"At this point, it is a waste of time to discuss the perfidy of the US government. It is established beyond doubt that Bush, like presidents before him, represents the interests of a prosperous war industry. What is worth researching, though, is the methods by which the US managed to achieve its vast criminal empire. Such research needs not focus on the well-known economic and military machinery and its political consequences, but rather on the unconventional and secret strategies employed by the US to encircle and strangle its prospective targets. These strategies include client regimes, large-scale media propaganda, and co-opting opponents of the system. One such opponent is the United States “antiwar movement.”
As one administration after another wages war with impunity, culminating with Bush ignoring 10 million antiwar protesters on February 15, 2003, any hope one might have that this movement could bring change has become wishful thinking. In order to bring the US war machine to a halt, insights are needed into why the antiwar movement has not been effective. This must include an examination of the leadership, culture, theoretical and practical goals, mission, and strategies of the movement as it stands today.
During the Vietnam era, the US government spent a great deal of resources on researching the movement and its impact. It responded to the movement with imprisonment, harassment, and assassination of leaders. An entire system of social rewards was developed to buy people off. The government’s most effective strategy, however, was its choosing to contain the opposition rather than attempt to eradicate it. It was by this means that a “loyal opposition” was created - an opposition which the government could manipulate and control, allowing it enough power to reach a large segment of the population, and to disseminate a message of change, but withholding the power necessary for such change to be in any way implemented.
In the Vietnam era many realized the government could not be trusted. The pretense of a democracy in which two parties struggled against each other to keep the USA honest would no longer work. Elite planners understood that non-governmental organizations could do what the Democrats had formerly done. That is, they could push for reform of policies set by Republicans, and their free expression of political frustration could be promoted and used as a sign of a healthy, confident democracy. Such organizations could thus continue work vital to the government’s longevity, absorbing the opposition in the name of reform, and the Democrats and Republicans could more openly merge forces.
After thirty years under this system the movement has established its right to freedom of expression, and not much else. The focus has changed from demands for changes in government policy to just having the right to express those demands.
Unlike the 60’s, when antiwar protesters were attacked by dogs, sticks, and water hoses, protesters today are accompanied by police motorcades. The government issues rally permits, marching permits, sound permits, and vending permits. Some consider it a victory just to obtain a permit to protest. This reflects how demoralized the antiwar movement has become. Of course, once a protest is permitted, it will then be subjected to massive police supervision, as we have all seen.
I encourage people who like dark fiction to watch Black Mirror Season 1 Episode 2, I feel like it perfectly captures this in metaphor. Sadly the show became exactly what it criticized over time.
Amer Jubran Arab Palestinian political prisoner wrote an article about American Left and this.
"At this point, it is a waste of time to discuss the perfidy of the US government. It is established beyond doubt that Bush, like presidents before him, represents the interests of a prosperous war industry. What is worth researching, though, is the methods by which the US managed to achieve its vast criminal empire. Such research needs not focus on the well-known economic and military machinery and its political consequences, but rather on the unconventional and secret strategies employed by the US to encircle and strangle its prospective targets. These strategies include client regimes, large-scale media propaganda, and co-opting opponents of the system. One such opponent is the United States “antiwar movement.” As one administration after another wages war with impunity, culminating with Bush ignoring 10 million antiwar protesters on February 15, 2003, any hope one might have that this movement could bring change has become wishful thinking. In order to bring the US war machine to a halt, insights are needed into why the antiwar movement has not been effective. This must include an examination of the leadership, culture, theoretical and practical goals, mission, and strategies of the movement as it stands today. During the Vietnam era, the US government spent a great deal of resources on researching the movement and its impact. It responded to the movement with imprisonment, harassment, and assassination of leaders. An entire system of social rewards was developed to buy people off. The government’s most effective strategy, however, was its choosing to contain the opposition rather than attempt to eradicate it. It was by this means that a “loyal opposition” was created - an opposition which the government could manipulate and control, allowing it enough power to reach a large segment of the population, and to disseminate a message of change, but withholding the power necessary for such change to be in any way implemented. In the Vietnam era many realized the government could not be trusted. The pretense of a democracy in which two parties struggled against each other to keep the USA honest would no longer work. Elite planners understood that non-governmental organizations could do what the Democrats had formerly done. That is, they could push for reform of policies set by Republicans, and their free expression of political frustration could be promoted and used as a sign of a healthy, confident democracy. Such organizations could thus continue work vital to the government’s longevity, absorbing the opposition in the name of reform, and the Democrats and Republicans could more openly merge forces. After thirty years under this system the movement has established its right to freedom of expression, and not much else. The focus has changed from demands for changes in government policy to just having the right to express those demands. Unlike the 60’s, when antiwar protesters were attacked by dogs, sticks, and water hoses, protesters today are accompanied by police motorcades. The government issues rally permits, marching permits, sound permits, and vending permits. Some consider it a victory just to obtain a permit to protest. This reflects how demoralized the antiwar movement has become. Of course, once a protest is permitted, it will then be subjected to massive police supervision, as we have all seen.
…
"
I encourage people who like dark fiction to watch Black Mirror Season 1 Episode 2, I feel like it perfectly captures this in metaphor. Sadly the show became exactly what it criticized over time.