As the clock runs down on Bush’s time in office, I should be rejoicing, but my muscles can’t help but tense up. Such is the life of one who lives outside the left/right paradigm, a.k.a. The Matrix.

There are many possible explanations for this — the on-set of Obama’s socialist regime being a MAJOR concern — but the most immediate worry is if Bush and Co. are going to do anything to avoid handing over power (perhaps their favorite: some sort of false-flag event like 9/11) it’ll obviously happen before January 20th, which is only 8 days away.

Eight days to go then we can breathe easy and go back to our TVs, right? Unfortunately, the time to worry doesn’t end on the 20th. For months now there have been mentions of Obama being “tested” as soon as the 21st or 22nd of this month (so say Kissinger, Gates, Powell, Biden, etc.) Like it or not, the stage is set for something big to happen — Bush and his globalist buddies have been very busy the past 8 years. The most immediate threat is the engineered dollar collapse, but war on Iran, war on Pakistan, total economic depression, and domestic rioting are also very real possibilities. Whatever it is, I want to be ready.

A search for emergency preparation / survival lists will yield many results.

Some people’s suggested inventories are rather extensive and daunting (not to mention expensive) and would be hard to fulfill if you’re of average income like myself. I’m trying to find a middle ground — keeping it simple and sticking to the basics, less than 15 items:

1. lots of water (1 gallon per person per day, I prefer distilled or spring)
2. lots of food (legumes, nuts, rice, canned fruits & vegetables, nutritional yeast, protein powder, TVP, tofu, energy bars, emergency food kits)
3. batteries (maybe not needed if you have #4)
4. hand-crank radio / flashlight / cellphone charger
5. toilet paper
6. bleach or calcium hypochlorite (pool shock) to disinfect your water
7. castile soap (can be used for shampoo, dish soap, laundry, etc.)
8. first-aid supplies
9. candles & matches (a Firesteel is good to have too)
10. vitamins and essential oils
11. seeds (get non-Monsanto, non-GMO!)
12. gun(s) and ammo
13. full gas tank
14. cash / gold / silver
    (When IndyMac failed last July, customers were locked out of their accounts online, at the ATMs, and at the actual branches. They couldn’t even check their balances. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want my money being locked away from me, esp. in an emergency, so I’m withdrawing as much as I can.)

* For people with pets: don’t forget about them! Here’s a good list of items to have ready for cats and dogs.

Everybody has their own needs and preferred amenities, so obviously my list is not going to work for everyone, but hopefully it’s a good starting point. I recommend reading the list of 100 Things to Disappear First to determine what you may want to stock up on while you can. I also recommend listening to the Survival Podcast as often as possible!

Worst that can happen:

Too many things to list here, but they would all end with “I told you so” and I really hope I never have to say that.

Best that can happen:

I’m wrong and am left with a bunch of emergency supplies I should have anyway.

Hope this helps get you thinking about whether you’re prepared to survive on your own for at least a few days. Trust me, you don’t want to rely on FEMA to save you, just ask New Orleans.

Godspeed!

In solidarity with the Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at Bush yesterday out of disgust (a significant gesture in the Arab world), PeaceChicken.com supports OPERATION: GIVE ‘EM THE BOOT!

Let Bush know you are thinking of him this holiday season by sending him an old pair of shoes for Christmas! Make sure when packing up your old shoes for Dubya that the soles are facing upward when the box is opened. This shows your total lack of respect for a lying, murderous and treasonous war criminal.

I also suggest using a Sharpie to write a friendly goodbye message on the sole. Something short and sweet like “You belong in Gitmo”, “War criminal”, “Murderer”, “War is not pro life”, etc. Eight years has certainly given us many names to choose from when it comes to labeling this pathetic excuse for a President. How you say goodbye to our mass-murderer Dictator-in-Chief is up to you.

Needless to say, I would not include a return address.

Mailing Address:

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20500

Got an extra pair of shoes to get rid of? Send them to Cheney!

My friend Anthony of We Are Change Ohio comes through yet again with another fabulous and gutsy video, where Pelosi admits she hasn’t even read the Articles of Impeachment.

Understandable, she’s only had two years…

Her response when Anthony mentions all the crimes Bush has committed:

“That’s terrible. Thank you for coming.”

Yep. This is who is in charge of Congress.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUlhmOQEI_M

07/30 UPDATE: Looks like we just missed Bush in Cleveland yesterday! Dang. Maybe next time. I’ve set up a Google News RSS feed so I’ll be on top of things next time.

Very intrigued by the recent story of 4 people being arrested in Iowa for trying to make a citizen’s arrest of Karl Rove, I decided to look in the Ohio Revised Code to see what our local laws say about the subject. Indeed we are entitled to make citizen arrests:

2935.04 When any person may arrest

When a felony has been committed, or there is reasonable ground to believe that a felony has been committed, any person without a warrant may arrest another whom he has reasonable cause to believe is guilty of the offense, and detain him until a warrant can be obtained.

2935.06 Private person making arrest

A private person who has made an arrest pursuant to section 2935.04 [see above] of the Revised Code or detention pursuant to section 2935.041 of the Revised Code shall forthwith take the person arrested before the most convenient judge or clerk of a court of record or before a magistrate, or deliver such person to an officer authorized to execute criminal warrants who shall, without unnecessary delay, take such person before the court or magistrate having jurisdiction of the offense. The officer may, but if he does not, the private person shall file or cause to be filed in such court or before such magistrate an affidavit stating the offense for which the person was arrested.

Ohio is going to be very active in the next few months as the election gets closer. I say it’s time we start exercising our citizen’s arrest rights, what a powerful tool we have that we aren’t using!

That means if any member of the Bush Administration (war crimes, 9/11, etc.), John McCain (FEC violations), or Obama (violating the Logan Act with his Bilderberg attendance) etc. even steps foot in Ohio — we can get them.

Here are a few felonies to start with (and this is only Bush):

It’s time to take matters into our own hands. It’s obvious Congress (with a few notable exceptions) has NO intention of holding the Bush Regime accountable for any of their crimes.

So what say ye, my fellow Ohioans, ready to roll up your sleeves and fill up our prisons?

“At the end of the day, it is the responsibility of the people to govern themselves. We must be willing to hold our civil magistrates accountable to the contract they made with us, which is to uphold constitutional government. It is our duty to “throw off” any system of government that does not secure our liberties and protect our Constitution. And this we have not done.”
- Chuck Baldwin, 2008 Constitution Party Presidential Candidate

“The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”
- Article II, Section IV of the U.S. Constitution

Today at 10am, Ohio Congressman Dennis Kucinich (the only good Democrat in Congress) will be presenting his case for the impeachment of George W. Bush to the Judiciary Committee. (NO THANKS to Chairman John Conyers Jr., who has stonewalled impeachment efforts for YEARS.)

The six areas to be explored by the hearing are:

1. improper politicization of the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorneys offices, including potential misuse of authority with regard to election and voting controversies;
2. misuse of executive branch authority and the adoption and implementation of the so-called unitary executive theory, including in the areas of presidential signing statements and regulatory authority;
3. misuse of investigatory and detention authority with regard to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals, including questions regarding the legality of the administration’s surveillance, detention, interrogation, and rendition programs;
4. manipulation of intelligence and misuse of war powers, including possible misrepresentations to Congress related thereto;
5. improper retaliation against administration critics, including disclosing information concerning CIA operative Valerie Plame, and obstruction of justice related thereto; and
6. misuse of authority in denying Congress and the American people the ability to oversee and scrutinize conduct within the administration, including through the use of various asserted privileges and immunities.

Pretty easy points to argue! GO KUCINICH — you make me proud to be from Ohio!

Tune in to C-SPAN at 10am and watch it live.

Check out this video from Congressman Kucinich, thanking WE THE PEOPLE for supporting him in his efforts. Seriously– a Congressman thanking the people, what a concept!

I just got in from D.C., back from the Ron Paul Revolution March. My inbox is overflowing and the RSS updates are in the thousands. But PeaceChicken.com comes first!

Before I forget, I want to share a video of my recent interaction with Ohio Congressman Pat Tiberi.

I saw him at the Delaware County Parade (I was marching with The Liberty Voice) and decided to ask him about the unconstitutional FISA bill which recently passed through the Senate (FYI, Obama voted YES to spy on Americans.) Tiberi’s response? He turned around and started talking to someone else. The Fourth Amendment obviously not a big concern to him. Fortunately I had my Bill of Rights with me and kindly reminded him what it said.

This is Congress. This is who we’re relying on to save this country. They wear flag pins on their suit lapels and march in Fourth of July Parades, but when it comes time to actually stand up and defend the U.S. Constitution — they turn their back.

The good news that THEY are on their way out and WE’RE on our way in. This weekend at the D.C. Revolution March there were thousands of REAL PATRIOTS from across the country who took over Constitution Avenue and spent the day listening to amazing speakers like G. Edward Griffin, Naomi Wolf, Chuck Baldwin, and Ron Paul.

Together we marched against FISA, against the IRS, against the Federal Reserve, against REAL I.D., against the North American Union, against the war, against attacking Iran, against McCain, against Obama, against the false and dividing left/right paradigm, against everything that’s taking our country down. We marched FOR freedom, FOR liberty, FOR the Constitution, FOR the Bill of Rights, FOR limited government, FOR our Founding Fathers, FOR PEACE!

Aside from the obvious highlights, I also easily handed out a few hundred copies of The Liberty Voice and was interviewed by the National Journal Online (hopefully I’ll have a link for that to post soon, as well as my photos.) If you want to see some of the fun, there are lots of videos already uploaded here from fellow-marchers.

Also this weekend, another Patriot, someone I’m very proud to call my friend (and member of We Are Change Ohio) got the chance to ask McCain a very important question, live on CNN, at a recent town hall event in Portsmouth, Ohio.

He said to McCain:

“Can you tell us about your role as president of the ‘New Citizen Project,’ founded in 1994, which served as a chief fund-raising and parent organization to PNAC? And is this one of the factors that has made you so reluctant to support the victims’ family members and first responders who are begging for a new investigation into 9/11?”

Can you guess what McCain’s response was? YOU GOT IT! Once again, another member of Congress responded by not answering the question. He just rambled on about how he was a co-sponsor of the legislation that formed the 9/11 Commission and how great that Commission was (what a joke!!) Are we seeing a trend here?

Meanwhile… the U.S. banking crisis got some fresh momentum on Friday when there was a run on California-based IndyMac bank, resulting in their seizure by the Federal Reserve. That marked the second largest bank failure in U.S. history.

Short on its tails, ready to fail, are federally-chartered and now privately-owned Fanny Mae (AKA Federal National Mortgage Association) and Freddy Mac (AKA Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation), which together guarantee half the mortgages in the country. Of course the Federal Government, Congress, and the Federal Reserve are vehemently denying any problem, but still stand ready and eager to bail them out with OUR TAX DOLLARS (last time I checked, the Constitution said nothing of spending We the People’s tax dollars to save failing businesses.) Which of course won’t work. It’s a band-aid on a blown-off leg. The dollar crash is starting, my friends. Buy some gold and silver (here’s why) then hold on.

Yeah, I know, I have a lot of bad news in this post, sorry. I’m also sorry that I’m not done yet, because Bush has given Israel the thumbs up to attack Iran.

Given our unwavering support of Israel ($6.8 million a DAY, to be precise), of course the U.S. will be by their side in no time. Another attack on a sovereign country that poses no threat is ready to be launched. A third front for our poor soldiers in the Middle East and millions more dead civilians. Another yawn comes from the mouth of mainstream media.

It’s another day in the neighborhood, folks. One by one, the dominoes are falling as predicted. Don’t say you weren’t warned.

How many of these news stories does it take to wake people up and move them to action?

PeaceChicken.com salutes Ohio’s own, Congressman Dennis Kucinich, as he introduced 35 Articles of Impeachment against George W. Bush last night on the floor of the House of Representatives. Let us never forget a very important part of the Constitution:

“The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.”

- Article II Section IV

If only all members of Congress would be so brave. I especially commend the last three articles which relate to the Bush Administration’s crimes of 9/11.

Of course, while he’s doing his JOB trying to save this country and preserve our Constitution, the rest of Congress pays no attention.

C-SPAN: broadcast June 9th, 2008.

From RawStory:

“Resolved,” Kucinich began, “that President George W. Bush be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, and that the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the United States Senate…

“In his conduct while President of the United States, George W. Bush, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of president of the United States, and to the best of his ability preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has committed the following abuses of power…”

The first article Kucinich presented, and many that followed, regarded the war in Iraq: “Article 1 – Creating a secret propaganda campaign to manufacture a false case for war against Iraq.”

…Kucinich, a 2004 and 2008 Democratic candidate for the White House, abandoned a prior attempt to begin impeachment proceedings against Bush in January of this year.

In April of 2007, Kucinich presented impeachment articles against Vice President Dick Cheney, but the effort went nowhere. Kucinich exclaimed that “impeachment may well be the only remedy which remains to stop a war of aggression against Iran.”

Here is the full list of articles, and you can also click here to download the full 65-page document (200k):

1. Article I
   Creating a Secret Propaganda Campaign to Manufacture a False Case for War Against Iraq
2. Article II
   Falsely, Systematically, and with Criminal Intent Conflating the Attacks of September 11, 2001, With Misrepresentation of Iraq as a Security Threat as Part of Fraudulent Justification for a War of
   Aggression
3. Article III
   Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Possessed Weapons of Mass Destruction, to Manufacture a False Case for War
4. Article IV
   Misleading the American People and Members of Congress to Believe Iraq Posed an Imminent Threat to the United States
5. Article V
   Illegally Misspending Funds to Secretly Begin a War of Aggression
6. Article VI
   Invading Iraq in Violation of the Requirements of HJRes114
7. Article VII
   Invading Iraq Absent a Declaration of War
8. Article VIII
   Invading Iraq, A Sovereign Nation, in Violation of the UN Charter
9. Article IX
   Failing to Provide Troops With Body Armor and Vehicle Armor
10. Article X
    Falsifying Accounts of US Troop Deaths and Injuries for Political Purposes
11. Article XI
    Establishment of Permanent U.S. Military Bases in Iraq
12. Article XII
    Initiating a War Against Iraq for Control of That Nation’s Natural Resources
13. Article XIIII
    Creating a Secret Task Force to Develop Energy and Military Policies With Respect to Iraq and Other Countries
14. Article XIV
    Misprision of a Felony, Misuse and Exposure of Classified Information And Obstruction of Justice in the Matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, Clandestine Agent of the Central Intelligence Agency
15. Article XV
    Providing Immunity from Prosecution for Criminal Contractors in Iraq
16. Article XVI
    Reckless Misspending and Waste of U.S. Tax Dollars in Connection With Iraq and US Contractors
17. Article XVII
    Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives
18. Article XVIII
    Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy
19. Article XIX
    Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to “Black Sites” Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture
20. Article XX
    Imprisoning Children
21. Article XXI
    Misleading Congress and the American People About Threats from Iran, and Supporting Terrorist Organizations Within Iran, With the Goal of Overthrowing the Iranian Government
22. Article XXII
    Creating Secret Laws
23. Article XXIII
    Violation of the Posse Comitatus Act
24. Article XXIV
    Spying on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment
25. Article XXV
    Directing Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens
26. Article XXVI
    Announcing the Intent to Violate Laws with Signing Statements
27. Article XXVII
    Failing to Comply with Congressional Subpoenas and Instructing Former Employees Not to Comply
28. Article XXVIII
    Tampering with Free and Fair Elections, Corruption of the Administration of Justice
29. Article XXIX
    Conspiracy to Violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965
30. Article XXX
    Misleading Congress and the American People in an Attempt to Destroy Medicare
31. Article XXXI
    Katrina: Failure to Plan for the Predicted Disaster of Hurricane Katrina, Failure to Respond to a Civil Emergency
32. Article XXXII
    Misleading Congress and the American People, Systematically Undermining Efforts to Address Global Climate Change
33. Article XXXIII
    Repeatedly Ignored and Failed to Respond to High Level Intelligence Warnings of Planned Terrorist Attacks in the US, Prior to 9/11
34. Article XXXIV
    Obstruction of the Investigation into the Attacks of September 11, 2001
35. Article XXXV
    Endangering the Health of 9/11 First Responders

I was tempted, but chose not to write a special post on March 19th regarding the 5-year commemoration of the Iraq war invasion/occupation.

Thinking about it all now, so many powerful songs come to mind, lyrics I could post, videos I could share, books I could quote and recommend. But original thoughts? I feel like I’ve said it all already. My thoughts are still the same, my opinions unwavering. If someone is curious as to what I think about the invasion and occupation of Iraq, I invite you to take a look back at all the anti-war posts I’ve written throughout the years. There are twelve pages worth.

What else can I say? What magical words can I string together that will make people stand up and finally decide they’ve had enough? What else is worth repeating, besides:

May the children and families of all those who have been lost in this senseless and immoral occupation— Americans, Iraqis, soldiers, contractors, and civilians— forgive us for our seemingly ambivalent attitudes and apparent inaction. Know that the deeds of this country’s government do not represent the desires or hearts of this country’s people. War without end? NOT IN MY NAME.

Perhaps I’ll have better luck reaching people by posting the words of one of my heroes, a true champion of PEACE: Congressman Ron Paul. A man who’s been to war. A man who has the wisdom and experience to warrant the attention of every American.

On Five Years in Iraq

Five years ago last week, the US military’s “shock and awe” campaign lit up the Baghdad sky. Five years later, with hundreds of thousands of Iraqis and nearly four thousand Americans dead, we should pause and reflect on just what has been gained and what has been lost.

From the beginning, the march to war was paved with false assumptions and lies. Senior administration officials claimed repeatedly that Iraq was somehow responsible for the attacks of September 11, 2001. They claimed that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. They manipulated the fear of the American people after 9/11 to further a war agenda that they had been planning years before that attack. The mainstream media was complicit in this war propaganda.

Nearly ten years ago, long before 9/11, I requested the time in opposition to the fateful Iraq Liberation Act of 1998, where I then stated on the Floor of the House of Representatives, “I see this piece of legislation as essentially being a declaration of virtual war. It is giving the President tremendous powers to pursue war efforts against a sovereign Nation.” Less than five years later we were invading Iraq.

Five years into the invasion and occupation of Iraq , untold hundreds of thousands of Iraqis are dead; some two million Iraqis have fled the country as refugees; and the Iraqi Christian community – one of the oldest in the world – has been decimated more completely than even under the Ottoman occupation or the rule of Saddam Hussein.

On the US side, nearly four thousand Americans have lost their lives fighting in Iraq and many thousands more are horribly wounded. Our own senior military officers warn that our military is nearly broken by the strain of the Iraq occupation. The Veterans Administration is overwhelmed by the volume of disability claims from Iraq war veterans.

A study by Nobel Prize economist Joseph Stiglitz concludes that the cost of the war in Iraq could be at least $3 trillion. The economic consequences of our enormous expenditure in Iraq are beginning to make themselves known as we fall into recession and possibly worse.

Iraq war supporters claim that the “surge” of additional US troops into Iraq has been a resounding success. I am not so confident. Under the “surge” policy the United States military has trained and equipped with deadly weapons those Iraqi militia members against whom they were fighting just months ago. I fear by arming and equipping opposing militias we are just setting the stage for a more tragic and dangerous explosion of violence, possibly aimed at US troops in Iraq . There is no indication that the Iraqi government has made any political progress whatsoever.

The sooner we withdraw the better. The invasion and continued US occupation has strengthened both Iran and Al-Qaeda in the region. Continuing down the road of a failed policy will only cost more money we do not have and more lives that should not be sacrificed. Interventionism has produced one disaster after another. It is time we return to a non-interventionist foreign policy that emphasizes peaceful trade and travel and no entangling alliances. We can begin by withdrawing from Iraq immediately.

SUPPORT THE TROOPS – END THE WAR NOW.

Are you hesitant to risk the ensuing depression of putting yourself through it, but still feel a civic responsibility to tune in? Fear not, my friends, I have the solution: www.DrinkingGame.us

“The general rules of this game are no different from any other drinking game. A drink is either a shot or a good gulp from a beer (or cider). Different events call for different numbers of drinks and all you do is watch the speech and play along. If all goes well, you’ll be unconscious by the time they show the other party’s response.”

Featuring categories such as foreign policy (troops, Israel, Pakistan, “nukular”), general blather (freedom, progress), and domestic policy (stimulus, economy, Homeland.)

* * * Be alert for bonus drink opportunities, like if Bush pronounces “Mahmoud Ahmadinejad” correctly! If he discusses redeploying the troops, that’s when you “redeploy the contents of your beverage into your mouth.” If the camera shows a close-up of Nancy Pelosi (without Bush in the shot) you have to do a shot without moving any of your facial muscles— and other fun bonuses.

I’d like to add my own personal bonus — if Bush says “RON PAUL” at any time, you must immediately finish the entire bottle of whatever you’re drinking. If it’s beer, finish off the case!

Cheers, mateys!

“Fascism: a system of government marked by centralization of authority under a dictator”
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language

It is a truism in the blogosphere that one more terrorist attack will turn America into a fascist state. People speculate about what fascism in America will look like, or how they might fight it. Others boast that they plan to flee the country ahead of the coming fascist takeover of the United States. One cannot read these posts without a sense of bitter irony, because one thing is clear to those who are watching carefully:

The United States of America is already a fascist state.

The United States turned fascist on December 11, 2000. On that day, the Supreme Court essentially appointed George W. Bush president of the United States, stopping the recount of Florida votes, and, hence, the democratic process. The justices of the court then slipped away by night, ashamed of their role in murdering America’s great experiment in democratic rule.

The Supreme Court decision of December 11, 2000 is the modern American equivalent to German President Hindenburg’s swearing in of Hitler as chancellor of Germany on January 30, 1933. By swearing in Hitler as chancellor, Hindenburg set in motion a process which led to the Nazi dictatorship and World War II. In the case of the Nazis, the Reichstag fire of February 27, 1933 was the catalyst they needed to cement their grip on power. In the case of Bush and his backers, the tragedy of September 11, 2001 was the catalyst they needed to complete their full takeover of the American government.

When one looks at present-day America and reads plaintive musings about if and when America will turn fascist, it is useful to ask oneself the following question: When do you think the average German realized that he or she was living under a fascist dictatorship? How about the Japanese or Italians of the same period? Do you think that Hitler, Mussolini or Tojo made a public announcement to the effect of, “Dear Citizens: Please be advised that you no longer have any rights or political power. We have taken control of the government. Opposition and resistance are futile and will be punished.”

The fact is, most of the “good” citizens of these countries clung desperately to the notion that it was business as usual long after constitutional government was dead and buried. Sure, they knew that their governments were a little further to the right than normal, but as long as they kept earning money and eating well, they ignored the grim realities of fascism.

It’s easy to understand why: the “good” citizens weren’t members of officially scapegoated groups or political activists, and thus they never felt the iron fist of fascism. It’s not like the government just suddenly started rounding up people at random and trucking them off to camps and executing them. No, it was only the “bad ones” who were carted off. It was the John Walker Lindhs, the Jose Padillas, the illegal immigrants and the Muslim Americans of their day who were carted off.

In fact, for the average citizen of Germany, Japan or Italy, it was only when the military adventures of their fascist governments started to go seriously awry did the reality dawn on them. Until then, if anything, they merely felt the stirrings of extreme patriotism and perhaps even satisfaction as their countries expanded outward. Indeed, for many, it was only when their countries lay in ashes did they fully understand what had happened. Only then could they see that a kind of cancer had run wild in their countries and come perilously close to destroying them.

In 2007, the average American is in exactly the same position as the typical German, Japanese or Italian citizen of the early to mid-1930s. Unless you happen to be a Muslim, a left-wing political activist, or a regular reader of left-wing political websites or journals, you could be forgiven for thinking that it’s business as usual in the United States of America. You rise in the morning, read the morning paper, commute to work, get a paycheck, hit the ATM and watch the usual shows on television in the evening. Sure, we’re officially “at war” but other than a few news stories and the usual yellow ribbons and bumper stickers, this doesn’t really intrude into our realities.

But while all of us go about our lives like nothing has changed, the Constitution of the United States has been suspended, and with it, the democracy that it enshrines. Sure, Bush has never announced that he has suspended the Constitution. Rather, he has subjected it to a death by a thousand cuts. For, at last count, George W. Bush has appended 139 signing statements to laws passed by Congress, containing challenges to over 750 individual laws. These signing statements amount to 139 written declarations that George W. Bush and his allies consider themselves to be unconstrained by the law of the land and the will of the people. Or, to quote Mr. Bush: “(The Constitution) is just a goddamned piece of paper!”

On top of this, the Bush administration has repeatedly ignored subpoenas asking for information and directed aides not to comply with requests for information. And, more broadly, the Bush administration has made it clear that it will respond neither to the will of the people nor the will of Congress. Thus, in word and deed, the Bush administration is a dictatorship. And a country under the rule of a dictator is, at least by the definition at the start of this article, a fascist country.

Thus, in the last seven years, the United States has gone from a weak democracy, in which the people had weak but nominal control over their government, to a system where the government is under the control of “a unitary executive.” And, of course, “unitary executive” is how you say “fuhrer” in modern American English.

Of course, this is not news to those unfortunate Americans who are presently languishing in military prisons without access to lawyers or due process. But, for most Americans, it seems absurd or even hysterical to declare that we are living in a fascist state. Arguments about signing statements, unitary executive theory or past Supreme Court decisions are mere abstractions and gain little traction.

Perhaps this is because fascism is like pornography: it’s hard to define, but you know it when you see it. Indeed, the best way to distinguish pornography from art is not logical but aesthetic. Similarly, I would suggest that the best way to determine if a country is fascist is not intellectual at all, but aesthetic.

Fascism has a style, a language and a mood all its own. When enough of these outward signs of fascism are present, you can reasonably conclude that the country in question is fascist. For this reason, I have put together this short guide to some of the more obvious distinguishing features of fascism.

A Brief Guide to the Aesthetics of Fascism:

– Hypnotized by symbols: Whether it be the swastika of the Nazis, the rising sun of imperial Japan or the fasces of the Italian National Fascist Party, simple, visually striking and endlessly repeated symbols are the “look” of a fascist government. Check out any Bush speaking engagement, from his “mission accomplished” speech on the deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln to the Republican National Convention, and you will see him surrounded by the Stars and Stripes. And where Nazi leaders wore swastika armbands, American fascists wear American flag pins on their lapels. Sinclair Lewis observed that, “When fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and carrying a cross.” The symbols may be different, but if it looks like fascism, it’s probably fascism.

– Impoverished language: Umberto Eco wrote that, “All the Nazi or Fascist schoolbooks made use of an impoverished vocabulary, and an elementary syntax, in order to limit the instruments for complex and critical reasoning.” George W. Bush’s tortured syntax is perfectly suited to speaking this language. In describing Newspeak, Orwell declared that words will be “not merely changed into something different, but actually contradictory of what they used to be.” Bush’s speeches are peppered with words like freedom and democracy, when in fact, he means slavery and tyranny. Moreover, Bush is fond of accusing countries like Iran of illegally interfering in the affairs of other countries, much as Hitler accused other European countries of aggression as his armies overran the continent. The language may be different, but one fact is inescapable: if it sounds like fascism, it’s probably fascism.

– Mood of pervasive fear: In Bush’s America, people rightly believe that you may be subject to violence, harassment, arbitrary arrest or even torture if you challenge authority figures [1] or speak out against the government. Since I started writing articles on political topics I have heard the comment repeated time and again: “You’re going to be put on a list.” Americans of all stripes live in fear of their government and few, if any, would dare question any authority figure, even if faced with the most blatant and unwarranted abuse of power. It is a sad fact that Americans are the only people in the developed world where citizens actively fear their own government. The tools of torture may have changed, but the essential fact remains: if it feels like fascism, it’s probably fascism.

– The nation as homeland: The exaltation of the nation state as a promised land is perhaps the most basic sign of a fascist state. Twenty years ago, it would have been unimaginable to refer to the United States as a “homeland.” The word would have stuck people as both antiquated and overtly totalitarian. Now, it is bandied about freely and we actually have a Department of Homeland Security [2]. The strikingly fascist overtones of the word itself are troubling enough, but more troubling still is the thinking behind the word: America is an island in a hostile sea, surrounded by enemies who we must either vanquish or be vanquished by. Once again, if it sounds like fascism, it’s probably fascism.

At this point, it is clear that America is in the early stages of fascism; it hasn’t yet metastasized into the outright jackbooted fascism of Nazi Germany. But the country is poised like a boulder at the top of a slope, ready to roll into the abyss. In fact, it will take a miracle to keep this from happening. Consider the factors that could easily unleash outright fascism in the United States: the accelerating collapse of the US dollar; the follow-on effects from the subprime loan debacle; soaring energy prices (peak oil); catastrophic weather events caused by global warming; and, of course, the one thing that Bush’s entire foreign policy seems almost guaranteed to bring about: another large-scale terrorist attack on American soil. Any one of these by itself could trigger outright fascism. Combine two or more, and American fascism is 100% certain.

We must realize that the full machinery of outright fascism is already in place. Private security firms like Blackwater are ready and willing to serve as the new Blackshirts. Patriot Act II [3] has been written and provides the full “legal” framework for completely revoking the Constitution and the Bill of Rights and establishing martial law. The Pentagon has established Northcom [4] to organize military operations in the United States and Canada. The Posse Comitatus Act [5] has been gutted to allow the National Guard to serve in police actions all across the country. And detention centers have been built across the land and plans have been laid to intern millions of Americans [6].

History teaches that there is a point of no return in the evolution of a fascist state. Once that line is crossed, there is no turning back until the country lies in ashes and millions lie dead both inside and outside the country. If you don’t think it could happen in the United States of America, then you don’t remember how easily Americans let themselves be robbed of their precious civil liberties in the aftermath of 9/11.

Thus, a presidential candidate who does not make restoration of constitutional government the centerpiece of his or her campaign should not even be considered. The first and most pressing order of business must be to repeal the Patriot Act in its entirety. Provisions that Democratic lawmakers deem essential to national security can be restored on a piece-by-piece basis as parts of other legislation. The Military Commissions Act of 2006, which suspended habeas corpus, must be repealed. The Department of Homeland Security must be downsized and brought under full and transparent civilian control.

In the longer term, meaningful campaign finance reform and public funding for elections must be enacted in order to put political power back into the hands of the people and to take it out of the hands of the Pentagon and allied industries. Because ultimately, it is the military-industrial complex, working with the electoral support of right-wing religious fundamentalists [7], that is behind American fascism.

A final note:

The least discussed news story of recent history appeared in the New York Times on February 4, 2006 [8]:

“The Army Corps of Engineers has awarded a contract worth up to $385 million for building temporary immigration detention centers to Kellogg Brown & Root, the Halliburton subsidiary … KBR would build the centers for the Homeland Security Department for an unexpected influx of immigrants, to house people in the event of a natural disaster or for new programs that require additional detention space.”

Since it seems unlikely that cruise ships loaded with illegal immigrants are likely to wash up on American shores any time soon, one has to wonder what they mean by “new programs that require additional detention space”.

For the love of God, IS THIS AMERICA?

—————-
Chris Rowthorn is an American journalist based in Kyoto, Japan. He has written for the Japan Times and Kansai Time Out.

Refences:
[1] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyvrqcxNIFs&mode=related&search=
[2] http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm
[3] http://www.thenation.com/doc/20051010/scahill
[4] http://www.northcom.mil
[5] http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/10/18/211033/23
[6] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rex_84
[7] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4es8mOiI2Io
[8] http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/04/national/04halliburton.html