1 Boring Old Man

^{a loophole}

^{loop·hole
Pronunciation: ‘lüp-"hOl
Function: noun
Etymology: 1}loop
1 a : a small opening through which small arms may be fired b : a similar opening to admit light and air or to permit observation
2 : a means of escape; especially : an ambiguity or omission in the text through which the intent of a statute, contract, or obligation may be evaded

From a Psychiatric perspective, it’s simple. We are governed by criminals – people who exploit every possible route to get around the law while avoiding reprisal. It’s not a hard diagnosis to make. They use loopholes for any and everything. What they say is not the "truth," it’s some version of the story that leads us down their chosen path. Any evidence against their story is sarcastically attacked with techniques known to be "fallacies" since the time of the Ancient Greeks. There’s no real question about George Bush, Dick Cheney, Karl Rove, even Condi Rice. They are people who lie skillfully to get what they want. Such people are called Psychopaths, Sociopaths, Criminals, Crooks, Con-Men, and other less savory names.

At issue, why are they in the White House? Why do we follow them?  It’s happened before. Richard Nixon was simply a foul-mouthed criminal. It pervaded his political career until the crowning moment – Watergate. He masterminded a political campaign that included breaking and entering, dirty tricks, and systematic lying. What cinches the diagnosis is that he did it, even though it was completely un-necessary. There was absolutely no possibilty that McGovern would have been elected. Even those of us who supported McGovern knew that. Nixon got 60% of the popular vote and won 520 Electoral votes to McGovern’s 17. It would’ve been that way no matter what Nixon’s campaign had done. And yet, Nixon’s campaign organization unleashed a storm of criminality unseen in our history, for no real reason at all. That’s typical of criminals – to always use deceit.

The current Administration does the same thing. They never play it straight. Everything is a loophole, or a political manipulation, or done in secret. The question isn’t what are our current leaders. We know the answer – criminals. I expect that their supporters actually know that too at some level. So did Nixon’s supporters. For that matter, it’s inconceivable to me that most Germans didn’t know that Hitler was a criminal. One can go through history and pick them out – the criminal minds that rise to the leadership of a country and thrive for a time. Why do people follw them?

It’s two things. First, criminals can’t bring it off unless a country is either divided, or dividable. Saddam Hussein was a real criminal. How did he do it? He represented the Party of the Sunnis, a minority, who needed him to supress the majority, Shiites. Nixon had a country divided over the War in Viet Nam. People both hating and fearing the anti-war movement – retrospectively now known as "dirty fucking hippies." So there has to be a fault line. The second requirement for criminals to take over a government is a way to fracture that fault line so drastically that the "other" side can be depersonalized – discounted as "evil." Bush and Rove did a great job with that. Prior to their coming, the "fault line" was there, the usual Liberal/Conservative one America lives with. But Bush and Rove were able to use the Religious Right with the Abortion issue and Clinton’s daliances, the businessman’s version of the Republican Party, the Solid Conservative South, and the apathy of the Minorities to create a political "civil war" out of nowhere. It’s the polarization and demonizing that allows criminals to take over a government. Bush had never held a federal government office, he’d never succeeded at anything except to get elected governor in Texas, and he was a blatant draft dodger – yet he was elected over a sitting Vice President with a lifetime of experience. And he’s kept it going by polarizing the country and criminally amassing power. There’s a difference between a skillful politician and a crook. Bush and Cheney are examples of the latter, thriving on loopholes and taking the country down with them. They’ve done it by keeping America polarized in an era when the natural course would be to come together.