First Let's Stop Killing People

The new Machiavellism, the manipulation of ethnic religious and nationalist groups for long-range strategic advantage, as illustrated in the Balkans and Iraq can also be seen at work in American domestic politics. The puzzling, yet undeniable split (although never joined) in the anti-war "movement", is such a case; the attitudes of the various sub-groupings, especially the leadership contribute substantially to it's ineffectiveness. "Divide and conquer" would seem to be the prime directive and Agency the primary method. Of whom, it doesn't really matter; supply your own villain, let's say The Devil uses some quirk of human nature to invariably cause human differences to outweigh similarities.

The divide in the anti-war camp is curious, in that it seems to be caused more by mutual blind spots rather than overt hostilities. Small-l libertarians are used to this, having been ignored for so long. We like to think it's because we're too difficult to defeat intellectually, rather than being numerically not worth the effort, but if libertarians have a blind spot it's occupied by the left, whose many, many species and sub-species, that for us share one characteristic; good or bad, their ideas won't work because people suck. I love the ideals of the left up to when they need to start cracking eggs to make omelets, because I see myself as more likely brunch than bruncher. My job as a citizen is to try and prevent collateral damage from programs undertaken in my name, precisely because I can't control these programs. A pro-active golden rule;
do not allow others to do unto you that which would be undesirable if done unto them.


Backing Democrats Has Pulled the Anti-War Movement to the Right
Why "Inside-Out" is a Dead End
By ELIZABETH SCHULTE
http://www.counterpunch.org/schulte04232005.html

This is the second article I've read referring to "the anti-war movement" as being a subset of progressives who have been ignored by the Democratic Party. As she puts it
"We have to build an antiwar movement that not only recognizes the Democratic Party’s shortcomings, but understands that it is part of the problem."

Hey!Elizabeth! Get a clue; there are a whole bunch of non-progressives who are anti-war and understand that the DP is part of the problem. Ya'll can't see us, but we're here. We also recognize that the UN is part of the problem, and every other organization that uses our taxes to work against out interests, but we will work with you in anyway to end USG imperialism. It's not so much we are unconcerned about the third world and don't want to help, but that we have no control over what's done in our name with the taxes that are coerced from us. We, though invisible, were here first, and may be forgiven for thinking that progressives helped enable Bush when they allowed Clinton to "save" the Bosnians and Kosovars. If that was okay, then you're not anti-war, you're anti-Republican war, but we say Welcome Aboard, let's do this thing!