October 31, 2006 by lonbud
The Horror, The Horror
Things are looking pretty scary these days, regardless of one’s perspective, be it so-called liberal or so-called conservative.
“Anti”-factions of every stripe dominate the socio-political landscape. Voices of hope, of calm, of peace and positivity, seem meek and hard to find among bleatings of fear and warnings of apocalypse emanating from all corners of the globe. Death, in its many guises, sits in the front row of our global theater of the absurd.
It puts one in mind of the great American poet from Hibbing, MN, who wrote, “they say the darkest hour comes right before the dawn.”
Where are the leaders who are for something?
The most cursory glance at the day’s news reveals a world pitted against itself, a world at war on innumerable fronts. There’s the war on terror, the war on drugs, the war on freedom. We have wars on christians, muslims, jews, buddhists, hindus, and pagans. On gay people in love. On immigrants and refugees.
Nations are at war with themselves in Sudan, Sri Lanka, Chechneya, Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Thailand, Pakistan, Kashmir, Nepal, Tibet and more.
Closer to home, the Republican party is fighting to stem the tide of public dissatisfaction at a long running record of corruption and malfeasance with the public trust; Democrats are battling to regain control of the legislative branch of government to pursue a marginally less destructive agenda in elections now less than one week away.
Advocates of peace and justice are scrambling to ensure those elections are fair and legitimate; proponents of the status quo are fighting dirty, and preying upon the public’s fears and insecurities to ensure the elections are a meaningless ritual.
Nowhere, however, does one find a strong voice with a clear vision of a better world. The Bush administration and the Republican party have the elevator pitch condensed to: vote for the Democrats, the terrorists will strike here again, and soon. The best the Democrats can muster is: the Republicans have botched the job of combatting global terrorism; we deserve a chance to fight the battle our way.
Everyone seems to agree: things are bleak, the battle is long and bloody, the stakes for our very survival have never been so high.
I reject that view.
I believe a path from here that follows our best and brightest ideas — things roundly rejected by what used to be called “the Establishment” as idealist, pie-in-the sky, impractical, or risky — trumps the one that looks to atavistic reprisals of a tired, tragic history of hoarding by the few and denial of the many.
I believe the solution to the problems stemming from our dependence on Middle Eastern oil lies not in a strategy for securing control of that oil but in one for securing a future powered by alternative energy sources, relying on ready access to the sun and the wind and the water from which all life on this planet is born to begin with.
I believe the solution to radical Islam lies in observance and respect for Islam’s religion, in knowledge of its history and culture and holy places, and above all, in support of its freedom to order its society and to administer its collective wealth without interference from the West.
Period.
I believe we need leaders who will speak not to our fears and our prejudices but to our dreams and our interconnectedness. We need leaders who foster unbeatable ways to live and to thrive on the wonderous gifts of life.
Our current leaders promise death and destruction for our enemies, and condition our protection and security on the authority to decide who lives and who dies.
Are we us or are we them?
Tam O’Tellico - November 1, 2006 @ 6:25 am
Those who predicted the failure of our policy in Iraq, and in at least one case resigned in protest, are still not being listened to by the true believers who continue to “stay the course” in spite of the fact that they have recently chosen to call that policy something else. Too bad for us and the rest of the world.
http://www.nybooks.com/articles/19217
Tam O’Tellico - November 1, 2006 @ 6:30 am
The so-called Conservative who still don’t get it about the Iraq War ought to at least pay attention to the real Conservatives who have. This is the latest from George Will:
Newsweek, Nov. 6, 2006 issue – Many months ago it became obvious to all but the most ideologically blinkered that America is losing the war launched to deal with a chimeric problem (an arsenal of WMD) and to achieve a delusory goal (a democracy that would inspire emulation, transforming the region). Last week the president retired his mantra “stay the course” because it does not do justice to the nimbleness and subtlety of U.S. tactics for winning the war.
A surreal and ultimately disgusting facet of the Iraq fiasco is the lag between when a fact becomes obvious and when the fiasco’s architects acknowledge that fact. Iraq’s civil war has been raging for more than a year; so has the Washington debate about whether it is what it is.
http://207.46.245.33/id/15460708/site/newsweek/
Paul Burke - November 1, 2006 @ 2:51 pm
It’s about the oil and they are going to get it no matter what and we are all weak. Well I say weak is not having the courage to change the status quo to find new clean energy sources and to tell the Middle East GO POUND SAND! I say weak is not having the vision or the will to try new things. I say weak is not having faith in your own resourcefulness and ingenuity. I say weak is dancing with the devil because you are too afraid to try something new. I say weak is lying, cheating, stealing from the American public it’s sons and daughters and money to prop up a dying industrial revolution. I say weak is arrogance and gutter politics. I say weak is being afraid to challenge the bottom line politics of industry. I say weak is not doing the right thing and mothballing all the old coal plants and building new energy efficient environmentally safer designs. I say weak is not installing already developed technologies to clean the air and the water. I say weak is not having the ability to live in harmony with all of god’s creations. I say weak is the need to blow away unarmed animals from helicopters or on the ground with high powered rifles just for fun. I say weak is not investing in the wealth and well being of our citizens. I say weak is not overhauling the inner city educational system. I say weak is blaming others for the mess you created and leaving a mess for others to clean up. I say weak is not standing up to corporate america and the military and saying you made the mess clean up the superfund sites. I say weak is not developing a clean way to breakdown and eliminate nuclear waste. I say weak is pretending that nuclear power is good for the environment. I say weak is not (at a minimum) raising the gas mileage on cars. I say weak is blaming gas prices on the Chinese and the lack of refineries. I say weak is ignoring the melting ice caps. I say weak is the need to make everyone act the same, look the same, sound the same and believe the same thing. I say weak is the tougher and louder they sound the more dishonest, disrespectful, deceitful and weaker they are! I say weak is fear mongering to keep power. I say weak is men who never served in the military acting like they know it all. I say weak is ignoring the facts and staying the course. I say weak is pitting one segment of society against the other in order to gain power. I say weak is not respecting and honoring the Constitution, the vision and practical knowledge of the Founding Fathers, and the Bill of Rights. I say weak is hissing at France and forgetting that more than anyone they helped achieve our independence. I say weak is not honoring the workers of America from whom industry derives its power. I say weak is hypocrisy with a smirk and a poor command of the English language. I say weak is denial. I say weak is always swaggering and carrying a big stick because inside is a puny scared fool who is his own worst enemy. I say weak doesn’t try and see it from the other guys’ point of view. I say weak is not being honest, with yourself and others. I say weak is the inability to tell the emperor he has no clothes!