10. On Military Propaganda and Civilian Order:
Televised warfare makes the remote horrors of war accessible, though surreal. Killing is trivialized by transforming three dimensional life into a two dimensional image. Still, cameras do have a impact for the opposition by bringing the war home. Perhaps the audience may still relate to those familiar components. Military censors have learned to limit graphic content on a personal scale (unless highlighting a supposed enemy atrocity), while emphasizing bombing runs (which appear like advanced video games). The aftermath is further limited to enemy surrenders. Photo opportunities measure success. The civilian population becomes desensitized to official brutality on all levels by bulk exposure. One dead soldier looks pretty much like another. Cops are supposed to beat prisoners. Unity is promoted by lowest common denominator jingoistic drumbeats and everyone can feel good about killing. Techniques are constantly improving. The propaganda mill learns from past mistakes. Vietnam will be the last public relations disaster. Victories will be quick and limited to appear decisive. The enemy can even be left in place. Defeats are simply a lack of national will. Propaganda specifically facilitates control, and extend beyond immediate uses. The military first gained acceptance then became blurred with the police. The war on drugs may now be fought with actual troops. No eyebrows are lifted during martial law decrees. A society dulled by diversionary stimuli more readily accepts the police state. The same methods developed during the cold war have been turned to other, more immediate uses. Stalin's KGB would be proud, even while superceded. The secret police are unnecessary. The opposition only squabbles over its piece of the greater lie. Nothing concrete exists to rise above, only ideals and economics. The likes of Robert Oppenheimer will never be seen again, only unfairly accused dupes like Lenard Peltier. Status above and beyond the childish whining of privileged children will not be found in a decadent society. Those sort deserve a bullet, but their position ensures the opposite. Meanwhile the rest rot. Control is easy to maintain without significant opposition leadership. Figureheads make good target practice. The best and worst are made equal when nothing exists for which to fight. Per-packaged superficialities only deserve a tired yawn. The underlying support structure is another matter. One must see under the shiny veneer. The satisfaction alone is worth the trouble. Empty alternatives mean nothing. The party line is only so much tinsel. The sublime path is following ones own destiny, not cheering celebrations of slaughter. The propaganda is worth ignoring, thereby putting its purveyors out of work. Their kind deserves and requires obsolescence, just like their jack-booted forbearers.
End of Part 5.
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