the end of times, the beginning of times.

Perhaps it is no accident that the Mayan Calendar has 1545 days left before the end of their counting of this age.

Usually I keep MSNBC, CNN or CSpin on in my office, and mainly for breaking stories. What I saw the past few days has been horrifying.

Any student of history recalls how Germany, wracked and wrecked by economic disaster, sanctioned by France, beaten up, and worse, moved to nationalism (which differs greatly from Patriotism), centralized economic planning, and centralized control over society. The second point, centralized planning, was a huge success. The Autobahn, the plane industry, the munitions, plastics, metallurgy, unique fuel sources, and much much more was just one sign of success. Employment was up, inflation was gone, everyone's living standards greatly improved, and they built an incredible military juggernaut.

Their centralized control over society was far more bothersome. Nazi attacks on jews, on non-Aryans, and punishing any dissent, as well as a truly exhausting inventory of people, places and things, - well, we know what happened then.

The truly dangerous part was the nationalism, which closed people's minds and allowed the Nazis to flourish.

Seeing the speeches, reading materials from that time, and watching Sarah Palin, seeing that moron McCain, and learning how palin wants to charge the state multi-millions on a search of her e-mails, how the Secret Service prevents media from working her speeches, and how they are using ACORN as an attack, I have to say, I am worried. This is no longer a free America. This is a pre-fascist state, all set with FISA I and II. We already have centralized control over the media, and society, although our most fascist members would be the first to claim that America is the land of the free.
(unless you want an abortion, want to marry your gay lover, wish to smoke grass, enjoy travel abroad without biometrics or x-rays at the airport, wish to enter public buildings without an ID, try to immigrate without permission, try to photograph certain buildings, bridges, or military sites, wish to vote even after your home was foreclosed).

Our military? Hell, posse comitatus has been the law for more than 100 years. No longer. OUR ACTIVE MILITARY now works inside the US. THE FBI? Warrantless surveillance is the rule, not the exception.

I look at the attacks on Biden, Obama and ACORN as the last, best effort to steal this country by the fascists. Neocons and the ultra-right, plus their insane bible-beating bigots are nothing but fascists, when you cut to the chase. I just hope we succeed this november. If we fail, there will be nothing left of this country.

Will the neocon, conservative, religious creeps of this country succeed this november?

Much like those in Germany in 1932-33 you can choose to do all you can to oppose this outcome, or you can resign yourself to the inevitable Fascist victory, go home and drink some hemlock.

It's not over until they march me through the gates promising me that "Arbeit macht Frei."

I hope you feel the same.

We live in perilous times, but so did our forefathers, history was not set, it could have turned out many different ways. It is not a foregone conclusion that we end up in Fascism, we may yet pull through this mess. I suggest you stop staring so deeply into the abyss, its beginning to look back through you.