Well, I've been quiet for awhile now, taking in what's happening in the Middle-East and Wisconsin these last weeks, reading and listening to everything I can to get a grasp of what it really means. I may just be overwhelmed by my own elation as I witness the mass rejection of corrupt power by the people. Tunisia's regime change by popular demand was quickly overshadowed by Egypt, whose peaceful protesters, even when attacked by government thugs, held their ground and their resolve until (a very reluctant to leave) Mubarak was pressured to abdicate his supposedly elected throne. Sadly, some people were killed as are now being killed in Libya, Yemen and other Arab nations that are willing to stop the public cry for liberty by any means possible. Still, the people march on knowing full well of their sacrifice.
In the midst of this Donald Rumsfeld hits the media with a book tour touting his accomplishments? Would that be regime change by illegal war? And no one calls him on it? That may be because the United States has been on the wrong side of this issue since the first oil well was struck in Saudi Arabia not so long ago. As long as we had full access to all the oil we needed for military-industrial expansionism we didn't care how oppressive the king, dictator or president was. In fact, the more repressive the government was, the more brutal their methods of torture, the easier it was for our C.I.A. to conduct out of sight their brand of "intelligence gathering" making sure the despots stayed in power and the oil kept flowing our way. All the while we, the USA, could keep up our facade of "Spreading Peace Throughout the World".
The current pro-union, pro-worker peaceful protest at the State House in Wisconsin makes us ask . . . "Is it really going to happen here?" Are we Americans, (no offense, Canada) going to get off our fat, lazy asses and finally say NO to the decades old systematic takeover of our government by corporate industry and the banks that enable them? Be still my heart, I think I can muster the energy for one more "Takin' It To The Streets" if it means bringing humanity and respect for the common good back into our collective national soul. But I warn you, this better be for real and not just the echo of the 2008 election where progressives, old and young rallied in support of real change after two questionably legal terms of the worst president in our history. We beat a rigged voting system to elect Obama, the Voice of Change, who quite openly, albeit underneath all the rhetoric, told us . . . "If you really want change, make me do it." . . . but instead we went back to our couches and got all pissy when he wasn't able to do it all for us. How long have you lived in this country and how many elections have you participated in? When was the last time a politician, president or otherwise, ever came through on all their campaign promises? A politician's goal is above all else, get elected, then stay in power long enough to make the business connections that will insure a lucrative life after the people get wise and throw your ass out. There are exceptions and Bernie and Dennis know who they are. We must participate in our own governance. We must initiate the change for the common good because greed is a powerful force to overcome. Don't like the term "socialized medicine"? then call it Health Care for the Common Good. Education for the Common Good. Infrastructure, police and emergency protections for the Common Good. Privatization is what you need when you go to the bathroom or get intimate with your loved ones.
As usual, this ends up as a rant against the Corporatocracy of America which I suppose is every bit as oppressive as the tyrants and dictators being overthrown in the Middle-East. I hope with my very being that this is a world-wide monumental movement toward a more humanitarian world and the best part is that it is a movement based on the power of peaceful protest. Who saw That coming?
