This diary is in response to another diarist, whose writing I envy for its beauty and simplicity. He asked me please to better contextualize my suggestion that Kossites might want to strengthen their knowledge of history in order more effectively to create strategies of political change. (See comments to "Fox Prevails" at my user site). Okay, here goes.
One of the assertions I hear often on the Left, and on Kos (in one of my esteemed critic's own diaries, in fact) is that the present Administration constitutes a radical -- perhaps insane -- departure from political norms in the US. I would argue that historical evidence indicates this thesis, and the activist strategies stemming from it, to be potentially flawed.
Based upon works of William Appleman Williams, Wm Greider, Richard Hofstadter, Eric Hobsbawm, James Weinstein, Howard Zinn, Joseph Stiglitz, Garbriel Kolko, and CW Mills, to cite a few sources well enough regarded by a wide audience to justify my claim not to be engaging in conspiracy theory, it seems quite possible that the incumbent (I refuse to say "elected") Administration serves ruling class interests consistently, and more or less rationally from their point of view, with goals defined nearly a half century ago. These hypothetical goals are spelled out in a series of writings culminating in Samuel Huntington's "The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order."
See my essay http://sdweiner.home.texas.net/... ,
for an elaboration of this point, or my Kos diary, "Democrats must come clean."
If the real source of current policies is not the incumbent gang of thugs acting independently, but a much older planning body in service of a Ruling Class with deep historical roots, then challenging current trends would seem to require activists to identify and address this body's policies. Quite feasibly, history tells me, these policies might be (1)to carve out as powerful a position as possible for the US in a world defined by a unilateralist Clash of Civilizations paradigm embraced by Neoliberals and Neoconservatives of both political parties, and (2)to insure Government's ability to manage a US citizenry increasingly dissatisfied, and "dissentive" as the standard of living plummets.
Historical evidence of failed imperialism during the last century suggests to me that Neolib/Neocon conniving is less Machivellian than desperate. For all of their rhetoric, current foreign policy seems a thinly disguised and inept effort to perpetuate old tactics of repression to deal with "adversaries" who have grown sophisticated
to the above list of scholars I now add Noam Chomsky and Walter Le Feber, and refer to my own essays at http://sdweiner.home.texas.net/... and http://sdweiner.home.texas.net/...).
What a bald faced lie they tell when promising U.S. citizens the security enjoyed by virtue of membership in the toughest tribe on Earth -- to employ Huntington's paradigm. More likely, we shall soon find ourselves living in a state of chaos as populations worldwide, including our own, devise ways to resist extermination and subversion.
Simply removing the Incumbents from office and replacing them with Democrats will likely have little if any effect on current trends if the larger Ruling Class embraces Huntington's prescriptions. The insanity of current U.S. foreign (and domestic) policy which my fellow diarist referred to, seems apparent to me as well but I think it runs much deeper than he suggested What is required, it seems clear to me, and perhaps to Kos's founder and CEO as well
I elaborate on this observation in "Crashing the Gates and Cutting the Strings," at my user site
is somehow to free the Democratic Party of Ruling Class control. This means getting the right democrats elected. Only then might we create a citizenry powerful enough to re-fashion the death culture we are becoming while still operating within our not yet defunct constitutional system. .
The strategies needed to accomplish this goal are hardly identical with those required only to win elections. Evidence of this awareness is more apparent on Kos than elsewhere -- but in my fearful view, not nearly apparent enough. Some argue that narrowly focusing on electing democrats is a rational first step toward addressing the more difficult goal. I find this assumption highly debatable. I hope Kossites agree, and will aggressively engage in more and more dialogue about what constitutes effective strategy, based on historical evidence. Crashing the Gates is a great first step.