The common
assumption is that there is no official state religion in the United States. No
formal, accepted, sanctioned "official" religion. Not Buddhist, nor Christian,
nor Islamic, nor Jewish, nor Pagan, nor Atheist... no official religion. But this
assumption is completely false and paints a Potemkin facade over the true,
official state religion of the United States of America: Patriotism.
Yes, Americans
are free to worship any of the above, or any other religion I have not happened
to mention, but there is one religion which all Americans have inculated and
pre-programmed and brainwashed into them from the very earliest age:
Patriotism. That this is the Best, the Chosen By God, the One Great Hope of
Mankind, the United States of America. And by God, don't you ever doubt that!
We even pass laws with ridiculous titles such as the "Patriot Act" to
ensure that nobody goes around badmouthing our leaders --most especially when
it's inconvenient for them.
Here in the
United States, we do not erect our temples to Zeus, Apollo, or Aphrodite. Would
that we did, perhaps! No, here we erect our civic monuments to our great, mortal
leaders- Washington, Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, et al. Our monuments to our
Sacred War Dead collect themselves with each generation's sacrifice to the
Military Industrial Moloch in Washington DC, alongside with those to the other
mortals.
To question the
government, even the validity of the Commander In Chief, is to risk
approbation, social sanction, being outcaste/exiled, even. "Love it Or
Leave It!" you hear the breast-beaters shout, as Johnny comes marching home
in a pine wood box to a parade of muffled drumbeats, and mothers, sisters,
lovers, children weep. "A grateful nation thanks you for your (their)
sacrifice." Empty words passed on at every soldier or veteran's memorial
service, followed by the rooty-toot-toot 21 gun salute.
The notion that
something is always going wrong in the world, somewhere, and that America
should and ought to be, there to "fix" it, has led (in the past sixty
years) to all manner of stupid, immoral and illegal incursions, wasted
trillions of hard won tax dollars, and killed thousands, both American and
foreign lives. All wasted in the strange and vain notion that America's Way is
the Best Way, the Only Way, for societies to organize themselves. Got a problem
with some country electing the wrong man? The USA, & the CIA, we're here to help
you!
No, this is the
Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave, with more convicts in our prison
system than any other society on planet Earth, and with the free-est press
system Anywhere! We are free to speak our mind, say what we like- and be
subjected to secret government surveillance, while we're at it! We're free to
assemble anywhere, just so long as that we are not organizing, somehow, to
disrupt the machinations of the bureaucrat class.
It's probably significant that American reporters who are courageously bringing to light the dank spiderweb of the present administration's war on personal freedoms are doing so from outside the country. The American press has fallen flat on its face on the job, having previously chosen swandiving into a love fest for Hif Majeftie during the last election campaign- rather than to objectively report on the bias and difficulties inherent with both major party candidates. That is, until the latest revelations of snooping on the AP surfaced. Inside the nation, the former "liberals" now choke on the news that their Messiah has come not with a sword of liberation, but a torch handed off from his predecessor, and loving it, too! But some of us saw it coming & resisted the temptation to be fooled again.
No, we have the
right to be secure in our papers, letters, and effects- but now, only governmental
appointees can be assured of the ability to hold "secret" email
accounts, hidden from public scrutiny,
immune to the same subject search and seizure without warrant-
and to avoid the stain of accountability
when innocent people get "accidentally" turned into the targets of our Chief Executive's wrath. Or as
a similar situation was once put, in the old Soviet Union- "They, the
Servants of the People- They have running water. But We, the People, do
not."
So God Bless America, and all the poor sods
who died (now in vain) fighting for the freedoms we took for granted and
haven't even noticed we've lost, all in the name of some "momentary
security," which one man involved in creating our Republic long ago said
we might no longer deserve, if the truth shall be self evident...
Being President of the United States of America means never having to say you're sorry:
[for a couple of well-spoken related articles which I agree with in full please click on]:
http://www.salon.com/2012/08/13/nbcs_war_for_fun_and_profit/
http://antiwar.com/bourne.php
http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2013/06/all-the-infrastructure-a-tyrant-would-need-courtesy-of-bush-and-obama/276635/
