BELLINGHAM!
We protesteth too little
My definition of a bad day is to turn on the evening news and see it being read by a guy in an army uniform.
At this point, it’s hard to say if the military in Egypt will hold onto power in that country in the wake of Hosni Mubarak’s resignation – an event that captivated the world last month. It was another great distraction for the news media to immerse themselves in. It’s hard to say what will happen in the coming months as Egypt finds its way into a new day for democracy – or, one hopes, something like it.
Democracy. There’s a word people like to throw around. It’s a great selling point for America – like Coca-Cola.
I wonder how democratic we really are. We’ve seen many constitutional guarantees erode over the past several years. Is it democratic to watch megacorporations take over the media, and for Americans to sleepwalk in a stupor of show biz trivia, reality TV, and the latest techno frenzy? Meanwhile, schools are closing down, people continue to lose their homes, and joblessness increases. This is a democracy that has the highest rate of childhood poverty of all industrialized nations. Things are very bad. We may have to throw Justin Bieber into the volcano and hope that changes our luck.
When it comes to the events in Cairo, one thing is evident. The Egyptians could teach us a few things about how to stage street protests, engaging in acts of civil disobedience that were so fervent that they brought down a dictator and began a process of treating the citizenry more fairly.
Governments are supposed to work for the people, not the other way around. That notion got lost along the way. Of course, that sentiment is at the heart of democracy.
I’m not suggesting that we live in a dictatorship. Not yet. I run the risk of sounding like a pundit – a dreadful thought. (I was never very political. I preferred to observe. There’s a saying that a columnist is someone who hides in the hills during the battle, then comes down when it’s safe to finish off the wounded.)
But we are rapidly becoming an oligarchy with all the wealth in the hands of a handful. Does anyone care? As I write this, I hear we are at the height of “awards season.” The Golden Globes, the Grammys, Miss Monsanto USA, the Wall Street Bonus Pageant, the Oscars, and so on. (The themes of the movies in contention for the Academy Awards this year were grim. Movies often reflect the times.) We must be the most self-congratulatory culture in the world. How about biggest polluter? We’re fighting China for the title.
When I saw the young Egyptian demonstrators on television, I had to recall the 1960s when young Americans took to the streets to denounce racism, the Vietnam War, and all injustices under the sun. The kids in Cairo were making up protest songs, mocking the entrenched regime with poems and satirical sayings on placards. Being funny can be a powerful thing – particularly when humor is used against the humorless. Like the unruly protesters of my formative years, the massive street theater made a difference. Where are our angry young men and women now? Where have all the flowers gone? Where’s Phil Ochs to provide sad serenades, such as The War is Over?
We have two wars grinding on hopelessly. We have an economy that continues to strangle the middle class. We have a president of the people who is saving money by slashing heating aid for the poor. The mantra from intellectually bereft representatives in Congress is “We must create jobs.” It’s Herbert Hoover’s “a chicken in every pot, a car in every garage” all over again.
Where are the righteously disgruntled and disenfranchised who once, arm in arm, sang We Shall Overcome?
Maybe events have overcome us.
Breaking news: I just heard that there was a flu outbreak at the Playboy Mansion and Lindsay Lohan could go back to jail.
I think I have to lie down for a while. I am simply overcome.
At this point, it’s hard to say if the military in Egypt will hold onto power in that country in the wake of Hosni Mubarak’s resignation – an event that captivated the world last month. It was another great distraction for the news media to immerse themselves in. It’s hard to say what will happen in the coming months as Egypt finds its way into a new day for democracy – or, one hopes, something like it.
Democracy. There’s a word people like to throw around. It’s a great selling point for America – like Coca-Cola.
I wonder how democratic we really are. We’ve seen many constitutional guarantees erode over the past several years. Is it democratic to watch megacorporations take over the media, and for Americans to sleepwalk in a stupor of show biz trivia, reality TV, and the latest techno frenzy? Meanwhile, schools are closing down, people continue to lose their homes, and joblessness increases. This is a democracy that has the highest rate of childhood poverty of all industrialized nations. Things are very bad. We may have to throw Justin Bieber into the volcano and hope that changes our luck.
When it comes to the events in Cairo, one thing is evident. The Egyptians could teach us a few things about how to stage street protests, engaging in acts of civil disobedience that were so fervent that they brought down a dictator and began a process of treating the citizenry more fairly.
Governments are supposed to work for the people, not the other way around. That notion got lost along the way. Of course, that sentiment is at the heart of democracy.
I’m not suggesting that we live in a dictatorship. Not yet. I run the risk of sounding like a pundit – a dreadful thought. (I was never very political. I preferred to observe. There’s a saying that a columnist is someone who hides in the hills during the battle, then comes down when it’s safe to finish off the wounded.)
But we are rapidly becoming an oligarchy with all the wealth in the hands of a handful. Does anyone care? As I write this, I hear we are at the height of “awards season.” The Golden Globes, the Grammys, Miss Monsanto USA, the Wall Street Bonus Pageant, the Oscars, and so on. (The themes of the movies in contention for the Academy Awards this year were grim. Movies often reflect the times.) We must be the most self-congratulatory culture in the world. How about biggest polluter? We’re fighting China for the title.
When I saw the young Egyptian demonstrators on television, I had to recall the 1960s when young Americans took to the streets to denounce racism, the Vietnam War, and all injustices under the sun. The kids in Cairo were making up protest songs, mocking the entrenched regime with poems and satirical sayings on placards. Being funny can be a powerful thing – particularly when humor is used against the humorless. Like the unruly protesters of my formative years, the massive street theater made a difference. Where are our angry young men and women now? Where have all the flowers gone? Where’s Phil Ochs to provide sad serenades, such as The War is Over?
We have two wars grinding on hopelessly. We have an economy that continues to strangle the middle class. We have a president of the people who is saving money by slashing heating aid for the poor. The mantra from intellectually bereft representatives in Congress is “We must create jobs.” It’s Herbert Hoover’s “a chicken in every pot, a car in every garage” all over again.
Where are the righteously disgruntled and disenfranchised who once, arm in arm, sang We Shall Overcome?
Maybe events have overcome us.
Breaking news: I just heard that there was a flu outbreak at the Playboy Mansion and Lindsay Lohan could go back to jail.
I think I have to lie down for a while. I am simply overcome.
Bruce Bellingham also writes pieces for Northside San Francisco. When it comes to making his opinions known, he recalls Karl Kraus: “Journalists write because they have nothing to say, and have something to say because they write.” Write something to Bellingham: [email protected].
