The Death of A Salesman
January 6th, 2021 and the American capitol city is erupting in violence. Mobs storm the House, destroying our last mirage. The last great deception that we, America are in control.
With the November 2020 election of Joe Biden, the world breathed out a sigh of relieved expectation. The results would bring stability at last to the spreading chaos of a pandemic year. The greatest country in the world was back on track.
Jon Ossoff claimed the Senate victory in Georgia, and the government turned officially from Red to Blue. In doing so it set fire to a violent showdown in Washington D.C. A violence that in any other country would be touted as an attempted coup. Not here. We don’t do coups. Just violent protests. After all, we are, in our own eyes, an invincible country. A coup might suggest otherwise. It might imply we were not the “United” States of America. It’s all about marketing.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) already under siege, now finds himself in a precarious political spot as he loses his majority leader role. Already unpopular for blocking direct financial relief to the American people, this could be his “D-Day” as a politician.
The actions of today are yet another symptom of the sickness that has gripped this country for over a generation. The divisions and sub-divisions of a society built on consumerism. A country that stamped God on its currency, and worshipped at the altar of money ever since.
It has been a great ride. We spent billions selling our product to the world. Our tagline; “The Greatest Country In The World” was brilliant. Our sales pitch of “democracy and freedom” copy written with a McDonalds burger and a bottle of coke-a-cola was easy. We sold the world cheap goods and empty promises with the dollar as the reserve currency. We demanded respect under the heels of the one of the most well-funded military systems in the world.
Our commercials were Hollywood dreams of abundance and wealth. A magical Disneyland of innocence and equality. Everyone bought into the dream. We were the best salesman on the planet.
Today, the glossy, re-touched photos of perfection are shredded by reality. The sacred heart of our consumer society, Washington D.C. is under attack. Now, we and the world can see the truth of our democratic experiment. The beguiling, glittering consumer curtain of Bargain Sales has fallen.
Behind it are endless lines of hungry families and protests for equality. Credit card and student debt. The organisational chaos and corruption surrounding the vaccine roll outs. Rent strikes, unemployment, rising violence and crime, a broken education and health care system. Not even Disney fairy dust can magic these truths away.
When our veterans left the military, minus a limb or their sanity, they found the streets. Our Great Country is illiterate and sinking yearly on the world ladder for math and science skills. We are below 49th for life expectancy and quality of life. Higher than 179th in infant and child mortality. Dropping by the day for median household income and amongst the worst for employee protections. We do however, lead the world in the number of incarcerated citizens, prisoners on death row, churches and defense spending. The Greatest Country In The World.
I don’t know if today is a coup or just another violent protest. I do know, it’s the death of the salesman.
