Are both democrats and republicans ready for what is now coming?

[whistle]

...Foreclosures are going to skyrocket; the tax base of counties and localities is going to collapse; unprecedented budget crises will explode; schools and hospitals are going to shut down; tens of thousands of workers are going to be laid off; and race riots will develop, targeting minorities, illegal immigrants, and other scapegoats.

This country is about to witness a social and political crises like few have imagined and like no politician in either party wants to admit is right at the front door of America. And the stench of FASCISM is everywhere.

[Botany]

1. but puppies are still cute

[TwilightGardener]

7. LOL! As long as we have puppies and kittens, we're OK.

[leftchick]

2. it is all going according to Darth's plan

if only the democrats weren't complicit and impeached his ass.

[demnan]

3. I second that

Impeachment was the only hope we had left.

[lonestarnot]

9. Well I too am for impeachment, but it is certainly not our only hope.

[LWolf]

4. Just this week at work

there was discussion during a meeting about the number of families that we serve that are entering, or considering, bankruptcy. Families with a long history of financial stability.

[Delphinus]

5. Ah,

no wonder our local city council wants to go from a personal property tax to an income tax.

[tom_paine]

6. Very very few of us, even here at DU, are ready for what is coming

It is just as Milton Mayer said half a century ago, or should I say, as Milton Mayer reported from people who were there the last time a Bush-type tried lying a great republic into tyranny.

http://www.thirdreich.net/Thought_They_Were_Free.html

To live in this process is absolutely not to be able to notice it - please try to believe me - unless one has a much greater degree of political awareness, acuity, than most of us had ever had occasion to develop. Each step was so small, so inconsequential, so well explained or, on occasion, "regretted," that, unless one were detached from the whole process from the beginning, unless one understood what the whole thing was in principle, what all these "little measures" that no "patriotic German" could resent must some day lead to, one no more saw it developing from day to day than a farmer in his field sees the corn growing. One day it is over his head.

"How is this to be avoided, among ordinary men, even highly educated ordinary men? Frankly, I do not know. I do not see, even now. Many, many times since it all happened I have pondered that pair of great maxims, Principiis obsta and Finem respice - "Resist the beginnings" and "consider the end." But one must foresee the end in order to resist, or even see, the beginnings. One must foresee the end clearly and certainly and how is this to be done, by ordinary men or even by extraordinary men? Things might have changed here before they went as far as they did; they didn't, but they might have. And everyone counts on that might.


Yes, here at DU, everyone counts on that little itty bitty "might". There is nothing wrong with hope, but hoping that you can stand on the railroad tracks at the end of a tunnel while a light grows larger and louder...can be characterizsed as foolishness.

I still wonder if the Rulers of Amerika will give us a brief rest, allowing Hillary to be "elected" as Empress, while preserving Tyranny's Gains until the next Royal Bushie comes and sweeps the rest away as if the last 4 years had never happened.

Did Hitler give his beleagured and confused citizens a rest? Did Stalin? No, as per the dictates of Trotskyian Perpetual Revolution, which our Bushies have also perfected and is used by both Left and Right Authoritarians.

So, I kind of suspect that Ghouli or ThomBush will miraculously "win" the Imperial Throne, but after 2008, I strongly suspect that in either case, the demise of the Old American Republic will become clearer, as it becomes clearer every day since our Democratic "victory" in November 2006.

No, very few are mentally ready for what is coming. Just like last time.

[L. Coyote]

8. and fear mongers will run rampant on discussion fora. Oh, that's already happening.

Do not fear fear, fear fear mongers!

[tom_paine]

12. How's that victory working out for ya', LCoyote?

Hey, I donated my ass off and busted my ass and took election day 2006 off to drive and doorknock all day. Pretty exhausting at the end of the day, but satisfying, as I am sure you know personally yourself.

And now we see all the fruits of our great victory, which most of us worked very hard for:

Our troops will soon be home from Iraq.

Habeus Corpus has been restored.

The White House has been forced to supply documents and e-mails.

The White House has been forced to obey subpeonas.

The White House is shutting down it's warrantless wiretapping program and dropping it's efforts to end-run around FISA.

And how about that Gonzales' Trial? I mean, my God, the man perjured himself under oath and on tape about a dozen times and was contradicted by not only his own aides but by the director of the FBI. Still, the defense lawyers are doing a good job of obfuscating the hard video testimony evidence and defending their client, eh?

How about the dogged invetsgation and prosecution of the missing White House e-mails, and the use of outside e-mail accounts to disguise felonious activity? I mean, FIVE MILLION e-mails ERASED, many of which are considered evidence in an ongoing criminal invetsigation? Did the Bushies REALLY think they could get away with such blatant criminality performed in broad daylight? Only a matter of time until the first indictments come down.

Fear fear mongers, my ass! Give me a reason to think that our downward spiral, virtually unabated since our "victory", and to be able to believe so RATIONALLY and WITHOUT flights of fancy into denial of basic reality, and THEN maybe you'll convince me to rethink.

[L. Coyote]

15. Election 2006 was not "our "victory" " rather it was just representative democracy at work

Who won the day? The voters elected their representatives.
The people changed control of Congress, albeit narrowly and with some very moderate Dems.

HOWEVER, we did not elect a new President. The Executive is still there, with all their power. But, count the resignations so far.

Your so-called "fruits of our great victory" does not extend to Congress doing whatever you want them to do.
It only extends to getting individuals elected who become representatives for ALL the people in their district.

This is how our government works. Congress can impeach or the People can change the Executive in 2008.
It is a vain and frustrating exercise to think you can get Congress to do what you want.
If that is your aim, you need to run for Congress!

[tom_paine]

16. Thanks for pointing out the obvious. Sorry, but I am well aware at how our government works.

However, it belies a lack of knowledge of history, both recent and less so.

How is it, that the Bushies, in the EXACT SAME SITUATION in 1998, realtively slim majorities in Congress, no executive power, were able, in the face of 66% disapproval over their actions, to not only able to impeach Clinton but bring the whole thing to it's full and bitter end WITHOUT EVEN A PROPER CRIME TO PROSECUTE, but a nonsensical trumped-up charge in which more criminality was performed to set the "perjury trap" that Clitnon's in lying about his sex life under oath?

How is it, not just with prosceutable, actionable felonies laying simply everywhere like a child's playpen toys, and in a similar situation the Democrats can do NOTHING about any matter of Constitutional significance, let alone actionable hard felony evidence?

Why is it our FISA bill took 60 votes to pass, and didn't, but the Bushies' took only 50 votes WHILE WE CONTROL CONGRESS?

These questions are asked from an entirely different level than your answers (and please, no more eight-grade civics lectures about how the filibuster or government works...I KNOW how it works and that is no answer), and so, until you join me up here looking at the bigger picture, your replies to questions I am not even asking are useless appendages to any debate.

Sorry, but that's how it is and I won't apologize for reality.

Ask yourself my three questions and then tell me if you can realistically believe that what we have been watching these last seven years is anything approaching "representative democracy at work". Compare it to your memories of how representative democracy worked during the Old American Republic. Were you an adult during the 70s and 80s? I ask this not to discredit your youth (if you are under 30, I have no way of knowing your age), but to understand that maybe you do not have fully formed adult memories of what it was actually like to live in a representative democracy, and have really followed current events of those times as they were happening. Lacking that experience, I could see how you might think that the last seven years, any of it, has even remotely resembled "representative democracy at work".

You oversimplified my points in the last post to a childish wish that Congress do everything I want. Actually I and millions of Americans would be happy if they would act on any SINGLE matter of Constitutional import or Bushie overt feloniousness. Just one. Start by sending a message that such behavior will not be tolerated anymore. Make an example, even just one, and there are sooooo many felonies to choose from.

If you wish to reply with more eighth-grade civics (probably eleventh-grade or college freshman civics these days), you are certainly welcome to. But quite frankly, it adds nothing to the discussion.

Come join me up at The Big Picture. Answer my questions and not with govermental or electoral mechanics, for that is the very small part of the picture at this point (which is itself part of the problems of the Big Picture, the unravelling of represtative democracy by the same methods that Caesar and Hitler used).

[Tyler Durden]

10. (This is no social crisis) This is you having fun

Another Tricky Day
Artist(Band):The Who

You can't always get it
When you really want it
You can't always get it at all
Just because there's space
In your life it's a waste
To spend your time why don't you wait for the call

(Just gotta get used to it)
We all get it in the end
(Just gotta get used to it)
We go down and we come up again
(Just gotta get used to it)
You irritate me my friend
(This is no social crisis)
This is you having fun
(No crisis)
Getting burned by the sun
(This is true)
This is no social crisis
Just another tricky day for you

You can't always get higher
Just because you aspire
You could expire even knowing.
Don't push the hands
Just hang on to the band
You can dance while your knowledge is growing

(It could happen anytime)
You can't expect to never cry
(Patience is priceless)
Not when you try to fly so high
(Just stay on that line)
Rock and roll will never die
(This is no social crisis)
etc.

Another tricky day
Another gently nagging pain
What the papers say
Just seems to bring down heavier rain
The world seems in a spiral
Life seems such a worthless title
But break out and start a fire y'all
It's all here on the vinyl
(No crisis)
etc.

Repeat verse 1.

(Just gotta get used to it)
Gotta get used to waiting
(Just gotta get used to it)
You know how the ice is
(Just gotta get used to it)
It's thin where you're skating
(This is no social crisis)
etc.

Just another tricky day for you fellah

[eugeneliberal]

11. Makes me wonder...

...if they're going to trot out the line about changing the horse midstream. After all, we are in the middle of a war.

[Tesha]

14. Our horse's ass won't be much of a change. (NT)

[ElsewheresDaughter]

13. and when the gates are stormed the crimals will be secure on their island fortress' in Duabi

with private army protection>>>>Blackwater

okay.... justing foil hat...ahhhh

[earth mom]

17. Next up...this and this....

http://publish.portland.indymedia.org/en/2007/09/365023.shtml

http://www.vivelecanada.ca/staticpages/index.php/20060830133702539

or

just connect the dots here:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=5420753830426590918&q=RUSSO&total=5530&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=4

[aikoaiko]

18. I dunno, but I've been buying guns and ammo.

:smoke:

[Flabbergasted]

19. For the sake of perspective....

People have been saying this for decades. There is every reason to believe we will face a economic crisis. But there is also every reason to believe there are ways to stave off sudden collapse.

I believe the economy will last through Bush's presidency but will slowly collapse over the next 3 to 5 years.

The rest of the scenario is speculation.