I've been patient, but I've got to say, the gleichschaltung of Congress is a success

[HereSince1628]

Much of how this disappointing circumstance was brought about remains a mystery to me. The ass-covering stories are inadequate.

I've heard the mantra originating with David Obey last winter that "We've not got the votes." Certainly a large number of rubber-stamping, flag-pinned obstructionists are present. But, it is hard to accept that 200 years of congressional tactics can't gain any traction at present. It's hard to accept that reasonably intelligent, mostly well educated democratic members of congress can do little more than provide the nation with große caberet rather than organized opposition. Even age-impaired, lame-brained citizens like me recognize that the R's don't technically have the votes either, but that doesn't stand in the way of their ability to prevail when they are in the majority and when they are not.

I don't really need to draw attention to disturbing parallels with foreign governments of the last century to illuminate the danger that our republic is threatened with from within. Anyone can watch video wherein a nominee to the office of Attorney General of the nation (btw--THAT office charged with protection of the nation with the rule of law rather than the rule of men) declared this past week that the Commander-In-Chief is above the law. In the time of my youth that would have raised the eyebrows of Barry Goldwater as well as Robert Kennedy. This past week an individual seeking HIGH OFFICE provided in public, on the record, in bright light, before millions of viewers, the blueprint to dictatorship in the US. And the nation yawned.

Had I made such a statement roughly 40 years ago on the final of a state required High School Civics course, I would have flunked the course and been denied a diploma. Also, I probably would have had my ears boxed by the WWII veterans who were my teachers.

Now, in this post 9-11 world where appeal to FEAR!!(as in--FURCHT!!) is considered rational argument, the Congress is prepared to go ahead and confirm not only the man but they will also confirm his treasonous philosophy. And thus, Congress will guarantee continued institutionalized cover for the power grabbing coup d'etat now being undertaken in full view by the Decider dwelling in the Office of the Vice President.

Why?

Because the Congress has been "synchronized" to the will of the domestic enemies of the Republic who occupy the executive and other high administrative offices of this land. I have no doubt that the plutocracy now dwells in a perpetual state of gemütlichkeit, the neocon-military-investor complex is guaranteed that any change in party affiliation at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue represents no threat to their schemes. They and WE are now guaranteed to be governed by "Good Americans."

[acmavm]

1. This is the stunning part of your thread...

<snip>

Had I made such a statement roughly 40 years ago on the final of a state required High School Civics course, I would have flunked the course and been denied a diploma. Also, I probably would have had my ears boxed by the WWII veterans who were my teachers.

<snip>

If that's not the chilling truth I don't know what is. And you know what, they're still teaching the same shit in schools. Only now they need to put a disclaimer at the beginning of each class period about what they read in their American Government book does not reflect reality as we know it in this country today.

[dbt]

2. Brilliant. Dead, cold, stinking BRILLIANT!

K & R. More, please!

[Glorfindel]

3. Thanks! I've learned a new word and found a new writer to admire

Gleichschaltung (literally "equal switching", "synchronization"; meaning "coordination", "making the same", "bringing into line") is a Nazi term for the process by which the Nazi regime successively established a system of totalitarian control over the individual, and tight coordination over all aspects of society and commerce. The historian Richard J. Evans offered the term "forcible-coordination" in his most recent work on Nazi Germany. One goal of this policy was to eliminate individualism by forcing everybody to adhere to a specific doctrine and way of thinking and to control as many aspects of life as possible using an invasive police force.


:hi:

[HereSince1628]

4. Yes, an interesting etiology, the same as that for "kräftige Befragung"

which translates to the same phrase "intensive interrogation" that is used by the Cheney administration.

With all the linguistic similarities between the Cheney administration and the National Socialist German Workers Party of the 1930's and early 1940's, I'm left wondering who has Cheney been reading, and who and what has been borrowed from the legacy of that other great (sarcasm) leader?

[Canuckistanian]

8. Or Verschärfte Vernehmung

"Enhanced Interrogation" - although the German phrase sounds more menacing to me.

[DFW]

37. There is a better translation of "Verschärfte"

Namely: "intensified."

Take it from one who is based in Germany, whose wife is German
and who speaks German at home.

Sometimes it is difficult to find a fitting translation for any
given word, as many German words translate differently, depending
on context. "Gleichschaltung" is this case is best translated as
"neutralizing," and as such, is entirely appropriate.

Anyone set for "verschärfte Vernehmung" by the Gestapo did indeed have much to fear.

[eppur_se_muova]

24. Cheny hasn't been reading -- he's been channeling.

Getting it from the horse's mouth, so to speak.

[CGowen]

19. Gleichschaltung is also used for loosing freedom of the press in Nazi Germany after their 911

Freedom of the press is still here and they don't care if parts of the press report it.

There is still stuff the press won't publish (self-censorship), but that has always been the case in oligarchies.
And there is the altenative media and internet playing a major role.

3. Gleichschaltung and control of the press

The Reich Chamber of Culture that had been established in September 1933, was a
professional organisation with compulsory membership that also included the Reich Press
Chamber. It can be said that its president, Max Amnan, Hitler’s fellow soldier in the First
World War and early member of the Nazi Party, was a professional in this field: He was head
of the National Socialist Party’s main publishing house that published the party’s newspaper,
the Völkischer Beobachter (“People’s Observer”). Amman had achieved the Gleichschaltung
of the Publishers Association as early as 1934 and thus controlled the entire German
publishing industry. The Reich Press Chamber played an important role in preliminary
censorship and was responsible for keeping journalists under close surveillance.

http://www.kajmunk.hum.aau.dk/inc/pdf/20070829/20070829_Beate_Schneider.pdf

[xchrom]

5. recommend

[Whoa_Nelly]

6. Your post is on point with Naomi Wolf's book, "The End of America"

The End of America: Letter of Warning To A Young Patriot

Definitely a must read.

She writes about and compares the Bush Regime to the echoes of the rise of Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin, as well as even more recent history of bloodless coups, such as what happened in Thailand. The only solution she offers to stop this destructive fascist shift within our country is that we, as citizens, must gather in strength and number en masse at our nation's doorstep.

The days when there were huge gatherings in DC, with activists such as Abbie Hoffman, rallying the hue and cry of citizens to alter the course of our nation being put in peril by its government, needs to happen again.
Were I to have the money and the luxury of not having to work, or were I younger by about 35 years, I would want to start, or would join, such a march if it would help bring the numbers of people to DC needed to create the catalyst for sudden change in regaining our Constitution and our civil liberties.

Today the need for this is greater than ever. Our nation, our government, has never been closer to a political coup, with the price being the ultimate destruction of our Constitution and the total death of democracy here.


I think about how connected people are through the Internet, yet this mode of gathering and community is passive. I really believe it will take the physical and vocal presence of millions of citizens to facilitate immediate and necessary change by exercising their civil rights before those rights are denied us forever.

How can we start?


on edit: Adding link to one source of availability for Wolf's book
http://www.amazon.com/End-America-Letter-Warning-Patriot/dp/1933392797

[Whoa_Nelly]

7. K&R

[malaise]

9. Great post K & R n/t

[Bonobo]

10. Recommended. The greates line in my opinion is this:

"This past week an individual seeking HIGH OFFICE provided in public, on the record, in bright light, before millions of viewers, the blueprint to dictatorship in the US. And the nation yawned."

[Bonobo]

11. Kick. One of the two best posts I have read in a long time. Here is the other.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=2087431&mesg_id=2087431

[lonestarnot]

12. Still not giving in and as close to the truth as this may be, it offers

an excuse to do nothing but adapt to a plutocracy or the machinations of war profiteers, and I'm not going to lay down, just because decider bushitler unitary executive says so and empty suits are agreeing.

[HereSince1628]

13. I wouldn't advocate giving in...I'm just saying don't expect Congress

to make things right. The evidence from this Congress is that it is singing from the same songbook as the last Congress.

[leftchick]

14. any ideas

on how things will ever be made right? I fear for my children's future here.

[HereSince1628]

18. No, I wish I did. It sort of depends on whether the end comes from the inside

or the outside.

As unlikely as it may seem, I'm hoping for a peaceful internal solution. With the Congress out of the game, the solution is in the hands of the people who must be upset enough to force a change.

[Bluebear]

15. 'Had I made such a statement roughly 40 years ago....'

Chilling and absolutely true.

[Bonobo]

16. KKkkkkkkkkikkkkkkkk.

[tom_paine]

17. gleichschatung and gemütlichkeit

Yes, and we get to watch it all over again.

Sort of an encre presentation of a Reality Show that humanity simply cannot get enough of.

[Swamp Rat]

20. You won't see me yawning.

I'll be the person shouting from a rooftop in the wilderness.

[Lochloosa]

22. It's a lonely place...

[DeSwiss]

21. Very insightful. K&R!!! n/t

[spag68]

23. Civics class

I graduated in 1960 and remember civics class. However I don't think they even have civics anymore,or even American history as we had it. It should be required as a high school class.

[druidity33]

25. actually

they blend it with "social studies" and it's a poor substitute!

:(

[stevedeshazer]

26. You knocked it out of the park.

Killer. I so wish you were wrong.

You're not.

[proReality]

27. K&R n/t

[ooglymoogly]

28. Truer words were never spoken

KR to the pinnacle of Mt Olympus.

[Alcibiades]

29. Cheney's been reading Carl Schmitt and Leo Strauss!

Just kidding. They not smart enough to read them. If they read anyway, they not understand. They read book by Jesus, the Bible.

Actually, I was reading Carl Schmitt the other day, when I came across a loverly quote by our buddy, Kaiser Wilhelm I, written in 1863 with full reactionary intent: “Wo steht es in der Verfassung, daß nur die Regierung Konzessionen machen soll und die Abgeordneten niemals???” Transported and translated across the barriers of time, space and political context, this turns out to be a message for Nancy Pelosi: "Madame Speaker, where does it say in the Constitution that only Congress should make concessions and the president, never???"

[juno jones]

39. "If they read anyway, they not understand"

Apes do read Nietzsche, Otto, they just don't understand it! (to paraphrase Fish Called Wanda)

[NoAmericanTaliban]

30. I'm very impressed

After I read your statement - my first word was wow. There is a lot of truth to what you speak. Thanks

[Norrin Radd]

31. k+r

[puebloknot]

32. Jawohl! Well and truly said!!! nt

[gateley]

33. K&R! nt

[Usrename]

34. It's as if Nuremberg never happened.

No, it's worse; it's as if George Washington never lived.

[earth mom]

35. Absolutely Brilliant! K & R. nt

[democrank]

36. A malleable Congress helped seal the deal.

The center pin was moved to the right, lapel pins were ordered, the citizenry fed a steady dose of fear and the rest is history. Brilliant.

[acmavm]

38. Watch out, pretty soon someone here will come along and tell you

you're not a democrat.

Apparently you can be 100% right. But you can also not be a dem if you don't see thing's Pelosi and Reed's way.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

40. They didn't even have to burn down our Reichstag.

I guess they didn't want to set off all that dry powder.

[frogcycle]

41. well said

The systematic destruction of the Great Experiment whereby a nation would be governed by We the People has been a long, multi-faceted process. The philosophical divide between those who believe in rule by an elite group and actual participation by the masses existed before the Revolution, was a major subject of contention during the period from 1777 to 1788 when the US system of government was being designed.

The primary guiding principle of the system they designed was to avoid the concentration of power in any component of the government. This is why there are both states and a central government; this is why the central government is composed of three coequal branches, why the legislative branch is further divided into two parts, and why the part that represents We the People most directly has terms of only two years. The Founders knew human nature, and they knew the history of European monarchies, with a controlling elite putting its members in charge of countries like so many conquests, with the general populace treated as little more than livestock. They designed a government that would be messy. There would be contention. It would require compromise. *Most voices would be heard before serious policy changes were made. There were objections; the Hamiltonian faction was appalled. But the Jeffersonians prevailed. Even then, the states had to insist that a Bill of Rights be added to the Constitution before they would ratify it.

The first several administrations saw an immediate erosion of the guiding principle. Big Business interests - the Hamiltonians - established tariff laws and created a Central Bank to further their interests, concentrating power in the hands of the few, despite that carefully designed system. Andrew Jackson recognized that. When he was elected the elite were horrified. He invited common people to his inauguration, they broke dishes and stood on the furniture with muddy boots. He went on to dismantle the Central Bank, saying it concentrated too much power at the expense of the public.

The Civil War was another battle in this continuing war - an issue not only of slavery, but of states rights vs. central government, and, ultimately, of business interests vs. human rights.

Later, the rise of the robber barons of railroading, steel, and manufacturing and the labor movement were another major battle. That one simmered down to a period of detente during the period of booming economy and growth in the early 1900's, but the financial wheelers and dealers were not satisfied; the greed of the elite led to a financial house of cards that collapsed, and the Great Depression was the result. That period - the era of Franklin D. Roosevelt - is when the fundamental principles of the Founding Fathers finally got formalized into law. The concepts of Social Security, of minimum wage, of child labor laws - the concept of a Middle Class - finally started to take shape.

Since Roosevelt, that group of Hamiltonians has been systematically executing the next battle. It has been a long one. It has been many-faceted. It became clear to them that the people would not be subjugated without being thoroughly brainwashed. Orwell's "1984" was a warning to some and a textbook to others. McCarthyism was a period of "testing the waters" - how far could they go in shutting down news media, in condemning people for their associations, for their conversations?

Eisenhower saw what was happening as the power elite developed what he called the "militaryindustrial complex" and warned against it. Nixon was supposed to do for it what Reagan and Bush did decades later. That upstart JFK was another Jacksonian setback. LBJ was better for them. They got their war, but they had to give him some social programs like voting rights and pay lip service to his "war on poverty." Nixon was dusted off and took over, moving forward with their program, but his flawed character caused him to overplay it. Some of his advisers survived the purge though, and waited out the minor inconvenience of yet another populist upstart. They put their puppet in after only four years of ridiculing Carter for his sweaters, tore down his solar arrays, and then tore down the regulations on most aspects of big business.

The Assault on Reason Al Gore describes in his book was in full sway. It included not just winning an election and then having your way while in power. It included tackling what would be included in textbooks. It included introducing the "sesame street" short-attention-span means of educating. Don't teach people to think; teach them to memorize. Then you can influence them as John Madden does in the Miller Lite commercial. Just give them a slogan ("tastes great" or "less filling") and send them out to fight for their team. The Bush administration went a step further. With its so-called "no child left behind" program, it used government funding to dictate what would be taught (or not taught) in schools. Standardized tests dictate funding - that civics course to which the OP refers is not included in the tests. So we are raising a generation of "We the People" taught to memorize, grunt the answers, and line up to vote based on a slogan.

The Hamilton/Central Bank crowd never went away. They have gotten smarter, and they are winning. They have their puppets in the form of republicans, and also a large number of elected officials from the supposed opposition who just don't quite get it. Who don't understand what the fire in the belly was that drove Jefferson in those early years. Who think that power is everything. Who think that as long as they say "less filling" instead of "tastes great" that they are in fact populists. Who respond to the "fear card" like Pavlovs dogs. They don't even know there is another slogan - like "end the war" or "impeach" or "individual rights." They did not grow up in todays standardized-test-driven education system, but they have the limited critical thinking skills the elite are seeking. You think this is Orwellian? Just wait until the next generation is in power!



*That they still did not quite 'get it' that all humans of both sexes should not be considered as livestock is a notable shortcoming in their thinking, but the system they designed permitted those defects to be debated and eventually addressed via amendment.