The death of decency

Submitted by Lindsay
Melbourne Australia!

A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees. - Blake, ‘Proverbs of Hell’

(7/2020) It’s hard to believe, but practically everyone in the world is either hating you or laughing at you. Not you personally, of course, but your nation, the dis-United States of America. Some of them are still wondering why you invaded, exploited, installed puppet-masters and then and then packed up and left. Others are violently angry because you killed their families and economy without remorse. Many, such as China and North Korea, are sniggering, but most of us are laughing ruefully, shaking out heads, saddened and apprehensive about the future.

Practically no one is saying what wonderful a place you have, how they will love you forever, and how soon can we go? We have no idea where you are headed, how you and your country will survive. We feel saddened for your loss of pride and harmony, for your increasing poverty, the imposition of selfishness and brutality. We are fearful that the virus of militarisation will spread to us if we visit, that we will be shot at, have out necks stamped on, or be stranded at the whim of a madman. We feel that many of you will continue suffering the enormous inequality and poverty that has grown exponentially, and be abused under the police state that is now in force in so many places.

The picture we had of you is of a unique land, filled with friendly, intelligent and interesting people, beauty and culture. That’s how it started, how it was greeted by all who first came, how the sturdy and thankful pioneers found it. They built it to amazing levels of endeavour, industry and scholarship, then almost by accident produced a civilisation organised so that the rich keep getting richer and the poor poorer. No king, emperor or dictator had ever achieved such an exemplary model of power and greed. No one had even thought of that possibility, but the culture of every man (and woman) for themselves, of profit before compassion, the illusion of the American dream – all this and more set the wheels in motion for the second greatest tragedy of all time.

The greatest tragedy took just one extra factor to bring it on: Slavery, an import from the British, the Portuguese and others. A biblically endorsed tradition, something that had started probably in Mesopotamia thousands of years ago, it had been reduced to small pockets in the east until Africa became explored and colonised by Europeans. These Christians saw the possibility of converting the savages by means of trade – put them to work for Christians, they would be converted. And their labour would pay their owners for the time and expense of bringing them to their shores.

Americans, including the president, welcomed the idea. Owning slaves was normal, no sin attached. The southern states eagerly grasped the opportunity, and the slave trade grew into a multi-faceted, profitable business. It soon allowed them to believe they were far superior to the north, they could run the country, set business on a firm and profitable course. To do this they would develop a monopoly in cotton: Nowhere else could Europe, especially England, get such a vital product, so the price could be raised. This fell apart when Europe had huge stockpiles of American cotton, and simply went elsewhere – Egypt and China –smashing their dreams and making them furious. Like all self-congratulating despots, they blamed the north, and have never forgotten their humiliation

Initially, the slaves had been given their freedom, or manumission, mostly when they were too old or feeble to work. Some of these were quite astute and began using their own slaves, competing with the first owners – who quickly stopped it.

The north had welcomed these freed people, the south tried to launch their own nation in retaliation, and civil war broke out. The Confederates were beaten but not changed, and white supremacy was born. Their former slaves were beaten and killed. The Ku Klux Clan formed, Blacks became the most loathed and persecuted people in America.

Yet the idea never truly died in the liberated, conscientious north. The idea of your underpaid work being the reward for having a wonderful and meaningful life, (as exemplified by the movies and TV shows who were deliberately used for this purpose) being for someone else’s profit took time to develop; an economist, (Milton Freedman – never was a name so apposite), a couple of presidents, (Bush jnr. and Reagan), and a Russian writer (Ayn Rand) whose motto of ‘Greed is Good’ fell on fertile soil, made possible the decline and fall of the middle class, the impoverishment of those somewhat above them, and the utter demolition of the working class.

This is modern slavery, complete with electronic anodynes, drug use, exploiting corporations, weaponised policing and slavemasters who only want profit and power. Combine all this with climate change, Covid 19 and China and you have a recipe for total destruction of your nation.

Only one of these, climate change, has no possible solution. The others can be fixed by time, technology and a president who sees reality, is strong enough to run the country for all the people, repair the damage of hyper-capitalism, reign in the rich, once more take the role of leader in a sane world, and tackle climate change.

It may be an impossible task, but you can try – at the next election. Trump is the bottom of the barrel; anyone else has to be better.

I never thought that I would see
a nation smirched by tragedy
or hung on scaffolds there to die
whilst tyrants strutted out their lie.

To see a people choked to death
while mercy screams upon their breath
to see the greed of callous rich
tip this great nation unto the ditch
is to see the death of all that’s free
equality, life, and liberty,
of truth and love, of values high.

I see your heads bow down to die,
And urge a stand against this foe,
restoring decency to all you do,
making truth the final goal,
making your great nation whole.