Sin & Redemption: Al Gore

Oh, how the sting of betrayal remains.

Many of us saw what was coming when Al Gore turned his back on the nation in 2000. Capturing the presidency, literally, as George W. Bush did, there was never any doubt that his would be the most oppressive, wrong-headed, corrupt administration America had ever seen.

Al Gore is no less responsible for it today than he was then. Did he not see the danger? After eight years of the GOP's obsessive GET CLINTON thuggery, failing to understand the Fascist forces at work would have reflected astounding naivete. Or did he see it and walk away in hopes of preserving his political career?

Does it matter?

In short, no. The Democratic Party, rather than learning from BushCoup2000, remains Republican Lite. There simply isn't enough blood, class warfare or sheer misery for elected Democrats to stand up against right-wing extremism. Insulated from the real life consequences of their complicity, they are not us. They are The Elite -- too rich, too connected, and far too well-behaved to take a stand against the dark forces of post-Constitutionalism.

"I call upon Democratic and Republican members of Congress today to uphold your oath of office and defend the Constitution. Stop going along to get along. Start acting like the independent and co-equal branch of government you're supposed to be." ~Al Gore

That's funny, because that's exactly what I was thinking about five years ago when the Congressional Black Caucus was being ignored. And every day since then.

Gore could have slinked off the public stage and shrugged off his role in the formal dismantling of The Republic, which is pretty much what everyone expected him to do. Instead, he railed against the egregious policies of the ruinous Bush Administration in one speech after another, assailing the media aristocracy, corporate domination and the Culture of Corruption long before the term was coined. He did so - and continues to do so - unapologetically against a caterwaul of Fascist indignation characterizing him as deranged, a transparent tactic lifted right out of the Handbook of Totalitarianism.

And so it is that, as resentful as I am toward Gore, I still feel a twinge of gratitude for his willingness to confront the blood-thirsty beast he helped unleash on us back in 2000.

Is it too little, too late? Probably, but I can't bring myself to care.