Here we go 'round the psycho Bush
2nd November, 2006
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A very nice friend once took me to task for making disparaging generalisations about Americans, pointing out that there are plenty of smart, socially aware Yanks who have chosen to build lives in Queensland and become valuable members of society. She was right, of course. But if ever there was a superpower so ripe for ridicule, I can't name it.
The regime led by Dubya hasn't done a whole lot for America's reputation as a middle-class powerhouse of wealth and opportunity, home of some of the finest institutions of learning ever built, of some of the most remarkable economic and engineering feats ever accomplished. The Prez does much for setting up his countrymen to look as collectively dumb as a brush. How about the announcement that the United States now plans to appoint itself as the sheriff of outer space? To limit access to the cosmos to ensure no anti-American forces ever spread the word of dissent to the good voters of the Alpha Centauri star system. These people are mad. The announcement was made in a new draft of the US national space policy (subtitled The Sky: it's big and it's ours). Among the general run of drivel are instructions like this one, to the Secretary of Defence: "develop capabilities, plans and options to ensure freedom of action in space and, if directed, deny such freedom of action to adversaries". And they reckon North Korea's Kim Jong-il is bonkers - he just wants a private army and a new pair of platform shoes. There's this mob called N7W who are running a global poll on what should be declared the seven wonders of the modern world. The result will be announced in Portugal (which hasn't done anything terribly remarkable for about 400 years and therefore isn't likely to rig the vote) sometime next year. There is only one American structure on the ballot paper: the Statue of Liberty (and that was made in France). It's up against the Great Pyramids of Giza (which were named among the wonders of the ancient world), the Great Wall of China, Stonehenge, the rock city of Petra, Angkor Wat and the Sydney Opera House. Some Americans are actually very unhappy about this. There aren't enough US nominations and the Grand Canyon should be up there, say American complainants to the official N7W website. You know, the Grand Canyon? That fabulous man-made structure? Disney wasn't available so Donald Trump designed it. Bonkers. You have to admire the level of delusion that can develop when the richest nation on Earth is run by a man likely to name himself governor of far-flung parts of the solar system. Such a degree of self-importance has to trickle down to the general populace eventually. The problem with having pots of money and power is that eventually you'll get bored and go mad. Sadly for Dubya, he was born mad, most likely as a result of genetics. Therefore he has nothing to aim for but to go madder still. The Roman Emperor Commodus had the city of Rome, its Senate, Army and the entire calendar renamed in honour of himself (none of it lasted beyond his death), while Queen Ranavalona of Madagascar was said to have surpassed Caligula's legendary cruelty a million times over. It all began in 1828 when she ordered her guests to pick lice from each other's hair during dinner. Power corrupts - absolute power corrupts absolutely and eventually it rots the brain. A colleague with an unhealthy but impressive encyclopaedic knowledge of the lives of despots of recent centuries tells me that the late Idi Amin, who ran Uganda as his own personal torture house, gave himself among many titles that of "Keeper of All the Firewood". Not even Dubya's mad enough to nominate himself for such a title. He's going to give that task to Condoleezza Rice. |
