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The demoralization and disempowerment of the progressive majority has been their one and only propaganda victory. They've failed on the war from the very beginning (56% opposed to the Iraq War, Feb. '03), and on virtually every Bush agenda item. The opinion polls show this overwhelmingly. But they HAVE convinced a lot of people that wingers are strong and unbeatable, and progressives are weak and outnumbered. But I am heartened by the vast disagreement with Bush, and have been since I began following the polls before the war. The one that gets me is that 63% of the American people oppose torture "under any circumstances" (May '04). This, despite relentless 24/7 fearmongering and propaganda. The American people have struggled mightily to see through the lies, and to maintain their sense of ethics and decency and lawfulness, despite an assault of propaganda that rivals Stalin and Hitler is intensity. Even this strange stat that 50% of Americans still believe that Saddam had WMDS, and/or had something to do with 9/11, tells me how hard Americans are trying. Despite this disinformation rattling around in many peoples' heads, opposition to the war is now up to 70%! Obviously, a good many people who believe in the WMDs or the 9/11 connection don't believe Bush that either of these things was serious enough to justify a war. Their resistance to Bush is even more amazing than that of typical Democrats, or leftists, who figured Bush was lying from the beginning. They've thought it all through, and decided that Bush EXAGGERATED the threat or the offense, and shouldn't have started a war over it--and has now bungled the occupation as well.
Because I was paying close attention to these opinions, I have never been afraid of America being Nazified. We might be bullied and oppressed, or worse--and those kinds of dangers are not past yet. But Americans buying into it? Nope. We never would. We're never going to see Americans sieg heiling to Bush or anyone else. If Americans can withstand the sophisticated barrage of propaganda they've been subjected to, for five years now, then I think there is much reason for hope. We are not by any means a weak-minded people. That's not our problem. Our problem is our feeling of powerlessness. But I think we are on the point of overcoming that clever bit of propaganda, whatever happens in the coming elections. I think the days of the rigged electronic voting system are numbered. Our next problem may be that Corporate Rule under the Democrats is not a great improvement over Fascist Rule under the Bushites. We clearly need thorough reform of our government, but it's going to take a while to get rid of the non-transparent vote counting and start electing real representatives of the people. We have a lot of things to face--our offensive war machine and its humongous budget, for one, and Corporate control of the news for another. But I am encouraged and hopeful.
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