Man, somehow I woke up this morning and walked into the mid â80s. Thatâs how it felt, anyway, after I found a pamphlet from Mother Jones, circa 1981. For the record, 1981 predates meânot by much, but a bitâand so I count reading such material as history, normally. But this timeâ¦I donât know. This little pamphlet delved into the issues its liberal authors saw as plaguing America: the rapid rise of Political Action Committees (with their undue effect upon legislation that may not be in the public interest), a recent tax act that heavily favored the wealthy and business interests at the expense of the still-a-lot-larger-then middle class, the harmful effects of jobs being shipped overseas, the rise of government debt, the disposal of nuclear waste, American dependence on oil, the backlash against contraceptives and abortion, disproportionate crime rates among young black men…
Um, any of this sounding familiar?
Oh, sure, there were some indications of how dated the thing wasâpredictions that the next big war would be nuclear, terminology that gave computers and robots equal weight as concepts, a foreign citizens’ language guide that included Yiddish but not Chinese or Arabic or Russianâbut these paled in comparison with the stark, blinding and frankly terrifying similarities.
The eighties theme continued with Brazil, a film from 1985 that has actually nothing to do with South Americaâs largest nation. The movie is the disquieting story of a totalitarian state, and thereâs much ado in all the reviews and synopses youâll read about the similarities to Orwellâs 1984. If you happen to be watching 23 months later, on the other hand, itâs impossible not only to identify the dehumanizing effects the system portrayed has on its inhabitants, allowing for the existence of a procedure of torture for those suspected of terrorism.
Um� Anyone?
(As a side note, one of the most chilling themes in the film is that when the terroristsâwho do seem, somewhere, to existâdetonate big bombs in public places, no one rushes to help the wounded. Although the worldâs hot spots for exploding buildings donât yet seem to have reached this soulless stateâand I am of course thinking of Israel and Iraq hereâitâs very, very scary to imagine that such a day might come.)
Surely, this is all anecdotal and not worth a lot as hard evidence of anything. And yet, I donât they can be ignored. And Iâm starting to get pretty seriously worried here, folks. Rick Warren is the one whoâs getting the candidates-to-officially-be to sit at the table together. (He opened by quoting Scripture, yâall. The hell?) Gallup has McCain and Obama tied. Iâd say it was the end of the world, but I think itâs worseâI think itâs history, coming back to bite us in the ass again. And with the 2008 election looming ever closer, we need to be extra vigilant.
So letâs make a pact, all of you with longer memories and more experience. How about you all start talking to us young âuns. Tell us the stories of what happenedâpolitical battles fought and won (or lost), nightmare scenarios and dreams for the future you once had. Help us identify issues and problems that have appeared before. The news media isnât helping our institutional memory, and weâve abandoned most of the civil institutions that might help. And then, we can help draw up the new plans, because clearly, something has got to change.
If we donât stop this political cycle, who knows? Big hair might even come back into fashion, and Iâm not sure the nation could survive that.
–Mel Weiss
Source: Partying Like Its1981?
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