The American conundrum

The American state of mind is truly fascinating. On one hand there is an extreme superiority complex. On the other, there is such a deep naivete that no other country on the planet can probably boast similar. The two combined have led us to the current sad state of affairs. Here's how I see it:

Rumsfeld and Cheney, but mostly Rumsfeld, would be dictators by now, if it wasn't for the amazingly resilient and effective government system in place in this country. What those founding fathers put together is truly amazing, and merits much respect. Without their forethought we as a nation would never have survived and thrived as we have. And now there is an attempt to undermine the very thing that has enabled this country to survive for so long.

The war, the lies, the use of occurences beyond their control to justify their own agenda, all these things have come together to shed light on the ugliest side of this country. The stagnation and corruption in its highest levels. The pursuit of personal freedoms, successes, and wealth that has been a cornerstone of what this country stands for has been corrupted and twisted into an ugly beast by opportunists who realized that the system can be worked to their advantage. The fact that this country has always maintained a moral high ground (for better or worse) has now come into question.

The rest of the world no longer has the patience with the US. While the US meddled in much of 20th century history, no non-fanatic would ever say that the US isn't following a virtuous path. Here's the part about naivete. The virtuous path isn't always the right path, unfortunately, but this country fails to make that distinction in much of it's attitudes and behavior. But, more on that later. The fact is, this is the first administration to publicly get questioned on its morality. This is the first time in a long while that America is no longer the obnoxious self-important cousin from across the pond. They're now plain wrong, and acting immorally, evilly. That's a sharp turn for the worse. It's one thing to get laughed at for being obese and wearing tacky clothing, and acting like an idiot when visiting another country, it's entirely another to be shunned because you are an oppressor.

The problem is, the country's people coupled with the government system in place allow for this. That's the good and the bad of it. The people are naive. They believe that there is no propaganda, or are completely unaware of its existence. Propaganda is something that belongs in the oppressive totalitarian or communist regimes of the world, of course! As any immigrant can tell you, Americans are amazingly blind to the effects and influences of propaganda. When you live in an oppressive regime, you learn very quickly how to filter out the BS, and get the facts through the underground news networks. You learn to be distrustful of the official party line, and in so being, you in large part neutralize the effects of forced propaganda. In the US none of these factors exist. The American people are taught to trust and believe in their governments, and are taught to be forthright in their information processing. As a result they are deeply under the influence of the media, which is then used as a highly effective propaganda tool by those in the know. And Rumsfeld and Cheney are very much in the know.

So, you have a country full of people who believe whatever the government tells them. This is the bad, as witnessed by the universal support for a war with a completely irrelevant (to US political affairs) country based on fed information that was known to be wrong by the rest of the world the moment it was publicized. Witnessed by the willing public support of a bufoon in office manipulated by a marionette by those with real power and influence. Witnessed by ridiculous policies and missteps on various fronts, that were all glossed over and exused somehow. In any European country, the series of mistakes made by the American administration would have already resulted in a dismissal of the current government, and an institution of a new one. Not so here, where Bush and his cronies have recently regained their poll standings thanks to a widespread smear and fear campaign leading up to November elections.

How's that for a new slogan, to counter the "cut and run" rhetoric from the White House? Smear and Fear. Seems to fit very well.

On the other hand, you have a government system that, though being pushed to its limits, is holding strong, and shows hope for the future of this country and the world. A distribution of power that prevents a bunch of cowboy yahoos from doing whatever they feel like, a judicial system that's mostly independent of political affiliation, and a congress that, while completely in disarray, can still prevent some of the biggest mistakes from being made. The American system protects its citizens, allowing them to be naive and clueless, ensuring that even when they're making stupid decisions, the system and the country can survive and live on.

The system has its bad sides, of course. A terribly strong lobby that keeps politicians in its pockets is one problem. The fact that getting into politics costs huge amounts of money is another problem. There are a lot of very qualified people in this country whose only failing is that they don't have millions of dollars to spare on a campaign. As a result we get people like Bush. No one can tell me that Bush was the best possible candidate from the Republican party for the position. If that were the case it paints a very sorry picture of the make-up of the Republican party. Something that I'm sure some democrats will snicker at and agree is the case. I believe that there are quality people on both sides of the vague political divide, and don't really hold grudges against one or the other side. Both suck, and both are good, at different times and in different situations. The Democrats are spineless. The Republicans are out of touch with reality. Both sides are corrupt. Both sides will do anything just to stay in office, instead of focusing on what is important: The State of the Nation. But, both sides are there to ensure that we have a working government, and both sides are being held in check by the wisdom of this country's founders.