You Fight Your War and I'll Fight Mine

Hidden away in Charles Krauthammer's recent commentary, “Fox Wars” (10.23.09) were two gems. This first was a glint of hope, that the Obama's attempt to control the media by silencing dissenting views and it's attempted boycott of Fox news may fail. Remember that the tyranny of fascism does not need to forcibly take over the news media. The same objective is accomplished when the press voluntarily censures itself. By the very nature of the Obama's Administration complaints that Fox news is not towing the line, when compared to the other TV and Cable media, we see the White House has a need to control and manipulate the press. As of now, the media (with the exception of Fox news) has voluntarily presented the Obama Administration in an uncritical light. However, when the Administration actually tried to exclude Fox news from a pool interview with Executive Pay Czar, the other networks suddenly recognized they were being asked to be complicit with censuring themselves. From Krauthammer's commentary;

“At first there was little reaction from other media. Then on Thursday, the administration tried to make them complicit in an actual boycott of Fox. The Treasury Department made available Ken Feinberg, the executive pay czar, for the interviews with the White House “pool” news organizations- except Fox. The other networks admirably refused, saying they would not interview Feinberg unless Fox was permitted to as well. The Administration backed down".

The second gem discussed Anita Dunn and her now infamous speech in which she quoted Mao Tse- tung, “You fight your war and I'll fight mine”. The first shocker was her statement that Mao was, “one of two persons I turns to most”; the other was Mother Teresa??. In viewing this video, I thought to myself that it is not unusual to quote the major players in the history of the world, I myself like to quote Hitler and his concept of the “Big Lie”, but I would not say that Hitler is one of the persons I turn to most. But in a more succinct point, Krauthammer pointed out that the quote was presented as a challenge to the high schoolers to, not just follow the status quo, and make their own decisions. Again from Krauthammer's commentary:

“She's (Anita Dunn) been attacked for extolling Mao's political philosophy in a speech at a high school graduation. But the critics miss the surpassing stupidity of her larger point: She was invoking Mao as support and authority for her impassioned plea for individuality and trusting one's own choices. Mao as champion of individuality? Mao, the greatest imposer of mass uniformity in modern history, creator of a slave society of a near-billion worker bees wearing Mao suits and waving the Little Red Book?”

The point is not that Anita Dunn quoted Mao. The point is the White House Communications Director is presenting a view, that those in power have the right to force tyranny on its people. She was telling the High Schoolers, not they they should hold true to their value system, but they should trust and hold true to the revolutionary point of view. Communism was originally presented as an evolutionary process. That at some point the workers of the world would revolt against their repressive masters. What Marx did not take into account was the emergence of the middle class and labor unions. Regardless, after the workers revolution, there was to be a temporary period where a dictator will take over and re-educate the masses, in the ways of a society, where everyone's contribution will be equal; each according to their ability, each according to their need. Unfortunately, communism has never emerged from this temporary dictatorship without collapsing under it's own weight; it may have something to do with the apparent need to annihilate large portions of the population who don't get it or are worthless eaters. This is the point of Anita Dunn's speech, that when the revolution comes, don't be left in the dust, or the grave to be more accurate.