Promoting the Narrative

The elites in government, politics and media appear to have a very low opinion of the people of our nation. They may refer to us as lemmings, sheeple or other less flattering terms. They view us a collection of unthinking mobs that are one misstep away from neanderthalism. We are the drones, the worker bees and the “bots” of the American political landscape. Some of us are characterized as knuckle dragging right wing extremist weirdoes. If they thought that we thought, they would accuse us of brain-dead group thought. But they don’t think we think so they think that we are collectively and coincidentally stupid.

With advent of the Tea Party and related movements public awareness of government and political matters has increased dramatically. Distrust for the reigning political power elites has grown substantially as people become skeptical of their government and the media that reports about government action. To a lesser degree the citizens have become wary of the two primary parties….the Republicans and the Democrats. They have controlled national power for a century and half often appearing to act in collusion to deny the rights of people and their property while expanding the overarching role of government in the everyday lives of individuals. The “stupid” masses are catching on. They see the avarice and greed, the lust for power, and the disdain the power elite projects when toying with citizens’ lives. They get it.

The people who pay the taxes and do the heavy lifting in the nation are beginning to understand who the true “sheeple” are….who it is that follows the herd mentality. Everyday citizens do not have “talking points” or “media narratives.” We see, we ponder and we react. Powerful elites react but often fail to see, and even more rarely ponder. Their behavior reminds me of that old joke….ready, shoot, aim. If you follow the political news as closely as I do for this column and the radio show, you will note that many career politicians and mass media types use similar descriptive phrasing. If they like the idea, it’s “innovative, creative or new.” If they find the idea repulsive, they call it “extreme, strange or controversial.” Objective observers and true journalists could escape the herd by using terms such as “unique, different or thought-provoking.” They do not, so they join the mass of other non-thinkers who condemn what they do not understand. Their lack of understanding springs from their dearth of curiosity, shortage of intellect and fear of being ostracized by the herd.

When discussing policies or other political personalities, if all the power elite and the media drones were in the same room, their repetitive mantras could be taken for chants. Same words, same inferences, same assumptions govern their public discourse. It’s as if all were reading from the same teleprompter. Their echoing is described as the “dominant narrative.” The view that all the ‘right” people accept as correct. Their approach is very similar to a group of pseudo-intellectuals who have all read a book review (but not the book) and sit around discussing the nuance of the plot and the author’s true intent. Their approach has no basis in reality, but it is tethered to the statements and pronouncements of others in their circle of uninformed jerks.

The members of the circle are aghast when someone deviates from the narrative. The heresy could topple their illogical house of unreasonable cards. They react, therefore, with passion and fury to denounce the violator of the silent compact to promote the dominant narrative. After all, lemmings do not enjoy an alternate route when racing toward the cliffs of delusionary self-destruction. The power elite and their tools the mass media operatives are somewhat flummoxed by the Tea Party/Patriot movement and Libertarians. The citizens study the Constitution of the United States, read legislative bills, and question candidates and proponents. They are skeptical of the dominant narrative. They seek alternate sources of information and confirmation. They ask troublesome questions and raise bothersome issues. While a “movement,” they are not a singular organization that can be dismissed or totally marginalized. And they (gasp, gasp) claim to want a smaller constitutional government that defends EVERYONE’S individual rights….not only those of the elite.

The elites and purveyors of the dominant narrative assume that a large nation of 310 million persons requires a massive number of laws to insure the social order and minimize chaos. Their response to the small-government proponents is to claim they are uninformed, unenlightened and unsophisticated. Any parent, group leader or organizational specialist can deflate the dominant narrative because larger more diverse groups require fewer rules to promote cohesion. A plethora of rules designed to address minor specific issues frustrate the larger group because broad applications are unworkable and often counterproductive. Frustrated individuals join with others with similar complaints and resist the arbitrary issuance and enforcement of arcane rules.

The slow-witted elites will someday discover that their dominant narrative is false….has always been false, and will cause them to be surprised when the people finally rise up and reject their paradigm. The people are discovering that the dominant narrative is fiction. The elites will learn that reality bites.

One final note: The dominant narrative is the enforcement arm of political correctness.

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First Things First

You may suspect, as I do, that our nation and society are in a transformational period. Our brain-dead regulators and politicians will not allow us to capitalize on our natural resources, thus condemning us to the avarice and whims of other nations and commercial entities. Our political class and their sleazy financial cohorts operate under the deadly notion that merely printing money and tossing into the wind will stabilize our precarious fiscal condition. We have a constant barrage of information about whether our president is lazy, stupid, a socialist or a Marxist. Well, in my view, the answer is “yes.” Our departments and agencies are tightening the regulatory screws on our citizens and our businesses resulting in a more constricted area for personal decision making. Given this why would I want to write about a goofy preacher from Florida? The reason is that his rights and my rights are the same although we may choose to exercise them differently. If his rights are illegally, unconstitutionally and unfairly limited, my rights may be the next to be curtailed by the strong arm of government.

As a born-again Christian, I am not especially fond of the Qur’an…primarily those verses that label me as a target for the sword of Islam. As a Christian, I am hurt and offended when someone chooses to burn a Bible. As a Christian who has 18 Bibles in my bookshelf representing 11 translations or interpretations, I understand that the Word of God is not so much what we find on a replaceable printed book, but what is irreplaceably imbedded in our hearts and minds. If the printed form of the Word rather than the meaning of the Word were the holy aspect, we would not need Wycliffe Bible Translators because the original Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic could not be tampered with or altered. This is my long-winded explanation for expressing how puzzling I find it that: a) Terry Jones chose to burn the Koran, and b) Muslims have bunched their panties into a bloodthirsty wad. In my view, Jones is a buffoon, and Islamic fanatics are dangerous.

So Florida Pastor Terry Jones travels to Dearborn, Michigan, to protest outside a mosque. It seems strange that he bypassed us here in Toledo because we have a sizable, quite visible mosque alongside    I-75. He might have saved gasoline and time if he had stopped here. For those of you who recall that Dearborn represents Henry Ford, Ford Motor Company and Greenfield Village, things have changed there. Muslims represent approximately 30% of the population in Dearborn and obviously 100% of the political and intimidation power. As a result of their influence, Jones was jailed after a hastily assembled trial found him and his motley horde of 10 followers “as likely to create a ‘breach of the peace’ in light of his plans to protest outside the Islamic Center of America.” Jones and his sidekick, Wayne Sapp, were taken into custody following their refusal to post a $1.00 bond. The size of the bond should provide a clue about the seriousness of the charge. Pastor Jones’ First Amendment right for free speech was summarily denied because of local Dearborn officials fears that hordes of Muslims would burn, kill and rampage much as they had done at various places around the globe when Jones torched their holy book.

There appear to be two gross miscalculations by the tyrannical political leadership in Dearborn. First, they apparently believe that politically correct behavior trumps the Constitution with the borders of the United States of America. Second, for some reason the political leadership of Dearborn assumed that the Muslim citizens of Dearborn would react to Mr. Jones’ presence in a manner similar to outbursts in Pakistan, Jordan and Indonesia. The actions of the public officials were a blatant violation of Terry Jones’ rights and an egregious insult to the Muslim citizens of Dearborn. The Dearborn politicos stepped in it with both feet. Constitutional rights are an endangered species in modern America, and the Dearborn fiasco illustrated it perfectly.

As an afterthought: Some pundits have suggested that Jones’ protest was a provocation and was justifiably prevented. They cite the “shouting fire in a crowded theater” justification for curtailing potentially unpopular speech. I am becoming sick of this “straw-man” argument because the Supreme Court decision is based on “falsely shouting fire in a crowded theater.” In others words…an intentionally false statement made for the express purpose for creating chaos and harm may in some instances be restricted. Terry Jones was protesting based on his faith. If panic occurred, it was not his faith but the extreme reactions of his audience that would be the igniting element. If the Dearborn officials truly believed that Jones’ appearance would lead to violence, then their obligation would have been to restrain the 30% of their city who were most likely to become violent and deadly. In Dearborn’s defense…it’s the nature of government to screw things up.

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