Big Brown and the great black axishole of evil

The election of 2004 marked a sinking of U.S. society into a fearful submission to fascist-modeled totalitarianism. Like the people of Oceania in George Orwell's 1984 , a majority of the U.S. voters believed the blatant libels contrived by Republican operatives against the likes of John Kerry and Tom Daschle. They were held in trembling fear by a war contrived as a blackmail device to instill in the people a cowardly fear that their only salvation from Al Qaeda was to cower and tremble in submission to the likes of George W. Bush, Old Shoot-in-the-face-Cheney, and the Shoot-Everybody-in-the-Foot crowd led by
Donny Rumsfeld (remember him?). The first eight years of the 21st century were not proud ones for America. For many of us who have served our country with pride and diligence, they were a time of betrayal and disgrace. The willful deceit, the subversion of fundamental rights and freedoms, and the insanity of mindless, arrogant incompetence and failure in every aspect of maintaining our democracy remind us once again of the level of intelligence and diligence it takes to keep the promise of Americas. But the atrocity of sending more than 5,000 of our young troops to their deaths on a mission which has the intimidation of U.S. citizens into fearful submission as its sole discernible objective has still to be called into full account.

It seemed as the country could suffer no more insult and humiliation. George Bush is approved of by only 27 percent of the citizens, so it seems he cannot inflict any more damage on the country. But the sulking malevolence which seems to be the official posture of the Republican party took on new, perverted twists of nastiness. George Bush was invited to appear before the Knesset to mark Israel's 60th anniversary as an independent, democratic state. He used the occasion to liken the call of people, especially Barack Obama, to deal with our most obstinate enemies openly and forthrightly face-to-face as appeasement of the kind which ceded part of Czechoslovakia to Hitler. It would be hard to surpass that moment for malevolent dishonesty and degradation. But Mike Huckabee tried. When something fell backstage during a speech he gave to the NRA, he said it was Barack Obama hitting the floor whe someone pointed a gun at him. Dementia has become a party platform. Let's hope it will be covered in our healthcare reforms. While these people need treatment, the country needs respite from insane degradations they impose on it.

In all this, the most admirable and inspiring thing we can find is a horse named Big Brown. He has the easy moves of a Michael Jordan, and his win at the Preakness lifts hearts and spirits at the display of a creature of accomplishment and honest nobility. I hope his easy sprint to the finish line foreshadows Obama's finish in November.

If we aren't all sucked into the great black axishole of evil before then.