Mickey Z.: Let the Disobedience (And the Real Work) Begin

(In the aftermath of the election, and upon reading Josh Marshall's thoughts on where we go from here, I've invited a number of liberal/progressive authors to share their views on what just happened and what we should do about it. Mickey Z., author of The Seven Deadly Spins: Exposing the Lies Behind War Propaganda [published by Common Courage Press], got back to me right away with an essay he'd written this morning. Look for more essays along these lines in the week ahead.)

"Liberals can understand everything but the people who don't understand them."--Lenny Bruce

"Crying won't help you...praying won't do you no good."--"When the Levee Breaks," Led Zep

So...it seems the shorter of the two rich straight white male Yale-educated war criminals won, huh? The rancher beat the windsurfer. George W. Bush finally knows what it feels like to win a presidential election and thus will remain the public face of the American Empire for a little while longer.

Wait...shhhh. If you listen carefully you can hear all those protestors dusting off their Hitler mustaches, Bush/Dick jokes, and "regime change begins at home" posters. Four more years for them, too. (Then again it was four more years for everyone on the planet...no matter who won.)

And what of the luminary Left who made it all look as easy as A-B-B?

So much for any delusions we might have had about the influence of Chomsky, Zinn, McMoore, Springsteen, and the rest. More people DID come out to vote in 2004 than in 2000...to vote Republican, that is. Vote or die? Time to run another marathon, P. Diddy. This publicity stunt was a dud.

It's not too early to say: Never again (now there's a rallying cry if I've ever heard one). Never again should we endure "radical" support for anything that even looks like a Democrat..and that goes double for when Hillary runs against Rudy. (Keep your "small differences" and "ledge" to yourself in 2008...please.)

To everyone who did not lose their nerve, hit the panic button, or pull a flip-flop even JFK2 would never attempt, well, here we are.

Now what?

The Nuremberg Tribunal (1945-1946) proclaimed: "Individuals have international duties which transcend the national obligations of obedience... Therefore [individual citizens] have the duty to violate domestic laws to prevent crimes against peace and humanity from occurring."

Mind you, this is the Nuremberg Tribunal I'm quoting...not an anarchist collective or a dusty Thoreau tome. This is an edict borne of a population that chose to remain silent in the face of its government's criminality. Lucy Gwin, editor of the essential disability rights zine Mouth, once told me she believed the greatest gift that could ever been given to the American people is the permission to disobey.

We should consider that permission long granted...