Everyone probably knows about Jade Helm 15. It is a two-month operation by the Pentagon in which Special Forces from four branches of the military will carry out simulated operations amid territory designated as âhostileâ in Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Colorado.
US Army Special Operations Command said that simulated exercises like this are routine. They also said that the public wouldnât experience any disruption in their day-to-day lives, since the entire operation takes place in remote areas.
But, many Texans have expressed both suspicion and opposition to the project. Some claim itâs an attempt to institute martial law. Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz told Texans that he is on it: (emphasis by the Wrongologist)
My office has reached out to the Pentagon to inquire about this exercise…We are assured it is a military training exercise. I have no reason to doubt those assurances, but I understand the reason for concern and uncertainty, because when the federal government has not demonstrated itself to be trustworthy in this administration, the natural consequence is that many citizens don’t trust what it is saying.
And Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) called up the Texas Guard (one of three of Texasâ quasi-military groups), ordering them to âmonitorâ the Special Forces troops during their eight weeks of training.
Abbott seems to think his weekend warriors will accomplishâŚwhat? Then again, if youâre convinced that Jade Helm 15 is a false-flag operation designed to distract you while The Black Guy in the White House and his evil Muslim overlords plot a takeover of Texas, nothing will convince you otherwise.
It can be exceedingly difficult to discern where the parody ends and the serious conspiracy theories begin. Here is a claim from The Common Sense Show:
You see, there are these Wal-Marts in West Texas that supposedly closed for six months for ârenovationâ. Thatâs what they want you to believe. The truth is these Wal-Marts are going to be military guerrilla-warfare staging areas and FEMA processing camps for political prisoners.
How do you reason with people gripped with an ironclad conviction that all of the above is true, and that those who canât see it, are dupes under the influence of Obama, Rachel Maddow, and George Soros?
Texas isnât a barometer of much, except perhaps the price of oil pipe for fracking. Illegal immigration is going down. The number of Mexican-Americans in the voting population is going up. Rick Perry is still learning to count to three, and Ted Cruz, a graduate of Princeton and Harvard Law School, certainly knows which way is up. Apparently, he is more a deeply cynical man than a deranged one. Either way, he’s unfit for public office.
This false issue and the Republican response to it, is another example of Neo-Fascism in America. In this case, it is billionaires aligned with corrupt Republican politicians. They have an organization, ALEC, that drafts and shares model state-level legislation among state governments in the US. They have purchased state and federal legislators to do their bidding. Fascism doesn’t say, “We hate you!” It says, “Those guys over there hate you. They’re out to get you. Luckily, we’ve come to help youâ.
This is the price we are paying for false equivalence by the media, which was popularized starting in 1982 with CNNâs Crossfire. It’s the same thing you get if you allow children to engage in anything their little heart desires: What do you get when there are no negative consequences for despicable actions, including bigotry, or in-your-face political ham-handedness?
You get a situation that is out of control, as it has been in the past 30 years.
Todayâs conservatives/Republicans/libertarians are grown-up delinquents who have figured out that there is no bed time, no chores, no tests to take, and no need to eat their vegetables of responsibility.
The continuing assertion by the GOP that the President is behaving illegally, or that his orders should be ignored, is contributing to public distrust. Since our laws flow from the Constitution, it’s particularly annoying that those that claim to love it the most are directly attacking it with claims like this.
We are surfing down a very slippery slope. Right-wing politicians win elections by demonizing the government. They are now addicted to it. Like other addicts, they have to keep upping the dosage to get the same effect.
Unfortunately, they’re into serious overdose territory now.
Funny about Republicans. I was a staunch Republican in my youth, even voted for Nixon in 1972 (was too young in â68). But at the time, Republicans like Tom Cahill in NJ earnestly believed in government worked to improve it. He supported the first state income tax. Tom Kean was a decent, honest and responsible government. But over the years the party lost its moorings. Now they are selling a bullshit product and either know it (like Ted Cruz must) or are just plain stupid (Michelle Bachmann is a good example of stupid â Sarah Palin is even better).
Republican had a simple earnest message. You can solve all problems with money (or govt) and we canât afford all the good ideas. Sadly they never accepted that not spending money ALSO DOES NOT SOLVE PROBLEMS.