Two for Tea

Good arguments all around. I love the way we can argue back and forth about Afghanistan without treading on eggshells; without the feeling that we are in danger of breaking something fragile; something we consider to be almost sacred.

The atmosphere changes drastically, when we try to talk about our own country. Immediately, the long knives come out - accusations of 'racism' from the Left; 'socialism' from the right. Throw in words like 'stupid' and 'burlesque', and you have the makings of a colorful salad that no one wants to eat.

I took an informal survey re the proposed 9/12 March on Washington yesterday - just my facebook contacts. Most had no idea what I was talking about; a few were cautiously optimistic, and some even went so far as deleting my name from their contact list - just for asking the question, "Are you planning on going to the '9/12 March on Washington'?"

What this tells me is that the MSM is set to ignore the event entirely. This means that those who had expected to go and make a big splash will be hugely disappointed. Unless something ghoulish happens, the national media will barely snicker. The good news is that the Left will stay home. There should be no confrontations. And the whole thing will be reported simply as Saturday afternoon's stroll in the park.

And therein lies the problem: Saturday. People are off work anyway. The next day they can sleep late. They're not losing a day's pay. If the weather is in any way cooperative, they're risking nothing.

You can't fight the system without taking a risk. If McCain had been elected, the Left would be out there every other day smashing windows; burning cars, and getting themselves arrested. I understand that our ways are non-violent. It is the one principle that will secure our eventual victory.

In a previous post I wrote about the concept of a bandh within the context of a political movement. The word in Hindi means ‘closed’. In practice it means, nothing moves – shops stay closed; no cars; no buses – usually for the duration of a day. Here, in India, a political party will call for a bandh when it wants to demonstrate its strength. If there are two parties - somewhat evenly matched, just before elections – party X will call for a bandh on Monday; Y will then call for the same on Thursday. Both days, business grinds to a halt. But notice is taken (because of its financial ramifications) – quite unlike if just a bunch of people decided to attend the Mad Hatter’s tea party in the park on a sunny Saturday afternoon.

Saving Our Nation

I don't think that simply voting yes (no) on greenhouse gasses will give Thaddeus McCotter a get-out-of-jail-free card. It's not just stating the numbers of those attending the proposed 9/12 March on Washington; he must be there. It's not just keeping silent when talk turns to talk radio (Levin, Gambling, Savage, Hannity, etc.); he must appear (like Peter King). He must not speak in veiled terms when defining this administration as essentially 'socialist', 'Marxist', 'statist', 'Jacobin', usurper, anti-American. The American people already know that this administration's policies make them that and more. He must not be afraid to suffer the slings and arrows of the American media and those of mercenary organizations like ACORN and moveon.org. He must be willing to be pilloried by the Left; to proudly show his wounds and outrage without flinching.

These ads by moveon.org are just a taste. They mean nothing except to those trapped inside Oz. The action has shifted beyond and into the hearts and minds of Americans who see themselves as having been abused by the likes of Ted Kennedy for decades. They are gathering steam; they are fighting back - not violently, as this is not their style - the only way they can, by sitting on their hands and letting the economy grind to a halt. (Washington does not run the economy; the people do.) The final blow afforded them will come at election time when everyone - Democrat and Republican alike - will be unceremoniously swept out.

I hope McCotter reads this. He should know that this great political force that is building will lay waste to all the corruption and double-dealing in DC. For the first time in a long while (probably not since the American Revolution), the decks will be swept clean in a burst of righteous anger. "You're either with us, or against us." There is no middle ground. Line up with the folks outright and conspicuously, or you too will be swept off the stage - along with the rest of us should we fail in this great endeavor which involves nothing less than saving our nation.

Two Recent Posts

The primary focus of people from the West is external spaces – their houses, their yards, their cars, their towns, etc. They tend to count neatness as a virtue even while in their own minds they often wander blindly, without clear convictions or aim. In the East, where populations are much greater and external space is available only at a high premium, the focus is on internal spaces. Asians do not so much care how things look on the outside, but they are almost manically disciplined in their thinking. A large part of this is tied up with their perception of honor or “saving face”.

It is unlikely that any American administration - especially the current one (which has its own (ego) problems) - appreciates the difference. They can therefore be expected to continue to stumble and fall on their own swords as the day is long in trying to deal with the region. Then, John is right, they will curse the swords that have bloodied them.
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Who are the Jacobins? Whether or not JB is or isn’t remains in doubt any way you slice it. It could be argued that the American Left won the revolution with the election of Barack Obama. Before that point, the Left could have been considered as the Jacobins. Now that the Left is in charge, the title falls to those who are aiming to thwart Obama’s policies. Since much of the old strictures are still in place, the line between the revolutionaries and the defenders has become somewhat blurred. But, strictly speaking, the tea party crowd; those protesting ever higher taxes; the town hall folks challenging their representatives; talk radio listeners; etc. are the insurgents – in the government’s view, the trouble makers, those determined to overturn the results of a legally sanctioned election.

Which side is JB on? Neither, in my view. He’s simply reporting on those things that are of interest to him. He is clearly not interested in the people who will be attending the March on Washington on 9/12. For one thing, they are not the type who would make it a point to listen to The John Batchelor Show. Their concerns are too basic, without much nuance, too black and white for John’s taste. John is perhaps smarter than most. Smart people are often burdened by their smartness – distracted by it. We, as representative of the ordinary, not unusually gifted people (with some exceptions who appear to have other problems) can help him; if not convert him, at least to demonstrate our passion and our numbers which may not make us right, but nevertheless puts us in the majority. In a ‘Democracy’ that should count for something.