For me, the American Coup began on a day in November 1963, to be more exact, it was my birthday, 22 November.

Before that day, my efforts centered on getting away from a dysfunctional household and that led me to the coffee shops of Oakland and Berkeley where people seemed to sit around, sipping for hours at a single cup of black coffee and talk. Beatniks of the 50's. At times the conversation was unintelligible, at other times it was stimulating. Mostly, I just listened. I was only a kid. And I did not care about the fat lady reading poetry in an over-bearing voice.

Whether I met anyone famous or not seems to have slipped by my ability to recollect, yet, I came away with the seeds independent thought firmly planted. All of this began to sprout as I fought the battle back at home, became disowned and ran away by joining the Army. By the time I was a civilian again, Eisenhower had led us into a recession and I was miles from being that youth who joined the military fracas. Ike left us all a message and a warning about the Military Industrial Complex when he waved goodbye, handing the problems of southeast Asia and his little noticed warning to the next President.

We should have listened then because it foretold of the coming coup, the savagery of Conservatism and Corporate greed; the destruction of the Constitution.

From where I stood, America and Americans seemed to be fighting back, thus were the 60's. Television commentators now speak of a time when America seemed to be coming apart, perspective -- I thought America was getting back to it's roots.

Along came Vietnam, a limited war fought because we forgot the lessons of Korea, and there were things about politicians making military decisions and a failure to seek victory and all of the time ignoring lessons taught to us by General W. T. Sherman on how to do the job and we did not remember. We never remember.

Then we murdered another Kennedy and a King, and the coup continued. And we elected Nixon. The electorate had it's head up it's ass. My neighbor is fond of shouting, "We get the government we deserve." Perhaps he has a point. And corporate America grew on a wartime budget, and no one remembered Eisenhower. Nobody ever remembers.

Then we elected an actor who was a profound failure as a Governor, who broke the law then told us so, almost daring someone to do something about it. The Imperial Presidency. It had arrived.

Gone were the flower children and their promise of Nirvana, gone was the notion of togetherness, instead we were under the thumb of imported oil, cheesy cars and secret meetings in the name of National Security. Invade Grenada, can't lose. Victory; we beat the holy crap out of Grenada, Granola or whatever it was; then we named an airport after this mentally addled crook.

Clinton slipped in there somehow. They couldn't shoot him so they investigated everything including the inside of his shorts. Clinton couldn't get a judge appointed, but who cared? Americans didn't.

The Coup could not stand to have anything interfering with the trend toward -- toward what? It wasn't democracy. Bush! Congress was getting it's balls cut off, the courts were being stacked with extreme rightists. Greed! Personal wealth. No governance. No help. A stolen election by any measure -- the coup was complete.

The Imperial Presidency and the Military Industrial Complex.

Because nobody remembered.

Kootie J