Wisconsin In A Sentence
Said perfectly at Daily Kos:
That's what the American people are up against. Here's one more person who has figured it out, but they too are just another hippie blogger, so no one "serious" is going to pay any more attention than they did when the same bloggers claimed the Iraq war was based on lies, or that allowing rich people to engage in whatever criminality they want was not going to come to a good end for the rest of us.
The people who didn't give a damn about elections when a Democrat was elected to the White House and Democrats were elected to control both houses of Congress, have now decided that elections give them a perfect right to dismantle the most basic foundations of democracy. The people who railed against the overthrow of Mubarak for (assumed) fear that new elections would produce a win by an antidemocratic group of religious fanatics, are just thrilled to use an election to accomplish the same thing themselves. And the people who scream in our faces day in and day out about how only they can uphold the Constitution cannot get far enough into it to read this:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Of course, I guess it's not Congress destroying our freedom, but the would-be tyrant of a single State, and we all know about the sacred right of States to turn themselves into dictatorships.
"The outlawing of independent unions is the clearest and most consistent marker of despotism around the world."
That's what the American people are up against. Here's one more person who has figured it out, but they too are just another hippie blogger, so no one "serious" is going to pay any more attention than they did when the same bloggers claimed the Iraq war was based on lies, or that allowing rich people to engage in whatever criminality they want was not going to come to a good end for the rest of us.
The people who didn't give a damn about elections when a Democrat was elected to the White House and Democrats were elected to control both houses of Congress, have now decided that elections give them a perfect right to dismantle the most basic foundations of democracy. The people who railed against the overthrow of Mubarak for (assumed) fear that new elections would produce a win by an antidemocratic group of religious fanatics, are just thrilled to use an election to accomplish the same thing themselves. And the people who scream in our faces day in and day out about how only they can uphold the Constitution cannot get far enough into it to read this:
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
Of course, I guess it's not Congress destroying our freedom, but the would-be tyrant of a single State, and we all know about the sacred right of States to turn themselves into dictatorships.
Comments
Republicans -- the party of despots.
Actually, I think it's shooting protesters.
At some point, you have to face what is going on in your party.
Let's meet back here in 30 days. If the governor hasn't ordered anyone shot, then you admit on the front page of your blog that you are wrong about Republicans and that Walker isn't a dictator.
If he has ordered someone shot, I'll confess on the front page of my blog that I've been wrong all along, that you know Republicans better than I do, and then I'll register as a Democrat and forsake my party.
You claim to know us so well? Here's your chance to prove it.
I'm going to give YOU the benefit of the doubt.
I'm going to assume that you're joking. That you don't really expect Mr Eagle to hope for another Kent State shooting just to score a point with a godless conservative blogger - on said godless conservative's totally fucked up terms.
Who cares what you put on the front page of your blog? You seem to enjoy First Amendment protection for it, whatever it is.
By the way Leroy Stratom and James Rhodes never "ordered someone shot" either.
Politics of the radical Right and fascsim are like a religion, or more accurately, a cult. It is the propagation of an ideological, pseudo-Christian, authoritarian belief system. It has nothing to do with democracy, compassion, or the common good, and everything to do with reinforcing the plutocratic power of the economic elite.
Authoritarian leaders spew the dogma which the authoritarian followers accept without question, for they are indoctrinated to believe that “conservatism” (aka interests of the economic elite) is morally superior to the “liberalism” (aka democratic ideals) that they must portray as godless, communistic, and anti-family, and unpatriotic. The radical Right is incapable of accepting any information that contradicts their belief system. They are a cult.
Again, look at the most rabid anti-union, anti-worker, and anti-bargaining rights forces, and the lines are clear. Arab Dictators, Fascists, Communists...and Republicans all need to suppress the people in order to hold power. This is nothing less than the struggle between democracy and totalitarianism.
This governor has made a threat to use troops to deprive workers of their right to protest and petition the government.
My sister's best friend in High School was a girl named Nancy Schroeder. Her brother was one of the four people killed at Kent State. So don't ever try to tell me that I don't know what can happen when troops are called out to put down protesters.
What makes this situation worse is that this governor inherited a surplus, and squandered it on tax cuts for the rich; and now he is using his self-generated deficit to force State workers to pay for those tax cuts, with the threat of violence if they do not comply. How can you possibly defend that kind of thing?
As usual, you have stated the situation with wonderful clarity.
Unbelievably, we are facing a real threat of fascism in this country as one of our parties has descended into a vengeful yearning for a violent resolution to its problems. I've said this so many times before, but I just don't see how we get out of this without a really ugly few years.
You replied: "Well, your Republican governor is planning for that too."
Who's twisting and distorting?
They don't always shoot first, but they are the cult of "second amendment remedies" when democratic elections don't suit them. They oppose unions, labor rights, the poor and the middle class. And they shoved the Patriot Act down our throats. They are fascists.
Green Eagle, I know that you never agreed to do it, but I just thought I'd stop back and point out that the governor didn't order anyone shot in Wisconsin. I guess he's not a dictator and you like to exaggerate how bad Republicans really are.