Most of us probably knew for the longest time how the Fox Cable talk show hosts keep labeling themselves conservatives. A purist conservative would never dare refer to the Hannitys, O’Reillys et al as one of them. After all, these blokes rail and rave about how broke our government is, and then wave the (false) flag repeatedly for more and more military spending. “Stay the course” is the newest mantra for our illegal and immoral invasions and occupations of Iraq & Afghanistan. When the Bush-Cheney gang was behind it all, these so-called journalists bent over backwards to support their acts of aggression. More importantly, these pundits supported the obscene spending increases that the compliant Republican and Democrat Congress approved. This brings me to part 2 of my disgust.
The so-called progressives on MSNBC. I sat there the other night as Ed Shultz lambasted those of us who are against what is known as Obamacare: the cave-in to the private insurance megalith that rules health care forever. Shultz was indignant at the Republicans who are trying to derail this new law. Yet, he never will acknowledge that Obamacare, as it is called, will destroy the only hope we have for real health insurance reform, which is a Medicare for All first step. Of course, the Republicans are against the law for their own political reasons. After all, do you think a right wing ideologue like Justice John Roberts would vote to keep Obamacare if not for the fact that it ultimately will increase profits for the private health insurers? Trust me on this one: If the insurers do not like any part of the new law as hurtful to their profits, they will simply raise deductibles and co-pays. They will have millions of new customers too, mandated by law with threat of a tax for evasion. Yet, this is not the key reason why I for one have absolutely NO connection with the phony progressives out there.
There have been more drone attacks under Obama than during the eight years of their use by the Bush-Cheney gang. Gitmo is still open, rendition of suspects is still going on, and we still are in over 100 countries with over 800 permanent bases. We still occupy and kill and are killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet, the real tragedy is that under Mr. Obama and his party, in collaboration with the Republicans, military spending goes up and up and up — to the tune last year of over $563 billion. Imagine what some of that money could have done to alleviate the housing mess or the need for more good paying jobs? Infrastructure repairs for our cities, our roads? How about having our National Guard out there doing what they were meant to do: help out in disaster relief? Nope! Where are the Ed Shultzs and Rachel Maddows, Chris Mathews, Al Sharptons et al.? Silence!
Someday, and I hope soon, Americans who now struggle to make ends meet will awaken from this 2-Party One Big Empire hypnosis. They will turn off the mainstream media, whether it be on radio or the boob tube, whenever a so-called ‘news or news talk show’ comes on. It is time to rally behind the need to pull back this military industrial empire; the same one that both General Smedley Butler (War Is a Racket) and President Eisenhower (“Farewell Address”) warned us about.