"There’s nothing in the world more tired than a progressive blogger like me flipping out over the latest idiocies emanating from the Fox News crowd. But this summer’s media hate-fest is different than anything we’ve seen before. What we’re watching is a calculated campaign to demonize blacks, Mexicans, and gays and convince a plurality of economically-depressed white voters that they are under imminent legal and perhaps even physical attack by a conspiracy of leftist nonwhites. They’re telling these people that their government is illegitimate and criminal and unironically urging secession and revolution."
-- Matt Taibbi
Despite the risk of violating Godwin's Law, Taibbi goes on to say that at least Hitler actually hated the Jews -- as opposed to the Republican lawmakers, Fox News Channels and right-wing talk radio blowhards of the world who are simply exploiting a brewing animosity toward minorities to further their own careers. That said, there has to be an anger there for them to foment and exploit in the first place -- and that hatred is, unfortunately, very, very real right now. We're in no danger of becoming Nazi Germany if for no other reason than the fact that America is so large and fragmented that it's damn-near impossible to get everyone to rally around one cultural touchstone, even if that touchstone is fear of anti-American infestation.
But make no mistake: When things are as bad as they are right now economically -- when there's unemployment and depression and there doesn't seem to be anything anyone can do about it -- people tend to look for someone to blame besides themselves and their own idealistic vision of what their country should be. And if there isn't an obvious scapegoat handy, they'll listen to and rally around anyone who points them in the right direction.
No comments:
Post a Comment