11-08-2011, 04:15 PM
(This post was last modified: 11-08-2011, 05:13 PM by FireIceTalon.)
Manifest Destiny, Exceptionalism, and America's hegemony are all interrelated to one another. Not really that difficult to see. Manifest Destiny was really just an early form of Exceptionalism. American nationalism was already very strong, and our goal was not merely Texas, but expanding from the Atlantic to the Pacific. I do not doubt that the leaders already envisioned America as being a superpower one day, and in fact, it was the will of God for us to be so, so it was justified, as they understood it. We basically jacked Texas, New Mexico, and CA from Mexico, made them sign a peace treaty in bad faith, and then gave them 15 million bucks and said have a nice life, lol. Today, our concept of exceptonalism is much bigger of course, and it is combined with our hegemony as mutual causation. Our empire status justifies our exceptionalism, and our exceptionalism justifies our empire status, or so those who believe in American Exceptionalism say.
And 1790? Really? Hmmm, a time when you had to be white, male, and wealthy to even vote. Yea, no thank you.
If you don't like the idea of revolution, than what are your solutions? If you have possible solutions involving reform, I'd love to hear them. But otherwise it is naive at best. I suggested that everyone vote for someone who was outside the two party system, or we could all just refuse to pay our taxes come next April. But as you said, this isnt realistic. The government is bought, period. As long as their symbiotic relationship with the multi-nationals, the Fed, and Wall Street is in place, do not expect any kind of democratic reform to take place. Both the corporations/financial institutions and their cheer-leading squad in Washington will do everything they can to keep their power and wealth, at our expense. Look at France compared to us.....Government fears the people there, cause they dont want a repeat of 1789. Here, we fear our government, and they know so cause the most we ever do is put up a bunch of colorful signs with fancy slogans in protest, with a little civil disobedience here and there. Thus the abuse and corruption continues. The ends justifies the means, for both us and them (wonderful Pink Floyd song btw). We can continue on the same path, content to being subjects of the oligarchy, and hope one day that change will come (and come it will - for the worse). Or we can take matters into our own hands.
And 1790? Really? Hmmm, a time when you had to be white, male, and wealthy to even vote. Yea, no thank you.
If you don't like the idea of revolution, than what are your solutions? If you have possible solutions involving reform, I'd love to hear them. But otherwise it is naive at best. I suggested that everyone vote for someone who was outside the two party system, or we could all just refuse to pay our taxes come next April. But as you said, this isnt realistic. The government is bought, period. As long as their symbiotic relationship with the multi-nationals, the Fed, and Wall Street is in place, do not expect any kind of democratic reform to take place. Both the corporations/financial institutions and their cheer-leading squad in Washington will do everything they can to keep their power and wealth, at our expense. Look at France compared to us.....Government fears the people there, cause they dont want a repeat of 1789. Here, we fear our government, and they know so cause the most we ever do is put up a bunch of colorful signs with fancy slogans in protest, with a little civil disobedience here and there. Thus the abuse and corruption continues. The ends justifies the means, for both us and them (wonderful Pink Floyd song btw). We can continue on the same path, content to being subjects of the oligarchy, and hope one day that change will come (and come it will - for the worse). Or we can take matters into our own hands.
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"Your very ideas are but the outgrowth of conditions of your bourgeois production and bourgeois property, just as your jurisprudence is but the will of your class, made into law for all, a will whose essential character and direction are determined by the economic conditions of the existence of your class." - Marx (addressing the bourgeois)
"Your very ideas are but the outgrowth of conditions of your bourgeois production and bourgeois property, just as your jurisprudence is but the will of your class, made into law for all, a will whose essential character and direction are determined by the economic conditions of the existence of your class." - Marx (addressing the bourgeois)