Trying To Understand What Has Happened To Us

[ThomWV]

Talk to someone who has been in a horrible accident and they probably won't be able to tell you what happened to them. They either never saw it coming or did not recognize the signs of impending disaster even when they were on the doorstep. I feel that way about our nation now. I find it difficult to put my finger on what happened, its harder yet to explain how it happened. How to understand it?

The first thing is to define what this horrible thing that has happened is. What changed? This was a rich nation before things changed, it is a rich nation today. We abound with natural resources and we have more than adequate supplies of the raw materials of energy production to take rational advantage of those other resources. This nation has an abundance of coal, natural gas, and oil. We squander more energy daily than we import. We have geothermal capability and vast hydroelectric potential. We have not even begun to harness wind energy in any meaningful way and were we rational about it we could devise safe ways to make use of our knowledge of nuclear power. We have no lack of arable land either. We export mountains of grain. There is no justification what so ever for any person to go hungry in the United States, yet people do. How can this be. We have the knowledge, tools, materials, and labor force necessary to produce any and everything we need - and yet people go for want of daily essentials.

The strength of our nation lies in the sovernity of the people. "We the people" devised a Government which allows no master other than the rule of law, and the laws of our own making. We decided, two hundred and forty years ago, that we will all be subject to the law and the law will be the will of our combined enlightened understanding. We decided that what is best for the majority, tempered by the unassailable rights of the minority to remain secure against the tyranny of the mob Truly government by and for the people. We enshrined the basic and unassailable rights of man in law. We allowed that any man might think and say what he pleased. We made it the right of men to assemble and make demands on their own Government. We allowed that no man might impose his mystical beliefs on others nor that the mystical beliefs of the majority might be imposed on any individual. We allowed that a person might not be denied the means of personal or legal self defense. We gave every individual power over the Government they had created.

So what has happened to us, what is this horrible thing? This is what we got backward. We worked hard to defend the minority from the tyranny of the majority but ignored that it might be the minority who would become tyrants over the majority. We began with a fear of Kings and protected ourselves against them, but not well enough. Today we have a King selfproclaimed above our laws.

They lied to us of course. The first affront to the people always has to be a lie. They could not have embezzled the strength of our nation without lieing to us as they did it. The first lie makes us cowards, the second lie confirms it. We have been lied to so often we could not tell truth from fiction even if we were trained to do so, and then we are told the lie that we can not afford to train ourselves to tell the difference. Teach to the test, indeed.

When governance demands all men are taxed but the fruit of taxation gives privilege for a few then the simple algebra of self governance has failed; that which is taken equally from all may not be distributed unequally between the few. E Pluribus Unum does not mean that from the many we will allow one to rise to rule.

I began this with the thought that the failure of us to manage our Government came the day we let them start lieing to us. I do not mean exaggeration, I mean out right lies. Every politician lies, every one of them give the best lip service to their own cause and damned little to opposing views. That is not bald faced lieing though and its is the lies that are new. They aren't just coming from Government either. Turn on your television and listen to one commercial. There will be at least one outright lie in it. Sometimes they simply make shit up. Sales pitches are given in which information is presented as scientific fact which has absolutely no basis in reality - they make up names for chemicals, elements, and compounds that do not exist, they cite studies that were never undertaken, and provide results fresh out of their own imaginations We accept this. We have accepted it to the point were we no longer can tell the truth from lies. There is no difference between the merchandising of our society and its politicization. They are all the same and we are the lab rats and the final audience all in one.

Jesus, I just want to scream!

[Fire Walk With Me]

1. Selfishness, greed, and opportunism allowed to run rampant.

THIS is why it takes all of us, working together, doing something positive, to make things work. When you allow the negative, it WILL take everything that it can.

The Golden Rule is not dead. It's just rarely utilized.

[bdamomma]

3. well, we are there, now we have to fight back.

or actions speak louder than words.

[Fire Walk With Me]

4. Congress beginning to stand up for the rule of law is a good start.

Long overdue, and quite welcome. You kinda sorta have to protect and enforce the founding factors of the country if you want the country to continue.

I say that if we work to reduce poverty, homelessness, domestic abuse, etc. that we can turn the country around from the inside out, and obsolete these people right out of power.

It's hard to dominate happy people. It's hard to scare people who know what's going on.

[bdamomma]

6. exactly, I like your last sentence.

"it's hard to scare people who know what's going on".

and to quote a DUer or ad libbing.

"We are considered consumers rather than citizens".

that is so true.

[AzDar]

2. Honestly, I blame Congress; both Repuke and Dem controlled incarnations.

THEY are responsible for protecting this Nation from an Executive Branch that has criminally run amok.
Things NEVER should have been allowed to progress to this point.

[ixion]

5. we've been sliding down the slippery slope for several decades now

I think it reached a watershed moment with BushCo, but it has been going on since McCarthyism... and arguably before that. I think that an ignorant populace who puts too much faith in their leaders is, in large part, to blame. I became aware of this slide in the 80's, and was labeled a radical for saying so, and with this labeling my voice was effectively removed from the dialog. That is part and parcel of the problem. It's not that people haven't been saying this stuff, it's that the general populace refuses to listen.

Well, now they're catching on, and now it's probably too late to stop it without something drastic happening, something like the Great Depression, where the infrastructure breaks down.

In this case, it will be that, plus a host of concentration camps and many people disappearing, unfortunately. The truth, from my experience, is that people refuse to believe until it affects them personally. By then, it's too late.

[bdamomma]

7. I hope people wake up before its too late.

we are talking about our own survival and also the world.

[ixion]

23. I hope so, too, alyce

although history is not in our favor on this. :(

[Uncle Joe]

8. Fear, due to social and or economic upheaval, its' the thing FDR warned us against.

Our demographics are changing, baby boomers getting older possibly going through a midlife crisis of sorts, the changing hue of our perceived national color as whites will be a minority by 2050. The world is catching up again economically, culturally and militarily after we enjoyed and took for granted our undisputed economic supremacy for several decades following World War 2.

The Republican Party for the sole pursuit of power decided instead of adapting to these changes, they would exploit them for their own empowerment. Using fear for their own personal gain and doing their best to undermine democracy when it sprang up, even cheating here at home. Unfortunately many in the Democratic Party followed suit, because they were fearful of opposing this sea change of national unease that the Republican Party was riding. The old divide and conquer technique, if you will.

At some point it became easier to stick with the lie of no pain global supremacy and symbolism trumping substance particularly as television grew in to the dominant medium and before the Internet could counter balance their powerful propaganda televised on a daily and nightly basis in to virtually every American's home. Before the Internet it was much easier for the corporate media to perpetuate the lie, keeping the American People blissfully albeit with growing apprehension living in their media created false Matrix of reality. As the Internet grew in power and influence the corporate media leadership viewed that as a threat against their monopoly on information, and felt compelled to slander and libel the superior candidate for the most powerful job in the land because he was most identified with empowering the American People to seek out the truth, thereby blatantly abandoning their sacred duty to inform the American People as to the hard realities of the day so the people could make their best informed judgment as to their national leadership. Ironically as the Internet grew in power and influence this lie among many others became impossible for them to hide and the American People are waking up to it, and I believe the fear, anger and resentment from this perfect storm of events, is what you're detecting. When you build you're house on lies, you might as well build it on shifting sand.

Thanks for the thread, ThomWV.

[ThomWV]

10. Something's seething in here

I feel it and I see it in what you wrote too.


Let's set all the other thoughts aside for a couple of moments - if you wouldn't mind passing some thoughts back and forth for a few moments (others too, please chime in) - I think we have a common thread that should be explored.

Television plays a part here. It dumbed us down when it never had to. It has been in the forefront of misinformation for 50 years now. It crept into our minds and seemingly took control. It is perfectly incidious and at once omnipresent.

I think a lot of our problems can be traced back to television and the marketing psychology that grew with it to take control of every aspect of our lives. Everything thought is sold to us by masters of a trade we don't even know exists.

Your thoughts?

[Uncle Joe]

14. Absolutely no one knows mass psychology and marketing better.

They need to, it's the only way they make money, selling products of one kind or another. Symbolism trumps substance virtually every time with them, when you need to get your message out in 30 seconds, that becomes inevitable. They know our hot buttons and I have no doubt television programming along with commercials are promoted and marketed with some thought as to how they want to shape the national mood.

I could be wrong about this, but I seem to recall when cable television first came out, they promoted it as not having commercials and that's why people would pay for what was free to them before, other than having more "choice". I don't believe that's the case anymore, you simply can't get away from commercials, whether they're open or subliminal, such as product placement. The next time you view television, get your stop watch out and time commercial time to program time, it's grotesque. If I never see another commercial for the rest of my life, I will die a happy man.

They've taken the same approach to our advertisements for President and all they can focus on is image over substance. Television for the most part, does dumb you down, it requires you to do nothing but sit, watch and listen, no two way interaction, no critical thinking involved. For that matter, the less critical thinking you do, the better chance they have of selling something you don't necessarily need, whether it's a food or drink product that only serves to hurt your health or some miracle drug which they later find out doesn't live up to the hype and may even hurt your health as well. I believe George W. Bush is the living embodiment of that superficial approach on a national leadership marketing level. It is a form of national brain washing, if it wasn't they wouldn't spend hundreds of millions of dollars to run for President mostly for commercials on it.

I believe the Internet is our best hope for a return to decisions based on reason, but I believe it will be a long and winding road and we're just beginning on the journey. In the meantime we should be aware these people who have controlled the national psychology and all the wealth, power and influence that goes with it for so long will not go quietly in the night. I believe they and their puppet minions will try to neutralize the Internet's growing power and influence in one form or the other. So keep your eyes and ears open and stay attuned.

[blues90]

17. You are correct about cable TV

It did start out with no commercials , it was back to back movies with a fill in at times of some what they called short which was a independent little bit of interest .

It did not take long before this vanished as the idea and it became pay for TV ad's . It also became many more channels of choice without any content .

The thing about TV media is they provide the questions as well as the answers , you do not interact .

It may be any ad , one that takes you from some state of absolute depression to the little pill of hope .

Long before this there were actually doctors and lawyers with their own ad's .

One concern I have always had is when a corporation lies and steals from the public this same mentality seeps into the private sector , since it works for the corps then it is justified for the private business sector . They all get away with this through the control of your living wage .

The internet is a tool as well but as time has shown it too can steer thought and control the mind through all sorts of ad's popping up , some that even pop up blockers won't remove . You are still required to filter through what is truth and what are lies since there is no requirement set that offers proof of the posters credentials . ie , anyone can claim to be anything .

[mdmc]

9. I think that the military industrial complex (read: fascist) took over

Ike tried to warn us, but the warm glow of comfort buffered his dire prediction.

[ThomWV]

11. Oh, I agree, but the thing is I think it was Madison Avenue that did it for them.

We are just lab rats in a giant sales test. We've already demonstrated that we can be fed anything, will accept any insult, can easily be convinced to spend more than we have for things we know we don't need, and indeed often don't want. While I'm sure that there are many who wish nothing else than to sell us Cannons, Battleships, Bombers, and handgernades but that doesn't explain how they are able to do it. Can it all just be simple bribery?

[Indenturedebtor]

15. Good thread

I think that rather than most of our problems arising from one massive conspiracy as we (myself included) often conceptualize it, all of the things that have detiorated in this country have done so because of millions of little conspiracies.

Overall the problem goes back to the glorification of wealth and the general lack of social conscience. Property rights are more important than the rights of life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. We have allowed the wealthy and those who would become wealthy to take more and more while giving nearly nothing back. Take a look at income disparity, unfair taxation (15% on the most wealthy), education disparity, lack of vacation time, relative lack of maternity leave, relative lack of paid sick time, waning environmental laws, and on and on and on.

The decline of our country is in inverse proportion to the continuing rise of the aristocracy. For any man to have more than he needs is for another man to have less than he needs. But we worship the rights of one person to accumulate as much wealth and power as he/she possibly can over any other considerations. "If I can do it then I should be able to, even if it hurts other people."

Now granted there are certainly conspiracies at play, millions of them, but really I think our main problems stem from our priorities and values. We are a nation of gluttons who have never had a taste of what a more equitable society is like. Show me just about anyone who has spent more than a few weeks in two or more other countries and I'll show you a person who knows that this country is FUCKED. Show me a person who has never been anywhere for more than 3 days outside of the country or maybe just on a cruise ship or to Cabo, and I'll show you a person who thinks that our way is the best and only good way.

[Winterblues]

12. Rush Limbaugh and his ilk happened

Non stop propaganda and Media consolidation..

[KansDem]

13. We are witnessing America's Götterdämmerung

And it isn't pretty!

[Mike03]

16. Eloquent words, but I disagree with a large part of your premise.

We do not have an abundance of anything.

We are not a rich nation today.

We are borrowing. In fact, we are beyond the stage of borrowing. We are the greatest debtor nation in the history of the planet.

Our education system is flopping around like a quadriplegic in the ocean.

We import most of what we need.

This is why we have no true international power and are at the mercy of so many other factors, such as what currency oil is bartered in.

The entire notion that we are strong or wealthy is coming apart right now; that is the catalyst for our current economic implosion.

[ThomWV]

19. OK, I'll bite

I think we agree and disagree at the same time, so let's look.

I think the things you talk about accurately portray a problem but its not one of lack of wealth. Those things are financial, the stuff of paper money and promissary notes. They don't reflect the wealth of the nation, which is its raw materials and the will and ability of its people. In those things we are still rich. The greatest problem we face, and this even extends to the problem of global climate influence, is that we squander and waste that which need not be wasted. We do not need to import oil, we need to live on the oil we've got. We do not need to import junk plastic from China, we need to manufacture goods here at home. We have the ores, the forests, the rivers, even the foundrys and people to run them - but we do not do it. That is the base of the problem, not the financial shenanagians that we've endured. That can be taken care of. Even if it takes a bankrupcy of the nations it still doesn't change our fundamental wealth - and that is what I was talking about.

Agree? Disagree?

[Mike03]

21. I agree with the sentiment, but not the technicalities.

My argument is not with you. But hear me out. You are very correct that our wealth is, per ce, an illusion having to do with paper notes, promises, ownership, reputation, power and the promise of what we were/could be.

But I don't think we have the natural resources you are saying we have. Aren't our stores of coal vastly overstated? We passed peak oil in the 1970s. We could definitely have nuclear power plants and do well with that, following France's template.

I DEFINITELY agree with you that our importation patterns are completely perverse. We are importing absolute junk. The mystery is why people are buying it. Wal Mart sells this garbage, and we consume it. It is a disgrace.

Do we really want to gut our forests and mines and natural lands to achieve the ends you are describing?

Do you think that is a good strategy?

[L. Coyote]

18. j-u-n-t-a

[SoCalDem]

20. Here's what happened..

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2883506

[MedleyMisty]

22. I was born in December of 1980

So basically, from what I hear on DU, right at the beginning.

So to me it seems that it's just that humans basically suck - there's the psychopaths that take power, the psychopaths who follow them, and there's the people who try to tell the species that it's sucking a lot and needs to change who usually get rewarded for their pains by being assassinated.

[defendandprotect]

24. Don't kid yourself . . .political VIOLENCE had a great deal to do with where America is now -- !!!

And, of course, that is VIOLENCE by the right-wing . . .