There's been a lot of talk lately about corruption, as in the "Culture of Corruption". Right now, it's mostly Republicans referred to, and that, of course, is because Republicans occupy virtually all the seats of power. As Lord Acton famously observed, 'Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely'. The corruption we see is a natural consequence of the appalling lack of checks and balances in our government. One of the platforms of the 'Republican Revolution' in 1994, led by Newt Gingrich, was to get rid of the corruption of the Democrats, who were in power at the time. What is happening now, though, simply boggles the mind. Since all the power is concentrated, not just in one party, but in collusion with the business interests that own said party, that not since the bad old days of Tammany Hall have we seen such naked greed, outright thievery and shameless venality. The reason you're not seeing Democrats involved in this is that Democrats have nothing to sell. No access, no influence. The K Street Project® is a perfect example - Tom DeLay and company required the lobbyists with whom the House did business to be Republican. Democrats couldn't get into the circles of corruption if they tried. Who wants to bribe someone who can't do anything for you?
But another use of the word 'corruption' is the decay and stink of something dead and rotten. This also applies here. What we are witnessing is the decomposition of our constitution, our freedom, our integrity and good name as a nation, the values we used to take for granted - all dead and stinking. And the Bush Crime Family is gorging itself on the putrid flesh.
The stench makes me want to throw up.
We have to get new blood, new life, into our political system, and we have to do it now, unless we want to live inside the gangrenous filth of a country that has had the life and health sucked out of it by those jackals who have torn it to bits in their feeding frenzy. Our system is poisoned and dying from the head down. If the corruption is to be stopped, we must amputate.
10 comments:
Or corruption like when someone uses the internets for Bush bashing!
Yes, dear, this is where we do it.
There is more than one internet..who knew this besides Carrie?
Good writeup, its all sadly true..the Dem's used to be the party that got all the lobby money and the Repubes complained..the pendulum swings doesn't it?
It is the fact that the Repubes control ALL of it that causes such a stinking mess..the Dem's weren't that lucky last time they had a Prez in there..and for there to be balance we would most likely be better off if there was a different party controlling the legislative and executive branches..I just want compassion in politics..I don't care which party they belong to. I don't consider party affiliation since I am a registered independant. I look at it only to ascertain what side of the fence a politico sits on with regard to ideals and goals..I wish there were more of them that hung in the middle and straddled that damn fence.
I do, too, Dusty. My political philosophy is 'sh** floats' - in other words, no matter what party or political system is in place, the people at the top have had to do some unsavory things to get there. I wish it were easier for principled, decent men and women to hold public office, but the compromises and deals and money required to get elected make that difficult if not impossible. I hope someday to get money out of elections. Public financing is the only way to go if you want to minimize corruption.
One of the biggest issues is how the Religious Right has co-opted the language of compassion and meaning, and twisted that language to be a language of fear. Bush spoke about "compassionate conservatism" which was a meaningless phrase. Basically, what the Religious Right has done is appeal to the fear that "They" are getting what "you" really deserve. "They" stand for anyone who thinks or acts differently than you do.
Take a quick look at Carrie's blog -- she claims to be a good Christian girl trying to make it in the Jew-dominated entertainment industry. That's a clear example of what I mean -- blame her lack of success on someone different than she, on some group -- and last I looked the industry is not dominated by any one religious group.
If the government appeals to basic fears -- income, housing, safety, family values -- and tells you that someone else is taking away from your fair share, and identifies that someone else as being unpatriotic because they think, look, act differently than you -- then the climate for corruption festers and grows.
Fear paralyzes people.
You're so right, Jood - the Frank Luntz wing of the Republican Party has 'catapulted the propaganda' right into 1984 and Newspeak. It's not a joke that language defines the paradigm - it's a reality. Remember when they were saying that the Democrats were calling a filibuster 'the Nuclear Option' as soon as the term started polling badly for them?
That's also my point about music and art - the major difference between peace and war is seeing yourself in another's eyes. It's the difference between 'brother' and 'other'. Music and art facilitate that connection. Demagoguery widens the gulf. If someone is 'other', they're not fully human.
That is the Jesus message. Love thy neighbor as thyself. It's no conincidence that the first two words of the Lord's Prayer is "Our Father" - not "My Father" or "Your Father" but "Our Father". That defines our relationship to God and to each other. We are all brothers and sisters. There is no more important message anywhere. If you knew the people you were bombing were your brothers and sisters, you wouldn't do it. And, as you know, fear and faith, or fear and love cannot co-exist. Our brothers and sisters are not just those who share our particular belief. This goes way beyond a particular brand of religion or political affiliation. It is a - rather, the universal truth, and if we could get those who call themselves 'Christian' to really live by that, that would authenticate the moral authority of Christian belief more than any number of bombings and killing in Jesus' name.
Yall I looked at that little girl's blog-it is so mean! I can't believe mean people get on the internets!
Oh, and I guess SPEILBERG won't be calling!
But what a scathing analogy - oooh! And the picture is rather lovely, also - there she is, just as God made her - shirt-free.
I can't believe I'm acting like this, but one of Miss Carrie's favorite movies is that Justin Kelly thing! Again, Speiberg will not be in touch or lunching or whatever it is y'all do out there! LOL!
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