An Open Letter To Ethan Allen
"The action I am taking is no more than a radical measure to hasten the explosion of truth and justice. I have but one passion: to enlighten those who have been kept in the dark, in the name of humanity which has suffered so much and is entitled to happiness. My fiery protest is simply the cry of my very soul. Let them dare, then, to bring me before a court of law and let the enquiry take place in broad daylight!"
- Emile Zola, J'accuse! (1898) –
“It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds”
“Contemplate the mangled bodies of your countrymen, and then say 'what should be the reward of such sacrifices?' Bid us and our posterity bow the knee, supplicate the friendship and plough, and sow, and reap, to glut the avarice of the men who have let loose on us the dogs of war to riot in our blood and hunt us from the face of the earth? If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.
-Samuel Adams-
Ethan,
Thank you for your correspondence. It is always welcomed and thoughtful.
I made the decisions to move, (for the most part) to a new blog room and to set up the new google group (in response to the closure of the original Virginia site) for the sole purpose of dealing with the challenges we face as the new administration comes into play and to ,by invitation only, a google group free of known hysterical conspiracy types and knee jerk naysayers. The side panel clearly defines the purpose(s) of the google group and “The Camus Political Coffee House” speaks for itself.
I sincerely want to see a mature/rational discussion of the issues and our options for action. Laurie Dobson referred to me as Sam Adams in her last communication and I accept that with pride and an instructor and historian of 31 years in the classroom who always taught his students and research trainees the first role of the Historian is the pursuit of the truth; I hold fast to the position that the human condition is such, and the inclinations of our species are such, (despite the longings of many that it would be otherwise), that in the end a few bent on the seizing of power…through a variety of machinations…and the Jeffersonian observations of “intolerability: and cleansing by revolt ; always leads, in the face of ambition or failure at conflict resolution, to violence and Revolution/ We are a violent species, unfortunately, given to easy passionate irrational division on a multiplicity of issues and ideas.
Friedrich Nietzsche once said: “Insanity in individuals is something rare - but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. Just consider that thought in the light of today’s American polarized populous. America is not stable and there will come, if paradigm changes are not accomplished, that social ferment and malaise will take us over the edge.
To dismiss that notion is to indulge in the “It can’t Happen. or it can’t happen here” ostrich-like syndrome of naive severe denial. And yes, if we permit conditions to spiral down “to the bottom”; the result will be ugly, bloody, violent and destructive. The challenge is not that of the prevention of street violence and Revolution by the continued recitation of “peaceful protest” to which the blogosphere and “Progressive” leadership is given to with references to Jesus and Ghandi; the challenge is the restoration of this land on a plethora of fronts.
To address some of your views and observations let me just lift and address some of your own words. “ There are so many issues this countries people are being screwed on.” You are totally correct/accurate, and that is the saddest of commentaries considering that this is The United States…a nation that is supposed to stand for so much good and the environment where the pursuit of excellence, dreams, new positive visions and the ideals of humanity is possible. “The Great Experiment” is supposed to be the laboratory for the development of the best and most noble of undertakings of humanity. Someone has locked and chained the Laboratory door and fear and apathy have thus far prevented us from hauling out the bolt cutters.
1) On the matter of truth, you are right on point when you say:
(A) “The right track! Absolutely correct in foreign control of financial institutions, especially the fed reserve which has neither reserves, nor federal ownership.”
There is a great cry to abolish all manner of Federal-associated financial institutions. I tend to agreed that a number of them have to be dismantled/ The problem I am having at the moment is the fact that a number of such advocates are folks and organizations that I hold in fundamental distrust. If we dismiss them and prevent them having a say in what will replaced the trash canned structures I would feel a bit better…and they will have to be replaced with new regulatory bodies of integrity lest we aid and abet the coming of financial anarchy, albeit I admit, we have in a very real sense institutionalized legislation legitimized financial anarchy right now. You can get there by two roads: legislate it or do nothing and go into free fall catastrophe.
(B) We all have different issues we believe we hold the Truth on.
This is a problem for “The Movement”. Our problems and concerns are legion; our desire to deal with all them sincere; our grasp of the complexities better than most, but we are divided by the full table and it both wears us down and dilutes any hope of real and immediate success. With time running out, (I would argue), one might just want to turn ones eyes to the lessons of history, and I am going to site only two examples of a book full, that ought to serve as both a point of focus for decision making and warning if we do not change our ways.
Great change has been affected in this nation when multiple elements and movements for and of social change/ferment have coalesced, some setting aside for the moment individual agendas for a singularity of purpose … Case in point “The Abolitionist Movement” and the coming of the Civil War.
While the causes for that “Great Hate” were complicated and many onion layered in nature, ie., social, political, economic, moral/philosophical, financial, etc.; the circumstance and placement in the food chain of revolt is more akin to our placement and location in the current counter culture of our times and society. We can learn from the experience. All manner of reform, reformers, reform groups set aside their agendas for a time and fell in behind the “Abolitionist Movement” and “The Abolitionist Press” as a War authored by old men who never fired a shot in it divided this nation and fertilized The Liberty Tree with blood. Yet when all was said and done, with much left to do when the muskets had long turned to rust, those social reform movements returned to the forefront with even greater vigor and vitality, and success.
The same can be said of my beloved “Courageous 60s”. Vietnam came to close; Nixon was done in; America was better for the confrontation. Yes too many Americans and innocents of Vietnam had died in an ill-conceived War and we had lost along the way Martin Luther King, Jack and Bobby Kennedy, Malcolm X and others. The debate over the Black Panthers and Jane Fonda still fills small minds devoid of historical understanding and perspective, minds that prefer the blinders of myopic closed mind opinion free of factual content…but it had to be!
The most terrible cost was not the loss of great leaders with a vision, not even the fallen students of “The Campus of The Four Crosses”, my Kent State; the greatest tragedy from which many have not yet recovered was the fact that our government unmoved, non responsive provoked a near Revolution and the hate grew to such a level the paint brush of that hate painted our troops who served and died faithful to their oath. The wound still bleeds!
2) On Information:
(A) “They get away with it because they control all media via various public 'puppet' agencies with cute little ABC acronyms.
(Your overall point of informing the populous of the truth is well taken and while people have little faith in the news media their dissatisfaction is more an annoying feeling of uneasiness as opposed to well founded factual understanding of the managed manipulation of and by the media. And when it comes to FOX; their nightly viewing is near orgasmic religious experience!)
Point is, the weapon of choice is mass deception accomplished by complete Mass Media and textbook control. You want to change this? You have to fight back with information dissemination ...not just the net…
(Not just the net!!! Boy did you ever say a mouthful there Ethan! There is power in the NET. Political campaigns have proven that, but our reform efforts on the NET are in the infancy stage. We have not the money and resources to maximize our impact and influence and we are of so many differing organizations competing for the same pool of monies. We spend too much time preaching to the choir, too much time talking to ourselves, all too often with egos and turf battles getting in the way like a family fight. Get over it everyone unite and fight.)
(B)”… the contents are met by average laymen as questionable and fringe beliefs of a handful of leftist elites.”
(Yes we are viewed as over the edge by all to many who have sipped the cup of corporate media Hemlock. I am not a fan of “Mushy Moveon.org”, but I will say they have at least drawn the fire of the mainstream media and that have had more cyber success than any element of “The Movement”. Now if I could only radicalize them a bit! I’d rather be marching with A.N.S.W.E.R. than filling out Moveon manipulated polls and surveys. They can get their money elsewhere because simply stated they and After Downing Street are exemplary of what is wrong with “The Progressive Movement” and its conflicted identity and mission.
(C) “Is it possible to prosecute individuals or institutions for ommitting and/or fabricating the stories that enable public opinion support? I seriously doubt it.”
( I keep Media Matters in the sidebar to deal with this issue everyday.)
(D) “ You Know yourselves how many folks you talk to outside the Movement who've NEVER heard a word about protests or any of the seven times impeachment have been lodged on bush and even , I believe, some 17 officeholders within Shrubs administration. Cheney got indicted? “
(Even more troubling on the street on this one was the fact that when you engaged real people face-to-face on the Texas matter the reaction was glee followed by: “Hell nothing will happen.” Damn! Talk about uniformed, uninvolved, lowered expectations and dumbed- down! As long as that is the mindset of the average street person nothing will change within “the four walls of the system”. Oh, Oh…there I go to the streets again.
(E) On Spreading The Word:
“But stale stuff isn't what we need to be successful. we must be cutting edge and you folks are the ones on that edge that needs to be seen “
(There is no question but every manner of spreading The Truth must be explored on the NET and quite frankly with the printed media moving ever closer to collapse our opening may be growing. Whether be dissemination of information or expression of view points via video, essay, music, satire or cartoon; every avenue has value. No one will ever say that political cartoonist like Thomas Nast or satirists like Mark Twain (SC), or comedians like George Carlin and Tina Fey have not had an impact or the protest music of the 60s did not provide The Anthems for change.
In closing let me address this comment/question: “Certainly you don't expect these evil minds to let go of power this easily … do you?? No I don’t! I expect to take it from either their cold dead or handcuffed hands! Yes Ethan, on the level that you have chosen to speak out in this growing conversation; it is our obligation to Pursue the truth, expose the truth, tell the truth!
But I would be out of character not to remind you that I am wrapped in The Declaration Of Independence, the first layer of this onion and that there is but one letter change between (wordS and Sword) and that it took both to give birth to this nation.
Sincerely,
Ed.Dickau
PS… (With A Smile) Laurie Dobson Referred To Me As Sam Adams This Morning…A Supreme Compliment So I Include These Citations For Everyone!
It Takes But One Match, One Mistake To Ignite A Nation.
http://www.mocaz.com/essays/Propaganda%20of%20Adams.pdf
http://americanrevwar.homestead.com/files/adams2.htm
http://www.infoplease.com/biography/us/congress/adams-samuel.html
http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/bibdisplay.pl?index=A000045
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