The Coup of the United States of America?

[jackshoegazer]

My Friends,

Seriously, I mean it, you're my friends.  I'm not John McCain and just using it to seem friendly when in fact he is a grouchy bag of ass.  In my meanderings on the intarwebz today, I came across a video from today where John McCain refers to the audience as "my fellow prisoners." 

At first, I was all "HA-HA", that he was a P.O.W. and just had a senior moment.  Then I thought about the fact that as of October 1st, 2008, the United States is legally a battleground for the War on Terror.  Add this to the fact that for the first time ever, the 3rd Infantry Division’s 1st Brigade Combat Team has been deployed in the United States as an "on-call federal response force for natural or manmade emergencies and disasters, including terrorist attacks."  Add to this the fact that Representative Brad Sherman said on the floor of the House that he and other Representatives were told in private conversation, were warned, that if they did not pass the bailout bill right away, that the President would declare martial law.

Naomi Wolf and others are calling this a coup of the United States government, arguing that over the past eight years, the United States has followed the 10 Steps Toward Fascism, and that these recent developments are part of that movement.  Normally, I would chalk that up to conspiracy theory and surely that would never happen here, but this has me worried.  I am reminded that Dubya's grandfather, Prescott Bush plotted with other industrialists to overthrow FDR and transform the United States into a fascist state like Germany and Italy at the time.

One can only say conspiracy and coincidence so long, right?  If I wrote a novel about a man who became President, who tried to fulfil his faither's failures (Iraq) and his grandfather's failures (Fascism), no one would buy it - it would seem too implausible, but here it is in facts looking us in the eye.  It's a scary place and I'm going to step out of it right now and get a nice cup of tea and tell myself I'll vote Obama in four weeks and everything will start to get better, that this mass craziness will begin to reverse itself and we can go back to being a sane, rational nation, that shining city of John Winthorp, not Ronald Regan, thank you very much.

Comments

[lucidpseudogod.livejournal.com]

we elect 'christians'?
let's take the god damned pyramid off the dollar

and put a cross there

see who will dare use it for corruption

[hellocthulhu.livejournal.com]

Remind me to go buy a shotgun before November 4th.

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

Watch the Naomi Wolf video - she doesn't think there's going to BE an election.

[hellocthulhu.livejournal.com]

The scary thing is it's not unimaginable.

[suibhne-geilt.livejournal.com]

Sez you:

If I wrote a novel about a man who became President, who tried to fulfil his faither's failures (Iraq) and his grandfather's failures (Fascism), no one would buy it - it would seem too implausible, but here it is in facts looking us in the eye.

Quoth I:

"The difference between fiction and reality? Fiction has to make sense." - Tom Clancy.

[gislebertus.livejournal.com]

Wow, not only is that a little hysterical, there's some real questionable internet scholarship involved. I wouldn't get so worked up, this is kind of pushing tinfoil hat country.

My suggestion: take a deep breath, have a cup of tea, go look at the fall colors. It's going to be alright.

Tinfoil hat country: Relax.

[jackshoegazer.livejournal.com]

See, that's just what THEY want you to think! :D

I've been studying conspiracy theories for a very long time now, so this, like all other tinfoil theories, I apply my 10% Rule.

This one is a little scarier because Naomi Wolf isn't some crazed nutjob operating out of her parent's basement - she's very well-respected. It is a very dark and frightening picture that is painted when one puts these facts together.

And that's fun.

Re: Tinfoil hat country: Relax.

[hellocthulhu.livejournal.com]

On the one hand, I wouldn't put it past the Bushies to try it. I would put absolutely nothing past Bush at this point in time.

On the other hand, I'm not sure it would work. Not even a majority of the American sheep herd would believe any reason he invoked to impose martial law was legit. Congress wouldn't buy it, and the Supreme Court wouldn't buy it. Of course, the ultimate question would be how much of the military stuck with their Commander in Chief, and how many stuck with their oath to defend and uphold the Constitution.

There's just enough possibility there that I think reasonable, educated people can worry about it.

[tyskkvinna.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't be surprised.

After all, it's only paranoia if they're not actually out to get you.

[jesuslovesbono.livejournal.com]

i've seen those 10 steps to fascism. i think it's a scary good point. but i hope, i hope, i really hope it doesn't get that far.

[jesuslovesbono.livejournal.com]

thank you for posting this.

[rochdale.livejournal.com]

My first thought is: they don't need a military presence, they have managed to do it through the media. Fascism doesn't work as a economic model and it never has. What we are seeing today is the failure of that model just as Spain, Germany and Italy discovered its failure in previous generations. What kept it going so long in this country is the lack of an open totalitarian state. The lack of storm troopers prevented real push back such as happened in Spain and Italy (which then created strong, vibrant worker cooperative communities).

The reality is that the model of fascism in the United States was smarter and unique. It used the people's natural libertarian tendencies, co-opting them into a consumerist model that divorced consumers from the production of their goods. This allowed the US to erase "class" and create the "American" that Peron, Franco and Mussolini could only have dreamed of creating.

Seriously, though. I think that it is more likely that Obama gets assassinated, especially given the Palin bomb-throwing of the last week. It is beyond the pale that a VP candidate could hear her supporters yell for the death of her opponent and not stop and denounce them on the spot.