(Re: Hackers attack Anti- War list.) + rants + some other thoughts

[Arthur W. Green]

Hello Mr. Garrett (and others who are interested),
> 
>
>Whether this was a tactic by right wing hackers or just some porn
>merchants trying to gain new customers in a negative way. It begs the
>question that who can one trust when even our own governments are turning
>against their own people, whilst actively seeking out terrorists? 
Certain factions within the US government have been planning this for
some time. The "accident" (note the quotes) was an excellent runway for
the Bush agenda, part of which is to rid themselves of any viable opposition.

But on the same note, we haven't really seen the colours of the Bush
administration in their fiery prime, yet. They are only laying the
groundwork for what is to come. Just wait, I dare you...

> In
>America FBI drones have already begun visiting art galleries that are
>exhibiting material that does not fit into Bush's limited remit. And
>threatening many people just because they think different and taking away
>their civil rights through such small-minded actions. 
>
Artists and musicians have traditionally been seen as the spearhead of
human culture that firmly opposes rigorous control at the "grass-roots"
level. While I have some real misgivings about this belief (especially in
the wake of much rampant commercialization of artistic communities, as
your later comments about the so-called "radical artists confirms to me,
but also from a historic standpoint as well), your statement does not
surprise me.

> 
>
>It is now obvious that no one is allowed to think contrary to their
>governments' own politics or actions. The media is increasingly ignoring
>everyday people's needs for clarity and support in such situations. 
As I believe should be fairly clear at this point, particularly when
taking note of some of the larger media networks (i.e. FOX), the media is
THE voice of the Bush agenda. It is *not* here to take note of everyday
people's needs for clarity, because such clarity would likely permit the
everyday people to realize who their real enemies are.

Ultimately, remember that the real enemies are not just the government
and their own intentions, but the blinded people, who by becoming so
dogmatic become an extension of the will of the government and will take
it upon themselves to "weed out their own" without much effort by the
government. The US has illustrated itself to be a lot smarter in this
regard than many countries, particularly with tiny oligarchies or
dictatorships, who try to rule a country completely by force without
better utilizing the "weight" and "throw" of its people.

This is why I will also warn everyone who is not already aware of this
fact, that during such times as these, your neighbors, friends, enemies,
people you meet in town [and perhaps your own families] that could be as
dangerous to you as any of the "hands of justice" that enforce the will
of the government should this "War on Terror" escalate to a new level in
the US.

In other words, the will of the government is in many ways (often
recursively) can almost be equated to the will of its people. There is no
government [so far] that can stand on its own for so long without the
will of its people executing their every wish. 

> In
>fact the editors have sacked many freethinking and well-meaning
>journalists since the bombings on Afghanistan. 
The editors are often appointed [and always approved] by the owners of
the media, which are a handful of exceptionally large companies that own
a mess of smaller "subsidiaries" to give the illusion of any kind of
competition to the people. (Viacom is one that comes to mind...)

> The new McCarthyism has
>well and truly settled into America now, and as the wimps and the mob
>deny the reality by either staying silent or conforming to the lie,
>whilst letting others who are the real heroes, getting threatened by
>despotic actions. 
The people of the US are too blind in their misdirected anger to care. 

No one really cares about the dilution of the individual (such as the
tossing of all sorts of "civil liberties"), because Americans have been
taught to believe that any one individual must suffer for the perceved
"good" of the masses. Unfortunately, they are not paying attention to the
fact that any dilution of the individual ends up diluting the masses,
simply because the masses are merely a collection of individuals.

The idea that the individuals that join the masses become part of the
something that is "greater than the sum of their parts" is phallacy in
its own right, with no basis in reality. We can only learn and cooperate
with one another to learn or obtain what we'd otherwise not have on our
own. Again, this idea is a wonderful illusion to keep a people's ideals
(and therefore their actions) in check for the "good" of society/economy/
religion/whatever, etc. by voluntarily becoming part of the "work force",
particularly under the "pressures" of observing what others see and teach
you to do.

In this light, I am not sure I can blame everyone who should be involved
for staying silent. I am not saying they are staying silent for the right
reasons, but as long as the masses in the US are not willing to move an
inch for what should be "givens" (and not *permitted* "liberties", as
they still seem to believe), this is really NOT the time to speak out in
the wrong places. One is likely to be silenced in one form or another at
a time when no one really cares if, how and why you are silenced as long
as it is for the "right" reasons, however ambiguous and obviously
irrational they may be (a "polluting this great country of ours" is one I
have been hearing a lot lately). The absolute hypocrisy in the US is out
of control, so trying to argue with consistency as a basis for one's
arguement does not work any better than actual logic.

> It will carry on regardless, due to many artists and
>not standing up to be counted against such illegal motions by uncaring
>governments. 
How caring do you deem a large corporation to be? When observing the
behavioral characteristics of both large corporation and government, it
is easy to see that they are in fact the same entity in the US.

> I find it very surprising how quiet 'so called' radical
>artists are at present in view of the stuff that is going on in their own
>land. Wake up! Before your voice is also muffled just for being who you are.
>
The masses are not tired [enough?] of this struggle yet. These artists
will be silenced and then promptly forgotten. That serves no one any
measure of good.

If you should be truly contrary to public opinion (and not "uniformed",
as nn might say), you are already in such a small minority that valiant
but totally uninformed "protests" against public opinion will leave you
on a shore left for dead, hypothetically speaking. 

I think we are at a point where the only real way we can beat out an
oppressive force is by using our brains (this IS what we try to think
with, right?) and then out-stepping their own obvious losses in
efficiency and productivity. They being a massive collection of people,
we can at least help minimize our own damages by this oppression by
taking advantage of the fact they have a lot of "weight" to carry around
for each and every decision they make.

> 
>
>History will see this as a dark age if we survive and it will not forgive
>those who have not bothered to help others who are presently being
>attacked by such bigoted and soulless entities.
>
History is largely "written" by the government in power and the people
who follow it blindly. Those opinions are what inevitably become
"publically accessable", and is what is the large "bulk" of the
information available to us today. Any country with a more obvious form
of "revisionism" is a very good example of this kind of thing at work.
However, I stress the phrase "more obvious", because all countries engage
in this practice in varying ways (note, I did not say "severities",
because almost all of them are equally severe), some more subtle than
others, particularly to their own people who often don't know better.
(This is because most people are not willing to test the "box" that they
live in...ever...)

The newer methods of electronic distribution of information has helped
change this to some degree, but don't believe the media hype, because it
hasn't moved that much (call it a trivial, but essential "baby step").
Not enough people are taking advantage of it to this end, and I
personally don't believe they will until they feel *impelled* to do so.

>
> 
Anyway, these just a handful of ideas I personally think should be
addressed more specifically on this list (I'll shutup now, or at least
I'll do my best), because despite what I have heard some of you exclaim,
*real* artists and musicians (not those merely "approved" of by the
masses and large corporations) will move into becoming a dormant, if not
entirely extinct, species in the public gaze in our liftimes, out of
sheer necessity and survival. Already, most art is being driven
underground because of the obvious distaste by people most needed for its
public survival.

Like any human characteristic that is diluted effectively enough over
successive generations, real art is quenchable among the masses and
ultimately will fizzle to a point where its practice means nothing to the
average person. Who am I to say this will be a permanent condition?
However, I doubt anyone is truly qualified (regardless of their
"credentials") to say it will not be.


Best wishes,
Arthur W. Green