Thursday, April 18, 2013

Collision of Trends

In the fifth year of the first black American president, entrenched white power continues to deny it's consent and respect to the office of the President, and couches its intransigence in insane and inert conspiracy theories. All the while, demographic trends point to the coming minority status of whites in the United States.

Wall Street bankers have blithely avoided any meaningful responsibility for the wreakage and years of financial hardship they wrought. Proposed immigration reform is a cruel joke, as presently conceived. Intelligent gun laws are out of reach  in spite of the wishes of the majority of constituents.

I wonder how all this may ultimately play out. I fear that we may be about to enter a new era of political instability and assassination that could make the 1960's seem mild by comparison. I don't see the radical conservative oligarchs of this country yielding to the march of history any more than they have as of yet.

We are now on the cusp of what I see as a wave of home grown terrorism, in the guise of "gun rights" activism or poison laced mail. The Boston bombing, on Tax Day or Patriots Day or anniversary of Waco (take your pick), could be the beginning.

The public threats against the President for "wanting to take away our guns" are ever present. The inevitable march of gay marriage rights, and the bigoted refusal of so many Christian groups and others to confer equal rights for all citizens swells their fear and anger.

Economic inequality and tax reform threatens to upend the status quo as the richest and most wealthy are asked to pay their fair share for the first time in decades. This won't go down easy for a class that is used to getting its own way all the time.  

While the radical conservatives have long been able to convince people to vote against their own self interest, the changing demographics of the country, and the growing perception of the conservatively captured Republican party being unable to win elections, may lead to "second ammendment" recourse, as specified by several bumbling Republican congressmen and women.

It's a scary and fearful image I'm drawing here, and I damn well hope I'm wrong.





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