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Neocon Bill Kristol, writes:
Are the American people war weary? Yes, to some degree. Could there be a worse prescription for American foreign policy than giving in to popular war weariness? No.
It must be frustrating to be a warmonger these days. So much effort has been made in creating worldwide U.S. hegemony. So much energy spent….so much engineering.Lets make a checklist:
- Is the American public, in general, living in a sheltered cocoon; unaware of the disgustingness of war? Check….After the Vietnam War loss, the warmongers decided that never again would the press be allowed to report what was going on for all to see. From then on, war would be something that goes on “over there”.
- Are Americans sufficiently occupied, and without the time to even worry about what goes on “over there”? Check…Taxes are everywhere, two incomes are needed, what isn’t taxed is inflated away…The worker bees are sufficiently occupied.
- When the worker bees come home, are they sufficiently entertained so as to not worry about what goes on “over there”? Check…If there’s one thing Americans are swimming in, it’s entertainment.
- Do the warmongers have what Cicero called “the sinews of war…unlimited money”? Check…They have The Federal Reserve to supply whatever money is necessary.
- Can the warmongers do whatever they want with their unlimited money, without public oversight? Check…the Pentagon may not be audited.
- The circuses are taken of, what about the bread? Check…America has the biggest Welfare State in the history of the world.
- Even though Americans are sheltered from what goes on “over there,” are they reminded to keep up their support? Check…war propaganda is everywhere (sporting events, television, cereal boxes, etc). They even let government agents touch their genitals at the airport.
With such a setup, that took so many years to perfect, what could possibly be going wrong?Bill Kristol blames Obama:
…there are many politicians all too willing to seek power and popularity by encouraging weariness rather than point out its perils. Foremost among those politicians is our current president. It’s hard to blame the American people for some degree of war weariness when their president downplays threats and is eager to shirk international responsibilities. The rot of war weariness begins at the top. One can’t, for example, be surprised at the ebbing support of the American public for the war in Afghanistan years after the president stopped trying to mobilize their support, stopped heralding the successes of the troops he’d sent there, and stopped explaining the importance of their mission.
Obama apparantly isn’t cheerleading enough; and whipping the worker bees into war fever.I have a different take.
Americans may not know what’s going on “over there” or even know where “over there” is on a map. But they do know that it’s very expensive. Ron Paul and the Internet have told them (at least) that much.
Americans also know that the U.S. economy is a total disaster.
CNBC can wave their pom-poms about a rising stock market, and the CPI can say 2% until the end of time. But the truth cannot be hidden. When Americans look at the unemployment surrounding them and the relentlessly rising bills hitting the mailbox, it’s not enough the only thing the propaganda machine can say is that ‘it’s only an illusion’.
The steel-tight system that the warmongers have crafted is eating itself alive.
The Neocons will never come to that reality.
Kristol continues:
That task of Republicans is to confront Obama on his irresponsibility, not compete with him. The task of a serious opposition party is to rally the nation to its responsibilities and long-term interests. The task of GOP political leaders is to educate the public about the dangers of the world and to inspire people to rise above their weariness.
