The Muck Starts Here: The new ‘Know-Nothings’ — GOP prez field

by Barry Hastings

The impending Neo-Nazi American nation. Never in my 77 years have I seen such a collection of fools and/or idiots dominating an American political party’s policy-makers.

And my reading of history tells me the last time the situation became so dangerous to the nation was with arrival on our political scene of the secret American political organization, hostile to the influence of Roman Catholics and other recent immigrants, commonly called (and calling themselves) the Know-Nothings.

Not as mouthy, or as crude, as the current crop of GOP contenders, they tended to answer queries about their activities with silence, broad generalizations, or the words, “I know nothing.” Shades of Trump, Rubio, and rest of the rogue’s gallery. To my way of thinking, they’ve got one responsible and truly patriotic candidate in Ohio’s Gov. Kasich. He’s resting somewhere between one and two per cent in the polls. For practical purposes, that’s the equivalent of zero.

An old dictionary (1960s) I picked up defined the movement as, “A mid-Twentieth Century political attitude characterized by anti-intellectualism, exaggerated patriotism, and fear of foreign subversive influences. Apparently they’re still among us, and seemingly something beyond insular. Of course, the Webster’s was right about mid-Twentieth century America, but the original Know-Nothing Party flourished in the period just before the Civil War, between 1854-59.

They opposed immigration of (primarily) Catholics, Orientals, a host of other foreigners, and were vigorous supporters of slavery. They had a big role in the outbreak of war between the states, by playing to hordes of Americans as ignorant as themselves. (These people are like werewolves, you can’t kill ’em off, and they pop-up periodically to haunt (or kill) us. Most of them claim to be Christians, and if they are, what are they doing running around in the Devil’s playground?

I’m sorry, but I have to snicker up my sleeve when I see the mob of sleazy, devious, unAmerican and anti-Constitutional GOP presidential wannabees, making ever wilder demands for restrictions against folks who are already citizens, many of whom have served in our armed forces during the current (seems like forever) wars. ‘Rich White (and Latin) Trash,’ is what I’m seein’. Everyone of them are off­shoots of foreigners from somewhere, who came here for a fairer shake, and better opportunities. Almost every wave has been treated in much the same way, whatever their origins. The worst jobs, the worst-paying jobs, dwelling in ghettos at the core of all our biggest cities; occupied by folks, at one time or another, of just about every race or nationality in the world — The original human Melting Pot.

As I’ve (often) said before, most of these neo-know-nothings have never even read the Constitution, and even more habitually use a document they know nothing about to push “causes.” If we removed everyone in the country with foreign roots, only descendants of our own indigenous peoples would still be here. And not many of them, judging by the methods our ancestors used to remove them from the American scene — i.e., bullets, war, forced cross-country relocation, and purposely transmitted white man’s disease.

Yes, we sent many sick-unto-death colonists to reside with those innocent people, before they expired. (For example, when white folks first moved out onto Nantucket Island around 1659, there were some four thousand Native Americans living there. Within a hundred years, most had died from diseases brought by Europeans. Within two hundred years, they’d vanished. (Which was the result both desired and achieved.)

Had it not been for millions of immigrants from every quarter of the globe, America would (could) never have reached the heights attained in last half of the 20th Century. Within a couple of decades of the big victory over Facism and Nazism, we were in the process or recreating those horrors, right here, in America. And that despite a clear warning about where to be watchful. CIA, involved in every major political scandal since the agency was created, the Bay of Pigs, Iran/Contra, Watergate, Bushwar ABC weapons lies. They’re supposedly restricted from meddling in homeland politics and such shenanigans, but have ever been caught, finger deep in the pie. All (16) other similar (intel) agencies have taken a clue through what the ‘Agency’ has gotten away with. If you though Edgar Hoover kept files, these people keep files.

Our military? As bad. The top commanders (George Washingtons of the 1960-75 era) lied to us, their civilian commanders, and themselves for more than 15 years. Cost us a lot of dead soldiers who deserved better. The George “Dubya” Bush mistake bringing on our current nightmare was strongly disapproved of by so many senior officers, more than thirty admirals and generals resigned, or retired, in protest. And by the way, we’re running out of bombs, according to an NPR report, four new plants are hurriedly being designed and built. Must be planning (belatedly) for the long, long haul ahead.

So, it appears our new know-nothings are also the new American isolationists, withdrawing from the world to a secure position behind our borders, and bombing the hell out of everyone from N. Africa to Pakistan (and all in-between), then keeping those borders tightly sealed against anyone different (speech, skin color, religion) from ourselves (we already treat most of them like scum). It is the classic definition of xenophobia (“fear of others different from ourselves,” according to a much newer Webster).

It was our English ancestors who saddled us with this fear (and loathing) in America. In England, for centuries, people were so xenophobic, they hated people from just down the road in the next town, county, shire, church. It took them centuries to shake it off and become a united nation, and it only takes a brief look at the evening news to see we have a long way to go before drawing even in modern times. Football games between villages often became so violent people were killed while “playing.” They were suspicious, and ever ready to beat the crap (or kill) out of anyone speaking a different, unusual language, or dialect; or wearing oddly cut clothing — “strange garb.”

What we’re witnessing is societal retrograde, and if we embark on it by law, we’re finished, as surely as the Roman Empire finished itself. We’ve already taken the same first step the Romans took, hiring mercenaries to do our dirty work.