Authoritarian America: The Path To Tyranny

How Democrats Lost Their Populist Soul

"For most Americans, the institutions that touch their lives are unreachable. Americans get broadband through Comcast, their internet through Google, their seeds and chemicals through Monsanto. They sell their grain through Cargill and buy everything from books to lawnmowers through Amazon. Open markets are gone, replaced by a handful of corporate giants. Political groups associated with Koch Industries have a larger budget than either political party, and there is no faith in what was once the most democratically responsive part of government: Congress. Steeped in centralized power and mistrust, Americans must now confront Donald Trump, the loudest and most grotesque symbol of authoritarianism in politics today.

“This,” wrote Robert Kagan in The Washington Post, “is how fascism comes to America.” The nation is awash in commentary and fear over the current cultural moment. “America is a breeding ground for tyranny,” wrote Andrew Sullivan in New York magazine. Yet, Trump’s emergence would not be a surprise to someone like Patman, or to most New Dealers. They would note that the real-estate mogul’s authoritarianism is not new in American culture; it is ubiquitous. It is consistent with how the commercial sphere has developed since the 1970s. Americans feel a lack of control: They are at the mercy of distant forces, their livelihoods dependent on the arbitrary whims of power. Patman once attacked chain stores as un-American, saying, “We, the American people, want no part of monopolistic dictatorship in … American business.” Having yielded to monopolies in business, the nation must now face the un-American threat to democracy Patman warned they would sow."

Trump is an end result of this growing tyranny and authoritarianism. So is Clinton with her being owned by corporate interests. Neither address poor people in America. Populism was killed off in the Democratic party too. Trump wants to bring back Reaganomics and failed 'trickle down' theories of 40 years duration which have led us to the 1 percent growing stronger in power.

Clinton is owned by Monsanto and a wide variety of corporations.

Woody Guthrie and pals would be spinning in their graves to see what has happened today. Steinbeck would not have his book, "The Grapes of Wrath" published but would be informed by his publisher to write a book celebrating wealthy bankers and their troubles. 

I won't argue with anyone about who they are voting for.  I know most who have decided to vote, are doing hold their noses votes from the waif of the Turd Sandwich and Giant Douche. Some want to vote for one to protect their interests and the other for his words against globalism. I don't trust either and do not plan to vote for either. Trump scares me worse then the other one in terms of negative impacts on my personal life. The last thing I look forward to is a CRUSH THE POOR REPUBLICAN in power, we are barely making it as it is.  The Democratic party's rejection of the poor and losing of it's POPULIST SOUL, allowed the Republicans to go crazy with power. 

One thing however this article is correct about the Democratic party losing it's populist soul. I am old enough to remember despite the failings of the Democratic party presently, in earlier decades the Democratic party at least made the attempt to speak of the "little guy" and poor people and supported unions. They spoke of "rights" and "justice".  There are social issues I disagreed with the Democratic party even back then, but there was at least some semblance of speaking out for the working class and others.

This has been replaced with the support for the NDAA and trying to whip up war fever with Russia. Hillary Clinton is a globalist who does not put American interests first. I know people saw Obama, as a "good guy" but all I know personally is over the last 8 years, my disability check got cut to nothing. No COLAS means the checks have grown smaller and smaller. So I do not see the Democrat party as this great behemoth of freedom either. They are in cahoots with the bankers, and same war mongers as the Republican party too. 

As a person who fully participated in the anti-war movement of the early 2000s, the anti-war movement was even destroyed on the left, which to me is a sign of the growing authoritarianism and rejection of populism in our culture.  No one in America really supports those Middle Eastern wars, but they kept running under Obama's sojourn, with our growing national debt. Now the insane want even more wars. Americans do not understand how these wars were planned and how they are NOT in the interest of the average America. The big behemoths want to keep the war machine running. Now the left supports war.

 All the ideals have been thrown away for bankers and corporations. The Democratic party did unload the populists, and shut them out. Bernie Sanders losing to Hillary Clinton would be a core example of this. America is growing more authoritarian and one can see the effects in both parties which BOTH support the police state, wars and endless crack downs and rules.

This has become a nation of rule-followers and conformists who worry more about banker credit scores [slave scores] then actual freedom, justice and a positive future. Everything has grown too big, the companies are no longer personal or owned by small business owners but are huge mega-corporations with globalist interests that supersede any idea of loyalty to any country or region. These same traits apply to the politicians as well.

Trump seems to be touted as a "nationalist" but even that is just a story that is being sold. He preaches America First tactics, but then also claims he will bring "law and order".  Trump doesn't care about the Constitution either, in his support of "stop and frisk" laws. Dictators make the trains run on time and make a big deal of "order". The orange faced man is used to getting his way. He is not someone who will think words like "compromise" and "working things out". 

 The 20 year old parking tickets, is just one small injustice among many but there, that came from a Democratic strong hold. I thought to myself, why has no one in Chicago campaigned against this? Surely I am not the first victim. It seems in America people have given up even making a stand for their own rights. It's something I am noticing. You see a lot of shrugged shoulders and that's just the system. America has become a fearful place. Everyone's too afraid to speak out. People accept crushing bills for health insurance, fines, fees and rules that have grown more and more insane.  That is a sign of tyranny because people fear the "punishments" that await. 

Even Democrats became wealth worshippers and sychophants to the bankers along with their Republican "enemies". The crushing and oppressions have become so manifold, they see no hope and have given up in even speaking out for their own interests. Even this is based in the growing authoritiarianism.

 People literally have been Stock-holmed Syndromed and gas-lighted into supporting more sociopaths. The worship of the wealthy since the 1980s has too reached a zenith with Trump. Trump became a celebrity just for being rich during the "greed is good" days. Doesn't anyone remember this? In authoritarian America, the uber-wealthy are seen as gods. This is one facet of a country that has lost it. Authoritarians want the powerful, wealthy and sociopathic worshipped. Boot-licking is now the norm. Trump can insult women and still get supporters. Clinton can have crimes exposed and even her own husband impeached but she is still deemed a nominee of worth.

In this system, there is to be no mercy, only punishment.  Might makes right. Only money-clean outs by the powerful who offer no breaks. The prisons are to be kept full and used for corporate slavery and those who speak out for prisoner rights or even the new Jim Crow, are called insane.

One reason I am no longer in a church, is the growing authoritarianism of America, has not only taken hold of politics but religion as well. As Smakintosh has talked about, the church system has become enablers for oppression and tyranny. The same enablers for tyranny have taken over in both politics and religion.  I got tired of being told to obey man. Right now the churches are preaching "Vote for Trump!". I left just in time. I could not tolerate this. All of my old IFB members are Trump supporters. 

The churches pushed patriarchy and Romans 13 became one of the most favorite verses of the pastors, in their mis-translation that people are to obey world authorities instead of heavenly authorities, they taught from pulpits absolute obedience to the system. I know in the IFB world I was always seen as a semi-rebel even if I shared in the Christian faith with my fellow church members.

 When they preached war from that church I left from the pulpit, I later had the thought, America seems to be a country now where everything is about smashing and "winning" and crushing opponents and blind obedience. Many seem to support tyranny now.  This is why Trump is a good guy to them worthy of support because Trump wins. He may crush opponents to do so, but he has gained their respect. Half the country wants a "strong man" to "make the trains" run on time and to crack down on the ghettos. No one talks about reforming anything. Everything is about punishment and "crushing enemies".

Too many are too deluded to figure out that what came for the inner cities years and years ago is coming for them, and the court system and justice system has already started their oppressions they reserved for miniority races for all who lack the means to pay their way out of the system. This is why an overtly racist man like Trump can "win". The left pissed off people with their endless nonsense about "privilege" to people seeing their economic fortunes sink and having this reality ignored, and then came in Trump. "Trump will save us!" What an absolute joke. I am not fooled.

I have noticed in my own life, how authoritarianism rules here, "Don't have the money, you deserve to be PUNISHED!" It's funny how so much in America is based in punishment now. Every country that doesn't obey us is to be blown up to smithereens, and every American citizen without a perfect slave score and who doesn't have a full bank account to pay endless fees and fines is to be crushed too. Apartments threaten people with eviction. You are told you will lose your license for one forgotten fine or bill. Fines are doubled and tripled so 15 dollars turns into 200 dollars. Pay late, and the bill gets added to. Economic oppression is just one avenue of a system going full blown into tyranny. Trump will make all of this worse.

The Democrat party in my opinion is part of the problem too. No one there is bothering to speak of more freedom or a better life for anyone. It's just more business and banker and mega-corporation status quo. Readers here know I have no lost love for the Republicans too.

The Republican Party Scares Me

It scares me that we have ended up with two such bad candidates, and Trump is the epitome of a country gone "wrong" where tyranny is growing and worship of sociopaths and "strong men" has increased. 

The Decline of American Society 1

The Decline of American Society 2