We never voiced discomfort when the News Media collectively decided that any knowledge or mention of History was now considered irrelevant.
Instead, we permitted Media to get away with (out of laziness, or fear of antagonizing Corporations?) speaking only of today's or this week's controversies, with a total absence of what a little historical reflection might add to the presented picture.
That is why I am awake at 4 AM today.
I woke up at 3 worrying about a purely domestic issue relating to freshly-painted closet doors (don't get me started), and found myself plugged into NPR Morning Edition for an hour.
They reported on the 'impasse' between the President (more about him later) and that consistently-infuriating Mitch McConnel (don't get me started) and then actually mentioned statements by several members of the consistently-infuriating Republican presidential challengers, mostly along the lines of 'no new taxes'.
There, for a brief, crystalline moment in time, was the opening for a voice to quickly remind us of the devastating Bush Tax cuts for the rich, two VERY expensive wars of our (well, the Republicans') choice, the horrendously-expensive Medicare Part D (GOP written), and other major Corporate concessions/malfeasance, all of which brought us to our current National Debt situation.
But, no. Instead, NPR devoted a healthy (sic) segment to a review of the offerings on the new Oprah network, from a male perspective.
So, I ask, if historical perspective is banned from the media, what's the point of pretending that this Republic is possible to salvage? Without an audible voice to put the daily bloviating into context, we are doomed, and the Bachmanns win.
Obama, I like you and so wanted you to succeed. But you caved when we would have supported you standing firm against the Greed (single payer, repeal of Bush tax cuts, Afghanistan, etc.), and you were silent when you should have gently, firmly reminded Us that the Republican economic philosophy of 1980 was the beginning of the End of the America we thought we posessed.
I don't think I will be able to go back to sleep.
Gore Vidal's term for us is totally apt: the United States of Amnesia.
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4 comments:
OK, I got it off my chest. Also, coffee helped a bit.
Maybe we've been asleep for too many years. It's time to wake up!
Folks may flame me for this, but I do believe we are going the way of the UK, France, et al ...*former* global powers (economic and otherwise). This is not necessarily a bad thing. I would like to see us play better with our global neighbors, rather than always pushing to have it our way.
I agree that we have ignored history. And I, too, had such high hopes for Obama.
Maybe the Independents (who ARE these people, anyway) will have soured enough on the Tea Party bozos to nudge things the other way, next election.
If not, the Arc of History that all Empires have followed, will surely show itself again. It's the Greed, stupid.
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