Two months ago at the start of this war I was a flag waving, republican backing, good ole’ college boy conservative; now, since this war has proved to be nothing more than a power grab, I’m fuckin pissed. I recently (after reading nothing but right-wing literature for more than a year) began to start reading some Noam Chompsky, Howard Zinn, and other political dissidents. I can’t decide if reading this literature has made me a more knowledgeable person, or a cynical, disenfranchised youth with a grudge against the system. But anyways…this thread is meant to be nothing more than a pitting of what is being passed off as a free country; feel free to add whatever you want.
Do we have a representative democracy anymore?.. or is it something else disguised as a government “for the people, by the people.” The current political landscape, or the one since the 1930’s is, and has been, dominated by concessions to interest groups, backdoor foreign policy negotiations without voter support, and pork barrel politics that reward log rolling more than representing ones constituents. Poster boy, celebrity commentators who claim to be fair and balanced only report half the story while wrapping theselves in the psuedo-ideology of the “working class”, while backing foreign and social policies detrimental to those they claim to be looking out for. A more modern and worldy interpretation of “manifest destiny” seems to be the aim of current administration officials. The people who put the politicians in office have nearly no say in foreign policy that is dominated by under-the-radar dealings those in power have engaged in. It would almost be acceptable if this secretive style of government and world policing resulted in a safer and less destructive world, but the U.S. has turned much of Central and Latin American into dictatorships with support for brutal politicians. The exploitation of third world labor has helped make corporations more wealthy, but has hurt the moral authority of the US. The argument used by defenders of this kind of foreign policy is often, “we have done more good than harm.” Does this matter to those that are part of the trail of bodies left behind by death squads secretely sponsored by politicians that never have to answer to the public? I doubt it. Our government might be less confusing if political labels such as conservative or liberal actually meant what they are defined as. Conservatives who claim to support a small government pump billions into a costly and destructive war on drugs, with no end in sight and no intention of changing their current policies. Free thinking liberals in large numbers are subscribing to Orweillian restrictions on public and private speech, at the work place or otherwise. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad either if our country was prospering and helping out other starving and struggling nations, but once again this isn’t the case. Our own economy is in the toilet, social security is nearing bankruptcy, and wars that are costing lives and assets are being waged based on shaky intelligence. Scandal after scandal points to government favor trading and enormous monetary mis-management. The bueauracracy our governmental model has created is eating itself alive, while politicians continue to dip their hands in OUR diminishing assets, all the while telling us we live in the greatest country in the world. And how nice it would be if the media with their swooping and unchecked political powers would ever give us the full story, instead of 30 second blurbs between commercial breaks. The 4th branch of government, the media, once considered the “watch dogs” of democracy, have turned into nothing more than the lap dogs of democracy, pandering to politicians and administration officials with soft-core reporting to get the favor of white house and congressional gate-keepers.
There is more, but writing this by ear and on the fly has made me so frustrated and angry I don’t feel like going on. If anyone has something to add, go ahead. Also, if anyone has some links to good political reads or factual history not reported in textbooks, please supply them, thanks.
