Generals gathered in their masses,
just like witches at black masses.
Evil minds that plot destruction,
sorcerers of death's construction.
In the fields the bodies burning,
as the war machine keeps turning.
Death and hatred to mankind,
poisoning their brainwashed minds.
Oh lord, yeah!

Politicians hide themselves away.
They only started the war.
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor, yeah.

Time will tell on their power minds,
making war just for fun.
Treating people just like pawns in chess,
wait till their judgement day comes, yeah.

Now in darkness world stops turning,
ashes where the bodies burning.
No more War Pigs have the power,
Hand of God has struck the hour.
Day of judgement, God is calling,
on their knees the war pigs crawling.
Begging mercies for their sins,
Satan, laughing, spreads his wings.
Oh lord, yeah!
               --Black Sabbath, War Pigs

On the eve of this momentous election I can't help but think of 
Sabbath's lyrics, so appropriate right now.  Because unless 
everyone has forgotten we are still at war, and that war[s] is 
as illegal now as it ever was.  But in the midst of the 
financial crisis and the hopes of replacing arguably the USA's 
worst president ever we seem to have forgotten that.  Having 
said that, I must turn my attention to the farce that poses 
as democracy.

I don't know if the candidates have everybody fooled, if our 
system is just so pitiful, or if the electorate is just mindless.  
I see conservatives who really believe in the principles of 
their political faith supporting McCain, just as they supported 
Bush, who gladly took them and the rest of us to the cleaners.  
The unstated should be plainly clear here: federal bailouts, 
nationalizing banks and industry, spending like a drunk sailor 
is not conservative.  If any given Democrat had tried to pull 
off half the things King George has domestically he would have 
been tarred and feathered long ago.  Quite a new twist on the 
concept of only Nixon being able to go to China.

On the other hand I see many liberals, who I know personally to 
be anti-war at the least, pacifist at best, supporting 
Obama/Biden, despite the latter's public vows to continue the 
maintenance and growth of the War Machine.  I'm sure the instant 
justification is the old lesser of two evils.  But that very 
concept is what got us in to this fix in the first place.  
The only redeeming factor to any of this may be, ironically, 
that if the Democrats win the Whitehouse and control of 
Congress, a minority Republican Party may be a better check 
on excess than the minority Democratic Party has ever been.

I don't mean to play-down the significance of the financial fiasco.  
It is and will be the determining event for many of us.  Our world 
will likely never be the same as it has been for the last 15 years 
or so.  I am visualizing the living standards of the 1970's as being 
more the norm.  Unfortunately, the Government has identified the 
problem and offered to be our great night in shining armour--again.  
Dare we ever forget that the excesses of government played as much 
if not more a role in the formation of this mess as anything.  And 
the absolute fortune we have wasted killing and being killed by West 
Asians will never come back to us, and only takes away from our 
options for domestic stabilization.

Surely there's a better way.  Alfred E Newman, where are you when 
we need you?