Next Stop Chile - What Kind Of GPS Are We Using

The Merry Pranksters crossed the country in 1964. It was quite a trip - literally quite a trip. Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters were heading to New York. They didn't have a GPS. LSD was used for guidance.

Yeah well, it was a different time. The 60s were about to explode. The Civil Rights Movement was progressing. War in Vietnam was expanding. Drugs were going mainstream. A lot happened. Protests, sit-ins, be-ins were everyday events.

Medgar Evers was assassinated. JFK was assassinated. Malcolm X was assassinated. MLK was assassinated. Bobby Kennedy was assassinated.

The Beatles came to Manhattan. 

Topless dancing came to San Francisco.

A new nation sprung up in Woodstock.

It was a really busy time. Hell, it was a whirlwind. "Turn On, Tune In and Drop Out", "Don't Trust Anyone Over 30" and "If You're Not Part Of The Solution, You're Part Of The Problem" were popular expressions.

Having lived through those years, I have no idea how we are where we are today. We're all on a new cross country trip that started on January 20, 2017. That's the day we officially embarked. That's the day we all got on the bus.

Considering the occasion, there was a rather lack luster turnout. The driver was not all that popular. The majority of voters had opted for a more qualified, less hateful driver. Someone who knew how to get us to where we were going safely. Someone who knew the way.

So it's been the better part of 2 years and we seem to be lost. It's not clear where we are headed and the driver is acting crazy. He may be the only one on this bus using LSD.

I think this bus's guidance system was developed by John C. Calhoun back in the day when America was a great slave nation.

I think John's vision was coded for today's political environment by a well funded group of extreme economists and dirty tricksters. It was a massive effort and it cost billions of dollars and it spanned several decades.

The boys and girls who drove this effort are all billionaires and they all seem to be primarily opposed to one thing. They don't like majority rule. They don't like our Constitution. The bros heading up this movement are all Koch heads.

There is a wonderful book that is ideal reading on this trip. It's "Democracy In Chains" by Nancy MacLean. It documents the evolution of this GPS system. This GPS system does not use satellites. No this GPS system is ideologically driven. The ideology is simple. If you're not a Koch head, Go Pound Sand.

Yep, as dark as that sounds, it is the message for those of us who are not billionaires. And, if you read Nancy's book you will know exactly where this bus is headed. We are going to Chile.

To be precise we are recreating the government of Chile's ruthless dictator, General Augusto Pinochet.

This will not be a simulation. We're not talking about virtual reality. We're talking about reshaping our government along the guidelines used when Chile's Constitution was thrown out and replaced with one designed by an American economist - the same American economist whose work is behind the Koch heads GPS. That man is James McGill Buchanan.

Yeah, Charles loves James. He loves Ayn too. He loves them so much that he made it his life's work to reshape our country and our Constitution into one more in keeping with his personal wishes and desires. He doesn't like rules. He likes to make the rules.

"Fear" is another excellent book. It was written by Bob Woodward. The very Bob Woodward who helped expose Nixon and Watergate. It's an easy read. It's a must read for everyone on this bus.

Kesey's bus didn't fare too well. It got lost in the woods. The Merry Pranksters dispersed in the crowd. We were left with some interesting tales and some great music.

The folks behind this bus trip aren't looking to expand our awareness. They are not interested in human evolution and enlightenment. Nope, the Koch heads are interested in only one thing.

What are you interested in? Are you up for tossing our Constitution? Do you want a country designed for the few at the expense of the many? Do you value health, education and science? Do you want to preserve our environment? Or, do you want your children and grandchildren to grow up as serfs, peasants, peons and slaves?

Holy Moly!