On The Pornography Of Propaganda

"The weapons of mass destruction..."- Colin Powell at the U.N. "Mission accomplished..."- Dubya in a flight jacket, standing on an aircraft carrier. "Pulling down the Saddam Hussein statue..."- in Baghdad. All moments of propaganda, all of them pornographic- designed to evoke a visceral response, with no thought as to consequences or reality. Political debate has been trumped by the image, the catch phrase, the iconic. Swallowed whole by a public that craved "the money shot", was "out for blood", and wanted to "make a killing."

Afterwards, the letdown. Slowly the balance of power shifts, but nothing has changed. The new majority doesn't want a change, they just want to call the shots- literally. And so, now that the campaigns for the 2008 elections in the U.S. are underway, the cycle starts anew. There is virtually no nation debate on the validity of U.S. Armed forces occupying Iraq- there is only discussion about its necessity. The tease, the promise, and then the pornography of propaganda- anything but the issues. "How does it feel?" "Was it good for you too?"


Empty politics, like empty sex, creates empty people.