“It’s all bleak.  I don’t think we can hope until we grow up.”  Chris Hedges

They act like they have a mandate. They say that they have a mandate. The American People have spoken. That’s what they say.

With that, the Republican majority in the government is setting out to destroy the America that we know. Their vision is

• Healthcare for all – gone
• Social Security – gone
• Medicare – gone
• Medicaid – gone
• Environmental protection – gone
• Fair elections – gone
• Education – limited
• Surveillance – increased
• Police power – increased
• Worldwide military intervention – increased
• (what they call) Christian Values – universal

And most importantly

Rich Lives Matter

However…

There is no mandate. Sure, the majority in congress is Republican. The president is Republican.

Perhaps one might consider that a mandate except that their majority is not a majority of the US population. It is merely a majority of the folks who voted for Congress and a majority of the Electors who represent an unbalanced electoral system.

The Republican party wins largely through documented voter suppression tactics and gerrymandering.

The Democratic party loses largely through acting like a division of the Republican party and using Republican tactics to ensure that the ordinary people don’t take their very profitable and powerful positions. (They appear to be content with losing them on their own.)

The elephant in the room (the metaphorical elephant, NOT the Republican elephant) is the 45% of the population who did not vote in 2016.

The candidate who has the most money is virtually ensured of winning. Both parties get their money from the large corporations. They are paid well to do what is best for the corporations. The corporate media tell people who will win a given election based on the size of their “war chest,” much of which is used to pay corporate media to publish their disingenuous message.

Many people are apathetic because they don’t understand the point of voting.  They are convinced, and rightfully so, that campaign promises are lies and all politicians are on the take. Others would vote for a candidate that would represent them were there such a candidate. Both parties offer candidates that represent rich people, adding to the number of people who don’t see any point to voting.

A significant number of people don’t vote because they can’t. They can’t vote because of a number of voter suppression tactics, generally on the part of the Republican party. It is interesting to note that the Democratic party use similar tactics against a progressive movement in the party (once upon a time the whole point of the Democratic party).

Is there real apathy or just disdain for the system? The number and size of opposition marches and the number and size of opposition organizations should demonstrate clearly that apathy isn’t the problem. The establishment system has finally gone too far. They have done so in an era of instant communication that has not been available for previous elections. People can readily identify the deception and outright lies that both parties feed through their corporate media partners. People can also see that the America we know is no longer being eroded, it is being hacked up and sold to the highest bidder.

Given the number of disenfranchised who voted Democratic merely as the perceived lesser of two evils, the number of disenfranchised who didn’t vote because they refused to choose the lesser of two evils, and the number of disenfranchised who didn’t vote because it was prohibited or otherwise made virtually impossible, there is no way that the Republicans can claim that they have a mandate. There is also no way that the Democratic party can claim a mandate to remain a puppet of corporate power.

Change is coming.

The city was burning to the ground and the people were suffering.
The Emperor was chagrined because the A string on his fiddle was out of tune.
Caveat Emperor

 

-30-

W