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Where Is The Line?

Adam Suttler

Entry posted by Adam Suttler

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If you've read my previous entry, you'll note that one of my greatest resentments is toward stupid and ignorant people. I've recently read an article over the Internet that described a series of events that exposed the true colors of the United States of America and its judicial system. To be clear, I carry no dislike for the States; I plan on applying to college there, and have no intention of slandering the nation itself. However, there are just some things about the people that run the nation that are simply appalling.

When you hear the words, "United States of America," you tend to associate it with the timeless descriptions that the nation is given: "Freedom", "Peace", "Happiness", and countless other such attributes. However, is it possible to compare and relate the nation with that of the Soviet Union, the Third Reich, or perhaps the Khmer Rouge movement in Cambodia? For those of you that are extreme patriots of your nation, who would defend it to the last man for the preservation of your "freedom", this concept is nigh impossible. If your love for your country is truly stronger that your thirst for truth, overwhelming your ability for logical and analytical thinking, I suggest you read no further in this article, if you wish to retain the image that the United States is the world's last bastion for freedom. Otherwise, continue on.

The truth is that the United States of America is not what it used to be, or should be, according to the ideals that people associate with the nation. The attributes of peace, happiness and freedom are very dim in the reality of the nation, attending to only a select few as true and evident descriptions. The majority of the country, especially during this era of economical and social hardship, can seldom apply these words to reality. Since the formation of the United States of America as a nation, every generation of Americans are involved in a military conflict, regardless of it being overseas or on the home front. The War on Terrorism has been the longest recorded war that America has and is participating in, started some 8 years ago. There is not a generation of Americans who has not in some fashion been affected by a military conflict. Peace is not an attribute that should be associated with the United States.

Happiness can be applied very roughly to its people. At this current moment, it is the only well-industrialized nation that does not offer socialized health care to its citizens, preferring to "see the money" before attending to those that require attention. If anything, this is an execution of torture upon the American people, when the system is able to deny a request of aid based simply on their personal monetary concern, and whether they'll get a large paycheck in the mail. America is killing itself from the inside, and the worst part is that those running the system are fully aware of the implications that their actions cause to the population. And they persist. Those privileged will exploit every loophole and cut every corner just to squeeze out those extra few pennies to satisfy their own greed, while those that are in need of services but cannot afford them because of this one-ended money vacuum are ignored.

The economic crisis at this point is not being dealt with as it should be. Remember that large bail-out that the Obama government gave out during his first few weeks in office. Yeah? Remember what the corporations did with that money? They handed out upwards of $100 million in bonuses to their CEOs and other executives; the very same people that caused the problem that their companies are facing are being rewarded. That's like showing your parents your latest math mark of 23%, and getting a car as a reward for your effort. Wanna know the best part? That money that was paid to these CEOs came from your tax dollars; you have, albeit indirectly, paid the CEOs of major corporations a $100 million as a bonus for bankrupting their company, laying off thousands of employees, and stripping investors of any money they had put in the company. Congratulations.

The government of the United States is said to be independent, and should be those who strive for the betterment of the country. However, the government has no real power anymore. Who is behind the government? The corporations. Without their endorsements and donations, the government would lose a large portion of their vote. The government is nothing else but a puppet for corporations to get their way, so that the rich can get richer. President Barack Obama does as the corporations ask of him; that is the reason for him giving them their bailout. Is the economy any better? Not really; it's managed to stabilize a bit, but it's still in a rut. What happened to the government working for the people? Well, not anymore, it seems.

But the thing that caused me to write all this is not those attributes, but that one word that seems to be synonymous with the United States: Freedom. This word has been used time and time again as the sole description of what the United States of America is, and what it stands for. Yet recently, nothing can be further from the truth. Since the September 11th attack on America, the concept known as Habeas Corpus, the self-defense against unlawful or unprecedented detainment, has been suspended to fight terrorism. Granted, this method may have had several positive effects on the effort against terrorism, but in turn, it has allowed the development of extreme racism and prejudice to occur, harming the American people from the inside, rather than defeating an enemy. Normal and everyday Americans, who contribute to society to their capabilities, have been deemed unsafe and un-American, and some go as far as to remark them as terrorists; since Habeas Corpus is suspended, they may be arrested, tried, and convicted without any precedent as to conclusive evidence.

It seems that the American people have less rights and freedoms than ever. Freedom of speech or expression? Are you kidding? At the present moment, it's possible to be labeled a terrorist for producing a piece of art that is contrary to the beliefs of American politics, as is the case of artist Steve Kurtz. In fact, it seems that the label of terrorist is being thrown around quite a lot lately. For example, take the case of Tamara Freeman, who in 2006 spanked her two kids on a plane when they wouldn’t stop arguing over the window seat and, in their agitation, spilled a can of tomato juice on their mother. When a flight attendant responded to the commotion, Freeman loudly employed profane language and threw her half-spilled can of juice to the floor. She was arrested and charged under the Patriot Act with committing an act of terrorism, because commotions on airplanes can now be prosecuted as terroristic activities. She was jailed pending trial for three months before, at the urging of her public defender, she pled guilty to the terror charge. She eventually lost custody of her children since, as a term of her probation, she is not allowed to leave Oklahoma, and as a convicted terrorist, she can’t fly home to Maui where her presence was required at a series of custody hearings. Based upon this, Tamara Freeman might as well be labeled as a member of Al'Qaeda, as she will be treated as one for the rest of her life, all for a bit of anger caused by her two children. The next time someone yells profanities at you, report them to the local police as an act of terrorism; don't be surprised if the accusal is taken seriously. However, there is another case that may also boggle your mind. There's last week's case of 17-year-old Michigan State University student, Zack Aslam. Zack, it seems, is a frighteningly average college freshman with an interest in skydiving. He apparently got upset after a heated discussion with another student and began to talk !@#$. Campus police haven’t released the specifics of what the 17-year-old supposedly said to his friends, but they charged him with, according to the MSU student paper, “threatening terrorism and communicating that threat to another person.” He was talking !@#$. Did I mention he was 17? Police later went to his dorm room and impounded all of his belongings. This kid’s now a terrorist.

Terrorism aside, the judicial system of America will always find some way to quell difference and individuality. Remember watching the Disney channel, and they had small commercials and series that encouraged individuality and uniqueness among people? If you try and apply this knowledge to reality, the government will put you down. In their eyes, anything that is different than the vast majority is dangerous and wrong. Such is the unfortunate case in Boulder, Colorado. Every Halloween, a group of citizens in the town gather for what is known as the Naked Pumpkin run; it's exactly what you think it is. It's a run through town butt naked, while having a carved pumpkin on your head. As public nudity is perfectly legal in Boulder, no one said they couldn't do it. However, a group of elder folk decided that they didn't like it. So they called the police in to disband the event. The cause was underlined as "indecent exposure". So complete nudity is fine, but having a pumpkin on your head isn't? It just doesn't add up. The sequel to this story: next year, the old folks called in the SWAT team to arrest the participants. In case you don't understand the stupidity of the situation, the SWAT team is usually called in when there is a dangerous armed threat in the area; these people are butt naked. Of course they have a concealed weapon! Perhaps they shoved it up their $@! for later use! To top that off, anyone participating in this event in the future is charged with committing a sexual offense, and is on a black list as a sex offender. This is a complete abuse of power by the judicial district, by all accounts. This is not the free democracy that it is supposed to be. Instead, The United States of America has equated themselves with the police states of the early Soviet Union, Nazi Germany, and Fascist Italy. They do not outright block your rights from existing; they simply institute more and more "laws" to limit your ability to function outside the prescribed box that the government provides you with.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the founding ideals of the United States of America may have been peace, happiness and freedom, but these ideals are not the foundations of modern American society. They are nothing more than perjury, corruption, greed, and totalitarianism. This is the true foundation of what America really is.

Additional Reading:

http://artvoice.com/issues/v8n45/naked_pumpkins

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com/2009/1...e-cult-of-self/

I seriously recommend that you watch this presentation by Chris Hedges; it opens your eyes on the real world, and what it is.

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Adam Suttler
Other than dictatorship, genocide, world war, and a crazy leader, we are exactly like Nazi Gemany.

World war and genocide, perhaps not. However, for the most part, Bush fit the crazy leader category, and the nation is in somewhat of a totalitarian state.

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Kzoppistan

Yep. You hit the nail on the head.

I live here, and agree with most of what you said.

Over the last 200 years corporations have slowly chipped away at their legal restrictions and managed to embed themselves in the government. Since then they have systematically gutted the economic base of the US in order to enrich themselves. Why do we have an economic collapse? Two reasons: one, deregulation of the financial sector allowed them to do the shadiest of business which came tumbling down on the people of the US and then the world, AND two, there was no other arm of production to prop up the economy. That's what happens when you ship all of your manufacturing overseas.

The US is often bit on the $@! by their good intentions, or fail to follow through on a revolutionary concept. Free trade is noble cause, but it's foolish not to see the need for some protectionist measures, otherwise we are at the mercy of those that can produce goods cheaper. Another example, after World War I, the US advocated a system of collective security for Europe. A concept that was peculiar to a group of nations that had operated on the concept of a 'balance of power' between the states, not cooperation. A good idea, but unfortunately, the US was soon swept up in an isolationist policy, created in part by the war, and bailed on its European allies. An exhausted Europe, divergent on the concept of collective security and unused to the terms, watched with horror Germany's re-emerging power and had no way to stop it. Had the US stuck around to lend a hand, things may have been different, but they didn't, and they rest, as they say, is history.

Another issue is that due to its democratic nature, there is very little long term strategy agreed upon coupled with wildly fluctuating foreign policy ideals at every election. Any ardent supporter of one political party over the other is basically so caught up in the domestic political fight that they hardly realize that either one of those organizations are so over-bloated and corrupt that that the exchange of benefit for the constituent's support and money is so grossly skewed in favor of the politician at the expense of the tax payer that it should be criminal. The republican and democratic parties have only vaguely defined ideologies, with only a few points that separate them, and, in my opinion, are nothing more than giant ticks on the wallets and minds of the people, ensuring their selected political elite receive a lifetime of easy living in a so-called 'elected' office.

If some companies were to invest even a third of what is donated to political parties into self designed programs, they would improve the country immensely.

When political progress excludes the common man or woman due to the exorbitant cost of running a campaign, freedom is no longer free. That high cost comes from special interest groups who flood their candidates with enormous money scrounged up by their base. That the amount of money is so large is not indicative of the popularity of its actions but of the deep pockets of the donors and their desires to bend the system to their own will over that of national interest.

The bane of democracy is not individualism but group think. Right now the people watch their crap TV, eat their fast food, drive their big cars, and systematically refuse to think for themselves and ignored the pending disaster, which now has struck and will continue to worsen until concrete action is taken. Instead they suck on the tit of the government, hoping Uncle Sam will fix all their problems.

Democracies are run by those that show up. When people abandon their responsibility to hold the government in check, they lose. It's what is happening now.

I was gearing up for even more, but I should probably stop now. I think my soapbox is smoking.

btw, you should read Henry Kissinger's Diplomacy for a penetrating look into the history and psychology of Europe and the US since around 1700s. I can't recommend it enough.

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