Yes, Pogo, America is its own worst enemy. It's been nearly a year since the election. There can be little debate that we have a President and Congress that are dedicated conspiracy-minded xenophobic bigots, anti-immigrants, anti-intellectuals, anti-science and expertise deniers, and anti-institutional plutocratic socio-economic authoritarians who are quite interested in establishing an oligarchic and White Evangelical rule of law. That's a whole bunch of contrarian variables, but it's true. We really are in a major mess, one of the real tipping points in our history. So, to paraphrase the Talking Heads, "how did we get here?"
Although our country is 241 years old, the causative problems that beset us are, again with the Talking Heads, "same as it ever was" although now they're nearly the worst we've experienced. It's just that we collectively are seeing our current dysfunctional national scene with Media-and-Internet-enlightened eyes.
So let's take a quick stroll through some of the parts of American history that reveal our long-standing strands of internal divisions! (And give the Talking Heads a listen while we review...) Meanwhile, Daily Kibitz readers who take pride in our studious use of fact-based links should note that this post won't have much this time - it's history, you can Google it!
We've NEVER been a monolithic nation. Even during the War of Independence, the colonial population was riven between the Revolutionists and the Loyalists. When we weren't fighting the British, we were fighting each other. It continues to this day!
Our Constitution (and subsequent official society) was created after much debate and compromise. In addition to establishing the functions of a democratic republic and rights of its citizens, the issue of Slavery was codified. Each slave was represented as 3/5ths of a human. States were able to determine if they'd allow slavery. Some did. Such "slave states" based their economies and societies on the backs of these involuntary servants. White Supremacy had become enshrined.
The notion of States' Rights versus a National Government animated much confrontation through the 19th century. South Carolina wanted to secede from the Union back in 1832 (because of federal tariffs on its slave-based economy) but was unsuccessful. As Abolitionist sentiment rose in the North, pro-slavery protectionism became a part of the pre-Civil War dialogue.
Meanwhile, in 1840, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote in Democracy in America that Americans were freedom-loving, but anti-intellectual: "I know no country in which, speaking generally, there is less independence of mind and true freedom of discussion than in America... In America the majority has enclosed thought within a formidable fence." Regarding slavery, he commented, "everybody feels the evil, but no one has courage or energy enough to seek the cure."
As America expanded westwards, new and potential states considered whether to allow slavery. The territory of "Bloody Kansas" became a literal battleground as pro-slavery interests imported Southeners and their slaves while Abolitionists responded in kind. Debates raged across the nation. In Congress, Senator Charles Sumner was nearly beaten to death by a Congressman from South Carolina following an anti-slavery speech. It is regarded as one of the breakdowns that lead to the Civil War:
Speaking of breakdown of civil discourse, we have John Brown, the radical abolitionist who entered Kansas to stop the state from becoming Slave. His idea was to kill slave-owners, and he succeeded. He followed up by escaping to Virginia where he hatched the idea of arming slaves throughout the South, leading them in a mass rebellion. He made this attempt by raiding the U.S. Arsenal in Harper's Ferry. His bloody raid failed and helped launch the Civil War.
Of course there were less radical expressions happening, but American divisions were on full display. The "Know-Nothings" were a popular political party of the time. Their platform was based mostly on xenophobic Anti-Immigration positions and conspiracy theories such as the Pope taking over the nation. Calling Alex Jones and InfoWars!
When it appeared that Slave State expansion into the West would be tempered, and Abraham Lincoln - viewed as an Abolitionist sympathizer - was elected President by a minority of voters (39.8%), the South decided to call it quits and form their own country. But the North wouldn't let them. The result was not good for civil discourse:
The South lost. Afterwards, the Lincoln-less North sought to "clean-up" the South by initiating long-term martial law (the Reconstruction) while imposing a kleptocracy (Carpet-baggers). White southerners seethed as they saw former slaves given land and resources... and the vote. They responded by forming the Ku Klux Klan. Eventually, the Federal army left the South, leaving its citizens to reconstruct themselves. This resulted in the rise of Jim Crow laws, or Southern Apartheid.
Meanwhile, the American economy experienced the Industrial Revolution (though the South remained mostly agricultural). The great business leaders of the age - the Robber Barons - used their enormous wealth to create laws and the governmental muscle to enforce them. The media of the time was owned by these same gentlemen. The jobs were, too. To speak about such things as forming a union to fight unfair practices was difficult in this Gilded Age. Citizens were set against each other to go along or resist. The US had become something of a closed society.
During this time, public schools continued to flourish. By the turn of the 20th Century, there were more public than private schools. More people could receive an education. As World War 1 approached, cities grew through industrial proliferation. Unions finally became a real thing. The economic tide was lifting most boats. Except those in the Deep South. The release of the silent film blockbuster, "The Birth of a Nation", which depicted the fall and rise of the South in the form of the KKK, created a whole new surge in nativist racism and Klan membership throughout the country:
Throughout all this, the fear of "The Other" had taken form in numerous anti-immigrant actions, both legal and not. Irish, Italian, Slavs, Jews, Chinese... most groups not White Anglo-Saxon Protestant experienced rough times. This fear extended to religions and political ideologies not formed on our own soil. And they all represented a threat to native employment, or so it was represented, as it is today.
Following the traumas of the Depression and World War 2, the US was mostly united. Except for The South. Jim Crow laws continued to limit Blacks in their ability to live decent, empowered lives. The Great Migration of southern Black Americans seeking work and better lives in Northern cities created racial antipathy in white neighborhoods there. Sleazy operators created the "blockbusting" phenomena, designed to frighten white homeowners into selling their places cheap; these same places were sold, high, to arriving Black families. Racial animus spiked as the Civil Rights movement surged into the late 1950's and early 60's.
Then came "The 60's" and a societal breakdown lead by the Viet Nam War, Civil Rights actions and the expansion of Feminism. Class resentment became manifest as "inferior" players entered the workplace. Institutions became weakened as revelations regarding the true rationale for Viet Nam was exposed in the Pentagon Papers. Things had become Officially Wobbly. Watergate delivered another body blow against trust in the government. Older Americans joined Baby-Boomers in becoming alienated with societal institutions.
Republicans had also begun to woo White Evangelicals, so predominant in the South. By the time the Reagan Administration was revealed to have illegally sold arms to Iran so it could funnel forbidden cash proceeds to Contras in El Salvador (another blow to government trust), White Evangelicals were in the deep pocket of the GOP. This further cemented the direction of the party, one that mimicked the absolutist qualities of Evangelical church doctrines.
Following the Reagan Years, his former Director of Communications, Roger Ailes, launched Fox News. It became the unofficial Propaganda outlet for the Republican Party and Pissed Off White People. The Politics of Destruction that was introduced by President George H.W. Bush's advisor, Lee Atwater, was perfected by George W. Bush's advisor, Karl Rove. Nihilistic political bomb-thrower, Newt Gingrich, became Speaker of the House. Any remaining Republican practitioners of principles in politics were being forced to the sidelines. It had become a Party over Country, and an opponent was the enemy. Meanwhile, the Clinton Impeachment created more institutional rot.
The government's response to 9/11 created a profoundly deep reactionary racist and religious backlash that is still powerfully present today. Even more significantly, the official reasons for entering the Iraq War were fundamentally fallacious, adding to more distrust in the federal government, and widening divisions in society.
Rollbacks in budgets and removal of government regulation safeguards designed to prevent the effects of Ruthless Capitalism helped grease the way for The Great Recession. Working Class and Middle Class workers were hit hard. Their resultant struggle added to their woes of not having advanced economically for 30 years -- roughly the time that Republican administrations had sidelined unions. Their economic pain was compounded by watching Big Bankers walking away with Federal money to keep their banks - and the US Economy - afloat while homeowners across the country foreclosed in record numbers. It reeked of wrong and entrenched resentments.
Jobs that vanished never re-appeared. The world and domestic economy had made adjustments. Full time work with benefits became tougher to get. It's now a Part-Time World. White workers who had been treading water for decades found themselves in the same big pond as immigrants and native People of Color. And they didn't like it one little bit. So rather than rail against the 1% who have gamed the system, they reserve their wrath against those who they think might be getting ahead of them.
Into this dynamic enters the Supreme Court ruling on Citizens United. The result was unleashing unlimited amounts of money that can be supplied to political organizations. This has animated extremely wealthy conservative ideologues like the Koch Brothers, the Scaifes and the Mercer Family. They have contributed oodles of millions, a king's ransom, to Republican political action committees and murky organizations that promote their strict and libertarian world view. They bought themselves a political party. The stage was set for the unbelievable to happen.
Our President is a horrible person and personally represents the worst aspects of humanity. He has connected with a base of poorly informed, indoctrinated, bigoted faith-based voters who have been groomed through the years for this moment.
Events have helped with their collapse into active hostility towards a progressive national community. But they drank the nativist Kool-Aid a while ago. In fact, this conflicting and not delicious Kool-Aid has been a part of the nation's DNA, as our now not-so-quick-stroll has revealed.
What can we do about it? Is there some future time travel device that created a Butterfly Effect for us? It took a long time to get to where we are now. It is not going to be easy to change for the better. But we don't have a choice, do we?
Now, to help us all collect our resolve as we enter the weekend, let's enjoy this great and powerful piece by Les McCann and Eddie Harris. Yes, the incomparable "Compared To What?" OK, it's a little long. But it is really pertinent to the climate of today. Here's what you should do:
Use the first couple of minutes to assemble the ingredients for a tall glass of something special. Begin the mixing while Les McCann begins his rumble about "The Goddamn Nation". Let the song work its magic. You'll be moving and shaking in no time! It'll be fun!! And here are the lyrics so you can sing along:
http://www.allthelyrics.com/lyrics/les_mccann/compared_to_what-lyrics-1210340.html
Right!!
