Many would proclaim the United States to be a constitutional federal republic based off of representative democracy. We have institutions and apparatuses that support and, for the most part, embody this perspective of the civilization of the United States of America. However, aspects of this civilization has started to breakdown and become influenced, even fully shaped, by external forces that do not adhere to constitutional or democratic principles. An main example of this antithetical mentality, is the concept known as a "Deep State".
The first aspect to understand is to outline what exactly a "Deep State" is. It is most easily understood as a double government; one that function simultaneously along side the public state institutions we think of today. As Tufts University political scientist Michael J. Glenno explains, there is the "dignified institutions"; which consist of the presidency, Congress, etc. This is the aspect that we would traditionally call the public "State". There is then the "efficient institutions"; such as military, law-enforcement, intelligence agencies, etc. These are the mechanisms that are making governmental domestic and foreign policy. This consists of what he describes as the double government, the "Deep State"; the State within the State. http://www.bostonglobe.com/ideas/2014/10/18/vote-all-you-want-the-secret-government-won-change/jVSkXrENQlu8vNcBfMn9sL/amp.html?
The differences between these two can at times not only conflict with the interest of each other; but the Deep State typically supersedes its interests above that of the public State, and that of the citizen interest. This aspect of counter productive interests is what President Dwight Eisenhower warned when he spoke of the "Military-Industrial-Complex" in his farewell speech. Another president, John F. Kennedy, made a speech describing a similar concealed institution that goes unnoticed while acting within the public State. In a speech called "the President and the Press", President Kennedy made the following remarks:
"The very word "secrecy" is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths and to secret proceedings. We decided long ago that the dangers of excessive and unwarranted concealment of pertinent facts far outweighed the dangers which are cited to justify it. Even today, there is little value in opposing the threat of a closed society by imitating its arbitrary restrictions. Even today, there is little value in insuring the survival of our nation if our traditions do not survive with it. And there is very grave danger that an announced need for increased security will be seized upon by those anxious to expand its meaning to the very limits of official censorship and concealment. That I do not intend to permit to the extent that it is in my control. And no official of my Administration, whether his rank is high or low, civilian or military, should interpret my words here tonight as an excuse to censor the news, to stifle dissent, to cover up our mistakes or to withhold from the press and the public the facts they deserve to know...Today no war has been declared—and however fierce the struggle may be—it may never be declared in the traditional fashion. Our way of life is under attack. Those who make themselves our enemy are advancing around the globe. The survival of our friends is in danger. And yet no war has been declared, no borders have been crossed by marching troops, no missiles have been fired...If the press is awaiting a declaration of war before it imposes the self-discipline of combat conditions, then I can only say that no war ever posed a greater threat to our security. If you are awaiting a finding of "clear and present danger," then I can only say that the danger has never been more clear and its presence has never been more imminent...It requires a change in outlook, a change in tactics, a change in missions—by the government, by the people, by every businessman or labor leader, and by every newspaper. For we are opposed around the world by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies primarily on covert means for expanding its sphere of influence—on infiltration instead of invasion, on subversion instead of elections, on intimidation instead of free choice, on guerrillas by night instead of armies by day. It is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific and political operations. Its preparations are concealed, not published. Its mistakes are buried, not headlined. Its dissenters are silenced, not praised. No expenditure is questioned, no rumor is printed, no secret is revealed. It conducts the Cold War, in short, with a war-time discipline no democracy would ever hope or wish to match."
Today, the Deep State has formed into a classified society onto itself. There is 5 million people with basic classification security clearance; while roughly 1 million people have top secret security clearance or above.
The Deep State operates without accountability or responsibility; and has a track record of operating with imperialistic pretensions. If we fail to address this growing divided between those within the national security apparatuses, and the rest of the civilian population. We risk the Deep State growing into a civilization onto itself; disassociated from the greater society that sustains it. The immense amount of resources that are being expended on the operations and policies of the Deep State siphon off massive quantities of our publicly disclose the budget. The reallocation of large portions of this human and material resources away from obsolete systems; would be prime in being repurposed towards domestic efforts. Additionally to all the resources, there are structural and institutional apparatuses that could be repurposed and re-organized towards the benefit of the greater society and public State institutions.
With the Deep State and public State merged once more; The United States as a civilization would be capable of correcting its errors and changing course onto a new realm of civilization and cultural evolution. We must not forget that the Deep State is an aspect of our public institutions that we failed to pay attention to. It was allowed fall into the shadows; in which a lack of oversight dehumanized its policies. If we take the responsibility, and have the courage of accountability, we can reunite the deep state and public institutions back into a unified civilization. Allowing a new opportunity for a rejuvenated and restored relationship between the citizenry and governance.
