To listen to the politicians and pundits, you’d think we can’t agree on anything. This is a self-fulfilling and very dangerous fabrication, completely contrary to the energy and spirit of everyone who came before us and built this amazing country.
It’s become increasingly clear __ at least to someone who is outside the constant barrage of 24/7 bullshit that passes for news and a national conversation __ that all of the fighting and bickering is intentional. We have the war on terror, the war on Christmas, the war on free speech, the war on marriage, the war on free trade, the war on capitalism, the war on the uterus, the war on voting. What else?
The war on twerking?
What’s the point of all of this?
Well, in terms of accomplishing ANYTHING constructive at all, there is no point. Except maybe . . . to keep us from accomplishing anything constructive at all.
AHA! Could it be?
I’m not a conspiracist. I’m a realist. And I know this. The best way to control people is to frighten them, confuse them, divide them, set them against one another. The rest is easy. You can just lean back and let people destroy any sense of civility, community, decency, caring, sharing. And when the exhausted masses are lying in a heap, you can take their wallets, maybe pass around some stale crumbs and chicken bones, explain that’s all they get but thank god they aren’t living under the crushing thumb of socialism, then tell them how incredibly good they have it just being an American and living in a country where they’re free to bicker and fight and self-destruct.
Perhaps this all sounds abstract and you think I have my head in the clouds __ or maybe inserted in a dark anatomical posterior tube. So let me offer a somewhat tongue-in-cheek example of what I’m talking about.
Let’s say the only thing a person could see or read about for an extended period of time was whether fire-breathing dragons should be regulated by the federal government or locally by the states. As the heat of debate is steadily cranked up and the pros and cons are bandied about, the ridiculous underlying premise becomes further reinforced, and woe be anyone who has the audacity and courage to point out that there is no such thing as fire-breathing dragons.
The public would be polled:
“Is the proposed regulation of fire-breathing dragons good for America?
Do you feel safer?”
Politicians and pundits would grandstand:
“Again we see the tax-and-spend liberals in another example of overreach,
as they impose their socialist world view not only on fire-breathing
dragons but on the rest of us who have to foot the bill.”
A huge divide would open up as opinion became more polarized and attacks more vicious. The media would dazzle their viewers with graphics!
“This map shows where things stand. The red states are the ones who believe
they themselves have their fire-breathing dragon situation under
control, the blue believe that the crisis requires greater
oversight from Washington DC.”
In the meantime, the myriad of real problems would be ignored. No time to discuss the unsustainably high unemployment rate, the loss of manufacturing jobs in America, the illegal foreclosures on homeowners, the continuing abuse of money in politics, the increase of unnecessary surveillance on American citizens and their loss of constitutionally guaranteed rights, the bleeding of the U.S. Treasury by big investment banks, the pursuit of unnecessary wars and building more military bases throughout the world, the declining safety of food in the country, the bankrupting escalation of health care costs and the tens of millions of people who still could not afford private health insurance, the strangling of the economy by the ballooning national debt, the absurd and anti-constitutional surrender of control of the nation’s money supply to private banks, the debilitating dependence of America on foreign suppliers for its addiction to oil and the lack of a comprehensive national energy policy, on and on and on.
But at least we would inch closer to getting those pesky fire-breathing dragons under control!
Think about it.
Or maybe you’d rather fight about it.
“You wanna fight about it?”
It’s become increasingly clear __ at least to someone who is outside the constant barrage of 24/7 bullshit that passes for news and a national conversation __ that all of the fighting and bickering is intentional. We have the war on terror, the war on Christmas, the war on free speech, the war on marriage, the war on free trade, the war on capitalism, the war on the uterus, the war on voting. What else?
The war on twerking?
What’s the point of all of this?
Well, in terms of accomplishing ANYTHING constructive at all, there is no point. Except maybe . . . to keep us from accomplishing anything constructive at all.
AHA! Could it be?
I’m not a conspiracist. I’m a realist. And I know this. The best way to control people is to frighten them, confuse them, divide them, set them against one another. The rest is easy. You can just lean back and let people destroy any sense of civility, community, decency, caring, sharing. And when the exhausted masses are lying in a heap, you can take their wallets, maybe pass around some stale crumbs and chicken bones, explain that’s all they get but thank god they aren’t living under the crushing thumb of socialism, then tell them how incredibly good they have it just being an American and living in a country where they’re free to bicker and fight and self-destruct.
Perhaps this all sounds abstract and you think I have my head in the clouds __ or maybe inserted in a dark anatomical posterior tube. So let me offer a somewhat tongue-in-cheek example of what I’m talking about.
Let’s say the only thing a person could see or read about for an extended period of time was whether fire-breathing dragons should be regulated by the federal government or locally by the states. As the heat of debate is steadily cranked up and the pros and cons are bandied about, the ridiculous underlying premise becomes further reinforced, and woe be anyone who has the audacity and courage to point out that there is no such thing as fire-breathing dragons.
The public would be polled:
“Is the proposed regulation of fire-breathing dragons good for America?
Do you feel safer?”
Politicians and pundits would grandstand:
“Again we see the tax-and-spend liberals in another example of overreach,
as they impose their socialist world view not only on fire-breathing
dragons but on the rest of us who have to foot the bill.”
A huge divide would open up as opinion became more polarized and attacks more vicious. The media would dazzle their viewers with graphics!
“This map shows where things stand. The red states are the ones who believe
they themselves have their fire-breathing dragon situation under
control, the blue believe that the crisis requires greater
oversight from Washington DC.”
In the meantime, the myriad of real problems would be ignored. No time to discuss the unsustainably high unemployment rate, the loss of manufacturing jobs in America, the illegal foreclosures on homeowners, the continuing abuse of money in politics, the increase of unnecessary surveillance on American citizens and their loss of constitutionally guaranteed rights, the bleeding of the U.S. Treasury by big investment banks, the pursuit of unnecessary wars and building more military bases throughout the world, the declining safety of food in the country, the bankrupting escalation of health care costs and the tens of millions of people who still could not afford private health insurance, the strangling of the economy by the ballooning national debt, the absurd and anti-constitutional surrender of control of the nation’s money supply to private banks, the debilitating dependence of America on foreign suppliers for its addiction to oil and the lack of a comprehensive national energy policy, on and on and on.
But at least we would inch closer to getting those pesky fire-breathing dragons under control!
Think about it.
Or maybe you’d rather fight about it.