Pat Caddell, committed Democrat and political film consultant…(SNIP)…perfectly articulated what’s broken in politics today: government no longer operates by the consent of the governed, it’s rigged against the ordinary citizen by lobbyists, special interests, and corruption, and as a Gallop poll announced today, two-thirds of Americans believe Congress cares more about retaining their power, even to the detriment of the country, than they do about serving and preserving the country.
Caddell called such sentiment a “pre-revolutionary condition” and said, “this country is on the verge of an explosion.”
No argument on the level of corruption or the fact that government is not really representing the interests of its citizens.
How does Caddell get from there to proving that the “country is about to explode”? This seems like hyperbole or overheated rhetoric. There are definitely a lot of angry, frustrated people. But actually I’m quite amazed at how peaceful and willing to work within the systems most Americans still are. Including those who own firearms and uphold the 2A.
Although I admit to being a “light prepper” I am not really sure that we are THAT close to an “explosion.”
Why? Well…things are still pretty good for most people. They still drive their SUVs, watch 300 channels, have I-phones and dine out.
Once the unemployment reaches around 25-30%, the food goes way up in price, the gasoline doubles in price in the next 4 years (like it did over the last 4 years) THEN…we might see an explosion.
But right now…forget it…still too many people living too well.
We are getting closer, though and it WILL happen…I’ll give you that.
Along these lines, but not specifically related to the article, I am in total agreement. The more that im wrapped up in all this, listening to radio talk, watching tele. news broadcasts, reading blogs, talking with people…the more im filled with a deeper unease that overshadows 2A outcomes or fiscal cliffs. Increasingly, the discussions between conservatives and liberals shifts into discussions on morals and beliefs. Those are the makings of perceived certainty; historically, some pretty awful decisions were made based on that justification.
“Crony capitalism” and “corporations in bed with corrupt govt” are really describing fascism. And that is what I think is trying to emerge in our country today. Hard fist of govt through massive regulation and legislation of every detail of life: mandatory health care with prison terms for noncompliance, disarming the population, seizing property, TSA, and not just at airports but trial runs with them at roadblocks and train stations, etc.
This heavy burden of regulations with harsh punishments leads to corruption and buying of favors from those who can afford it: the large corporations which are more than happy to cooperate in exchange for exclusions or exceptions. Look at the travesty of banks not only getting off Scot free from bad investments but actually being handed massive sums to cover those bad gambling bets AND buy out their competitors. There are dozens more examples with GM, Chrysler, solar, etc.
In Nazi Germany it took about 15 years from the emergence of fascism to the point of no return. There was no explosion of protest because enough people benefited from still having jobs that they turned a blind eye to those being crushed by the boot heel of the State.
Sadly our country is headed in this direction. Goebbels would salivate to have a press and education system so accommodating as we have today, and not even through constant threat but willingly and enthusiastically trumpeting the fascist message. Either we will slowly boil away our freedoms under the grindstone of Govt regulation and punishment, or the State will overstep its abuse enough to set off an explosion of protest and civil disobedience. A gun ban could be one of those tripwire events. Seems inevitable that something will happen but it may take a few more years, or it could happen suddenly. That uncertainty is what is driving a lot of the concern right now.
Fair question, which I cannot answer to either of our satisfaction…Nonetheless, I confer greater weight to his statements than simple “generalization” due to his professional expertise. I live in Northwestern Wisconsin, up here, his observation fits to a T!
I know many people whom I have spoken with in Arizona and other places have stated they the government interference in our daily lives, their ineffectual leadership and inability to accomplish anything is making people angry.
Now we have an assault on the 2nd Amendment mostly by groups and people who think they have a mandate to rule the country as they see fit. Not to mention things like the President giving pay raises to idiots who are doing nothing, huge debts, etc… etc…
I also think that many people feel the President and the AG have done alot of harm when it comes to race relations as well.
I don’t believe I’ve yet commented on any thread pertaining to the current climate of things in the USA. With that said, I agree with brickboy. I may be wrong, but I feel it will be many years before any “explosion.” There’s a lot of chips that are going to have to fall into place first. Then again, I’ve been known to be wrong once or twice in my life. Another note- Caddell may be a Dem, but I’ve always thought him to USUALLY very sensible and straightforward. Again, I may be wrong.
I agree. The more I learn about our governed right now, the more disgusted I become, but there are just too many people that are happy in their ignorance for anything serious to happen yet. There may very well be some shit going down depending on the scope of any ban, but I don’t think it’ll piss off enough of the country to actually do much in the long run.
The other thing I left out on why I think the “revolution moment” is still quite a ways off:
We have a mainstream media that is constantly telling everyone that the “recovery” is on. They also downplay or chose to not report on the bad things that are going on like credit downgrades and other economic news. Basically…any economic news that does not help the current administration gets left out or reported to make it seem as if it is the fault of Bush or the “mean ol’ GOP controlled House.”
There is also no education in public schools on how deficits work and the dangers of fiat currencies. So the younger people are clueless to what is going on in the economic world.
THAT is a huge factor on why the “explosive moment” is still a very long ways off. Right now, John Q. Public thinks that…
A: America is in “recovery mode”
B: the unemployment rate is 7.8% and going down
C: the mess we are in is because of Bush
D: Obama is cleaning up Bush’s mess and this takes time
As Patrick Swayze said in the movie Roadhouse, " its going to get worse before it gets better ." Unfortunately IMHO, (and I hope I am wrong), the same phrase could be said about this country, with the exception of the words, before it gets better. I always try to be positive about things, but unless something new and big happens to drive the economy in the future and it creates a lot of decent paying jobs, I don’t think it will ever get any better. For me this old Merle Haggard song appears to be the way the country is headed.
When the guns are banned, gas doubles in price in the next 4 years (like it just did) and people’s credit cards stop working…THEN the explosion will begin.
