Protests abroad, why not here?

The people of Egypt after demonstrating for over 3 weeks, last week toppled their dictator. They rejoiced in the streets . The days ahead are uncertain now that the army is in charge. I hope the army does what Turkey's army has done in the past: impose a secular, democratic (hopefully more than Turkey's) republic. There are protests raging now from Libya to Bahrain to Iram. The world waits and watches. Wondering what's next.

Here in the United States, we also watch, (certainly not on Al-Jazeera as the Arab world does) but we hold back. Mubarrak was our ally; we are worried about the Muslim Brotherhood; we don't want another Iran; what will it mean to Israel? There are no bold statements of support. There is nothing like the celebrations we saw when the Berlin Wall fell and the Soviet Union fell. Our president who advocated change only offers tepid support. He just wants all those darn young troublemakers to go home. The right wing is hoping Obama really says or does something that it can use against him.

I watch Al-Jazeera in English on the internet because I cannot get it through my cable provider. But then I only watch the local news on TV. At home, I subscribe to the NY Times and a local newspaper because I still like the feel and smell of newsprint. I listen to NPR (National Public Radio) but most of my news gathering is online: CNN, FOX News, BBC, The Huffington Post, some Evangelical Christian news sites and Al-Jazaeera. I check on FOX and the Evangelicals because I want to know what the wing nuts think. I watch and read BBC and Al-Jazeera to have some perspective not American based or biased. In short, I am a news junky and follow the news rabidly.

In my years of news following, I am struck by the power of common people. By people demonstrating peacefully and violently for their rights. About how a critical mass of people can often bring a desired change or harden the hard hearts of the dictators who punish with even more brutality and repression. For every fall of the Soviet Union, there is a Tiananamen Square massacre. For every fall of Suharto in Indonesia, there is a clamp down on the Green Movement in Iran. Triumph and betrayal so cruel

Then there are the regular every day protests which are meant to address wrongs or rights but which are not meant to topple regimes. Work strikes in France, shut downs in Greece over monetary policy. Some get violent but the power-that-be in those countries listen. There is none of this in the U.S.

The last major protest I can remember in the United States was in Seattle against the IMF (International Monetary Fund) which was over 10 years ago. Before that, there were AIDS related protests during the 1980s. Some groups hold marches on Washington, but that is more to show support or to counter a specific issue like abortion, gay rights, gun rights, etc. There are no spontaneous, we're not going to take it any more protests.

Of course, there is the Tea Party. The Tea Party which started out as a grass roots effort has been co-opted by the fundamentalists in the Republican party. The Tea Party itself is now funded by very wealthy donors who in favor of keeping themselves wealthy and tax-free at the expense of every Americans. The rich Republicans and FOX News convince the masses that the problem is with the East Coast and West Coast "elites" aka the progressives. The rich Republicans convince the masses that getting universal health care is socialist and therefore bad. They convince them that this would mean the government is interfering with their rights and choices. And so on.

Last week, I watched Michael Moore's movie Sicko which is about health care in the United States as demonstrated by cases in which health care was denied people who had health insurance who sometimes died as a result. It contrasted our cobbled together inadequate system with in other countries like Canada, United Kingdom and France. Places deemed socialist and horrible by the American right wing. "Sicko" made me angry. It made me want to move to Canada. Of course, it made even Cuba look better than the U.S. and I wouldn't move there. (Speaking of countries run by dictators.)

So, why don't Americans now protest? Why are not protesting our miserable health care system? Why are we not protesting massive lay-offs at the cost of corporate profit? Why do we tolerate the rich paying less and less taxes? Why is it ok to bail out banks but close libraries? Why are are willing to cut benefits to public employees instead of demanding better benefits for all workers? What is wrong with us?

We are more concerned about the Super Bowl than Egypt. We think guns don't kill. We think government is bad. We think every on should sink or swim on their own. We think of ourselves as individuals before we think of collective good. We think the world owes us something because we are American. We think the poor are lazy. We think the unemployed had it coming. We think those with good employment benefits don't deserve them. We think it's ok for corporate leaders to make obscene amounts of money. That's just a start.

The right wing has convinced the average Evangelical Christian American of these ideas. The average Evangelical Christian American is poorly educated. He believes in the Bible as literal truth. He thinks the world is 6,000 years old. He believes in Creationism. He does not think there is global warming. He can't identify where England or France are much less Afghanistan or Iraq. He thinks all Muslims are terrorists or should be treated as such. He thinks the government should control a woman's reproduction. He thinks the government should deny minorities such as gays and immigrants rights. He thinks the government is too intrusive in his own live and it should stay out. He has a God-given right to own as many guns as he wants. He thinks English is the only permissible language. He thinks labor unions are bad. He thinks corporate America knows best and should be able to make as much money as it wants but should pay as little in taxes as possible. He thinks America is the best country on earth and all other countries as inferior. He's always proud to be American, no matter what.

Most Americans are still white. Most Americans are Christian. There are more Evangelical Christians in America than other denominations. Most of the Evangelical Christians are reactionary. They oppose what is not them. They support rights for themselves. They support corporate greed. They buy into every thing FOX News tells them. They are bought by the rich Republicans who cynically use them as allies.

They are happy with the status quo. They don't want things to change. They want to return to the past. A past of their own. When they were the only kind of American there was.

I hope some of my country men and women wake up. America is becoming less white, less Christian dominated, less like the America the Evangelical Christians desire. I love to see protests against corporate greed, endless war, attacks on the poor, closing of libraries. I'd like to see demonstrations that get the attention of Corporate America. Rallies for more benefits (not less), more wealth equity. I'd like a big shake up. I don't want a revolution against my country. I want a revolution against Corporate America and politics as presently done. I want a shake up in the Congress. I want a real grass roots movement that gives power to the people, not the corporations or the lobbyists or the mega-churches.

I want real change. Like the kind Obama promised but so far has not delivered. I want the progressives to be bold in their demands. I want to fight back against all this right wing madness. I want good schools. I want safe streets. I want social justice for the poor. I want good health care to be a universal right. I want good benefits. I want my country at peace. I want the arts supported. I want workers protected. I want the environment protected. I want abortions to be safe, legal and rare. I want the unemployed working. I want our infrastructure rebuilt so its once again sound and strong. I want all American youth to be mandated to serve their country. I want affordable higher education for all. I want the food system to be safe. I want agri-businesses labeled as the monopolies they are and broken up. I want every CEO to spend a day a year with the lowest paid employee. I want all political donations to be transparent. I want to marry the girl I love. I want my kids to have good futures. I want to be proud to be American. I want a real change. A progressive revolution on the 1960s scale.

I want to join in a rally in Times Square and camp out until my demands are met. I hope there is some change in the air here in the United States of America. I want my country to change.

PS I wish all the best of peace, freedom and prosperity to Egypt and Tunisia and all the other countries where people peacefully protest.