"The Heart Grows Brutal"
At the end of an empire, the real enemy comes from within.
by Bill Bonner
"We had fed the heart on fantasies,
The heart’s grown brutal from the fare,
More substance in our enmities
Than in our love..."
~ William Butler Yeats
Youghal, Ireland - "What a disaster. Trump vs. Biden. Two known-knowns. And look, from Donald Trump’s recent campaign speech in New Hampshire: "We have become a drug-infested, crime-ridden nation, which is incapable of solving even the 'solllest'... smallest problem. The simplest of problems we can no longer solve. We can't do anything. We are an institute in a powerful death penalty. We will put this on. “
Both candidates seem to be losing their minds, such as they were. Here’s TheNetWorthOf: "Biden Showing Early Signs of Alzheimer’s? "Repeats Himself word-for-word...is He Even Fit for Office?”
Mental health experts have noted that repeating words, phrases, or stories in a short time frame can be a potential sign of dementia or Alzheimer’s. "President Biden has faced scrutiny for various verbal gaffes during his public speeches. These blunders have led to growing worries about his mental health from people across the political spectrum."
Fantasy and Nonsense: One of the fantasies preached and amen-ed in America’s temples is the transcending goodness of democracy. Americans came to believe that their system of government was so perfect that it excused sin and erased error. And it gave America the leaders it needed when it needed…until Donald Trump was elected. Then, readers of The New York Times were encouraged to have a re-think.
The Clinton team proposed that American democracy had not really failed…it had been stabbed in the back by Russia! Somehow, a small, barely English-speaking group of Russian bloggers and influencers, with a tiny budget, had managed to do what millions of pro-Hillary pundits and influencers, backed by the richest lobbyists in the country, had been unable to do – persuade the voters to elect a blithering, blustering, blathering moron, Donald T.…rather than the quick and cunning incompetent, Hillary C.
For two years, they clung to the Russian interference theory like a child to a stuffed bear – comforted by hearings, special prosecutors, interviews, interrogations, thousands of pages of ‘evidence’…millions of dollars spent…and thousands of toady ‘news’ stories promoting the fantasy. Finally, in April of 2019 the Mueller Report showed that it was all nonsense. And then, in the fall of 2020, when the votes were tallied, mirabile dictu, elections were pure and untainted affairs, after all! (Absolutely untrue! - CP)
Autocracy vs Autocracy: “Election interference” quickly became synonymous with crackpot conspiracy theory…and a threat to democracy itself. Anybody who believed the results might be rigged in one direction or another had to be a white supremacist or a traitor. Mr. Biden had won fairly…thus reflecting the will of a wise electorate. No further discussion was welcome. Democracy was not to be dissed or gainsaid. No more. Never. Un-un.
Mr. Biden said he would “deliver for people on issues that matter most to them.” Polls showed that voters cared less about ‘protecting democracy’ than any other election issue. Nevertheless, Mr. Biden said that the defining challenge of his administration would be the fight between democracy and autocracy.
It's still not clear which side he’s on. But it scarcely matters. What matters to the elite…the ruling classes…the deciders? More power and more money. And they got it. Both Trump and Biden delivered. US debt went from $20 trillion in 2016 to $34 trillion today, with new grifts, cushy programs and boondoggles that the elite can inhabit like swamp shacks.
But as for the ‘The People’…well, boo hoo. Consumer prices are about 20% higher than when Biden took office. And nearly 30% above where they were when Trump was elected.
And what do ‘The People’ think of another 4 years with Biden or Trump? Reuters: "Americans are unhappy about a /looming election rematch between Democratic President Joe Biden and his Republican predecessor Donald Trump…Some 67% of respondents polled Monday through Wednesday said they were "tired of seeing the same candidates in presidential elections and want someone new."
And this from Gallup: "Biden and Trump Evenly Matched in U.S. [un]Favorable Ratings." "Biden is viewed favorably by 41% of U.S. adults…Trump’s 42% favorable rating is slightly lower than his 45% reading in October 2020 but improved from his weaker ratings in 2021 and 2022 …
Democracy sounds nice enough in theory. Everyone gets a vote. The majority wins. But in practice, in a late, degenerate empire, it is a pitiful sight. The heart grows brutal. Bomb, tax, lie, inflate…and re-elect. Jefferson read Latin, Greek, German, Italian and French. He played the violin, invented an encryption machine and created the first swivel chair.
John Adams negotiated the end of the Revolutionary War; his ‘Thoughts on Government’ laid out a framework for the US Constitution. George Washington was a skilled surveyor, an experienced farmer, and a proven war hero. As commander-in-chief of the Continental Army he guided it through its dark days of Valley Forge to final victory at Yorktown.
They were a different breed. They were needed to build a great nation. Now, we have the slouches and mountebanks we need to tear it down."
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