TvNewsLIES ENTERS THE LIARS’ DEN!
A lie told often enough becomes truth
THE PROBLEM
What a proud moment in our history, as Condoleezza Rice was sworn in as the nation’s new Secretary of State! How comforting it was to know that one liar had just succeeded another into a post that demands the respect and confidence of the entire international community. It’s time to say it as it is: Rice lied to us. Powell lied to us. They lied, period. And very few people seem terribly disturbed.
Their lies involved our national security and our preparedness for and possible complicity in the events of 9/11. Their lies cajoled an unsuspecting public into accepting an illegal, immoral, and bloody war. Their lies were calculated and repeated time after time without challenge without retraction. But then again, why should anyone be surprised? After all, Rice and Powell were in good company among the other denizens of the Liars’ Den, where lying on a grand scale to the American people and the world is policy.
Americans have been lied to before. We were lied to about the Gulf of Tonkin. We were lied to about Watergate. We were lied to about Iran-Contra. We were lied to about Gulf War I. Maybe we’ve grown accustomed to the lies.
This time around, however, we were lied to in spades. We were lied to about 9/11. We were lied to about what they knew and what they did. We were lied to about Iraq. We were lied to about links between Al Qaeda and Saddam. We were lied to about aluminum tubes and uranium deals and mushroom clouds. We were lied to about chemical weapons and imminent threats. We were lied to and lied to and lied to about the reasons for waging a war against Iraq. But most of America didn’t seem to care.
They lied by commission and they lied by omission. They never told us that PNAC planned the wars they waged. They embellished the numbers in their tiny coalition and hid the body count of Iraqi civilians. They lied about the systemic torture of prisoners in Iraq and Afghanistan and Guantanamo – and threw the blame to a few bad apples in the lowest echelons of the military.
And they lied with straight faces about how safe we were as a result of their policies. They lied, and lied, and most of America was lulled into complacency. After all, they agreed, we were attacked on 9/11, and this, after all, was payback time. One lie gave rise to another and another and another, until all the lines were blurred. And most Americans, dunned by talk of terror and annihilation…were taken in.
And now they boast about the election in Iraq! The election, they say….the election…they repeat…is all that matters. That one day…they insist…is all that counts. All the lies are irrelevant. All the lies no longer matter. The election set up by the occupiers negates the lies. The election organized by the invaders vindicates the liars. Their logic is astounding, but they hope that millions of Americans agree. And millions of Americans do.
Is that really possible? Is there something about being lied to that does not offend our sensibilities? Is there something about being lied to that is not an affront to our dignity? Is there something about being lied to by those in power that does not frighten us to the core?
Is it really possible that millions of Americans would willingly ignore the consequences of four years of deliberate and unabashed lies? Tragically, it seems that it is.
THE LEADING LIARS
What an array they are! From the top down, they lied and lied and swore to each other’s fabrications. Each had a cadre of underlings to repeat and spread the lies. They were not ashamed, they were not even hesitant. They repeated their lies and distortions with confidence and aplomb. And millions of Americans believed them.
Here they are. Take a closer look and remember them well, for their lies have changed the course of history and erased the pride of a once great nation. Remember them for the legacy of arrogance and disdain for truth they leave behind:
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George W. Bush
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Dick Cheney
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Donald Rumsfeld
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Colin Powell
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Condoleezza Rice
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Paul Wolfowitz
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And last, but certainly not least:
and the rest of the Corporate Media – without whom the lies could not have been disseminated, supported and given credibility!
THE CONSEQUENCES
It would take a volume to list the lies. They appear in every major speech by each of the Liars in the Den from the moment after the attacks of 9/11. They are evident in every interview by every talk show pundit drooling for a chance to air the lies. From the State of the Union messages on down, the theme was clear: terrorize the nation into supporting a long-planned PNAC war with lie after lie after lie. Cover up, hide, delay, distort – do anything to prevent an investigation into the lies. Then make the rounds, repeat the lies, repeat the lies, repeat the lies. It works.
The bigger the lie, the more it will be believed: Joseph Goebbels
And so it is. Bush and company were rewarded by a gullible American electorate in November. Condoleezza Rice was promoted for her dishonesty. Donald Rumsfeld and Paul Wolfowitz are still in charge of the Department of Defense. Colin Powell left his post unscathed by his shameless performances at the United Nations. But the lies go on.
And there is no outrage. Iraq has all but disappeared from the headline news:
But we are left with the reality that lurks beneath the lies:
In the first 12 days after the highly touted elections in Iraq, more than 200 Iraqis were killed and another 21 American lives were sacrificed. The totals are never given. The lie of great success lives on, but will be tainted for a very long time to come.
Even as the votes were being counted, deals were being made to push Adel Abd al-Mahdi, another American lackey, into power. Fourteen American military bases are being planned within Iraq - along with the construction of largest US Embassy anywhere. We won’t be leaving Iraqis to their own devices anytime soon.
American credibility around the world remains at zilch. Lying as a foreign policy strategy will do that. It appears that others see through the lies with far more clarity than the American people. But the Liars know they can fool the American public once and fool them twice and fool them again and again.
The very same groundwork is being laid for an attack against Iran. A new nuclear threat to the American people is being formulated. Been there, done that.
No one in power is being held accountable for the lies, no one at all. That, perhaps, is the greatest consequence we will face as Americans: the abject absence of responsibility to the people.
Lies may be an inherent part of politics and power, but lies of such consequence cannot be tolerated. This country has been heading into an abyss for the past four years, - powered by a litany of lies orchestrated to distort the aims and ambitions of the Bush/PNAC administration. A continuing path of self-destruction is up to the people of this nation who have two choices and two choices only: Follow blindly or condemn the Liars.
There must be a cry of outrage, rather than the silence of acquiescence. There has to be support for the legislators who demand investigations that may uncover the truth. There has to be a clear demand for accountability from those whose lies have laid the groundwork for American policy here and abroad.
We live in an age in which communication is instant. Messages to television networks, newspaper editors, and to elected officials can be sent and received in seconds. Let them know that you know. Let them know that you will not tolerate another four years of lies and distortions, and let them know that you will hold them accountable for refusing to respond to your anger.
As a nation, we did not demand honesty in November. The American people assured their government that it was perfectly all right to lie at will. It either stops right now, or it will go on as a standard method of operation for a very long time, and democracy as we once knew it will completely disintegrate beyond recognition.
The Liars’ Den is alive and well. Its residents are flourishing in the glow of feigned success. We at TVNL have chosen to openly use the L word and expose the Liars in their Den. We implore you to lure the Liars into the daylight where they have to face the public they have sworn to serve….or not. It’s your call.
Noam Chomsky: Rebel Without a Pause - DVD
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