[click image].
So I started out over at Greenwald's place, because I know he made some good points in his initial partial defense of this heinous decision. Of course, almost as soon as I assimilated that the decision had been made, it occurred to me that at least it's out in the open now. Open fascism has the one redeeming feature of being a VISIBLE enemy, and that should not be underestimated.
I know, too, that nonprofits are corporations and this decision frees them from constraints as well, even though they don't have the dough the worst corporate actors enjoy. You can hear Glenn talking to an ACLU guy at the link, mostly discussing how awful and how less than completely awful Obama has been in the grave emergency for civil liberties, but at the end they touch on the Citizens United decision and we should hear that.
The undeniably positive aspect is that it will light up for us just who is a whore and who is ransoming his soul and saving it. This is a benefit beyond price. It will encourage people to fight for laws and rules that make the consequences for selling one's use of official power dire, and some who have been dithering, making excuses for this behavior, subconsciously caving to the pressure of money, will have to face it head on now. Persons holding public office, and running for public office, will now have much more difficulty deluding themselves about why taking this money, letting these people control them, is so pernicious. It really is a chance to restore the impossible to enforce mandate for good faith actors in government and positions of power... a slim one... but our wrath and hurt over this devastating news might really awaken masses of us to the need for this, inspire many to put real energy into it. That has to be good.
I still say rioting in the streets is the only way to snap each other out of our national stupor and to get the undivided attention of these despicable public servant impostures we call our government, but there are some good aspects to this open declaration of fascism, this declaration of losing WWII, from the Supremes. Congress actually has now a reason to mandate publicly-funded elections, where none existed before. It's feasible they could swiftly find their only safety lies in themselves making this kind of influence buying impossible. Especially if we are out in our millions with pitchforks and torches, and banging pots and pans for all we're worth.
And this does not require one to be liberal or conservative, voting age, any race, any gender, any religion, any incarnation of identity politics. It only requires that you are American. THINK of it. This is a completely non-partisan fight!
And if we don't fight, we will enjoy the bonus of losing hope. Hopelessness is MUCH less uncomfortable than hopefulness. Freedom is very, very stressful... and not at all inexpensive... while bondage is relaxing and dirt cheap.
.
Well, one good thing is we don't have to waste our time anymore bickering about whether this is a democracy or a republic. Now we can safely say it's neither, just a corporatocracy, a perfect melding of corporation and state. Where our Gramsci to deliver us? Ha. No doubt treated with ritalin in 5th grade and now stocking shelves at Bloatco.
ReplyDeleteSo it goes. Vonnegut, you escaped just in time.
And Edward Abbey. Man, I'd love to hear ol' Ed's thoughts on what's going down.
I pledge allegiance to the corporation
And to the profit for which it stands
etc.
I was trying to think of an historical parallel with our current income disparity and all I could come up with was France, circa 1788 (or any 3rd world banana republic, which we've become. But pre-Revolution France, with its insouciant aristocracy and the growing anger of the people--But that may simply be wishful thinking on my part.
Oh well, there's always the consolation of philosophy, per Boethius. Of course, he wrote that while in prison, but still. Phil Dick always described this place, this world, as a Black Iron Prison, from which death was the only escape, and I think he may have been on to something. He also said 'The Empire Never Ended,' and on that one I know he was on to something.
Oarwell
Yuh. I gave up all my squawking about how people should remember how many times the French have had to behead their oligarchies... thinking people could see that France is a perfectly civilized place... at least in the relative terms of common usage.... Maybe I should take it up again. Maybe people are ready to hear it now.
ReplyDeleteThis is the worst scotus ruling since Dred Scott, but MSM isn't giving it much coverage. They're looking at an advertising windfall in the next election.
ReplyDeleteThere is a renewed effort to pass a public financing bill. Maybe this will help that get some traction.
I'm thinking it might take more time for politicians to grok just how much more uncomfortable this will make them—to be so openly, exposedly, coerced by the people who pay for their campaigns and all the other little perks—before they will get serious about it OUD. But the only thing that can suffice is ACTION, not words, not hopes, not anything but pure, dispositive action. Right now we have only seen hands rubbing together and heard almost bubkes but pure sociopathic political feinting.... Nothing good will come of it without the people rising up to MAKE it happen.
ReplyDeleteLet a thousand keyboards flash from their scabbards in defense of Lady Liberty!
ReplyDeleteOarwell