When a snake sheds its skin it nevertheless remains a snake.

An Empire maintains its power through a combination of diversion & disinformation within its own borders concomitant with internal repression & exploitation, and perpetually waging external wars which are always predicated upon some form of subterfuge and misinformation. The U.S. Empire is no different in this regard, except that it is perhaps even more akin to a clever, poisonous snake in how it maintains its death grip on those over whom it rules.

A large portion of the corporate and military elite of the U.S. Empire in this 21st Century have selected and honed for themselves, in the person of Barack Obama, a new skin for the continuation of their 21st Century Empire. In Barack Obama, they have devised a way in which they hope to gain colored political cover for the past, present, and future atrocities of the U.S. Empire. Notwithstanding the attempted superficial, proverbial shedding of its blood-soaked skin, it will still remain an Empire; a poisonous snake with a different skin that is committed to subduing opposition at home and maintaining global hegemony abroad.

The Democratic and Republican Parties are all Republicrats with the singular goal of maintaining and perpetuating, at all costs, corporate glut and U.S. Empire. This is why, for example, the leadership of the Democratic and Republican Parties urged support for the recent 700 billion dollar corporate bail out [i.e. sell out of every day people] in the United States. This is precisely why George W. Bush, Nancy Pelosi, Barack Obama, and John McCain all supported the 700 billion dollar give away to corporate Wall Street and the rip off of the men, women, and children of the United States of America. They are Republicrats.

Nonetheless, Barack Obama is perceived by many in the U.S. corporate / military elite as being in a particularly unique position to prop up and perpetuate corporate greed, internal repression, and U.S. Empire; all in the double speak and misleading name of so-called “change.” It is, apparently for some, time for the snake to change its skin in order to get an even tighter grip around the throats of the peoples of this nation and world.

Thus, in this vein it should come as no surprise that much of the corporate media, which is really the propaganda arm of the U.S. Empire, swoons over Barack Obama, rather than fulfill their ethical and professional responsibilities to report and thoroughly inform the people. [Reference The Pimping of Black America: Why Much of the Corporate Media Supports Barack Obama]

Author Rand Clifford, in his recent article titled, America! Be Truly Afraid, correctly delineates precisely what the U.S. corporate media is all about today, when he wrote: “While compulsory lying, distractions, and inane diversions reduce our fourth estate [i.e. the mass media] into corporate government’s fifth column [i.e. a group or groups that clandestinely work to undermine an organization, a people, or a nation], it seems omission is the key tactic so solidly embedding mainstream corporate media into an exploiter of the people…” [Reference CounterCurrents.org]

Indeed, the mass media as “corporate government’s fifth column” distorts and deliberately works against the best interests of the vast majority of people in this nation and throughout the world. Moreover, it must always be remembered that the constant objective of the corporate media is to manipulate and form opinion, not to inform the masses of people so that they / we can make intelligent and informed decisions.

The Democratic and Republican Parties, including Barack Obama, are Republicrat snakes. They offer nothing but shed serpent skins and broken promises.

There is another way; a sane and viable possibility. We must build a real people’s movement for systemic change -; one that rejects and repudiates the blood-sucking corporate greed of Wall Street and the concomitant military adventurism of the U.S. Empire. The “All Power To The People” campaign of Cynthia McKinney & Rosa Clemente is precisely about this, both now and well into the future. This is about genuine movement building, not the “economic hustling and hustlers” of the Republic Democratic and Republican Parties.

Long time Black political activist, Ralph Poynter, and comrade recently reminded me of the timely and timeless paraphrased words of the late and renowned writer and activist, James Baldwin, who said: “There is no such thing as the lesser of two evils.” You either vote for what you want or for somebody else’s program. The Democratic and Republican Parties are both equally unacceptable, and Barack Obama is not the lesser of two evils. He is an integral and systemic part of the Republicrat’s cruel sham meant to maintain and perpetuate repression at home and U.S. Empire abroad.

We do have a choice and it does not include the Republicrats. It’s all about affordable and decent housing, universal health care, decent-paying jobs, a just and fair judicial system, education for ourselves and our children, and an end to corporate greed and military adventurism. No more corporate blood-sucking of the people in the name of “change.” No more! Perhaps, Malcolm X put it best when he said, “Show me a capitalist and I’ll show you a blood sucker.” It’s time and past time to be about the building of the New person, based on our human needs and not greed.

Black, Brown Red, Yellow, and White...Onward my sisters and brothers. Onward… There is so much work to be done.

BlackCommentator.com Editorial Board Member, Larry Pinkney, is a veteran of the Black Panther Party, the former Minister of Interior of the Republic of New Africa, a former political prisoner and the only American to have successfully self-authored his civil/political rights case to the United Nations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. In connection with his political organizing activities in opposition to voter suppression, etc., Pinkney was interviewed in 1988 on the nationally televised PBS NewsHour, formerly known as The MacNeil/Lehrer NewsHour. For more about Larry Pinkney see the book, Saying No to Power: Autobiography of a 20th Century Activist and Thinker, by William Mandel [Introduction by Howard Zinn]. (Click here to read excerpts from the book). Click here to contact Mr. Pinkney.