Liberation

Charles Brown CharlesB at CNCL.ci.detroit.mi.us
Mon Jan 25 08:06:56 PST 1999


Laflame,

You may disagree, but I kind of thought that what you say and what I said are not in conflict. I kind of thought Judith Butler was discussing a contradiction in "subjection". It is reflected in the fact that cops are repressors, yet there is a lot of crime and people want police protection. When cops help victims of crimes they are real heroes to those victims. The hero role is exaggerated and romanticized by television. Cops other side is not exposed on television.

Or do I get what you are saying ?

What Chomsky quote ?

Charles


>>> pms <laflame at mindspring.com> 01/24 8:49 PM >>>
>Television, which I call Big Brother that we watch instead of BB watching
us, is a main site of subjection. Think of how many cop shows there are, where they make cops such lovable people ? Ain't that Judy ? Cops, the very teeth of the repressive apparatus of the state, the Force in the Power, are like our best friends and selves in the American mind control machine.
>
>

That quote from Choamsky doing Orwell has made me brave, so here is the first of many things I'm going to address which will earn me smirks and condemnations, but, fuck it.

This statement about cops makes me very uncomfortable. Because it doesn't take into account that my friends in East Atlanta hate it that the police don't come for a simple car theft or something. And I like that the cops pass down our East Point streets frequently, and a lot of them are pretty nice. And underpaid.

But what really makes me uncomfortable about such talk is the way it seperates us, from real actual living people.

Armed revolution against a state that spends godzillions of dollars on weapons is not an option. And everybody's always saying, we gotta start a movement. Well, you ain't gonna get no movement if you ain't got no one listening to you. And this sort of blanket condemnation of the police is not gonna go over with most people. Even people who want high minimum wages and universal healthcare and 90% tax rates on the wealthy.

On the other hand, I know that police brutality needs to be in the spotlight. I agree that Big Brother TV is a wicked instrument of propaganda. Shit. I keep forgetting to read up on the history of the Fairness Doctrine.

It's sucks that a bunch of Democrats could call the president a liar, saying Soc. Sec. didn't need to be saved, and it was barely news.

Coming Soon-why I think small business owners deserve to make money.

pms



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