Oh, I remember that song...

Those that know nothing about history, are destined to make the same mistakes... And Ashcroft is so different than Robt Kennedy?

Masters of War - By Bob Dylan (1963)
Come you masters of war
You that build all the guns
You that build the death planes
You that build the big bombs
You that hide behind walls
You that hide behind desks
I just want you to know
I can see through your masks

You that never done nothin'
But build to destroy
You play with my world
Like it's your little toy
You put a gun in my hand
And you hide from my eyes
And you turn and run farther
When the fast bullets fly

Like Judas of old
You lie and deceive
A world war can be won
You want me to believe
But I see through your eyes
And I see through your brain
Like I see through the water
That runs down my drain

You fasten the triggers
For the others to fire
Then you set back and watch
When the death count gets higher
You hide in your mansion
As young people's blood
Flows out of their bodies
And is buried in the mud

You've thrown the worst fear
That can ever be hurled
Fear to bring children
Into the world
For threatening my baby
Unborn and unnamed
You ain't worth the blood
That runs in your veins

How much do I know
To talk out of turn
You might say that I'm young
You might say I'm unlearned
But there's one thing I know
Though I'm younger than you
Even Jesus would never
Forgive what you do

Let me ask you one question
Is your money that good
Will it buy you forgiveness
Do you think that it could
I think you will find
When your death takes its toll
All the money you made
Will never buy back your soul

And I hope that you die
And your death'll come soon
I will follow your casket
In the pale afternoon
And I'll watch while you're lowered
Down to your deathbed
And I'll stand o'er your grave
'Til I'm sure that you're dead

Yeah, good stuff - suitable for about any age, of course. No - I waren't waxing nostalgic of The Time (any old one) but for.. the 'time' one needs in order to possibly ever gain any perspective. You had to have *seen* the "buck-tooth Jap" posters and *heard* the oiliness [especially That] of McCarthy's Rush-like diction and the visible sneer you could 'hear' - to get the flavor of a man who had the whole fucking Nation quaking in boots and looking under beds for Pinkos. Even grammas'..

The Green Table, a brief ballet I saw in ~ late '60s perfectly captured the visuals for.. your Dylan rant. It was exquisite, and I wonder why it isn't periodically redone, especially now that we need it again, a Lot. IG Farben, GE, Nestle, BP -- what's the Difference? No Corporation has allegiance beyond a small-% of Itself. (Now not even that is needed - what with parachutes & bonuses even After you fail!)

It's still and ever - the old farts with Egos and Always: those Portfolios (and Pop-Religion) - never forget the role of *God* in the dissembling, finger-pointing and ultimately rationalizing: sending out of cannon fodder. Now if HALF of those old farts worldwide were female.. (notwithstanding Maggie and Golda, who were perfectly male in temperament) - that might be a start in reeducation. Maybe in your grandson's time; may he have such.

The occasional leaks of how 'Statesmen' speak with each other privately, and especially with their 'team' VS the public oratory and official obfuscation - demonstrates the inescapable cynicism of power. We ought to realize such by now. Oughtn't we?

(My guess is that the God-thing won't die til too many homo-saps have died first - to possibly rebuild anything from the micro-smashed rubble. We do too good a job of smashing stuff nowadays + too many mouths to feed with 'zero-sum' mindsets.)

Oh well. Real life always surprises those who imagine it's stuck in a permanent rut.

Ashton

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