I was watching the evening news not so long ago. Don’t get me wrong, I almost never watch the evening news. After all, Seinfeld is on at this time and why would I watch the evening news when I can watch that for the 20th time?
But this time it was the same but different. What was
different was that I was paying extreme attention.
It was about this guy. In fact, a fair amount of time was
given to this guy. He walked in to a bank in Marin Country. He had
robbed this bank before and a cashier recognized him. The cops
followed or chased him and eventually caught the guy.
After I watched this garbage I thought to myself, “What sot
of guy walks in to a bank he’d robbed before, knowing as I do and he must, that
they have cameras, and doesn’t think he’d get caught?”
In answer to my own question I say, “A stupid guy. That’s
who.”
But in the mass media, this poor, working class or just
plain stupid guy who is so disconnected that he robs a store where the chance
of someone recognizing him is strong, becomes some sort of newsworthy criminal.
Why is that? Obama is not portrayed as a
criminal. The imbecile Bush is not portrayed as a criminal. And war
criminals like Dick Cheney are not portrayed as criminals.
Well, this is just the world we live in. The class that
rules never writes about events or history like we would. When I was
active in the leadership of my Union there were people that opposed my and our
point of view who always attacked us on the basis that we “had and agenda”.
Well “we” did have an agenda, and we were open with it and urged our co-workers
to vote for us if they agreed with that agenda.
The real objection from our opponents was that they couldn’t
openly argue against our agenda. They couldn’t defend their point of
view, so they attacked us as if we had some sort of hidden views. This
strategy failed and the reason it failed is because we were always open and up
front with our members.
I love those lines from Bob Dylan’s Ballad of Hattie Carroll
as the rich murderer of this working class black woman, his maid, was facing
his day in court:
In the courtroom of honor, the judge pounded his gavel
To show that all's equal and that the courts are on the
level
And that the strings in the books ain't pulled and
persuaded
And that even the nobles get properly handled
Once that the cops have chased after and caught 'em
And that ladder of law has no top and no bottom
Stared at the person who killed for no reason
Who just happened to be feelin' that way without warnin'
And he spoke through his cloak, most deep and
distinguished
And handed out strongly, for penalty and repentance
William Zanzinger with a six-month sentence
Ah, but you who philosophize disgrace and criticize all
fears
Bury the rag deep in your face
For now's the time for your tears.
Here in the US, whenever the politicians of the 1% in the
two Wall Street Parties want to attack their opponents they accuse them of "playing
politics" or using politics to stonewall. But politics is life,
it is about how society functions, where money is allocated whether we eat,
receive medical attention or have a place to live. It is about wages and
working conditions and whether we can send our children to school. The personalized
nonsense that comes out of the mouths of Democrats and Republicans at election
times is designed to obscure this. They represent "all" the
people is their mantra when in fact they do not, they represent the material
interests of their constituents. As capitalist parties that means the
interests of big capital.
Never trust anyone in politics or the Union that tells you
they don’t have an agenda. Everyone has an agenda, being open with it is
the issue.
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