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Archive for April, 2010
View From The Right?
Ughs. Sorry, nothing lighthearted today, again.
**I stated in the original entry that I would edit and update this entry when I had some time. Since, it has already received comments, I felt I should make time, to truly represent myself and this site.**
I saw Carl Hancock Rux stated that he was looking for the entymology of the term “post-racial.” (Spell check recognizes Entomology but not Entymology.) I was curious myself, and started a simply search query. I ended up on this blog entry, on “A View From The Right.” The tagline for the site is “The passing scene and what it’s about viewed from the traditionalist politically incorrect Right.” The blog is authored by Lawrence Auster. So, if this is a “View from the Right,” this is why I don’t consider myself either “Left” or “Right.” I had to look up Lawrence Auster, after a few pages of reading. I admit that I did not know who this man was prior to finding this site. Once again, the Southern Poverty Law Center beat me to classifying this man’s persona as it should be classified.
The entry that led me to this site was on a blog entry entitled “What is Post Racial America?“ I thought, “this might be interesting, I’m curious myself.” Well, Auster goes on a rant about minorities, specifically non-whites, and blames them for all of the racial issues in America. He states that post-racial is not here because of minorities refusal to accept white supremacy. (That is what I took away from it.) There was not one mention of any racist acts or issues perpetrated by whites in his entire entry. I would be remiss if I were to do the opposite, and simply blame White America for all of America’s racial issues. Still, who was it that classified “race” in America? Who drew the lines? Who set up the levels of privilege based on “racial” classifications? Anyway, the whole point of this long boring story is the few interesting points it raises.
I perused a large amount of the site. Let me say that the front page of the site appeared very similar to Stormfront. Everything is slanted against everyone and anyone who is browner than Anglo, but especially those of African diaspora. Almost every story is one regarding Blacks and/or Muslims (in a negative light). This is not just “politically incorrect.” It’s racist propaganda. (It is politically incorrect, because it isolates such a large voting base, there is no way you can achieve any level of success in this representative government.) Sorry, Larry, you are just a racist. You can hide under any umbrella you wish, like “traditionally conservative.” (That would make you a Democrat, wouldn’t it? Since the Republican party was traditionally the part of equal rights.) You can even hide under the guise of being an idiot. I am being a bit brash, but it is because I’m just tired of this racist rhetoric hiding under the guise of being an “unpopular truth” or a “conservative opinion.”
So, Mr. Auster, do you mean Conservative as a supporter of an aristocratic monarchy with subjugated peasants and surfs? Then, yes, you are a Conservative. So is Kim Jong Il, apparently.
Congressmen Don’t Spell Gooder Than You!
I was seriously going to post something lighthearted today. I had something that came up yesterday that was hilarious. I felt it was going to be a nice break from the last two pieces. Sorry. I logged into my Facebook page and saw an add with a guy in a cowboy hat with text mentioning doing unseemly things to “environmentalists.” His name is Richard Pombo. (In all fairness, his inane drivel can be found here: http://www.pomboforcongress.com)
So, I join his Facebook group to get information. I decided to just go to his webpage, as his FB group is just posting of articles that mention him (fighting the good fight!) and people commenting about how “God” wants farmers in California to not have to pay taxes and force brown people into sharecropper labor, or whatever.
I go to his page, and I go to the page on Issues. There are issues, but I was curious, to start, what makes this man qualified to have a seat in Congress. The best thing I found, on the About page was this: “A fourth generation Californian, Pombo resides with his family in the Central Valley of Callifornia.” (sic) This great Representative of the Great State of California cannot even spell the name of the state correctly on his website? Is that a typographical error? Honestly, does it matter? He wants a seat in the federal government as a representative of his state, why should he worry about the guy making his website using a spellchecker?
Let’s be fair. I was honestly nitpicking. There are unsubstantiated claims that he authored legislation and stuff. Here is the passage:
Against enormous odds, Richard authored and passed significant legislation that was aimed at protecting private property rights and encouraging American energy independence. Richard was the key author and a driving force behind the passage of the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which encouraged the use of American resources to produce more energy at home and to reduce our dependence on foreign supplies. He also authored and passed the landmark reform of the Endangered Species Act in the House– tragically it was defeated by a coalition of liberal Republicans and Democrats in the Senate.
Those damned liberal Republicans and Democrats trying to destroy everything (by saving endangered animals.) I think I figured out what happened though. Those liberal Republicans and Democrats with their elite educations probably expected him to spellcheck his legislation. Come on, people. This guy is a farmer in the Central Valley. He doesn’t do spelling much. Why should he? He has private property. Oh, and he wrote a book, which he misquoted Woody Guthrie in the title. Sadly, I really don’t think Guthrie would even agree with a paragraph of the book. And, no, I didn’t read it. I read the reviews and excerpts on Amazon. I’d rather read a Sarah Palin transcript than 250 pages of that.
(Sorry Richie, no book plug here. If they really want to find out, they will google it. If I get another affiliate link to Amazon, then maybe I’ll sell it for you, so I can use the profits to continue to comment on the issues for you.)
The reason I felt this was all worth mentioning, aside from all of the “Conservative” talking points espoused all over this mess, is the “social networking” aspect to his campaign. Weren’t they crying and screaming that Obama utilized social networking media to somehow create a support base that McCain couldn’t compete with because John McCain and Sarah Palin together can’t open an email on a Blackberry? This guy has a Youtube Channel, FB group, Twitter, and even Flickr and Say Now accounts. (Interesting to not that majority of the people who work on the technology he is using to promote his politics probably are not allowed to get married because of his party’s voting patterns.)
The other thing I wanted to point out: This guy wrote a book! Who hasn’t written a book? I’m writing a damn book. It will be done by May 2010. If you want to purchase it, let me know. I haven’t decided how to market it yet, but if this guy has a book that has sold at least a few copies, why shouldn’t I do the same? I must forewarn you, though. There will be no substance in this text I am to create. I’m just going to make claims and ascertaitions and then claim I’m right by common sense or a really cool web link. Seriously, though, I know bookstores aren’t doing as well now that people read online. (I’m reading an eBook currently.) But, have you ever been in the Politics section of your local book conglomerate? It is all these Conservatives making inane claims and very little substance, and, if you are lucky, a copy or two of Howard Zinn. (R.I.P. Zinn, you are missed and still needed.)
The REAL reason I wrote about this, was because I was a bit peeved. There’s a little button on my Facebook page, I click on it, spend 5 minutes on this guy’s site, and then spend 1 or 2 hours reading from Plato, Hobbes, Comte, Lukacs, Marx, some dead Pope, and tons of other people on the concept of “Private Property” and the concept of government. Richard Pombo, thanks a whole hell of a lot for wasting 2 hours of my day on things that I did NOT need to get done today.
(I could have been reading about Stuff White People Like, or updating my LoLcats files, or sipping lattés and discussing how great it would be for the leftists of the world to turn Anglo Republicans into government peasants to provide illegal immigrants with healthcare for a President that is from Jupiter.)
P.S. – I think my book will be better than your book. AND I will use my spellchecker.
Insinuations abound.
In honor of Tax Day and the Tea Party noise, I’ll let the viewer/reader decide the point of this:
Sorry there are no subtitles. I found a few speeches with subs, but I refuse to link anything to those who blatantly support Nazi propaganda. If you are so brave, there are a ton of misguided souls on YouTube who have translations of speeches they have uploaded. (Talk about living in a foregone era.) If you understand the subtext, that should be enough. If you understand even a little German, the comparison is … well, i said it was up to the viewer/reader to decide.
Brown Shirts and Bullshit – American Political Gumbo
In honor of the planned Tea Party protests tomorrow, I decided to finally put down some observations. I find this situation is both tremendously horrifying, inane and just plain stupid.
We begin with the American “Left” and “Right.” These labels are misleading in themselves. When looking at the political strata of the world, Left and Right mean certain things.
- Right-wing, or Conservative, politics support social stratification, classism, tradition, nationalism, aristocracy and, often, monarchy. Generally supporting “free market capitalism.”
- Left-wing politics are in support of egalitarian society. They generally support equality under the law, labor laws, “fair market” and Keynesian economics.
- Ultra-Left is often used to refer to radical socialism, communism, and other far left movements.
In the United States, these terms have been mangled and abused. THERE ARE NO ULTRA-LEFT POLITICIANS IN THE UNITED STATES! That is just the way it is. McCarthyism pretty much destroyed any potential for far-left politics in America for at least a century. The American Right would likely not get on a podium and espouse views of aristocracy, monarchs and reinforcing social stratification. (In fact, Americans generally dislike monarchs, except the butterflies.) That said, there is no “Far Right” wing in American politics, either. I would contend, aside from claiming to support “free market” economics, there is NO Right in American politics. I also would venture to say most of those who claim to support the “free market” do it verbally while not truly believing that no economic interference is acceptable. Think about it. Do Republicans claim they want corporations to run unfettered? Do they want to destroy labor unions, fair trade agreements, fair wage laws? (Maybe they do personally, because they stand to profit, but that would be political suicide.)
So, what are we left with? We are left with center-left moderates who agree to disagree with each other and bicker about minutia. The American Left is no more Left than the Conservative Party in England. If the Obama Administration were true leftists, their actions would have been as follows:
- Instead of bailing out failing automotive companies, General Motors would have been seized by the government and turned into the American People’s Motors. Jobs would have been created to build automobiles. Government technology would have been used to perfect the vehicles. Honestly, with the technology the government has, I’m sure they can make a kick-ass car that would destroy German and Japanese cars in the open market, instead of these antiquated Studebakers the American car companies continue to create.
- Instead of bailing out the banks – the government would have seized the banks. Told them, “you can’t seem to manage this on your own and you fucked up things for the rest of us.” Made it THE Bank of America. Employed thousands of people. Guaranteed small business loans. Set its own interest rates. And given every citizen the opportunity to use their local, government bank/credit union without having to deal with predatory lenders.
- My final example, some people might take issue with, but I propose a true left government would settle the illegal immigration issue once and for all. In reality, who do the illegal immigrants benefit? Who benefits from the drug wars in Mexico? It’s the conservative elite. Middle class white people in Texas who live paycheck to paycheck don’t have an illegal immigrant nanny to watch and raise their children. They aren’t profiting from slave labor conditions that cannot be reported. Illegal immigrants are cheap labor that undermine unions and labor demands. It is the “Right” that wants the illegal immigration to continue, not the left.
So, what’s the point of all this? The point is that all this misinformation results in something that can be very volatile and dangerous – The Tea Party movement. This movement is so similar to the Brown Shirts in Germany that it is frightening. It is too simplistic to state that the Tea Party are simply racists. It is not overly simplistic to state they are reactionary.
Before I go any father, I want to state, I am in no way supporting any Nazi propaganda. These summaries of events are simplistic and in no way are meant to demean anyone.
The Sturmabteilung (Brown Shirts) existed before the rise of Adolph Hitler and the Nazi movement. I do contend that the Tea Party movement is less like the Sturmabteilung and more like the general population, but I really do not know who is “in charge” with the TP movement. It seems to me like it is more then some spontaneous reaction to current situations. There are too many common threads of misinformation.
The Brown Shirts used different tactics than previously to control situations, breaking into smaller groups and infiltrating them to disrupt them. As Europe was feeling it’s Industrial growing pains in the turn of the 20th century, the fear of “Communists” to depose aristocracy was rampant. In the Weimar Republic, they had already seen the Marxists creating havoc in France, England, and so on… they found someone to assure them a bit of security from this chaos. (It should be noted that Germany was a feudal state at this point.) The Brown Shirts created havoc in the streets while shrewd politicians crafted dialogue on nationalist lines about “freedom” and “opportunity,” while really being the fascist movement. I think everyone besides Mahmoud Ahmadinejad knows what happened next.
Let’s examine the situation of Germany prior to the rise of the National Socialist German Workers’ Party. They were in a situation of economic dire straits. The people of Germany were literally starving economically and they had just been crushed in a war. They were also forced into a world in which the Industrial Revolution was in full swing, with little means of production.
Now we have the United States, who has practically fallen into the economic well. People are losing their homes left and right. The US has been attacked and tragically injured by foreigners and continues to wage unending war. The United States is falling behind in the Technology Revolution.
And then comes the rallying cry! “It’s other people’s fault!” “They don’t look like us!” “Limited government and more freedom!” These are all the things the German people were screaming as the Nazi party enacted a campaign of fascism and brutality across Europe. The scary thing about it, is that Hitler was a nobody with no future, and his followers were few. Hitler was probably as respected as Sarah Palin at prior to his appointment as Chancellor of Germany.
So, my point is… The Tea Party is dangerous.
They are not dangerous because they oppose taxes and “big government.” They are dangerous because they encapsulate everything dark about America. These are people getting government stipend checks, complaining about the government giving people stipend checks. They are racist. They are ignorant. They are nationalistic. But its much more complex then just one of these things: they are the foot soldiers of fascism.
Let’s not be too mean, though. Sympathy and empathy are what makes us better. These people are scared. They have been left behind by the world. WWII was the height of industrial production for the United States. No one could produce more, faster, than the United States. Manufacturing jobs could be obtained without a higher education and could provide means to raise a family. Technology moved so fast, it became cheaper to manufacture in other places. (Again, this is overly simplistic) Education became a necessity in America and brown people became citizens. Now we have a brown skinned president and a phone that can react to touch. We can read editorials from a newspaper in Moscow or Beijing the same day it was published.
The world got smaller and the American fascist movement was born.
