“ Progressivism versus Conservatism – The Battle Lines of the Fifth World War “

(dedicated to the brilliant writer, Ms. Arundhati Roy)

by S. Jovian Radheshwar for Radheshwar.com

Huntington Beach, California, April 18^th, 2003

In the world of professional boxing, there exists the convention that the “man that beats the man that beat the man” is the reigning champion of his (now, in some cases, her) division of competition. This is why, needless to say, Mike Tyson is not the world heavyweight division champion, as he may have defeated the man, but the man (initially Buster Douglas, followed by many others) defeated him. Mr. Tyson is lost in the middle, as a second-rate heavyweight, clinging to stories and myths of a past glory, unrecoverable to the new, mentally-handicapped and unstable Mike Tyson, who has dealt with imprisonment for rape, bouts of depression, etc. Mr. Tyson, is no longer the total package. He is a fallen competitor, a dinosaur power, whose very strength and hubris has resulted in his decline from the top of his profession. Indeed, for a man to rape a woman, and then deny such an action, is a height of disrespectability, and dishonor. Dinosaur powers are those powers that rely on merely their brute strength to emerge victorious in conflict, as their finer points and reputation have been unwound and exposed as shallow lies and myths. Dinosaur powers are unrelenting, uncouth, unsophisticated brutes. Mr. Tyson’s fall from grace and his eventual replacement after many cycles of boxing competition as heavyweight champion is, of course, Lennox Lewis, an English gentleman, with a sense of being a gracious winner.

Now I might be ascribing too much sophistication to Mr. Lewis, but no person can deny his diametric opposition to Mr. Tyson as a competitor in practice of an oppositional style of boxing. Mr. Tyson starts quick, with furious punches of tremendous strength, regardless of the caliber or style of his opponent. Mr. Lewis took advantage of precisely this formulaic approach to boxing on the part of Mr. Tyson, and fought defensively, as Mr. Tyson tired himself out, exhausted from over-punching, and confused by his opponent’s resilience. Knowing that Mr. Tyson carried with him a formidable arsenal, better to observe, understand, and then strike at a moment of advantageousness. In the end, Mr. Lewis was the victor, and reigns as heavyweight champion. The man that beat the man, that beat the man. If you loosely apply this analogy to international politics, the United States is much like the dinosaur power of the globe, the Mike Tyson of the global heavyweight division, capable of cutting massive swaths of destruction, but little else. Indeed, this style of attack was first understood, and capitalized upon brilliantly, by the Vietnamese people during the thirty years of their revolutionary struggle against imperial domination. Their championship campaign started with a warm-up bought against another heavyweight competitor, France, although the French had already been defeated by the Nazis in a rather swift manner in the 2^nd World War. Following that, with the defeat of the Nazis and the Japanese Militarists by the US and the USSR, the US and USSR competed for the championship belt. During the Cold War (recently referred to as the 3^rd World War by the Project for a New American Century folks), the US first engaged the North Koreans and the Chinese, whom they fought to a draw. The Soviets swiftly took control of all Eastern Europe, and the previous colonial powers sought returns to their former territories. So as of that point, the US and the Soviets were sort of co-champions of the international heavyweight division. Of course, then the Vietnamese, in the early part of the Cold War, fought and expelled the French from Indochina, allowing them to move up a notch in the rankings. What catapulted them to the international championship, however, was their continued struggle and ultimate victory over the United States in the remainder of the Vietnamese Revolutionary War (1945-1954 vs. the French, 1954-1975 vs. the United States). Maybe the Afghans, who later defeated a much weakened Soviet Union in the 1979-1987 Soviet-Afghan war, come in second. But following my logic here, the Vietnamese are the reigning heavyweight champions of the world, and as of the end of the Cold War, all conservative estimates suggest that they remain still undefeated. Hail the champions of Vietnam (and no, I am not referring in any way to the former South Vietnamese comprador cowards who now reside in Garden Grove, right here in beautiful Orange County).

Why all the boxing-metaphor? Simple. The Vietnamese under the brilliant leadership of President Ho Chi Minh and General Giap made use of a full arsenal of war weapons, outside and beyond the comprehension of the dinosaur power, the USA. By studying the US’ intelligence and surveillance patterns, misdirections and disinformation became possible on a grand scale, the most excellent example of which was the “siege” of Khe Sanh, a valley where the US had set up a major base camp in the north central part of South Vietnam at the time. The Vietnamese Revolutionaries flooded US listening posts (ELINT, or electronic intelligence) with information which suggested that a massive attack would be launched on Khe Sanh. While the US was busy digging in at its base there, the Tet Offensive of 1968 was launched, and the rest is history. The arrogance of the US in that war was typified by repeated “intelligence failures” of this type, however, the jargon-phrase here has an ironic implication, as well. That is, that the failure of US military intelligence was to be so unintelligence and arrogant as to assume that the enemy possessed in his mind no intelligence. It is the same classic underestimation that has resulted in military quagmires for many empires in history. It is the type of underestimation that is only possible when a nation, previously a superpower, becomes all too reliant on its military hardware, ignores other sources of power, and becomes a dinosaur power, arrogant, and primed for a humiliating loss. Just like Mr. Tyson, when he lost the belt to Buster Douglas in Tokyo more than ten years ago, to never retrieve it since then, and to likely never retrieve it again.

This is where the battle lines will be drawn for the coming 5^th World War (as mentioned above, the Cold War was number 3, and the current War on the Arab Culture is number 4, according to Project for a New American Century folks). Not between nations and nations, or even blocks of nations versus other blocks of nations, but rather, the coming war will be a war between progressives and conservatives, much as the Spanish Civil War was fought between the Military and the Republicans, between brawn and brains, between might and right. Hopefully, this war will be contained to nonviolent, and democratic change, however, to say this is wishful thinking is an understatement. As we speak, plans are being mobilized by the constituents of the current administration to monopolize power for all time within this nation, erasing the democratic alternative. Conservatives rely on killing you with guns to prove their point, we Progressives must remain vigilant, and must be peaceful and take numerous casualties to prove our point and our moral superiority.

This war is already being fought in many parts of the world, and will likely soon start in the United States, as well. During the last ten years, the Indian political spectrum has come increasingly under the dominance of the Bhartiya Jananta Party (BJP) and its Hindu-fundamentalist allies, who seek to overturn the constitutionally-enshrined secularism of the Indian federal state. This is their naked ambition, and there is little disputing that, as the BJP Home Minister/Deputy Prime Minister LK Advani was himself in Ayodhya during the destruction of the Babri Masjid more than ten years ago, urging on the fanatics, playing the role of mob-director, funneling their dinosaur-passions of conservatism against the mosque, and later against their fellow Muslim countrymen (and women and children, too, who were also on the receiving end of the Hindu fundamentalists’ violence in the riots which followed, and claimed thousands of lives). Following the destruction of the mosque, plans have been pushed on the now BJP-dominated government to construct a temple for a Hindu god. Currently, the plans remain on hold as the battle between the progressive Secularists and the reactionary-conservative Hindus plays out. I am pleased to report that in the last week alone, the progressive secularists have netted three huge victories, which further reify the secular nature of Indian law and the constitution. In addition to these victories, which I will begin describing momentarily, the Indian Supreme Court, as the guardian of the Rule of Law and the Constitution, has ruled that there cannot be any construction at the Ayodhya site until extensive archaeological surverys can be completed which may prove the historical validity (or invalidity) of the Hindu fundamentalists' claims. Preliminary assertions by authorities on the subject have suggested that such evidence, if it exists, will likely be impossible to produce. So for now, the world is spared the Indian version of Orange County's own Crystal Cathedral, and the horrible early morning televangelism that only us insomniac journalists and maybe some really crazy god-heads ever get a taste of.

First, the state government of Rajastan, a province in Northwestern India, bordering Pakistan, arrested Praveen Togadia, a leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council, VHP) for inciting communal hatred and sedition, when he distributed Tridents, a traditional Hindu holy symbol, last week. Tridents, being dangerous weapons as well, are specifically outlawed for this reason in Rajastan. He has been charged with those crimes now, which I must say is something I am surprised, but also quite heartened, to hear. The VHP is a radical organization, only differing from al-Qaeda in religion and level of organization, in which case the VHP is far more advanced and retains ties to the top leadership in the BJP government. The federal state of India is founded on the protection of religious minorities, and has never been a Hindustan, and would only be falling to the unsophisticated, hatred-oriented politics of the Indian equivalent of rednecks, or racialists, if indeed it ever became a Hindustan.

Secondly, the new mayor of the city of Ahmedabad is a Muslim woman, Aneesa Mirza, from the Congress party, which is currently in opposition federally. Following the riots of 1992 after the destruction of the Ayodhya mosque, the most violent instance of Hindu-Muslim conflict in India has been last year's riots in Ahmedabad, which is located in the province of Gujarat, just south of Rajastan, along the Pakistan border. Following an attack; an horrific Molotov-cocktail-type attack, on Hindu pilgrims traveling by train, which left 60 dead; Hindus reacted by rioting and killing Muslims, massacre-style, making no distinction between those responsible for the attack and those not, and not distinguishing between men and women and children, either. The city of Ahmedabad, a diverse city of Hindus and Muslims living side by side for generations and generations, bore the brunt of the Hindu-hardliners’ fury, and more than a thousand Muslims were indiscriminately annihilated by the hands of Hindu hatred. Many observers saw these riots being urged on by Gujarat’s Chief Minister (Office equivalent to a US governor) Narendra Modi, a high-ranking member of the BJP who many see as a possible national leader of that party someday soon. Mr. Modi’s criminal neglect and possibly homicidal decisions helped him incite communal passions at the ballot box in provincial elections this year, which saw him returned to power. He has “Hindu-ized” democracy in Gujarat, something the BJP seeks to accomplish nationally. The fact that the new mayor is of the opposition, and is a Muslim, is a beautiful, well-deserved, slap in Mr. Modi’s stupid, evil, anti-intellectual, hatred-filled faced. Such men with contempt for humanity as to reduce them to numbers for political purposes of demagoguery and domination have no place in Indian politics and indeed in the World Community.

Finally, third, Mr. Advani, whom I briefly mentioned above, has been asked to present himself in front of a court in Uttar Pradesh (literally, “Upper State”), in Northeastern India, to explain himself regarding his role in inciting communal hatred in the 1992 Ayodhya riots. Along with Mr. Advani, several high ranking members of the BJP, the VHP and the Shiv Sena have also been asked to present themselves. This is a compliment to the democratic fundamentalism of the Indian Federal Constitution, as these are members of cabinet and high-rollers otherwise, and their being brought before the courts is something that is not observed in other countries, “democracies” or otherwise. Rule or Law, not Law of the Ruler, is what democracy is all about.

The battle of progressives and conservatives also continues in the United States, although our circumstances here point increasingly towards the enshrinement of the Law of the Ruler, as the incumbents continue to disrespect the democratic principles of our constitution, indeed, ignoring and lawyering it into near-oblivion in the one and a half years following 9/11. Certainly, the circumstances of weak-power attacks against the mainland United States creates new dangers and requires new solutions, but there is no reason for the carte blanche that has been granted the Bushies to respond. Much like the Tonkin Gulf Resolution of the Vietnamese Revolutionary War, the resolutions on Afghanistan and Iraq following the events of 9/11 have been acts of cowardice by our Congress, as they relented in the face of the conservative Dinosaur power of the Bush-clique. Much as the Indian state has a progressive constitution which allows the use of soft power to unite its various factions, the US as a world power has in its store vast quantities of soft power to unite the peoples of the globe. However, conservative administrations fail to realize this international goodwill towards the US and its people, and chose to rely exclusively on hard power, on dinosaur power, like the drunken, ecstasy-popping boxer aforementioned.

It is quite likely that we can locate the US conservatives’ reliance on dinosaur power in that group’s inherent “redneckery”. This small-town myopia; whereby the only people who are, indeed, people at all, are white people and the only religion is reactionary Christianity; clouds their thinking, and renders them unintelligent in the extreme. This is exemplified by Mr. Bush’s (the current, not the former President) near-total incomprehension of global affairs and history, and total incomprehension of simple geography taught to European children at very young ages. Furthermore, Mr. Bush never travels outside of the favored orbit of England, and the Azores recently, and perhaps Mexico, although he certainly has had a falling out of late with President Fox, who is genuinely more a man of the world than the Texas Tough-Guy in the White House. When President Clinton ventured to India and Vietnam during the admirable twilight of his Progressive Presidency, he waded into crowds, who welcomed him as a hero, and only wished to grab a hold of his hand or embrace him, Mr. Clinton, the ultimate practitioner of soft power. Indeed, as the first US president to visit Vietnam following the conclusion of hostilities there in 1975, Mr. Clinton was received as a hero, not as a destroyer, an acknowledgement of the Vietnamese appreciation of his anti-War credentials during that nation’s thirty year struggle. Mr. Bush wouldn’t dare attempt such a thing, and I will venture to say that he will live the entirety of his life in his convoluted blissfull-ignorance, despite the advantages granted him as a President of the United States; having a Presidential father, too; Mr. Bush will never see the globe as nearly every other President has. Mr. Bush wants to sit in Crawford, Texas, and press the big red button, nuke all the coloreds, and pretend they never existed.

There is a certain incomprehensible logic of expediency is all this redneckery, typified by the nature of US military operations in all post-World War Two conflicts that this country has been involved in. That is, that collateral damage is justifiable so long as the overriding military and strategic imperatives of the campaign are met. This can only be borne of a culture that fails to appreciate the humanity of other peoples, and inculcates its own soldiers with hatred and fear of the other as the premise upon which murder is made possible. Kill the gooks, and the sand niggers, and the spics (lets not forget the US’ murderous rampage through South America), because they’re not Americans, and hence, they’re not even people. Carpet bomb their villages, on suspicion (but not on incontrovertible proof) of harboring “terrorists”. This is the sort of strategic logic of a simple young boy, who seemingly likes killing small insects much more than his peers, to an alarming degree.

Manifesting itself this week, the redneckery of the US military permitted the destruction of priceless artifacts in the Baghdad museums and libraries, which contained the history of the Iraqi people, the Arab Caliphates and of course, the Sumerian, Babylonian, Mesopotamian and Assyrian Civilizations. Indeed, much of the birth of Western civilization occurred in the region surrounding Baghdad, between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, “The Cradle of Civilization”. It will be impossible to replace most of what has been destroyed. Robert Fisk’s exemplary reporting on the scene for the UK’s Independent Newspaper illustrates the enormity of these crimes against humanity’s sense of its own history, and further illustrates the preventability of these crimes (navigate to Commondreams.org or Independent.co.uk). Mr. Fisk himself informed US troops at a checkpoint nearby to one the scenes of cultural devastation, was misled by troops, who suggested that they would be “on the case”, and ultimately let down, as the museum remained unguarded hours later. They were likely too busy protecting the resources they were sent to get by their Texas-oilmen redneck commanders, OIL. Certainly, they have no comprehension of the importance of those artifacts to the national pride and character of Iraq as they begin the process of de-Saddamification. They are rednecks, how could they understand? They probably can’t even read their own language above a fourth-grade level, let alone someone else’s. The Bush Administration, not John Walker Lindh, is the American Taliban, seeking to enforce religious fundamentalism, market fundamentalism, anti-intellectualism and the destruction of ancient history through ignorance and redneckery (remember always, the Buddhas of Bamiyan, lest we forget the truth of hatred and religious violence)

The forces of dark conservatism triumphed elsewhere in Iraq this week, permitted to reign supreme largely due to the calculations of expediency of the US and UK military commanders. The rehiring of Saddam’s police force to bring order to Baghdad has been a slap in the face to the Iraqi people, especially the Shia peoples of Iraq, who were often brutalized by this largely Sunni police force of Saddam’s relatives and loyalists. Indeed, one particularly clever analyst called it “denazification by re-hiring the Gestapo”. I’ll just use a redneck phrase, to make it easier to understand: the policy of using Saddam’s cops is “half-assed liberation”. The "coalition", if we are to believe in a possibility of a truly liberated Iraq to be blessed with liberal democracy, really should be using its whole ass on this one. All the while, looting and disorder abound in every major Iraqi city, as do anti-American protests, as the Iraqis see more and more that the “coalition” is only there for oil and military bases, and cares not for the ancient people of the nation of Iraq.

This same need for expediency is creating, as mentioned above, in this country, an attitude similar to the collateral damage attitude of the military in its foreign misadventures. That is, that there is no tolerance for dissent in the United States anymore, we have bid farewell to that noble tradition. Anti-war groups and individuals are increasingly labeled as “unpatriotic” and are told to “leave” the country and “move somewhere else”, or worse yet, and rather hypocritically told to “go back where they came from”. Aside from being examples of stupidity of the highest order, indicative of redneckery all the while, these types of arguments are drawing battles lines in the US between conservatives and progressives, a battle which is becoming increasingly dangerous for the disenfranchised of the two groups. Remember, in America, only the rich can purchase justice, and drive-thru extra-value justice is what the rabble get, as the judge calmly considers his golfing handicap and why its so much higher than his friend, the district attorney's handicap. This week, a showing of the film Bull Durham, a movie about Baseball and getting laid (quintessentially American) at Baseball’s Hall of Fame, was cancelled due to the anti-War views of its stars. That’s right, it was cancelled. If that isn’t an example of unstrategic conservative redneckery, I really am at a loss for what is.

Of course, the real danger on the home front lies in the potential exploitability of the uneducated redneck for the purpose of continued divide and conquer tactics. Large tracts of the nation, the deep South, the Midwest, might not be safe to traverse for peoples of minority backgrounds, or dissenting opinions. Of course, this shouldn't deter any person fitting that characterization from traveling there, as America is a land of much beauty, worth taking an insult or a possible physical injury to experience. People of color throughout the country are beginning to feel a pressure to conform and adopt the majoritarian view. But I’d rather be shot dead that forced to celebrate consumer-mas on December 25^th, although I remain open to participating in Catholic of European or Coptic Christian rituals (these, unlike our materialistic feeding frenzy in contravention of the Bodhisattva Christ’s teachings, might actually leave me with something real and character-building). And I’d rather listen to any music other than country music and its hokey celebration of simple ignorance and redneckery. People of dissenting persuasions and minority genetics beware, the KKK has infiltrated the Republican party and is beginning to implement their agenda (if you don’t believe that, go to the KKK website, or the CCC website, its sister organization, of which Trent Lott is a member, as is his replacement, Bill Frist). Adolph Hitler’s rise to power and George W. Bush’s are remarkably similar, in that neither received a majority mandate, and both employed fear and hatred of the other to manipulate an uneducated mass to their whims. Bush had 9/11, Hitler had the attack on the Reichstag, both blamed the attacks on their selected enemies, Bush the Muslims, Hitler the Communists. To recover our revolutionary legacy, propagandized to us from an early age in this great nation, the Progressive Movement must rise from the wreckage of Ground Zero, lest we all be killed in the administration’s follow up operations. It is absolutely imperative that George W. Bush gets trounced in the 2004 election, for the sake of all that is good and right in the world and that we have fought for in the 2^nd and 3^rd world wars.