Akkam’s Razor

Only 20-some-odd percent of people in China are members of the Communist Party, yet those 20% have a stranglehold via fear over the majority of the population.  In my previous semesters reading, I've learned that the central planners in Beijing are terrified at the prospect of failure, be it viral pandemic, health care, national disaster, or manmade catastrophe.  The very perception of failure of the government could lead to a literal pitchfork rebellion, by the urban dwellers as well as those in the countryside, toppling the parties rule.  

It's not so different here.

For starters, the White House staff isn't smart enough to properly safeguard the President's travel itinerary:

If you read the 9/11 Commission's and report, kept tabs on the bumblings and lack of planning in Iraq, the uncertainty of Iran (and North Korea's) nuclear capacity, witnessed how the management mistakes of the Challenger disaster were repeated with Columbia, the response to Katrina, and the simple fact that Osama Bin Laden still walks the earth, it would be readily apparent that we are not the superpower we like to portray.  That's not to say that we aren't extremely capable and strong, but the perception of safety (and dominance) isn't as certain when we scrutinize reality.

There are two things that would crush the sense of security Americans have regarding their government.  There's two things that have influenced this post - both on network TV - the actions of the fictional boobish-turned-evil President on 24 and ABC's disaster porn flick, Fatal Conflict: Bird Flue in America (which I didn't see).  President Charles Logan, played by Greg Itzin, on 24, in a craven display of self preservation, decides to shoot down the airliner that Jack Bauer has commandeered to get the evidence on the President's involvement in a horrific conspiracy.  The President's rationale, and that of an underling later in the show, is that the American people could not handle the truth, and as such, the truth should never be allowed to reach the light.  Such is how the country's elite, in business, government, and academia, view us, the great unwashed.

Curiously, the Bird Flu, although not yet an immediate threat, and not having mutated into a form transmitted to and by humans, is certainly at the forefront of everyone's minds.  Yet the Federal Government plan is that people should undertake their own planning (which of course is smart) and to not expect a rescue by the Government.  Of course, there are some things that plain 'ol folk would be unable to do - and there has been relatively little guidance save the pushing off of responsibility on state and local authorities.

Similarly, post-Katrina, we've seen the same thing - you're on your own (ie. The New Ownership Society).  Don't expect the Feds to come in and save you from the next hurricane (with the season expected to be even more severe, now that they've stopped sugar-coating the forecasts). 

We already have record low confidence in many of our institutions, be they government, the press, or others.  When the next colossal failure occurs, be they natural, man-made, or acts of terror, I would most certainly NOT expect a groundswell of support for our leaders, like the 90% approval rate the President had post September 11th.

They'd be advised to ban pitchforks.