Chris Hedges - The Last Gasp of American Democracy

[struggle4progress]

26. When Hedges is good, he's very very good, and when he's bad he's horrid

This piece sits on the horrid side of his writing spectrum

Hedges, of course, is correct that privacy issues in the digital age present enormous and frightening challenges, and his concern about NSA metadata collection does not to me seem misplaced, though it is only a small piece of the puzzle, since private data collection far exceeds government data collection and poses entirely similar challenges, every bit as enormous and frightening

The task of good political writing is to provide the reader with tools for action. And here citizens need continuing analysis, based on currently available facts, that actually provides useful ideas about how to fight back against all the data collectors

Unfortunately, Hedges' thesis -- "This is our last gasp as a democracy" -- can only send the reader into despondency and inaction