The New Bread and Circuses

AmericanThinker.com

Peggy Ryan

Conservatives say Americans must “wake up” if we’re to save our country.  However, that implies that the people are asleep, unaware of increasing government oppression.

I submit that those apparently oblivious to America’s increasing tyranny aren’t really asleep.  No, much like citizens of ancient Rome, they’re distracted, placated.

In ancient Rome, the government provided bread, oil, and wine to its urban population along with entertainment — chariot races or gladiatorial fights.  Food and entertainment kept the people busy, content, with their eyes off the government.  The distractions worked.

“[The people] which formerly gave military power, high offices, legions, all, now contains itself, and eagerly desires two things only — bread and circus games.” —Juvenal

Today, “bread and circuses” has been updated to fast food and smartphones.  The food’s not free, but it is prepared, packaged, and just a phone call away.  These meals on demand takes the worry out of dinner and give people more free time for their phones.  And these phones are today’s “circuses.”

These modern-day games are held in the Virtual Arena, AKA the internet.  Here people can listen to music, watch sports or movies, shop online, play games, meet with friends, or duel with strangers any time day or night.  This entertainment keeps the people “busy, content.”  It takes their eyes off the government.

For many Americans, this virtual world is their safe place, where they can control what they watch, whom they listen to, what they choose to believe.  In this world, they’re respected, validated as paragons of virtue.

Here they stand with those who reject hate, who serve as watchdogs to call out racists, xenophobes, homophobes, or transphobes.  These shining examples of moral superiority defend all immigrants.  They want to share America’s wealth with everyone, anyone.  They know that those crossing the border aren’t criminals, terrorists, or human traffickers — those are all lies by the rabid right, misinformation.  No, these immigrants are only looking for a better life for themselves and their families.

And these enlightened souls fight to save the planet.  They eagerly embrace any and all efforts to stop any global warming/cooling event.  They endorse drastic measures, even if such actions will leave many without a car, without heat, without a job — even if wind farms continue to kill birds (estimated 140,000 to 328,000 birds each year in North America).

In this virtual utopia, people don’t need to waste time researching issues, candidates, or scientific claims.  Like their food, the information is prepackaged and readily available on the web.  Whatever the subject, the all-knowing web has the answers.  Yes, climate change will kill us all.  No, you’re not stuck being male or female; just pick one or none or both.  No, the 2020 election wasn’t stolen.  Yes, Trump is planning to steal the 2024 election.  And so on.

We all know these are facts because, as the State Farm ad says, “They can’t put anything on the Internet that isn’t true.”  Anyone who dares to say otherwise is a conspiracy nut, a deceived foot soldier for the right, or a domestic terrorist.

Thus, these spectators (users) quietly settle into a contented existence, where life is comfortable, predictable — where today is the same as yesterday, as tomorrow, as forever...until it’s not.

Case in point: COVID, a reportedly deadly pandemic that rocked the netizens’ world.  Panic set in, and people desperately looked for a savior.  Enter governors who ordered house arrest, who closed businesses, schools, and churches.  Shockingly, American citizens who are constitutionally protected against such naked totalitarianism nonetheless complied.  It was a small price to pay to stop a virus with a 99% survivability rate for most age groups

Now Americans face another budding crisis: inflation, rising food and gas prices, lost jobs, faltering real estate values, and more.  But again, people are told not to believe their lying eyes.  There is no recession.  The economy’s great.  Bidenomicsis working.  End of discussion.

And when the insurgents do finally crash the economy, and people can’t get to their money, or their money’s not worthanything even if they can get to it, panic will again set in.  People will again look to be rescued.

But never fear: the government’s here.  They’ll replace our paper money with the Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC).  Most people are already trained to transact their business and banking on their phone.  This is just the logical next step.

The fact that government will have absolute control over people’s money, control to cut off a person’s access to their funds, to deny them fuel, utilities, even food should they step out of line is hidden from the people.

“CBDCs provide huge benefits around surveillance through the ability to track, monitor, and control all financial transactions on the CBDC’s network.” —Paul Farella, Managing Director, Willow Investments

But back to whether the people are asleep or distracted — no difference, right?  Actually, there’s a huge difference.  If the people were “asleep,” they wouldn’t know of the growing oppression in America.  They’d wake up, recognize the tyranny, and reject it.

However, these people are aware at some level of government’s efforts to shut down oil production, to replace our population with millions of illegals, to weaponize our justice system, to force us to buy electric cars, to tank our economy, to take our guns, to give our tax dollars to foreign countries, and to censor any opposition.

But if people already know, where’s the outrage?  Sadly, these people have been sedated to the point that they don’t really get worked up about much.  And trusted mainstream media dispute such claims as just more conspiracy theories from MAGA extremists.  They’re quick to explain any and all purported transgressions.

“When a well-packaged web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses over generations, the truth will seem utterly preposterous and its speaker a raving lunatic.” —Donald James

But how do we get through the lies when we can’t even talk to people, when the programmed response is “I don’t talk politics”?  Don’t let this stonewalling shut you down.  Ask what they consider politics.  Is it just elections, or is it the border, inflation, weaponized persecution, energy, science?  Because politics really is all of these things and more.  Politics is our wealth, our freedom, our life.

“Political freedom includes in it every other blessing. All the pleasures of riches, science, virtue, and even religion itself derive their value from liberty alone.” —Benjamin Rush

If we allow their stonewalling to shut us down, then they will have no way to learn the truth.  They will believe the lies and quietly allow the tyrants to enslave them.

“It is possible to make people contented with their servitude.  I think it could be done even more effectively now because you can provide them with bread and circuses and you can provide them with endless amounts of distractions and propaganda.” —Aldous Huxley

These people are not the enemy.  They’re our friends, family, neighbors, co-workers.  But they’ve been betrayed by trusted sources — media, government, corporations, tech, Big Pharma, and the list goes on.  So many are now committed to America’s destruction.  So many don’t see the threat.

“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” —Martin Luther King, Jr.

We must try to reach these people, wake them up, get their attention, help them to care once again about their freedom, their country.  Without them, we risk losing our Constitution, our freedom, our rights.  Without them, we risk losing America.

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Original Article: https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2024/08/the_new_bread_and_circuses.html