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Most fair minded people know that President Bush's war
against Iraq is not justified and that there was no real danger to the
U.S. from that sand pile of a nation. Most honest people also know that
the grand "coalition" attacking Iraq is really just America
and, to a far lesser degree, Great Britain. Fed up with the intellectually
insulting, absurd, grade school level rah, rah, propaganda they're being
fed by the sycophantic U.S. media and especially by a couple of the
cable news networks, many citizens are turning to the internet to get
more balanced reporting. What these citizens are learning, is that most
of the world is watching this phony war in horror, and billions of people
(yes, billions) are probably now internalizing the possible world changing
opinion that Uncle Sam isn't their favorite uncle and is even more of
an ugly American and a bully than some had previously thought. |
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This
possible change in world opinion does not bode well for the U.S. at
a time when we are no longer isolated and safe behind two oceans. The
world today has been made small by fast mass transportation. The Atlantic
and Pacific oceans, as barriers between the U.S. and the rest of the
world, now present about as much of a physical obstacle as some rivers
once presented between towns. And, even though Great Britain is half-heartedly
with us in what appears to be Bush's private war, most people around
the world do not put that nation in the same category of evil as they
put the U.S. This is so, because most of the world understands that
Great Britain has essentially been bought by the U.S. and is now our
colony that simply does what we want on major issues. Rightly or wrongly,
many people also view British Prime Minister Tony Blair as President
Bush's lap dog. |
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How
do we answer? Are we a sociopathic nation? That term, sociopathic, by
the way, has now largely merged with and co-opted the term psychopath.
You may have heard that sociopaths are often cold-blooded killers. That's
true as far as it goes, but not all sociopaths are killers. All sociopaths,
however, are cold-blooded. Classic sociopaths share the inability to
know right from wrong, and they all have little or no human compassion.
They don't care about other people. Many sociopaths are also very clever
and know how to fool others by showing a caring public face. You won't
see them tearing wings off insects in public (actually, one of the early
indicators of a sociopathic personality is when a child does do this
sort of thing). This is one reason why sociopathic serial killers can
often find so many victims. The victims usually never have a clue that
they are going to be killed until the very last moment. There is no
passion. There is no anger. If the sociopath is known to smile and talk
in a soft voice when he works or plays, he'll probably continue smiling
and talking in a soft voice as he kills his victims.|
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Some
sociopaths claim to be what they're not--compassionate. Given the widespread
dissemination of catch phrases in our society, the reader may be forgiven
if he thinks "compassionate conservatism." at this point.
Many sociopaths live normal lives and appear normal. Many rise to high
positions. Studies indicate that approximately 4% of the population
may be suffering from sociopathy. Studies also indicate that sociopaths
are almost always male. On the outside, sociopaths look normal. Inside
their minds, however, there is a lack of any real emotion about the
deaths of others. Even when they are clever enough to feign concern
or regret about the death of others--which they often do, since this
is considered necessary in order to pass as normal in society--their
crocodile tears can be seen for what they are if one is perceptive enough
and has observed the person for an adequate period of time in various
circumstances. There is a coldness or flatness to their emotions. This
is so, because sociopaths are self-absorbed, lack conscience, and have
no genuine feelings for others. Listen to some very well known so-called
"conservatives" on radio or TV talking about Iraq these days
and you'll hear examples of this flatness of affect and lack of empathy.
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Many
on the right reflexively and unknowingly excuse sociopaths and the evil
that they do, partly because they don't realize that these people are
suffering from a mental disease, and partly because of a strong dislike
for those neurotic, squishy, doe-eyed liberals at the other end of the
emotional spectrum who always seem to be holding candle light vigils
or who are just a bit too teary eyed about everything. Constitutionally
revulsed by these emotional basket case liberals--who are often, and
correctly, thought of as the political/social enemies of those on the
right--many good, decent people on the right go through a sort of silent
psychological calculus that can most simply be stated as: the enemies
of my enemies are my friends. Since the sociopaths definitely aren't
squishy, many on the right think these sickos are the same as them when,
in fact, the sociopaths aren't anything of the sort and are simply using
those on the right to further the insane goals of the sociopaths. These
insane goals often include complete dominance of others. Of course,
the sociopaths often cleverly mask their goal of dominance with justifications
of anything and everything that is necessary to achieve total dominance.
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When
sociopaths rise to high positions in government, all sorts of troubles
can ensue as their sociopathic needs dictate public policy. When people
are likely to die as a result of the actions of the sociopaths, as when
the sociopaths undertake wars and military actions, the targeted people
are often dehumanized by the sociopaths. They are also sometimes, depending
on circumstances, demonized and blamed for all sorts of things that
these people didn't do. In addition, people who actually are killed
as a result of the actions of the sociopaths, are often blamed for their
own deaths. To the sociopath, other people always had it coming or deserved
it and the sociopath wasn't responsible. What the sociopath wants, the
sociopath takes, and damn others to hell if they stand in the way. Other
people are as meaningless to the sociopath as a sack of dirt. The deaths
of people, including babies and small children raise no more emotion
in the sociopath than would arise from the "killing" of a
sack of dirt. |
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Think
back to Waco. Remember how various government spokespeople and commentators
blamed David Koresh and the people in the Waco compound for their own
deaths? Did you hear much compassion from government spokespeople and
commentators for the little kids who were burned to death in this incident
that did not have to happen, but which did happen because the government
couldn't get Koresh and his followers to bend to the will of the comply
or die types? Remember Ruby Ridge? That didn't have to happen either.
Similar comply or die types demanded complete submission. And, when
it didn't come, they attacked this decent family doing little more than
minding their own business and living as they saw fit. Now we're in
Iraq and we're Wacoing and Ruby Ridging a whole nation that was pretty
much minding its own business, but which refused to bend to the will
of the comply or die elites in our government. As was the case both
with Waco and Ruby Ridge, the sociopaths or sociopathic acting elites
kicked their propaganda machines into high gear and started demonizing
"them" in order to manipulate public opinion into accepting
unjust attacks. |
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The
sociopaths in and out of government are in their glory these days as
the deaths mount in Iraq. However, it is not the deaths, per se, that
causes them to be pleased. The sociopaths, remember, are emotionally
empty and don't care whether others live or die. What is giving the
sociopaths pleasure is their dominance and the forcing of others to
be submissive. Does this mean that everyone in government is a sociopath?
Of course not. Even many of the spokespeople who are mouthing sociopathic
sounding rationales may just be repeating what they've been told to
say and are recoiling inside at the needless loss of life. 
When
little children are killed by U.S. bombs or missiles, some government
spokespeople blame Saddam Hussein, or even the dead children themselves
for being in the wrong place. This can't help but sound sociopathic
to many people. After all, it was the U.S. that expended much effort
to travel thousands of miles away to a foreign nation to drop bombs
on the people who live there and who, remember, aren't attacking the
U.S. When our own servicemen are killed, we are often told that our
military people are all volunteers (read, it's okay that they died,
because they volunteered), and then Saddam Hussein is also blamed. This
also sounds sociopathic to many people. There is no real sign of human
compassion about these deaths. These people who are dying--on both sides--
are not the real life children and grown up children of feeling mothers
and fathers. These are all just sacks of dirt to the psychopaths and
to those who use psychopathic logic. |
And, what about Saddam Hussein? Is he a sociopath? Maybe.
Our government says he's nuts. The problem with this, however, is that
our government claims that just about everyone that they are trying
to demonize is nuts. Of course, Saddam didn't do the nutty thing of
telling the U.N. to go fly a kite and then attack the U.S. |
No
matter how bad Saddam Hussein is or isn't, the U.S. attack on Iraq,
and the deaths of our fellow human beings, didn't have to happen. The
Bush administration seemingly rushed into war with no real concern for
the deaths of--not sacks of dirt--but real living people -- the children
of loving mothers and fathers. The human element apparently wasn't important
to the Bushies. What was important was that, at least as told by the
Bushies, Saddam wasn't complying. He didn't submit to the will of the
Bushies. In the minds of the Bushies, the Iraqis brought it upon themselves.
"Hey, all those dead kids are Saddam's fault. He made us do it."
And messages from the past can be heard, "Hey, all those dead kids
at Waco are Koresh's fault. He made us do it," says a cold voice.
"Hey, it's their own fault that those people died at Ruby Ridge.
They made us do it," says another cold voice. |
Perhaps Americans are now so dumbed down and easily
manipulated by cheap and transparent propaganda that many can't understand
the simple truth that there was no reason to attack Iraq and there was
no reason for the loss of a single life. |
Many
good decent people are now trying to get our government's collective
head straight about when it is appropriate to go to war and when it
isn't, but this seems to be falling on deaf ears. It's almost as though
we are talking to, dare we think it? Sociopaths. Former President Jimmy
Carter, who is not much liked on the right, did get it right recently
in his published statement about what constitutes a just war. Mr. Carter
found, as do many people who read the statement, that this present mess
in Iraq lacks the characteristics of a just war. 
Then,
the Pope even took the extraordinary step of opposing this war. The
U.N. opposed it. Most nations on the planet, oppose it. Still, the Bushies
think that the whole world is wrong and they are right. Whether or not
there really are sociopaths among the Bushies, the fact remains that
much of what we are reading and hearing about this war seems to have
elements of sociopathy involved.|
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Most
of the people in the U.S. military are not sociopaths. Most of them
are good, decent people and many are probably secretly against this
unjust war or will some day look back and realize they should have been
against it. Many of them only went into the military because they had
few other choices in life and were looking for a way to get a leg up.
The overwhelming majority of them aren't the "special" children
of the elites--such as George Bush--but are the children of working
poor and middle class people. Unfortunately, the youthful hormones,
the dreams, the need for adventure and for being someone, do not have
outlets leading to Harvard and Yale for most of these young people.
The doors open to them lead to the military. While they are fighting
thousands of miles away from the U.S., the priveleged children of the
elites are having fraternity parties and learning how to become adult
elites of the next generation so they can take daddy's seat in government
where, in their time, they will be able to send more children of the
working poor and middle class to fight battles for the elites. |
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Some
more children and grown up children died today thousands of miles away
from America. Some were in our uniforms. Some were in their uniforms.
Some were in no uniforms. They were killed as a result of U.S. action.
It was their own fault. They made us do it. Pass the potatoes.
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# # # |
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2.
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