January 10, 2007

"So this is what a dictatorship feels like..."

Geov Parrish:
Polls tell us that up to 70 percent of Americans want our troops out of Iraq. But since there is no mass movement on the streets threatening to shut down business as usual in this country until our participation in this war is ended (and why not?), our only recourse as citizens has been to express ourselves at the ballot box. Which we did. And which is now being ignored, just as it would be in any other country where the whims of the Dear and Beloved Comrade Leader trump all else...

The most repugnant piece of this -- aside from the death of American democracy and the additional deaths of more U.S. soldiers and, no doubt, many thousands more Iraqis -- is that the Bush "surge," like every single other aspect of his Iraq policies over the last five years, is solely a PR campaign designed for American audiences. It doesn't matter that it will be militarily counterproductive and deadly. Trying to resuscitate poll numbers here is apparently far more important than living, breathing human beings there. Or, in the longer run, national security, the ability of our military to defend against genuine threats, or America's standing in the world.
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5 comments:

Anonymous said...

a quick glance at the american constitution reveals g w bush is the commander in chief of military forces.

so he makes the decisions about where to use them.

your problem is, you haven't figured out that the us of a is not a democracy, never has been, never intended to be.

furthermore, dubya is not a mutant- a quick glance at a history book reveals that your mob has never let morality get in the way of a land grab.

then when you had filled in the map as you wanted it, you branched out to making the world safe for united fruit initially in the caribbean, later expanding to bringing cocacola to those foolish philipinos, who imagined independence would follow liberation. and on and on...

usa is not extraordinarily evil, it merely acts as human bullies do, given the chance.

so get off bush's case, there's nothing new here: kennedy, johnson, and nixon did pretty much the same thing in nam, reagan turned central america into a charnalhouse, even jimmy carter was willing to shake hands with the shah.

if you actually want to do some good, start a revolution- put citizen initiated referendum in the constitution. on form to date, actual democracies are peaceful and prosperous. with america's balance of trade problems, you may need a change.

2:43 pm
Jaraparilla said...

anonymous,

your problem is, you are so full of your own ideas that you are not even bothering to absorb what others are saying.

For starters, I am not a US citizen. I am an Australian.

Secondly, if bush is a bully like you say he is, why should I "get off his case"? Even you admit he is doing wrong, so what's your point?

To many people rush to pass judgement on others. I am as guilty as anyone, at times. Let's all make a concerted effort to grow up a bit.

BTW, who wants to be that Bush's long-long-long awaited speech will:

(a) Rave on about military action in Somalia (I'm a War President, ya know);

(b) Stress that the Iraqi Oil Law has just been signed, or is about to be signed, and that this is a turning point for Iraqis (they will all be rich, I tell ya... as soon as those PSAs expire... if there's any oil left) and also a great thing for America (our energy problems solved, nod nod, wink wink).

9:23 pm
Jaraparilla said...

To = too
be = bet

I need a new keyboard.

9:24 pm
Anonymous said...

for starters, i thought you might be ozzie, but decided that ranting about dubya at such length unlikely unless american.

either way, was wondering why you hadn't informed yourself about american history and constitution before whinging about dubya- a man whose many weaknesses have not yet extended as far as johnson's. and then there was nixon...

my point is: there is nothing notably evil about bush jr. the problem is deeper- the us of a has been invading people since 1776.

it's not smart to say a particular president is bad, at great and repeated length, unless he is unique. then replacement might make a difference. with bush, not so.

so i suggested and suggest again: attack the system that generates military aggression. letting individuals act out their dreams of glory, enrich their families, or simply act out psychological issues magnified by the military power of a nation would be insanity, if the people of that nation had a choice.

so i would like the federal government of the usa brought under control of citizen initiated referendum as some of america's states are.

unlikely to happen, but the example of the states might lead the way for the federal government.

here in oz, unfortunately, there is no democratic tradition at all. government has always been imposed from above. politically aware people may award themselves the honorable title of 'citizen', but in fact they are 'subjects'. whether there is a monarch or not is of no consequence. they are 'subject' to parliament either way. as a consequence, ozzies invariably regard politics as a spectator pastime, if they think about it at all. most, very sensibly, do not.

so, why not rage against the local head jerk? howard not a big enough target? unworthy of your talents?

if you can think of some constructive plan to improve ozzian politics, let's hear it.

but whinging about the yanks is certainly fruitless. they are what they have always been, and they are not listening to you.

12:35 pm
Jaraparilla said...

anonymous,

It would be nice if you actually took a look around before lashing out at me in such an arrogant and ill-informed manner.

I have been blogging against Bush (and a myriad other problems including Howard) for over three years. I often say that "Bush is just a symptom of a sick society". I have two other blogs (plus others) addressing Australian issues and more generic problems.

If you don't like this blog, go elsewhere. If you want to criticize me, at least take the time to read my blog(s) first. You will find we are actually in agreement on much of your points, but that's probably beside the point.

Have a think about your attitude and what impels you to post such smarter-than-thou comments. Start your own blog!

8:41 pm

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