In times of strife, seek solace in our history. Certainly, this is a bleak time. But is this the only time that Patriots and Rebels have faced blight? It is only the hindsight of history that assures us that abolitionists or suffragists would succeed. They had no assurances. So, when we face uncertainty, remember that within every crisis is an opportunity.
And within history lies the seeds of our success. In 1972, George McGovern represented the last great liberal hope against an unjust war, propagated by a sniveling tyrant. And he lost! And the people, who had progressed far more into disillusionment then our laconic generation has done, were right to feel desperate, hopeless, and fated for Armageddon.
And then...
Begin the drumbeat. If you listen closely, you can hear the Internet march.
Diebold! Diebold! Diebold!
It's perfectly marketable, with a distinctive name that only begins to encapsulate the complexity of what transpired. As all great Presidential scandals must be. And it's easy enough to digest. "Bush's friends operated the election machines that gave Bush extra votes in Florida and Ohio." And it's true.
Diebold, Mr. President. What about Diebold?
The Nixon Administration's political demise was complete within 2 years, because Patriots within his administration recognized the interminable disaster that had befallen their beloved country. It was buoyed by a press that had finally begun to tire of their constant manipulation by a dishonest administration. And it was undone by the blind arrogance of those in power.
We have all of those things!
Diebold! Diebold! What did you know, George W. Bush, and when did you know it?
When the trumpets of scandal finally blare into every home in America, the system shakes. Granted, it hasn't crumbled in the past. But even superficial reform, access to suppressed information, and a renewed sense of public skepticism would be grand victories in the battle for freedom.
And we can always strive for more. What if we got a hateful amendment repealed due to voter fraud? What if we got an illegitimate Commander in Chief put on trial for war crimes?
It'll start small.
"Diebold...What's that?"
But it will gain momentum.
Scandal is in the air. And with scandal comes some righteous indignation from those people who seem to be awfully righteous about a lot of things.
Sure, there's a lot of misinformed people in this country. But if you say it to them straight, they may start to get it.
"The president's friends ran the machines that gave Bush extra votes in Florida and Ohio. He cheated. Ask him about Diebold."
And, most importantly, there is a majority of people in this country who do not support George W. Bush. I include, of course, those who are regularly disenfranchised to such an extent that they don't even try to vote.
After the election, I visited family members who (frustratingly) represent typically misinformed middle America.
"Was it rigged?" they all asked me. Even the Republicans.
Sound the alarm. Begin the call. People will respond.
Bush cheated. You knew in your bones that Kerry won. It's the reason you felt so nauseous on November 3.
Diebold, George Bush. What about Diebold?
Smarter despots have been undone by less. Listen closely, and you can hear the internet begin to rumble.
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The Bush administration is filled with nuts and criminals, nutty criminals, and criminal nuts. Of course, most politicians on the national scale are at least a little bonkers or corrupt -- it's a given, if you see yourself as empowered to write laws millions of people must follow or face arrest.
But the Bush administration presents a unique, vivid danger to freedom in America.
Bush and his cohorts hate freedom, with a passion.
That's the underlying message behind almost every policy decision they've made.
It's not just their disinterest in civil rights, women's rights, and common sense. It's not just the infamous PATRIOT Act, which gives police unprecedented powers to snoop into your personal affairs, without any warrant or reason. It's not just that the Bush gang has misappropriated America's military might and killed enough Iraqis to fill dozens of toppling World Trade Centers. It's not just that they disregard the Geneva Conventions and America's Bill of Rights, or that Bush says God speaks through him. It's all of this, and so much more we can't begin to list it all.
They're killing democracy in America.
In 2000, to take power, the Bush campaign sued to stop votes from being counted. Republicans won several races they were expected to lose in 2002, and now Bush has been "re-elected," despite late polls and exit polls saying otherwise. Hmmm ...
Evidence point to mysterious "voting machines," manufactured by outspoken Republicans, machines with Grand Canyonesque security holes that let vote totals be tweaked until the right candidate wins.
But you won't read or hear about this in the mainstream media, unless it's with an anchorman's chuckle about tin foil hats and who shot JFK.
Them's the facts, and the question is asked: What should we do about it?
Practically speaking, there's not much we can do, when every principle that made America great is flushed down the toilet by an administration that's stolen the White House twice. We can't topple these criminals through votes, when the votes aren't counted and the news isn't reported.
What we can't do is sit by and do nothing.
So what's the answer to the question, what should we do? We can challenge the Bush gang's legitimacy through our one remaining weapon: The truth. Tell the truth, to anyone who'll listen.
Put it in your zine. Say it on-line. Write letters to the editor. Wear a button or t-shirt. Buy a bumper sticker. Tell friends and neighbors, co-workers and strangers on the bus, that the Bush administration is criminal -- charlatan, not Christian, and a greater threat to America than Saddam Hussein ever was.
A lot of people won't listen, but some will. And anyone who listens with an open mind will be receptive to the facts. When you reach someone, tell them to tell others. At some point, when the truth is whispered widely enough, it won't matter what the newscasters say or won't say. The truth will take on a life of its own.
Take some time off to watch sit-coms, play Bingo, or drink beer once in a while, because wild-eyed fanatics make a lousy first impression. But spread the word when you can, and you can spread the word today.
Don't let it go unspoken, when your government is stolen and your freedoms are whittled away.
And if you don't understand or don't accept what crimes, what theft, and what whittled freedoms we're talking about, then you're part of the problem. Please, spend an hour or two researching the facts. Is that too much to ask, for your country? Any library will have a wide selection of books by former Bush administration officials who've developed a conscience. Or if the library scares you, go on-line and Google "Bush lies" or "Bush crimes."
Be skeptical of what you find, always -- but don't tell yourself lies like "It can't happen here," because it can happen here.
It is happening here.
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