iPad vs. Bedpost

No doubt Steve Jobs is brilliant on the technical side of things. In some ways he may even rival Johannes Gutenberg. It is when he talks about ‘content’ that he has me mystified. He talks about the importance of ‘content’ and then he goes on to mention The New York Times (a money loser) and The Wall Street Journal (a money maker) in the same breath. In my view it is precisely ‘content’ that accounts for the difference.

Jobs’ toys, like the Gutenberg Press, are devoid of content. They remain so until someone other than Apple runs the applications. The New York Times will not be saved by the iPad whereas The Wall Street Journal can only stand to gain. People will not pay for anything that they consistently disagree with or find offensive. On the other hand, people will go out of their way to patronize those outlets that they perceive to be fair, instructive and balanced.

Jobs draws the additional nebulous distinction between ‘editorializing’ and ‘blogging’. What on earth is the difference? Both express opinions, except that one is bought and paid for and the other one isn’t. Does prostitution come to mind?

Finally, the majority of the world’s population consists of people who don’t even have a pot to piss in. They speak in languages that cannot be understood by people living barely 50 miles away. They rise in protest when the price of beans rises. They are grateful for the rice cookers distributed freely from the back of a government truck (even though they don’t have a working socket to plug it into). They are light-years away from understanding Kierkegaard or Krugman. Often, where they live has no cell signal.

What I’m saying is that Steve Jobs speaks largely for an elite audience – people who can afford the gadgets he promotes. For all his posturing, those whose grasp of technology extends just far enough to allow them to hang a mass-produced image of Che, Donald Duck or Dolly Parton from the sagging bedpost conveniently escape his attention.

We All Live In a Yellow Submarine

The spin machines are working tirelessly, producing a whole host of villains – no heroes yet. Blame-shifting proceeds unabated but has not yet produced the expected result – or has it? “Drill baby, drill!” is dead in the water. Gas prices are certain to rise, hammering yet another nail into the coffin of an economy already on life support. America will become more – not less - depended on imported oil. Thousands of American jobs lost - in energy, fishing and tourism. Billions lost to municipal tax collectors; unemployment benefits extended to last for the duration of the average human lifespan.

In our upside-down Obama world, all this could indeed amount to a positive sign from heavens: a reason to impose more crippling legislation; the rationale for choking off the life blood of our economy; a way to create more beggary, discord and chaos; a reason to clamp down hard on a populous that has been left dazed and confused with nowhere to turn.

Should five or ten years from now the magic bullet be found – the one that finally turns off the spigot - we will wonder why it hadn’t been thought of sooner. It is possible that we will see Barack Hussein Obama still hosting lavish parties at the White House with such luminaries as Paul McCarthy and Jay-Z in rapt attendance …and it will suddenly dawn on us(,) why.

The Tables Are Turning

We’ve come full circle. The various struggles here in America as well as around the world all have a common denominator. At first blush it appears to center on the Tea Parties vs. the Washington establishment; or Palestinians vs. the Jews; or Islamists vs. the West. But that’s only seeing individual trees in the forest. The overall theme of the forest is consistent: The masses are rising up against the elites and the elites are fighting back trying desperately to protect the status quo.

Elites can be found on both the right and the left of the political spectrum. The Jews have been the world’s foremost elites. They have traditionally defined themselves as God’s chosen people.

For most of their history - having been denied their own soil to cultivate - they have doggedly tilled their own domain: the mind. As such, they have succeeded in defining the narrative of ‘success’ for the rest of us. Jews are hard working and disciplined. They have become highly influential within the ruling structure of numerous (particularly western) nations. They have become instrumental to the advancement of the arts, science, technology and finance. They have (perhaps) disproportionally reaped the rewards of their forward thinking under the guise of academic accolades and material success.

While there is no doubt that Jews have contributed greatly to our modern standard as we have come to accept it, this has also sown the seeds of resentment among the rest of us. While it is commonly said that those who align with the Jews will never be wanting, and those who abandon them will be assigned their own special ring in Dante’s hell; with each passing day, this particular paradigm becomes increasingly less relevant. Jews, in effect, have become the target of a predictable world-wide push-back against elitism.

Ironically, the seeds of animus against Jews may have been sown by Jews themselves. Marx’s dialectical materialism (which includes the core idea that "the history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggles") stood Moses’ law (“thou shalt not covet, steal…”) on its head. It codified what had always been quite obvious (the have-nots wanting what the haves have) and made it inevitable, sanctifying the revolution (or cleansing) by which excess and inequity are tempered. But Marx focused only on the economic aspect. He evidently did not realize that there are other hierarchies, some based on birth, others on skin color, and still others on degrees of brutality.

The mullahs of Iran also represent an elite. The same tide set to sweep the high and mighty from their pedestals applies there as well (minus the economic aspect). It is only by brutality, fear and oppression by which they can continue to rule. And, again, in America, we are finally waking up and seeing that the ruling elites have become far too big for their britches. A political re-alignment has been long overdue. The proletariat is preparing to reclaim their nation.

World unrest stems from a push-back against the ruling elite by whatever ‘isms’ they choose to identify themselves. Left or right, elites are elites. The tables are turning. The last shall be first and the first shall be last.

Media Hype

In order to keep a nation from descending to the status of prison colony, it is essential for its people to be involved in governance. The Afghans seem to understand this. At the same time, they are highly suspicious of foreign influence in their domestic affairs. And that too is natural. Whoever came up with the idea of ‘changing hearts and minds’ and made it U.S. policy did us a great disservice. The best and only effective way to influence the course of events on foreign shores is to lead by example.

I’ll be the first to admit that our example has not been stellar. Since we installed the current administration, it has become painfully obvious that the voices of the rank and file have been systematically excluded from the national conversation. We have marched; we have attended town hall meetings; we have written letters, telephoned and e-mailed – and Washington never once acknowledged us. We have been made to feel that we no longer matter.

We’ve fought back. We’ve cancelled our subscriptions to state-controlled media in droves. Their financial plight has become obvious. Now, plans are being hatched to bail them out. At the same time, new regulations on media in general are being seriously considered. I think most people participating on this blog realize that the whole thing has Stalinist overtones.

It is interesting to note what has happened in Turkey. Most observers find it difficult to believe that Turkey has gone over to the dark side in the space of a single election cycle. Controlling the press was key. For months now, Turks have had saturation coverage promoting the idea that America went to war in Iraq in order to harvest body parts. Israel, of course, was in on the scheme.

What would you think if perky Katie Couric were to tell you nightly that Bush was an idiot? What would you think if Brian Williams were to tell you nightly that Barack Hussein Obama had come specifically to save the world? How would you feel if Bob Woodruff were to tell you nightly that the world’s glaciers are melting, the oceans are rising – and that it’s all your fault.

Yes, kids; we too have fallen for our share of hype. Some of us have come to feel comfortable with it; some have benefited from it financially; some have used it as a bludgeon; and some have used it as a reason to become cynical. Once government – any government – has got its hooks into media, we will have forfeited the right to lecture anyone about anything.

Think Again

If you’re looking to the future when all things will be possible, look again. At the moment, it appears we exist in daily peril. Nuclear war is still not entirely out of the question. Al Gore and his ilk pose quite a different argument. And then there are Iran’s mullahs whose theories extend well beyond temporal life itself. It all involves our stepping back from the brink of modernity; self-expression, exploration and innovation. The fabled “greater good” does not allow for thinking “outside the box” as Galileo found. Whichever faction triumphs, we can expect either a retreat to the dark ages in which “nose to the grindstone” defines the limit of human potential or the outright extinction of our race.

Such circumstance is clearly not conducive to technological advance. While we may wonder what lies beyond the stars, while we may continue to fantasize about space travel, our day-to-day survival in a virtual blizzard of threat and onerous regulation (liable to change at a moment’s notice) will be our first concern. It is the beauty of a meritocracy that produces flamboyant results like the Shuttle program or Hubble. It also can provide a space within which to simply sit back and marvel at the miracle of creation and our unique partnership with it.

Leftists hate this space in which freedom and liberty commonly take root. They are the Puritans re-born to squelch and condemn every human impulse that seeks to rise above the dead ash of enforced dogma. Why do the Islamists hate us so much? It is because, after a promising start, they have been left far behind. If hatred stems from fear, their fear is justified. Their superstitions stand no chance when pitted against modernity. Rather than change, they aim to drag us down to their level – or kill us.

Capitalism itself is a star under which a free and vital people advance and prosper. For it to succeed it must be given space to breathe. It is not a wildfire that threatens to consume us. It is self-regulating and offers us unlimited opportunities for redemption. No single person can be said to be responsible for the successes or failures of capitalism. It is a group effort. That is why the political class hates it. Capitalism fares best when politicians keep their grubby hands away from it.

Tehran Won't Have to Lift a Finger

Even Israel’s ‘friends’ are now blaming Israel for what happened. It’s spirit broken, Israel is even blaming itself. The whole thing amounted to a huge victory for Israel’s enemies. It reminds us of how during the Iraq war every suicide attack – every death - was blamed on the U.S. At home, Democrats made sure that every American casualty accrued to Bush personally. The networks made it their business to keep a careful daily count. It is a tactic that makes it impossible for an enemy to lose.

In America, there were huge consequences. It is what brought Barack Hussein Obama - an avowed vocal critic of western values - to power. It inspired the re-write of history. It helped create a core of opposition to everything American within America itself.

In Israel, the tactic succeeds in isolating the country and making it into a pariah state. Israel is now primed for a huge military defeat. It can do nothing to help itself. Like a rat in a corner it can only bite a finger or two in anticipation of the final blow. Facts no longer matter. Nobody will ride to Israel’s rescue amidst the cheering of the bloodthirsty crowd.

Erdogan knows this. He is determined to save his nation. He will not allow himself to be caught on the losing side. His actions are designed to ingratiate himself to the Ummah. For far too long Ankara has been playing footsie with Europe to no avail. Turkey has watched both Europe and America fading in power and influence. He knows that the center of the western-style secular state has been hollowed out and cannot hold. In order for his own nation to survive, it became essential that it forge links with the strong men of the world. Currently, Tehran and Brasilia look strong.

For Turkey’s past association with the West to be forgiven, Ankara must bring something to the table. Israel is the scalp Turkey is hoping to deliver to Ahmadinejad, the Kurtz of the Middle East. Obama has been trying to do the same. As America’s influence continues to erode, you will see every nation comprising the Ummah and beyond coming forward to enthusiastically participate in this project. Tehran will not have to lift a finger.

A Benefit of Doubt

World reaction to Israel's intercept of Turkey's 'Free Gaza' flotilla has been predictable. Israel stands alone. Interesting how our vocabulary has changed. Every word we now use has come to mean its exact opposite. Only the logic remains impeccable. In a world turned upside down, words have lost their meaning … and all that is left is the stench of anti-Semitism which speaks harsher than words.

The cast of characters who believe Israel is always in the wrong is the same as those who believed in ‘global warming’; the same as those who came down with cases of severe BDS (Bush Derangement Syndrome). They are the same ones who believe Barack Hussein Obama is the messiah. They believe anything that is anti-Israel, anti-American, anti-capitalist. They are playing with fire.

This reminds me of an incident years ago when our kids were still small. In those days we were still in the habit of going to church regularly. The sermons were often long and boring – especially for the kids. There were crayons and coloring pads in the pews. Our youngest and I were talking (and giggling) – quietly enough, I thought. Nevertheless, our eldest, Ivy, got annoyed. She felt it was inappropriate for us to be making a spectacle of ourselves. Not wishing to add to our noise, she took a red crayon and carefully wrote “Will you PLEASE shut up already!” in large letters on the face of her bulletin and passed it over to us.

Properly chastised, we handed it back to her. In the meantime, the pastor was coming down the aisle. He was off on some tangent. He stopped suddenly across from where Ivy was sitting. He admitted that he had lost his place and asked to see her bulletin. He fell silent when his eye fell on what she had written (to us).

We all snuck out through the back door after the service was over – never to return.

Though clearly a shameless provocation, the stunt by Turkey’s 'freedom' flotilla produced predictable results. It required the partnership of the world press whose bias against Israel has been well documented. Also well known was Israel’s tendency to hamstring itself. Can you imagine a similar rag-tag flotilla in support of the Iranian opposition washing up on Persian shores? And while we’re at it, where was the international condemnation re North Korea’s sinking of the Cheonan?

Words will be written, purposely distorted and misdirected. Facts will be rearranged to fit agendas. Unlike in our more innocent time so many years ago, when situations also sometimes culminated in misunderstanding, the free world has become drawn into all-out war. Israel stands in the front lines. India is next. In a war no adults are present to mediate disputes. Dictionaries no longer contain proper meanings. No pastor will suck it up quietly and simply walk away, scratching his wizened head, struggling to find a way to give benefit to a doubt.