The United States government had been bushwacked. Federal office buildings, office buildings leased to the United States of America, oil pipelines, national headquarters of the country's largest corporations, movie studios, TV and radio stations, bank buildings, thousands of celebrity homes as well as residences of those in the political or corporate spotlights, and even a few military bases were now only massive mountains of wreckage.
In Washington, the President was dead, as were almost all members of Congress (including the Speaker of the House). The Vice-President was officially listed as "missing and unaccounted for", as was the Secretary of Defense. Most cabinet members were also presumed dead. Americans, unfazed by television footage of bodies being pulled from tsunami and hurricane disaster scenes in recent years, now watched in a horrific stupor as bodies of government employees, interns, and officials continued to be dragged from under the debris after months of being trapped in tombs of what were now nothing more than construction trash.
As meager rescue and retrieval efforts continued, observers noted surprisingly little looting. One renowed psychiatrist stated it was the result of what she called a "new nation-wide stress disorder." She predicted the syndrome would spread quickly throughout the land as citizens continued to be stunned by the magnitude of the havoc that had been wreaked on American soil. 'Many people will never recover from this," she remarked. "What has happened here is much more personal than the tragedies of war or natural disasters that happen thousands of miles away from our shores." Yes, there had been tragic events within our own borders before. Katrina was among the first. Then, the 2006 and 2007 hurricane seasons brought even more disaster, but only to limited geographic regions of the country.
Even those who were unaffected were affected. Many movie stars, sports celebrities, and wealthy socialites kept up appearances by staging elaborate parties thinly disguised as "benefits" or "memorials" in an effort to "celebrate life". The rich and famous seemed unable to grasp the reality that their worlds of wealth and privilege no longer existed. The media outlets that gave "entertainment news" high-profile priority could no longer be relied upon to cover the glitz and hype of "the beautiful people". People of wealth and status found themselves to be of less importance and significance. People of power and prestige babbled about, wondering why they were suddenly powerless.
Then the other shoe dropped:
A high-quality videotape mysteriously arrived at practically every local television station still able to transmit images over what remained of the airwaves. "If you can still broadcast, broadcast this." Those simple instructions were adhesively attached to each sealed package. In bright red letters on a yellow background, recipients were told to unseal their package, remove the videotape, and put it on the air. Audiotapes in similar packaging arrived at radio stations still operating across the country. Newspapers whose presses still could print newspapers were sent packages with photos and a prepared "press release" ready for publication. There was no threat - real or implied - as to what might happen if instructions weren't followed. Still, as each station manager or newspaper publisher opened each package, they inherently knew they had to carry out these simplistic instructions.
A body of exactly fifty men and women stood before the camera as the videotape began. Not one of these men or women were easily recognizable or identifiable. They all seemed to be "common" American citizens. If one were to guess their occupations, one might suspect these people to be hairdressers, small business owners, schoolteachers, single mothers on welfare, bus drivers, retail store cashiers, unemployed homeless men, fast-food restaurant assistant managers, landscape architects, college students, "down-sized" middle managers, or perhaps retired municipal workers. In alphabetical order of their last names, each individual nervously introduced themselves and identified the state in which they resided. One person representing each of the fifty states. Clearly, there was no one "leader" of this group. After the introductions, all fifty spoke the first sentence in unison, as if reciting something for a school play: "We are part of a well-organized team of patriots committed to renewing the United States of America and bringing power back to the people. We want you to join us in our patriotic effort, and invite your participation as equals." From there, the videotape went on for hours, with each of the fifty representatives speaking only when and as they so chose. Some voiced complaints about the sad state of America and how such drastic methods were necessary in order to change the status quo. Others offered fresh solutions and new ideas on how to form a "new and equal society where we can live free as our founding fathers intended us to live". Others cited articles from the Constitution, quoted from the Declaration of Independence, or spoke about the Bill of Rights. "We are all equal under the law. Within that one premise, we intend to rebuild the United States of America into the country our forefathers envisioned." The media had been instructed to broadcast the tapes at precisely the same time. Newspapers had been told to distribute copies at precisely the same time. Now, hundreds of millions of Americans were receiving the same message at the very same time. Few media executives failed to comply, mostly out of sheer fear; if this group could inflict the damage they already had inflicted, they certainly had the wherewithal and resources to retalitate if their instructions weren't obeyed.
TV viewers watched in stunned silence. Radio listeners couldn't believe their ears. The eyes of newspaper readers gobbled every word, anxious to see what the next word would be; again, the question aroused fear and anxiety in millions of United States citizens: "How could this happen...and why?"
Now, in what seemed to be a patchwork of "public meetings" set up across the country, the citizenry was invited to get involved in this new rebirth of the greatest sovereign state on the face of the Earth. It had to happen soon....before other world powers tried to overtake what they might perceive as a weakened country. It had to happen peacefully....with every American willing to stand up for his country and willing to agree that, indeed, "all men are created equal".
Fifty people, very obviously an imperceptibly small fraction of a much greater sum of individuals, were fully prepared and committed to changing America back into the true democracy the signers of the Declaration of Independence anticipated.
They would submit a "primer" of ideas, allow for a popular vote, and establish a new order of law and civility in America. It was, admittedly, an exhaustive undertaking; but, they believed that most Americans would agree there was value and worth to such a concept. It had taken decades of political corruption, governmental incompetency, lies, deceit, outright thievery, fraud, waste, inhumanity, and immorality to turn this country into the cesspool it had become. "Honorable" men and women had turned into common whores, ready to do any evil thing for a vote. Corporate executives were willing to steal employees' pensions and eliminate millions of American jobs as they watched their own compensations increase by more than 650% in twenty-five years, while average worker pay increased by a meager 6.5% in the same time frame. Pharmaceutical companies lavished billions on the medical profession, turning doctors into legal drug dealers (with the express consent of the U.S. government). Lawyers connived to turn everything to their own advantage. It no longer mattered what was right or wrong; all that mattered was rather it could possibly be interpreted as legal. Killing innocent Iraqi citizens and thousands of U.S. soldiers was acceptable because Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense, smugly once sloughed, "Stuff happens".
Nixon's paranoia polarized the country as we watched a "crook" destroy the integrity of the Oval Office. Ronald Reagan's era of "All for One, Me" and his "trickle-down economy" brought great wealth to many while it kept millions more in abject poverty. The first President Bush advocated a 'kinder, gentler nation' that ultimately bombed Baghdad, creating a glittery scintillation over the city that Americans watched on TV as if it was an international fireworks extravaganza. Bill Clinton desecrated the Oval Office when he used the wrong head to think with. But only when George W. Bush came to town did American's really begin to believe their country was being torn asunder from the inside-out. The Bush administration had no use or respect for the Constitution. Corruption and vulgar displays of unharnessed power seemed normal. Money, greed, and an absolute need for total control callously ripped away at the heart of the American ethic. It was not enough to elect a new leadership; that had been proven time and time again to do nothing more than to replace one evil with another. Voting for the "lesser of two evils" was an ineffectual means of solving America's plunge into a black hole of immorality, self-destruction and political insanity. While millions would disagree with their tactics, a deeply committed legion of common citizens would take matters into their own hands and again make America the great great nation it once was. As the plans began to unfold, average American citizens who were used to bitching about their country in barber shops and bars soon began to see why they needed to take an interest...
In Washington, the President was dead, as were almost all members of Congress (including the Speaker of the House). The Vice-President was officially listed as "missing and unaccounted for", as was the Secretary of Defense. Most cabinet members were also presumed dead. Americans, unfazed by television footage of bodies being pulled from tsunami and hurricane disaster scenes in recent years, now watched in a horrific stupor as bodies of government employees, interns, and officials continued to be dragged from under the debris after months of being trapped in tombs of what were now nothing more than construction trash.
As meager rescue and retrieval efforts continued, observers noted surprisingly little looting. One renowed psychiatrist stated it was the result of what she called a "new nation-wide stress disorder." She predicted the syndrome would spread quickly throughout the land as citizens continued to be stunned by the magnitude of the havoc that had been wreaked on American soil. 'Many people will never recover from this," she remarked. "What has happened here is much more personal than the tragedies of war or natural disasters that happen thousands of miles away from our shores." Yes, there had been tragic events within our own borders before. Katrina was among the first. Then, the 2006 and 2007 hurricane seasons brought even more disaster, but only to limited geographic regions of the country.
Even those who were unaffected were affected. Many movie stars, sports celebrities, and wealthy socialites kept up appearances by staging elaborate parties thinly disguised as "benefits" or "memorials" in an effort to "celebrate life". The rich and famous seemed unable to grasp the reality that their worlds of wealth and privilege no longer existed. The media outlets that gave "entertainment news" high-profile priority could no longer be relied upon to cover the glitz and hype of "the beautiful people". People of wealth and status found themselves to be of less importance and significance. People of power and prestige babbled about, wondering why they were suddenly powerless.
Then the other shoe dropped:
A high-quality videotape mysteriously arrived at practically every local television station still able to transmit images over what remained of the airwaves. "If you can still broadcast, broadcast this." Those simple instructions were adhesively attached to each sealed package. In bright red letters on a yellow background, recipients were told to unseal their package, remove the videotape, and put it on the air. Audiotapes in similar packaging arrived at radio stations still operating across the country. Newspapers whose presses still could print newspapers were sent packages with photos and a prepared "press release" ready for publication. There was no threat - real or implied - as to what might happen if instructions weren't followed. Still, as each station manager or newspaper publisher opened each package, they inherently knew they had to carry out these simplistic instructions.
A body of exactly fifty men and women stood before the camera as the videotape began. Not one of these men or women were easily recognizable or identifiable. They all seemed to be "common" American citizens. If one were to guess their occupations, one might suspect these people to be hairdressers, small business owners, schoolteachers, single mothers on welfare, bus drivers, retail store cashiers, unemployed homeless men, fast-food restaurant assistant managers, landscape architects, college students, "down-sized" middle managers, or perhaps retired municipal workers. In alphabetical order of their last names, each individual nervously introduced themselves and identified the state in which they resided. One person representing each of the fifty states. Clearly, there was no one "leader" of this group. After the introductions, all fifty spoke the first sentence in unison, as if reciting something for a school play: "We are part of a well-organized team of patriots committed to renewing the United States of America and bringing power back to the people. We want you to join us in our patriotic effort, and invite your participation as equals." From there, the videotape went on for hours, with each of the fifty representatives speaking only when and as they so chose. Some voiced complaints about the sad state of America and how such drastic methods were necessary in order to change the status quo. Others offered fresh solutions and new ideas on how to form a "new and equal society where we can live free as our founding fathers intended us to live". Others cited articles from the Constitution, quoted from the Declaration of Independence, or spoke about the Bill of Rights. "We are all equal under the law. Within that one premise, we intend to rebuild the United States of America into the country our forefathers envisioned." The media had been instructed to broadcast the tapes at precisely the same time. Newspapers had been told to distribute copies at precisely the same time. Now, hundreds of millions of Americans were receiving the same message at the very same time. Few media executives failed to comply, mostly out of sheer fear; if this group could inflict the damage they already had inflicted, they certainly had the wherewithal and resources to retalitate if their instructions weren't obeyed.
TV viewers watched in stunned silence. Radio listeners couldn't believe their ears. The eyes of newspaper readers gobbled every word, anxious to see what the next word would be; again, the question aroused fear and anxiety in millions of United States citizens: "How could this happen...and why?"
Now, in what seemed to be a patchwork of "public meetings" set up across the country, the citizenry was invited to get involved in this new rebirth of the greatest sovereign state on the face of the Earth. It had to happen soon....before other world powers tried to overtake what they might perceive as a weakened country. It had to happen peacefully....with every American willing to stand up for his country and willing to agree that, indeed, "all men are created equal".
Fifty people, very obviously an imperceptibly small fraction of a much greater sum of individuals, were fully prepared and committed to changing America back into the true democracy the signers of the Declaration of Independence anticipated.
They would submit a "primer" of ideas, allow for a popular vote, and establish a new order of law and civility in America. It was, admittedly, an exhaustive undertaking; but, they believed that most Americans would agree there was value and worth to such a concept. It had taken decades of political corruption, governmental incompetency, lies, deceit, outright thievery, fraud, waste, inhumanity, and immorality to turn this country into the cesspool it had become. "Honorable" men and women had turned into common whores, ready to do any evil thing for a vote. Corporate executives were willing to steal employees' pensions and eliminate millions of American jobs as they watched their own compensations increase by more than 650% in twenty-five years, while average worker pay increased by a meager 6.5% in the same time frame. Pharmaceutical companies lavished billions on the medical profession, turning doctors into legal drug dealers (with the express consent of the U.S. government). Lawyers connived to turn everything to their own advantage. It no longer mattered what was right or wrong; all that mattered was rather it could possibly be interpreted as legal. Killing innocent Iraqi citizens and thousands of U.S. soldiers was acceptable because Donald Rumsfeld, the Secretary of Defense, smugly once sloughed, "Stuff happens".
Nixon's paranoia polarized the country as we watched a "crook" destroy the integrity of the Oval Office. Ronald Reagan's era of "All for One, Me" and his "trickle-down economy" brought great wealth to many while it kept millions more in abject poverty. The first President Bush advocated a 'kinder, gentler nation' that ultimately bombed Baghdad, creating a glittery scintillation over the city that Americans watched on TV as if it was an international fireworks extravaganza. Bill Clinton desecrated the Oval Office when he used the wrong head to think with. But only when George W. Bush came to town did American's really begin to believe their country was being torn asunder from the inside-out. The Bush administration had no use or respect for the Constitution. Corruption and vulgar displays of unharnessed power seemed normal. Money, greed, and an absolute need for total control callously ripped away at the heart of the American ethic. It was not enough to elect a new leadership; that had been proven time and time again to do nothing more than to replace one evil with another. Voting for the "lesser of two evils" was an ineffectual means of solving America's plunge into a black hole of immorality, self-destruction and political insanity. While millions would disagree with their tactics, a deeply committed legion of common citizens would take matters into their own hands and again make America the great great nation it once was. As the plans began to unfold, average American citizens who were used to bitching about their country in barber shops and bars soon began to see why they needed to take an interest...
posted by Bushwacker! at 7:42 AM
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