"What can men do against such wreckless hate?"

Theoden, Lord of the Rings-The Two Towers

My newfound friends I am filled with such despair today. The one party rule of this formerly great country strikes us with blow after blow. They seem to have us in their clutches and I am unsure that normal political processes can overcome this quasi-fascist state. Cases in point: the ban on partial birth abortions. Hell, I'm not even hardcore pro-choice, but all the dems wanted, even the most liberal was a provision for the life of the mother. The repugs said no. Rather than create the bill in a bipartisan way they decided to play dirty politics with it. Now, the law will be tied up in the courts and the dems get to fight on the pro-choice side giving the GOP the ability to say "see these evil people want to kill live babies". They have left us with no way to win and they know it. Then, of course, this morning I turn on NPR and here depressing story after depressing story, not because NPR wants me to kill myself, but because that's all there is. First a report on what seemed like a small democratic victory, making $10 billion of the 87 a loan with many repugs jumping ship. This is followed by repug leaders in the house and the senate saying they'll do whatever it takes to get * whatever he wants. I have no doubts about this. Heaven forbid anything stand in the way of the great unravelling. Then a report on rising college tuitions brought about, as any sane person can see, by states in budget crisis. So do the repugs look to help? No, they decide the answer is to freeze wages and, of course, to limit course offerings. Lets see...what courses do you think the repugs might do away with? I'll say...anything critical of them. Next step, blacklisting non-compliant professors and of course bookburning. Does anyone really think that we can beat the repugs in '04 by playing by the rules?

You know, as a student of WWII german history I often wonder why the average german didn't do more to stop the 3rd Reich from triumphing. How could they let it happen. It seems we will get to watch it happen first hand.

I apologize for bumming you out and of course for any accidental errors. If any of you feel like throwing me any hope I'll gladly take it. Right now I simply don't know how my family won't wind up in another country in the next couple of years. Peace.

There are many of us who are considering moves to other countries in the face of this facism that rises anew before us. I sincerely hope it doesn't come to that, but I'm not sure that the playing field hasn't been irrevocably tipped in the neocons favor via BBV and plain, old dirty politics. Our hopes now are pinned on the general populace, the 'swing voters', the sheeple. That doesn't set my mind at ease, given their lousy track record of spotting a growing evil in their midst, as you point out with the rise to power of Hitler.
Indeed, we've got a front row seat to watch it happen again, and the fact that it is happening again disturbs me to no end. All we can do for the moment is to continue to make noise. All we can do for the time being is to point out where these reckless policies are leading us, and hope that the people get it through their prosac-addled minds that this is not what America is about.

Welcome to DU, mrgorth. :hi: I wish it could be under better circumstances.

It is easy to get down. There are so few victories. With this mans record of corruption, now and before he was selected and they keep giving him everything he wants. Even republicans who dare to oppose him risk being voted out by tom delay. You could never dream up a novel this crazy.

...is a riff on line 11 of the Aeneid of Vergil:

Tantaene animis caelestibus irae?

(Is there anger such as this in celestial minds?)

Tolkein was a scholar down to his toenails...

the decision was made to ride into battle, to sound the horn of Helm Hammerhand one last time. He did, his men rode, and at the moment of greatest despair, allies he never counted on rode down upon the enemy and laid waste.

You have a sword, and a horse, and breath in your lungs. Despair is for the dead.