And Some Wonder. . .

Just What Is It That Has Made The Old Hippie So Very Cynical. . . ?
by The Old Hippie Because It Still Being "Allowed" To Slap Us In The Face Every Day.

First, the poster on the right describes one of the obvious reasons for my cynicism.  Other causes of my cynicism come from my fellow Americans "allowing" it to become our collective reality in the first place.  "Allowing" the complete corruption of our representative Constitutional Republic into a "Pax Americana Empire," an Empire that has been "allowed" to become an openly criminal,

arrogantly corrupt, and sneeringly cronyism-ridden, un-representative and one-party-ruled Theocratic/Corporatist Oligarchy "of, by, and for" the very few. As if that isn't enough to make most sane and reality-based people cynical, add in the fact that "our" nation now "allows" and "legally" justifies; 1. Torture - 2. Indefinite detentions, without charges, without habeas corpus - 3. The indiscriminate spying on all citizens without cause, or warrants - 4. The purposeful ignoring, and destruction, of all Checks and Balances - 5. "Free-Speech-Zones" - 6. Even further consolidation of the corporately-controlled "mainstream" media - 7. The blocking and/or marginalization of all "investigations" into any and all of their activities - 8. The complete take-over of the entire federal regulatory structures with the openly corporately-corrupt lobbyists, ex-C.E.O.s, and lawyers representing, (and still being paid by,) the military-industrial-complex, ag-chem, pharmaceutical, oil and coal extraction corporations, et al - 9. Etc. . .

Now - Add in the fact that it is all still being insanely "allowed" to continue - day-by-day getting even worse, without any real signs of protests or revolt, and you begin to maybe realize why I have become so very cynical.

"It was, and still is, the allowing, stupid."  Let's look at some recent examples of the allowing. . .

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1.  Delay "allowed" to be placed on the subcommittee overseeing the Justice Department's
     handling of the Abramoff investigation. [Link]

2.  Bush "allowed" to bury detailed Social Security privatization proposals in his budget. [Link]

3.  Oil C.E.O.s "allowed" to not swear in during congressional testimony. [Link]

4.  Gonzales "allowed" to not swear in during congressional testimony. [Link]

5.  Gonzales's domestic spying testimony on Monday "allowed" to directly contradict
     what the Bush administration told FISA judges were told privately. [Link]

6.  Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio, who was elected House majority leader last week, is
     "allowed" to rent his Capitol Hill apartment from a veteran lobbyist whose clients
     have direct stakes in legislation Boehner has co-written and that he has overseen
     as chairman of the Education and the Workforce Committee. [Link]

7.  24 year old Bush appointee, who was "allowed" to dictate (censor) national science
     policy at NASA, did not actually graduate from Texas A&M University - and who
     didn't even major in science. [Link]