C. Wright Mills: Sociological Imagination and the Power Elite

[Octafish]

14. The elites murdered Caesar, overthrew the Republic, and did themselves in for greed.

The late author of "Sorrows of Empire" discusses where we were in 2005...

Interview with Chalmers Johnson

Part 1. An Empire of More Than 725 Military Bases

Discussing the books "The Sorrows of Empire" and "Blowback"
Cardiff, California

EXCERPT...

The Posse Comitatus Act

(Chalmers Johnson): ...

We also have General Franks, recently retired CENTCOM commander, saying that with another terrorist incident comparable to 9/11 in America, “We’ll probably have to take over.” And that’s what happened to the Roman Republic, the world’s first great experiment in institutionalized democracy, and an enormous source of precedence for the authors of the American constitution.

Beyond our own Rubicon

In Motion Magazine: Franks actually said this?

Chalmers Johnson: Yes. It was published in the December 2003 issue of Cigar Aficionado magazine. He said in so many words that the military might have to assume emergency powers. There is a distinct possibility that we are beyond our own Rubicon, and that there’s no way back.

Am I being alarmist? Yes, of course I am. I am alarmed.

But by the same token, if I am wrong you are going to forgive me you are going to be so pleased I was wrong. But I myself do not see how any president -- George Bush, John Kerry, or any other person -- can stand up to the Pentagon, the secret intelligence agencies, and the military-industrial complex today, if for no other reason than that 40% of the defense budget is secret and all of the intelligence agencies’ budgets are secret. This makes it impossible for a member of Congress to get the necessary information to do oversight even if he or she wanted to.

CONTINUED...

http://www.inmotionmagazine.com/global/cj_int/cj_int1.html

All the money in the world for nukes, wall-to-wall domestic surveillance, bases, planes, ships, missiles, bombs, tanks, bullets, etc. and whatever else Money Trumps Peace needs and it's AUSTERITY for democracy.