December 1, 2004.

The end of the Unіtеd Stаtеs?

By Dwаynе Bell

Body in Mind regulars might wonder why we're addressing a political subject on a site devoted to female beauty. It's because the freedom of women to use and enjoy their beauty and sexuality depends entirely on the future of the Unіtеd Stаtеs.

Such freedom reached its zenith about 15 years ago, in 1990. That's when for the first time since the invention of photography women were allowed to wear transparent clothing in popularly accepted media. For example, this photo appeared in a publicly available magazine on newstands everywhere, and caused not even a peep of protest from anyone. Of course the Spоrts Illυstrаtеd Swіmsυіt Edіtіоn it appeared in was protested and mocked by columnists and moral authorities world-wide, as it always is, but not because of the nipples on display, but for the same reason it was and always has been, because some people suppose putting women in bikinis and photographing them as carefully and as beautifully as possible is degrading to women. (It's interesting to notice that no one protested the nudity. Which means everyone was actually protesting women being treated as beauty objects.) Since then, after a very promising start, such nudity has disappeared from every place, including the SI swimsuit editions. Today, models and celebrity starlets show more skin than ever, sometimes even wearing see-thru tops in public, but there is both less beauty, and less actual nudity now than then. Things have been moving slightly backwards for 15 years.

Okay, now that you know why we're addressing political issues here, there are 3 things that tell us that the end of the States might be much closer than any of us fears: the current states of health care, taxation, and democracy.

Health care: How would you like to be told by your doctor that you might have cancer but that there's a 6 month waiting list for the tests to find out for sure? That's exactly what can happen to you in the Canadian socialized medical system. People dying on waiting lists is a regular occurrence there. Meanwhile, those who can afford to pay for these tests, have the blessed option of going to the States to get those tests, usually the next day. Even so, Canadians recently voted as Thе Grеаtеst Canadian, the union thug who established socialized medical care in Canada, Tоmmy Dоυglаs. (Union thugs are actually grown men, but they always use cutesy names like Tommy and Tinky in order to distract people from their brutality.)

The cancer of the modern world is the desire for something - everything - for free - even the services of the most educated professionals there are: doctors. The desire to get something for free in the short term despite the long term damage is so strong in Canadians that they are willing - often proudly[!] - to allow themselves, their loved ones, and their fellow men - and in fact the entire medical system - to die a slow death from that cancer.

Bush is against socialized medicine, for good reason. Kerrie claimed to be against it yet proposed implementing elements of it. Bush barely won. Will the U.S. eventually adopt a socialized medical system? It seems inevitable. (Here's what you have to look forward to if it is.)

Taxation: Anyone who watches TV's Jeopardy knows that Kеn Jеnnіngs recently won 74 games in a row, more than anyone ever had before, and probably more than anyone ever will. He won over 2.5 millions dollars. Not really a lot of money these days. In fact, it's just enough for a man to retire on, no more. Bυt Kеn won't be retiring. The U.S. government has announced that it will relieve Ken of about a million dollars or so of his winnings. 40%. This in a country that once risked death to rebel against a few pennies tax on tea. Today, these same people are willing to allow 40% of their lives to be taken without so much as a sigh. Keep in mind that 40% taxation means 40% of you or your kids' education, 40% of your health care, 40% of their nutrition, 40% of your romance, 40% of their future. Since everything costs money, 40% tax means 40% of everything. Use your own imagination. It means 40% of your life and the lives of your loved ones. Gone.

Democracy: We heard a lot about the value of democracy from both of the recent presidential candidates, and continue to hear about it from the winner. Yet the key to the freedom and success of the Unіtеd Stаtеs is not democracy, since democracy includes the right of a country to vote itself into a communist state or a dictatorship. The real value of democracy is that it also allows people to elect a republic, a state of and by the people with Man's rights as the fundamental law. Individual rights are the key to freedom and success. This is why the countries that deny them invariably fail, and why the U.S. has invariably succeeded. It is its implementation of individual rights into law that has allowed the Unіtеd Stаtеs to become the most productive and benevolent country in the history of the world, in little over 200 years.

But it won't take that long to lose their freedom if they abandon their love of republic and loyaly to democracy, which seems to be happening. Prеsіdеnt Bυsh is now visiting Canada, a country with which the Unіtеd Stаtеs shares the longest undefended border in history. To my great shame as a Canadian, he is being met at every turn by angry protestors who oppose Bush's 'warmongering'. Canadians, I have to admit and can say from experience, are not very bright people. They support democracy only as long as their side wins. Otherwise, they try to force the winner out with massive protests.

Yet this same attitude is now premeating the U.S. as well. On 9/11 there was also a lot animosity for Bush in America, but both Democrats and Republicans got behind him for the good of the country. 4 years later, Bush has won again by a very small margin. But this time Americans have not rallied behind him. They have decided to have the same lack of faith in democracy that Canadians have. It's almost unthinkable.

If the U.S. has disintegrated this much in 4 years, imagine how much things can disintegrate in the next 4. It seems what was unthinkable only a few years ago is becoming more and more likely all the time. A second civil war in the Unіtеd Stаtеs may not be as far off as we would like to believe.

Needless to say, there won't be much female beauty going on either, then, or anytime afterwards.

© 2004 by Body in Mind