Taking Up Wally's V Debate Invitation
March 20, 2006
9:17 a.m., MT

Music: '1812 Overture'

I probably shouldn't do this after just one viewing, but events in another part of the world link strongly in my mind to the movie, and I want to capture a snapshot of my current brainscape.

Wally's excellent post, Exhorting the right of revolution, asks several pertinent questions that liberty lovers, and other individuals of good conscience would do well to consider. I'll address just one.

Wally asks, Has every other avenue for changing our course been closed? His answer focuses on electoral political action, and wraps up thusly [italics his]: There's a tremendous disinterest in electoral politics nationwide. But maybe disinterest is the wrong term. Perhaps a better term would be lack of faith.

My first thought upon reading that was a question: What is there to have faith in? In his own examples, Wally shows that almost every time the proles call for something that's counter to statist interests, it gets shot down. The truth of the saying, If voting changed anything it would be illegal is staring us right in the face. How many choose to see it?

Probably most people have seen at least a headline about the elections in Belarus. It's of more than theoretical interest to me, because a very dear family friend lives there ... and, being a freedom-minded individual herself, we know that she's very likely in the thick of the opposition activities. I've read several news stories, but a report in today's Boston Globe highlighted a small, but critically important fact. Some quotes culled from Thousands protest Belarus election [emphasis mine]:

Thousands of demonstrators crammed into a downtown plaza yesterday to protest incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko's expected election victory, defying the authoritarian regime's threats to show no mercy to demonstrators and vowing to work for Lukashenko's ouster.

The scene on Oktyabrskaya Square was reminiscent of the demonstrations that led to the toppling of autocratic leaders in Georgia, Ukraine, and Kyrgyzstan. With busloads of police just a block away, throngs of Belarussians waved the banned white-and-red former national flags and filled the plaza with chants of ''Long Live Belarus!" and ''Freedom!" ....

Andrei Dumansky, 30, was one of thousands of Belarussians who received anonymous text messages Saturday on their cellphones warning that ''provocateurs" were planning violence on the square. Like many Belarussians, Dumansky suspected that the government was trying to intimidate people into avoiding last night's demonstrations.

''What fools," said Dumansky outside the polling station at School No. 85 in Minsk, after voting for the ''against all candidates" choice on the ballot. ''They're just making the situation more tense."

Belarus govthugs may be more brazen in stealing elections than ours in the USSA (so far, anyway), but they've at least got the cojones to give voters a complete spectrum of choices. I find myself wondering what those in power would do, what provisions there are, if against all candidates carried the vote. [Update: See Monika's excellent comment for a more informed interpretation of this choice than the one I offer.]

Back to Wally's questions, though ... As I've already indicated, voting is not a viable avenue for changing course. And answering several others in one swoop, the time for change is now. But then, in my view the time for change is always now: there's always room for improvement, which must of necessity occur one individual at a time. Revolution, and extreme measures, are called for. What form they might take, is for each individual to choose for him- or herself.

V for Vendetta does an excellent job of showing that our own fears keep us in chains — something my friend B.W. Richardson naturally observed and comments upon. Once an individual unlocks oneself, there remain many possible paths, ranging from Freedom — I won't, to V's chosen course ... Remember, remember, the fifth of November indeed. Although in this country, a more fitting date might be April 19. However, without the explicit presentation of anarchy as a viable solution to current problems here and abroad, the movie version fails to deliver the full message that's desperately needed.

Thus it falls to us to take up that slack.

Refuse to be afraid.
Freedom — I won't.
Even though I don't know you, will probably never see you, and will never kiss your lips, I love you.

Sunni

Comments: 10 people have contributed to the conversation

On Monday, March 20th, at approximately 1:07 p.m. Mountain time, Monika said:

>>>they've at least got the cojones to give voters a complete spectrum of choices.

I'm sorry but you said it as if the Belarussian people could actually use those phony choices put on the ballot for show, the choices which are put on the ballot solely for propaganda purposes so that Lukaszenka's supporters have an argument against the opposition voices. The mere fact that there are some other names on the ballot in Belarus other than Lukaszenka does not mean that they are there for any other reason but waste of ink.
And if a totalitarian ruler's actions are supported and enforced by KGB would you really say they are full of cojones? A bullying ruler doesn't have cojones, he's a coward who uses other bullies to do his dirty work and in my opinion it is not funny. Neither would I say that for all the screwed up things that are happening in America right now is this country close to becoming a second Belarus. America is just way too different from Europe. The very existence of this blog and the fact that it's owner is safe and sound and is about to start a new business venture without having to bribe everyone on the way, is for me a sign that this country is still sooooo far away from anything that feels threatening in such an abysmal country as Belarus.

On Monday, March 20th, at approximately 1:29 p.m. Mountain time, Sunni said:

Monika, thank you so much for providing your perspective! Since you've experienced communist rule firsthand, you make several excellent points that simply would not occur to my thoroughly American mind.

I didn't mean to imply that I thought America is close to becoming a Belarus itself. There are too many differences between the cultures. But I do think that this country is creating its own doublespeak version of totalitarianism. The Constitution affirms our freedoms, including the right to travel, assemble, and so forth ... but the reality is already far from that. And many individuals don't recognize it, and/or don't care.

At any rate, you're right, not one damn bit of it is funny.

On Monday, March 20th, at approximately 2:02 p.m. Mountain time, Monika said:

I agree, there is something Orwellian in the doublespeak being created now in America. I'd say the ammount of spin doctors in the world has grown so much it's difficult to say if there is any media market free of it anymore.
There are certain similarities between things that happen in America now and in Belarus. Those similarities are disturbing. However I'd say America has a chance for creating it's own weird kind of mess. It is not something I will see, or would like to see, gladly.
Recently I read a fantastic book by a French intelectual Guy Sorman, "Made in America", which describes differences between the American and the majority of European culture. I strongly recommend it once it's published in English- I managed to find a Spanish-language only version on Amazon. But this recommendation is beside the point, just something interesting I discovered in the recent days.

On Monday, March 20th, at approximately 10:19 p.m. Mountain time, jeffrey smith said:

Are we really that safe and sound in America? I think part of your safety is simply a result of the fact that you're not really heard. Why bother with those who have no influence? And it makes those in power seem so benign...

Revolution is what is needed. But Revolution is not possible until the majority of people here realize that the problem is not part of the system, or any particular politician or set of politicians, but the system as a whole, and all the politicians together. The day that the American public realizes that the police are their enemies and not their protectors is the day the Revolution will start--and be won.

My grandparents came to this country from Belarus and Moldava (as they are now called--back then they were part of the Russian Empire)because they thought they would be freer--and they were. But they were mostly concerned with a certain sort of freedom: the freedom from fear of pogromniki raping, killing, burning them; and the freedom to earn their living in peace.
They lived their lives under the umbrella of that freedom, and they were happy to give up other freedoms to keep those. I suspect that is the same with most other Americans. Keep them fed and safe, and they don't care about the deeper freedoms we have lost.

On Tuesday, March 21st, at approximately 4:32 a.m. Mountain time, Mikhail Ramendik said:

I have to note that the media accusations against Lukashenka need to be taken with a grain of salt. I don't mean to say he's an angel, of course. But last time they attacked an East European leader like that, painting him as an oh-so-horrible dictator, it was about Slobodan Milosevic - and remember where THAT attack ended? Nor was he an angel - but they were leaqding the public down to accepting a military attack.

Apparently he DOES have majority support in Belarus, although the >80% figure is probably not realistic (my estimate would be 60%, give or take some, for him).

The reason is more or less the same as Jeffrey Smith explained for the US. He keeps the people safe and the economy (more or less) running, especially compared to the roller coaster rides of both neighbors, Russia and Poland. They like it, and they support him. In a democracy he does have the right to stay in power.

On Tuesday, March 21st, at approximately 7:10 a.m. Mountain time, Sunni said:

Mikhail, you write, "In a democracy he does have the right to stay in power." That's true, as far as it goes — but it isn't the entire story. Belarussian laws limited the number of terms an individual could be president, and Lukashenko found that inconvenient, so he changed it.

On Tuesday, March 21st, at approximately 8:35 a.m. Mountain time, Wally Conger said:

jeffrey, you write: "Revolution is what is needed. But Revolution is not possible until the majority of people here realize that the problem is not part of the system, or any particular politician or set of politicians, but the system as a whole etc."

Fact is, the American Revolution was launched with the support of only some 20% of the people. And that is the case of most revolutions.

On Tuesday, March 21st, at approximately 8:50 a.m. Mountain time, Monika said:

Hi.
I agree Jeffrey- it is easy to sigh with relief when one is an immigrant in America: now my stomach is full and nobody hits me on the head if I disagree and if I work my ass off I'll get paid accordingly. There are two sides to this coin. Wealth, or relative welath, tends to mull people's minds, definitely. On the other hand it isn't nothing to finally be free economically when you come to a rich country. I mean- you can get rich! This is something that I think should not be taken for granted.
I'm definitley not saying that America is perfect. And it is the most important thing that Libertarians can do- to continually improve the state of the country to which other nations look up to. Otherwise the poorer countries or regimes will start looking up to a lazy couch potato riding on the past fame. That is why I also worry at the state of American society and politics.
Re what Mikhail said:Apparently he DOES have majority support in Belarus, although the >80% figure is probably not realistic (my estimate would be 60%, give or take some, for him).
I think the reason for such a large support for Lukashenka is that people in that country, especially older middle-aged and elderly, were raised in the complete reign of communism. They have always had great connection to Russia. This resulted in the need for a strong leader, a czar of sorts, and the ubiquitous fear of the West and especially America and its capitalism. People in a communist country have a certain discease: learned helplessness. They expect things to be done for them, that is why even they know they are poor and opressed (at least on some level) the likelihood of majority of population coming together to start a revolution isn't as big, and it is slow. Older people in communist countries fear that Americans only live to screw their country over. To steal from it. Post-communist countries are full of people who feel nostalgia for the old days when their president or government protected them "kept the country safe and and the economy more or less running". It is easy to remember when one did not have to actually work for his money because the government paid everyone on time and in full. Doesn't matter that people had barely anything- at least they all had the same. This is I think the biggest reason for the continuous support for Lukashenka. It is fear of having to take responsibility of one's own life, and the perspective that it is not going to get better immediately. Sure, thepolitics in Poland, Russia, etc. aren't stable nowadays. Politicians are changing, there are constant quarrels in the parliament. But isn't that democracy? Ancient Greeks wallowed in it 2000 years ago. There isn't much of a chance in improving such system as long as we improve human nature- and we all know where that notion leads.

On Thursday, March 23rd, at approximately 8:03 p.m. Mountain time, Paul said:

And it might be good to remember that our American Revolution occurred in a population that came to an almost uninhabited wilderness and carved out a new country/colony with minimal guidance from a gov't, let alone help or a "safety net."

Boy, I fear for the people when the SHTF next. What do marketing VP's, real estate agents, or gov't bureaucrats know of really supporting themselves?

On Thursday, March 30th, at approximately 12:42 p.m. Mountain time, John T. Kennedy said:

"Once an individual unlocks oneself, there remain many possible paths..."

Which is precisely what makes the final march of the herd in the V masks so horrifying. Handed freedom on a silver platter they still herd like sheep.

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