[extropy-chat] (POLITICS) Utility of Protest was :Exhibitionism (no, not THAT kind)

[Mike Lorrey]

--- The Avantguardian <avantguardian2020 at yahoo.com> wrote:

> 
> 
> --- Al Brooks <kerry_prez at yahoo.com> wrote:
> 
> 'The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test' Ken
> > Kesey leads a few of his friends to an antiwar
> > protest preceding a march and then goes on a
> > platform to the microphone in front of a large
> > crowd: "You're playing their game by marching,
> > people have been marching for thousands of years and
> > still there is war", says kesey to audience, "And
> > what are you saying when you yell out loud for
> > peace? You are saying, Me! ME! look at ME!".
> 
> 
> I have a question to put to those extropes that were
> alive during the Civil Rights movements of the 60's.
> What happened to the power of protest? Why were the
> civil rights rallies and protests so successful in
> this country while much bigger record setting protests
> on both coasts against the War in Iraq completely
> ineffectual. 

Because there isn't as much money being funnelled in from the
non-existent eastern bloc countries, and Saddams credit ran out. The
Iraqi insurgency is accurately being shown to the american people as a
disaffected minority of former baathists in cahoots with islamist
fanatics. Being as the agenda of both groups is obviously not liberal,
only the hardcore stalinist nutters, other pathologically oppositionist
mentalities and the easily duped think that the Iraqi people are
against us.

In Vietnam, it was easy to portray the poor vietnamese people as
victims of imperialist US oppression, they are petite and attractive
people, neat, and pacifist in their buddhist tradition, or so the media
found it easy to portray. Decades of islamic terrorism, bombings,
hijackings, etc have generated an implicit dislike of angry arabs in
the American landscape. The media has an uphill battle in overcoming
the ingrained first impressions that Americans have of angry arabs. As
far as Americans are concerned, an angry arab is even more dislikable
than a rude Frenchman.

The Palestinians were making PR headway when they were getting their 12
year olds killed by Israeli troops for throwing rocks and molotovs. Its
the 'panda reflex' of the irrational voter, showing pity for the cute
and fuzzy in pain, and it works for the same reason that nobody donates
money to the Sierra Club to save the dung beetle and lots of people
give money to Save The Children every time they stick a starving baby
in front of the camera...

The anger of arabs makes them their own worst enemy.

Mike Lorrey
Vice-Chair, 2nd District, Libertarian Party of NH
Founder, Constitution Park Foundation:
http://constitutionpark.blogspot.com
Personal/political blog: http://intlib.blogspot.com


		
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