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There is a story about the Lincoln assassination, which, in my view, epitomises American culture. The assassin of President Abraham Lincoln was one John Wilkes Booth. Booth was an actor and, whilst not top shelf, he was well known. After shooting the President in the back of the head, while Lincoln was watching a play at the theatre, Booth made his escape. He reached a bridge on horseback, which was necessary for him to cross on his way to Maryland. The bridge was being guarded by a Union soldier, due to there being a nighttime curfew in place. The story goes that initial denials of passage were overcome in order to please the celebrity status of the stage actor. This encapsulates the hole at the centre of American justice, when it comes to celebrity, wealth and power.
Celebrity Is America’s First Love Not Justice
We have seen it with Donald Trump, seemingly ad infinatum. The Apprentice TV celebrity star captured the hearts of America, despite his compulsive lying and numerous crimes. Like John Wilkes Booth, Donald J Trump has committed heinous crimes, and in Trump’s case walked away Scott free, numerous times. Jeffrey Epstein, his best buddy for years, got away with sex trafficking for decades until he was finally caught. Trump and Epstein were celebrity playboys around town, hobnobbing with British royalty and loads of nubile young, very young, women. Sex with pretty young things was a shared passion for Donald and Jeffrey. The hole at the centre of American justice is big enough to drive an oil tanker through it.
Americans & Their Love Of Celebrity
Americans value celebrity over all things, it seems from the available evidence. They are willing to look away from the accountability demanded by justice. Pay attention to the line up of elites who befriended Jeffrey Epstein, despite his crimes. His charm and financial advice overrode any qualms that these high and mighty individuals had about such a thing as justice. Read the emails now available between these high fliers and Epstein. These elites flew high above the earth bound hoi poloi and knew no responsibility to the lives of the hundreds of victims. Prince Andrew, Bill Gates, Deepak Chopra, Larry Summers, Bill Clinton, Robert F Kennedy Jr, Peter Mandelson, Jes Staley, Les Wexner, Alan Dershowitz, David Copperfield, Woody Allen, Noam Chomsky, Ehud Barak, Kevin Spacey, George Mitchell, Bill Richardson, Glen Dubin, and Donald Trump are just some of the names we know. Whilst these men may or may not have been guilty of any crimes committed against young girls, they are by association hanging out with a scumbag who did traffic young girls and women for sex. Elites, with money and power, should know better.
“The Epstein files encapsulate the dishonesty of Americans at the epicentre of power. This long running saga, which has become a global talking point, intersects at the most important elements for American elites. Money, sex and power! The inability for the victims to achieve justice, apart from payoffs, illustrates the real America. Jeffrey Epstein collected elites like sports trading cards.”
Celebrity Over Substance
America, via its inventions like smart phones and social media, is in the grip of an attention obsession. ‘Look at me!’ This is the credo of the era. Every media personality has a podcast these days. Their faces are plastered over YouTube, crying out for your attention. Outrageous claims are the currency, which are rarely backed up by facts or evidence. Every one of them has an opinion and whoever is loudest garners an audience. Once again, celebrity outweighs most other considerations. America is celebrity over substance. The hole at the centre of American justice is riddled with celebrity fingerprints around its edges.
“That’s right we live in a world ruled by follows and likes, where people define their self worth by what others (mostly complete strangers they will never actually meet) think of them. It’s so sad, so very sad! All you have to do is jump onto TikTok and you will find all the evidence needed to prove my point. “
Stars In Their Eyes
I think about that Union soldier, who was supposed to be guarding that bridge, and let stars in his eyes distract him from carrying out his duties. That should resonate with the 76 million Americans who voted for Donald Trump, knowing that he was at best an unreliable character and at worst a real danger to the Union. Right now, as the economy falters on his watch and billions are wasted on illegal executive actions being challenged constitutionally in the courts, America is declining rapidly. Hundreds of thousands of citizens are being hurt unnecessarily each and every day.
The world looks on in growing horror at what has become of the United States. Reality TV is not the real world and Trump’s celebrity will not save America from his infamy.
John Wilkes Booth escaped, although was, 12 days later, gunned down in Virginia by Union soldiers. He was buried in secret in an unmarked grave. I imagine this was so to deprive him and his admirers of any celebrity status. Love of celebrity is like a cancer inside American culture, as it distracts folk from their duty to see justice done. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Wilkes_Booth
Robert Sudha Hamilton is the author of What Price Life?; America Matters: Pre-apocalyptic Posts & Essays in the Shadow of Trump; and other titles. NOW AVAILABLE AT APPLE BOOKS & GOOGLE PLAY BOOKS. Google Play Books AUDIOBOOK
©MidasWord
