There is a conspiracy of silence within the halls of government that calls out for reckoning. It is a conspiracy adhered to by both parties, one that threatens the future of our nation as never before. This silence has to do with our right as citizens to call ourselves a democracy; and unless we as citizens and voters address it, we can no longer claim a share in the administration of this country.
Since the aftermath of Election 2000, we labored under the impression that George W. Bush was elected President of the United States. No one in either party challenged that judgement publicly at any time. Once, the Supreme Court weighed in on the issue of the Florida recount and pronounced that the Republican candidate had won the election, there has been silence from our elected representatives. Those of us who saw the film "Fahrenheit 911" last year were made aware of, for the first time, the scene that played out on the Senate floor shortly after the election. Despite the appeals of the Congressional Black Caucus to the entire Senate body about the denial of voting rights to thousands of black citizens in Florida on Election Day, the Senate to a man and woman refused to raise even one hand to initiate an investigation. And who led the charge to deny these African-American voters their rights, but the Senate president himself, Vice-President Albert Gore. Why did Candidate Gore do this? We can only surmise---for the actual winner of the 2000 election by an estimated 500,000 votes, Candidate Gore himself, has not illuminated his motives for doing so.
Perhaps, Mr. Gore was secretly relieved that he was not elected, who knows? No man seemed better prepared by resume or consummate knowledge of government. He was in fact the ideal candidate in a democracy, which must rely on its most intelligent and visionary leaders to provide the nation with successful initiatives in all areas of government. And yet, he failed this nation in the very first act of coming to office. There is no doubt in the minds of most of us that the Florida vote was compromised in every way, from denial of voting rights to outright fraud in the counting of ballots. One can find the results of arguably the most pervasive investigation conducted into the "Florida count" in the book by Greg Palast "The Best Democracy Money Can Buy." But the questions remain: Where was the government commission to uncover the truth about this stolen election? Was there a call from either party for an independent prosecutor? And finally, what in the world did it matter if President Clinton held onto the Presidency until the mess in Florida was completely sorted out and the actions of Katherine Harris and gang were brought to light?
Because the issue was not addressed as it should have been both legally and constitutionally, those who plotted to overthrow the will of the voters, won the right to govern for four years-- and what a four years it has been. Never in recent memory has this country sunk so low in such a short time. Under the Bush Administration, we have been subjected to a theatre of puppetry. In concert with a media that is no longer concerned with truth, the American people have been subjected to the blatherings of "pundits" of all stripes, know-nothing talk show hosts, newspaper columnists with axes to grind, as well as reporters who dutifully attend press briefings consisting of smoke and mirrors. In the end, the criminals who plotted the first stolen election were enabled by the congress, the media, and the state governments to enhance their capabilities to steal Election 2004; although the mass of voters is still unable to come to terms with this reality. Instead we hear, "I’ll give you the first election, but not the second—that was legit." Wasn’t it Candidate John Kerry who promised he would not cave in after the winner had been declared? Yet, what did he do—within hours of Bush’s "win?" He gave his concession speech by calling for the country to put aside party divisions and come together under the leadership of the Bush White House.
One of those who bothered to investigate what happened that day was Mark C. Miller, a professor of media studies at NYU who stated on November 14, 2004, "To let ourselves believe that the "election" was legitimate because this claim or that has been disproved (apparently) is to not honor reason. On the contrary, a veritable sea of evidence, statistical as well as anecdotal and circumstantial, supports the claim that Bush, again, was not elected by the people." But the voters have chosen to "move on." Or so we think—why? Because, again, there has been no protest from what is supposed to be the opposing party. The Senate, in which John Kerry sits as a member by virtue of the voters of Massachusetts, presses on with the matters at hand such as the Iraq War (and what to do about Cindy Sheehan’s protest movement), monies for Katrina, Rita, and Wilma, revamping the tax code, as well as Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. There seems to be a move to cooperation, to what is supposed to be a "healthy" non-partisanship.
And so, the Democrats have become silent partners in the gradual dismantling of what were once their core programs. Oh yes, they make an occasional fuss about matters such as the Supreme Court nominees—but we can see that they are amenable in the end. They refrain from actions that could be interpreted as messy or unseemly. These are different Democrats from your father’s Demos. They are afraid. Afraid to be controversial, to protest vehemently, to stir things up and keep them stirred until they get real answers about what is going on in the halls of power and what is being done in the name of the American people. They are afraid of the very monster they helped create. For what would happen to their well-feathered nests if the Neo-Con machine should roll into their district? Should begin the well-oiled wheels that pillory the incumbent for everything from being irreligious to unpatriotic, unproductive, unwilling to work with the President, and someone addicted to playing the "blame game." Ah yes, what have we here, a Republican candidate fully powered with talking points and barrels of money, bolstered by the media and the corporations to go after the "rogue" Senator who dares confront the power of the White House.
Better if you are a Hillary Clinton, or a long-timer like Joe Biden, to go along and hopefully wait until the public boots the villains out. But, my dear Demos, that is not to be. Because you have left the door open for the utter and complete desecration of our voting system by your silent consent. It is your party that has committed the greater crime, meaning greater than that of stealing an election. Your party has acquiesced to the very sacking of all that the Constitution of the United States stands for—one vote for every citizen. And while we are at it, there will be no thanks from the opposing party for your willingness to "move forward" without so much as a backward glance. The corporatists are only watching and waiting until their next move to take it all.
In the end, we can only look to the Greeks and the Elizabethans to find the ultimate penalty for those who would seize power and rule. In Greek tragedy it was the chorus, the voice of the people, who made known their misery to rulers who had taken the throne by illegitimate means. Oedipus Rex had killed the legitimate king and brought a plague upon his people. Shakespeare’s Hamlet cried out, "Something is rotten in the state of Denmark." What he uncovered was the murder of his father, the legitimate king, and the crowning of his father’s murderer. What their plays reveal is the nature of power won and power stolen. And that power stolen is a crime against the Natural Order. Until we as a nation wake up to the fact that we cannot "move forward" until we have redressed the crimes of the past, we shall continue to witness the disorder and upheavals in our midst.
Stephanie Rivera is a businesswoman, a former English teacher, and a long-time political activist both in Rhode Island and nationally. Email: stephrivera@surfglobal.net. Telephone: 401-782-1759. Mail: P.O. Box 482, West Kingston, RI 02892 (Submitted on 12/30/05)