October 2013

Dear America,

What can one possibly add to the shutdown story that hasn’t already been said? That it’s an insane finger-pointing ping pong talking head clusterf$%&!? OK, thanks. We knew that. Actually, I have three points to make that I don’t think you will read elsewhere:

1) The Republicans have a point.

To listen to the left, you would think the right wingers doing the shutting are just pure evil merciless idiots akin to cancer cells unaware that if they kill the host they die too. Well, here’s news for the democrat-libs ( that’s an old Agnew term I kind of miss ): The right knows what it is doing, and it makes sense for them to do it this way. They want, as hard as this is for some of us to understand, to not have Obamacare. They want not to have Obamacare so bad they are willing to go all the way to not have it. They really think that adding all these layers of bureaucracy and requirements and redistribution of wealth will bloat up the government, not really fix anything, and cost us acres of money and quality of care. And, well, they have a point. So let’s not demonize them for demonizing us ( for demonizing them… ). They honestly believe the future of America is at stake. So let’s grand them that. It’s not such an affront. They’re fighting for what they want. It’s just like war, like it should be.

2) The whole debate is retarded.

The way we are conducting the conversation is itself such a bigger problem than the content! The fact that we no longer have debate, that we can’t discuss, that’s a far bigger danger and cost and debility, than even Obamacare itself. I’m referring the screaming back and forthness of 100% of the media. At least in the 70’s there were a handful of reflective shows with hour long formats where subjects would be treated in some depth. We got none of those now.

3) The Republicans have a lot in common with the Taliban.

And I’m not even saying that’s a bad thing. But if you push my argument in #1, that all’s fair in this kind of war, then you start realizing that the Taliban have a point too. They don’t want the world to become the modern world you and I know. And they have some really good reasons for this. The world kind of sucks and its going to destroy itself very soon, for starters. So if you believe that something has to be stopped at all costs, then all bets are off, whether you’re a right wing tea bagger bashing Obamacare, or an ultra-conservative Taliban bashing everything.

But really, the point I’m making is that the right, right here in the US, is perfectly happy and willing to let the country burn, because in their view, it’s burning anyway. So,
they’ve adopted the behavior of the Taliban. In a sense, they’re terrorists. They are just going to drag Obamacare down. They will never get a clean vote, but they will just keep sniping, shooting, attacking it. They’re motto: Don’t stop. Never stop. Attack! That’s their tactic. So let’s see it for what it is and stop acting all galled and such. Let’s just be like OK, so you guys are a fact of life, we get it, you’re just gonna abuse the levers of democracy and smash into it with everything you got.

OK, fine, if you guys are going to go Kamikaze, then we’re going wide. My suggestion: don’t take them head on with these issues. Rather, fix how democracy works and deal with the issues second. So, my agenda would be, first thing, fix the filibuster. Second, fix Citizens United. We the true patriots are calling a time out on “the fight.” Whatever it may be. We’re going to circle our wagons, realize WE are under siege, on the radical far side by the extremists that will resort to supporting or enjoying terrorism all the way to the outright terrorists. And it is with democracy that we will fight the far right, the Tea Party, that says one strong country, united, right or wrong, powering forward with no remorse or consciousnesses about the rest of the world. Amen.