Follow The Path of Least Resistance 9-10

9. Watching vain stupidity destroying itself is extremely amusing. Watching the elite negate itself is gratifying. I need do nothing but watch the world go by. All things fall apart. Empire declines exceptionally with great force.

10. As the world burns, we hear the sounds of laughter. . .

10a. In the case of wildfire, the low ground possess a certain advantage not unlike a chimney. Heat rises and the flames will more quickly spread up slope. Anything caught in its path is consumed. A century in fire suppression has left too much fuel. In the past, forest fires burned with a much lower intensity. An entire region might burn, but the fire did not kill or destroy everything. Old trees, which actually benefitted, show frequent fire incidents. The heat was not intense enough to kill the tree. The smaller trees were thinned, thus enabling the larger trees to flourish. Now everything perishes. In the western U.S., Federal government policy has actually made forest fires worse. The inevitable is worsened as it is prolonged. All forests burn.

10b. Even if only metaphorically, in so many way, as goes nature, so goes society. All fires are not equal. A system can only preserve itself by accommodation. History contains many examples. In the U.S., during the 1930s, the system appeased the unemployed masses by creation of government programs. Busy people do not revolt. In China, its system has been altered by discarding ideology in favor of Communist Party control as the primary concern of the elites. Remaking society is too costly. The discontented are better either suppressed or occupied. One way or another, a periodic controlled burn is good policy.

10c. At present, the U.S. system is incapable of anything beyond cosmetic change. . It cannot see the wisdom of buying-off alienation nor can it outright bottle it up. It can only prolong the inevitable via military spectacles and public relations campaigns. Even the elite are affected. They actually believe their own bullshit. In modern times, any empire that began to formulate policy has eventually failed. Reforms only prolonged the inevitable. Those empires, like the Soviet Union, that mostly avoided bloodshed had already lost faith. Ideology, embraced to the bitter, end invites disaster. The fuel is piling up, and will burn most hot.

10d. An entrenched system will resist change. Often external forces decide the matter. Size will determine whether internal constraints will override outside influences. Smaller entities are mostly less rigid. Vast organizations, like the U.S. military-industrial complex, develop means unto themselves. The components will never voluntarily reduce their societal influence. Such actions are against the nature of bureaucracies. Unlike the USDA Forest Service or the Department of Interior, the Pentagon at el. is not accountable in the slightest manner.[1] Congress will often add money to its budget. The final flames will burn brighter for it all.

[1] Unless someone was stupid enough to actually take pictures.