An American icon: Gore Vidal on Italy, Iraq - and why he hates George Bush

[cal04]

(snip)
Why is it so dreadful to live in America, I asked.

"We have been deprived of our franchise," he says. "The election was stolen in both 2000 and 2004, because of electronic voting machinery which can be easily fixed. We've had two illegitimate elections in a row ...

"Little Bush says we are at war, but we are not at war because to be at war Congress has to vote for it. He says we are at war on terror, but that is a metaphor, though I doubt if he knows what that means. It's like having a war on dandruff, it's endless and pointless. We are in a dictatorship that has been totally militarised, everyone is spied on by the government itself. All three arms of the government are in the hands of this junta.

"Whatever you are," he goes on, "they say you are the reverse. The men behind the war in Iraq are cowards who did not fight in Vietnam - but they spent millions of dollars proving that John Kerry, who was a genuine war hero whatever you think of his politics, was a coward.

"This is what happens when you have control of the media, and I have never known the media more vicious, stupid and corrupt than they are now."

more
http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article1095838.ece

:applause:

[kskiska]

1. I love this man

(snip)

"I was never an expatriate," he replies. "I was never considered to be that by anyone except for the far right. I had a house in southern Italy and another house in southern California - but in right-wing circles, that's enough to be considered an expat. America was what I always wrote about."

How is it, then, to live full-time in the United States?

"If you care about America it's dreadful," he said. "If you are making money you don't care.

"Benjamin Franklin was shown the new American constitution, and he said, 'I don't like it, but I will vote for it because we need something right now. But this constitution in time will fail, as all such efforts do. And it will fail because of the corruption of the people, in a general sense.' And that is what it has come to now, exactly as Franklin predicted."

[nealmhughes]

2. Why is the best writing about the US being put into UK papers?

The Guardian/Observer and The Independent?

I didn't know Mr. Vidal was in a wheelchair now.

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. Maybe because of this line

"This is what happens when you have control of the media, and I have never known the media more vicious, stupid and corrupt than they are now."

(a) He may be right; (b) It's not the way to get the US media to publish your thoughts.

[Vidar]

4. "It's like having a war on dandruff, it's endless and pointless."

[rman]

7. kick

[raccoon]

5. He sure said that right,

"I have never known the media more vicious, stupid and corrupt than they are now."

[Terran1212]

6. That was good stuff

[Pierzin]

8. I have been a Vidal fan for years

Gore Vidal is right on the money. Although I am saddenned to learn he is now in a wheelchair, I didn't know. I knew he was getting up there in age, as he did serve in WWII.
I am moving more and more away from MSM for my news. Now I just roll my eyes when I watch NBC or Repug newscasts. It just sickens me so to see our country so utterly brainwashed and hoodwinked!