Summer of Setbacks
It seems fitting that the summer of 2010 is ending with yet another heatwave. This summer's intense heat, felt around the country, seems to have flared tempers, soured civil discourse and brought on political paralysis. How else does one explain the meanness of the season? There may be other, more rational explanations, having to do with gross political opportunism from the minority party and a lack of courage and imagination from the ruling party. But it is much more satisfying to blame the weather.
Maybe, when things 'cool off,' people will see, for example, how absurd it is to demonize all Muslims. Or to throw immigrant students in jail. Or to slash public services and deny extended unemployment benefits during a protracted recession. Not to mention lettling Wall Street go back to business as usual.
The culture warriers are back, with a vengeance. Their leaders are funded by deep pockets, such as the Koch brothers --- billionaires who understand their class interests. These new warriers also have a major media empire at their disposal. How convenient for the corporate-conservative elite that summer news cycles have been completely dominated by Mosque madness, momma grizzlies and anchor babies. They must feel like they've dodged a bullet. Less than one year ago, populist anger at Wall Street was palpable; it could have provided momentum for transforming our financialized economy. The summer's events would suggest that the anger is still there, but diffused along several lines that are less threatening to the financiers.
Glenn Beck's August 28 rally for white Christian conservatives appeared to be taking a stand against shifting demographics, among other things. Since before the 2008 elections, Beck has been fanning an incipient identity crisis among a segment of whites who fear that the country is becoming too brown, too foreign, too secular (or at least too friendly toward other religions). Beck and others of his ilk want to remain in control of the definition of the 'real' American, and, by definition, our current President does not make the grade. Now that the damage has been done around the whole 'Mosque' thing, and a growing number of Americans think the President is a closet Muslim, Beck is shifting the focus yet again, and very deftly, by clarifying what brand of Christianity is truly American. And, as with most things, it is being defined more in terms of what it is not: it is not social justice-oriented, and it most definitely does not include Black liberation theology (which is, of course, the kind of Christian President Obama would be if he were Christian; either way, he is not a real, American kind of Christian).
Meanwhile, those corporate elites who bankroll Beck and Co. are laughing all the way to the bank. And, they'd like to keep their tax cuts, thank you very much. Anti-government rhetoric combined with corporate power keeps much-needed economic remedies off the table. No more stimulus, no tax fairness, no jobs creation programs and certainly no collective planning for a better, greener future. Recent history is being rewritten by Republicans with little push-back from the Democrats. For example, they say the stimulus didn't work. Well, the preponderance of evidence suggests that it did, and that it would have worked better if it had been much larger and better focused. Never mind. Stimulus is a four-letter word, and no one, not even progressive lawmakers, are willing to suggest more stimulus right now. Meanwhile, state and local services are being stripped bare, and dangerously so. From closed firehouses to darkened streets, as Paul Krugman says, we are on an unlit, unpaved road to nowhere.
And, from oil spills to bad eggs, the natural world keeps reminding us that we really do need well-funded and democratic institutions that put public and ecological interests before corporate profits.
What will happen as the recession continues, unemployment remains high and state and local services collapse? Unless there is a counter-weight to corporate-conservative power and the weapons of mass distraction that they can so readily deploy, we are likely to see more divisiveness, more gridlock (even a possible government shut-down) and more preventable disasters, both economic and environmental.
I don't want to end on a dire note, however. We still have the capacity to turn things around. But it's going to take time; it may be a slow process, and we'll have to stay focused; there is no short-cut, or substitute for, grassroots organizing. We have institutions, histories and traditions to build upon from labor, community and faith-based organizing. We've got a better, more democratic and inclusive view of humanity. We also have some good ideas in terms of principles for an economy that works for all, and we have promising, if still nascent, ideas about transforming governance so that 'public' is more participatory and democratic. And, I firmly beleive that there are more of us than there are of the culture warriers, recent events notwithstanding. Let's spend these last dog days of summer reflecting and strategizing, and moving into action. Let's build the power that we need in order to give our ideas strong political legs.
---Sandra Hinson
