"In this age, populism, if it existed, could connect with the
population every day. The wildly popular populist leader would crack
the egg of propriety and give blow-by-blow Web accounts of his struggles
with the oligarchy, in detail, in his car, outside meeting rooms, on
staircases, at home, in his office, on the street, in restaurants;
everywhere, speaking to millions of people each time..." (The Magician Awakes, Jon Rappoport)
This is about what a true populist could be in this era of instant unstoppable media and, therefore, instant time.
I'm talking about an understanding of moment-by-moment connection with
the population, which is now possible on a grand scale, owing to the
internet and the devices which connect to it.
To grasp the implications, you must conceive of one wildly popular
person up against forces which absolutely deny the interests and desires
of millions of people.
And the leading question is: what should he do, when suddenly thrust
into the spotlight, having gained considerable influence---knowing that
enormous forces are arrayed to stop him?
A true populist says, for example: no bad trade deals. Translation:
stop Globalism in its tracks. Nullify its trade treaties, the
cornerstones of its cathedral. Negate them. Destroy them.
If he really meant it, if he was intent on achieving the goal, by
whatever means, against some of the most powerful men on the planet, and
if he began that journey, in talks, in meetings, in conferences with
members of Congress, with US trade representatives, with Washington
insiders---
When should he go back to the people, his people, his supporters, and let them know what is happening? When?
The usual pattern is: behind the scenes, for a few months, he tries to
turn the oil tanker of State around, he fails, he reports the failure in
mildly irritated language during one or two press conferences, and he
moves on to other issues. But a real populist now...
Would be going on webcasts to millions of people, his people, giving
them updates, explaining his struggle, listing the barriers, pointing
out who is building those barriers, how they are obstructing the will of
the people...in vivid detail...creating a massive uproar.
This is populism on a scale never envisioned before. It would constitute a staggering breakthrough.
It would shred business as usual in Washington.
A true populist leader would accept the fact that working through usual channels, to bring about stunning changes,
is a loser. The enemy is entrenched. The enemy controls the landscape. The enemy controls the machinery.
Where is the populist's strength coming from? Only one place: the
people who are supporting him. So he has to go back to that well, over
and over again. And now he can. Live.
"You wanted me to get your jobs back. That's why you rallied behind
me. I want to get your jobs back. I've explained why these trade
treaties are destroying jobs at home. Now I'm trying to move the rock
up the mountain. A few hours ago, I had a meeting with Senator Smith, a
staunch defender of the treaties. It went nowhere. I want to tell you
what he said, because, in his eyes, you don't count. Only big
corporations count. This is what happened..."
And three, five, ten million people are watching and listening.
And that's just today's report.
Tomorrow, or three days from now, there'll be another blow-by-blow talk
about who is blocking people from getting their jobs back.
Imagine it. Think about it. This is
the hero's journey, in real time, detouring around the controlled media. And yet...
The media would respond:
"Hey, Mr. Populist, we just watched your latest webcast. Hell of a
show. Maybe you'd like to do your next Report to the People on our
network. I mean, you had six million viewers at midnight.
Unbelievable. You were sitting in your car, right after your meeting
with the Secretary of Commerce. We could do that. Sit in your car, and
we'll beam you to our audience..."
No, I'm not necessarily talking about Donald Trump. Whether you like
him or hate him---not the issue here. I'm talking about any person who,
for whatever reason, gains the support of millions of people, because
he wants to restore something to them, something they once had,
something that was taken away from them by the wolves, something they
had earned---and now it's gone. Like jobs. Something basic that no one
can argue about.
A real and true populist, in this age, would keep going back to his
people---and he could. Live, at any moment, day or night. He would
have to.
He would put a level of pressure on his enemies that has never existed before.
"Well, people, as you know, Congressman Jones introduced a bill today
that would cancel four giant trade treaties and take the US out of the
trap it's been in for the last 25 years. It would bring giant
corporations home from foreign lands. They would re-open their
factories here. Your jobs would come back. Under ordinary
circumstances, this bill wouldn't stand a snowball's chance in hell of
passing. But we aren't in ordinary circumstances anymore, because I
have you and you have me. So let me tell you about the committee where
this bill is going to meet its first big roadblock. I just got out of
meeting with the head of the committee. This is exactly what
happened...It's a tragedy and travesty..."
"I want to ask you people a question tonight. What would happen if I,
as President, decided to cancel all those trade treaties? Myself. With
one stroke of the pen. By executive order. What would happen to me
and to you and what would the Congress and the press do? I'm asking
you. Is it a crime to give you your jobs back? Would somebody try to
put me in jail or impeach me? Would they dare, with all of you behind
me? Would they?"
"Some of you are telling me they're going to shoot me. You're warning
me. I have to ask you this. With all of you behind me, do you really
think they'd try? They may be crazy, but they aren't stupid. Don't you
think they know what would happen?"
What I'm painting here isn't only a different concept of media. It's a different concept of political time. Time intervals.
Instead of six weeks or three months between general and vague reports
and updates, the populist telescopes time. He shrinks the intervals.
He makes his reports to the people every week, every few days. If he's
compelling, if he presents vivid details and names and events---instead
of the usual hash of high-flying nonsense---he invents a new medium. A
new way of connecting.
All right, take the two candidates in this year's Presidential race who
seem to be populists---Bernie and Trump---and forget for a moment
whether they're real or fake, sincere or con artists, ordinary
politicians or a different breed. Forget that for the moment. Imagine
what could happen if, between their usual speeches and interviews and
debates, they went to the Web for live streaming every few days,
building and building their audiences, and not just in the US, but
globally.
Suppose, for example, they both had good research teams who assembled
extensive dossiers, chapter and verse, on the misdeeds and crimes of
Hillary Clinton...and suppose they hammered on that dossier mercilessly
in Web broadcasts. Chapter and verse. "This is specifically what you'd
be getting if you elected Hillary. This is who she is. This is
exactly what she's done."
Or: "Let me tell you about American jobs. This is exactly what happened
to them. This is who did it." Night after night. Chapter and verse.
Or: "Let me tell you something about one of those giant trade treaties.
NAFTA. Listen up. Once it was passed, US companies could flood Mexico
with cheap corn. And they did. Mexico had a lot of corn farmers.
Guess what? All that NAFTA cheap corn put 1.5 million Mexican corn
farmers out of business. Guess what they did and where they went, all
those farmers. A lot of them came up across the border into the US.
That's something you won't hear about the immigration problem. Come
on. Wake up. These Globalist trade treaties are destructive in a lot
of ways..."
Fireside chats via the Web. "Hi, everybody. Last night we had nine
million people watching, as I sat here by my fireplace and talked about
medical care in this country. Tonight, we predict it's going to be 20
million on the Web, all over the world. So I want to explain how the US
medical system kills 225,000 Americans a year. That's right. You
should know about this. Everybody should know about this. I have the
reports in front of me. I'm not making this up. Chances are you know
someone who has been affected, who has died, or one of their family has
died. This affects everybody. The US medical system kills 2.25 million
Americans per decade. Can you believe it? Where are the media in all
this..."
On and on. The Trump Web blasts. The Sanders Web blasts. Night and day.
Obama could be doing this. Hillary could, too. But do they really have
what it takes to keep going back to the well, to their people, and
making a visceral impact? Or are they just too mired in lies and tired
worn-out generalities---in which case, the rebound effect would be
increasingly negative, as they bore their audiences to death.
Some of you are thinking about what might happen if a crazy and vicious
populist made use of this approach. Of course. No one claims the world
is without risks. There are always risks. This isn't Rainbow Village
with marshmallows and ice cream. Some of you are convinced that all
politicians, no matter what they say, are already bought off and are
merely props in the grand show. So? That doesn't preclude the
possibility of a new person suddenly coming on the scene who hasn't sold
his soul. The future isn't already written. Claiming it's a closed
book is an attitude that works for the cemetery and the grave and little
else.
Imagination, courage, and intelligence never go out of style. No matter what anyone says.
Taking the internet to a new level is THERE. Waiting.
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