What’s Become of Americans?

What’s Become of Americans?

By Paul Craig Roberts

Imagine knocking on America’s door and being told, "Americans don’t live here any longer. They have gone away."

But isn’t that what we are hearing, that Americans have gone away? Alan Shore told us so on ABC’s Boston Legal on March 14:

When the weapons of mass destruction thing turned out not to be true, I expected the American people to rise up. They didn't.

Then, when the Abu Ghraib torture thing surfaced and it was revealed that our government participated in rendition, a practice where we kidnap people and turn them over to régimes who specialize in torture, I was sure then the American people would be heard from. We stood mute...

http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article12434.htm

...of that name:

Back then Robber Barons had nearly free reign, and "those people" (variously defined) had no right to expect to be included in the social contract, no right to be treated with the normal parameters of respect and decency.

How would a lynch mob have acted toward Abu Gahreb? "A good start", to borrow an old punchline... They were Americans too, to our shame.

Just ask Indian tribes all over this continent how much Robber Barons pay attention to "international law" if it gets in their way... They were Americans too, still to our shame.

.....a very self-absorbed lot.:shrug: I know many people here will disagree with me but there is one question we could ask the average American that would be very telling.

If we were to ask any 20 people, from any city in this country "Do you have a world map in your house right now?" I would bet a the VERY MOST 5 out of that 20 people could truthfully say yes. In fact I've asked this same question of people and believe me the answers were disappointing at best.

If people don't care enough to have a world map to pinpoint where a country is, what relation it might have to another country, how far the other country is from our own shores, how do we expect Americans to care what is happening in that other country?? What people don't know they tend not to think about.:shrug:

(BTW, yes I do have a world map hanging right above my computer that takes up the space of about two large pictures. Believe I had to search a variety of stores for about three months to find it too.)

-- D.H. Lawrence.

:cry:

I think so many of them aren't concerned with anything outside their immediate circle of friends, family, associates. I think consumer culture contributes to that. (Yes, I know politics affects us all, but lots of people don't perceive that until it applies directly to them.)