Chalmers Johnson agrees Repugs and Dems alike

Because of that, a new column he has in Good magazine is titled, “It’s Time to Flee the Country.” You Clintonistas talking about experience and Obamiacs touting The Politics of Change™, get over it. Chalmers, the author of “Blowback” and “Nemesis,” among other books, is blunt:

I see very little hope for America regardless of who is elected in November. All the candidates remaining in the race have said they will not “cut and run” in Iraq and Afghanistan. One may speculate that once in office, one or another candidate may be more flexible, but this is actually unlikely. The Republicans have swallowed both wars hook, line, and sinker, and the Democrats know that if they propose any sort of pullout they will be labeled “defeatists” and blamed for the miserable outcome.

He notes that in addition to the quasi-bipartisan moral bankruptcy on Iraq, there’s also our fiscal bankruptcy. That, too, he says, has a fair share of bipartisanship:

The Bush government talks about the burst housing bubble but says nothing about the obscene military budgets that are driving our entire economy deeper into debt. It will probably take a major financial crisis on par with the Great Depression to reorient our economy in a more productive direction. Unfortunately, I don’t hear any viable candidate talking like FDR.

Yes, Obama and Clinton, he’s talking about you, too, not McCain.

In another essay, he notes that, with the war in Iraq ongoing, we spend more than $1 trillion a year on alleged “defense spending.” And, yes, too many Democrats, even if they oppose, or quasi-oppose, the war in Iraq, will still support too much of that spending.

Now, that said, Johnson’s not saying that “unviable” candidates don’t have real ideas. But, Americans in general are too easy to get themselves suckered by vacuous promises, so “unviable” candidates don’t have a shot at becoming viable.

He then gets back to the title in his conclusion:

In short, I think our ship of state is heading for a mammoth iceberg. Just as many people in 1930s Germany were, I’m too old to leave and will probably go down with the ship. But if I were younger, I would be thinking of bailing out. Vote, if you must, in November, but don’t expect that things will change much, let alone get better.

I don’t “must,” except, possibly, for the Green candidate. I hear you, Chalmers.

And, I’ve applied for jobs in Canada. No luck so far.