dialog re/Obama – Beware of elites bearing gifts

by

2008-11-24

Richard Moore

Bcc: contributors
Greetings,
I’ll be in the Bay Area the rest of this week, and then I’ll be back for the first half of January. If there’s anyone around here I haven’t met with yet who would like to get together, let me know.
you know who you are,
rkm
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re/ Obama – Beware of elites bearing gifts
I was expecting a lot of negative feedback on this posting, but instead it’s been nearly all positive. Indeed, it was picked up by lots of websites. A Google search on the exact title gets over 150 hits. For the previous posting however, “Obama mania: some contrary views”, the feedback was mostly negative. I’m not sure what this means. Perhaps people hesitate to criticize my own material because my rejoinders can be a bit insensitive 🙂
I’ve now got three articles on Global Research:
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From: Ernie Yacub
Date: November 17, 2008 7:24:04 PM PST

i have canadian friends who cried when obomba was annointed – when i express my skepticism, they tell me that mcain/palin would have been way worse.
     my counter is that obomba could be worse for the very reasons you explain below and a very smart, efficient system for keeping progs in the fold, an estoid cult with all the money in the world.

Yes, and part of the game will be ongoing attacks from ‘the right’. As long as Obama can be perceived as ‘under attack’, his ‘army’ will support his every move and will ‘understand’ why he needs to ‘compromise’ on his promises.
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From: “Chris Shaw” 
Date: November 17, 2008 7:32:26 PM PST

great essay

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From: “Revin Floyd” 
Date: November 17, 2008 7:55:43 PM PST

Well put.
Thanks Richard!

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From: MM
Date: November 17, 2008 7:58:04 PM PST


It was interesting coincidence for me that you used mythical archetypes to describe what’s going on, since that is one of the themes we’ve been studying in my classes. One of my classmates was over the top about Obama and how now we can finally start to make this a decent country to live in again. She made her comments in a non-dialog group setting, not a one-on-one conversation, so I didn’t have a chance to reply directly. Which may have been good, because it prompted me to think back on the conversation you and I had and wonder how in the world to try to bridge this gap. Here’s one I think I’ll try experimenting with over the next couple of weeks, especially as I engage friends and family over the holidays: Is Obama talking specifically about how more people will have direct decision-making power over the questions in their day-to-day lives? This is what they are actually talking about and implementing in places like Venezuela, Brazil, and Ecuador. This is exactly what we are NOT doing in the US. As long as we can’t work with our neighbors to make the most basic decisions, we don’t live in a democracy and can be led like sheep to slaughter or the mall — whatever benefits the elites at the moment. If we don’t change this, Obama is just another mouthpiece for tyrants, one whose primary job is to soothe and placate.

Chomsky brought up this same point in a KPFA broadcast this morning. He cited Bolivia, where a grassroots movement developed an agenda, and succeeded in electing one of their own as President. In contrast, Obama’s grassroots ‘army’ was organized from the top, and takes its marching orders from the top.  According to Chomsky this is a recipe not for democracy but for dictatorship.

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From: Jeff Jewell 
Date: November 18, 2008 1:17:12 AM PST

Bravo Richard once again.  Of course we’re in complete agreement with your analysis.  Obama-mania has generated a cult following of koolaid drinkers, whose blind faith could be a menace to themselves and the world.
     Probably you’re aware of Webster G Tarpley; if not, you should check him out.
FYI, Diana and I did our CFRO radio program this week on Obama-mania:
     truthtalkonline.blogspot.com

Yes, Tarpley is a very well-informed source, formerly with British Intelligence. I first became aware of him through a video he made, showing how 7/7, the London Tube bombings, had to be an inside job. 

As regards kool-aid drinkers, I think this metaphor will become more and more real as time goes on. Obama has made it clear that he intends to use his Internet Army as a political tool, to “go around Congress and the media” to get his measures passed. What this really means is that Obama is adding the Internet to the toolkit of elite propaganda, one more channel by which the masses can be controlled. It’s a powerful channel because people feel ‘engaged’ when they visit the website or respond to email directives.
I think it is important to note that in both World Wars we were provided with Democrat Presidents, Woodrow Wilson and Franklin Roosevelt. Rather than pursuing imperial expansion we were fighting a ‘war to end all wars’, or we were ‘defeating fascism’. This kind of thing goes over better with American audiences than an outright call to the warpath. If there is to be a war with Russia, Obama will be much better at mobilizing popular support than Bush would have been.
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From: PG
Date: November 18, 2008 5:50:51 AM PST
Subject: hope

Yes, it still springs eternal and yes you are right in much of your analysis. The stranglehold that the financial services industry along with the rest of the corporate-military-industrial-congressional complex has on our country is something that Obama will have to address. Cleverly, without getting assassinated, like JFK and the rest of our “hope” in the ’60’s.
     What we need is tactical, practical solutions as to how this can be done. We all know the problems and much of the solutions to sustainability of an industrial world. I have a relative who got Eugene Jerecki (“Why We Fight”) a grant to continue his work,  who informed me that he gives lectures at the war academy at West Point. This sort of thing does give us hope.

From the latest reports, Obama’s plan is to create 2.5 million new jobs and stimulate the economy by spending something like $700 billion on public works projects. All of this money will be borrowed at interest from our friendly financial elites. This will increase the stranglehold of these elites, not decrease it. Bringing in the Chairman of the Fed as Treasury Secretary underscores what’s really happening: the direct takeover of government by those elites. Obama’s job will be to continue to make spell-binding speeches, not to make policy. He won’t be taking the people’s message to the bankers, rather he’ll be taking the bankers’ message to the people, with the help of the Internet. 
As I see it, one of the biggest obstacle standing in the way of human progress is wrongly-placed hope. As long as people see hope where it doesn’t exist they are prevented from pursuing a useful path. 
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From: MB
Date: November 18, 2008 2:55:15 PM PST

An opinion from (another) lady in Alaska.
—– Original Message —– 
Richard Moore, in my opinion, makes a common mistake among world
conspiracy theorists -namely, vastly over-estimating the skill of the
ruling class. This is not an “engineered” crisis, it is very real. The
corporations are collapsing. I doubt that they would manipulate their own demise.

The corporate world is not one monolithic interest group. It’s more like a pyramid of power and wealth. There’s a poem that sums it up:

     The big fish eat the little fish
         and chew on them and bite ’em.
     The little fish eat the littler fish
         and so ad infinitum.
We are, unfortunately, not seeing the demise of capitalism,. Rather we are seeing a consolidation phase, the increased concentration of power and wealth in fewer and fewer hands. That the crisis was engineered is very well documented. The ruling class has had 6,000 years to evolve its people-management skills. 
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From: “•••@••.•••” <•••@••.•••>
Date: November 20, 2008 3:13:00 AM PST
To: “Richard K. Moore” <•••@••.•••>
Subject: Your words in print again

Hi Richard,

Excellent article again.  It’s now at
http://www.serendipity.li/jsmill/obama.htm

Looks like we certainly will get “change”.

Regards,
Peter

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From: RadicalPress <•••@••.•••>
Date: November 21, 2008 5:39:02 PM PST

Hi Richard,

Thought you might enjoy this bit of feedback on your article. 

Good evening Arthur, 

Coincidentally, I attended a public lecture tonight, put on by a few of the political science profs @ OK College, posing the question as to whether we should expect any change out of Obama. The consensus was, “not much”. 

Anyway, you’re right about Moore and his commentaries, beyond which are the subtleties of his influential arguments, more like irrefutable observations woven into the tapestry of his perspective. He does this, conscientiously avoiding anything that can remotely be misconstrued as slurs that can be used to attack his benign character as simply as that of observer.  You’re right – it is not too difficult to connect the dots, and in no way can be seen as offensive. That’s quite a talent he’s developed, you gotta admit. There’s an example well all might do well to take note of. 

Damn good article – bang on with some of the observations expressed @ the lecture and during discussion, throughout, and far more insightful! So much so that I’ve already forwarded it to 2 of the profs, and one other couple who also attended, for a total of 3 profs, the couple, myself, and the father of one of the professors. It is comforting to see that there are others beyond our small circle, who are also aware of “elites [that come] bearing gifts”.  

Thanks for all your efforts, Arthur. 

Cheers eh,

Dave

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