A series of essays.....
.....as seen through my eyes!
By: Jacqueline E. Hughes
DECONSTRUCT...
...and reinvent academic and administrative processes
and business models. Not accepting 'business as usual.' Rather, creating a new
framework for, in this case, the executive branch of government.
"Deconstruction of the Administrative State," the words
of Steve Bannon, speaking in the capacity of 'senior counselor to the current
president' at CPAC 2017, last week. The Conservative Political Action Conference
is an annual political conference attended by conservative activists and elected
officials from across the United States. CPAC is hosted by the American
Conservative Union.
Hearing the above quote, especially offered by the
self-proclaimed senior officer and advisor to this current president, a red flag
of warning and alarm unfurled and became a flashing red beacon in the moonless
night of my nightmares and stress.
The word itself, 'deconstruction,' implies irritation
with the current system and demands for immediate action, consolidation, and the
change of standard procedures whether the people of the nation desire these
changes or not. For me, Bannon's words and plans are the equivalent of waving
a proverbial red cape in front of a fuming bull!
Initially, one must differentiate between the meaning of
the words deconstruct and dismantle. To dismantle would mean to take apart or
break up in a random fashion. Applying the curiosity of children, one considers
the dismantling of a small radio or a favorite toy in order to understand all of
its components. As adults, we might take it as far as wiping-out, obliterating,
or completely eradicating the opposition, including his/her conflicting
ideas.
The ominous sounding word 'deconstruction,' especially
when applied in conjunction with 'of the Administrative State,' sent small shivers
down my spine and irritated my perceived sensibilities when concerning our
government and its responsibilities for the people we've come to appreciate while growing-up as
a citizen of the United States of America.
What slippery slope was this former banker, filmmaker,
and founding member of the board of Breitbart News, an online far-right news,
opinion and commentary website which has pushed racist, sexist, xenophobic, and
anti-Semitic material into the vein of those with far-right political
ideologies....., cryptically leading us down?
The alt-right, or alternative right, according to
Wikipedia, is a "loose group of people with far-right political ideals who reject
mainstream conservatism in the United States." White supremacist, Richard
Spencer, coined the term in 2010 to define a movement centered on white
nationalism. He has been accused of doing so in order to 'whitewash' overt
racism, white supremacism, and new-Nazism. Spencer has repeatedly quoted from
Nazi propaganda and spoken critically of the Jewish people.
Alt-right beliefs have been described as white
supremacist, nativism and Islamophobia, antifeminism and homophobia, white
nationalism, right-wing populism, and the neoreactionary movement. The concept
has further been associated with multiple groups from American nationalists,
men's rights advocates, and the 2016 presidential campaign of Donald
Trump.
Under the leadership of Steve Bannon, Breitbart News
took a more alt-right and nationalistic approach toward its agenda. Bannon
declared the website "the platform for the alt-right" in 2016. Wikipedia tells
us that Bannon identifies his political beliefs as conservative. Speaking about
his role at Breitbart, he said: "We think of ourselves as virulently
anti-establishment, particularly 'anti-' the permanent political
class."
Sinking deeper into this quagmire of
anti-establishmentism, I insert this paragraph from my source that will lead me
back to my original fears initiated by the self-proclaimed agenda of Steve
Bannon , "Deconstruction of the Administrative State":
"In 2007, Bannon wrote an eight page outline for a
new documentary called 'Destroying the Great Satan: The Rise of Islamic Facism
in America.' The treatment describes the Islamic Society of North America as
"cultural jihadists." He wrote this outline himself and it labels the Washington
Post, the New York Times, NPR, Universities and the Left, the American Jewish
Community, the ACLU, the CIA, the FBI, the State Department, and the White House
as 'enablers' of a covert mission to establish an Islamic Republic in the United
States."
I suppose he has had the luxury of time and power to add
the Los Angeles Times, Politico, CNN, and MSNBC to his list of the "Opposition
Party", as well.
Taking in this valuable background information about
Steve Bannon, we can now dial back to the statement he made last week at
CPAC 2017 when asked to describe his current political agenda. Yes, his agenda
and the very same one now being touted by the figurehead of the Republican Party
elected (?) in November of 2016.
The Deconstruction of the Administrative State is his
way of dealing with what he believes to be the 'waste product' of government
processes over the years. This expendable product being made up by the people of
this country who believe in and honor the Constitution of the United States.
It's made up of agencies controlled by laws and regulations that serve to protect
citizens from loss of rights, sickness, hunger, and honors their freedom while
projecting a brighter future for them and their families.
President Bannon proclaimed that to move forward with less
red tape to deal with, this new administration's Cabinet appointees were
hand-picked to deconstruct the longstanding and complicated operations of our
democratic government and society. A society where all of the people have a say in what is
being proposed as denoted by our laws and regulations.
In other words, we will, as individuals and citizens, be allowed to
slip through the cracks of our diminished Constitutional rights and protections
and be forced to join the ranks of the few who now hang-on to every word that
comes out of this administration's mouth.
We cannot and will not allow this 'deconstruction' of
our sovereign rights as a democratic republic to be jeopardized in this way. If
we do, we will sit back and let history repeat itself in the likes of Lenin,
Stalin, Hitler, and Castro. We will become either a second world
country under such guidance or a floundering third world country with no
guidance or protection at all.
In our naive days, sadly only around a year-and-a-half ago, we used to look at the many pawns of a possible Trump administration as a
chess game being played by young children who seemed to be moving the pieces
haphazardly around the board because they did not appear to know any of the
rules. Now that these 'children' are in power, I don't believe that this concept has evolved in the least.
Quite often, the alarming consequences of 'evil doing'
goes undocumented among the calculations of people who inject wisdom, acts of
kindness, and love into their lives. Evil can sneak up on them, many times under
the guise of helpfulness and understanding. If we are vulnerable and weak, we
will succumb to evil while being made to feel it is our only
salvation.
If we are vulnerable yet strong enough to climb over the
next hill that stands between us and freedom without listening to the lulling
voices of our adversaries in their heightened attempts to convince us that our
world is so horrific that only they can release us from the grip of
despair....we can make it to the other side. And, we will stand proud and tall
together united in the knowledge that our strength and belief in what is good
for all of the people will get us through this political fiasco in Washington
D.C.
Steve Bannon, the once solitary, voiceless, physical
entity who continues to pull the strings within the executive branch of the
government, has instantly become vulnerable himself since he has volunteered his
own voice to coincide with his mask of indifference. He cannot hide behind the veiled hood of the Grim Reaper any longer. Perhaps, your egotistical visit to
CPAC 2017 will contribute to your eventual dismantlement with bits and pieces of
your hate and corruption left in blackish piles on the polished marble floors of
the White House.
Copyright © 2017 by Jacqueline E. Hughes
All rights reserved
