This is the Revolution! It just recently occurred to me that – this is what we envisioned back in the 1960’s when we railed against the Establishment and the Viet Nam war. We were angry, disenfranchised and very vocal about our disenchantment with the American military industrial machine that cared more about money, power and oil than the welfare of the people.
Power to the People was one of the slogans chanted during our protests but during the fifty years that have passed since then, the people have less power now than ever before. The Establishment on the other hand expanded exponentially and now personifies the oligarchy that has replaced our democracy and destroyed the middle class that made America great.
But now – the revolution has presented itself in a way that I never anticipated. And it is by far a much better type of revolution than we ever imagined during our 60’s protests that held visions of Black Panthers and Hippies. Even Gil Scott-Heron’s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” did not foresee the revolution that we are currently entering into. Who could have possibly predicted that the revolution would start with the rantings of one of the Establishments greatest icons – Donald Trump!
It’s not just Donald Trump of course because there have been many other voices calling for change as well. Elizabeth Warren has waged war on the big banks and Bernie Sanders has garnered huge support from the other major party by proposing wholesale changes to our society by breaking up the status quo that favors the rich at the expense of the poor.
Anyway you skin it, these highly visible, non-mainstream politicians have struck a chord with an angry proletariat that is painfully aware of societal inequities and have finally found voices that speak to their anger and frustration. This surge of support for both Trump and Sanders feels an awful lot like a revolution to me and I think we may be on the verge of something that actually has a chance to reach critical mass.
At the very minimum, the conversation that has been taking place in the small circles of Tea Parties, talk shows and campuses has now sprung onto the mainstream media, largely due to the surprising success both Trump and Sanders. This is incredibly healthy and kind of along the lines of the old adage – ‘every solution begins with recognition of the problem’. I’m not sure how this will all end up but I, for one, am digging out my old tie-dyed tee shirts and getting ready to support The Revolution!