We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Dangerous Addiction to Secrecy

Click here to access article by Robert Parry from Consortium News.

Parry assembles several dramatic examples of governments hiding the truth from the people and often making up stories in place of the truth. However, he demonstrates a naiveté that infects the political understanding of so many people when he makes statements such as this:
The secrecy addiction among major world powers is deeply corrosive to democracy and makes a mockery of popular rule.
Whenever you have class-structured societies, you obviously have ruling classes. Under capitalism the basis of this arrangement is the principle of private ownership of the economy. "Democracy" in the form of carefully managed elections is only a public relations cover for their class rule based on this arrangement. 

The fact that ruling class players do not share information they have in their disputes with other ruling classes demonstrates that their respective subordinate classes are inconsequential. Why is it so difficult to understand this fact and stop looking at political events and international rivalries through the lens of ruling class propaganda framed as "democracy"!

It's long past time for progressives to grow up! We will have no peace or social justice or a sustainable ecological system until we, the people, get rid of class structured societies and create societies where there is genuine, inclusive rule by all the people. To accomplish this, we must remove all arrangements which favor any set of people over the rest of society.