They Were Expendable

I feel a little bit better about John Kerry’s chances. As Mariel Hemingway says at the end of Woody Allen’s "Manhattan," "You have to have a little faith in people."

I don’t think Bush/Cheney can lie forever and get away with it. Saying health care is affordable, and so on. And their ugly rhetoric won’t translate as well outside Madison Square Garden. There is just too much wrong with the state of things for it to not register with voters. Kerry would have to be behind 30 points to lose this election, so be ready for something very stupid and corrupt to happen to make sure he does. I didn’t think I would be talking politics so much, but I find this campaign profoundly engaging.

I want to talk about something controversial--the expendability of some people. This a very sensitive subject, so I’ll tread carefully. Supposing there is a man who beats his wife and rapes his daughter. Basically, he doesn’t offer much to the world except pain. If he was to suddenly vanish and lose his job, there are many unemployed people who would gladly take his place. Believe it, he’s out there. I have worked for a man like this. People called him "The Monster." Now, I’m not advocating murder here. This is a hypothetical question of ethics. How is it that the sanctity of human life is equal? Someone who creates a great work of art or works with orphans is not equal to the man who beats his family. Ghandi is better than Hitler.

There’s an unlimited number of fucked-up stories out there. People will say that everybody has something to offer. In this varying, and crowded world, I would bet there are some people out there who have absolutely nothing to offer, except as a warning. This is tragic. It's just too easy to breed, and too pleasurable. Honestly, I don't know what to make of this. Childbirth is a magical process, but then overpopulation is a disaster. Really, I am playing devil's advocate. This perceived expendability could be used as a means for justifying war. A forest burns to control the forest.

The wife beater is pretty easy to attack. How about the person who knows very little about life but does little harm. They just go about their daily job, not really hurting anyone, but not really learning about anything either. There are people of differing degrees of evolution on the planet. Some people search, most don’t. Mind you, I am not advocating that some people are useless. They may love what they do and love their families--that is enough. I am trying to think like people who do not sufficiently regard human life. The problem is not in determining that some people are "better" than others at some things--this much is obvious--but that, based on this, you can choose who will live or who will die.

Do you think that the conservative elite has any respect for the working class military? No. They may just have similar ideas about the expendability of "lower" people. This is why they wage a war without so much of a heavy heart. I get a real sense of condescension from this administration--rather than listening and responding to the will of the people. The Republicans may think of everybody as less evolved than the rich. Perhaps their mistake is very basic--they think that money is a sign of progress rather than intelligence. Maybe they believe too deeply in survival of the fittest. I am just theorizing here. Something has to explain the weirdly abusive conservative agenda.

I’ve read a couple of interesting quotes. Bush said he sees America as a land of ten-year-olds who need guidance and protection. Karl Rove said that people who have "too much education" vote Democratic. The Republican party wants people to be ignorant. Why? Why would they want an ignorant country? In my most paranoid fantasies, I think the Republicans have a long term plan to break down the mind and the planet, so that everything is expendable when it comes time to bring about the apocalypse.

More strange paranoia from Ash Tree. Believe it or not it shows a faith in the human race that there should be some kind of massive conspiracy. It’s too depressing to believe that the powers-that-be are just brute and dumb and don’t know any better. That may be the whole root of conspiracy theories. The idea that there is much more beyond what we know. Like UFOs, conspiracy theories are a kind of God.

Here's what we do know: people in the Bush administration seem to believe deeply in Christianity, as do their base. For devout Christians, Armageddon is inevitable and necessary. If Bush really believes in the Second Coming of Christ, and he is actually trying to bring it about, be prepared for the campaign to get even uglier. For Bush, the election is a religious issue, not economic, or even about one war. Then again, Bush might just be a Christian to energize his base. I have no idea what the fuck goes on in Bush’s mind, but it really seems like the Republican platform is trying to fulfill something very dark. Vote for Kerry.