The tories appear to be firmly back in charge, dissecting and disrespecting the constitutional foundations of our once-great Republic.

Romney is at least honest. He is an authoritarian who fully agrees with Bush/Cheney/Addington's imperial presidency. The other fascist fucks don't even have the guts to declare.

Hillary is not the answer. Only, like Jefferson said, renewed revolution.

Yah right - a nation of scared overfed brainwashed feminized supine cargo cultists. Do you want fries with that insult?

Not as a slur on women (all love and respect!) but to impugn the masculinity of men who would support the fascist protector state. But infantilized also works, and is less liable to raise hackles.

This is, IMHO, a big issue - ultimately, the only thing protecting us from tyranny is our willingness to put our bodies on the line against aggression by the state. This takes courage, not perfumed coddled depilated apathy.

Here's an example - the police used to maintain order using natural authority (I mean ape-world authority), and were not afraid to mix it up a bit. But take a look at the video of the poor confused, frightened and lost soul in Vancouver Airport - five RCMP, grown men all, determined it necessary to taser this unarmed man multiple times into submission, and ultimately to kill him.

How is this other than cowardice? These officers should be drummed out of the force in disgrace.

This is ultimately why our occupation of Afghanistan will fail - those people value their freedom more than their lives. They have NEVER been conquered. We, on the other hand, have allowed ourselves to be conquered by insidious liars, and haven't the guts to remedy the situation.

A doctrinal point - the father's priesthood authority is only sustained (ie to be obeyed) when it is exercised justly, with "love unfeigned". If it is exercised unjustly, "amen to that man's priesthood", as Mormon scripture reads.

Also - priesthood authority is not to intefere with individuals' agency - their freedom to choose.

I would argue that the same principle applies to legal and political matters. It is right to disobey an unjust law. Not only right, it is your duty as a citizen.

Want an example of the exercise of unjust authority? GW Bush's many unconstitutional actions as President. (Notice how McCain declined to answer the Globe question on whether Bush had breached the Constitution - it appears to me that he thinks he has, but is constrained from saying so).

If we all quit paying our taxes en masse, for example, how fast would the edifice of deceit and theft crumble? I'm just saying.....

I just can't do it........

You rock. Opaquely. Isaiah got nothing.

"masculine 'protectors' pretty much abdicated"

How do you describe a man who has abdicated his masculine role, responsibility, duty? I used, regretably, "feminized" - and it was lazily stereotypical.

How do you describe the bluster of the bully, at heart a coward, who makes himself feel strong by dominating the weaker? Or by supporting a proxy war fought by others?

Petit bourgeois fascist? Neo-conservative? GW Bush?

The dominator culture will destroy our planet. How do we turn it first?

Gaia weeps......

We are the usurper Babylon, destroyer

of the real Babylon

Usurper Babylon, bigger better, new and improved

Shiny and hungry and awesome (but kindly smiley)

Babylon is Bad! they cry, we hate Babylon!

(We hate you, too, they whisper, you're a sinner)

We're just following orders in the shiny democracy machine.

It's ok to lie cheat and kill because we're nice.

We have good ideas and straight teeth.

But not them - they're bad. They smell like Satan.

They hate us because we're nice. It hurts our feelings.

Hate the sin, detain the sinner.

(He's never eaten better - it's made with Velveeta!)

Appealing as it does to the lowest and stupidest and worst.

Cracker oligarchy?

Just a front, just a distraction. The real kings are hiding out. On the bridge of the shiny supertanker.

Do like Mitt, kind people - put aside a year's worth of food and prepare for the oligarch's revenge. Gas at $5 a gallon?

Fuck I might have to entertain myself!

Loopholes in the Constitution. That's how we do it the Bushco way.

You say - "the French revolution didn't end well" - I suppose from the point of view of the parasitical aristocracy.

But the French revolution was the foundation of the modern French state. France was the leader in social and economic and technological development in Europe for a hundred years after the revolution.

To make a facile blanket statement like yours reveals a pretty basic ignorance.

A bas les fascistes! Aux armes les compatriotes!

Robespierre, Danton, and other Jacobin radicals - were useful in executing revolutionary tactics. But their usefulness was finite, and they weren't allowed to outlive it!

Just like the 10 day week, eg. - it was a creation of revolutionary zeal, not practicality.

But the lycee system, metric system, departments, and all the other practical national institutions were the direct creations of the revolution. And survived it.

Plus - when the French government tries to do something unpopular, French people hit the streets en masse. They look at the docility of Americans as a mysterious weakness. Even Germans are more politically rebellious.

Un peuple tolerant de tel comme GW doit etre imbecile.

Without Perot, Clinton would never have been elected. A Bloomberg candidacy would be a massive gift to the Democratic candidate, splitting the Repub vote, IMHO.

However, he may well be more like Lieberman - drawing all the Repub vote, and enough timid Dems to get in. But I think a living-in-sin NY City Jewish type might find it hard to scare up votes among the bible-thumpers.