Their only protection is to be part of a larger machine. While that's essentially a paranoid schizophrenic vision, the essence of fascism (and all authoritarian political thought, e.g. Hobbes "The Leviathan"), or plain Science Fiction, there is some metaphorical truth in these unhealthy, deeply disturbing images of how American society operates. Ergo, The Matrix "Hive Mind":





Machines that control and harvest thoughts (drawing by paranoid schizophrenic):

Response to Original Post: "Go outside and look northeast!"

Somehow, we are so exceptional that the reality and analysis of class uniquely doesn't arise or apply here. That is because, as I found out over the course of three years in various course and seminars with Prof. Zinn, in American politics, the media, and in academia -- places where elsewhere in the world this subject would constantly be haggled out in public -- we are either under a regime of totalitarian self-censorship or successfully segregated safely away from wider public notice and comment. "Serious people" just don't speak about class in America, not outside carefully controlled forums, anyway, so it doesn't exist.

What gets said on these subjects in paneled committee rooms and graduate seminars never, ever gets covered in the corporate media. That is because news and information in America are products, privately owned and tightly controlled by corporations who have a virtual monopoly on the means of mass dissemination of ideas. That reality has only changed at the margins from what it was in the '80s with the coming of the Internet.

The United States in this sense is the least free of all the western societies, and for more than 75 years Americans have paid an increasingly steep price for that in the poverty of our politics and the inequalities of American society

http://static.environmentalgraffiti.com/sites/default/files/images/bison2jpg

In the last few days we’ve started to see hints that Syrian End-Game is expected to involve a launch of some of Syria’s giant, and very real, stockpile of chemical and biological weapons (CBW). The strategy of regime change in Damascus pursued by the US and its regional allies may assure that outcome.

As the prospect of annihilation nears, the Generals in Damascus -- almost all of whom are of the ruling Alawite religious minority -- may see little chance to preserve themselves from the Sunni onslaught other than to threaten exercise of their last-ditch option of launching a missile CBW attack on surrounding countries that have been running the armed opposition.

Yesterday, the NYT reported that the United States has detected what is described as movement of some of Syria’s CBW stocks, and has warned that attempted use would cross a “red line” triggering direct US military intervention. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/03/world/middleeast/syria-moves-its-chemical-weapons-and-gets-another-warning.html?hp&_r=0 It is not yet clear whether this movement is merely precautionary measures by the Syrian armed forces to avoid these weapons falling into the hands of opposition forces.

Meanwhile, Israel has indicated to Jordan that it may carry out a preemptive attack on Syria’s missile launchers and CBW stockpiles in the event it determines that Syria is readying a launch. http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/12/israel-asked-jordan-for-approval-to-bomb-syrian-wmd-sites/265818/

Two weeks ago, Turkey formally requested NATO Patriot anti-missile batteries on the border with Syria. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-20427985

All this indicates that the regime change operations in Syria have reached an incredibly dangerous stage, and Pentagon, CIA and State Dept. officials never adequately planned for the worst-case violent end-phase in Syria, always reassuring the policymakers that they could pull off a nice, easy coup d'grace, a la Libya.

The CIA SAD and JSOC, along with the Israelis, are now publicly preparing a preemptive strike including special forces on the ground to take the launchers. For a close-up, on-the-ground view of the aftermath of a special forces attack on a Scud launcher in Libya last year that left the missiles and trucks largely intact, but nothing left of the crew other than neatly-lined up piles of entrails, see &feature=player_embedded.

Such preemptive air or ground attacks, however, would set off scenario, 1) and then 2):

1) The Syrian leadership finds itself boxed into a “Use-'Em-or-Lose-'Em” Dilemma with regards to its missile forces and CBW stockpiles, and,
2) As Israel, the US and possibly other countries begin decapitating air strikes and commando attacks on mobile missile transporters, the regime initiates a Deadman Trigger Scenario, that assures launch of at least some of its surviving warheads.

What makes the above scenarios frighteningly plausible is as follows.

The core problem with Syrian regime change is that even if Assad is removed, the rest of the Damascus government and high command are almost all members of the same Alawite sect and Ba'ath Party members, and the Sunni militias we and the Gulf Arabs back are hell-bent on killing them. So, even with Assad gone, his successors would also have no option other than to fight to the last or be exterminated, along with their families, by the Syrian Sunnis and foreign al-Qaeda fighters. Whoever planned and oversaw this operation -- Petraeus is one, there are many notable others -- ignored Kissinger’s prime directive of strategic engagement: always leave your opponent a mutually acceptable way out.

The fact that we have entered this stage in the game shows that initial expectations for the regime change program in Syria were incredibly unrealistic. For those who have approved this policy, Syria is fast becoming an epoch, historical disaster.

After weeks of dog whistles and GOP bullshit, the truth about Susan Rice is finally emerging. It may not be what those Democrats who have circled their wagons around her may expect or want in the next US Secretary of State:

Susan Rice was a cheerleader for Bush’s invasion of Iraq (11/02, 12/02, 02/03)



Susan Rice advocated the US stay in Iraq “for many years to come” (04/03)


Susan Rice swayed the President to pursue a UN authorization for airstrikes in Libya (03/11)

Time Magazine observed in March 24, 2011 issue about Rice’s role in swaying the President: http://www.time.com/...


Susan Rice then sought a similar UN authorization for military intervention in Syria (10/11)

Rice was one of the most vociferous champions of international armed intervention against Syria. On October 5, 2011, after Russia and China led a group of countries which vetoed a Security Council resolution similar to that which authorized the use of outside force in Libya. Brazil, India, South Africa and Lebanon abstained. After the vote, Dr. Rice used unusually nondiplomatic language to say that those countries had carried out “a cheap ruse” and, addressing a press confererence after the vote, she said that the Syrians “have been slapped in the face by several members of this Security Council today.”




Susan Rice led the push for the US to join Israel in Confrontation with Iran (09/12)

Dr. Rice has also been the point of the spear in the escalating US confrontation with Iran. Her rhetoric toward that country has been often hostile, played out on the UN stage underlined by gathering regime change operations and economic destabilization under the U.S.-led sanctions regime.

During the past three years, US relations with Iran have steadily deteriorated as the international sanctions regime overseen by Ambassador Rice has intensified. Iran sees the U.S. as playing a see-saw game of threats and economic warfare with Israel to ratchet up pressure and tensions. The Jerusalem Post reported on September 16, 2012: http://www.jpost.com/IranianThreat/News/Article.aspx?id=285292



Susan Rice has pushed every Middle East war during this past decade.

If she becomes Secretary of State, chances are she will be a leading voice urging the United States into the next one.

Measure twice. Cut once.

Cared more about their troops than about the shine on their own medals. Bradley saw it clearly:


In Butler's case, he just came out and said it:

Maybe he has a job available. Casual attire. Bring your shorts.

This one goes out to David Petraeus and Paula Broadwell. Perfect mood music and lyrics for those Special Ops you shared.