“In the name of God, whom we all revere, in the name of liberty we hold so dear, in the name of decency, which we all cherish—what is happening in America?” —Gov. Orval Faubus, broadcast to the people fifty years ago as the city of Little Rock was occupied by bayonet-wielding paratroopers and swarms of FBI agents detaining citizens without cause or warrant.
Not long ago, Karl Rove, “the architect of Republican victory,” was described by our all-knowing official pundits and media as a political genius. His picture was on the cover of Time, if I recall rightly.
There is one consequence of the election that is absolutely certain: The Republicans will NOT draw the right conclusions. It would not be nice.
It would be strange if it were not so commonplace: The candidate of the people and share the wealth has received immense support from the wealthiest financiers.
It is unAmerican to think about the future, except in terms of a paradise of prosperity, equality, and technological wonders. Americans hardly have any posterity, and they certainly have no ancestry. They are people of the Now.
Or perhaps posterity doesn’t bear thinking about. Your posterity will have the inestimable pleasure and privilege of providing employment, welfare, and crime victims for the population of Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and the more degenerate parts of Asia. And paying, in one way or another, for the sybaritic lifestyles of politicians, bureaucrats, bankers, and speculators of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Forget about the price of gas. Did any of you over 40 ever think that you would one day pay well over $4 for a box of cereal that is deceptively only half full? Or $1.25 for a soft drink? Or $2.75 for a fancy cup of coffee? That you would BUY water?
Or did you ever think that baseball would begin in February and run almost to November? And half the players would be foreigners? It has been truly observed that baseball is a very American game.
It is said that the bulk of the bad mortgages that have precipitated the present crisis are in California—a result of the political genius Karl Rove’s campaign to get Hispanic votes for Dubya.
What will happen when the politicians run out of wealth to redistribute? Or perhaps more relevantly, what will the Chinese do about it?
It would be good to think that the present financial debacle has cured Americans of their belief in automatic wealth—but I doubt it. The election results surely show that the delusion is stronger than ever.
Anyone who lived through this election campaign and still thinks that the U.S. media is not biased is mentally beyond redemption by any amount of reality. The same goes for anyone who still thinks that there is a real two-party system.
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