I don't get to many people who understand why I too feel US imperialism is
following a tried and true previous formula.
Big Businesses in the Roman Empire wanted more power and less need to cajole
politicians into what they wanted, so they found an enterprising young man
and backed him to the hilt, until he had the audacity to think he really was
the power of the day, and told his best friend to kill him or his family
would suffer immensely, both monetarily and physically.
This man, as a Governor of a Northern Roman Province, sent his own Calvary
into an outpost he was responsible to protect for a fast raid, then sent
word to Rome that the Gaul's were attacking and burning those settlements.
That settlement, as it was, already was a Gaul settlement. His messenger got
to Rome before the fastest messenger from that town was able to get to Rome
and say who the culprits were. The messenger of course died from poisoning,
several senators that raised huge objections either died or has immense
pressure put on them and this Council was allowed complete control of the
Armies that were in his province, where as he no longer had to get
permission from Rome to use them as he saw fit.
Then he put sever pressure on the resident Gaul's (a portion of Italy is
called Cis Alpine Gaul, cause Gaul's lived there, aka Celts, the ones that
first sacked Rome).
These Gaul's then decided to head for trans alpine Gaul (now France) getting
the hell out of Rome's territory, and this Governor then told Rome they had
amassed a army and were going to march on Rome, so he got the reinforcements
and control of all the armies in the region of Rome to do as he commanded,
not as Rome Commanded (following in the footsteps of Pompey a few decades
earlier, who had paid the same pirates to attack roman settlements so he
could gain control of Rome's armies and do as he wished).
By the time enough data had been skewed and supported by his comrades in
Rome, it was said that if he wasn't made Emperor, that all of Rome would
fall, that they had to do this or everyone's personal safety couldn't be
guaranteed.
So Julius Cesar finished off the last of Rome's Democracy and made it an
Imperial State, and it was done all nice and legal.
AS Shakespeare stated in some play I no longer remember the name of, 'first
thing we do, let's hang all the lawyers'.
My country is doing everything legally, as after a crime is committed and
more power is amassed, then that crime is absolved and those criminal
actions are made legal, and those that are suppose to be the government and
suppose to have representatives, are being told that they must shut up and
do as they are told by their betters, as they have no idea how to run a
government....and the vast majority agree, mostly by their complacent
silence. It couldn't have been accomplished if the government of the people
by the people, had been acting as the government instead of selling off
their control, their powers, their liberties and their freedoms for bits and
pieces of alluded safety.
Sorry world, but I fear that those that control my country, if they don't
already control yours, you'll do as your told, we've got the weapons and are
starting to make more hydrogen Bombs. What scares me on that is in March 01
Bush was screaming that he needed a mess of Nuclear Bunker Buster Nukes and
had to have them in no more than 6 months, we was pissed to find out they
couldn't be manufactured in that time, but congress and the senate just gave
them to him... and we had no enemies at that time that warrant returning to
the Nuclear race, nor do we now, we already have 10 times the number of
nukes need to wipe out all life on the planet, but in some peoples eyes,
more is better and who can do it first means he who dies with the most toys
wins. Of course the rest of humanity doesn't count.
Sorry, my opinion, but you cant get around the facts about my government,
not just Bush as the Congress and Senate is backing what ever he asks for,
restarting the Nuclear race 6 months before 9/11/01, and now putting
Hydrogen bombs, huge ones, back into production.
Normally I wouldn't bring anything like this up on this group, but the door
has been open and banging around for some time, I can at least admit I am
terrified this is being done in my name.
Scott
On 3/10/07, Andrew Fildes <afildes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Here we are swamped in a wave of usually crap US culture and absorb
> it like a sponge. Thus we have indigenous kids in the middle of the
> desert acting and dressing like they think that Paraburdoo is a
> suburb of East LA.
> The level of penetration has increased during my lifetime
> exponentially. As I've said here before, I have to teach my students
> that the emergency number here is and has always been 000, not 911
> although I think that the emergency services have now built in and
> automatic call diversion to cope with this one. There are many
> 'effects' like that.
> Now I must be careful because the list is murkin dominated (although
> it's based in France and discusses japanese gear) and someone will
> understand my concerns about US cultural imperialism as some form of
> insulting zealotry! :)
> Andrew Fildes
> afildes@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
When you get down to specifics, I really do feel bad about it. I
suppose the Hasmoneans had similar gripes about those unsufferable
Romans. "Cultural imperialism" suggests an intentionality that is
hard to pin to the wall though. You and I, being of a similar age
though separated by distance and your colorful version of the
language, might have more in common than you and those young blokes
when it comes right down to it.
Joel W.
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