American Flags on our campaign signs -- No more battered spouse syndrome

[JMDEM]

I am SICK of being condemned of being somehow less American for being a Democrat. Sick of it. Where does this general attitude come from, and why is it so pervasive?

I think it comes partially from the fact that Republicans DO NOT QUESTION THEIR LEADERS, PERIOD. If the leaders lead us into WWIII, so be it. If the leaders are fascist pigs, so be it. If the leaders have absolutely no concern for those they are supposedly leading, and are only concerned with increasing their own wealth and power, so be it. But you see, true Americans TAKE ORDERS, SOLDIER! So you don't question such things. And you don't question America. America is always right. Criticizing the country as a whole, or its government, is basically treason, isn't it?

I also think the attitude comes partially from the fact that our "enemy" for so many years was communism. Godless communism. Therefore anything even remotely smelling of socialism is considered communist, and therefore our mortal, even Satanic enemy. Socialized medicine? Communist. Any sort of government control on business? Communist. Buying land and turning it into public parks? Communist! Government run (rather than privatized) prisons? Communist!!!

So, you see, we Democrats are not very good Americans because we (1) actually question our own government about things and do not blindly obey our leaders, and (2) we believe that some things are better run by the public sector rather than the private sector (e.g., health insurance).

Now, the interesting thing is that America was FOUNDED ON THE PRINCIPLE that you question your leaders and you DO NOT TRUST THEM. The founding fathers went to great lengths to DILUTE power among 3 branches of government and set up a system of CHECKS AND BALANCES. In this sense, blindly following leaders is distinctly un-American. In fact I would call THAT treasonous.

The founding fathers also went to great lengths to describe their ideals as ones of personal freedom and equality (except for women and slaves, but we'll overlook that for now...) As briefly discussed above, they went to elaborate lengths to make sure the Government didn't impinge on personal freedom. However, they also said that humans had the innate right to "life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness" IN GENERAL, regardless of who or what might impinge on those rights.

Now who could impinge on the rights to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" outside of the Government? Well, our history is full of such powers, and they are almost always huge corporations and/or massively powerful individuals working outside the Government (although usually influencing the Government). The Hearsts, the Gettys, the Rockefellers, the land barons, the railroad barons, and the other robber barons in general. These people can just as easily take away the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness as any government can. History has shown this repeatedly.

These people who would take away our freedoms for their own personal power are decidedly un-American. And yet these are the people the Republicans most often defend. Such a defense is not even hidden anymore -- since Ronald Reagan, the Republicans have openly and blatantly ripped off the middle class and the poor and directly siphoned the cash directly to the rich and the hyper-rich. These people have no concern whatsoever whether we all become complete absolute slaves, as long as they can add untold millions to their untold billions. They don't care if our rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are completely annihilated because of poor education, crushing debt, and no health care, or ridiculously expensive health care.

(Note -- I am not advocating communist economic policies! History has also shown that these usually do not work either. What seems to work is well-regulated capitalism that protects the small guy against the big guy and which prevents monopolies and price-fixing, mixed with some areas that are best run by local and/or national government, such as police and fire protection, and health care.)

So let's set the record straight. Blindly obedient militaristic robot clones are not more American than we are.

Grotesquely obese fascist pigs in positions of corporate power, who would take away all of our freedoms to put more slop in their troughs, are not more American than we are.

Personally, I have adorned my Obama yard sign with American flags, because I am proud to be a true American -- an American who is willing to question my own leaders (including Democratic leaders such as the spineless Pelosi and Reid) and who keeps an active eye out for the pigs who would steal my childrens' futures away from them via corporate greed.

Just remember -- Woodie Guthrie had more patriotism in his little finger than John Wayne had in his entire body.

[jpgray]

1. But as with everything else, it's a total double standard. Look at the Clinton years

No small degree of questioning one's leaders there, no? The keystone of the GOP base's patriotism is not to America but to those who:

1. Engage in cultural demagoguery toward rural whites.

2. Under cover of #1, provide rich people with all the gov't breaks and advantages possible.

[JMDEM]

3. Oh, but Clinton was an accident.

So was JFK and Carter -- they weren't supposed to be elected. Whoops.

[ipfilter]

2. I have a 20 foot flag pole

and I put my Obama sign right under it. I hope it sends a subtle message.

[RedLetterRev]

4. Pugs need leaders

while we understand that those folks in DC are on our payroll and we're paying their paycheck. Like any employer, we expect performance, or else. The yardstick we use is the Constitution. It's not the "root of all laws" that's used to keep the people in check -- it's the two-way contract in which the government governs at the consent of the governed.

The pugs forget that. They just want to follow blindly. If their leaders want to feed them a load of shyte, lift their wallets and drive them off the edge of the earth, they're willing to hand over their wallets, their rights, and happily jump for Jahayziz. Not me, bubba. So long as I'm a good citizen living up to my end of the Constitutional contract, I bloody-well expect my delegated officials (by way of my franchised vote) to behave in accordance with their end of the contract as well.

So far, over the last thirty years, the repugs have abandoned that Founding Contract and replaced it with their own "contract on America". We see just how well that shyte has worked out: endless war for the profit of the very few, low-to-no taxes for the extremely wealthy, the diminution of constitutionally-guaranteed rights, spying on innocent Americans, profiteering of every manner across the backs of citizens, corruption and greed, a decayed infrastruction that's falling in around our ears -- and the pigs are squealing for more-more-more.

They can. Kiss. My. Ass.

That fake "patriotism" of the right-wingers, with their glazed eyes and greedy hands, their foul and hatred-filled hearts, their support of fascist agenda as disguises for every form of bigotry -- all of it, they can stick where the sun don't shine. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of being nice and hoping they'll wise up. I'm sick of smiling and thinking that eventually they'll come to their senses. I'm sick of being polite while they just get louder and crazier.

I've had enough and me and my fellow patriots are taking this country, our flag, our decency, and our good name back and we're sticking the loonies back in the bin where they belong. This time, for good.

:rant: