Rock Bottom

Did the President know that the intelligence was fixed? Did the Vice- President cherry pick the evidence? Did the Neo-Cons deliberately build a case for war using false information? What did President Bush know and when did he know it? And were the American people fooled by the Neo-Con's attempts to hide their Machiavellian plans?

All interesting questions, but wait. I have more. Why did the American media wait to report these abuses until well after the fact? Wasn't it possible for the least discerning of noses to recognize the smell of bullsh*t when they smelled it? Where is the outcry about the scandals unfolding daily? Many questions with obvious and not so obvious answers.

It may be true that the American media is not a news dissemination service, but rather a propaganda factory. But that is not the real problem. It may be true that most politicians are hopelessly corrupted, but that is not the real problem. And it may be true that corporations do not serve the public interest as they are charged to do, but that is not the problem.

Instead, I posit that it is the American people that are the problem. Yes, all of us good Americans. We seem to be too busy working at our wage- slave jobs to notice that the news outlets only report what their corporate parents allow. We seem to be too busy shopping at the mall, watching our favorite television shows and playing our favorite video games to take notice that our politicians lie more than they tell the truth. We seem to be too busy making our Visa and loan payments to care about much of anything else. Our adversaries as well as many of our allies accuse Americans of practicing hypocrisy, prejudice, venality and sloth, and perhaps they are right.

The land of the brave and the home of the free, they laugh. They see us as cowards, who enjoy a good fight as long as our enemies can’t defend themselves. They see us as slaves to our possessions and to our excesses. They think that we are greedy, that we speak of Christian values, but supplicate ourselves at the feet of Mammon.

Our history has shown us to be great hypocrites. We have practiced slavery, colonialism, genocide, and followed inhuman policies on and off for two hundred years. We keep more of our people behind bars than any other country. We practice racial, sexual, and economic oppression on our weakest citizens. We destroy communities, cultures and habitats here and abroad with our lust for the latest bargain, the best deal. Money is not the root of all evil. Our willingness to sacrifice our principles for petty gain is. We are quite an example for the rest of the world. A world that reviles us, while it tries to emulate us.

What a state of affairs. And yet, is it hopeless to think that we can overcome our history and our impulses? I, guardedly, think not. Can we drive out the demons that keep us from rising to our highest aspirations? Yes, I think that it is possible. I think we can resurrect ourselves. We can. We are able. We have proven throughout our nation's history that we can rise up. We threw off labor inequities. We threw off economic inequities, We emancipated slaves and then women. We rose to defend those unable to defend themselves. While it is true that We have taken many, many steps backwards, we have also taken many steps forward.

I believe our emancipation will not come from our faith. It will not happen because we say it is so. Our freedom will not be won because we take to the streets. Our salvation will only happen when there is no choice left to us. This is, unfortunately, a fundamental aspect of our nature. We are like the drunk who has to hit rock bottom before he can act. When we can go no lower, we will act. Until then, we will allow the bullies to continue to pummel us. Until then, we will allow the rich to get richer and the poor to get poorer. Until then, we will allow the continued degradation of the environment. Until then, we will allow the bombing of the innocent and the forming of alliances with tyrants. Until we have reached the bottom. The only question is, how low will we allow ourselves to go before we act?

Johnny Peaceseed

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