Dispossessed People and the Rise of the Security State

Both Repbulican and Democrat alike seem to acknowledge, and fund, the rise of a security state, spurred in great part by 9/11. More electronic equipment and other hardware, more trained staff, more joint task force committees and "centers", etc.

At the same time, Connecting the Dots, we are witnessing a growing number of dispossessed people, the "jobless" in the "jobless recovery." Detroit and many unnamed towns and cities, like Flint, MI, have had former factory workers sitting on their porches now since the 1980s. (As an aside, the parents of these people sitting on the porches, many of whom have now passed on, got slammed by the Savings and Loan crisis/heist; an "economic failure" not too unlike the sub-prime loan debacle. But I digress....)

The establishment seems blind to the realities of families and individuals who must cope with ... no money... no health care... Where do they go? In the case of Brazil:

These dispossessed people have only two places to flee to: the shantytowns or the Amazon.

We're talking about formerly "lower-to-middle class" becoming destitute. These people "seem" to "go away," and some do, pushed to death. Those who live chop at the edge of rain forests or do whatever it takes to survive.

A glaring image of the dispossessed closer to home (the US) was splashed all over establishment media when Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans.





The rise of Security State was seen in New Orleans during Katrina; something new was a heavy presence of privatized security, Blackwater being most notable because of reports of their abusive behavior. The key word is "private;" as soon as disasters become profitable, be the natural or man-made, the security industry benefits... disaster capitalism as described by Naomi Klein.



I could go on, but my only point is to connect-the-triangle-of-dots between the growing dispossessed, the rise of the security state and the bi-partisan support of the latter in the face of the former... the establishment fears the unwashed masses, nothing new there.

American Exceptionalism: The Connection

So, what's the connection between the concept of American Exeptionalism and the Establishment? There are surely many, but one is a subtext of the two-party system... that the both parties accept the myth of American Exceptionalism.

First, American Exceptionalism is a view, deeply ingrained in our culture, that the United States of America superior among nations as if god-given. The "Gods" in this case were the "founding fathers," and the US form of democracy is viewed as not only the best, but unsurpassable.

This notion of being "special" includes a belief that US actions are for the common good of the world. The US spreads democracy, which is a noble pursuit. It is a belief held by both conservative and liberal Americans, albeit liberals acknowledge past imperfections of slavery, the omission of women's rights in the original constitution, etc.

When it comes to foreign policy in particular, American Exceptionalism binds the Democrats and Republicans to very similar views and imperial activities abroad. Take the following doctrine for example:

Let our position be absolutely clear: An attempt by any outside force to gain control of the Persian Gulf region will be regarded as an assault on the vital interests of the United States of America, and such an assault will be repelled by any means necessary, including military force.

This policy was voiced in 1980 by President Jimmy Carter. To be even more clear, no outside force will impinge on US Control of Persian Gulf Oil... it is unstated that the "benevolent" United States should have control over this oil rather than anyone else. The establishment agrees, and American Exceptionalism is a common underpinning of that agreement.

For More on the mythology of American Exceptionalism, and its implications, check out GDAE Podcast Episode 18 (35 - min).

The Corporate Parties

MUSIC: It's Not Just Bush!

The song "It's Not Just Bush" exposes the establishment-dominated world we live in. Both Democratic and Republican parties are "corporate parties," driven by money interests, while giving voice to the myth of a democratic society. This hard-driving acoustic music by Ryan Harvey is raw on many levels and well worth the 3-minute listen.

LISTEN: It's Not Just Bush

DOWNLOAD: It's Not Just Bush

Link to Ryan Harvey's page at Riot Folk

Riot Folk web page.

Source:

Ryan Harvey and Riot Folk brought to you by GDAE Podcast

Establishment Position on Health Care

Obama took the establishment "middle of the road" position on health care reform, and look where it got him? He is capitulating on a public option. My message to President Obama:

By taking the middle of the road on health care, your "compromise" position is falling far short of meaningful reform. I'm urging my representatives to say "no" to any legislation that does not have a strong public option.

I am tired of the establishment controlling everything from the media, to the financial system, to the health care system, to our system of government. So, the message is, "fight for a public option or start over." The next time, take the far left position of which you're being accused, then compromise in the middle. This is negotiation 101.

Golpistas

A "Golpista" is someone or an institution that is in favor of a coup. The word is receiving a lot of use in Honduras these days.

Judging from the widely accepted view that the US has ample influence to reverse the coup d'etat in Hounduras if it wanted to, it appears the US government is a "golpista" too. But the US has chosen not to use that influence.

Why doesn't this come as a surprise? Because the US and Honduran establishments are golpistas and they run their respective governments. This is described by ousted Honduran President Manuel Zelaya:

The coup in Honduras was made by a group of ambitious businessmen that want to maintain their privileges associated to multinational companies with political puppets and corrupt military. Trying to give it an ideological tint—left, right, Chavism, US right—is an intent to change the face of the coup and to distract attention to other ideological problems, when the problem are the economic privileges of the sectors that want to maintain it.

In other words, the golpistas are, in large part, individuals and institutions of the establishment. They want to maintain their power and wealth.

There are probably other words for the uninformed middle and lower class people who are duped or coerced into supporting the coup d'etat, but I don't know those words. In this country we call them Sarah Palin followers.


Sources:

Photo Credit, and teacher of the word "Golpista": Sandra Cuffe. More Photos by S. Cuffe

On American Exceptionalism

Why does the issue of American Exceptionalism matter?

First, it's worth clarifying that American Exceptionalism isn't simply "patriotism." It is perfectly healthy to root for the home team, but that's different than having delusions of god-given, or founding-father given greatness. Taking pride in our country, and trying to make it good, doesn't necessitate mythologies that promote a false sense of unique, superior position among other nations. Exceptionalism is a belief in the later, which is different than healthy pride in one's nation.

I'll be exploring "exceptionalism" in Episode 17 of GDAE Podcast. It is relevant to challenging the establishment, because the myths of American Exceptionalism are used by members and institutions of the establishment to maintain their exceptional positions.... at the expense of the masses.

I'll be including audio clips from Media Matters that delve into they way ingrained beliefs in American Exceptionalism colors news reporting and other aspects of media. This exceptionalsm has many negative side effects. For example, the United States justifies hundreds of military basese across the world, the use of military force and horrific "collateral damage" on the basis of exceptionalism.

As another example, Americans have been led to believe that "we are great by definition," which creates the social attitude of a nation resting on its laurels. This malaize is expressed in the US falling behind other nations in education, health care, infrastructure and the knowledge to maintain its more complex elements, national debt and many other things.

We can care for our community, whether it be local or national, without having false notions of grandure. Because false myths of American exceptionalism are used to rally a national "manifest destiny" militancy, and quell dissent of people challenging our government and major US corporations, we must challenge the myths themselves.