Bill
02-20-2008, 12:06 AM
One of my very favorite science fiction authors, David Brin, is also a genius in a number of other fields.
Here's his very thought-provoking article on preparing for the worst - an attack or catastrophe on american soil before the election.
He correctly says the only thing that can let the republicans stay in power (and keep them from being thrown in jail after they are removed from power - that's my addition, not Brin) would be an attack.
So, he says, the democrats need to prepare for that possibility even if it is not terribly likely.
(And of course - the corrupt secret government within the CIA, pentagon, and executive branch might actually facilitate such an attack - precisely to keep power.)
Here's his article:
http://davidbrin.blogspot.com/2008/02/pair-of-important-suggestions-for.html
--------Suggestion #1 Preparing for the worst----
What are the odds that America will suffer some kind of major attack or catastrophe, during the run-up to our national elections in November?
Yes, it sounds paranoid. But bear with me. Whether or not you have a penchant for conspiracy theories, a basic fact is that it would take something huge -- perhaps devastating -- to pull the Republicans' hash out of this fire they have made. So, why not take out a little bit of insurance, by preparing the mental landscape just a little?
One doesn't have to envision this as part of a plot. After all, our present leaders have been screeching this very possibility in our ears, declaring "emergency!" (largely as an excuse to cancel normal contracting rules) for most of a decade. Shall we not take them at their word and at least prepare, just a little?
It is vital for a mental and spiritual bulwark be established, to ensure that any such tragedy will not benefit those who brought America into this mess. Just a few basic talking points could provide that bulwark. Especially if someone like Barack Obama were to go on record that:
1) Urban America knows it is in the cross-hairs, and that "it is not a matter of if, but when" we will take another big hit. At one level, we are all citizens first. We are firm in our resolve to stand by each other. To not let our nation or its values be changed.
2) In any event, we can be assured that the next victims will respond with the same resilience that was shown by citizens of New York, Washington, Boston and Pennsylvania, back on September 11, 2001, a day when empowered citizenship made all the difference.
3) The scandalous decline in U.S. readiness must be reversed. Bill Clinton left George W. Bush 30 fully ready brigades, we now have none. Not even one. The list goes on and on. It will be a campaign issue! But establishing the point early will make any summertime attack our issue, not theirs.
(Note: America's declining state of readiness: http://www.davidbrin.com/readiness2.html )
4) Even leaving out such specifics, some general, rhetorical riffs about "fear vs resilience" would give people across the nation a resonant feeling, that any sudden emergency will be yet another a reason to choose change, not a cause to cling to bad leadership.
It isn't too early to be saying these things, or to be erecting thoughts of firmness in the minds of our fellow citizens. Indeed, if these notions are erected, it may help to prevent such a dire event from happening, at all.
If you get my drift.
Here's his very thought-provoking article on preparing for the worst - an attack or catastrophe on american soil before the election.
He correctly says the only thing that can let the republicans stay in power (and keep them from being thrown in jail after they are removed from power - that's my addition, not Brin) would be an attack.
So, he says, the democrats need to prepare for that possibility even if it is not terribly likely.
(And of course - the corrupt secret government within the CIA, pentagon, and executive branch might actually facilitate such an attack - precisely to keep power.)
Here's his article:
http://davidbrin.blogspot.com/2008/02/pair-of-important-suggestions-for.html
--------Suggestion #1 Preparing for the worst----
What are the odds that America will suffer some kind of major attack or catastrophe, during the run-up to our national elections in November?
Yes, it sounds paranoid. But bear with me. Whether or not you have a penchant for conspiracy theories, a basic fact is that it would take something huge -- perhaps devastating -- to pull the Republicans' hash out of this fire they have made. So, why not take out a little bit of insurance, by preparing the mental landscape just a little?
One doesn't have to envision this as part of a plot. After all, our present leaders have been screeching this very possibility in our ears, declaring "emergency!" (largely as an excuse to cancel normal contracting rules) for most of a decade. Shall we not take them at their word and at least prepare, just a little?
It is vital for a mental and spiritual bulwark be established, to ensure that any such tragedy will not benefit those who brought America into this mess. Just a few basic talking points could provide that bulwark. Especially if someone like Barack Obama were to go on record that:
1) Urban America knows it is in the cross-hairs, and that "it is not a matter of if, but when" we will take another big hit. At one level, we are all citizens first. We are firm in our resolve to stand by each other. To not let our nation or its values be changed.
2) In any event, we can be assured that the next victims will respond with the same resilience that was shown by citizens of New York, Washington, Boston and Pennsylvania, back on September 11, 2001, a day when empowered citizenship made all the difference.
3) The scandalous decline in U.S. readiness must be reversed. Bill Clinton left George W. Bush 30 fully ready brigades, we now have none. Not even one. The list goes on and on. It will be a campaign issue! But establishing the point early will make any summertime attack our issue, not theirs.
(Note: America's declining state of readiness: http://www.davidbrin.com/readiness2.html )
4) Even leaving out such specifics, some general, rhetorical riffs about "fear vs resilience" would give people across the nation a resonant feeling, that any sudden emergency will be yet another a reason to choose change, not a cause to cling to bad leadership.
It isn't too early to be saying these things, or to be erecting thoughts of firmness in the minds of our fellow citizens. Indeed, if these notions are erected, it may help to prevent such a dire event from happening, at all.
If you get my drift.