In the future, they'll ask, 'Why didn't the American people stop them"?

[mopaul]

and the answer is blowin' in the wind. they asked the same thing of the german people in the 1940's, and many other nations had to ask it. why did the vast majority of americans simply allow this all to happen? how did america fall so low? how did the fascists pull it off so effectively? why did no popular uprising or revolution occur?

maybe one will, but up to this point, it's a pretty shameful performance by a sleeping nation.

[glarius]

1. Do you think it's because the media has NOT informed the people of

what is going on?....I think the majority of the population just goes about their business and only the small percentage of people who are disposed to be inquiring will be aware of what Bush and his buddies are up to....I think it would be the same in most countries....Most people are not like the people here at DU and so are unaware....:)

[Gidney N Cloyd]

3. US Mainstream Media

...was all over horrors of Vietnam and (eventually) Watergate. It wouldn't surprise me if many people today still figured simply that if there were a serious problem with the bush* admin, they'd be hearing about it on the 5 o'clock news.

[ewagner]

2. Intriguing question

and very insightful....

My first reaction to is centers around an essay I read in Freshman Sociology Class entitled "The Masses are Asses" . I have learned from years of public service that it is unfortunately true but that is one of the risks Democracy takes....anytime you give masses the ability to determine their destiny you run the risk of them being manipulated or herded like sheep.

That's what happened in Germany and that's what has happened here.

Remember that the first, strongest and most unquestioned human instinct is survival. If survival of individuals or society is threatened, it/they will act instinctively to assure survival, tossing logic and reason to the wind and act immediately upon the worst of human instincts. That's what September 11 did to us. It reduced us to animals and we reacted like animals to assure our survival...(even though it really wasn't threatened, we were led to believe it was.)

We've behaved like asses. Well, not all of us...just enough to re-elect the village idiot.

[The2ndWheel]

8. Just ask RJ Rushdoony

"I have learned from years of public service that it is unfortunately true but that is one of the risks Democracy takes....anytime you give masses the ability to determine their destiny you run the risk of them being manipulated or herded like sheep."

http://www.chalcedon.edu/

"History has never been dominated by majorities, but only by dedicated minorities who stand unconditionally on their faith."

[Bridget Burke]

10. Do you agree with the founder of Dominionism in other ways?

Yeats said it better, anyway.

[The2ndWheel]

11. I don't agree with him in any way

Just throwing the quote out there as an example of what the other poster said about people being led like sheep.

[wiggs]

4. I was thinking the exact same thing yesterday...

...we may very well look back in a couple of years and wonder why we didn't take up the torches and pitchforks.

[90-percent]

6. iT'S NOT MUCH

But I went to my first organized protest of my life to DC in Jan 2003. This time frame was during the biggest anti-war protests IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD. Our Pres dismissively terms these massive efforts as nothing more worthwhile than "focus groups"

I've also gone to town meetings hosted by my congressman and addressed him directly about Guantanamo, which he seemed to support 2 years ago.

And you're right, history will ask why Americans did nothing to stop this very dark period in our history.

-85%

I remember when questioning the War got you labeled as "unpatriotic" by many in my life - relatives, co-workers, gorcery clerks, car repairmen, brother in laws, etc. History shows at least I was more patriotic than them, not that such a thing should be a competition.

[The2ndWheel]

7. Because the robocops in Washington

would blow the torches and pitchforks away.

[pansypoo53219]

5. but but but

germans didn't have teevee.

[wiggs]

9. Same re: Darfur. Shameful. nt