If you read Jessica's blog last night, you would know that we went to see, at long last, The Pianist. A wrenching, mesmerizing 2.5 hours it was, and I couldn't help but think of the Iraqis as wave after wave of bombings decimate Warsaw. I also couldn't help think of the Lite Fascists in power now when I saw how day by day the restrictions on Jews became just that little bit more outrageous, but still a bit livable until it was work camps and cattlecars.
No cattlecars for us anti-war dissenters yet, but don't you just think that Ashcroft and Rummy often spend the time thinking about it? As the above essay says,
"Fascism doesn't have to involve mass genocidal slaughter, nor does it have to be equal in degree to the fascism practiced by members of the Axis powers. Traits of classic fascism include: strong nationalism, expansionism, belligerent militarism, meshing of big business and government with a corporate/government oligarchy, subversion of democracy and human rights, disinformation spread by constant propaganda and tight corporate/government control of the press."
Sounds like life in America these days, doesn't it?
Meanwhile, a few links: For the blackest of black humor you can't beat the unofficial Operation Iraqi Freedom trading cards. There's a bloody anarchic mess in Basra--so much for liberation. Another person arrested for wearing an anti-war T-shirt, this time in Arkansas. Evil GOP swine in Congress is proposing drastic changes in Pentagon procurement that would allow defense companies to win contracts of up to $200 million apiece without competitive bidding and other safeguards. Cool! The man must be on the payroll of Bechtel or Halliburton. Wolfowitz and Rummy have started to make allusions to attacking Syria. And meanwhile, Alan Bisbort lets us know that things are so bad now that he misses the Nixon administration.
And one last thing, here's that wonderful essay by Gunter Grass
The U.S. Betrays Its Core Valuesby Gunter Grass