A New Political Order – Steve Bannon (#158)

At the recent Conservative Political Action Congress (CPAC), on February, 22-25, 2017, an annual gathering of American Conservative activists, Steve Bannon had his long sought after day in the sun. Emerging from relative obscurity, nationally and internationally, as Donald Trump’s new campaign manager, Steve Bannon finally had the centre stage at an event where previously he had been consistently side-lined because of his uncomfortable, bordering on extreme, controversial views, to the point where he had to organize his own side meetings called the ‘Uninvited’ at the previous CPAC.

This year was different. This year he was amongst the chief guests of honour, arguably second only to Donald Trump. Riding high as Donald Trump’s chief strategist, his long-bruised ego demanded satisfaction on-stage, by a teasing and chastising remark to the moderator, saying ‘I want to thank you for finally inviting me to CPAC’. There was definite ‘gloat’ there, very similar to his boss’s temperament.

Obviously Steve Bannon does not forget previous slights, nor does he stand on politeness to refrain from making his former discriminator(s) squirm for those slights. Now that he is unquestionably one of the most powerful men in the American Republican-conservative movement, Steve Bannon, having the President’s ear will make sure he is heard, and through the President’s power and position Steve Bannon is changing the political landscape of America to what he calls ‘A New Political Order’.

What is the nature of this ‘New Political Order’? At the briefest, it is divisive and isolationist.

Steve Bannon believes that the Western Civilization’s glory days waned lately because the ‘Judeo-Christian’ values that brought unprecedented prosperity to the West got diluted, and weakened the Judeo-Christian faith, the Church, the family, and true Capitalism that depended on those values to ‘flower’. He also believes, fundamentally, that the ‘Judeo-Christian civilization and values’ are at war with the ‘Jihadist Islamic civilization and values’, which are on a global rampage, and must be stopped at all costs, and by every means.

These core beliefs of Steve Bannon are reflected strongly in the rhetoric and policies of Donald Trump the campaigner, and Donald Trump the U.S. President. Steve Bannon believes that America can only be great again if it puts America first, closes its borders, tightly controls immigration, deregulates heavily, muzzles the free press, builds up its military and its nuclear arsenal, and prepares for a jihad of its own; a Judeo-Christian open war to crush and destroy the Jihadist Islamic spread (all Muslims seem to figure prominently in this supposed movement) before they crush and destroy Western Civilization.

President Trump, as we have seen, is happy to comply with his Chief Strategist’s views in governing America. He is closing the borders, severely restricting immigration and refugee in-flows (particularly Muslims), rolling back liberal policies of pro-choice, LBGT rights, and re-Church-ifying America, de-regulating consumer and environmental protections, building up the military and the nuclear arsenals and preparing to crush all opposition wherever – whenever, in whatever manner - religious, ideological, business, racial, cultural, military or gender. And Trump has declared open war on the main-stream Press, which Steve Bannon also detests, when it’s unfavourable, calling them the ‘opposition party’.

It’s a new day, and Steve Bannon with Donald Trump is bringing ‘A New Political Order’ to America and to the World.

Should we be worried?

Of course.

History is rife with examples of those who were not happy with a diverse, multi-religious, multi-racial multi-cultural, liberal society, which they then tried to change back into a more ‘genetically purer’, puritanical, nationalistic, homogeneous type of society, according to their own image, not only in the West but also in the East (ironically, radical, fundamentalist Islam propounds the same values).

Such Puritanism never turned out to well for anyone, in any country, anywhere. And in the process of bringing about this ‘New World Order’ these ‘leaders’ caused a lot of division, hate, destruction, misery, anguish and tremendous loss of human life and national wealth.

Bannon is right to point out that there is a movement across the World that is nationalistic and isolationist, and anti-multi-religion, multi-race, multi-cultural and unity. India’s Narendra Modi, Brexit, Donald Trump are the result of such movements; and there may be more to come in the coming elections in Europe.

But may we point out, all these ‘backward movements’ are the results of dissatisfaction of people after suffering tremendous losses in wealth, opportunity and expectations, all of which came about after the America induced financial and economic crash of 2008 that rippled across all nations of the World.

And as for ‘Radical Islam’ and ‘Islamic Terrorism’, Bannon’s and Trump’s ‘Greatest threats to America’, it was brought on by the destruction unleashed by America in the Middle East by President George H. Bush (Senior) in January 1991, and taken to another level altogether (semi-completed?), by his son President George W. Bush (Junior) in 2003 and is still going ‘ON’ to this day. Please note the sustained rise of terrorism after the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan in 2003.

It can be argued (by specific dates and facts) that the current turmoil in the World can be attributed to the rash actions of Americans, whether in the financial economic arena (2008 crisis), or in the geo-political (particularly the Middle East) arena, after 1991 onwards.

So it is a bit rich for Steve Bannon and Donald Trump to blame Liberalism or Islam for the current troubles. It was the conservatives that unleashed the financial crisis of 2008 (George W. Bush, President, Republican) and the invasion of Iraq and eventual destruction of Middle East (George H. and George W. Bush, Presidents, Republicans).

Now come two more Republicans, with the rest thrilled to be brought back to destructive political power, promising to set everything right by bringing in ‘A New Political Order’, through the very same policies that brought the chaos in the first place. I think the majority of Americans, 2.8 Million plus more than voted for Donald Trump, were quite happy with the more tolerant, peaceful, prosperous political order that seemed to take place, more so under the Democrat Presidents, like Clinton and Obama.

Unfortunately we have A New Political Order that harkens back to the more destructive past instead, with Steve Bannon, Donald Trump and the Republicans. Good Luck America, you’re going to need it!

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