My journey and my lifetime struggle

Decolonization of my mind is a daily task.  There are layers and layers of files in my brain, planted over a lifetime, which have to be sorted and many deleted.  I've internalized alot of BS over the years.  One of my ongoing tasks is to find good and trusted sources of information so I can replace the outdated, outmoded, and out-right lies that I've swallowed.

Joining the Air Force in 1971, during the Vietnam War, as a right-wing young-Republican meant that I had much to learn about the real world.  Once exposed to the anti-war movement in the barracks I began to devour everything I could find to learn anew.  In those days there was no Internet.  Music helped teach me quite a bit.  But there is never any substitute for reading and personal experience.

The Pentagon Papers (the government's own 'secret' history of the Vietnam War) blew my socks off.  The papers were published in book form and I read the whole thick compilation - often while sitting at my desk on the Air Force base and occasionally sharing important bits out loud with my fellow GIs.  That got me in some hot water.

My constant reading of Native American history was very important in my development.  I'll always remember the indigenous wisdom - 'Put your ear to the railroad tracks and hear the train coming'.  Perfect advise anytime.

I didn't learn much in college after the service - one of the few things I picked up was that one Political Science professor was a Henry Kissinger fan so if you wanted A's you touted the Kissinger line.  I got a C in the class and began to feel like I was back in the Air Force.

My mind decolonization took another major jump when I joined the United Farm Workers Union as a staffer in Florida organizing fruit pickers from 1978-1980.  There I read People's History of the US and Labor's Untold Story.

In 1983 I started working full time in the peace movement in Florida and early on began to specialize on space.  It was natural since at the time I lived in Orlando, only one-hour away from Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center where I organized many large protests over the years.  One publication that had huge impact on me was another of those government insider books that revealed the real plans for US space domination - Full Spectrum Dominance.  This one was entitled Military Space Forces: The Next 50 Years.

One small illustration from that book was a section about the 'Earth and Moon Gravity Well'.  Who ever militarily holds the top of the gravity well will control which country/corporation can get on and off the planet to successfully 'mine the sky' in the years ahead.  The author John Collins, a congressional staffer, wrote: "Armed forces might lie in wait at that location [at the top of the well] to hijack rival shipments on return."  He was obviously referring to the need for the US to control the gravity well with military bases on the Moon and armed space stations on either side of the lunar body. The primary obstacle to this plan is $$$$ which is why the aerospace industry wants to defund the 'Entitlement Programs' which are Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and what remains of the welfare program.  I read about this 'strategy to create a dedicated space funding source' in an industry publication called Space News.

Just today I saw an important article that fits right into my agenda of mind decolonization.  The article is How America Spreads Global Chaos and is posted on Consortium News which has become one of my preferred sites for real news.  In the article Nicolas J.S. Davies writes:

U.S. Air Force Colonel Fletcher Prouty surprisingly described the role of the CIA as a response by powerful people and interests to the abolition of the U.S. Department of War and the creation of the Department of Defense in 1947. Once the role of the U.S. military was redefined as one of defense, in line with the United Nations Charter’s prohibition against the threat or use of military force in 1945 and similar moves by other military powers, it would require some kind of crisis or threat to justify using military force in the future, both legally and politically. The main purpose of the CIA, as Prouty saw it, is to create such pretexts for war.

Prouty described how the CIA infiltrated the U.S. military, the State Department, the National Security Council and other government institutions, covertly placing its officers in critical positions to ensure that its plans are approved and that it has access to whatever forces, weapons, equipment, ammunition and other resources it needs to carry them out.

The CIA, or the Deep State, is the real power in America today.  Many books give you a good understanding of this reality but the one I'd highly recommend is The Devil's Chessboard: Allen Dulles, the CIA, and the Rise of America's Secret Government by David Talbot.  It reads like a mystery novel and is one of my top five favorite books ever.

I have always had a hunger and thirst for the truth - when I was a kid I wanted to be an FBI agent to fight organized crime.  After I joined the Air Force I began the long path to realization that our government is controlled by a corporate criminal syndicate.  So today I feel like my wish came true - in my own independent way I am fighting the mobsters.

In order to stay sane I've often returned to books about Native Americans who knew the 'Great White Father in Washington' facade better than most.  They've had much experience dealing with the White Man's 'forked tongue' while struggling to hold onto their sacred spiritual circle.  One book I'd offer here is Crazy Horse: The Strange Man of the Oglalas.

When one can control their own mind they can begin to live a centered life and not be the slave of anyone or any corporate media outlet.  This is my journey and my lifetime struggle.

Bruce

~ Thanks to Global Network board member Will Griffin for the graphic above which inspired writing this post.