I am ashamed of this government, both federal and state and city. I have been watching what is happening with the various “occupy” movements and it seems that entrenched power has decided that its interests outweigh the freedoms and rights of the people.
Again and again, the stories of agitprop and slant, carefully repainting the protests as “unsanitary”, “violent”, and “illegal”; these last weeks have been an obvious and calculated effort at shifting public opinion so that the ouster of these people and the callous usurpation of their right to assemble and express themselves “could be justified”.
And it seems that, as with so much, this too they shall do with impunity. The riot police and politicians across this country glibly ignore and encroach upon the foundational, constitutional rights of the people to protect themselves from (heaven forfend!) having to do anything other or more than they have, from having to change, from having to turn away from predation under guise of patriotism and the act of destroying patriotic activities.
The absurd caricature of a government attacking its own people in the name of “safety” and “security” is not lost.
The sad and sorry state of this country is highlighted by the reality that these cities, states, and our federal “leadership” are willing to abuse power to set us against one another and send the people sworn to protect us from these things to instead enact them upon us.
It becomes so very clear now that this has not been America for some time; government and corporations are actively oppressing people, repressing dissent, and forbidding the avenues and activities that were designed into our very laws to ensure against this tyrannical outcome.
The epitome of this, for me, is a story and image that ran just the other day in my local paper and is available online at Seattle PI (link); the image that shredded the very last of my belief, hope, and trust is this one:
84 year old Dorli Rainey is a former school teacher and someone who has been active in local politics in the past. In fact, she once ran for Mayor. She wasn’t even IN the protest, she had merely gone to “see what was going on” and, for it, they pepper-sprayed her.
I wish I could say I cannot believe this could happen or has happened, but frankly, I am now convinced that anything can happen as there is seemingly no fear, no hesitation, and no conscience left in those who were entrusted with leadership and the right to wield authoritative power.
Such shameful activities, such remorseless abuse of authority and power makes me angry and sad. This is my America? I keep asking as if it might still be possible to wake from such a horrible nightmare… but even I can no longer avoid or deny that this is our reality.
What next?