(crossposted on five before chaos.)
In France, when they try to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62, we get this:
Workers opposed to a higher retirement age blocked roads to airports around France on Wednesday, leaving passengers in Paris dragging suitcases on foot along an emergency breakdown lane… Riot police in black body armor forced striking workers away from blocked fuel depots in western France, restoring gasoline to areas where pumps were dry after weeks of protests over the government proposal raising the age from 60 to 62.
Here in the states, as we have an ever-mounting attempt to eviscerate social programs, expand policies that favor the rich, ignore the poor and rape the environment, we get this:
This:
And, most dangerously and disturbingly, this:
Something wrong here?
JD that was great. Thanks. And you’re absolutely right about the study in contrasts. Incredible, isn’t it?
I was deeply affected by the late Neil Postman’s classic book “Amusing Ourselves to Death.” A great thinker about technology and culture, Postman zeroed in on television’s role in dumbing us down. Yet, having written this book circa 1984, Postman observed that folks looked at TV’s corrosive effect in the context of Orwell’s “1984” whereas he felt that Huxley’s “Brave New World” was a more prescient depiction of the future. Here is a jarring excerpt from Postman’s observations, and I think JD’s Study in Contrasts illustrates this wonderfully:
“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one. Orwell feared those who would deprive us of information. Huxley feared those who would give us so much that we would be reduced to passivity and egoism. Orwell feared that the truth would be concealed from us. Huxley feared the truth would be drowned in a sea of irrelevance. Orwell feared we would become a captive culture. Huxley feared we would become a trivial culture, preoccupied with some equivalent of the feelies, the orgy porgy, and the centrifugal bumblepuppy. As Huxley remarked in Brave New World Revisited, the civil libertarians and rationalists who are ever on the alert to oppose tyranny “failed to take into account man’s almost infinite appetite for distractions”. In 1984, Huxley added, people are controlled by inflicting pain. In Brave New World, they are controlled by inflicting pleasure. In short, Orwell feared that what we hate will ruin us. Huxley feared that what we love will ruin us.”
I’ve been noting this very thing from time to time, usually in between gigs at the CodePink House and great, shaking sobs. For some reason in America we’ve become collectively convinced that corporate/government power is to great to resist, demonstrations and boycotts are for France and uncivilized 3rd World Countries, and get out of the way of the TV because Mommy’s watchin’ her stories.
Century of the Self explains a lot…
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T…
…when some of us actually get off our asses and try to seriously confront this stuff (which doesn’t include voting for the Dems and thinking a majority will make things “all better” – it didn’t), Ryan does everything he can to de-legitimize what we’re doing. Sure, it’s fun to romanticize rebellion in other countries, but if you actually wanted to fight the “ever-mounting attempt to eviscerate social programs [and] expand[ing] policies that favor the rich, ignore the poor and rape the environment,” you’d be helping to build the separatist movement. As it is, your continued font of hot air has made it clear that, despite your oh-so-cool radical posturing, you’re all talk and no meaningful action. It’s great to bitch about how lazy and apathetic other Americans are, but what are you actually doing to confront the immensely corrupt empire, military-industrial complex, and corporate control of politics which lies at the root of what you bemoaned in this post? Attacking others’ work isn’t enough; what are you doing that is CONstructive and systemic? Until you have a meaningful answer to that question, posts like this coming from you are DEEPLY hypocritical.