We have evolved as a nation into one that accepts, on a day-to-day basis, sadistic denial of help to the increasing number of poor people in this country while on those same days, granting ever-increasing benefits to the wealthy. Conservatives' orchestrated, coordinated, well-funded constant strikes on communications in this country have created an atmosphere that makes sadism against the least among us acceptable policy at the national, state and local levels.
We have come to the same types of betrayal of our people that mark despotic regimes around the world today and in world history. Betrayal of their own people is the trademark that one sees in governments and elites that maintain their own power and wealth at the expense of their own people. Failure to seek peace when peace is available, failure to seek justice when justice is attainable, failure to seek economic security when that is achievable are all evidence of betrayal. What makes these behaviors sadistic is the purposeful and repeated enactment of these betrayals, and the moralistic justification used.
Conservatism has sunk to sadism, and sadism as policy. No one on the conservative side questions for one second more subsidies to the wealthy, the billions gone to oil companies, to corporate farmers, to Wall Street firms and their executives. However, however, put one millions dollars on the table and say that those should be directed at providing help to the 47 million Americans living in poverty, a number that grows daily, and outrage pours from conservatives that we are harming America and especially those Americans to whom that help might be directed, that those people aren't that poor anyway, and it is God's will that they be poor given their poor choices that has left them bereft.
I started to think about conservatism as a failed 40-odd year policy experiment. Yet, failure only describes the outcomes. It is wholly insufficient to describe the means, the methods, the message and the misery. Only sadistic betrayal fits even as a beginning to describe what motivates and energizes the conservative failure. This is purposeful, a conspiracy, a carefully planned collaboration of wealth, business, media, politicians, organized religion, think tanks, and other institutions to lash back at the left by punishing the poor, the downtrodden, the weak, the underprivileged, those that cannot defend themselves. Who truly speaks for the people anymore?
The institutional sadism has become so pervasive as to suppress any attempts to break in any meaningful way from conservative dogma. Members of the media know that backlash from the right is extreme for sins against conservatism, while welts from the Left heal quickly. Politicians fear the right-wing money machine being exercised against them and count on it at times for their own benefit, even if they would tend to the Left. Ask Chuck Shumer, ask Dick Durbin, ask Barack Obama, ask any Democrat how far they dare to go in opposing the right and supporting the poor. Bringing the right wing money machine down on one's own head is not a formula for long-term survival.
Members of the media know this. Why does conservatism get an equal and unquestioned seat at the media table despite its constant stream of unchallenged untruths? The right wing money requires it. Where are the gadflies, the truth-seekers, the muckrakers that were heroes of journalism only 30 years ago? They have been silenced by fear of the unemployment line, not just denial of access, but denial of their huge salaries. Members of the media command enormous sums -- they are part of the elite, and know that their incomes can go away in seconds by crossing the right. Look at Dan Rather who told the truth. He's scraping up a few cable gigs a week. He even got snookered by the right wing money machine into using buggered documents while he was telling the truth. Rather is rather a good object lesson for any in the media who give consideration to bravery.
Who speaks for the citizen when the money and the access all go to sadistically punish the citizen that may support the Left? Business groups, lobbying groups, money groups, all are lined up to dictate policy by dictating the wording of the law to expand welfare to the wealthy and punish the powerless. Raising money to support politicians is one thing. But the real power is far greater than campaign coffers. The real power is in the everyday influence that accrues to the conservative betrayal through all the heavily funded groups representing heavily funded conservative interests in politicians' offices.
So, the right wars on the left by practicing sadism on the Left's constituencies, thrilling the rubes who buy the conservative marshal music, the patriot jigs, who need something to belong to that elevates themselves above their sad station. Das Volk, the common people with the common sense, the mob that gets goosebumps at the sound of conservative marches rung triumphant, the creepy kid that gets a warm feeling of belonging by joining the crowd kicking the snot out of some other poor slob, the animals that joined the pig in Animal Farm, the gang that joined in The Stoning, the sociopathic kids in The Lord of the Flies, these are the conservative base. Face it, without sadism, American conservatism has no appeal for huge numbers of its members.
It is sadism we are facing and it is the sadistic betrayal of Americans who otherwise cannot help themselves that we fight.
Who will act for them?
That which you do to the least among us, that also you do to me, said the Lord.
Merry Christmas.
Happy Holidays.
Shalom.
Peace.