October 13, 2006

  • America For Sale

    Last night I joined some of my “left-wing” colleagues at a
    screening of “Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers”, a documentary film by Robert
    Greenwald about how “independent contractors” such as Halliburton have bilked
    American taxpayers out of billions of dollars while taking over the conduct of
    war to an unprecedented extent.  Even
    some of the interrogators at Abu Ghraib prison were what they call “khaki
    interrogators” – private contractors whom the female Brigadier General running
    Abu Ghraib appeared to be unaware of.

    Greed, of course, drives the system, and the incestuous relationship
    between our politicians and corporate America
    mitigates against any sort of Congressional oversight.

    I didn’t stick around for the discussion following the
    film.  No one was going to come up with
    any novel solutions.  We either have to
    educate ourselves and vote out the despicable neo-conservatives who are
    currently running our nation into the ground, or we have to have some sort of
    revolution or at least massive acts of civil disobedience reminiscent of the
    civil rights movement.  It’s that simple.  Or we can, I suppose, wait for Jesus to come
    back, and hope that He is not a neo-con as He has been portrayed by some.

    I don’t feel too sorry for the “small fry” independent
    contractors – ex-military personnel who went over to Iraq
    to earn six times as much as a soldier doing a similar job, and died
    there.  Their families (in the film) were
    wanting to blame Halliburton, the American government, anyone they could think
    of.  It seems to me that if you go to a combat
    zone for the purpose of transporting fuel to military bases in a “pre-emptive”
    war, you might expect to get fired upon and maybe even injured or killed.  The “small fry” knew the risks.  And they were motivated by greed, too.

    I do, however, feel sorry for the American people, who go
    without adequate health care and pay increases while Halliburton execs earn $40
    million a year on no-bid contracts that are not even performed, and drive leased
    Cadillac Escalades in the deserts of Iraq.

    But none of this is even my main point.
     

    I came home yesterday evening after seeing “Iraq For Sale”, and
    watched Nightline on TV.  And Nightline –
    deep, probing news show that it is since Ted Koppel left – had a feature on the
    dispute between a tony fashion boutique in Beverly Hills (“Kitson’s”, I believe
    it was) and one of the women’s magazines. 
    It seems that women read the magazines and see photos of celebrities wearing
    clothes and carrying purses from Kitson’s, and they want to own exactly the
    same thing.  The entire concept of Kitson’s,
    in fact, according to its founder and owner, is to make “ordinary” women (those
    with sufficient assets, that is) feel like celebrities.  Kitson’s has sued one of the women’s
    magazines, if you can believe this, because it claims that the women’s magazine,
    due to some vendetta, now blocks Kitson’s logos out of its photographs.

    Now my main point is this. 
    If we as Americans are so out of touch with our own souls that we have
    to wear whatever Paris Hilton is wearing, and have our nails done just like hers, how on earth can we expect to improve the quality of our lives in truly
    meaningful ways?  When will we find the
    time to understand what corporations
    like Halliburton are doing to our world, to resist self-serving appeals to our “terror” in order to justify “pre-emptive”
    wars, to prevent the needless deaths
    of Iraqi children and American citizens without adequate health care and the
    steady erosion of American jobs overseas and global warming?  If we allow corporate America
    to manipulate us in such utterly mindless ways…in even SMALL mindless ways…how
    can we even remotely perceive the approaching train wreck?  Do you
    see the connection    ??

    With men it’s sports, I suppose.  Just as women identify with Paris Hilton or
    whoever is the celebrity du jour, so
    men identify with their athletic teams and heroes, and feel somehow more manly
    by rooting for their favorite athletes. 
    It’s substantially the same phenomenon, and it’s mindless and illusory and
    it siphons off time and energy that is much needed for far more important
    things.

    But that’s just my opinion. 
    What’s yours?

Comments (21)

  • I couldn't agree more.  It is this numbed culture at home--and a unique anesthesia for each sub-culture--that makes our foreign policy possible.  I cringe at your prognosis re change, but you're probably right about that too.  Sheesh.  I've been wanting to see the movie...maybe one of these days when I have a big box of wine too.

  • OK John, I could have left this one alone if you hadn't taken on my sports centric lifestyle!    My manhood has been challenged and I don't like it one bit!!!  JK  Actually I am glad you didn't just point the finger at the women.  Us guys are just as guilty whether it is sports or business or whatever.  We have our heads in the sand and I don't think they are going to come out.   And I think that when Jesus does come it will surprise many folks just exactly what he is like!

    Tim

    Oh and ryc?  I am beginning to think that I should just have a blog that says  "this is my first post, leave me tips on how to proceed."   Sorry, I can't seem to follow a thread of conversation these days. 

  • ryc ah but I remembered you commented and I liked the thought, I just couldn't remember what it was about.  Some sort of dementia or something.   So now I went back and checked it out.  The youth pastor thing.  I guess I look at it and figure that Jesus did "social" things.  The wedding at Cana, dinner at Peter's house.  Social times can be great times for "soul winning". At least in my book.

  • I'm planning on seeing that movie sometime soon. I hear good things.

  • It's really sick. Greenwald has made some good expository movies lately, starting with the "Uncovered" film. I'd also very much agree with your insight about how people are too concerned with looking like Paris Hilton to care about deep things like government corruption. I wouldn't go so far as to say it's a corporate conspiracy, but I will say this: the corporate system is really doing well because of it. One arm of the corporate system medicates us and keeps us mindlessly consuming, and the other arm extorts the government while we're all distracted by the shallowness of consumption.

    By the way, thanks for the nice comments on my site. I'm not going to seminary, although I do hope to take some courses at a seminary at some point. And if I go to grad school, it'll probably be in something religious. I've been contemplating a peace & justice master's degree at a Mennonite seminary.

  • I agree completely with your entire post.  After getting out of the Marines my friend went back to Iraq as hired security making almost $100.00/hour.  I don't remember who he works for but the company is owned by a couple of Senators and Congressmen.  They do "contracts" for a certain amount of time then return home until they can go back again.  As for the fashion comments, nothing galls me more than listening to some anorexic twit asking at the Oscars "Who are you wearing?"  Right now I'm wearing a lovely peach sweater from K-Mart by Jacqueline Smith.  I found it in a darling little garage sale right off Alexis Road.

  • Is it possible to market a conscience?????

  • YOu are in my head. I love Sundiata. His voice and poetry are amazing. I love Nikki G too. I wish you lived closer. I would to go and grab some tea and talk.

    p

  • next to the fact that i fear the country will never wise up politically, i have to say i'm appalled at the nightline report.  are we that effing shallow?  we must be.. i mean, it not only happens, it's what nightline finds important enought to report.  god save us.

    ryc: i know about the diffusion of responsibility theory.  it has its own problems.  but the npr study took it much further to basically prove that this way or that, people will all too often stand by and let bad things happen unless someone spurs them to action.  in essence, we all have to choose to be persons of action instead of just standing by.

  • No, salutatorian.

  • I hate Halliburton almost as much as I HATE WAL-MART!!!  I agree with all you said and I'd like to come for the tea party too:>)

  • I updated my site. I don't think I am prejudiced against Hispanics per se. I am deeply prejudiced against crime, however. Whether it is a "victimless" crime like the tagging, or the massive conspiracy by both parties to not enforce immigration (every 20 years, it makes the news that the INS made arrests to hirers of illegal immigration, once after the 1986 law against the "DV8" bar, and once against some export-importers).

    Iraq is a mess, and yes it's the war profiteers that seem to guide Poppy's son's actions. I lost the link, but Donald Rumsfeld made some money on Clinton's atoms-for-peace fiasco with North Korea.

    Other story reminds me how fashion consious Japanese women are willing to spend ~30000-40,000 for Gucci name-brand purses. But perfectly indistinguishable pirated knockoff copies could be bought in Thailand for like one fiftieth (1/50) the Japanese price.

    There's little chance of an uprising. Between HAARP and the Chemtrails, we have been mind-controlled. The neocons would love an uprising, they have the Halliburton-subsidiary built detention centers already in gear.

  • We have to be strong enough to be able to stand on our own two feet...not rely on someone else's feet to stand on.

    Hey, thanks for playing!

  • ryc:  Yea, you can truly see people's uniqueness when you do something like this.  Only one of them had the one I was thinking.  The verse about being crushed but not destroyed came to my mind when I saw the pic.

  • RYC ~ I'd have welcomed the furnace comments.  I'm actually grateful this guy was so nice as to teach me how to troubleshoot it.  I've typed up the instructions and put them in a little envelope, along with an emery board and a long skinny nail taped to the wall next to the furnace.

  • First...in the 2004 presidential election I brought up Halliburton to several, republican coworkers, and how much they've gained and stand to gain from the war, I swear...9 out of 10 people didn't even know who or what Halliburton was. (yes, I'm aware that I ended that sentence wrong but I've been drinking wine so bare with me.)

    Second...I WANT TO SEE THAT MOVIE!....("Iraq For Sale: The War Profiteers") There was a private viewing in my hometown and I was notified by MoveOn.Org, but I had to work this weekend and couldn't make it to the viewing.  Is it going to be released on DVD anywhere anytime soon? 

    Third...Education is the key to real leadership.  Why do you think republicans and especially this administration has cut federal grants/loans?  Republicans don't believe in educating the masses.  They like their voters ignorant (notice I didn't say stupid) because then they can manipulate them.  What you don't know CAN hurt you. 

    Fourth...thanks for the "kudos" on my cholesterol.  I guess you know you've reached middle-age when you start becoming obsessed with your cholesterol. 

    You and I know that only so much is in our control.  We realize that good things happen and bad things happen and there are things we can change and things we cannot and our government can only be changed one vote at a time.  I, like you, get frustrated with the politics and stupidity that goes on, but ultimately we are only one vote.  Was Karl Marx right about his prediction of the capitalistic society and it's downfall?  Let's watch and see.....Peace.

    Thanks always for an insightful post. 

  • On my last comment, the "YEN" sign didn't come out. The 30,000-40,000 yen that the Japanese pay is like $300+ to get Gucci, YSL etc merchandise that sell for like $10 in Thailand by the pirates.

    Your comment, Mejicojohn is surely smoking SOMETHING, just look at his profile picture about four pictures up from yours. He's got the "Fish Cheer" as the music on his site, which I bow down and worship him for, and yet it's almost like it was an accident, he outright asks "What is a fish cheer".

  • hahahahahaha, im ignorant?  and we wonder why we are in the predicaments we are in.  no im not a jr fan, , , far from it, , , but that post, , , , hahahahahaha, , , you cant argue with ignorance or poverty, i assume you are not poor.  i can see by your post you are totally brainwashed.

    for your healthcare problems, , , look to your own party, , , you should know this, , , i wont go into it.

    ignorant, hahahahahahaha.

    i have a sense of humor, , , , do you?

  • i came back and read your post, , , i do that a lot, just scan posts that are long and come back later if they seem interesting.  greed drives the system from both parties.  get rid of bush will not get rid of greed.  i think thats been proven time and time again.

    halliburton is a cement company.  there was a lot of destruction of oil wells that could not be left unchecked whether we were after the oil or not, , , how many years would you have that oil spewing into the air?  they have a few oil tools, mostly like packers and what not, related to cement.  there are other companies available, but of lesser size.  you have to be able to do the job.  i can bottle up some water here in my house, but i doubt i could supply the us military with drinking water.  big companies are sometimes necessary.

    i think the workers would be at risk even in an unpre-emptive war, , , i dont think it matters who started it, , , a war zone is a risk.  which could also be the cause of a job going unfinished.  if you are trying to dig some fence holes and someone starts shooting at you, , , you normaly lay down the posthole diggers and leave dont you?

    voting out the idiots in office now and replacing them with even greater idiots?  please explain how this would help.

    i agree maybe a democrat would be a good choice for president next time, but i doubt my choice would be the same as yours, , , joe liberman comes to mind.

    why would you nominate as comander in chief  a traitor?  i can prove he is a traitor, well, thru documents, i dont have his fingerprints on file. you know im talking about kerry.  he couldnt even finish a simple tour in vietnam. i was wounded as many times as he was in vietnam, , , i never went home, i finished my tour, , , i didnt do the research to know if you got 4 purple hearts you were done, , , i never got any.  hahahaha, i didnt even get the combat action medal till i was released from the military and they mailed it to me, over a year after i was in vietnam.

    you feel sorry for americans without health care, , , yet you nominated, or allowed to be nominated, and supported the one man who did more to take health care from americans via lawsuits than anyone i know of off the top of my head, , , you touted him as a self made millionair, , , i call him an ambulance chaser, driving up insurance and health care costs and he even caused a great number of doctors to change their practice, , , im talking about your vice presidental candidate stu.  i cant remember his name, thats what sean hannity called him.

    billarys play at socialized medicine was not what you thought it was.  as you probably know by now, i am presently living in mexico.  they have socialized medicine.  its free to most mexicans, and i can buy a cheap policy that would give me basically 100% coverage as well.  i choose not to because i think its around 3 or 4 hundred dollars a year and i dont think i spend that much on health care anyway.

    i have paid for several items, a broken arm, 2o some odd stitches to the face (this is 2 different times)  the broken arm, xrays, cast, pain medication, emergency room at midnite on sunday nite, etc, etc, etc, , , $35  the 20 some odd stitches, again emergercy room at midnite on another sunday $22.  you see they dont sue doctors in mexico, , , sue, , , a word you should learn to live without.

    unlike billarys socialized healthcare, you are free to go to any dr or hospital you choose and use your insurance or pay for it or whatever you like.  and no one goes to jail.  jail, or prison, along with fines was mentioned hundreds of times in her plan if you tried to find your own dr, or if a dr agreed to treat you.  seems to me, billary wanted the decision as to who lives  and who dies.  

    i plan on moving back to the us next month or in dec, , , i will stay close to mexico in case i need health care, thank you.

    i dont wear what paris hilton wears, , , i have developed my own style of dressing, , , and i never claimed to be able to match clothes.  i have never watched a sports event and find nothing manly in them.  thats right, not one.  some people call rodeo a sport, i do like that, rode barebacks, saddle broncs and bulls for about 25 years, i call it gambling not a sport.

    to back up, global warming is a natural process, some of peoples doings may excellerate it, but it is a natural process caused by trees.  the us can not do anything to stop other countries from polluting short of all out pre-emptive world war.  treaties, pacts, negotiations, all made to be broken.

    i agree with you, get the scoundrels out of office, but lets not replace them with more scoundrels.  ,  , , , the kennedys, just what i always wanted, someone in a perpetual drunken blackout or overmedicated blackout making decisions for me, telling me i need to pay more taxes while sheltering himself from the same, , , and again, proven time and time again less taxes equals more revenue, , , i believe even a kennedy did that didnt he?  the last democrate president before the party leaned toward communism.

    dont worry, ill try to not bother you much, just found you today, thanks to your comment i noticed, i know i annoy you, but unlike liberals, i am liberal enough to be interested in all ideas, , , , , they just have to make sense.  my initial comment on new sites tend to be long, , , i dont make a habit of this.

    and , oh, i did follow the kerry campaign and blocked out the vietnam commercials about him for the sake of forming an opinion, , , he kept saying, , , i have a plan, , , , i kept waving my arms at him to tell me at least part of it, , , i asked people, , , what was his plan, , , there was no plan.  i never learned anything.  what was his plan seemed to be a stream of obscenitys about bush if i were trying to ask a third party.   that is not a plan.  bush is an idiot, , , i am aware of that.   tell me about your candidate.

    at this point, i really dont think it matters, this idiot or that idiot. its all the same.  i may be ignorant but i try to be an informed ignoramus, , , and sometimes try to keep that fact hidden.

    im running for king of the united states on my xanga site, , , its a joke, , , almost as much of a joke as our real choices.

  • The power that the ordinary person has is the power to vote these numbskulls out of office. They know this, so they help keep the voting public distracted with various different techniques. Notice the direction the media has been taking in the past few years. The whitewashing of the news in particular. The exodus of intelligent, probing reporters like Dan Rather, Walter Cronkite and Ted Koppel. The influx of reporters-lite like Katie Couric and just about everyone on Fox News and Nightline. Right wing talk show hosts. Reality television. The fetishising of conservative "values" - social issues being used as a smokescreen to get people of conscience re-voting this agenda back on the scene. Not the least of which, neocons using fear to drive people to think they are the only option. Not only this, the people themselves have gotten really good at wilfully self-decieving themselves into complete complacency. Thank goodness, I think it might be coming to an end. Please lord let the people finally be waking up.

  • Dear 007,

    Very probing questions. I am hoping to earn enough respect and acclaim from a significant number of people, so that they might be willing to consider such issues if I bring them up. Then the revolution can start.

    -DI Edifice

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