The problem generally with viewing the new reality through right/left spectacles is that on the one hand there really isn't a left to speak of and on the other hand the rhetorical hegemony of the right is largely based on its comic book vacuousness. The notion of a counter-hegemonic left-sensibility comic book genre is obscene.
The word that just came into my head was sachlichkeit -- "objectivity" -- as in *neue sachlichkeit*. Let me propose a slogan:
Neither left nor right -- sachlichkeit!
Tom Walker ---------------
[The first part of this was written on Saturday night, but I went fishing on Sunday and was too tired to send it when I got back. The second part is in response to Doug, Max, and Justin on Monday.]
I don't disagree with the first part. I realize that discussing the conditions and situation in terms of right and left has a trivializing effect. But I am just thinking out loud and not attached to any particular wording.
On the other hand, using words like sachlichkeit has a nazis ring to it. It just has that sound to my ear. Objectivity implies a kind of emotional distance that I certainly don't feel. I am not objective but vehement.
The idea that the jerks running Capital and Empire have exposed the US population to terror and war for the sake of their own protected and privileged positions of power is the more palpable evil present and that has to be addressed. The cost of US global hegemony has just been vastly escalated. It's now okay that thousands die in the US from terrorism, just to keep Empire and Capital strong and a pack of rats in government safe. Remember a majority didn't even elect this jerk---he stole it and now he wants you to live in a police state, just so he feels safe? Fuck that.
Bush and Congress, their loyalty, their resolve, their commitment to the broad masses of people they theoretically represent was completely betrayed by the public cowardice they showed in the face of possible threats to their own hides---and we are supposed to stand firm for them? Bush flew straight to Louisiana and then Nebraska, Congress ran out the door, down the steps and into the bunkers at the first sighting of smoke on the horizon.
How many corporations stepped forward to put money, people and resources out for NYC? Their big worry is a stock market crash. So, Fuck them.
Plus the fact that there were no government pronouncements of concrete support for the obvious suffering of the individual people really effected. How about government money for medical care, rehabilitation, counseling, new jobs if needed, or funeral expenses? Zero. Sure, they'll pump money into the airlines and businesses, probably more than necessary, but to individual families, forget it.
So that is how government and business (the symbolic targets) support the way of life and the interests of the people (the real victims), they claim to represent. It is as if to say, you go ahead and take all the hits for us, while we continue to benefit from it both materially and symbolically.
That is pretty much the point that I want to distill down in simple and easy terms. We, the people are being exposed to these atrocities because of the position that US Capital and Empire have taken up in the world.
We are not being called upon to defend our ways of life, or our country, or our histories---but the life, country, and history of capital, empire, and the pig rich bourgeoisie we all watched in church Friday.
The military is going to ignore whatever happens to the individual service personnel in the events to come. Remember denials of agent orange, or the rash of illnesses after the gulf war? All zero. The military will weasle out of whatever fall out comes down on this round too---count on it. So that's a show of their loyalty to their own troops and indirectly to rest of us, since they claim to protect and serve us. Oh, what a friend we have in Jesus.
We owe these assholes nothing but contempt.
It is late in the day for me. I've spent most of my adult life swimming through a sea of lies and a thousand plateaus of betrayal. I remember watching some minor arrogant gesture of Thieu's at a press conference once. I can't even remember what or when it was, but I remember thinking, so we are supposed to fight and die for your ass? Get fucked. I look at Bush and Congress with almost exactly the same thoughts. NYC is supposed to bust ass so Wall Street can re-open on Monday? Get a grip folks.
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[Monday, second part.]
``what's a non-hollow-ringing nonpeace position that you support?'' (Doug)
``... In a nutshell, it's a demand to the Gov to find the guilty parties and those closely associated and blow them to kingdom come; and don't take refuge in symbolic acts entailing real violence against people the U.S. happens not to like, regardless of their involvement...'' (Max)
``I support a proper police inquiry and a trial, whether in an international tribunal or an American court. I see no real objection to an Ameriacn venue. We _certainly_ have jurisdiction over acts committed on US soil, and I think that a trial could be as fair here as anywhere. Depends on the judge, of course, but that would also be true in the Hague,...'' (Justin)
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In reverse order, then Justin, a trial in The Hague presents the problem that the US government was so interested in bringing terrorism to international justice that we haven't signed the necessary UN protocols on crimes against humanity, remember? After Abraham Ben-al-Whoever, Sharon and Kissinger would be in the very next pile of dockets. Hmm, then what? Our government's own duplicity and complicity would go on trail next?
Max, how can the government find the guilty, (to paraphrase Lilly Tomlin) when they are the parties whom they are seeking?
I can imagine a bad Saturday Night Live routine in which one office of the Pentagon calls another to ask if the burned out hulk on the westface(?) was their bright idea or not? Then imagine the two sections getting together a confab to march over to the NSA and demand an explanation. All three offices get together and decide it wasn't them and call the FBI. The FBI denies any complicity but does mention they and DEA/ATF think drug money was involved. They all conclude it must be some CIA drug money for guns and planes plot gone awry in their Florida operations training center and take the shuttle out to Langley to demand an explanation. From there all five offices get back on the shuttle bus to head back into DC to find the anti-Castro cuban exiles offices in DC for answers on the theory that whoever is responsible is probably in Florida somewhere.
Over the anti-Castro Cuban's objections, they conclude that the bombing should start in Florida. Bush considers this option, but remembers his brother lives there and Florida was responsible for getting him into office so he selects an alternate plan to target California.
Just about this time, Dad calls up and tells him California is out, because the entire Texas economic miracle in energy depends on milking California. Bummer.
Cheney offers a reasonable compromise, bomb Northern California back to the stone age were: 1) the one congressional dissent was registered and were there are no Republicans in public office; 2) there is a large Muslim population where somebody knows somebody who really did it; and 3) leave the LA/San Diego corridor intact for the sake of greater energy consumption, and likely future political support. All agree and the SAC wing is dispatched to take out treasonous scum in SF/Oak/San Jose/Silicon Valley ring. They reason even New Yorkers will be happy with this plan.
And so, this solution answers Doug's RFP, on a non-hollow, non-peace proposal.
Chuck Grimes
ps. I am sorry to hear Brad dropped off. Although I gave him a moderately hard time, I tried to keep it light in spirit. But it could also be because the semester is started up at UCB and is likely to be pretty demanding after a week or so of putting off a lot of academic work.