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Thursday, December 10, 2009

Ancient Rome

Roman Eagle Standard: SPQR = Senatus Populus Que Romanus
Exactly how are we different from the pagan Roman Empire? We have our panis et circenses, bread and circuses, to soma the minds of the populace , we are pretty much pagan in our cult of celebrity and sex and violence, we are going to go to war on the Parthian frontier... I heard someone behind my back - that is, someone on cable tv chattering while I am at the computer...and they are somewhat indistinguishable in the heated fervor of their rantings - say that someone, Cheney or Palin, had said the President did not believe in American Exceptionalism, and opined what a bad thing that was, and this was stoopid...and so on... American Exceptionalism is the notion that the USA - not the American continent per se, but the political entity known as the USA - is exceptional; that is, it is "better" than other countries, and stands head and shoulders above the rest. In its extreme form, God loves us and USA; we become better than other folk because we live in the good ol' exceptional US of A.

This idea came into being in the period of our Genocide of the Native Peoples. It is part and parcel of the genocidal portion of our history. The fact that I can hear it mentioned on public broadcasts, and nobody seems to bat an eye or complain is a measure of our pagan nature. Such a belief is idolatry, setting a country up as a golden calf, and praying to it. Irony moves too gently for idolatry; Jehovah's wrath will smite the idolatrous. Or at least, that's what we believe when the idolatrous are other folks.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

It almost grieves me to observe how right you are. Almost. But since you agree entirely with me, how could I take that position?

Montag said...

If I ever get my stuff together, I'm going to do what I think needs to be done...even if just by one person...then two, then more.

I see absolutely no way out of the corner we've painted ourselves into...in debt now, and facing the debt soon of Medicare and SocSec of the boomers.

I think we are going to get into war in a big way. The military-industrial-lobbyist-congress group ain't going to let that military sit around and do nothing while we go down the sink.
We are going to get serious about war. Anything in space will be primarily military. Colonization will be for military outposts, etc.
This will be a good way for us to let the mad men. tea boggers, Becks, etc. let off steam and scream...give them a five-minute hate everyday ( even though they have more than that now!) and ship some of them out to the colonies.

Us, they will not bother shipping us out...