William F. Buckley once wrote that he feared the true destruction of the US would come from the far right, where the libertarians, John Birchers, and their supporters found a way to subvert the system to impose their version of what freedom should be.
That day has arrived.
It has reached the point where we are dealing with two very selfish men who think that they have the right to buy remake the nation the way they wish it to be. There have been such megalomaniacs in the past, but their narcissistic ambitions have been tempered by several things including campaign finance rules laws, money, and morality.
Once upon a time this nation had a press dedicated to trying to keep things honest. Sure, they were mostly liberal, but they were self-righteous, jerks, and just plain snotty. BUT – they felt like they were the last line of defense when it came to keeping this nation on the straight and narrow. Now, though, we have no one. Everyone has an agenda. Everyone is in it for themselves.
Very few writers are even following this story, let alone report on it.
Think Progress
The Brothers Koch have every right to try and remake the US into something they prefer. They want to do away with the minimum wage, EPA, workplace rules, and basically turn the United States into a third world country where the elite can benefit from cheap, serf labor.
It is the right of every honest American to oppose them.
What the Koch Brothers and their libertarian – Randian associates are doing is attempting to turn the US into their own personal playground for the accumulation of wealth – for themselves. There is nothing wrong with the desire to grow wealthy. Where it does become wrong, almost evil is when the desire to accumulate more and more becomes obsessive and harmful to everyone, including the obsessed.
This nation was created because people became sick and tired of being ruled by a group of out of touch elitists who were more interested in their own personal agendas, in their quest for wealth and power, than in doing what was right. Not only did their incompetent avarice cost the Great Britain the Colonies, but it eventually lead to the rise of Napoleon and the near destruction of Great Britain during the years that directly followed Waterloo. In many ways, the US is at that point in our cultural and sociological history. We are living at a time when a handful of extreme wealthy individuals are more interested in growing their wealth and power than they are doing what is for the good of everyone. In France, that behavior lead to the Terror. Fortunately, in Great Britain Melbourne came to power and had the wisdom to know how to handle these individuals. Right now, The Pink Flamingo doesn’t see a Charles Lamb in our future.
In short, we are dealing with two very powerful and extremely out of touch brothers who have become so obsessed with having their own way that they will literally destroy this nation to achieve it. They are being enabled by the politicians they have purchased and the media they own. They are being aided by the talking heads who take their cue from them.
The very real problem is that swinging pendulum. The Koch Brothers are playing with Ebola tipped weapons. Once they have finished destroying the GOP, running those of us who disagree with their tactics out of the party, we’re going to be left with a serious liberal majority. When that happens, watch out! The laws that will be put in place to prevent this from happening again will be tough, almost draconian, and well deserved.
Please, enjoy your coup while it happens. Remember, uneasy is the head that wears the hollow crown. Libertarian & Randian economic theory does not work. It is a total disaster when ever it is attempted. One of the reasons the US is dealing with our current economic crises is due to Alan Greenspan and his Randian economic philosophy.
Have no doubts, this is an attempted coup. If it succeeds, the United States as it exists today will cease to exist. The Pink Flamingo never thought I would be warning that the GOP would be a part of the destruction of this nation as we know it. I always thought the US would die by the hand of liberals. Silly me.
Very correct, and the hard left, sensing their opportunity, are going to allow these jackarses to keep right on going — because they know that eventually there will be a backlash and then they will have the greatest chance to put their own agenda into play to the hilt.
Of course, the people who see this potential problem, who have been speaking out, are being labelled by the collection of whores that is are the talking heads as traitors, crazies, and worse. We can’t have people speaking the truth and pointing out reality that would burst their little bubble of delusion and most importantly, wreck their little gravy train/fan wagons.
You are clearly passionate, but horribly under-informed. Also, it may serve you to research the difference between libertarianisms and the modern American manifestation that has assumed the capital L. You also need better editing throughout your work, along with significant fact checking- e.g., it is not acceptable historical short-hand to attribute the founding of the US to anti-elitism, especially since we remained a colonial holding of the British empire until 1777. I don’t know why I offer such commentary; it will be roundly rejected, but when someone maligns Thos. Jefferson (earlier post) I tend to take umbrage.
You are quite proud of your knowledge, aren’t you? What are your credentials to suggest that I need better editing? Are you a writer, a historian, do you have a blog? Just curious. You are darn right your opinion is roundly rejected. Just asking what your credentials are to make such blanket and utterly ignorant statements about my grasp of history and facts.
I gather you don’t know much about Great Britain during the time of the Revolution up through about 1818 or so. You are also pathetically unaware of the disgusting role Jefferson played in encouraging the French Revolution, nor the fact that he only condemned the execution and the terror after being backed into a corner. You are right. The more I study Jefferson, the less I find to admire in him. He was an arrogant, slave-owning, bigoted, womanizing, big government spender, as opposed to Washington who was faithful to his wife, manumitted his slaves, and was against big government spending.
Look it up.
SJR