On this morning’s editorial page. the Reformer quoted the philosopher, Richard Rorty on our democratic institutions:
Rorty said that after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, "it became clear that the political right would try to substitute the 'global war on terrorism' as an excuse not only for keeping the national security state intact but for undermining the political institutions of the old democracies. I was terrified that the Bush administration would carry American public opinion with it, and would succeed in brushing the liberties of the citizen aside."
And:
“…sooner or later, some terrorist group will repeat 9/11 on a much grander scale. I doubt that democratic institutions will be resilient enough to stand the strain."
Further, the Reformer quoted General Tommy Franks:
Franks said that if terrorists somehow got hold of a nuclear, chemical or biological weapon and used it against a U.S. city, we would lose the "freedom and liberty we've seen for a couple of hundred years in this grand experiment that we call democracy," and that such an attack would lead Americans "to question our own Constitution and to begin to militarize our country in order to prevent a repeat of another mass-casualty-producing event, which in fact, then begins to unravel the fabric of our Constitution."
The Reformer went on to say:
This has been the fear we have lived with since 9/11 -- that we are one catastrophic attack away from martial law and the end of our constitutional form of government. And when an Army general and a liberal philosopher end up sounding the same notes regarding the health and resilience of our democratic institutions, there is cause for concern.
That concerns grows when one considers how diligently the Bush administration has worked over the past six years to pave the way for martial law.
Paranoid thinking? The editorial then examined a number of issues suggesting that this is exactly what is happening. I’m not going to recount them here. I strongly suggest you go out and buy a paper and read what they say yourself. If you can’t, go here: http://www.reformer.com/editorials/ci_6542863 (Martialing our Constitution).
Fantasy? How about this quote:
"The greatest threat now is 'a 9/11' occurring with a group of terrorists armed not with airline tickets and box cutters, but with a nuclear weapon in the middle of one of our own cities." -- Dick Cheney on Face the Nation, CBS, April 15, 2007
Besides Cheney himself, what terrorists have access to nuclear weapons in our cities?
Like it or not, it is not far fetched to describe the present state of our republic as a “Security State”. And one that appears to be sliding headlong towards a Fascist Military Dictatorship. Though the Reformer might suggest this idea, the “Mainstream Media” utters not a word. The Internet is full of warnings, but we are inclined to believe that if the New York Times or MSNBC doesn’t report on something, it doesn’t exist.
We can’t expect the President and the Republicans to do anything about this. It’s their show. They’ve worked long and hard to get where they are. They and their backers are profiting enormously, and profiteering beyond the ability of any of us to comprehend.
The Neocons are thirsting for a nuclear war with Iran and the resulting American Empire they envisioned in their monumental ninety page document :“Project for a New American Century” (available on the internet at www.newamericancentury.org; a summary is available at http://www.ecapc.org/pnac.asp ). Every American should be aware of what this says.
To expect the Administration to roll over and let the Democrats take control in 2008 is disingenuous. Martial Law will necessarily place the elections on indefinite hold. The pieces are in place. Why shouldn’t Bush declare it?
The Democrats don’t seem interested in the only Constitutional remedy given to us: Impeachment. Are they complicit? I don’t know. Impeachment will be impossible once Martial Law is declared.
That leaves it up to “We the People”. WE have to begin at the local level. WE have to start meeting: Conservatives, Libertarians, Progressives; everybody. Lobbying and political theater may help if we can convince our legislators that their jobs are in jeopardy should they persist in inactivity. WE have to start talking and organizing…NOW!
I’ve set up an email address to help coordinating. If you have any ideas, feel free to go to brattpats@gmail.com