Why let Chicago, Detroit and New York have all the fun? Hawaii corruption by the party of crime also deserves <a href="https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/ex-hawaii-senator-sentenced-to-40-months-for-taking-bribes/ar-AAZeUqu">a little attention</a>.


	English announced he was retiring last year due to health issues. His retirement will have to take place behind bars.

<blockquote>
	
		Former Senate Majority Leader J. Kalani English, 55, pleaded guilty to honest services wire fraud in February, admitting he accepted bribes from a Hawaii business owner in exchange for shaping legislation that would benefit a company involved in publicly financed cesspool conversion projects...

	
		English “peddled the power and influence of his position as a Hawaii State Senator and Majority Leader to enrich himself and betray the trust bestowed upon him by those he was elected to serve,” U.S. prosecutors said in a sentencing memo urging the judge to send him to prison for three-and-a-half years.

	
		The sentence, a little more than three years, must send a “stern and lasting message” that corruption of elected officials will be punished, the memo said.
</blockquote>


	Not all that long ago, English was <a href="https://www.breitbart.com/news/hawaii-obamas-birthplace-and-refuge/">praising</a> Obama.

<blockquote>
	
		“Hawaiians love Obama,” says J. Kalani English, a Democratic state senator. “He is one of us — he understands what aloha is, he understand what mana is.”&nbsp;
</blockquote>


	Obama and English both understand<a href="https://www.civilbeat.org/2022/07/feds-want-former-hawaii-lawmaker-who-took-bribes-to-spend-more-than-3-years-in-prison/"> "mana"</a> really well.

<blockquote>
	
		English pleaded guilty in February and&nbsp;admitted to accepting cash and other payments&nbsp;totaling more than $18,000 from Honolulu businessman Milton Choy. English leaked documents related to a wastewater working group to Choy in exchange for cash payments. He also accepted more money to first introduce, and then kill a bill that could have benefitted Choy’s business.

	
		“As the investigation progressed it became astoundingly clear that no matter the legislative ask, the answer from English would almost certainly be ‘yes.’ English’s behavior signaled that it was systemically normal for him to accept, and indeed expect, financial benefits in return for legislative favors,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Kenneth Sorenson wrote in a sentencing memorandum Friday.
</blockquote>


	And the party may just be<a href="https://www.civilbeat.org/2022/02/honolulu-businessman-milton-choy-had-been-working-for-years-with-feds-on-legislative-bribery-case/"> getting started</a>.

<blockquote>
	
		Choy is a prolific donor, as are his immediate family members and business associates. Choy, his family members, and his employees from various companies have donated more than $356,000 to political campaigns since 2014, according to campaign finance data. Of that, Choy has contributed more than $160,000 to the elections and reelections of numerous Democrats.

	
		Choy himself has donated to 55 campaigns — including 29 sitting lawmakers — since 2014. Money has gone to former Gov. Neil Abercrombie and current Gov. David Ige. He has most recently contributed to former Honolulu Mayor Kirk Caldwell’s campaign for governor, and to Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s campaign.
</blockquote>


	Culture of corruption.

Hawaii Senate Dem Majority Leader Gets 3 Years in Prison for Bribery

Why let Chicago, Detroit and New York have all the fun? Hawaii corruption by the party of crime also deserves a little attention.


	English announced he

Hawaii Senate Dem Majority Leader Gets 3 Years in Prison for Bribery

Dumping the country's oil reserves was the only strategy to lower energy prices that Biden would accept. He continues blocking domestic drilling and taxes remain high. The practical impact&nbsp;of the reserve releases was negligible and, worse still, 5 million barrels of oil from the reserve were actually <a href="https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/oil-from-u.s.-reserves-sent-overseas-as-gasoline-prices-stay-high">exported abroad</a>.

<blockquote>
	
		More than 5 million barrels of oil that were part of a historic U.S. emergency reserves release to lower domestic fuel prices were exported to Europe and Asia last month, according to data and sources, even as U.S. gasoline and diesel prices hit record highs.

	
		About 1 million barrels per day is being released from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) through October. The flow is draining the SPR, which last month fell to the lowest since 1986.&nbsp;
</blockquote>


	Considering the scale of even the national use, 20 million a day, there was never going to be much of an impact here.

<blockquote>
	
		U.S. officials have said oil prices could be higher if the SPR had not been tapped.
</blockquote>


	Ah, the hypothetical.&nbsp;


	Anyway the oil went all over.

<blockquote>
	
		The fourth-largest U.S. oil refiner, Phillips 66&nbsp;PSX.N, shipped about 470,000 barrels of sour crude from the Big Hill SPR storage site in Texas to Trieste, Italy, according to U.S. Customs data. Trieste is home to a pipeline that sends oil to refineries in central Europe.

	
		Atlantic Trading &amp; Marketing (ATMI), an arm of French oil major TotalEnergies&nbsp;TTEF.PA, exported 2 cargoes of 560,000 barrels each, the data showed.

	
		Cargoes of SPR crude were also headed to the Netherlands and to a Reliance&nbsp;RELI.NS&nbsp;refinery in India, an industry source said. A third cargo headed to China, another source said.
</blockquote>


	Yes, the story wouldn't be complete without China. Much like the PPP disaster, the government efforts invariably only punish Americans and reward Communist China.

Barrels of Oil Released by Biden From Reserve Were Sent to China

Dumping the country's oil reserves was the only strategy to lower energy prices that Biden would accept. He continues blocking domestic drilling and taxes

Barrels of Oil Released by Biden From Reserve Were Sent to China

Racist DOJ official&nbsp;Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke announced that the Biden administration is targeting Arizona for trying to prevent non-citizens from voting.


	At issue is an Arizona law asking voters to show proof of citizenship. What should be an elementary and common sense requirement is being opposed by the Biden administration, officially on technical grounds, but as a practical matter because it is trying to protect voter fraud.


	Why fight against asking voters to show a legal right to vote unless...


	1. They are your voters


	2. You believe that they don't have a legal right to vote


	“The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Arizona is dedicated to protecting voters in the state,” said U.S. Attorney Gary M. Restaino for the District of Arizona. “We are proud to join the Civil Rights Division in bringing this lawsuit to ensure that all eligible citizens in Arizona have the opportunity to register to vote and exercise their fundamental right to participate in our elections.”&nbsp;


	Voters have the right to vote. And they have the right to protect the legitimacy of their vote by passing common sense voter tests to fight fraud.

Biden Administration's Racist DOJ Official Seeks to Protect Non-Citizen Voting in Arizona

Racist DOJ official&nbsp;Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke announced that the Biden administration is targeting Arizona for trying to prevent non-

Biden Administration's Racist DOJ Official Seeks to Protect Non-Citizen Voting in Arizona

Democrats want to make the midterms about abortion. There's one big problem. Americans are upset about the economy and don't care about abortion.&nbsp;


	In the latest <a href="https://www.monmouth.edu/polling-institute/reports/MonmouthPoll_US_070522/">Monmouth poll</a>,&nbsp;33% of Americans rank inflation as their top concern while 15% list gas prices. 9% mention the economy and 6% grocery prices. And only 5% list abortion.


	Over 70% list various economic concerns. Social hot button issues are on the back burner. So is national security. And the second amendment.


	57% also say that the actions of the federal government have hurt them, only 8% say that they have helped them.


	So much for the abortion or BLM or gender identity midterms. When people can't afford to eat or drive, they don't care about the hot button issues.

33% of Americans Worry About Inflation, 15% Gas Prices, 5% Abortion

Democrats want to make the midterms about abortion. There's one big problem. Americans are upset about the economy and don't care about abortion.&nbsp;

33% of Americans Worry About Inflation, 15% Gas Prices, 5% Abortion

For the past few years, the entertainment industry inhabited a strange world in which massive amounts of streaming programming were unleashed on an unprecedented level. Led by Netflix, Amazon&nbsp;and followed by tradiitional&nbsp;industry competitors like Disney&nbsp;and HBO Max, the sheer amount of money being spent was astronomical, in the billions, and the hours of programming, the number of shows made it Peak TV.


	And then Netflix and its business model crashed.


	In the familiar Dot Com pattern, a whole lot of money was chasing the promise of endless growth that would usher in its own business model. Now the crash <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2022-07-04/the-age-of-peak-tv-is-ending-an-age-of-austerity-is-beginning">has ended Peak TV.</a>

<blockquote>
	
		The sudden decline in Netflix’s share price&nbsp;and the&nbsp;growing fear of a recession&nbsp;have forced&nbsp;Hollywood into a new period of fiscal austerity. This manifests in ways big and small. A TV director who made&nbsp;$4 million a year is now getting $750,000. Mid-budget movies are being shelved. Broadcast TV budgets have dropped more than 30%...

	
		This is a significant departure from&nbsp;the last few years when&nbsp;media companies tripped over themselves to produce any halfway decent idea. The industry made 559 scripted shows last year, up more than 200 since 2013, the year “House of Cards” debuted...

	
		But the age of peak TV is coming&nbsp;to a close, and that will impact&nbsp;almost every sector of an industry where budgets, valuations and strategic plans were predicated on a booming&nbsp;market for new programming.&nbsp;

	
		Just a few months ago, any production company with a few credits to its name was suddenly worth&nbsp;hundreds of millions of dollars. (It helped if you were aligned with a celebrity like&nbsp;Reese Witherspoon&nbsp;or LeBron James.) Now many of the companies looking to raise capital or sell themselves are&nbsp;having a harder time.
</blockquote>


	Did Hollywood nuke its own business model?


	Streaming was supposed to be the future. Hollywood cannibalized its theatrical business for streaming. Every studio either tried to become Netflix or market to it. Or both.


	What's the future now? The plan to have every studio sell membership to its gated subscription service looks increasingly shaky especially in a troubled economy. Amazon and Netflix still want to be the dominant platform. Hollywood tried to compete with them and the result broke everyone.&nbsp;


	The entertainment industry can't grow further without China. And China wants to grow its own industry. And investors will now be skeptical of dot com promises of infinite growth.&nbsp;


	 
	&nbsp;

Hollywood Nuked Itself

For the past few years, the entertainment industry inhabited a strange world in which massive amounts of streaming programming were unleashed on an

Hollywood Nuked Itself

Looking back at the unusual election we just had, and viewing it in the context of political events going back 150 years, it’s clear that the Democrats had no choice but to rig the presidential election -- and, now, they’re going for all the marbles.


	In the last weeks of the presidential campaign, Donald Trump was drawing tens of thousands of enthusiastic supporters&nbsp;several times a day, and people across the land, and at sea, formed massive rallies and caravans of their own. Meanwhile, the Biden camp was barely limping along, with one or two funereal gatherings a week, before, at best, a few dozen people (sometimes, overwhelmingly outnumbered by Trump supporters); the campaign’s apparent strategy was to minimize the candidate’s exposure (and let the media do the work for them) -- not only because the candidate was feeble and the campaign advocated lockdowns, but also because evidence began emerging of the Biden family’s dealings with foreign oligarchs and corrupt countries -- most importantly, Communist China.


	So, as election day approached, things were looking good for the president. Indeed, as the results came in on&nbsp;election night, the president was headed for re-election. He&nbsp;was ahead in the electoral college, and had big leads in the handful of remaining states he needed to win.


	Then, suddenly, the counting stopped. Late at night, five decisive states announced&nbsp;at the same time&nbsp;that they stopped counting. Has the counting of votes ever stopped on election night in any election, let alone a presidential election? It’s as if, with a couple of minutes left to play in a basketball game, one team is way ahead and “running away with it,” and the other team is down and dejected, staring defeat in the face; and&nbsp;all of a sudden, the referees stop the game&nbsp;for the first time ever, and for no stated reason. Then they send the team that’s winning, home, blindfold them, and tie their hands; leave the trailing team on the court by itself, with control of the scoreboard and the keys; and ask them to send in the final score, whenever they want. If there were fans in the stands, they’d yell, “How much they payin’ you, ref?”


	* * *


	In hindsight, though, maybe we should have seen this coming because a “perfect storm” of major forces and trends came together to make sure that Joe Biden and the Deep State would not lose.


	The most pressing concern was the Biden family. Their pipeline to funds from around the world had been exposed, and was now threatened, and if the country’s chief law-enforcement officer (who’d already “blown the whistle” on the family’s criminal dealings) continued in that job, members of the Biden family, including “the Big Guy,” would be at risk of criminal prosecution. As far as the Bidens were concerned, and quite a few other powerful players too, that simply could not happen. Nor was it only a matter of graft. Being “on the take” from Communist China meant that Joe Biden had “sold out” the country to the ascendant global power, and was unlikely to be working solely for America’s interests; awareness of that could not be allowed to see the light of day -- such knowledge, and further probes into the family’s dealings with foreign oligarchs and corrupt countries, especially Communist China, had to be crushed. In addition to the Bidens, there were other crime families, and countless crooked “politicians,” at risk of being exposed, of having their livelihoods threatened, and of being criminally prosecuted. Nobody wants that.


	A more significant factor at play was the Deep State. The Swamp rats had been drawn out of the sewers, for all to see. Their unchecked leeching off the country, and their growing grip on society, were being questioned, and might even be checked. The rats wanted to get back to chomping as before, and they were supremely confident they could do it; for, even after the lights were turned on, they still got away with success after success -- with almost no legal, financial, professional, or political consequences. And it’s an impressive roll call of accomplishments: spying on domestic presidential campaigns (not only Donald Trump’s, but Ted Cruz’s and Ben Carson’s too); sabotaging a presidential transition and administration; fabricating tales of treason and foreign control of the president (and, with the media in tow, having half the country believe it, and believing so much more); an endless string of preposterous and farcical charges and investigations (on the public’s dime); and attempting to cripple the country -- all of which profoundly affected the political process and the country’s elections. And all of that, after eight years of politicizing and corrupting the I.R.S., the Drug Enforcement Administration, the F.B.I., the Justice Department, the judiciary, the intelligence services, and the military -- with a corrupt and fawning press, covering everything up, instead of shining a light.


	Joining the Deep State were the media, Big Tech, schools, and entertainment -- most of them, in bed with Communist China, and wanting to maintain the marriage of convenience, undisturbed. So, when the president drew attention to the doings of the Swamp and China, they all turned their guns on the only thing that stood in their way; and they proceeded to thoroughly malign and demonize the president, members of his family, his associates, and half of the country -- with the other half, lapping it up. And having recently succeeded in other demonization campaigns, and passing off an America-hating Marxist on the country, the Democrats and their allies knew they were dealing with a politically illiterate and naive nation, which meant they could pull off anything they wanted, with no risk to themselves and the rest of the Swamp -- they were invincible.


	With all of that in mind, why should the Swamp rats “stay in the closet” and operate in the dark -- far easier, quicker, and cheaper to be direct and up-front, and the effect on the citizenry would be more powerful and long-lasting. Why play “cloak and dagger,” when you can hit them with a sledgehammer, and pound them into submission. For <a href="https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Famericanmind.org%2Ffeatures%2Fget-ready-for-a-fight%2Fhow-trump-survives-a-coup%2F&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7Cbd84b845b47444ad2aea08d896b4a4c4%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637425050011980141%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=maflDp5iHGWA%2BCI0RRKPya%2BtE8YV%2FiCI6B0k%2FCEs2Fg%3D&amp;reserved=0">the Democrats and the Deep State, drunk on victory and confidence</a>, and bolstered by a sense of moral superiority and entitlement, a little election tomfoolery was a necessary and logical next step -- everything else had succeeded (“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”) -- just another coup attempt -- and one that would finally finish off the job. Nothing’s going to happen to them — nothing ever does. So they were going to dare the country -- “Prove it!” -- and they may not even have feared being taken up on the dare. They would show what they can do, who’s really in charge, with a demonstration of power politics at its rawest -- and “You will like it!” As every dictator knows, the ultimate goal is for people to believe the lie; and to make that happen, the propaganda organs have to repeat the lie enough times, until the public doesn’t know any better. Which brings to mind Groucho Marx’s line “Who you gonna believe — me, or your lying eyes?,” and the media’s polar-opposite depictions of the support for Trump and Biden.


	In addition, the public had become a bit of a nuisance.


	...the people


	Had forfeited the confidence of the government


	And could only win it back


	By increased work quotas. Would it not in that case be simpler for the government


	To dissolve the people


	And elect another?


	-- Bertolt Brecht, “The Solution”


	So, the people needed to be taught a lesson -- for good. Our Deep State had simply lost its patience with the electorate -- you’ve had your bit of fun (as Mark Steyn puts it) -- never again! Don’t you know, “You can’t fight City Hall” -- don’t even think about it. Just leave us alone, to go about our merry ways, and resume our Marxist revolution and the march towards government as the ultimate arbiter of all things. Why, it may not even be necessary for the people to “get” the lesson -- just take the choice out of their hands. Joseph Stalin reputedly said, “It is enough that the people know there was an election. The people who cast the votes decide nothing. The people who count the votes decide everything.”


	And with big-city machines ready to do what they do best (maybe the best part of the Democrats’ game, since at least the 1860s -- aided, now, by the mail-in games), the Democrats and the Deep State knew exactly what had to be done; the way to safety, and possibly a final solution, was in plain sight -- simple and assured -- irresistible -- and, again, with no likely consequences. They’d gotten away with so much worse -- what’s a little manipulation of the votes.


	Finally, as <a href="https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.americanthinker.com%2Farticles%2F2020%2F11%2Fwhy_scott_adams_of_dilbert_fame_and_i_say_trump_wins_this_thing__bigly.html&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7Cbd84b845b47444ad2aea08d896b4a4c4%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637425050011990134%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=mIPCfPK6i9XlSePoIk88rKYZujA8fpVGxy8%2BzSaQto0%3D&amp;reserved=0">Scott Adams points out</a>, in addition to opportunity, true believers had motive on their side -- and what a motive: to remove the equivalent of Hitler from power. And there were certainly enough people willing to commit crimes to make that happen, and confident they could get away with it -- they’d done it before.


	And, now, for the coup de grace, the Democrats have Georgia on their mind -- with two Senate seats to be had. And with control of the Senate, come two new states, a few more Supreme Court seats, and…“Good night, Irene!” As Chuck Schumer, the potential leader of the Senate, put it, <a href="https://nam12.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FZMMrNeyIMWs&amp;data=04%7C01%7C%7Cbd84b845b47444ad2aea08d896b4a4c4%7C84df9e7fe9f640afb435aaaaaaaaaaaa%7C1%7C0%7C637425050011990134%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C1000&amp;sdata=rHPja3c4UDFnUqgTFcamOHZmPKNh2vBZ6fKakzCyvQo%3D&amp;reserved=0">"Now we take Georgia, and then we change the world"</a> -- which makes Atlanta the next stop on the Great Heist Train.


	So, this year, the Democrats would take no chances -- they wouldn’t make the same mistake the stunned Hillary camp made to the shocking results on election night, four years ago. This time, they were ready -- because there was just too much at stake.


	Ayad Rahim is a bookseller and former journalist.

The Dems Had No Choice BUT to Rig the Election

Looking back at the unusual election we just had, and viewing it in the context of political events going back 150 years, it’s clear that the Democrats had no

The Dems Had No Choice BUT to Rig the Election

The Democrats’ use of fear as a political weapon, and their scorched-earth policy for the country, remind me of my native Iraq and something Syrian dictator Bashar Asad said.


	The classic textbook definition of politics is “who gets what, and how” -- the “who,” being any element of society -- an individual (private citizen or politician) or a group (political party, sector, interest, or class); the “what,” being the resources of the society (wealth and political power); and the “how,” being the means by which “the who” acquire “the what.” The “how” is the least-straightforward variable in the formula. An individual or group can appeal to people’s “better angels,” or they can tap into their baser instincts -- fear, being possibly the most basic. In Abraham Maslow’s “hierarchy of needs,” the two lowest rungs of the pyramid cover the essential physiological needs -- needs such as food, health, shelter, safety, and security. The primal fear of not having, or losing, one of these vital needs has always driven human behavior, and people seeking power have always tapped into those fears, making fear maybe the oldest and easiest trick in the political playbook: “The people on the other side of the hill are out to get us!,” “Those wild animals want to eat us!,” “and only I can protect you.” In politics, fear is used to create instability and insecurity, so people can’t function normally. Those exploiting fear will likely present the situation, and their solution for it, as driven not primarily by fear, but by positive intentions, “for the benefit of the people.” Many political scientists hold that McCarthyism was the last time that fear was used on a national scale; some make the case that McCarthyism was just one episode in the broader Cold War, with its “Soviet threat,” “Red Scare,” “Red Menace,” and “Yellow Peril.” Some observers maintain that the War on Terror and Operation Iraqi Freedom were more-recent uses of fear as a political weapon.


	Iraq was known as <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Republic-Fear-Politics-Modern-Updated/dp/0520214390">“the republic of fear”</a> -- Iraqis were so consumed with fear, it paralyzed them. Not only were Iraqis on guard for what they did and what they said (par for the course, in dictatorships), they even censored their thoughts -- the phrase taharri afkar al-nas (“probing people’s thoughts”) appeared in government documents. Iraqis feared that a neighbor, a colleague, a friend, a shopkeeper, or a wife might report on them (for a politically incorrect joke or a “wrong look”), which would lead to interrogation, torture, and worse -- for the person, and for his relatives, friends, and associates. By some estimates, one-quarter of Iraqis worked as government informants – to “incriminate” others, and to protect themselves. This state of affairs did not happen by chance -- a political party, to gain power and control, used a convenient scapegoat, to inject fear into the society.


	After Israel’s victory in the 1967 war, Saddam’s Ba’ath Party held mass rallies, blaming Iraq’s Jewish “fifth column” for the humiliating defeat. It pressured the government into restricting and arresting Jewish citizens (who had been social pariahs, for 20 years), and, next summer, the party rode to power in a military coup. Within days, they raided the local offices of Coca Cola; weeks later, they returned the mutilated bodies of the franchise’s president and an ex-manager to their families. Over the next couple of months, with much fanfare, the government announced it had broken up a major Zionist spy ring and arrested a couple dozen conspirators, including Ford’s representative in the country.


	In early December, Israel retaliated against Iraqi military positions in Jordan. The next day, a procession of 40,000 people carried the coffins of soldiers killed in the strike, through Baghdad, to the presidential palace, where the president proclaimed: “[W]e face treacherous movements by a rabble of fifth columnists and the new supporters of America and Israel…. With a fist of steel, we will mercilessly strike...the handmaidens of imperialism and Zionism.” The new government then noisily hunted down an “American-British spy ring” trying to topple the government -- the ring included 12 Jews. After hastily organized, and broadcast, show-trials and “confessions,” the authorities executed 14 Iraqis, including nine Jews (five of them, under-age students). What followed, the next day, became a defining moment for the regime. In the early hours of January 27, 1969, the government hanged the bodies of “the traitors” in the center of Baghdad, and invited people to “come and enjoy the feast.” Up to half a million people turned out for 24 hours of picnicking, music, dancing, and hitting, spitting at and throwing stones at the bodies. The president spoke, and his minister of guidance promised that this was “only the beginning…. Even if there are thousands,...the glorious squares of Iraq will be filled with the bodies of the traitors and spies.” The organized spectacle not only washed away the stain of shame (from losing the war) and quenched the thirst for revenge, it also served as a coming-out party for the new rulers. Lacking a broad base of support, the new regime presented itself as the protector of “the nation”; the public’s participation in the event helped to legitimize the party and bond it with the masses; while the event, itself, was a powerful display of brutality and barbarity -- all, using convenient and effective scapegoats.


	The show continued. Over the next months and years, the government broke up one spy ring after another (and sometimes announced an explosion before the bomb went off). It displayed and broadcast the arrests, the heroic surveillance and infiltration of the spy networks, the plans of the plotters, their connections to Israel, Lebanon, Iran, or Iraqi Kurds, coded letters, lists of names of co-conspirators and the leaders of their future government, huge arsenals, piles of cash, confessions, denunciations by wives, spy trials, and hangings (although there was gradually less need to show everything). For a bigger “catch,” a Jew or two were thrown in, so the “suspects” could be charged with espionage and treason.


	The government thus succeeded in injecting fear into the country’s body politic and society, and made fear the main force in the lives of Iraqis. The fear became pervasive and grew; more and more people were herded into the party’s tales and crimes, and were then sucked into the agencies of the state. With a near-monopoly on the media, the government consolidated control over the country, and was now free to do with people as it pleased.


	In July 1973, the government executed the head of the secret police, Nadhim Kzar, for a failed coup plot. Next month, something unheard-of started happening -- a serial killer began hacking up entire families in their homes. For half a year, the entire country trembled in fear, as news and rumors spread of this (literally) bloodthirsty killer – “Abu Tubar” (the hatchet guy). While the government imposed curfews and broadcast advice and warnings, panic-stricken families combined households; cut down trees and bushes; kept the lights on; set up alarms, guards, and guard dogs; and kept all-night vigils on rooftops. In the spring, police captured Abu Tubar (who had long been friendly with police, including associates of Kzar). The state broadcast his confessions and the grizzly details of his deeds, and, two years later, it executed him and his five accomplices. By that time, public participation in the political life of the country was almost extinguished, and people were so frightened, and so sure that the regime controlled everything, they were certain that the government had intentionally unleashed the serial mass-murderer to occupy and panic the population (Iraqis still believe that, now). In any case, the populace was thoroughly cowed.


	The fear followed Iraqis around the world. My father escaped Iraq, in 1970, and the rest of the family joined him, one year later, in Cleveland. In the ‘80s, when my three siblings and I were going to college, our parents gave us strict instructions that if we heard an Iraqi accent anywhere nearby, we were to immediately cross the street. The fear was, that the Iraqi (abroad, on a government scholarship) would say something to provoke a reaction from us — a “wrong word” or an askance look (in Iraqi, it’s called “stealing your tongue”) -- and the student would then report the reaction to his superiors (part of the scholarship), which would be used against our relatives inside the country.


	When fear consumes a person, he loses hope, perspective, a sense of proportion, and the ability to think clearly. When fear overcomes a people, it can sink a society -- people become mistrustful, atomized, and debilitated; individuality, privacy, and reality get degraded; and a society’s cohesion, self-confidence, and ability to evaluate events are ripped to shreds. In Iraq, civil society was completely wiped out, and its people became mere putty, to be manipulated by those wielding power (in great part, through fear). The goal, for rulers, is for people to be afraid -- to be very afraid -- scared out of their wits, fearing the worst, so that just one word -- like “spike,” “unprecedented,” “deadly,” ”alarming,” “boo” -- will immediately send them into a panic. The governor of New York “gave the game away” in an April press conference, when a reporter asked him about people protesting that they wanted to work (to feed their families), and that the cure was worse than the illness. The governor, slowly and emphatically enunciating each word, said: “<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X1Tgmsv9Ao">The illness is death. What is worse than death?!</a>” I suspect that the governor’s handlers then added a few more-subtle notes to his hymnal.


	Most Americans might think, “It can’t happen, here!” -- and, indeed, it might be true that fear comes easier to people weaned on the stick more than on the carrot -- but fear is universal -- not only a natural emotion and primal motivator, but necessary for survival and to escape harm and danger -- which is why it is so easy to exploit (child’s play, in politics). You only need a scapegoat and a symbol, to mask your true intentions, and to blind people to those intentions and reality -- any scapegoat or symbol will do, so long as they work. In Iraq, it was Jews, imperialism, and Coca Cola; here, it’s Donald Trump, a contagion, and a mask.


	* * *


	In America, today, fear has led to <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/05/21/how_fear_groupthink_drove_unnecessary_global_lockdowns_143253.html">conditions that have not only wrought economic and social devastation</a> (essentially, killing life), but are destroying, ending, shortening, and lessening the lives of just about everybody. The breadth and depth of the devastation are staggering. The “lockdown” caused 50 million people to lose their jobs, which increases mortality rates (hurting, most of all, those, living paycheck-to-paycheck); it has ruined millions of businesses, forever; it has <a href="https://amgreatness.com/2020/04/22/the-deadly-costs-of-extended-shutdown-orders/">crushed the hopes, prospects, lives, and livelihoods of most of the country</a>; it is retarding children’s education, with far worse consequences to come; and it has increased drug abuse, child abuse, and domestic abuse (much of it, now going unreported) -- all of which <a href="https://archive.is/Sa1KL">will drive who-knows-how-many into despair and suicide</a> in <a href="https://thecritic.co.uk/has-the-government-over-reacted-to-the-coronavirus-crisis/">the months and years to come</a>. In addition, weakened immunities, <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/06/11/unnecessary_lockdowns_created_social_turmoil_global_suffering_143419.html">delayed and curtailed access to medical care (including for cancer, heart disease, and other acute ailments</a>), and the fear of going to the hospital have worsened people’s health, and put at risk, shortened, and ended the lives of far more people than this virus will -- all, for a <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1107913/number-of-coronavirus-deaths-in-sweden-by-age-groups/">normal risk in life</a> (with a <a href="https://ourworldindata.org/mortality-risk-covid#case-fatality-rate-of-covid-19-by-age">survival rate of more than 99.9% for people under 65</a>), a risk that <a href="http://archive.is/yuaUq">has been distorted, perverted</a>, and <a href="https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2020/05/28/how_media_sensationalism_big_tech_bias_extended_lockdowns_143302.html">sensationalized</a>, entirely for political purposes.


	The leaders and strategists of the Democratic Party are fully aware of the staggering costs and consequences to the country, but they have made the calculation that it is a price worth paying (by others), for them to gain power. As the last president’s <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mzcbXi1Tkk">chief of staff said, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste”</a> (although it appears that it isn’t even necessary to have an actual crisis, and that any situation can be made into a crisis). The Democrats’ readiness to inflict damage on people reminds me of what Iraqi foreign minister Tariq Aziz said after Iraq struck the U.S.S. Stark in 1987, killing 37 Americans. When asked why Iraq had hit the American ship, Aziz answered, “If you want somebody to do something, you hurt them.”


	The Democrats’ willingness to see the country destroyed, and sacrifice the lives of millions, reminds me of a couple of other quotes from Araby. (About a dictator who destroys everything, Arabs say, “He burns the green and the parched.”) So, for example, in 1991, when Saddam killed hundreds of thousands of Iraqis, to suppress a rebellion, a member of his inner circle said, It doesn’t matter if there are half a million Iraqis left, as long as they’re loyal to us. Thirteen years later, Syrian dictator Bashar Asad summoned Lebanon’s prime minister, Rafiq Hariri, to Damascus, and informed him that he had decided that Lebanon’s constitution should be amended, so that the presidential term of his “representative” in Lebanon could be extended. Asad then warned Hariri that if he and his allies stood in his way, <a href="https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/79CD8AAA858FDD2D85256FD500536047">“I’ll break Lebanon over your heads!”</a> In other words, Asad is saying, If you don’t do what I want, I’ll destroy the country, and kill you and your friends. What Democrats are saying is, To do what we want, we’ll destroy the country. After his meeting with Asad, a <a href="https://soc.culture.lebanon.narkive.com/Y4QJb7Em/assad-no-syrian-officer-put-a-gun-to-hariri-s-head-i-never-threatened-him">shaken Hariri returned to Lebanon</a>, and <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/opinions/2005/02/20/lebanons-sorrow/2b9a7c4f-5f1e-43a4-9fea-e9673f442e2d/">resigned his post. Six months later</a>, a truck-bomb blew up Hariri’s motorcade, killing 22 people.


	* * *


	Politics, it’s often said, is a dirty game, but this may be the dirtiest, most evil game ever played in the United States.


	Ayad Rahim is a bookseller and former journalist.

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