right to left
10th August 2012, 19:49
Greetings comrades,
It sounds strange to write that sort of introduction, but my nice, neat little theory about the world and the way things should be has gone through a complete upheavel in the last 10 years...especially the last five years.
Ten years ago, if you talked to me about any political or social issue, you would have figured me as a rightwing clone of the Republican-style conservatives south of the border. And I pretty much was...I subscribed to the FoxNews Channel as soon as it became available in Canada; I listened to Limbaugh every afternoon, and other right wing radio on more distant U.S. stations while driving home from work at night...and I even joined a conservative right wing discussion forum around 2003, shortly after the Iraq Invasion.
Joining a closed right wing forum that was hosted by a popular conservative icon likely started my re-evaluation process, as before - I was listening to the adults talking, but on a right wing forum I got a taste of what really motivates the fans and believers. Mostly, it's a matter of the more subtle dog whistle messages from the leaders being used to make their adherents identify with race, religion or extreme nationalism, and ignore the growing obvious differences in who was gaining wealth and who was losing...the real dividing line in a modern capitalist society.
So, I drifted into liberalism, and was happy there for awhile, but that honeymoon was shortlived as the evidence became more and more clear after the U.S. election of Obama as President, that the liberal option is just a fallback position for the monied interests who run the political and media systems.
Also, over the last 10 years I have read more and more about environment and ecological issues, and started to agree with some who are considered extreme environmental activists - who contend that an economic system based on continuous growth in energy demands and resource extraction, cannot ever be sustainable....and techno-fixes and resource substitutions only delay the day of reckoning when supplies cannot meet demands.
I believe that from what I read on rising resource prices combined with losses through environmental destruction, we have reached a point in time where U.S. and allied global policy makers have decided to pursue a ruthless grab for what's left. So poor nations in the Global South that have arable land and resources coveted by multinationals and U.S. policy makers find themselves subject to regime change, either internally as in the case of Honduras, or through invasion and overthrow of their governments, and the installation of the new, business-friendly dictator.
So, many on the left in the environmental movements, are sadly mistaken in my impression if they still believe that a global cooperative strategy can be developed to reduce carbon and ensure that everyone in the world has adequate food. Those in power have no intentions of sharing! And I believe that they will precipitate a catastrophe that causes a dieoff of much of the world's population, rather than try to save people who cannot benefit their interests.
So my bleak outlook of the near future is that international capitalism and globalization as we know it today does not have to be fought with a revolution. Instead, as economies collapse and those in power extract whatever wealth is left in the lower classes, our decision will be between feudalism or socialism. Socialism in some form, is the only long term hope for the human race, as I see the "Master of the Universe" who run things right now as borderline if not outright psychopaths who would destroy the world rather than make any concessions that would require giving up some wealth and power.
But fighting an obscenely well financed, ruthless enemy with high tech armies at their disposal will be very difficult indeed! I'm not sure how optimistic I can be about our prospects, but regardless of how bleak the outlook, we have no choice other than to try to give our children and our children's children a chance to have something more than a bleak future.
I guess saying all this makes me pretty radical today...especially coming from where I was a few years ago. People who know me personally wonder what the hell happened to me, and all I can do is try to get them to take more than a glancing interest at important issues. I do have to admit though, that after the financial meltdowns and the environmental damage we are suffering this year from our heating climate, that people are not as quick to dismiss ideas that are unconventional and they would not have considered previously....so maybe there's still some hope!
It sounds strange to write that sort of introduction, but my nice, neat little theory about the world and the way things should be has gone through a complete upheavel in the last 10 years...especially the last five years.
Ten years ago, if you talked to me about any political or social issue, you would have figured me as a rightwing clone of the Republican-style conservatives south of the border. And I pretty much was...I subscribed to the FoxNews Channel as soon as it became available in Canada; I listened to Limbaugh every afternoon, and other right wing radio on more distant U.S. stations while driving home from work at night...and I even joined a conservative right wing discussion forum around 2003, shortly after the Iraq Invasion.
Joining a closed right wing forum that was hosted by a popular conservative icon likely started my re-evaluation process, as before - I was listening to the adults talking, but on a right wing forum I got a taste of what really motivates the fans and believers. Mostly, it's a matter of the more subtle dog whistle messages from the leaders being used to make their adherents identify with race, religion or extreme nationalism, and ignore the growing obvious differences in who was gaining wealth and who was losing...the real dividing line in a modern capitalist society.
So, I drifted into liberalism, and was happy there for awhile, but that honeymoon was shortlived as the evidence became more and more clear after the U.S. election of Obama as President, that the liberal option is just a fallback position for the monied interests who run the political and media systems.
Also, over the last 10 years I have read more and more about environment and ecological issues, and started to agree with some who are considered extreme environmental activists - who contend that an economic system based on continuous growth in energy demands and resource extraction, cannot ever be sustainable....and techno-fixes and resource substitutions only delay the day of reckoning when supplies cannot meet demands.
I believe that from what I read on rising resource prices combined with losses through environmental destruction, we have reached a point in time where U.S. and allied global policy makers have decided to pursue a ruthless grab for what's left. So poor nations in the Global South that have arable land and resources coveted by multinationals and U.S. policy makers find themselves subject to regime change, either internally as in the case of Honduras, or through invasion and overthrow of their governments, and the installation of the new, business-friendly dictator.
So, many on the left in the environmental movements, are sadly mistaken in my impression if they still believe that a global cooperative strategy can be developed to reduce carbon and ensure that everyone in the world has adequate food. Those in power have no intentions of sharing! And I believe that they will precipitate a catastrophe that causes a dieoff of much of the world's population, rather than try to save people who cannot benefit their interests.
So my bleak outlook of the near future is that international capitalism and globalization as we know it today does not have to be fought with a revolution. Instead, as economies collapse and those in power extract whatever wealth is left in the lower classes, our decision will be between feudalism or socialism. Socialism in some form, is the only long term hope for the human race, as I see the "Master of the Universe" who run things right now as borderline if not outright psychopaths who would destroy the world rather than make any concessions that would require giving up some wealth and power.
But fighting an obscenely well financed, ruthless enemy with high tech armies at their disposal will be very difficult indeed! I'm not sure how optimistic I can be about our prospects, but regardless of how bleak the outlook, we have no choice other than to try to give our children and our children's children a chance to have something more than a bleak future.
I guess saying all this makes me pretty radical today...especially coming from where I was a few years ago. People who know me personally wonder what the hell happened to me, and all I can do is try to get them to take more than a glancing interest at important issues. I do have to admit though, that after the financial meltdowns and the environmental damage we are suffering this year from our heating climate, that people are not as quick to dismiss ideas that are unconventional and they would not have considered previously....so maybe there's still some hope!