Saturday, July 03, 2010
No Fireworks For Me:
By Phillip T. Alden - July 3, 2010
I consider myself a patriotic American. I've seen a bumper sticker around the Bay Area that says; "Peace Is Patriotic." I like that. I quickly tire of the "my country right or wrong" point-of-view, (as it's commonly known.) That's one of the many reasons I ignore TV in general, and especially any and all TV news, (with the exception of "The Jim Lehrer News Hour" or "Frontline" on NPR/PBS.) Another reason is that the "news" is not really giving the American people any real news at all. My best friend watches the local news and tells me that he learns nothing about what's really going on in our own backyards.
I'm often critical of the American government and the California state government, (for obvious reasons.) On the national level we are being lied to about what's really going on with the economy. I believe the "truth" about the economy and the true health of our banking system would scare the shit out of most Americans, (and for good reason.) The banks are hiding so much "red ink" that, to openly put those losses on their books could cause a banking collapse that would make 1929 look like a picnic. Our national leaders aren't telling us about the pitfalls awaiting us, choosing instead to do their usual "damage control" when these things come to light on their own. (Think credit card debt.)
We are engaged in two losing wars. Violence is up in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and I've recently posted stories by other journalists about why that is. Basically, our troops are in the middle of multiple civil wars, though the whole picture is much more complicated than that, particularly in Afghanistan. The corrupt and ineffective central government is not a "credible ally," (as our leaders are fond of saying.) The people of both Iraq and Afghanistan don't want us there, and things are not going to get better until after we leave. Admittedly, when we leave there will be chaos, (largely caused by old hatreds that we allowed to surface when we destabilized these ancient nations.) We don't understand their culture or history and we cannot be bothered to learn about them.
In addition, with our economy in the terrible shape that it's in, we simply cannot afford to keep financing these wars. It's that simple.
A recent report by the ACLU shows that both national and state governments are continuing to openly step on our Constitutional rights. Dangerous groups like the Tea Party are causing our fucked-up politics to become even more so.
In my home state of California, our troglodyte governor has done his best to "balance the budget" on the backs of the poor and disabled, and (surprise!) my fellow Californians don't care. It's not their problem, (until they lose their job and/or become disabled themselves.)
And the saddest thing is that most Americans don't care, (or they act like it.) Voting rates, community participation, and general civic engagement are at all-time lows. Personally, I believe that many Americans are (rightfully) scared shitless, but they don't seem to want to deal with their fear or the reasons behind it. It's far past time for reasonable people to stand up for each other, and to fix our broken governments – but we won't.
I realize that, by virtue of selection, my audience is made up of intelligent people who understand these problems. But we are a minority of sorts. Writers, artists and musicians are observers of human and societal behavior. None of what I'm writing comes as a surprise to most of my readers.
And sadder still, the people who need to read, think and act upon what we write and point out – simply won't. Some of them are complacent, (if they're lucky enough to still be employed and have a warm roof over their heads.) Some of them view us as "the liberal elite" and they resent us because they feel we "look down" on them. This is the resentment that people like Sarah Palin taps into, and it's worked out pretty well, (for her at a $50,000+ speaking fee.) When I see those jingoistic bumper stickers that say; "United We Stand;" I say "bullshit" under my breath. We are the farthest thing from "United." In fact, we aren't that much different from the tribal conflicts that plague countries like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Yesterday I heard (on National Public Radio) that the unemployment rate for Black males currently stands at 46%. A Live Journal Friend who is better at these things than I am told me the actual rate is closer to 30%. I believe the actual number is somewhere in-between. But regardless of unemployment rates, the election of Barack Obama has been a sobering wake-up call for me. Since the election I have heard and seen racist comments that I haven't heard for decades, (and which I thought were best left in the past.) But blindness to the true state of "race relations" is a social illness common to White people, (including myself.) The cause is part of the larger problems in our nation – we still suppress People Of Color (POC) through economic inequity and the so-called "War On Drugs," and our national media feeds those prejudices and encourages division even among people of the same cultural or racial backgrounds. I grew up in the "socially progressive" town of Palo Alto, next door to Stanford University. But as an adult I realized the racism in my "progressive" town was simply well-hidden because most people were highly educated and good at such things. I'm not saying everyone in Palo Alto was a racist, nor is everyone in almost any given American town, but then this subject could take up a essay of its own.
There are people in this community who can write about race with a much more realistic and personal viewpoint than I am capable of.
I love my country. But since 1980, (the election of Ronald Reagan,) I've sadly watched the country of my birth go downhill. I'm not saying that things were perfect in 1979. There were many problems our country faced in 1980. But most people have forgotten the family farms that went under, and the suicides of men who, through no fault of their own, lost their land and their homes. Most people also tend to forget that over 300 Reagan appointees were indicted for corruption of one kind or another, or that Reagan ignored the AIDS Pandemic and let countless people die through hateful apathy.
Throughout my adult life I've watched this country regress, even in the face of incredible technological and medical advances. Our political systems were far from perfect 30 years ago, but the Bush II Administration was a national nightmare for this country, and we'll be paying for it for decades. And I don't care which political party is in power because they are both bought and paid for. Truth-tellers are ignored. Many people think they are powerless because they've been made to feel that way, and that illusion is helping destroy this country.
So I won't be waving the flag or watching any fireworks this weekend. They have become reminders to me of what we were once capable of becoming, and how we have squandered those multiple opportunities. To me, they have become symbols of our national failure.
By Phillip T. Alden - July 3, 2010
I consider myself a patriotic American. I've seen a bumper sticker around the Bay Area that says; "Peace Is Patriotic." I like that. I quickly tire of the "my country right or wrong" point-of-view, (as it's commonly known.) That's one of the many reasons I ignore TV in general, and especially any and all TV news, (with the exception of "The Jim Lehrer News Hour" or "Frontline" on NPR/PBS.) Another reason is that the "news" is not really giving the American people any real news at all. My best friend watches the local news and tells me that he learns nothing about what's really going on in our own backyards.
I'm often critical of the American government and the California state government, (for obvious reasons.) On the national level we are being lied to about what's really going on with the economy. I believe the "truth" about the economy and the true health of our banking system would scare the shit out of most Americans, (and for good reason.) The banks are hiding so much "red ink" that, to openly put those losses on their books could cause a banking collapse that would make 1929 look like a picnic. Our national leaders aren't telling us about the pitfalls awaiting us, choosing instead to do their usual "damage control" when these things come to light on their own. (Think credit card debt.)
We are engaged in two losing wars. Violence is up in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and I've recently posted stories by other journalists about why that is. Basically, our troops are in the middle of multiple civil wars, though the whole picture is much more complicated than that, particularly in Afghanistan. The corrupt and ineffective central government is not a "credible ally," (as our leaders are fond of saying.) The people of both Iraq and Afghanistan don't want us there, and things are not going to get better until after we leave. Admittedly, when we leave there will be chaos, (largely caused by old hatreds that we allowed to surface when we destabilized these ancient nations.) We don't understand their culture or history and we cannot be bothered to learn about them.
In addition, with our economy in the terrible shape that it's in, we simply cannot afford to keep financing these wars. It's that simple.
A recent report by the ACLU shows that both national and state governments are continuing to openly step on our Constitutional rights. Dangerous groups like the Tea Party are causing our fucked-up politics to become even more so.
In my home state of California, our troglodyte governor has done his best to "balance the budget" on the backs of the poor and disabled, and (surprise!) my fellow Californians don't care. It's not their problem, (until they lose their job and/or become disabled themselves.)
And the saddest thing is that most Americans don't care, (or they act like it.) Voting rates, community participation, and general civic engagement are at all-time lows. Personally, I believe that many Americans are (rightfully) scared shitless, but they don't seem to want to deal with their fear or the reasons behind it. It's far past time for reasonable people to stand up for each other, and to fix our broken governments – but we won't.
I realize that, by virtue of selection, my audience is made up of intelligent people who understand these problems. But we are a minority of sorts. Writers, artists and musicians are observers of human and societal behavior. None of what I'm writing comes as a surprise to most of my readers.
And sadder still, the people who need to read, think and act upon what we write and point out – simply won't. Some of them are complacent, (if they're lucky enough to still be employed and have a warm roof over their heads.) Some of them view us as "the liberal elite" and they resent us because they feel we "look down" on them. This is the resentment that people like Sarah Palin taps into, and it's worked out pretty well, (for her at a $50,000+ speaking fee.) When I see those jingoistic bumper stickers that say; "United We Stand;" I say "bullshit" under my breath. We are the farthest thing from "United." In fact, we aren't that much different from the tribal conflicts that plague countries like Afghanistan and Iraq.
Yesterday I heard (on National Public Radio) that the unemployment rate for Black males currently stands at 46%. A Live Journal Friend who is better at these things than I am told me the actual rate is closer to 30%. I believe the actual number is somewhere in-between. But regardless of unemployment rates, the election of Barack Obama has been a sobering wake-up call for me. Since the election I have heard and seen racist comments that I haven't heard for decades, (and which I thought were best left in the past.) But blindness to the true state of "race relations" is a social illness common to White people, (including myself.) The cause is part of the larger problems in our nation – we still suppress People Of Color (POC) through economic inequity and the so-called "War On Drugs," and our national media feeds those prejudices and encourages division even among people of the same cultural or racial backgrounds. I grew up in the "socially progressive" town of Palo Alto, next door to Stanford University. But as an adult I realized the racism in my "progressive" town was simply well-hidden because most people were highly educated and good at such things. I'm not saying everyone in Palo Alto was a racist, nor is everyone in almost any given American town, but then this subject could take up a essay of its own.
There are people in this community who can write about race with a much more realistic and personal viewpoint than I am capable of.
I love my country. But since 1980, (the election of Ronald Reagan,) I've sadly watched the country of my birth go downhill. I'm not saying that things were perfect in 1979. There were many problems our country faced in 1980. But most people have forgotten the family farms that went under, and the suicides of men who, through no fault of their own, lost their land and their homes. Most people also tend to forget that over 300 Reagan appointees were indicted for corruption of one kind or another, or that Reagan ignored the AIDS Pandemic and let countless people die through hateful apathy.
Throughout my adult life I've watched this country regress, even in the face of incredible technological and medical advances. Our political systems were far from perfect 30 years ago, but the Bush II Administration was a national nightmare for this country, and we'll be paying for it for decades. And I don't care which political party is in power because they are both bought and paid for. Truth-tellers are ignored. Many people think they are powerless because they've been made to feel that way, and that illusion is helping destroy this country.
So I won't be waving the flag or watching any fireworks this weekend. They have become reminders to me of what we were once capable of becoming, and how we have squandered those multiple opportunities. To me, they have become symbols of our national failure.
