Without true democracy, we've regressed back to taxation without representation. Most of us would like to resolve this before our history repeats itself. And yet we're called the "troublemakers"...
What happened in Orlando was a tragedy. My heart breaks for the lives taken, and those left behind filled with pain and only questions. But even though it may be considered politically incorrect by some to mention, that number is an insignificant drop of water in the ocean when it comes to Americans killing Americans. The sensationalism and attention comes purely from the suddenness, the shock, the superficial knee-jerk emotional pandering reaction the press plays into and creates. What were their names? What were their dreams? Was it a plot? Stay tuned, and stay focused on the spectacle. Watch it twist into talk of more war, more death, retribution against labels and classes that fit agendas if not facts. See coverage of our lawmakers, bravely challenging the 'enemy' portrayed as the other political party when in fact both have more blood on their hands daily through policies of corporate-financed immorality and injustice than any terrorist or serial killer.
Gun violence is crime. Crime statistically (and logically) mainly stems from poverty. Our poverty is systemic, institutionalized, and the only one trying to get to the root of that problem has been illegally swept under the corporate media rug and out of sight. Big shooting, media narrative jumps away, and suddenly everything's Democrats vs Republicans on gun issues- the old standby for agitating and confusing the masses away from broader factual perspective. Like, say, that we're the biggest hypocrites on the planet, preaching our smugly superior democracy without actually practicing it ourselves. And what are all those "crazy" Sanders supporters doing- the overwhelming majority of the youth and future of this country- right now? They're organizing protest marches at the *contested* Democratic convention in Philly. They're writing the Superdelegates with personal pleas of fairness and ethical representation. They're running for office, turning the tides at conventions to switch states to election wins for Bernie, and crowd-sourcing delegates to ensure equal representation in this pay-to-play rigged system. Does anyone see that in the media? Of course not. That's not profitable.
We have fellows like Robert Reich, spinning delightful daily prose covering and detailing the evils of long-standing bitter arcane party-dispute minutia like a rousing, familiar soap opera of meaningless posturing and political theater. Never mind the reality we actually live in. Never mind the growing desperation. Ignore those homeless stacking up, forget that this is all completely preventable, organized economic slavery we're agreeing to literally kill ourselves for. And for what? To be constantly stressed out, scared, watching our quality of life be reduced to desperately hoping nothing else goes wrong... till it inevitably does? This crony capitalist economy has sucked us dry like a vampire, cash and spirit. We are dying out here. This isn't some movie or sad blurb on the TV, I have been in a shelter. I have seen the human refuse of our hyper-capitalist society, understand the economics of how they ended up there, yet the only trustworthy politician willing to stand up to those responsible and finally enact real change is purposely being hidden from view, where his truths can't infect anyone else or the bottom line.
For everyone's sake, just go look him up. Watch a YouTube video. Set a lifetime of programmed bias aside for just a few seconds and really listen to him. Our kids are screwed. It's not a matter of gumption or effort, their opportunities and hope are verifiably disappearing. Inflation is rising. Minimum wage isn't enough to live. Jobs are exported. We all live in debt to survive until we can't, and then what? There's a service station in my area where homeless are parking their cars to sleep at night. They get eight hours before the cops arrest them for loitering, so they come, sleep, and go. There's angry, confused people there. There's broken, hopeless people there. Those people are you and me, one random ticket or unexpected bill away from becoming magically invisible to the "progressives" who would rather fight for tax breaks for the wealthy and push ridiculous, baseless hit pieces about how Sanders is "costing taxpayers $38k a day" by not dropping out of the race. How much does an FBI investigation cost daily? How much are our lives worth?
Remaining cynically skeptical now means ignoring provable widespread election fraud- in some cases with a 21%+ deviation between results and exit polls, when over two percent signals fraud in the elections the U.S. supervises overseas. When the people noticed and started complaining, what did the 'democratic' party do? They cancelled the exit polls. Yes, really. This is some kind of bad movie made real. Wake up, people. Start asking questions. Just consider the possibility, entertain the remote thought that there's more to reality than you're currently passively aware of. Do any amount of research past what the officially licensed "infotainment" feeds you, seriously, please. There is a whole world of increasing hurt and suffering going on while 'politics as usual' keeps people convinced they're being good citizens, fighting for rights and lives- but only through approved channels, in ineffective word alone, just to re-frame public perception for a party's PR benefit while keeping the masses infuriatingly blind to the daily body count us less privileged and insulated wait our turn in line to be victims of.
This. Is. Not. Sustainable. Where do you think you'll be in twenty, thirty years? Do you have savings? Even if so, how long will that last? Do you really believe you can live off Social Security- if there even is any left by then, after our taxes are spent on nonstop military conquest, welfare for millionaires, kickbacks for profitable corporations, and bailing out the monopoly banks that crashed our economy? Have you seen where they keep the destitute elderly who survive too long? I have. Foul-smelling facilities of crying, screaming grandparents left in lines of wheelchairs up and down halls, serviced by the lowest bidder at increasingly cheaper, ineffective standards of care. The only alternative is if their children, family, or health care can provide or sponsor better- realistically, how likely does that seem right now? Can you honestly trust either of the media-selected candidates to set us on a course for anything better?
Perhaps you're hoping something will magically get better on it's own, or through the one step forward, two steps back farcical game of supposed "incremental change"; it doesn't. It's getting worse. The ugly, frantically avoided truth is our culture of encouraged ignorant apathy is enabling the killing and preying upon of our own country and people. I remain #StillSanders because he speaks openly and passionately about the meaningful, relevant crises our culture and society has programmed us to normalize and self-destructively ignore. Are we endorsing this status quo as the new American way? Are we no longer accepting imports, instead manufacturing our own 'tired, poor, huddled masses yearning to be free'? Because if that's the case, we're doing a damn fine job, both here and abroad. Some of us citizens just made the 'naive, youthful' mistake that our nation, laws and government were in fact better than that. Ignorant us to think being an American could be something to be proud of, not just horrified and ashamed. How 'entitled', huh?