There are three 60's leftovers that are clobbering us today:
- The media's impact on Goldwater, Nixon and Vietnam sparked an efficient right-wing information takeover;
- Environmentalist's warnings of shortages sparked a vicious resource and capital pig-out;
- Touchyfeely naval-gazing hasn't worked out too well.
There are three factors from the 60's with which we are dealing today:
- The plutocracy carefully observed the impact of the media on the Nixon/Kennedy election, the Goldwater/Johnson election, the role of the media in Johnson's downfall, and most particularly the impact the media had in using the facts of the Vietnamese war and Watergate against Nixon. They vowed to gain total control of the media and to never let true facts impede their money-grubbing and power-grabbing again. In this they have been extremely successful.
- Well-meaning environmentalists have been pointing out for decades now that resources are limited, pollution is a long-term disaster traded for short-term greed, and consumption must be moderated to even hope that our children will have a decent life. The environmentalists totally underestimated the venality and greed of the plutocracy and the effect of their message. This merely served as a clarion call to the rich to snatch up everything they could get their hands on and hoard it away, to protect it from the thronging hordes. The hell with the children.
- A huge number of "liberals" spent several decades gazing into their bellybuttons trying to nurture their feelings and find themselves, while the pigs were robbing us blind. How much of this diversion away from the real world was orchestrated by the plutocracy is hard to tell; they do own all the book publishers, all the TV stations and all the newspapers that tell "liberals" what they should be doing and thinking about. The current message being hammered into the minds of all the liberal's children is to move to the ghetto and deal dope. Watch MTV sometime - the messages are intentional. Watch "The 700 Club" sometime - Pat Robertson is laughing out loud at you.
Democrats vs. Republicans, pro-life vs. pro-choice, Christian vs. secular, these are all diversions. In 1970, 2.5% of Americans controlled 50% of our resources; in 2002, 0.5% of Americans controlled 50% of our resources. This is all about rich vs. everybody else - we have to stay focused on identifying and publicizing the true enemies of America. Modifying television is a lost cause as I see it - "fair and balanced" means stating one true fact, then a counteracting administration lie - but the internet may well prove to be the new version of the "LSD in the drinking water."