What Good Is Democracy If You’re Unable to Speak?

W.J. Astore

A Lesson from “The Matrix”

In “The Matrix,” Agent Smith asks humanity’s hero, Neo, “What good is a phone call if you’re unable to speak?” It’s a powerful scene and perhaps the creepiest in the film.

What good is democracy, America, if you’re unable to speak? If your opposition to genocide in Gaza leads to you being labeled a terrorist and sent away to a place where your voice won’t be heard. If your shouts for peace, for greater fairness, for real change are simply drowned out by the “speech” of those with vastly more money than you, thus vastly bigger and louder megaphones.

Who does Donald Trump listen to, small donors who send him $20 or $200 or Miriam Adelson who gave him $100 million? Who would you listen to if you were Trump? Small wonder he’s Making Israel Great Again (MIGA).

Broadly speaking, Americans don’t want a war with Yemen. They don’t support Israel’s annihilation of Gaza. Yet your wants simply don’t matter. You have no say. Not when billionaires and powerful corporations have already bought “your” president and “your” representatives.

Public funding of elections is absolutely essential to curbing this corruption. Despite what the Supreme Court claims, money isn’t speech, and corporations are not citizens. Money is money, and those with the most money shouldn’t be allowed to use that money to drown out the voices of everyone else.

Oh, in the scene above, you’ll note that Neo is “bugged.” We’re all bugged as well. It’s called a Smart phone.

2 thoughts on “What Good Is Democracy If You’re Unable to Speak?”

  1. Some Questions about America’s Future…

    Based on what has happened in the first ten weeks of TRUMP 2.0, there are multiple reasons to think, believe, and feel that this Nation is as close to a fully operational and functional authoritarian, autocratic, plutocratic, oligarchic, patriarchal totalitarian Dictatorship as it has ever been in its 248+ year history; including the Great Depression/New Deal/World War II era of the last century, and the Civil War the century before.

    These first ten weeks of Team TruMsk have been a masterfully planned and executed Psychological Warfare Operation to determine just exactly how able and willing the American Peoples are to accept ~ and just get on with the rest of their lives in ~ a Dictatorship.

    All of which leads me to ask myself ~ and to ask other Americans to ask themselves ~ the following Questions:

    1. Do You agree that the United States is on the edge of a precipice, and that a fully operational and functional authoritarian, autocratic, plutocratic, oligarchic, patriarchal totalitarian Dictatorship is very possible in America’s near future?

    2. If You don’t agree with that assessment: Can You explain Why?

    3. If, on the other hand, You Do agree with the assessment: What ~ if anything ~ can be done to prevent that Dictatorship from happening? Or is it already too late to stop it?

    4. If it cannot be stopped and in fact happens, what would be the most appropriate and effective reaction and response of those who oppose the Dictatorship?

    5. If that Dictatorship CAN be confronted, combatted, conquered, and eliminated, what system of National Government and Governance would replace it? The same one America has now, that enabled TRUMP 2.0 to happen in the first place? Or something different?

    6. Do You agree that a significant number of Americans ~ and a number of people who are socially, economically, and/or politically “significant” ~ would very probably welcome a Dictatorship; as long as it was her or his guy or gal who was the Dictator?

    7. Will the United States survive to celebrate its 250th Birthday on July 4, 2026, 460 days from today? And if it does, will the American Peoples be in any condition or mood to celebrate anything?

    If You think these Questions merit consideration, please share them with Your Family and Loved Ones, Friends and Neighbors, Colleagues, Cohorts, and Compeers, and any public officials and media outlets that You think might be interested.

    Thank You, stay Safe, and have a Great day. ~ jeff

    Liked by 1 person

  2. … there’s free-democracy, then there’s limited-democracy, Trump now wants is-seeking limiting-democracy’s-freedoms

    … let him keep getting away with limiting-democracy and he WILL go deeper into wanting more-greater restrictions on additional freedoms

    … now’s time, now’s our chance stopping him… call your representatives… demand he be stopped, before he makes it lots harder that we can’t

    Liked by 1 person

Comments are closed.