So are we resigned to a Corporate Surveillance State?

[omega minimo]

We've been headed this way for a while, nobody listening to the Cassandras shouting the warnings..... it used to be you whispered about it, civil liberties and all that.

Now the media can show images of flag covered troops shipped back from the Gulf Wars..... but the social and political landscape altered in the name of military security will never be restored.

The whole military/industrial/Congressional/security/prison/educational/mercenary/media complex really got a boost with 9-11.... the perps got away but the War on a Noun continues.

Recently the warning bells ring louder, as we muster from slumber to warn our President that if he truly loves democracy he will not let corporations rule government; while he indicates that -- Constitutional scholarship aside -- the shreds of Founding document left by the previous administration will be framed and rehung as is, without adequate restoration.

It's a great day for America, evverbody, as that wise sage Craig Ferguson likes to say. It's a great day when we know that the warnings and the wishings of however you count the decades of encroachment of bundling-of-business-and-government-power (aka Fascism), the response of the American people will be what it always has been toward the Enemy within: feeble, apathetic, impotent.

It's a great day when we can finally embrace our own hypocrisy and unwillingness to fulfill the promise of democracy, to the great pleasure of our overseas overlords who have a different plan in mind for the American Dream trademark.

Branded with benign neglect, we of the thoughtless privilege can bed down on the cushy promises of hollowed out (indivisible) rights and a hollowed out treasury, softly drift into the dreamless sleep of the android sheeple we have become and wake up to hope, to change, to a new day dawning.

[babylonsister]

1. No. nt

[Captain_Nemo]

2. Americans, including the Dems, have given up. Since November, I have seen no change.

Except for the passage of the Lily Ledbetter Act that, by the way, took all four republican women to vote "yes" on in order for it to pass.

Other than that...no change:
Increasing troops in Afghanistan
Salazar
Increase in Faith Based Initiative (but we knew that was coming)
money for banks!
more debt
surveillance
less women in Cabinet than Bush

Wow, sure glad we had an election in 2008!

[omega minimo]

3. Thanks for the bright spot

at least we had an election! :toast:

[hfojvt]

8. Specter voted for it too

but you don't think replacing conservative women with liberal men in the cabinet is a good thing?

Debt is a good thing to have right now, and Republicans would have created more debt by giving tax breaks to the rich. Democrats created it by extending unemployment benefits, expanding SCHIP, giving aid to states, etc. It's not exactly nothing.

[Toucano]

4. No bright spot here.

I think people really, profoundly, simply DO NOT CARE.


They've got bigger fish to fry,


Sad, but it's what I think.

[omega minimo]

5. Their big fish are fried

and the focus -- as ever -- is on the personal.

That's the cozy blessing of the hypocrisy -- not even having to know what the hell Habeas Corpus is.

This nation was founded on a glorious dream -- the romance of the rebels maybe was only meant for the landed gentry after all.

[hfojvt]

6. Is this about Obama bowing to the Saudi king?

I was gonna say that this is a sad day for democracy because I lost my election, but it appears that I have won. Unless there are more votes to be counted, but with 19 of 19 precincts reporting I seem to be ahead by 38 votes, and am now on the Waterboard.

I expect it to be torture. For one thing, I don't get paid. So the two meetings a month will be volunteer time. Yay, I get to give more to a society which has not provided me with a full-time job, much less one that utilizes my university education. That would not be so bad, except that I don't have a mandate either. The newspaper did not cover the campaign, nor were there any candidate forums, so my complaint about the regressive pricing of water was not put before the voters and my finishing 3rd place out of four does not give me a mandate to change anything on a 5 member board.

Anyway, one of the problems in the country though is that about 30% of it thinks that the "enemy within" is the liberals and pointy-headed perfessers.

[omega minimo]

7. Congratulations!

"Is this about Obama bowing to the Saudi king?" LOL :spray: hfojvt

Congratulations on serving your community. That's where it's at. Good luck. And on WATER of all things. Powerful stuff. Hope it's not too "torturous."

[EFerrari]

35. Good going!

:applause:

[Up2Late]

9. Give it some time, it'll takes a while to turn around this super-tanker.

First thing we need to do is to get them to fire all the morons and air-head news models at the 24/7 "news" channels.

The Corporate Stupid machine is what is currently killing this country, but lucky for us, there are a lot of actual News reporters getting laid off from all our nations Newspapers, now all we need is a wealthy (and liberal) American to take over CNN and restore it to it's former mediocrity.

[Captain_Nemo]

10. Some are not that stupid. CNN +Washington Post admitted their coverage was biased towards Obama

[kirby]

11. Yes...

As long as people embrace myspace, facebook, and other corporate provided services with no legal privacy protection. It seems most people have given up their privacy for convenience. I see that as a broad citizen directed weakening of our societies expectation of privacy.

[omega minimo]

15. yup

and those kids grew up with violation of privacy and school and cameras everywhere.....

[ThomWV]

12. Clearly the answer is yes and its much more than a shame. Its a cancer on Democracy.

[Echo In Light]

17. Given that it is indeed peculiar that it's not duly addressed in the national discourse

But I guess that's the entire point.

[LWolf]

13. Resigned? Never.

Hopeful? Not that, either. As long as the public continues to elect corporate politicians, things aren't going to change.

As long as partisans are eager to believe that their "hero" of the election cycle is NOT a corporate politician, despite evidence to the contrary, they will continue to get in line and elect the corporate stooges chosen for them.

It's up to voters to quit drinking the damned kool aid.

[omega minimo]

16. how's that campaign/election reform comin?

:hi:

"As long as partisans are eager to believe that their "hero" of the election cycle is NOT a corporate politician, despite evidence to the contrary, they will continue to get in line and elect the corporate stooges chosen for them.

"It's up to voters to quit drinking the damned kool aid."

That "impeachment is off the table" strategery and candidates campaigning for 2 years while the crimes continued was a BIG CLUE as to where we were being herded...

"Drinking the damned kool aid" includes not understanding THAT and not comprehending why the utilization of the Constitution to protect itself is vital.

[alarimer]

14. We better act soon- the TSA is about to roll out those full body xrays nationwide.

Apparently they had a "successful" test and are now going to equip ALL airports and it won't be used just on those people who set off the metal detectors but on everyone.

Time for the ACLU to sue the pants off these people and hold it up for a good long time.

[omega minimo]

18. some links (looks like ACLU has their hands full)

http://epic.org/privacy/airtravel/backscatter/

http://www.aclu.org/privacy/gen/24856leg20060404.html

http://www.aclu.org/legislative/index.html

[arcadian]

21. Somebody should sue them for producing child pornography.

The first time a 5 year old goes through one of those things. It would be a great twist and funny as hell, but it will never happen.

[acmavm]

19. I guess apparently people are fine with no privacy, privleges,

rights, or freedom.

Because they're gone and these guys ain't gonna give 'em back. All they have for us is the privilege of supporting the Predator Class and the thugs in Washington D.C. who are their bitches.

[omega minimo]

20. ah

"I guess apparently people are fine with no privacy, privleges, rights, or freedom."

Isn't that b/c they think they still HAVE them? :popcorn:

[acmavm]

22. NO, they think they do. NO one is ever free, no one has any rights

except to pay off the rich man and support the clowns in Washington who are picking our pockets while they lie to us.

Has the Patriot Act been declared null and void? Are telecoms still spying? Are Americans losing their savings, pensions, and are the wealthy being handed the keys to the Treasury? Are we even being let in on the details of the biggest scam in this country's history?

We have an illusion of freedom because all the horrible actions of the last administration ARE STILL IN PLACE.

On the freedom side: We still get to send troops to go kill people who had nothing to do with 911 even though some crazy people thought we elected a guy who would get us out of those two unwinnable wars.

[omega minimo]

24. crazy isn't it?

[Echo In Light]

23. It's just a CONSPIRACY THEORY!

Do I really need the sarcasm indicator?

[omega minimo]

25. Right and defending the Constitution is only "on principle"

:crazy:

[The2ndWheel]

26. It's not the Information Age because we all get to play on the internet

I figure the only way such a system isn't sustained is if the energy to maintain it is too expensive. A solar powered Corporate Surveillance State? What sort of better ad campaign could the Corporate Surveillance State possibly come up with? They'll give us the "clean" energy, but we'll pay for it.

[omega minimo]

27. great idea but shhhhhhhhh

don't tell anybody :yoiks:

[FiveGoodMen]

28. No!

But I don't know how to stop it.

I know almost no one IRL that cares.

[omega minimo]

29. while this encroached for decades, the line was "people will only care when it affects them...."

are we there yet?

[EFerrari]

30. My experience is a little different. When people have a minute to think

about it, I find that most everyone does care.

Go figure.

[omega minimo]

31. and then DO?

[EFerrari]

32. Do? In what sense? Imho, when people get a minute to consider

how little privacy they have left, the fact makes them feel helpless. Is that what you meant, om?

[omega minimo]

33. Yes (I know it read kind of odd) that's it AND

(you wise one) you anticipated my guess that folks -- even when they care -- feel "helpless," disempowered.... and yet, we are the ones to do something, if anything.

Some folks even make giant letters in the sand and sit in 'em :yourock:

[EFerrari]

34. LOL! You haven't lived until you hire a black helicopter to buzz you

on purpose. Seriously, what does that leave the mofos?

[omega minimo]

36. beautiful. that could be the cover of your book.

:hi: