We should’ve seen a Donald Trump coming

Richard Rorty - Achieving our Country (1998)

Theory of democracy disproven by 2016 Presidential Election

Walter Cronkite said, “We are not educated well enough to perform the necessary act of intelligently selecting our leaders.” I’ve long agreed with this sentiment. The American public is simply too ill educated and susceptible to manipulation by the interest of the elites.

These are the interests that will have us believe climate change does not exist and our neighbors are our enemies. The more divided they keep us with cultural wedge issues, the easier it is for them to cling to power.

Much like a certain fire and brimstone spewing sociopath taking Europe to the brink of destruction in the 1930s was a symptom of economic discontent, the rise of the white supremacist oompa loompa is a symptom of working class America being spit on and robbed by the elites. The real danger to the establishment would have been a figure who appealed to both sides of the aisle. Of course, this will never exist in a system consumed by the tentacles of the vampire squid.

Alas, this was never about Red vs. Blue and never will be. It will always be the rich vs. the poor, and the latter will never have the upper hand.

As such, it’s time to abandon the theory of American democracy, purge the politicians, and embrace an evolved Athenian model where representation is comprised of scientists and academics. Until then, enjoy the spectacle for what it is; the ultimate high stakes game show where the guns and bombs are real.

How Donald Trump has shifted the Democratic Party to the right

There’s no questions that many young people are fed up with pro-war establishment politicians like Hillary Clinton. Hence, the close primaries with Bernie Sanders.

Enter The Donald. Essentially, his racists, xenophobic campaign platform has terrified left leaning progressive Democrats – who overwhelmingly supported Bernie Sanders and vowed never to support Clinton – so much so that they are now finding comfort in her bosom.

Now, the Democrats look like they’re becoming the new Republican Party – while the GOP currently represents an ideology that fuels anti-immigration racism and is so far right that key swing voters could not even begin to stomach them.

This leaves a void on the left in which a third party could occupy in the future as more young voters start giving a shit.

Of course, all of this is mute in the context of traditional American power structures, which keep the poor in debt bondage and the wealthy in power regardless of voter sentiment. The bottom line is – America was bought and paid for long ago – so sit back and enjoy the circus while you can. 

Donald Trump is the President America deserves

No candidate embodies the spirit of xenophobia, racism, and national machismo more than Donald Trump - making him the President America deserves.

It's hard to imagine a more American symbol than Donald Trump. He's greedy, dishonest, and hateful - qualities that have been perpetually ingrained into Americans from the moment we're born and instructed to chase that 'dream'.

Most importantly, Trump represents that those with money are special and that the poor are less than human. To him and his supporters this is the way God intended it to be.

So, I pray, that Donald Trump is elected President. Perhaps, then we'll all learn.

Tolstoy on the meaning of life

"In contrast with what I had seen in our circle, where the whole of life is passed in idleness, amusement, and dissatisfaction, I saw that the whole life of these people was passed in heavy labour, and that they were content with life. In contradistinction to the way in which people of our circle oppose fate and complain of it on account of deprivations and sufferings, these people accepted illness and sorrow without any perplexity or opposition, and with a quiet and firm conviction that all is good. In contradistinction to us, who the wiser we are the less we understand the meaning of life, and see some evil irony in the fact that we suffer and die, these folk live and suffer, and they approach death and suffering with tranquility and in most cases gladly…

In complete contrast to my ignorance, [they] knew the meaning of life and death, labored quietly, endured deprivations and sufferings, and lived and died seeing therein not vanity but good…

I understood that if I wish to understand life and its meaning, I must not live the life of a parasite, but must live a real life, and — taking the meaning given to live by real humanity and merging myself in that life — verify it."

More here: Leo Tolstoy on Finding Meaning in a MeaninglessWorld

Why Tom Brady is the ideal American

Whether it’s winning wars or winning Super Bowls – a primary component of the American ethos is doing ‘whatever it takes’ to win.

Dick Nixon embodied this admirable trait when he did whatever it took to win the Presidency (though it subsequently cost him – but that’s politics I suppose). He also refused to give up during the Vietnam War and bombed the hell out of Cambodia and Laos just to prove a point.

A more modern example would be the Global War on Terror and George W. Bush’s vow to do ‘whatever it takes’ to win – even shitting upon the very tenants of what makes America America through the now exposed NSA surveillance program and a number of other draconian measures.

Extending this even further, we’ve rationalized torture, drone strikes on American citizens, and a whole host of other dystopian projects that would make even Goebbels feel uneasy.

But back to Tom Brady. I don’t know what the truth is – whether he had a hand in deflating footballs for an unfair advantage or not – but if he did, then that would make him a prime example of what it means to be an ideal American by embodying the urge to commit to do ‘whatever it takes’ to be a winner. Except in his case – it has seemed to work.

On the Firebombing of Tokyo

Must Read: The Firebombing of Tokyo: Seventy years ago today, the United States needlessly killed almost 100,000 people in a single air raid over Tokyo.

“Killing Japanese didn’t bother me very much at that time . . . I suppose if I had lost the war, I would have been tried as a war criminal.” - Gen. Curtis LeMay

As Howard Zinn put it in his final speech before he died:

Gen. Curtis LeMay

"This idea of good wars helps justify other wars which are obviously awful, obviously evil. And though they’re obviously awful — I’m talking about Vietnam, I’m talking about Iraq, I’m talking about Afghanistan, I’m talking about Panama, I’m talking about Grenada, one of our most heroic of wars — the fact that you can have the historic experience of good wars creates a basis for believing, well, you know, there’s such a thing as a good war, and maybe you can find, oh, parallels between the good wars and this war, even though you don’t understand this war.

But, oh, yes, the parallels. Saddam Hussein is Hitler. That makes it clear. We have to fight against him. To not fight in the war means surrender, like Munich. There are all the analogies. . . .You compare something to World War II, you immediately infuse it with goodness."

Above all, don't lie to yourself.

"The man who lies to himself and listens to his own lie comes to such a pass that he cannot distinguish the truth within him, or around him, and so loses all respect for himself and for others. And having no respect he ceases to love, and in order to occupy and distract himself without love he gives way to passions and coarse pleasures, and sinks to bestiality in his vices, all from continual lying to other men and to himself..." - The Brothers Karamazov

Carl Sagan was spot on about the decline of America

“I have a foreboding of an America in my children's or grandchildren's time -- when the United States is a service and information economy; when nearly all the manufacturing industries have slipped away to other countries; when awesome technological powers are in the hands of a very few, and no one representing the public interest can even grasp the issues; when the people have lost the ability to set their own agendas or knowledgeably question those in authority; when, clutching our crystals and nervously consulting our horoscopes, our critical faculties in decline, unable to distinguish between what feels good and what's true, we slide, almost without noticing, back into superstition and darkness...  

The dumbing down of American is most evident in the slow decay of substantive content in the enormously influential media, the 30 second sound bites (now down to 10 seconds or less), lowest common denominator programming, credulous presentations on pseudoscience and superstition, but especially a kind of celebration of ignorance”  

― Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark

5 tips to help protect you from NSA surveillance

Ever since Edward Snowden exposed the true depth of the NSA’s surveillance programs – there have been numerous movements to counter these threats to privacy. Signing petitions, emailing your local representative, and voicing your outrage on twitter are all great outlets – but I have a few tips that are 100% guaranteed to protect your online privacy.

1) Instead of emailing, calling, or texting someone who lives in your city – why not meet them in person and have a face to face conversation?

2) If you can’t meet someone in person – email, call, or text them. You probably have nothing interesting enough to say that would warrant the NSA’s suspicion anyways.

3) Continue to use social media as you would normally. Eventually, the NSA’s massive data center in Utah will become so inundated with selfies, pictures of your children, and your dinner that its servers will reach capacity and cease to function. Problem solved.

4) Communicate purely in emoji and LINE stickers. It’s not as if you had anything that requires the use of words and compound sentences to communicate anyways.

5) Write on a piece of paper and mail it. Perhaps the most controversial of all my suggestions – writing a letter is a fool proof way to throw off the NSA data scientists that are hot on your trail.

Of course, I could also include the use of carrier pigeons and smoke signals – but as mentioned – you’re probably not saying anything interesting enough to pique the interest of the NSA anyways – so no need to resort to such drastic measures. Plus, all the content you’ve willingly given to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Google will end up in the hands of those corporate mega conglomerates regardless of your privacy settings – so take solace in knowing that your communications are trivial to pretty much anyone not trying to sell you that new scent of underarm deodorant.