Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Rise of Extremism
One of the contributions to the rise of extremism in the US that usually goes unnoted in evaluations of the American conservative movement since World War II, is the influence of illegal diversions of funds from the CIA to domestic right-wing political groups organized to influence Congress and public opinion through lobbying, publication, and news media. Especially active in such campaigns as Crusade for Freedom in the early 1950s, organizations then led by fascist emigres smuggled into the country for clandestine operations in support of the Cold War, laid the foundation for anti-democratic activism that continues to this day.
The irony of the US government sponsoring thousands of former Holocaust death squad participants from Eastern Europe for citizenship in order to exploit them in spying on Americans, creating propaganda for a warfare state, and in carrying out assassinations of foreign leaders, is only surpassed by the stupidity of the Truman and Eisenhower administrations that allowed them to do it.
In a sense more dangerous to our safety and well-being than the notorious military industrial complex, the clandestine operations of our national security complex undermine the very institutions we rely on for our liberty. The fact that this nefarious phenomenon began with perhaps good intentions to safeguard us from threatening ideas should teach us something about placing our trust in secret government.
The irony of the US government sponsoring thousands of former Holocaust death squad participants from Eastern Europe for citizenship in order to exploit them in spying on Americans, creating propaganda for a warfare state, and in carrying out assassinations of foreign leaders, is only surpassed by the stupidity of the Truman and Eisenhower administrations that allowed them to do it.
In a sense more dangerous to our safety and well-being than the notorious military industrial complex, the clandestine operations of our national security complex undermine the very institutions we rely on for our liberty. The fact that this nefarious phenomenon began with perhaps good intentions to safeguard us from threatening ideas should teach us something about placing our trust in secret government.
