Part of the strangeness in society we are experiencing today has to do with the

internet as a marketplace for news and ideas. Social media sites like Facebook
and Twitter have become the icons of this marketplace. Users tend to post knee-
jerk reactions to current events, based largely on their political affiliations which
they regard as more sacred than any religious or spiritual belief. Information is
largely regurgitated by these users from various sources without any effort
exerted for research and critical thinking. In other words, these people are either
too lazy or, more likely, too afraid to think for themselves. After all, it is unnerving
to discover that the emperor has, indeed, no clothes.

But social media (and the internet in general) is facing another, more serious
problem – censorship of news and commentary that is critical of the neo-liberal
war party machine and other groups (such as Big Pharma and the AMA) that are
aligned with the interests of “the state”. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest,
Google News and YouTube (among others) are now removing posts, videos and
entire accounts that they deem to be “inappropriate” or disseminating “fake
news.” To accomplish this they are partnering with various groups such as the
Atlantic Council and NewsGuard, organizations which represent the interests of,
and in many cases are directly tied to, the ruling class.

There are many people on both sides of the political spectrum who firmly believe
that America is, or at least has the potential to be, a bastion of freedom and
democracy, and that if their party were to assume power things would change for
the better. This view is delusional. It completely ignores America's long and sordid
track record as a rogue country vis a vis international law and basic standards of
moral and ethical conduct, regardless of the party holding the reins.

And the last presidential election, which gave us the choice between Donald
Trump and Hillary Clinton, clearly shows that democracy in America has become a
caricature of a political system which so many hope for but does not, in fact,
exist.

Jiddu Krishnamurti, the highly-regarded India-born philosopher, wrote:

“When we look to a system for the transformation of society, we are merely

evading the question, because a system cannot transform man; man always
transforms the system, which history shows. Until I, in my relationship to you,
understand myself, I am the cause of chaos, misery, destruction, fear, brutality.”

So, is there no hope? Are we doomed to exist in The Matrix as either obedient
drones or freedom fighters constantly battling to exist? Do we have the ability to
change ourselves and thus change society so it works for everyone?

One thing is certain: if Americans do not confront and dismantle the machine
powering America's quest for empire and thus put an end to America's global
wars and exploitation, then America and the rest of the world will be battling for
its existence, whether we choose to or not.