Tuesday, December 28, 2004
(7:32 PM) | Anonymous:
Fear, Insecurity, and Partisanism: The American Way
"I live in a medium-sized Texas town close enough to hell that the stench of conservative warmonger revenge resembles a bizarre cocktail of sulfur and week old cat piss."
I would say this to everyone I meet, except for the simple fact that bravery and stupidity are not interchangeable--therefore I would already be dead. My life means less to me now than it did 10 years ago, and 10 years in the future who knows how miniscule the measure of one's life may be. Still, respect and self preservation root deeply but insecurely in the feces that keep this world alive.
So I read in the local rag an editorial about how anyone buying anything made in China was supporting Communism. The author gave examples of Thompson Electronics owning RCA and GE, and China developing their nuclear submarines with the help of Russia. In conclusion he advised readers to "only buy American" because "why fund China's fight against freedom and the United States". Although circumstantial, he supported his theory by admonishing everyone to watch some Dish Network channel so that "they can see how business in China is exploding..."
I spend most of my time in fear. For different reasons, most people do, only they simply are unable to admit their weakness to themselves, let alone anyone else. Sometimes it's justified. But this guy's editorial was just lots of nonsensical fear. We have enough going on inside of our heads to keep us marginally afraid for a very long time...and this prick decided to impose his fears on others. And to make matters worse, he was stupid and wrong!
I swallow a great deal of rage too. I don't think my reply was all that great, or even very controversial. But the yokels here really got pissed off (other than veterans of any foreign war in the past 65 years, Bush supporters, or anyone patriotic, I don't see what the fuss is). The paper edited it only slightly, and it would be unfair to you (constant reader) to censor myself whatsoever...that is your job:
December 11, 2004
I would say this to everyone I meet, except for the simple fact that bravery and stupidity are not interchangeable--therefore I would already be dead. My life means less to me now than it did 10 years ago, and 10 years in the future who knows how miniscule the measure of one's life may be. Still, respect and self preservation root deeply but insecurely in the feces that keep this world alive.
So I read in the local rag an editorial about how anyone buying anything made in China was supporting Communism. The author gave examples of Thompson Electronics owning RCA and GE, and China developing their nuclear submarines with the help of Russia. In conclusion he advised readers to "only buy American" because "why fund China's fight against freedom and the United States". Although circumstantial, he supported his theory by admonishing everyone to watch some Dish Network channel so that "they can see how business in China is exploding..."
I spend most of my time in fear. For different reasons, most people do, only they simply are unable to admit their weakness to themselves, let alone anyone else. Sometimes it's justified. But this guy's editorial was just lots of nonsensical fear. We have enough going on inside of our heads to keep us marginally afraid for a very long time...and this prick decided to impose his fears on others. And to make matters worse, he was stupid and wrong!
I swallow a great deal of rage too. I don't think my reply was all that great, or even very controversial. But the yokels here really got pissed off (other than veterans of any foreign war in the past 65 years, Bush supporters, or anyone patriotic, I don't see what the fuss is). The paper edited it only slightly, and it would be unfair to you (constant reader) to censor myself whatsoever...that is your job:
December 11, 2004
In reply I would like to first give my earnest complements to Mr. Ralph Kinney’s editorial concerning "Red China Rising" as it appeared in East Texas Mailbox on Saturday, December 11, 2004.
Paranoia abounds. Yes, the U.S. is fighting a "war on terror" without the general expectation of unilateral support from either the UN or key countries who posses military aid that would benefit coalition efforts. But the president of the United States whose salary my taxes pay without reservation lends unprecedented endorsement to Kofi Annan, the UN leader who benefited more from oil than food. I would be more paranoid about the reciprocity of such a union.
So in these wisely savage times we have invaded a country and killed terrorists in the name of "reciprocity" (only in simpler times the term used would have been "revenge") yet John Q. Public always seems distracted by the post-election bump in the stock market, or what country made my RCA stereo. And aren’t we all so happy that K-Mart can now annoy us again with aesthetically devoid cellophane TV spots after their embarrassing implosion oh so few years ago?
What we tend to forget about "Red" China is that the market is such that manufacturing consumer products (especially consumer electronics) there currently costs less than in other countries. It wasn’t always that way. 10 years ago we were afraid of Taiwan (of all places), and in the past 20 years absolutely terrified about Japan a la Michael Crichton’s Rising Sun.
We forget the McCarthy Red Scare of communist Russia 50 years ago, and the subsequent witch hunts that really put our tax dollars to good use. We refuse to remember the lemon recruiters sold kids on 40 years ago about "Red" Communism in Vietnam conquering the world one country at a time (boy that worked out well for all involved), and now we’re in Iraq.
Where would we be without paranoia/propaganda? We probably would be more concerned about what our own country could be doing. Things here are even more scary, such as the integration of the private sector into government: a small but perfect example being the uncanny power the Space-X Corporation wields over NASA. Or perhaps the Office of Force Transformation’s (a legitimate offshoot of the DoD) zeppelin airship program, designed with first-strike intent to slip in and out of other countries at both high and low altitudes without radar interception. I would worry where the U.S. will be goose-stepping next instead of China’s nuclear submarines.
We are a culture that is more concerned about how other countries can affect our personal economy than what our own country may be doing to extinguish the cultures of others. Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Korea. Vietnam. And now Iraq. Under the guise of "peace, liberation, and freedom" the body count rises exponentially. We may not be "Red", but our hands are unquestionably covered in blood.
Without distraction, the most dangerous country the dollars that paid for my Christmas presents could go to is my own.
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Now I realize I fill a cathartic but self-refuting need by substituting ridiculous paranoia with genuine concerns. But we didn't start the fire...I can only treat symptoms, not the cause. Better to be afraid of something real instead of a monster under the bed.
Since my response was published I have had 3 death threats, uncountable blocked calls in the middle of the night, a dog gutted and slung over my mailbox, and a flaming bag of doo flung at my front door. I bought a shotgun and a locking gas cap for my car.
Now why was this worth your time?
1) Many people (like me) are so far right that they are mistaken for being left.
2) Many people do not know their right from their left, but are well versed at choosing sides.
Because of this we have partisanism--people talking about things they do not understand, limiting their few genuine thoughts to opinions that (when turned to actions) prevent what they really want from happening. Thus in this republic, democracy thrives, and so will your opinion.
So it's worth your time to form an opinion out of your thoughts rather than your fears. Perhaps some of you never have done that. And by the way, if you are able to do so, you did much better than I.
