Fanatics, Oligarchs, Propaganda, and What's Really Important

Below is my Reply to a friend's email & an article he attached.

Another attempt to paint all Muslims as terrorists.  Mohammed was warlike because when Islam was founded, polytheistic beliefs reigned supreme at the time in that region of Arabia, & their adherents all attacked Muslims...attempting to run them out of the region or kill them.

Yes, fanatics/extremists exist...a tiny fraction.  You often ask why Moderate Muslims don't speak up.  Perhaps in most cases they're afraid of being murdered by the nutcakes.  Perhaps they fear they'll be attacked by "Right-Wing American Patriots" for defending Islam... a distinct possibility in this country.  Some have spoken out, denouncing the fanatics...I've seen the videos.  Then there are those clips cherry-picked by Fox, Beck, etc. that show the opposite.

If Muslims (of any stripe) break the law, then arrest them, try them, sentence them, & incarcerate them.  It's a Law Enforcement issue, not a military one.  The whole thing is Oligarchical, Boogie-Man Propaganda...and apparently, it works quite well.  Sorry, but you'll never convince me otherwise.  It's nothing but a huge DISTRACTION [from the ravages of Corporatism].  Yes, criminals exist; but to think that all Muslims are criminals is sheer nonsense.  To quote the "Koran" (as many do), thus "proving" one's case, is ridiculous.  Anyone can quote similar crap in the "Holy Bible"... one of the bloodiest tales in existence.  It doesn't prove anything.  Taking things out of context is such an easy gig.  It boggles my mind that some Americans can be misled so easily.  

This country really deserves to be ruled by Oligarchs and Propaganda...it's such an easy sell to the majority of We the People... and, the Entertainers on the Fox network so obviously are not objective, not professional news people, and not at all concerned about the Republic of the USA.  They're as bad as the clowns on CBS, CNN, NBC, etc.---the ones that serve pablum in place of news---Fox is just a different extreme [of the same distraction].  They are all the networks of the super-rich... and, as Machiavelli knew, the super-rich must sell the concept of the-Boogie-Man-is-coming if they are to remain in power.  "The Prince" must be very pleased with the USA today.  [End of Reply]

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The most important political issues for Americans today have nothing to do with Muslims or terrorism.  Instead, they are:  the loss of much of our manufacturing base; the crimes inherent in Financialization; Crony Capitalism and the State-Corporate Complex in general; the fraud of Globalization; the ignoring of the Constitution whenever convenient; and the ongoing conversion of the USA into a Police State.  Genuine participatory democracy does not exist here.  The Middle Class continues to shrink.  Jobs created by the super-rich more often than not are worth a tinker's damn.  Wages essentially have stagnated for thirty years, but the Oligarchs' incomes have increased by 700%.  Americans now can be arrested on our soil and held incommunicado indefinitely... no warrant, no lawyer, no habeas corpus, no trial.  Most other issues are nothing but distractions.

Partly just my opinion.  Be Well    

Problems with Obama's War Actions, and War Propaganda from the State-Corporate Complex

1.  The White House (via their Press Secretary) declared war on ISIS; this despite the fact that the Executive Branch has no Constitutional authority to do so.

2.  As in the period leading up to the Second Iraq War (2003), the public essentially is presented with two choices:  do nothing, or go to war.  Diplomatic proposals---involving Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia, even Russia and others---are almost nonexistent.  Cutting off funding to ISIS (coming mostly from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Kuwait) is nowhere to be found.  Sanctions...nonexistent.  Kerry's efforts appear to be gauged toward military coalitions only.  Perpetual War grinds on.

3.  Obama now claims "authority" (to [illegally] bomb inside Syria) from two War "Resolutions":  the "War on Terror" and the Iraq War Resolutions of 10+ yrs ago.  Those are derived from the War Powers Resolution Act---aka, the War Powers Act---of 1973.  It's a Legislative Act that contradicts the Constitution.  As I've pointed out many times, laws do not supercede the United States Constitution.  Oligarchs, both in and out of our Gov't, use the War Powers Act to bypass the constraints of the Constitution; that's been going on for decades.  This all means that Obama's "authority", just like Bush's "authority" was, is illegal and unconstitutional.  Unfortunately, apparently We the People (aided by Propaganda from the Oligarchy) have come to believe that a "good end" justifies any means.

4.  James Foley's mother has decried Obama's use of her son's death as an excuse for launching yet another war in the region.  Furthermore, though the murders of both Foley and Sotloff were brutal, barbaric, and tragic, they posed no threat to the United States.  The FBI has gone overseas in the past to investigate the murders of American citizens, and should do so now.  It's a Law Enforcement issue.

5.  The Free Syrian Army, a "moderate" group opposing Assad, recently beheaded six people they had captured.  This is the rebel group that Obama and Kerry claim we need to support.  The point:  there are atrocities on both sides.  In addition, I recently pointed out that the Gov't of Saudi Arabia executed 113 criminals in the last couple months by beheading them.  In that area of the world, apparently beheading is considered an acceptable means of execution.

6.  The average, nonmilitary Sunni in Iraq has seen Sunnis arrested, tortured, displaced, fired from jobs for no good reason, etc., etc. by the U.S.-backed, former Gov't of al-Maliki.  Though the Iraqi Sunnis may abhor the tactics of ISIS, they tend to be drawn to them because of the post-war history of Shiites and Sunnis in Iraq.  Now they see the U.S. Gov't bombing more Sunnis (ISIS).  The point:  it's a civil and sectarian war...and none of our business.  [That's not Isolationism, it's Non-Interventionism...the difference between the two is important.]

7.  The pro-war pundits on cable networks such as Fox, CNN, and MSNBC are presented as former Generals, military experts, etc. (which is true).  What's left out is the fact that they currently work for various Defense contractors who stand to benefit greatly from the Third Iraq War.  Examples:  General Jack Keene and General Anthony Zinni.

8.  Common sense should tell anyone that fighting ISIS inside Syria helps the brutal Assad regime.  [This is not rocket science, people...it's simple logic.]

9.  It's important to recognize that Obama and the State-Corporate Complex know precisely what they are doing.  They know they are violating the Constitution.  They know they have no business in a civil war.  They know innocent people are being and will be killed.  They know that the American public mind must be molded to accept yet another stupid war.  They know who will benefit---mega transnational corporations.

10.  None of this is a "conspiracy".  For crying out loud, it's in plain sight.  War is BIG Business--- just ask General Dynamics, General Electric, the Carlyle Group, Halliburton, Exxon-Mobile, CACI, the former Blackwater (now under a new name), McDonnell-Douglas, etc., ad infinitum.  Follow the money.

Partly just my opinion.  Be Well

More: Class War and Politics

Once again, I offer my response to an email from a "Conservative" friend.  He asked me about political "sides" (e.g., Right v. Left, Conservatives v. Liberals, etc.), and also whether or not I thought our economic system might collapse...and what I thought might come after that, specifically, would it be a leaner, more conservative system.

My response---

Here's what I believe in terms of "sides". I came to this after about 5 yrs of serious consideration---

There is no longer any choice between so-called Liberals and so-called Conservatives; that's all an Oligarchical distraction - a Divide & Conquer strategy. It certainly wasn't always that way; maybe 10 to 20 yrs ago the choice was genuine...no longer. To illustrate, take Kennedy & Obama as examples. I believe that JFK was a genuine Liberal/Progressive...and I think he truly loved this country. I didn't agree with most of his politics, but I thought he was sincere in his beliefs. Obama is a snake. Those smitten with Obama-worship appear to believe that he's a Liberal; those opposing him appear to believe that he's a Socialist. I firmly believe he's neither...OBAMA IS A CORPORATIST through and through. I've detailed my reasons for that belief in various Blog posts.

Here's what John Pilger, a self-admitted Socialist (and an investigative journalist), had to say about O---
"He's a product of Madison Ave. propaganda---Brand Obama... and it's all fake. Don't believe what he says; watch what he does.".

"Conservatives" point to ObamaCare as an example of socialism; what a joke. The ACA was a bailout of the health insurance industry; it should have been called the Affordable Insurance Act. It did nothing for health care; it basically gave $$$ to mega insurance companies. It's "affordable" because many customers now have higher premiums than before, and because many people are now forced to buy coverage they don't need (such as maternity care for single men). The extra money supposedly is diverted to subsidize poorer customers. In any case, it's PRIVATE companies that benefit. That's fascism, not socialism; it's the power of the State married to the power of Big Biz. Despite their phony bitching & moaning about OCare, I firmly believe that the health insurance industry loves it. It's a windfall for them. It's also a windfall for PRIVATE doctors, PRIVATE clinics, PRIVATE hospitals, etc. Why? More business.

So, as to "sides" in the current political climate, I see only two real choices--- the Oligarchy, and the rest of us. Unfortunately, that means the now phony Conservative-Liberal and Repub-Dem splits have to be ignored or dismantled, or both. People will think that's ridiculous, impossible, unimaginable. I say, look at History; something very similar has happened over & over, not only around the world, but also in the short span of this country. For example, the Republican Party was not around for decades earlier in our political history. Our Founders were all "Liberals", but later "liberal" no longer meant "for freedom". NeoCons are called Neoliberals everywhere but in the USA. Reagan & Thatcher were proponents of Neoliberalism to everyone but Americans...and that was a bad thing to most foreigners. The current political state of things is not carved in concrete. It's not even unusual for such things to totally change. But the Oligarchs would like us to believe otherwise...because the current setup is a perfect Divide & Conquer strategy for them. And please, it's not any kind of "conspiracy"; it's simply good business to them.

As to the Tea Partiers, it's very hard to assess them...they're of various beliefs and decentralized to a large degree. They are not, despite what the Corporate Media calls them, only ultra-conservatives. If I were to guess, I'd say they're near the right track, but not on it. Of course, my "right track" may not be yours. [It does bother me that I've seen some evidence that most likely their "grassroots" movement really was started and funded by Oligarchs such as the Koch brothers. The evidence is not definitive, but it's there. In my mind, that taints the whole movement to some unknown degree. They may be a good thing...or not. It's too hard to tell right now.]
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I don't know for sure whether or not your excellent questions were rhetorical, but I'll give my opinion regardless. :) [Many more Americans should be giving serious thought to these things; instead, they seem to be distracted by Bread & Circuses.]

Naturally, all of the following is pure guesswork on my part. I've learned that the older I get, the less I really know for sure. That said, I believe our current system is doomed...probably not within my lifetime, or maybe even yours, but doomed nonetheless. All the signs are there. The national debt will continue to grow until the collapse; that will come shortly after the world no longer accepts the dollar as the world's reserve currency. People in positions of power didn't say much when an unprecedented event happened fairly recently---for the 1st time ever, a major country (China) called for a discontinuation of the dollar as the world's reserve currency. That's monumental; it's the first crack in our worldwide financial dike.

Before the dike bursts, however, I believe that the Oligarchs (with the aid of their Cronies in DC...just like before) will pull off one or two more great heists...bailouts and trillions in loans (like before) at less than 1% interest. Everything's pretty much in place for that to happen again. The biggest things in the financial markets STILL are derivatives...they're still being sold hand over fist...and they're STILL backed by zero reserves. It's the biggest scam in the history of humankind...all for the benefit of Oligarchs, and all facilitated by their Cronies in DC---Repubs and Dems. The One Percenters appear to be very short-term thinkers. They will get more billions to secure their immediate families, and the rest of us can go to hell and/or the poorhouse.

As to emerging from the ashes with a leaner, more conservative theme, I hope not...because today's "Conservatism", based on what I've seen from Fox News, Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly, the anchor on Fox (name escapes me), Bill Kristol, etc. appears to be a cross between Attila the Hun and Trotskyism. I'm serious...it barely resembles Conservatism at all. It's NEO-conservatism, through and through. They don't believe in Peace through Strength; rather, they believe in Peace through WAR... pre-emptive war...in other words, naked aggression. That's very UNconservative. In the financial/economic arena, they believe in working with Cronies in DC in order to rig the game in their favor, making them richer & richer. Supposedly, according to the propaganda, that's so they can "create jobs". What a joke and a scam. Instead they destroy jobs, eliminate jobs, ship jobs offshore, cut costs by eliminating benefits, hire part-time workers, fire those about to retire, and in general, play the Enron Game. All very UNconservative.

I believe some millionaires/billionaires have made it honestly, but in general, I think one has to be unethical or crooked, or both, in order to get to that level. Very UNconservative.

So, my preference (coming from the ashes) would be the Capitalist version of Anarcho-Syndicalism. [There is a Socialist version, but I don't advocate that one.] As viewed today, "Conservatism" simply isn't lean enough. Today's "Conservatism" is way too Statist in nature. Just my opinion.

Be Well, Pard