Blog

10-06-02
War! Huh! What is it Good For? Absolutely Nothing!

Wasn't able to make it to the local rally today against the War in Iraq, which looks to be a certainty any day now. It's funny, you know. . .I talk to people and ask them what they think about how things are going and I ask them this question, "What would you do if you were living in Nazi Germany and your rights were being taken away, knowing what you know now?" Would you stand up and fight? How would you begin to conceptualize the best way to stand up to fascism from within Nazi Germany? What would the resistance look like? How would it organize itself? What avenues would be best to address the concerns that need to be addressed?

I was reading an article today in the LA Times that talked about this issue and the author talked about U.S. Hegemony and how the U.S. is acting as a Hegemon. Now aside from the fact that Hegemon sounds like some kind of Pokémon character (I can see it now - "I'll use my Squirtle, Charmander, and Pikachu cards to beat your Hegemon character!") it is clear that the hawks in the U.S. administration and those who acquiesce to their policies are leading the U.S. on a dangerous road of imperialism, especially with the new "First Strike Doctrine" being fomented by the powers that be. Aside from the blatant illegality of such a doctrine in the face of any standing international law, and of course, the immorality of such an action and the thousands of deaths that such a policy will cause, such a road will also divert important resources away from protecting innocent civilians at home and also destabilize international relations even further. This aside from the dangerous precedent that it sets. I am heartened by the people that have begun to organize themselves to raise their opposition to this and hope that such actions will continue. . . "Cause it's a world destruction, your life ain't nothing, the human race is becoming a disgrace. Nationalities are fighting with each other. Why is this? Because the system tells you! - Time Zone (Afrika Bambaataa and Johnny Rotten)"

Here are the full lyrics from the song (released in 1984!) - How strangely prescient it seems now!:

"Speak about destruction x3

This is a world destruction, your life ain't nothing. The human race is becoming a disgrace. Countries are fighting in chemical warfare. Not giving a damn about the people who live. Nostradamus predicts the coming of the Antichrist. Hey, look out, the third world nations are on the rise. The Democratic-Communist Relationship, won't stand in the way of the Islamic force. The CIA is looking for other detectives. The KGB is smarter than you think. Brainwash mentalities to control the system. Using TV and movies - religions of course. Yes, the world is heading for destruction. Is it a nuclear war? What are you asking for?

This is a world destruction. Your life ain't nothing. The human race is becoming a disgrace. The rich get richer. The poor are getting poorer. Fascist, chauvinistic government fools. People, Muslims, Christians and Hindus. Are in a time zone just searching for the truth. Who are you to think you're a superior race? Facing forth your everlasting doom. We are Time Zone. We've come to drop a bomb on you. Worldwide destruction, kaboom, kaboom, kaboom!

This is a world destruction, your life ain't nothing. The human race is becoming a disgrace. Nationalities are fighting with each other. Why is this? Because the system tells you. Putting people in faceless categories. Knowledge isn't what it used to be. Military tactics to control a nation. Who wants to be a president or a king? Me! Mother Nature is gonna work against you. Nothing in your power that you can do. Yes, the world is headed for destruction. You and I know it, cause the Bible tells you. If we don't start to look for a better life, the world will be destroyed in a time zone!"

10-23-02
Fascists

The other day out of curiosity, and because I feel that current developments in the U.S. can rightfully be considered fascistic, I decided to look up the word fascist in the encyclopedia, to find out it's historical meanings, and was very surprised to find out where the word was derived from. It seems that Benito Mussolini, in hearkening back to the glory days of the Roman Empire, had learned about the Roman fasces, which was a bundle of reeds with an ax in it that was carried in front of the emperor as a symbol of his might and ability to strike down those who opposed him. Mussolini brought this symbol back from history and the word fascist is derived from that object, the fasces. The interesting thing, however, is that if someone wants to see what a fasces looks like, they can look at a U.S. dime from the years 1916-1945 (which is called the Mercury dime). So the funny thing is that on the back of our very dimes used to be a symbol of dictatorship right there for everyone to see. But that's not all. In the House of Representatives House Chamber, the fasces are also depicted on both sides of the U.S. flag, behind the speaker's podium. So even today, this symbol of dictatorship is there as an integral part of civic affairs. Pretty interesting, huh?

December 2002