“And some that smile have in their hearts, I fear, millions of mischiefs.” — William Shakespeare
Yes, Bill, you’re quite right – at least millions.
However, for those who insist on believing in multiple – perhaps even millions – of universes, they haven’t read the Bible or truly appreciated the work of John Venn. For had they focused their attention more temporally, where the real work remains, they would have realized that the most burgeoning reality is found in the existence of multiple deep states (those “mischiefs”) within one universe. And thanks to Mr. Venn we have the perfect mapping tool to examine what’s going on.
That there has been ample attention given to the deep state within the U.S. Government shows a very healthy inclination on the part of real Americans. And it makes for a great first sighting. Now, though, I would like to broaden their horizons by introducing the postulate that against the backdrop of Venn’s universe we should begin identifying and tracking the existence of the various deep states and subsets within that affect our lives and especially the toxic intersections they form with other deep state sets.
So your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to create the aforesuggested Venn diagram. In my opinion, unions of sets do not really qualify for our little study, that is, if we go by how the overall problem discussed here is defined. But feel free to go freestyle with your Legos and Tinker Toys, I always did. And don’t inhibit your creativity by DRINKING DECAF! One last thing, a word of caution. After listing the biggies, those deep states that loom over the heads of Americans just like those alien mother ships in the movie Independence Day, you might be inclined (and I would encourage it) to list all of the deep states in your daily lives. (Hey, I think I just invented a new daytime TV show: Deep States of Our Lives.) Just don’t be surprised if your diagram begins to look like what optometrists might describe as phoropters gone wild. Lastly, after you start listing everything that comes to mind – including but far from limited to the deep state responsible for your grammar school student not making one of the athletic teams despite being a better player than at least half the ones chosen – if you have to transfer your work from notebook to poster board, that’s not a bad thing.
Just to get you started, I’ll give you a good example of two prominent deep states that intersect: the one within the U.S. government and the one within the Roman Catholic Church. Now, don’t start jumping to conclusions. I’m a faithful Catholic, and my intent is not to harm but to help the Church. And I’m certainly not attempting anything heretical, blasphemous, or schismatic. But everyone has a responsibility to do what they can to keep both their house and team in order. The fact of the matter is that there are people in the Roman Catholic Church just as there are in our bureaucratically handicapped federal government who have some “peculiar ideas on how to do [their] job” (Absence of Malice, 1981). The scary part is what is shared by the two within the shadowy confines of their intersection. Certainly, this church and deep state integration involves political intrigue and veritably indivisible collusion (finally, an appropriate use of the term). But to what end? Well, for one, the two would not mind at all seeing the idea of Jeffersonian Democracy going the way of the dodo. Such founding principles of individual liberty and rugged individualism do not exactly comport with a federal government that seeks justification for growth to imperious proportions. And neither do they comport with a minority of clergy – albeit a very powerful one – within the Catholic Church who seek to promote higher income tax rates so as to maintain their status as a branch artery to the hypertensive aorta of federal spending. Oh, and did I mention other things like strenuously interfering in our nation’s immigration policies, opposing Second Amendment rights, having some odd shortcomings with respect to properly recognizing African-American Catholics, etc.? Believe it or not, there are people in the federal government who like to make friends with people like I just described. Much more on this in future blog posts. Stay tuned.
Deep states. Fear them, fight them, never respect them. The soil of our great land is nearly ready for planting. So let’s start ripping out the weeds. And don’t forget the taproots.
