Friday, January 21, 2005

Great Moments in "'Murican Freedom"

The juxtaposition of the Chimperor talking about Freedom (27 times) and Liberty (15 times) and the repression and mocking of those who deign criticize his continuing "bubble boy" perpetual war policy is out there for all to see (if they are allowed to by the media).

And not just to allow me the opportunity to repeatedly type "juxtaposition".

To me, a key distinction between "some" conservatives (perhaps most) and "some liberals" (definitely most) seems to be this:

The Conservative: "Freedom and Liberty in 'Murica have been fully realized and then some. We may have too much freedom in stuff I, a conservative, don't like (what with the Affirmative Action, the multiculturalism, the tolerance, the porn)"

The Liberal: We still have a long way to go to fully obtaining freedom & equality, and keep giving me more of that sweet, sweet porn...okay, that last part was me only.

This distinction was fully realized yesterday. Both James Wolcott (a man I will pretend to know and with whom I will pretend to be on friendly collegial terms, you know like how "me & 'the Edge'" are tight) and Lance Mannion made note of this disconnect in varying blogposts.

This is one of the great memory farts of right-wingers. So important for them is it that 'Murica be perfect. America to a James Dobson type is a poor virgin girl lying prostrate, waiting to be repeatedly raped by socialized medicine, legalized buggery, and Hillary Clinton's satanic cankles. While these conservatives may choose to denying it, repression and profound prejudice (against non-fundamentalists) is a constantly revisited error. A decent progressive can love America warts & all, but at least they recognize the warts.

Some conservatives on the other hand can manage to take bigoted grudges and past repression and combine them into arguing 'hey that was a good idea'.

For example, the shame of this:


and this:


turns into a money making opportunity like this:


Or scenes like this...


Become scenes like this...


Seeing some of the media coverage of this event, how the protesters were marginalized, and made sport of, by reporters salivating at what spreads will be up at the various corporately underwritten Balls made it clear again. The press is no more than the perpetuator of this idiocy.

It is up to us now, and us alone. We have only marginalized voices of protest (this blog being amongst the most marginal) when will our country, for at least a period of time, live up to its ideals again both within and without its borders?

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