Goodbye To Democracy

Democracy has a short lifespan now. As we look around the world, we see that countries nominally democratic are turning to the right and populist, nationalist politicians are being elected. This should be no surprise. Why our mainstream media and politicians are shocked about this led to the election of Donald Trump. THEY CHOSE TO BE BLIND. The super-rich, super educated East Coast and West Coast elitists have been showing us that they really don't give a damn about us. That's why for decades, our politicians have let us lose our jobs, our homes, our families, and lately our drug-addicted lives. And why should they care about us? They are ok and phuck the deplorables. That's us, by the way. Hillary made that clear enough. But don't think that the Right is the one source of us losing democracy. NO. The Left is just as guilty. Maybe more guilty. There used to be a time when our speech was really free and we could express our thoughts. NO longer is that true. The language GESTAPO of the Left has seen to it that we must speak THEIR sanitized language. We thought that denying people the right to eat in restaurants of their choice was a thing of the past. No longer. They kick Sarah out today. Tomorrow they will kick YOU out. When I was a kid, we were taught in school that America is a melting pot and that's what made it great. Yes, New York City belonged to the Jews, the Italians, the Irish. But we kept our immigrant heritage to ourselves. We didn't shove it down people's throats. When my parents made a phone call, no operator said, "For Yiddish, hit 5". That would have freaked my parents out. But the loss of democracy goes beyond what our politicians are doing. It seems that they are in control of that but they are not. It's an evolutionary process. Bill Maher reports that 30% of millennials think that democracy is no longer necessary. 46% of millennials now support Trump. The rest support Bernie Sanders, Trump's reverse coin side. Look at the newspaper shooting. People had warned the authorities way in advance that this guy was dangerous and the words that one informant actually used was, "he is your next mass shooter." In the 2018 remake of DEATH WISH, the vigilante's brother asks him, "Why are YOU killing criminals? Isn't that the police's job?" - to which the vigilante says, "The police only come after the crime takes place. I prevent the crime from happening." Imagine a world in which we find out that someone is a serious potential threat to us. Maybe his therapist hears him say, "I'm going to that school someday and I am going to kill everyone in it." Or maybe he says it to a priest or rabbi. He gets reported to the police and failure to report it is a felony. The police pick him or her up and hold him/her in custody while they investigate his life. Then they place a GPS foot bracelet on him and a camera necklace on him. He has to wear them for most of the rest of his life until he proves that he no longer poses a threat. The police don't do that because the Constitution says they can't. But the FBI does. Make a statement on Facebook that you are thinking seriously of assassinating the people in power. Your door will be broken down and you will be in custody until the FBI is convinced that you didn't mean it. And even after they let you out, you will be monitored for some time. So if the FBI does it, why can't our local police do it? Oh, because of free speech! FREE SPEECH is now an American myth. The newspaper shooting and the last school shooting could have been avoided. But that would mean modifying the Constitution. The Right wears the Constitution like a flag and so does the Left. What both sides refuse to see is that our civilization is no longer that of the 1770s. The Constitution was written for America in the 18th century. The Founders would be dumbfounded if they knew what the 21st century was like. I will now tell you what Yuval HARARI, an Israeli anthropologist says in his book, HOMO DEUS. By the end of this century, humanism, liberalism, and democracy will no longer exist in most countries. They have outworn their usefulness. These were concepts which arose in the 18th century when feudalism disappeared and industrialism was beginning to grow. Industrialism, the growing use of machines, would need people to work those machines. Machines would take war to a whole new level of weaponry and people would be needed to be taught to use new weapons in greater and more widespread wars. Those in power had to appeal to the lower classes' sense of personal dignity. The lower classes were fed humanism, liberalism, and democracy. things that don't really exist empirically. They were told that all men are created equal which clearly we are not. All men but not necessarily all women or all races. These concepts were supposed to make the world a better place by replacing religion which had treated people badly. Monotheistic religion is anti-democratic at its base, and anti-liberal and anti-humanist. In our society, religion is, slowly, surely beating out those 18th century concepts. Michael Moore jests that The Handmaid's Tale is on the way to becoming real. I don't think so but I do think that things like choice abortion and choice sexual lifestyles are in danger. On the other hand, whoever comes after Trump may actually change the Constitution. he can't do it for an obvious reason - his personality. But think of a person, man or woman, who thinks the way he does but has a most charming personality and knows how to make people love him/her. HARARI says that 2 things mitigate the continuance of liberalism, humanism, and democracy. War is fading away and machines are daily getting better and better at running themselves. So why do we need to continue telling people that all men are created equal and have value?   We don't. Why do we have to worry about arresting people before they commit a crime? We don't. Why do we have to put up with people's disdain for science? We don't. Why do we have to watch our language and fear hurting people's feelings? We don't, especially if our need for them to be soldiers and factory workers decreases. Why do we need democracy? We don't need no steenking democracy, many people feel. So what does HARARI see as replacing democracy? An oligarchy of the rich and powerful. Will there be jobs for us? NO, but the oligarchy will take care of our needs: Bread and circuses like in ancient Rome. Do we want to get an education? They will provide one. Do we need medical help? They will give us socialized medicine. Will we have freedom of speech? Yes, so long as we don't threaten anyone. Will we have the right of assembly? Yes, so long as we don't incite violence or social disturbance. What about machines? We will join with them as cyborgs. What about lifespans and health? Our lifespan in the next century will approach 150 years. How will that affect us? We will marry at a later age, that is, if we want to marry. Very few people will want to be married over 125 years. Births will take place outside the body. Diseases which are common today will be conquered. What about religion? Believe and practice as you please but don't shove it down your neighbor's throat. Brave New World? HARARI thinks so, and so do I.