How Odd

How Odd

Every media outlet offers the same themes at the same time.

One week we are bombarded with stories about refugees. The next week we are bombarded with stories about racism in the police department. Occasionally, the planned news stream is interrupted by a catastrophe, but then the stories shift back to the coordinated focus that the rich and powerful media owners use to manipulate public conversation and thought.

Looking at today’s news headlines we see the ‘critical’ news of the day.

A judge in a province of China ruled against same-sex marriage. Now here is a story that the entire world must know!

Curfew imposed in Kashmir. This is important to those of us in Baltimore because we might have gone for a stroll in Kashmir and broken the curfew.

American woman jailed for insulting United Arab Emirates. The woman was jailed on February 23^rd. Today, this is a lead story! Suddenly, 50-days after the arrest, this is an urgent story on news sites in America!

Oklahoma Lawmakers aim to increase cattle rustling penalties. (Important to ranchers in Oklahoma and cows everywhere).

My point is that although these stories may be of interest to us why are they the lead stories on aggregate news sites and in our daily newspapers.

Tomorrow, we could see a sudden shift in every news outlet’s focus. Tomorrow 80% of the news outlets could coincidentally run big stories about refugees, illegal aliens, or Donald Trump’s mismatched socks.

However, it is the repetitive stories that keep us under control. White vs Black, Hispanics vs Everyone, Refugees, Illegal Alians, building 'the Wall" are stories with a common purpose. Divide the masses and keep us arguing among ourselves so we do not notice the corporations, banks, and Wall Street tycoons laughing all the way to the off-shore bank!

We are being manipulated. It is our own fault. We gobble up tabloid soap opera like stories and we love any story that confirms our preconceived prejudices. We really are as dumb as the wealthy and powerful assume.

So why the coordinated ‘news’? The powerful cannot allow the masses to actually think. They cannot allow the masses to clearly see how the wealthy obtain and maintain their wealth. For example, they cannot allow us to demand substantial changes in banking laws, investment laws, or any changes that reduce profits. Most Americans will either shrug or deny that the American taxpayers can pay for more massive bailouts. In fact, the taxpayer bailout scheme is one of the best examples of our stupidity.

It is so easy to see the problems with using tax money to bail out banks and wall street investors and corporations. Think about the most basic facts.

When corporations, big investors or banks makes a huge profit, it is theirs! We have no problem with that fact. They earned it.

When corporations, big investors or banks lose a large amount of money, we cover their loss.

Imagine placing a huge bet at a casino and when you win, you keep the money and when you lose everyone else covers your loss! Wow! I want to go to that casino!

Yet, we see no media interest in producing a series of stories, similar to their coordinated effort to sway opinions about illegal aliens, refugees or White police officers shooting Black suspects. Again, I am not suggesting that these stories be abandoned, but where is the constant stream of media stories about the rape of the American taxpayer?

When the Internet and blogging came into being, there was a brief hope that the average Americans would engage in meaningful discourse. However, the media has so focused our attention and provided ‘proof’ that our prejudices are justified that we blog about what the media presents. It does not matter if we agree or disagree with the position of the media. What matters to the media owners is that we stay focused on anything other than those things that could interfere with the wealthy.

Belgium and Terrorism

Once again, the simple minded offer simple solutions to a problem in these United States that does not even exist. Politicians, haters, and well-intentioned people, ignorant of history, focus on the horrible murders in Belgium without any analysis of how Belgium arrived at such a point.

Geography plays a big role in any European terrorism. European nations are so small and so close to each other that travel between these countries provides terrorists with the ability to nation hop at will. The following European countries are smaller than Texas. 

Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, Andorra, France, Italy, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, Portugal, San Marino, Spain, Switzerland, Vatican City, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Yugoslavia, Belarus, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, and Romania are all smaller than Texas.

Radical Muslims and those sympathetic to Radical Muslims did not just arrive in Belgium last year. For decades, going back to the 1980’s, Belgium has seen people in these groups constantly grow. By some estimates, there is so much empathy for radical Islam in Belgium that, Belgium has supplied the highest per capita number of fighters to Syria of any European nation –between 350 and 550, out of a total population of 11 million that includes fewer than half a million Muslims.

Belgium suffered waves of terrorism in the 1980s and 1990s linked to unrest in the Middle East. “There is a very long history of the connection between Belgium and France in the realm of terrorism,” said Rik Coolsaet, an expert on terrorism at the University of Ghent[1].

In the first half of the last decade, men from Belgium made their way to Iraq. So too did Muriel Degauque, a convert from Charleroi, who died in 2005 while bombing a US convoy in Iraq, becoming the first European woman to launch a suicide attack.

Others travelled to Afghanistan. In 2008, a network sending young Belgian Muslims to al-Qaida training camps was broken up. Several returned with the intention of committing attacks at home, prosecutors claimed.

Live Brussels explosions: multiple casualties after airport and metro attacks – live

The violent aftermath of the Arab spring provided a new motivation and new opportunities for extremists all over Europe, and militancy in Belgium itself was already broadening and deepening. One well-known, ostensibly non-violent, group of activists – Sharia4Belgium – that was responsible for a stream of aggressive hate-speech and alleged recruitment was eventually broken up.

Molenbeek, an area of 90,000 in the capital where some neighborhoods are up to 80% Muslim, is seen by many as a particular problem. “In parts of Brussels, there are areas on which the police have little grip, very segregated areas that don’t feel they’re a part of the Belgian state,” said Edwin Bakker, a Dutch analyst.

Note that all of these situations existed long before the EU refugee crisis.

Politicians and demagogues in these United States will not speak with a voice of reason. Instead, they will play on our fears and talk about sealing our border with Mexico, without every explaining what ‘sealing the border’ even means. They will talk about the ability of terrorists entering the United States by coming across the Mexican border, without explaining why terrorists could not enter the United States from Canada. True concern for protecting us from terrorism would include all borders. 

True concern about terrorism would address the millions of containers that pass through our ports every day and that if even one of those containers contains a nuclear or chemical bomb, we are at extreme risk.

If the issue is not about terror, what is it about? Fascists use whatever means necessary to convince us to blame dark skinned people, people of different faiths, people of a different culture for everything that is wrong in our lives. 

The rich and powerful support this nonsense so that they can continue to take as much money away from the workers. The rich and powerful support this nonsense so that their banks and Wall Street brokers can continue to gamble with our money with the certain knowledge that if they bet and win – they keep the profits and if they bet and lose, tax dollars will cover their losses. Blaming those that are different is almost the biggest fraud they commit. 

The biggest fraud is the belief that we choose our leaders in America. Really? Are you happy with the ‘choices’ that the rich and powerful give to us in the upcoming election? How many times have you wished for a good and honest candidate? No, the rich and powerful determine who we can elect.

In magic, this is called a forced card. You convince people that they are choosing a card, but you stack the deck in a way that they can only choose what you want them to choose.

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[1] The Guardian, November 16, 2015

The game plan: Why They March and Protest

The most recent racially charged drama involves a white officer who cursed, pulled his weapon and arrested a teenage girl. The media limits its report and discussion to these facts, as captured on a video. There are facts that the media will not discuss or even include in their reports.

1. Officers received a call to a large disturbance at a private pool.
2. Before the call, A DJ setup in a public space next to the private pool in the neighborhood and played loud explicit (F-bomb) music for multiple hours (it is unclear if he was invited by a resident as no one has claimed responsibility).
4. The DJ was tweeting out invites to a “pool party” for $15 (obviously unauthorized by the neighborhood).
5. The teens began fighting with each other and pushing their way into the private pool. Some were jumping the fence. The security guard was accosted when he tried to stop the beginnings of this mob scene.
7. Some residents tried to settle things down. The teens started yelling racial slurs at the residents and started assaulting people and property (throwing bottles at cars and attacking a mother at the private pool with three young children).
9. The first officer on the scene was by himself. By that time, the party had grown to a large, aggressive crowd. As the officer arrived, many teens started running through the neighborhood. Many of the teens were being very aggressive and yelling at the officers as more arrived.

Today, in another city, protestors are camped out in front of the mayor's house to protest the results of an investigation into the death of a black boy who was running around waiving a gun that turned out not to be a real gun. By the way, the investigation is not even complete and the protesters know that the mayor is out of state.

The Ferguson Missouri protestors are demanding the pay they were promised by protest organizers.

So what is the game plan?

For politicians and community organizers the game plan is to gain publicity and move a step up the ladder.

For Blacks it is the possibility of getting huge payouts in the form of reparations for injustices done in the recent past. (Their original attempt at reparations for injustices up to the Civil War went nowhere).

For the media it is viewership, readership and a larger radio audience.

The biggest losers will not be law enforcement, although individual law enforcement officers will be sacrificed to mob justice (or the mobs demand for justice). The biggest losers will be the descent and hard-working Black Americans that are trying to escape the ghettos. The biggest losers will be Black children who will grow up believing that they are victims.

What Was Not in the Video (and what the media fails to report)

What was not in the video!

A DJ setup in a public space next to the private pool in the neighborhood on Friday and played loud explicit (F-bomb) music for multiple hours (it is unclear if he was invited by a resident as no one has claimed responsibility). The teenagers (both black and white) were being brought into the neighborhood by the carload because the DJ was tweeting out invites to a “pool party” for $15 (obviously unauthorized by the neighborhood). The teens began fighting with each other and pushing their way into the private pool. Some were jumping the fence. The security guard was accosted when he tried to stop the beginnings of this mob scene.

Some residents tried to settle things down. The teens started yelling racial slurs at the residents and started assaulting people and property (throwing bottles at cars and attacking a mother at the private pool with three young children). The first officer on the scene was by himself. By that time, the party had grown to a large, aggressive crowd. As the officer arrived, many teens started running through the neighborhood. Many of the teens were being very aggressive and yelling at the officers as more arrived.

This was a very dangerous situation for the officers and the teens and residents.

The news media has refused to report the neighborhood’s side of this story. The video being distributed is only a very small segment of what happened. This information being distributed by the media and others is extremely distorted. Imagine the officer feeling so overwhelmed by the crowd that he drew his gun. He also used profanity.

The problem with police officers is in the recruiting process: they hire human beings with the same fears that humans tend to have and we expect them to be Mother Theresa. I would much rather know that an officer let his frustration and fear out by using profanity and I doubt that any of these teenagers learned any new profanity from the officer.

By the way, on Sunday a far left liberal group (know as The Marxist, Maoist Collective) posted the home address and phone number of McKinney officer Eric Casebolt online.

Baltimore - One of the Finest City Police Departments in the Nation

The Police Union and the Fraternal Order of Police should hold press conferences every week and insist that the mayor and states attorney step down. Until that time, the working cops should simply take reports. The Union and FOP should emphasize that businesses are fleeing the city and new businesses, conventions and tourists should stay out of Baltimore.

Why are both representatives of Baltimore Police afraid to go head-to-head with the Mayor? There is the unspoken threat that the city will refuse either group to use payroll deductions for dues paying members. This threat has existed for decades. Should that occur they should sue the city and decide the issue once and for all.

Crime Rates have fallen over the past several yeas and the experts cannot explain why because their ‘expert’ opinion has consistently been that crime rises because of unemployment and poverty. During the recent period of high unemployment and increased poverty, crime went down. How inconvenient for the liberal experts!

Experts ignore the constant hard work of police officers, as they used zero tolerance; neighborhood oriented policing and crime analysis to determine police deployment. The use of tactical teams and bicycle squads and flex squads to jump out on known drug corners and open-air drug markets not only deters the illegal sale of narcotics, but they also affect street crime. The fact that hard working proactive police work has driven crime down does not fit the liberal expert narrative.

A simple fact is that when the police arrest someone after a crime has been committed, at least one crime was already committed. When police deter someone from committing a crime because the criminal fears the police will suddenly appear, crime goes down.

If only the Baltimore Police would demand that the States Attorney and Mayor resign and then insist that the City Council publicly support the police and ask for a zero tolerance policy in high crime neighborhoods, the Baltimore Police might start a national trend.

Racism and brutality should never be tolerated and allegations should be thoroughly investigated – as they are in Baltimore. The Baltimore City Police Department’s Internal Investigation Division is unrelenting in their investigations. Many officers are cleared of the accusation bought against them but are still hammered for ‘conduct not alleged’. The Baltimore Police Command Staff is a meat grinder when it comes to crushing a working police officer.

Businesses need an ironclad guarantee from a new mayor and a new States Attorney that future looters, arsonists and mobs will be crushed. The National Guard should never respond to a riot and be told to just stand and watch criminals destroy and burn. A new mayor and States Attorney that publicly announce their support of strong police actions are needed for Baltimore to keep the few remaining business in Baltimore and encourage others to establish a business in ‘Charm City’.

Police - Waco Texas Biker Fight - Blame the Cops

The biker gangs fought each-other and the police. Now here is the reality.
When three rival gangs are fighting with chains, knives and brass knuckles the surrounding police are not going to jump into the melee. News reports state that the bikers shot at police and that the police shot at the bikers. Officers arrested 170-people and nine people (presumably bikers) were killed. 18 others were wounded.

The morning after this gang fight, NPR and 'experts' spoke on the air. The first criticism about the police response was that they should have done more to prevent the fight and been pro-active. Relax. This criticism will soon change. Most, if not all of the dead bikers were probably shot by the police. The new criticism will be that the police started the gun-fight and killed these unarmed men. If only those mean only police officers would have blew kisses at the bikers and did their part to make them feel loved! After-all, most of these gang members join because they feel unloved and are in need of some form of family. How stupid can the police be?

Reality: these biker gangs work as hit men for other organized crime groups. These bikers transport and sell coke, meth and other assorted drugs. Gee, is it possible they work for and with the Mexican cartels? Nahh, they might ride in Texas near the border but they would never do such a bad thing.

By the end of this week the blame game will focus on the police.

I don't know why the police don't 'get it'. It is very simple. Be nice. Meet fists, knives and guns with a smile and love. Never, under any circumstance, be proactive AND don't wait until a crime occurs - prevent it. Never, initiate any contact with a black male. Prevent the murders and rapes in black ghettos. It should be easy because the victims and witnesses agree that the suspects are black

To be a police officer today seems like such a stress-free and happy place.

Are Closed Minds Best for American?

Are Closed Minds Best for America?

We are a passionate people. Passion can be good, but unbridled passion needs to be tempered. Apathy never got anyone anywhere. But a relentless, closed minded passion can also become a great weakness, a powerful and crippling deficiency that goes misunderstood, or worse, unacknowledged by those who are drained by it.

One can be certain of their beliefs and still be wise enough to explore opposing beliefs. We can often find truth and ideas we have not considered by honestly considering opposing ideas and positions. The exact opposite is true if we only consider opinions that match our own views. Yet, this seems to be exactly what many citizens choose to do. How can a closed minded population be what is best for America?

Believing what is said on MSNBC or FOX News without even checking the facts leads to this closed mindedness. Imagine that we don’t even bother to check the facts. A disturbing question arises when considering our choice of news sources. Do we choose our source because our own beliefs, prejudices ad opinions are supported by a particular news program or talk radio show?

To a large degree, we have become a closed-minded citizenry and a polarized society. There has always been a majority and minority group in congress. For hundreds of years opposing political parties have managed to compromise and work together to pass legislation that the serving president would sign. Today, we seem to be moving into a new type of congress; one where the majority party and the minority party simply demand ‘my way or the highway’.

Congressional gridlock is one of the casualties of our closed-minds. Surely, most beliefs and opinions are not so perfect that improvement is impossible. Reasonable people can differ and can compromise. Can any relationship succeed without compromise? Imagine a marriage without compromise. Two people joined for life would have to have the exact same beliefs throughout the duration of a lifetime. (Yes, I know that most marriages do not last a lifetime. I suspect part of the problem may be a lack of compromise).

Before we can even consider compromise, we must be willing to listen with the intent of learning. Most of us only hesitate to speak until the other party finishes describing their beliefs. In other words, we are polite and do not interrupt, but instead of listening we are formulating our reply[1].

Hot button topics like illegal immigration and the Affordable Care Act bring out the worst in us. Just using the phrases ‘illegal immigration’ and the ‘Affordable Care Act’ are enough to set some people off. They insist we must use the phrases ‘illegal alien’ and ‘Obamacare’ when explaining our opinions[2].  How can we be open-minded if the use of a simple phrase or term creates such hostility? I am not writing about curse words or racist words. Everyday words and phrases should not cause such anger.

Closed minds are not in our nation’s best interest. In fact, the free exchange of ideas is a building block of our freedom. We cannot have an exchange of ideas with closed minds. This does not mean we must surrender our principles or that our ideas are wrong. It simply means that we honestly try to understand another viewpoint and consider how our ideas and opinion can merge with ideas and opinions that we don’t necessarily like.

 

 

 

 

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[1] I have been guilty of this and worsening matters by rolling my eyes.

[2] Oddly, many of these same people object to being criticized for being politically incorrect and suggest that pushing a person to speak a certain way is un-American.