One-Week Poll: "The History of the Decline and Fall of the American Empire"

Is it possible for residents of an empire to accurately see where their empire is in the span of its lifecycle while the empire's leaders are still proclaiming their empire "exceptional" and therefore immune from the fate of all empires?

In other words, where do Americans think we are in our allotted period at the top of the global heap? Are pandemics, extreme inequality, militarism, racial and regional divisions, corruption, etc. etc., solvable problems or signs of our end times?

You have one week to vote in this Twitter poll.

POLL:

Gibbon's "The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire" was published in six volumes.

Which volume of "The History of the Decline and Fall of the American Empire" are we currently living through?

— True Blue Liberal (@TrueBlueLiberal) July 24, 2020

Feel free to retweet to harness the wisdom of crowds.

Maybe Right-Wing Oklahoma Lawmakers Are Right to Ban AP U.S. History

After all, look at me, I graduated with honors from a major university as a history major, elected to Phi Beta Kappa and the history honor society Phi Alpha Theta, and I was twisted into a fucking liberal!  If that doesn't prove that studying history is evil, I don't know what does.

If the legislature doesn't act, kids in
 Tulsa might be seen wearing these.

If only the Oklahoma state legislature had been there to straighten out nefarious educators in the 60s and 70s and save me from all those pointy-headed teachers and professors in Pennsylvania, California, and New Jersey, who conspired with national teachers' unions (and maybe the Communist Party) to twist my young mind against the beauties of unquestioning patriotism and myths about our founding as God's Beacon of American Exceptionalism, and taught me to "think" (as if that were a good thing).

The Last Nation on Earth to Be Lecturing About 21st-Century Invasion Ethics

"You just don’t in the 21st century behave in 19th century fashion by invading another country on completely trumped up pretext." --US Secretary of State John Kerry on Face the Nation, 2 March 2014

To show that this was the official unironic talking point of the US State Department, here was his statement when he moved from CBS's Sunday talking heads show to NBC's.

"You just don’t invade another country on phony pretext in order to assert your interests.” --US Secretary of State John Kerry on Meet the Press, 2 March 2014

"You" don't.

Only we do.

"Walk Like A Giant" from Neil Young and Crazy Horse

Here's the first official video from the next album from Neil Young and Crazy Horse coming out on October 30 on 2 CDs or 3 LPs, "Psychedelic Pill" (a title full of possibilities for an old Deadhead like me). The song is "Walk Like a Giant" and this kaleidoscopic 4'30" video is only part of an album track listed at over 16 minutes.



I hope they play this when we see them in Central Park on Saturday!


And since posting this a few minutes ago, I found this live version from Red Rocks in August:

American Exceptionalism.

The GOP is very fond of using the mantra of "American Exceptionalism" (a term created not by their god in the 18th century, but by Marxists talking about the special problems of bringing Socialism to America in the 20th) and the Democrats have been afraid to call the concept bullshit for the same reason they are cowed on any other issue where they might be accused of insufficient god-and-countryism.
"American Exceptionalism" doesn't mean that we are allowed to do things that other countries aren't. It doesn't mean that torture is wrong for everyone but us. It doesn't mean we should ask Egytian authorities to show restraint against protesters while Americans concerned with economic inequality are beaten and sprayed with chemical agents.
You can read Barack Obama's full statement and video to the Egyptian leadership from January 28, 2011 here at WhiteHouse.gov, but here's the gist of the statement in relation to America's current events:

"As the situation continues to unfold, our first concern is preventing injury or loss of life. So I want to be very clear in calling upon the Egyptian authorities to refrain from any violence against peaceful protestors. The people of Egypt have rights that are universal. That includes the right to peaceful assembly and association, the right to free speech, and the ability to determine their own destiny. These are human rights. And the United States will stand up for them everywhere. [...] Around the world governments have an obligation to respond to their citizens. That's true here in the United States; that's true in Asia; it is true in Europe; it is true in Africa; and it’s certainly true in the Arab world, where a new generation of citizens has the right to be heard. When I was in Cairo, shortly after I was elected President, I said that all governments must maintain power through consent, not coercion. That is the single standard by which the people of Egypt will achieve the future they deserve. Surely there will be difficult days to come. But the United States will continue to stand up for the rights of the Egyptian people and work with their government in pursuit of a future that is more just, more free, and more hopeful."

The President needs to bring this concern home and address this issue of police brutality and the Occupy Wall Street movement now! You can help bring this issue to his attention by signing this petition: Tell Obama to Condemn Police Actions Around the Country.

PLEASE SIGN THIS.

Brutal police -- and those politicians or college administrators giving them carte blanche -- need to be prosecuted.