angle.
The e-mail stated that a professional genealogy researcher (read: political hack) discovered this photo and asked Harry Reid if he cared to comment on it. Mr. Reid’s reply maddened the author of the e-mail, stating that Mr. Reid’s reply is a typical example of his Bull Shit. To quote the e-mail on this disingenuous genealogical inquiry:
“Believe it or not, Harry Reid’s staff sent back the following biographical sketch for her genealogy research:
“Remus Reid was a famous cowboy in the Montana Territory. His business empire grew to include acquisition of valuable equestrian assets and intimate dealings with the Montana railroad. Beginning in 1883, he devoted several years of his life to government service, finally taking leave to resume his dealings with the railroad. In 1887, he was a key player in a vital investigation run by the renowned Pinkerton Detective Agency. In 1889, Remus passed away during an important civic function held in his honour when the platform upon which he was standing collapsed.”
NOW THAT’s how it’s done, Folks! That’s real POLITICAL SPIN, or typical Reid “BS”
The real BS of this story comes from Sharron Angle and her political propagandists. This Teabagging wind bag asserts that she has been anointed by God to save Nevada and the Union from socialists, liberals and terror loving anti-Americans (read democrats). God officially came out for Ms. Angle’s candidacy a few weeks ago. Not surprising since Jesus Christ has been the unofficial head of the GOP since at least the Reagan Administration. The breaking news of God’s endorsement of Sharron Angle was scooped by that hard hitting team of journalists at the 700 Club. You can see the story here:
Interesting this deeply Christian women says nothing about repealing gambling or legalized prostitution in her state or ending the wars but will make it her first order of business if elected to repeal the health care bill that extends coverage to all citizens. Curious that God would direct this deeply religious woman to deny health care to the poor and give a free pass to the wealthy riding their camels through the golden eye of the needle. Somehow I don’t think Ms. Angle’s positions are something that Jesus would support.
To make a point of righteous indignation, we get Ms. Angle circulating photos of a public hanging of Mr. Reid’s ancestor. I don’t believe Jesus would approve of this either but Ms. Angle no doubt knows a side of Jesus Christ I have yet to discover. So Mr. Reid responds with some amusing political satire to the inanities of Rovian inspired Teabagger politics and the point becomes the political spin of Mr. Reid.
I imagine Ms. Angle is trying to hold Mr. Reid accountable for the crimes of a distant ancestor that was dead before he was born. Theologically this is not very Christian of Ms. Angle. According to Jesus everyone is responsible for their own salvation. The sins of my father and great great uncles may be visited upon me but I am not responsible nor accountable for those sins. Christianity teaches people are active agents in their own salvation. Ms. Angle should go back to Sunday School. There are loop holes to this belief. According to Pat Robertson, the CEO of the 700 Club, the only exception to this New Testament precept is if you are Haitian and your ancestors made a pact with the devil to rid Haiti of French colonial rule. But as far as we know Mr. Reid is not Haitian (though at press time we understand that Rush Limbaugh is reviewing Reid’s birth certificates) and so would not fall under this rule of being guilty for your ancestors sins.
This e-mail campaign is typical reactionary Rovian electoral tactics. It is born from the same virulent partisan attacks of Andrew Breitbart that demonstrates no allegiance to truth and less to the guidance of any moral compass in journalistic pursuit. Again in my estimation a most Un-Christian practice. Attack an opponent to raise an emotional response using lies and racist symbolism are Tea Party practices that is rife throughout the movement of these little neo-fascist Christian Falangists.
The less said about issues and substantive programs to address the deep rooted problems of our country the better for the Teabaggers and the GOP. The Party of No got their Brown Shirt Shock Troops motivated around no taxes, no social welfare, more guns and prayers. It is the sycophantic mantra for a white middle class movement that patronizes class distress and offers no solutions to their pressing economic and cultural constriction. Nothing about issues. All about raising an emotional response with cliche, platitudes and negative symbolism.
Many of the original western settlers had a hand in the violent displacement that stole land from the Native Americans. Did Ms. Angle’s ancestors occupy Native American land as they colonized the West? Did Ms. Angle’s ancestors rightly compensate Native American’s for their land when they took control of the hood? If Remus Reid horse stealing ways is a valid campaign issue perhaps we should examine the genealogical lines of other westerners to determine how they got control of the land that they currently occupy.
One last point about the e-mail that I found curious was that “Politically” was misspelled in the subject line. The subject line read: Politicaly correct? I wonder if the ignorance born from people who quote words like “refudiate” are seen as badges of honor. These badges (kind of like Rush Limbaugh’s imaginary medals of honor that adorn his puffed up chest) are worn only by True American’s who hate pin headed liberal intellectuals who know how or care enough about the quality and “correctness” (there’s that word again) of communication to use a spell checker. Correctness, accuracy, truth and morals means little to the authors of these e-mails and the Andrew Brietbarts of the world. Its all about the preservation of their cosmology that protects the fundamental truths of political party, social class an eroding culture of privilege and a warped theology.
Who ever is sending this stuff out, Joseph Goebbels would be proud of you. Keep repeating the Big Lie. Pretty soon you’ll begin to believe it yourself and swear its true.
My response to this dangerous nonsense:
You Tube Video: Paul Robeson, Ballad of Joe Hill
Risk: culture, politics, religion, truth
Kristallnacht in America
The passage of the Health Care Reform Bill has incited an angry reaction by rightist militants. These incensed and deeply aggrieved ill led people are self deluded uber patriots. They believe themselves to be striking a blow for individual liberty when in fact their actions consistently undermine the central tenants of our democratic republic. They are convinced that the new heath care legislation is America’s decent into a fascist hell led by Il Duce Obama; and are prepared to water the Tree of Liberty with the blood of tyrants and in some cases their own. They spit on and hurl racist and homophobic epitaphs at those they disagree with. Under the cover of darkness these imbecilic cowards have embarked on midnight drive-bys of the local offices of congress members who supported the legislation. They smash windows, fire bullets and leave threatening voice messages to let the politicians know of their anger and resentment. It’s an American version of a Kristallnacht.
There are some interesting parallels with Kristallnacht that goes deeper then a convenient metaphor of broken glass. Though I don’t draw any equivalency with the severity and consequence of Kristallnacht with the rightists night of egg throwing and window smashing; I believe similar motivational ideals triggered the emotional response of the midnight ramblers and the Nazi zealots that authored the first chapters of Hitlers Final Solution.
Indeed both are inspired and encouraged by pernicious and dangerous sycophants who are skilled practitioners in the fine art of The Big Lie. The Nazi’s were goaded into action by Joseph Goebbels; while our American Brown Shirts have Glenn Beck, Rush Limbaugh, and mainstream media giant Fox News to instigate a 24/7 anti-Obama diatribe that whips the ditto heads into anger fueled action. Right wing politicians like Michelle Bachman, Sarah Palin, Tom Tancredo and a growing number of far right conservatives freely use the rhetoric of armed resistance to any government initiative. They cull the support of angry Teabaggers and a growing Militia Movement that flies the Don’t Tread on Me flag. The latter are armed to the teeth and stand minuteman ready to exact swift retribution if you step on their toes.
Radical conservatives have waged a Rovian campaign to delegitimize the presidency of Barack Obama through red herrings like the Birther Movement. The rightists deliberately work to confuse and frighten citizens to further their political careers and agendas. Like Joseph Goebbels they are skilled practitioners in the use of The Big Lie. The more outlandish the lie, and oft repeated the more believable it becomes. Since assuming the office of President we have been harangued with negative messaging initiatives by radical conservatives. Obama is a fascist. Obama is a Muslim. Obama is a socialist. Obama is the Antichrist. Obamacare will form death panels to conduct social triage. FEMA is building concentration camps to inter Teabaggers. Obama will confiscate your guns and take away your right to bear arms. Obama wants to address our nations school children indoctrinate them. Don’t fill out the census because it will allow the government to better track your movements and whereabouts. The incessant repetition of these ideas and the complicit silence of conservative leaders to refute them has served to delegitimize the Obama presidency and undermine our nations ability to converse and form a consensus to address the deep problems of our country.
The political culture of America is a landscape of extremes. The growing fissures are making it more difficult to form any consensus. These fissures are exploited and exacerbated by competing media channels which define and shape political understanding and context. A shared political vocabulary and nomenclature of understanding is increasingly undermined by words and symbology that are appropriated by political factions. Meanings and concepts are codified to create a language and political context that is used to understand factional ideology to support a political cosmology that is understood and accepted by the faithful. This makes dialog even more difficult if not impossible because the language of political discourse across the partisan divide translates poorly and in fact helps to solidify the meaning of otherness. Martin Bubur’s “I and Thou” is an instructive work on how the objectification of the other leads to their dehumanization. Once a person is dehumanized, any action taken against them can be justified. Those on the other side of the isle are now the “other” who you cannot trust. We wrote about McCain’s pejorative use of “That One” to describe Obama during one of their presidential election debates. The “other” becomes an actual suspect lying at the root of the problem confronting the aggrieved. The problem of incompatible dialects and protracted partisanship eventually leads to the dehumanization of the other. It doesn’t take much of a leap to believe that the elimination or suppression of the other will lead to a final solution to our country’s problem.
Kristallnacht was a watershed event in the history of German Nazism. In response to an assassination of a German diplomat in Paris the Nazi’s initiated a wave of terror against German Jews. On orders from Nazi zealot and the party’s Chief of Propaganda, Joseph Goebbels, a wave of hate fueled attacks were unleashed by gangs of SS , Hitler Youth and Gestapo thugs to attack and destroy the property of Jews. The pogrom resulted in the deaths of 91 Jews and 25,000 to 30,000 were arrested and placed in concentration camps. 267 synagogues were destroyed, and thousands of homes and businesses were ransacked. The broken glass that littered the streets from ransacked shops is how Kristallnacht (Chrystal Night) derives its ignominious name. Kristallnacht is understood to be the beginning of Hitler’s Final Solution, which lead to the Holocaust. It is certainly one of modern civilizations most shameful and tragic events.
The howling yodelers of talk radio and the ministers of propaganda at Fox News intent on exercising their right of free speech by dehumanizing their opponents, inciting angry lemmings into vandalism, racist diatribes and vigilante terror are stoking the flames of a bitterly divided nation that threatens to immolate our badly divided house. More rightly this movement could be considered a Falange movement and is not without precedence in history. Falangism advances a reactionary agenda. Its violent temperament is nationalist and often religious in character. Falangism emerges in weak democracies and are symptomatic of a society in decline. Falangists promise a return to the prosperity and values of the past that are quickly dissolving in the embroiled clash of cultural, political and economic contradictions democracies find difficult to resolve. Glenn Becks’s Brownshirts need to understand that their misguided faux patriotism leads to some very dangerous and ugly places. Its easy to smash the glass encasing our fading constitution. Its more difficult to come together to address what needs to be done. I hope its not to late. I hope Mr. Beck’s final solution is not an historical inevitability for America.
You Tube Music Video: Rolling Stones, Sympathy for the Devil
Risk: political
Butterfly Effect
The Butterfly Effect is a component of Chaos Theory. A butterfly flaps its wings in a far away place creating tiny ripples that begin a flow of cause and effect energy that eventually creates a hurricane force wind. These tiny ripples, seemingly irrelevant can precipitate and contribute to a major event. The right set of factors comes together and a major event takes place. Can the humble service of an single person create a butterfly effect?
Last year President Obama designated Martin Luther King Day as a day of service. It seems a fitting designation for a day dedicated to a man who lived a life in service to others and willingly gave that life to realize his ideals. MLK, Jr. offered his life to the struggle for civil rights to protect the human dignity of all people. There is no higher calling for citizens of a democratic republic. Civil rights and the protection of human dignity is the foundation of a democratic society. Equal protection under the law for all citizens and unfettered access to all its rights and privileges are the surest safeguard of a peoples security and liberty. MLK, Jr. perished in the struggle to enlarge and protect that liberty for all people regardless of gender, sexual orientation, race, creed or color. It is the responsibility of all citizens to place themselves in service to protect and enlarge the dream of liberty and freedom. A failure to assume this responsibility risks failure of our democratic culture and the relinquishment of personal liberty.
As individuals, we are overwhelmed by the massive problems that confront us. We freeze in place as we witness an avalanche of cataclysmic world events. The endless duration of incomprehensible wars, the vicious repression employed by intractable power elites, the posturing and threats of great nations intent on projecting their power, global economic calamity and disenfranchisement brought on by institutional excess and governance failure, cultural intolerance spawning sectarian violence and the massive natural disaster calamities intent on assaulting our humanity by delivering devastation to the most vulnerable among us; conspire to immobilize us. As a people we are left to stand mute unable to comprehend and unwilling to act out of fear of wasting good efforts to no effect. Ambivalence of conviction, vacillation of intent, cynicism in thought are subversive elements that are more powerful then 1,000 Al-Qeada cells because the subversion of terror nests securely in the minds of seemingly free people. These subversives incessantly whisper “distrust liberty for all and learn to loathe the responsibility that freedom requires of free people.”
This weeks Haitian earthquake is an event that startles, humbles and hopefully shakes us from our torpor and ignites a desire to serve. The massive destruction and sweeping misery of its aftermath is a clarion call for a humane response to address this assault on our shared humanity. Yet in its wake, leading televangelist Pat Robertson opines that the earthquake was God’s way of delivering retribution on the people of Haiti. Mr. Robertson believes the old Haitian superstitious folklore that Haiti made a pact with the devil to free themselves from the colonial domination of France. Mr. Robertson’s theology proves Thomas Paine’s wise maxim that “a belief in a cruel God makes for a cruel man.” Rush Limbaugh’s criticism of President Obama’s immediate call to marshal aid to the stricken country prompted the Ditto-head and Chief to state that the President’s call to aid Haiti was a political ploy designed to gain favor with the light and darker shades of people of color.
We recoil in horror at Pat Robertson’s vision of a God that keeps score. A God whose patience spans generations, eagerly waiting to notch another victim into the wooden handle of his deadly cosmic six shooter. Such spiritual poverty and moral bankruptcy is a self evident truth. We are equally appalled though hardly surprised at Mr. Limbaugh’s deep cynicism and his gleeful celebration of racism and partisan vindictiveness. What both pronouncements share is an offer of absolution for moral ambivalence to their constituents and a warning to remain politically suspicious of institutional response to this massive human tragedy.
God weeps at the peril of his children and the Beneficent One is moving nations and people to serve and respond to the pressing need of the Haitian people. Individuals from all over the world are giving time, treasure and prayers in response to this tragedy. People of good will everywhere are placing themselves in service to the people of Haiti out of compassion to relieve suffering and a compulsion to protect the sacredness of our shared humanity. The world goes up in a collective cheer each time a search and rescue team extract another small soul from the hell of a mountain of rubble. Refusing to walk away from the plight, refusing to avert our eyes from the pressing need of a people in need is a desperate rescue mission of a most fragile respect for our shared humanity.
Small people everywhere are flapping tiny butterfly wings, creating a gale force wind to knock down the walls that divide us. It is the only way to solve the massively complex global problems that work to undermine us. The collective desire to change overcomes the sense of our powerlessness to change. Just like a Baptist Minister from Montgomery, or a tiny woman who refused to go to the back of the bus, big things emanate from the smallest places. All one must do is begin to spread the wings and flap. Today is a very good day to flap our wings and offer prayers that our small individual actions taken together will blow down the barriers that divide and address the problems that vex humanity.
You Tube Music Video: Mavis Staples, Keep Your Eyes on the Prize
Risk: ambivalence, paralysis, cynicism,
God Damn America Redux
Liberty Leading the PeopleDelacroix
The great ubur Patriot and obviously Non-Country Firster Rush Limbaugh damned America by proclaiming his hopes that the Obama Administration fails in its mission to resuscitate the economic fortunes of the nation. Rush in a rare moment of truthfulness and sober clarity, bravely waved the Republican Party banner. He implored all GOPers that this is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their party and work against the recovery program of the ideologically impure and reprobate Obama Administration.
Ann Coulter, pictured here in top hat immediately took up the call and is looking to skewer any traitorous democrats that cross her path next time she is granted an interview at MSNBC. Rush, pictured above in the yellow dress is desperately in need of a man bra if he hopes to be able to physically storm the battlements of his entrenched enemies within the enclosed marble walls of the Capitol building.
When asked about this, Rush, in a pure profiles in courage moment stated, “damn the man titties, this struggle is even bigger then my ego. We must not allow Obama to succeed or I may lose some rating points.”
When asked about the sky rocketing unemployment, home foreclosures and growing social unrest Rush said, “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I am proven to be right by keeping America on the right course of right wing conservatism. Right? Isn’t that what the EIB is all about. Right? Sarah Palin was right. You Betcha.” At this point Rush began to slur his words and the rest of the conversation was unintelligible.
See past Risk Rap posts on subject, Winning the War, Losing the Peace, Our Ship of State, USS TARP, Foggy Mountain Breakdown,
You Tube Video: La Marseillaise
Risk: partisanship, division, political stasis
If Thine Eye Offends Thee
There are global forces of change that are working diligently to birth a new world. The forces of change are opposed to the conflict, rancor, prejudices and injustice that form the pillars of privilege that continue to prop up the fossilized ruling powers and antiquated institutions that govern and control the world. The forces of change see this old guard as a fetter to progress. The forces of change want to build sustainable communities that equitably share the resources of the world. To achieve their objectives the forces of change use the tools of mutual respect, open communication and faithful trust to resolve differences. The forces of change ultimate objective is to arrive at a place that will bring the world into a new era that is free from the yoke of paralyzing fear, debilitating destitution and continuous conflict.
There are other global forces that are desperate to hold onto their ebbing power. They want to keep things the way they are. They are the forces of reaction. The forces of reaction sole concern is to protect it’s narrow self serving interests. The forces of reaction are locked in a battle with the forces of change and will fight them to the end. It is a life and death struggle. One part of the world wailing in birth pangs while the other sobs consumed in the agonizing throes of resentfulness and bitterness; painfully dying.
In is in this light that we can begin to make sense of Chip Saltsman’s distribution of a CD of racist songs and materials as Christmas gifts to Republican National Committee members. He distributed the CD to support his candidacy as Republican party chairman. Saltsman was the former campaign chair for Mike Huckabee’s failed presidential bid. It’s a bit beyond me how Huckabee, a former Baptist Minister, could entrust his campaign to a man who revels in the humor of racist tripe. The denigration of people with racist caricature is not funny. Its racist. The use of minstrelsy as political humor is not funny. It is racist.
Racism uses minstrelsy as a comedic cover. Minstrelsy is a weapon used by people and institutions threatened by the dissipation of power and the erosion of their privilege. The old world order and those whose tenuous grip on receding power are desperate. They will use every repressive contrivance and repulsive device to maintain power. It is from these places where a chorus of racists herald Barack the Magic Negro.
People of good will should be repulsed. Some in the RNC say they disapprove of the CD but racial epithets have been a consistent source of embarrassment for the Republican Party. During the just concluded presidential election campaign a racially insensitive comment by one of the parties presidential hopefuls derailed Virginia Senator George Allen’s campaign. Any Republican with a shred of conscience should condemn this CD and the mindset that supports and justifies it.
Mike Huckabee should know the verse “if thine eye offends thee, pluck it out.” He should also try to comprehend it. These bits of racist culture, spawned by Rush Limbaugh, a drug addicted, money launderer and darling of conservative Republicans needs to stop. Support for this programming calls into question the moral character and judgment of Republican leaders who surround themselves and revere the promoters and purveyors of racism. Limbaugh’s racism may be great for ratings for his corporate media masters but its dispersion, promotion, rationalization and justification by corporate institutions is damaging to a healthy political and racial culture in this country. This is not an issue of free speech. This is an issue of the commercial promotion and marketing of racist culture by major media institutions.
Programming that denigrates the health and trust of a positive political culture while defiling the office of our highest elected official due to his race is a dangerous contraband to peddle. Racism is an illicit commerce that serves to undermine democratic societies. As the desperation of the desperate grows the light of truth will burn ever brighter signaling that the birth pangs of change are most worthy trials to endure.
You Tube Video: Grateful Dead, Eyes of the World
Risk: race, politics, culture
