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| Philip II of Macedonia (Alexander the Great's Dad) (Source) |
Extend that out to the county and state I grew up in and that held true, for the most part. Things were different in the bigger towns, more than one newspaper perhaps, but in general we got our news and entertainment all from the same sources.
It was a common base we all shared, or so it seemed to me at the time.
Over the weekend, for the first time that I can remember, there was a sporting event which wasn't on any of the common networks. You actually had to subscribe to a particular streaming service in order to watch the event. (Unless you lived in one of the cities involved, then it was shown on local television.)
Seems we're all going our separate ways now. Not everyone watches the same TV programs anymore, we don't all watch the same news anymore, there seems to be very little commonality across the country. We're all going our separate ways and it seems, to me at any rate, that the "powers that be" encourage that.
Hence the title of this post.
Beware those who would divide us, it's intentional.
And they're playing for keeps.
Ayup, divide and conquer Sarge.
ReplyDelete👍
Deletewhere you live!
Deleteshould it or are we still birds of a feather
somehow I didn't notice that as much while on active
I don't count, I was active duty for 24 years. Lived in three distinctly different cultures overseas, married to a Korean, friends of many ethnic backgrounds. In the Air Force we were all blue, or used to be, I can't vouch for these days.
DeleteAgree, the destruction of the homogeneity of the American culture has been deliberate by those who hate it and they are succeeding.
ReplyDeleteI just don't understand their goal, what do they think they will gain from this?
DeletePower, in all of its kinds and flavors. The founding fathers warned of this, we ignored them, and we will find out.
Delete$$$, power, being able to dictate to others what they can and cannot do.
DeleteA new world with "them" sitting on the throne.
Deletehtom - What's really interesting is that the low level idiots causing all of this disruption will not be the ones with power at the end. It will be those global elites who never got their hands dirty deciding who goes up against a wall. Always seems to be the case.
DeleteNylon12 - Those who think they'll be in power at the end are severely deluded.
DeleteRob - But which "them"?
DeleteFinding out which "them" is the other big question! (Living thru the changes is the 1st big question).
DeleteConcur.
DeleteOAFS: What 'They' (big letters, those on top or behind this all) want is a return to feudalism of one form or another. It's all about power, control and ego. Can't be a bigwig feudal lord if you have to hire people. Better is to dominate your section of land or your segment of manufacture or education or politics and have people unable to leave your lands, your jobs, your schools or your politics.
DeleteThis American experiment has always shaken the bowels of those who wish to control everything. What's more free than being able to pick up all one's stuff, shove it in the back of a car, trailer, van, and move across city, county, state lines in search of better or not-getting worse?
DeleteRob, as to 'who THEY are' (again, big letters being the ones behind everything) just look at who doesn't get charged, who doesn't get told to stop flying or driving or buying medicines that 'lesser peoples' can't get their hands on. Who doesn't have to wait in line for anything? Who can build on the coast (that's going to be under water in 10-100-1000 years... sarcasm)? Who can own cars? Who can say anything they want and get away with it? Who the media is fawning over?
Remember when the media was fawning over Putin and all of his shirtless pictures? At the same time he was also saying he was going to reconquer the Soviet Empire. And look at what he's doing now. Is the media calling for his downfall? Nope. They're still breathlessly fawning over him and his ilk.
Beans #1 - You might be on to something with this return to feudalism.
DeleteBeans #2 - The media seems to be composed of idiot dilettantes who think they know it all, yet actually know absolutely nothing.
Deletegotta dumb question (heh!)
Deleteif you invite 6+ couples (15 being the maximum number your backyard can hold comfortably) to a barbeque in your backyard, how many of that group are of "Afro-American" ancestry, how many identify as black, how many are have Latin-American ancestry, how many speak a second language comfortably/fluently, how many are "pearly-white" (as I've heard the term), how many are from your church?
Depends a lot on where you live.
DeleteNever paid much attention to that. Some of their English is non-American accented. Their skins are not lily-white, colors and eye slants vary. High education values. Kids are polite to elders. This corner is "high professional" law, medicine, engineering, law enforcement. Probably not typical Minnesota.
DeleteProbably not.
DeleteThe melting pot is gone...
ReplyDeleteSad, but true.
DeleteThe melting pot isn't gone, it just needs to have the scum skimmed off and to have balance of ingredients restored. But, thanks to the feckless 'Lion of the Senate' Ted Kennedy (hwack, ptoooie, good riddance you parasitic drunken bum) our immigration policy went from 'you must bring in positive things to this country' to 'let the scum and villainy of every other land in.' Bastard.
DeleteNot sure if that's true, be nice if it is.
DeleteI think that when tall walls around family homes become common in the US (like they are in many other parts of the world) we'll know that tribalism/diversity has won.
ReplyDeleteBy which point the US will be completely Balkanized.
Delete(Trembles with excitement. Sarge has finally referenced a historical period I know something about....)
ReplyDeleteThe fall of Classical Greece and the transfer to the Macedonian Hegemony (circa 357 B.C. to 338 B.C.) is an interesting historical development in that no-one really saw it coming until it was too late. Over 100 years early, during the Persian Wars (490 B.C. to 479 B.C.), there were questions if the Macedonians were even Greek at all. Certainly they were not seen within the Pale of "Hellenes" until later.
Two things happened. The first is that Macedon under Philip the II (father of Alexander) took the the lessons of the Boeotian Confederacy under Epaminondas and their military and created a new sort of military, the Macedonian phalanx which used the longer sarissa pikes. He also consolidated power in a way that had not been done as well or as fully in the past.
The second thing was really a thing that did not happen: the rest of Greeks continued to bicker among themselves as they had for the last 500 years. Athens, Sparta, Thebes all fought in their own interests to re-establish some measure of their own empires. They operated under the assumption that Macedon was an existential threat. By the time the figured this out, it was too late.
Demosthenes has some wonderful speeches about this for historical interest.
(Trembling ends)
I had not thought of the splintering of American culture in this sense, but you are exactly right - and it reflects an ongoing trend which has been developing for years. I have often questioned in the last five years or so if there is anything holding the country together against a major disruptive event except shared location and a shared economy. There is no real sense of shared "American-ness".
Sadly, that day will come, the great event which again impacts the U.S. like 9/11 or Pearl Harbor (only likely, worse of course). In that day, every fracture line will be laid bare.
You should read Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae by Steven Pressfield, superb book.
DeleteAs to the splintering, it's there and it's very concerning. One might ask, "Where are the Americans?" (Not the Irish-Americans, not the German-Americans, not the Russian-Americans, not the Chinese-Americans, nor the African-Americans. Where are the Americans? The "goddamnit I live here and I don't care who your goddamn ancestors were" Americans. We used to come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. Where have they gone?)
We're still here, Sarge. Maginalized, despised by many, "bitterly clinging to guns and religion" because we know those are what we can rely on. Those, and those people of like mind. We will prevail.
DeleteBG
I feel like a member of B Company, 2nd of the 24th Foot on the 22nd of January 1879.
DeleteKeep your Martini well oiled and your bayonet sharp, Sarge! Stand tall with plenty of ammunition, be smart and fight hard. We WILL come through this.
DeleteBG
Psalm 46 does spring to mind.
DeleteWhat BG said. Just look at who's having kids, who's growing food, who's actually manufacturing and building and creating. It's not the vibrant color palate of diverse genders and mental illnesses. What the New(f)yorker calls "flyover country." Though there are lots in non-flyover country, but not enough.
DeleteThe freakish left is in chaos right now because those in power have realized they've unbred themselves out of power. Balance shifts in about 10 years at the most as the multi-child families of the 2000's come to age and start having their own babies. The silent majority, so to speak.
Which is why things have gotten so bad in the last 5 years over the 67,000+ gender bullscat and the open teaching of deviant sexuality to children and 'drag queen story hour' for toddlers and kids and such. They don't have children so they're coming for the silent majority's children. When that doesn't succeed, the leftist marxist confused mentally ill scum will really start freaking, oh, say, like they did in Florida when it became LAW that a teacher can't teach sexual deviancy and body mutilation to a 1st grader. (big long argument with my mom because my nephew's wife is a teacher and believes DeSantis shut her ability to speak down when in fact it was to protect the sexualization and mutilation of children and I hit her with so many facts that she about died under the crush of red pills...)
If you look at birth-rate overall, yes, it's falling. Look at birthrate amongst political beliefs and the conservatives and even moderate rightwingers are breeding way above the replacement level. I think OAFS's children and juvat's children are proving this.
I have hopes.
DeleteGates of Fire is one of my favorites. Tides of War is also really good (I did not enjoy his book about Alexander, The Virtues of War, nearly as much).
DeleteI couldn't put it down.
DeleteMy statement above, should have read "(big long argument with my mom because my nephew's wife is a teacher and believes DeSantis shut her ability to speak down when in fact it was to protect FROM the sexualization and mutilation of children and I hit her with so many facts that she about died under the crush of red pills...)"
DeleteI get ahead of myself when typing...
I think we were following along just fine, the "from" was assumed.
DeletePsalm 46 - is that the Masoretic or Septuagint numbering? "Clap your hands, all ye nations; shout unto God with a voice of rejoicing,
DeleteFor the Lord Most High is terrible, a great King over all the earth."
I'm guessing the former (first I've known of this), I'm also guessing you didn't watch the movie Zulu where Colour Sergeant Bourne says: [Quoting Psalm 46, v10-11 just before the battle] I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of Hosts is with us.
DeleteTo which Cpl. William Allen replies: I hope so.
I love that movie! Watch it several times a year. I suspected that you meant the Masoretic numbering, but wasn't sure since either of them seems appropriate. That quote is in two places. First is when Rev. Witt has asked Bourne what Psalm he would say," "He maketh wars to cease in all the world, He snapeth the bow in sunder " Do you know it Sir?" to which Rev Witt replices, ""I will be exalted..." then, waiting for the attack, Bourne repeats it.
Delete"They've no top tenors, that's for sure."
Ah, I assumed incorrectly on the film. (Damn, I should know better.)
DeleteAs to the numbering of the Psalms, as Buck might have said, "I had no ideer."
Loved the singing in the film, especially the Zulu.
The division has already occurred, Sarge and it has been intentional. As noted above the purpose IS to " conquer our Republic and replace it with the oligarchs of Davos.
ReplyDeleteJust read Kurt Schlichter's book "The Attack", if you want a scenario worse than 9/11 or Pearl Harbor ( or even Jan 6th!!!! sarc), he lays it out; though the result is not what our enemies expect or want. We must retain all that was good about the culture you refer to when we rebuild.
I must note that when we did watch the same TV channels, we were lied to by " the most trusted man in America" with no alternative channels.
Boat Guy
As to the news, I was thinking back to before Vietnam, before Cronkite's morale was broken.
DeleteI'm not sure if it was his morale, but something was certainly broken. So much of what we've been told has been disproven. Joe McCarthy was right.
DeleteBG
It seems so.
DeleteWe used to have news & newspapers, then we had TV news, then the news worked for the entertainment dept, today the MSM is there to spread the message of the cabal running things.
DeleteCronkite's morale was never broken. He was always a leftist commie fellow traveller.
DeleteNo, he wasn't.
DeleteRob - Once the 24-hour news cycle became a thing (thanks CNN), all that time had to be filled with something. Also, those news departments were now expected to generate a profit, like the other departments. Now they seem to be owned by a certain party ...
DeleteHmmm! and then there's that bundle of misinformation, the NY Times. which Liberals/Leftists/Progressives read all over the country and quote to you as fact established by G-d's word
ReplyDeleteYes, yes indeed. Not the only one, but one of the biggest dispensers of agitprop.
DeleteIt's hilarious, really. See the Grand Masters really think somehow, everything will be the same for them, except better. The sex slaves will be better, the food will be better, everything better. Mo Powa! That is what happens when generations are "educated" by intestinal parasites who think "stuff" just happens. But "stuff" is really , really, hard to make. Not just the "stuff", but the stuff that makes the stuff that makes the stuff that makes the...you get the idea- they have no clue that all this depends on the very class of people they wish to reduce .You can't just keep a slave population of producers- it takes all the guys who produce the second and third and fourth and fifth etc layers of stuff that makes the stuff. I have been in manufacturing in a small way all my life. Even so, I was flabbergasted to see a box truck driving around the industrial area a while back- can't even remember the specifics, but it was a company dedicated to supplying the most arcane ultra specialized industrial item imaginable. Something I had never even thought of- yet there it was, necessary to a modern civilization. Not a machine , or a part of a machine, or a ball bearing, or a machine that makes ball bearings, maybe something like specialty abrasives for grinding ball bearings-
ReplyDeleteSo if all their plans work out just right, someday they will find themselves with a quality of life only Kings knew- 500 years ago.
Bingo!
DeleteSee the "I, Pencil " essay
DeleteInteresting.
Delete500 years ago a king could have what ever he wanted... your wife or daughter if that's what he wanted... that's the kind of power I think these people are aiming for...
ReplyDeleteWhat they're not factoring into the equation is that not everyone can be the king, someone has to be the flunky. And kings need lots of flunkies.
DeleteThat whole 'First Night' thingy is highly misreported. It's part of the whole noblesse oblige thingy. Yeah, the local, regional or nation leader could have and did have access to a 'wife' first off. But... it is part of tying the lord (who's often a foreigner, think Normans in, well, everywhere) to the land and the people. Any births from the lord's night were supposed to be supported by said lord up until the child is married or placed in apprenticeship or other carreer path. Think... William of Normandy. His father had child with a swineherd's daughter. And William became duke of Normandy.
DeleteGenerally when a lord or higher got too uppity and started abusing the system, the system flexed and took care of the lord. Lots of ways from an arrow in the back to being excommunicated (a very big thing back then.)
Yes, a king or lord could have anything within his areas. But a good king or lord used those powers carefully.
Now look at our new feudal masters. They have no concept of noblesse oblige. They are everything negative about the lord/land system.
They are the reason revolutions are launched. And kings die.
DeleteAnd there are reasons we have recourse to more than torches and pitchforks.
DeleteBG
Yes, indeed!
DeleteI'm not sure that television is one of the best ties that bind, but point taken. They are definitely counting on bread and circuses to keep us busy.
ReplyDeleteNot at present. In olden times TV programming was better, more wholesome. IMHO
DeleteI fully agree. Could something with Michael Landon fly today? Never in a 1000 channels. The Walton's? Nope. Everything must have some sort of progressive message today.
DeleteI will still happily watch The Waltons, if it is on.
DeleteTuna - Don't confuse today's agenda with what used to pass for entertainment. Many of the old shows are very popular on some of the smaller, local streaming services.
DeleteScott - I'm sure many would if given the opportunity. The slick, progressive types wouldn't, but their "entertainment" is anything but.
DeleteAs mentioned above, the melting pot, where we all contributed to a strong, yet malleable alloy, are long gone. Nor the the "step pot" analog apply, where our recognizable components were blended with a common gravy, eah contributing flavor to it while maintaining some recognizable "flavor" but still, all contributing to a harmonious while.
ReplyDeleteWe are more like...hmmm....maybe a salad of chopped cabbage, lutefisk, garbanzos, uni, chitlins, pickled plums, and huitlacoche, with a dressing of arrabiata sauce and chocolate syrup.
I have no problem with different cultures living side by side. Experienced it in Korea, Japan, Germany, and now here in Little Rhody. I swear there are days where it feels like a big Portuguese festival on every other street. And it's marvelous.
DeleteThe various ethnic festivals are one thing. Voluntary, and just enjoying and displaying How They Did It In The Old Country. The forced division now is not only displaying it, but insisting that everyone "celebrate" and "affirm" and "participate" in the difference, be it cultural, sexual, or political.
DeleteMy wife and I have gone to several different "ethnic" Orthodox parishes and we always manage to be accepted as friendly foreigners. The most glaring was a Romanian parish - "Why you come here? Is Romanian! Why not go to parish with English?" Well, because we want to be here. After the liturgy (and since I was wearing my cassock the priest insisted that I serve, and even had me do the unthinkable - read the Gospel even though I;'m only a subdeacon -talk about knees knocking and sweat popping out on the forehead!), the people were still standoffish, but polite. When we were offered some homemade slivovitz, knocked it back, and asked for another shot PRESTO! we were family. Same at Greek, Russian, Sebian, etc. parishes we visited. But, enve with the surficial differences, we were all Orthodox before anything else.
Voluntary - that's the key.
DeleteThe melting pot ... is still there. It's been overfilled with things that shouldn't have been put into it. An earthquake might upset it, allowing a return to a good stone soup. There will be a horrid mess, at best.
ReplyDeleteThat's a pretty good analogy, htom.
Delete