sticking with gardening
March 24, 2008 by Betmo
i know- i was going to share lots of stuff i learned about gardens and links and whatnot- and i still will. but this isn’t that post. this post is being written after some thinking over the weekend. it’s what happens to me after i read- probably a dangerous thing 
i am not going to write about distractions anymore. it is a waste of my time. i agree with the gentleman whose post i linked to yesterday- it is a daily time waster to write about the distractions. the elections, the media, the erosion of civil liberties- all time wasters- because in the end- the fascists have already won. why do i say that? taking a look around- any number of ‘news stories’ even from the msm in this country- you notice that america is not america. it isn’t. and it won’t ever be again. we don’t have the time to save it.
this having been easter weekend- i decided to finish reading chris hedges’ book ‘american fascists: the christian right and the war on america’ for a little light reading. he didn’t bash christians in the book- just so the religious folks don’t get their panties in a wad- he talks about the fundamentalists- you know- the falwells, dobsons, robertsons, parsleys, etc. i know about the fundies- they are solely interested in making money and gaining power. the underlings were the ones i was curious about. why- on god’s green earth do they believe? i wonder no more. christianity is no different than any other religion- in that it exists to replace itself. the mandates are to go out and convert people- and raise your children to be christians. and the fundies use cult brainwashing techniques and target vulnerable folks. no surprise there. but why are there so very many?
it perplexed me. are there so very many folks out there searching for something? and then you read the news and it becomes clear. i think chris sums it up fairly well- feel free to add in the tanking economy, the erosion of civil liberties, the fact that we have gulag prisons and torture innocent people, the fact that we have invaded a sovereign country for profit….
“it is a sad reminder that something has gone terribly wrong with america, with its inhuman disregard for beauty and balance, its obsession with speed and utilitarianism, its crass commercialism and its oversized suvs and trucks and greasy junk food. this disdain for nature, balance, and harmony is part of the deadly numbing assault against community.”
the book is a good read. he describes exactly what we see today. from survival acres:
“It’s called ecocide and it encompasses every living thing on Earth, and it is all our fault. We cannot blame this on anything other then ourselves, and our base nature. This has now led to our peak as a civilization and to our collapse. An assessment of all of the conditions now present throughout the globe presents this fact as being irrefutable. It is not popular view, but then how could it be? Popularity also relies upon the same two vices of greed and gluttony.”
our way of life is simply not sustainable and we know this. the corporates that have globalized and taken over the planet do not care. they will have made their profits and the fact that millions- perhaps 2/3 of the planet- will die- matters not to them. and who we elect as our next president isn’t going to make much difference. we fight amongst ourselves over the 3 ‘candidates’ we have to ‘vote’ for- and the whole system is rigged- so this whole thing is just one big distraction to make us believe that we still have a democracy. democracies don’t dismantle civil liberties and replace them with a unitary executive. it’s a smoke screen- so by all means- continue to snipe and trade barbs and attempt to smear the other candidate. obama versus clinton and mccain versus ? you are still going to end up with the same types of people in the congress and government as a whole. and the federal judges already appointed- are there to stay.
these folks are my fellow americans- and the reason i want to become a hermit:
“I’ll be the first to admit: I’m a political junkie largely because I’m addicted to the show. And who doesn’t crave the distraction in times like these, with wars and recession and whatnot. That’s why television entertainment (where I work) is considered recession proof. We offer escape. Like politics used to. But the “sideshows” don’t play like they used to. For that, we need characters we’re free to love to hate.”
“I won’t get upset about Hillary being called a loser. Why? Because I already have plan B figured out.
I got really emotional about it before I realized that I would vote McCain and a straight top to bottom GOP lineup if Hillary isn’t the nominee and leave the party if Florida isn’t counted.”
we are a country who has to be constantly distracted or at war with something all of the time. doesn’t matter if it’s war in iraq, war against secularism, abortion or gays, war against the right or left- we have to be fighting something. right now- it seems we are fighting each other in order to keep a grasp on a way of life that is not sustainable. we don’t want to give up our retirements to florida or our resource using suvs or mcmansions. we want to have the luxury of tooling around the world taking pictures of the tourist traps to prove we are in the know. why? because the folks who went before us got to. whatever. we are a country of adolescents- and spoiled ones at that. and i am tired.
so- continue railing and fighting and distracting- i intend to take up gardening and attempting to restore balance and harmony and nature in my little section of the world. i have already mourned my loss of country. now, i just want to survive it.
cross posted at life’s journey
This is the first time that I even read a post that made me feel like I want to slash my wrists in a bathtub full of hot bathwater.
I refuse the believe we’re beyond hope. Eventually ALL totalitarian regimes fall of their own corruption and ineptitude. And this one is about as corrupt and as inept as you can get. So we’ll keep pointing out what they’re doing and hope that the people will wake up
Peace
Praetor and the Doctor
“We need to give up our delusional distractions and entertainments and get on with the business of figuring out how we are going to adapt to the coming world changes. That is the change we can do and the key to our survival. This is a process in itself and not a destination. Adaption requires us to be flexible to the changes coming our way and to abandon all of those things that have brought us to this point.” survival acres blog
it isn’t that i want folks to abandon hope- i just want folks to take that energy and put it what will make the most difference. the reality is- we are already in dictatorship- but the facade is still up that we have a democracy. the election process is a distraction- do we really need a full year of primaries when the gop already has their nominee and our 12 or so nominees whittled themselves down to 3 BEFORE the primaries started. i am not saying curl up in the fetal position and die- i am simply saying that all of the protests in this country and abroad didn’t sway the decision to launch an illegal war. all of the lies and corruption hasn’t resulted in any accountability. globilization has enabled the corporatocracy to now run the entire planet- and we have to learn how to survive- or die. our economy is tanking- there are currently grain shortages around the world- and in many places at this moment- we have drought and water shortages. there are rolling blackouts due to the droughts and there is a fear about what nuclear energy we do have- because the plants need water.
we need to be aware of these realities. we need to become as self sufficient as possible. we need to learn to defend what we will have because millions of people on this planet will be wanting what we have. and this government won’t care one whit. changing the face in front of the camera changes nothing. my aim is not to make folks depressed- but to make them aware so that there is time to prepare. folks will either listen or not.
Then we’re on the same page. As I see it we’re at that delicate phase where the Nazis were struggling to tear down the Wiemar Republic. Yes, the Fuhrer was selected by the Supreme Court as Hitler was selected by president Hindenburg. but the modern day Nazis/Republicans don’t have a clear majority in the Reichstag/Congress but they’re trying hard to regain that position.
Ideally we need to look back and look at what Hitler’s opponents failed to do and then extrapolate the proper lessons .
I’m more inclined to you on matters of policy. In so many ways Bush Inc has emulated the a bizarre combination of the policies that were promoted by Hitler’s Germany and Mussolini’s Italy. God knows we’ve hammered those issues to death in THE FOURTEEN CHARACTERISTICS OF FASCISM. It’s bad but not irreversible.
I’m not saying it will be easy. But I truly believe that hard work and a willingness to counter harsh rhetoric with harsh rhetoric–not rolling over and playing dead–can be instrumental in taking back our country. Speak truth to power and don’t be wimpish about it.
We can’t be pacifists..we have to slam them just has hard as they slam us..the rightwing extremists are going to kill off this country if we don’t stand together and fight them tooth and nail.
Rolling over or turning the other cheek is not acceptable.
no- not lie down and take it or die- but we have to look at the reality of our lives irrevocably changed. our way of life is gone forever- even if we wanted it back- we can’t have it. i think we do have to fight for our survival but the time for high minded goals is past. we are going to be in the fight of our lives to keep what is ours against people who are going to be desperate. how we prepare for that will determine our fate. i just think that we have look towards survivalist tools in a fast changing global climate- economically, and with our basic necessities. i only speak for myself- and for me- i am trying to learn as much as i can- crash course- in pioneer living.
My god this is the flip side of the Christian Right–God’s going to destroy the world anyhow so why bother fixing anything. Only the flip side says “Everything is doomed anyhow so let’s have a survivalist war.” Both are extremes and should be avoided like the plague. Rather I move we put our trust in scientific research and political reform and get things back on track. In the process we don’t take any shit. If the GOP wants a political street fight we give them one.
wow, i didn’t realize this post was 1) going to garner as much attention as it has and 2) be as wildly unpopular as it is. we can believe in the science as much as we want- that hasn’t translated into any political reform- and as much as i despise bushco- folks knew about this issue way back in the 1970’s and buried the reports. so we have had 30+ years or so to have had anyone with enough ass behind them to fight for a different way of doing things across the board. i don’t look for this election to save us- and it isn’t that i advocate doing absolutely nothing- i am simply saying that folks need to be realistic and put their energies where they will do the most good. if you all think it’s raging against the machine- then that’s the most productive thing for you. i am going to learn self sufficiency- and how to shoot a gun.
Sweet Pea, as for my pov..you must remember I cut my teeth during the Vietnam War Protests. I took part in the protest which culminated with the bombing of the Bank of America in Isla Vista..and I wasnt’ even an adult yet.
I have seen this shit before..just not as bad as BushCo.
So that colors my pov ALOT.
Betmo, did you by any chance change your name from Hangman Elite and migrate here from the Blue Republic? If not I think the two of you might have the basis or a very interesting relationship.
Actually, I have to disagree with you on that one Shakti. Betmo sounds more defensive than aggressively offensive. I didn’t hear her calling for open violence and the eradication of leaders. Let’s not read into the situation what isn’t there.
no- i have always been betmo- and feel free to check out my site- i actually crossposted this post- so you can skip this one.
http://betblue.blogspot.com
i think that we have to be both- offensive in preparing our households for the impending changes that are being brought about- and will happen- due to economic collapse, food and water shortages and high unemployment. those things are not going to get better. i used to defend the constitution like nobody’s business- until i realized that it isn’t really there anymore.
through the patriot act and the military commissions act- we now have a surveilled police state. like it or not- it is happening. we have para military police officers now and mercenaries in place of the national guards. we have ‘fema’ camps in this country and privatized prisons that hold illegal aleins and americans alike in them right now. we have an administration that has stolen taxpayer’s money through an illegal war and funneled it into war profiteering contractor’s pockets. we are already seeing food prices go up and there is a wheat shortage which will drive staple foods such as cereal, bread and pasta prices sky high- due to the stupidity of growing ethanol- which is not sustainable or viable everywhere as an alternative fuel. there are already water wars in this country and all over the globe- and when 7 billion people start having hardships- they are going to go to the place with the most resources- which will probably be here.
all of this info is easily checked out- it has been in the news and msm. the un has issues several reports. that’s why i am pressing hard for refocusing our attentions. i am not an anarchist and i don’t use the ‘r’ word because of the government reading emails, blogs and snail mail. i will say that i believe in the founding fathers courage and vision and that if had one wish- it would be to see this country restored to the rule of law and not of man.