The Washington Post is running a multi-part investigative piece, “Top Secret America,” on the gargantuan shadow security apparatus that sprang up in the wake of 9/11.  There’s the place to start for anybody truly concerned about out-of-control government bureaucracy.  It’s easy to blame Dick Cheney’s Dr. Strangelovian inclinations for something like this, but it’s important to note that a mess of this magnitude couldn’t have happened without being enabled by Congress.  Despite mind-boggling outlays of capital and tentacles reaching into all corners of the land, the operation has notably failed in its mission to detect and prevent significant incidents of domestic terrorism post 9/11.  It’s like something out of an apocalyptic horror film, but it’s unfortunately all too real.  The question now is, what the hell do we do about it?

In 1966, a UC Berkeley graduate and Free Speech Movement veteran named Barbara Garson self-published a satirical play called “MacBird!,” which placed key figures from the John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson administrations within a storyline loosely based on “MacBeth.”  The play opened in New York the following year and launched the careers of Stacey Keach and Rue McClanahan, among others.  Even though the play itself was controversial, it’s noteworthy how rarely we see such epic treatments of political America in forms that gain any traction at all.  The relationship between Dick Cheney and the vacuous, pampered frat boy W, for example, is ripe for a Shakespearian interpretation.  The arts are the first draft of history, after all.  It’s always healthy to maintain a sense of humor, especially when times are dark.  What kinds of stories might we see if some talented playwright were churning out popular titles like “MacBubba,” or “George II,” or “Husseinlet?”