When I learned that the Ft. Hood shooter used his own private legally-bought pistol – not a military weapon – to carry out his rampage, I wonder what the NRA would think?
I believe that the answer to this Faustian riddle can be found in the demented words of Mr. Heston:
Perhaps Islamic Fundamentalism was the motivating factor, but our most liberal of gun laws from our most conservative of lobbies enabled this lunatic in more ways than one.
The most google(d) name on the Internet today. His five minute brutal act has garnished the attention of billions. He accomplished nothing. May he be served pork, while awaiting execution.
But this is a Faustian world; by this time next year no one will remember who this guy is.
The democrats are squandering their power lead – this is obvious from the recent election results. If they continue on this path, they will lose the house within the year. And they will deserve it. Our Emperor is a poet, a quality that got him elected, but that is not sufficient for him to govern by. Johnny – a friend of mine in San Jose – got it right. According to him, there are two types of people living in Northern California and by extension the United States. The first, are the thirty some childless couples, working for Adobe Systems, summering in Tibet and wintering in Barbados. They love Obama, endorse same sex marriage, and are champions of social justice. If only everyone were as lucky as they, the world would be a better place. Their stock options are vesting, and they are contemplating buying a second home in the Wine country to retire to – a good investment given the recent foreclosures. These Bobos (as the French are a like to call them) eat organic foods and recycle the waste into organic compost. The second group, are the fifty some laid off former managers, who used to work for Adobe Systems, living in their cars and wintering at a homeless shelter. They could not care less about Obama, or about health care reform, and are stocking up on canned tuna fish and ammunition. They vote for Sarah Palin simply because it pisses off their former employees (now turned bosses) at Adobe Systems.
The mistake our Emperor is making is quite natural. He is trying to live by good intentions alone. The crowd has called for blood, and unless it is forthcoming, this man has no future. Compromise is not an option. The playbook is simple. Obama must follow Putin’s lead and find an American version of Mikhail Khodorkovsky to indict and jail on trump up charges. My first suggestion would be to target some former executive at Goldman Sachs, or other prominent Wall Street firm, and crucify him (or her, or them) publicly. This will only be effective if the proceedings are openly unjust and completely arbitrary. My second suggestion would be to actively isolate those dissenting Democrats who are stalling on Health Care; Senator Kent Conrad from North Dakota comes to mind, and punish their actions by undermining their reelection campaigns, even as much as backing their Republican opposition. Ambiguity in one’s own camp should not be tolerated. My third suggestion would be to openly back General Stanley McChrystal in Afghanistan and provide him with double the troop strength he is asking for, but at the same time actively orchestrate the downfall of Hamid Karzai. Good Generals are hard to find, but proxy leaders at the fringe of the Empire should never be allowed to feel secure. If an example can be made of this rogue puppet, the rest will fall in line quickly – specifically Asif Ali Zardari the President of Pakistan. My final suggestion would be to find some fire and brimstone Evangelical preacher (not an African American) who can give a religious dimension to this effort. Someone like Tony Campolo comes to mind. The common people must be entertained and given a moral purpose.
But none of this will happen, poets cannot be taught how to act like Princes unless they endorse the Faustian reality they live in.
I like General Stanley McChrystal – he is pretty much the best we have to offer. I fear however that he is following in the footsteps of George Maniakes – a Byzantine General in the later part of that declining Empire in the early eleventh century. In this familiar playbook, we have a superb soldier – leading his country to great victory in Sicily – only to be betrayed back home by intrigues outside of his control. Sometimes, no amount of talent can overcome a helpless hand.
The Normans thugs, like the Taliban today, found themselves the beneficiaries of these palace squabbles and internecine feuds.
One definitely gets the impression that no matter what this Afghan joker has to say, it’s not going to impress him. The body language says it all.
The Afghanistan war is the ultimate Faustian conflict. From every angle it’s a make pretend war.
First, we pretend that Al Qaeda is still there, which they aren’t as they have moved on to Pakistan. The Karzai government pretends to promote democracy and transparency, which they don’t, as they steal the country blind both of its electorate and of its finances. The military leadership pretends that 40,000 additional troops will be sufficient to crush a 35 year insurgency and civil war, which it won’t because even the Soviets couldn’t manage. The civilian leadership pretends to be backing the military leadership, which they’re not and have no intention of doing. The Republican party pretends that if they were in charge they would send in more troops, which they wouldn’t as their paltry track record would attest. The military contractors pretend that their million dollar techno wizardry will defeat a cave dwelling enemy in thongs with AK47s. The Afghan farmers pretend to grow anything else than marijuana and opium, which they aren’t because no other cash crop can feed them. We pretend to believe that the Afghans will give up their favorite pastime of stoning widows and apostates if only they could get HBO. The NATO allies – France, Britain, and Germany – pretend that their military contingents are willing to fight, even less patrol, which they have no intention of doing. The Pakistani army pretends that it is defeating the Taliban in Waziristan, when in fact they are actually losing. The Pakistani President – Asif Ali Zardari – pretends to promote the rule of law and fight terrorism, while he is robbing his country blind, building more nukes, and siphoning off the US aid into a Swish bank account. The American public pretends to care but would rather watch the next episode of Survivor.
The only person not pretending is the American soldier having to duke it out at a remote outpost in the middle of nowhere, getting shot at, and dying. And who at this point is starting to get seriously pissed off at all the rest of the jokers in this deck.
You can always count on the Bible belt to be on the forefront of Faustian Evangelical Christianity. Our new hero in this department is none other than Pastor Marc Grizzard of the Amazing Grace Baptist Church in Canton North Carolina, who will be presiding over a Halloween book burning event with his crazed congregation. At first glance, one would be inclined to think that the fuel for his fires would include such heretic works as Harry Potter, the Da Vinci Code, the Holy Koran, or the poems of the wickedest man in the world. Nothing could be further from the truth. Pastor Grizzard, being the deeply devout Christian that he is, will be turning his wrath, along with that of his congregation, on the one true blasphemous work of the last two thousand years – The BIBLE. And if you can’t spare a copy of the good book, you are welcome to bring along any other perversions of God’s word such as the works of Billy Graham or Rick Warren.
That’s right gentlemen, if your Christian faith needs testing; you can join Pastor Grizzard for a family fun oriented Bible burning event and enjoy a complementary serving of fried chicken, barbecue, and iced tea. You just got to love that Tarheel State.
If you’re confused as to what to burn, the Church’s website is very specific: “We are burning Satan’s bibles like the NIV, RSV, NKJV, TLB, NASB, NEV, NRSV, ASV, NWT, Good News for Modern Man, The Evidence Bible, The Message Bible, The Green Bible, etc.”
And they go on to add…
“We will also be burning Satan’s popular books written by heretics like Westcott & Hort , Bruce Metzger, Billy Graham , Rick Warren , Bill Hybels , John McArthur, James Dobson , Charles Swindoll , John Piper , Chuck Colson , Tony Evans, Oral Roberts, Jimmy Swagart , Mark Driskol, Franklin Graham , Bill Bright, Tim Lahaye, Paula White , T.D. Jakes, Benny Hinn , Joyce Myers , Brian McLaren , Robert Schuller, Mother Teresa , The Pope , Rob Bell, Erwin McManus , Donald Miller, Shane Claiborne, Brennan Manning, William Young, Will Graham , and many more.”
The only exception to this rule is the English version of the King James Bible, which God delivered to humanity when he created the world back in 1611.
Socrates said that a life unexamined is not worth living. In our Faustian age of 24/7 entertainment, the Henne Family took this to mean a life “unexposed”. We are all voyeurs at the Faustian pageant, and nothing grabs our attention like the Falcon boy Horus trapped in a UFO drifting aimlessly over the Rockies, with father Osiris and mother Isis looking on. Never mind that we are fighting two wars over ever depleting oil supplies. The tableau of a six year old suburban kid ensnared in a family science experiment gone awry is the best reality TV ever produced. Richard Heene’s only transgression is that as a spectator he finally took control of the spectacle, much to the chagrin of our corporate media outlets who would rather appropriate this task to themselves.
Nikola Tesla has come back in favor these days. Some would credit this Serbian wannabe with such things as AC current, wireless communication, the X-Ray, the laser, wireless electricity, and a myriad of other inventions.
At Faustian.com we know this not to be true. A great injustice has been committed by not acknowledging the true genius behind these marvels. That person is non other than Professor Miguelito Loveless and his sidekick Voltaire
You know you are getting old when the only music you can listen to is smooth jazz. Dianna Krall all the way. Oscar Peterson to the rescue.
