Gonzales II

Gonzales was absolutely a loyal dog and had no enduring value once Rove left. What an ugly scar this administration will leave behind. I wonder whether the country will ever return to normal, or whether we have entered some new ground. Who will be there to map out the recovery? And how long will it take? Will America continue shrinking morally, or will it stand up and shed the politics of the past thirty years in an attempt to find principle?

Bush did not exist in a vacuum: his awful, divisive ways are symptomatic of society. We complain about his egregious lying, but think of the utter nonsense that passes for corporate thinking; think of the vacuity of all those endless PowerPoint “decks” ridden through with bad English. Think of the shallowness of advertising; of the media; of sports; of culture generally. What does America stand for? When we strip away the rhetoric and jingoism, when we peer through the veneer of flag waving what is there? Cookouts on July 4th? Hot dogs and what? Photo Ops?

People say they are too busy struggling to get by. But they can watch American Idol. They don’t care about Gitmo; Geneva Conventions; trade imbalances; the Dollar’s fall; torture; rendition or anything else. Just don’t bother them with the arduous task of defending their civil rights, it might interfere with the game. Don’t ask journalists to weigh in with strength and judgement, ask them to look good. The list goes on.

Perhaps Gibbon is the author we should turn to for a prediction of the future.

I hope not.