#freedom of speech is good because it makes people trust the government more | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

direwolfrules · 1 year

Text

3 Mandos and a Baby AU: The Republic

For the first part of this AU things go according to canon for the wider Republic. Listen, they are four time traveling dumbasses who can barely manage to fix one sector, they’re not even going to attempt to touch that dumpster fire. When the Clone Wars break out they’re more than okay with hunkering down and trying to fortify Mandalore. Honestly, the survivors of the Siege of Mandalore could do with never seeing another plastoid covered clone in their lives.

Unfortunately for them Korkie’s a bleeding heart with a passionate hatred for slavery. He was partially raised by the force ghosts of Jaster Mereel and Myles the Mandalorian, two people who spent half their time screaming about the bastard slaver cowards who really killed Jango, long before Mace Windu’s lightsaber ever entered the picture, and 99, who tells Korkie such terrible stories about Kamino that he gets nightmares.

Korkie fucks off to Coruscant to deliver an address to the Senate. Everyone’s all tense because last they heard from the Mandalore system was there was a coup. Quite a few people are worried about whatever this barbaric, savage warlord is going to say. And what has he done to poor Duchess Satine?! (He gave her a “sorry for overthrowing your government” card, that’s what he did)

Korkie rolls up to the Senate dome in full armor, calls them all slaving monsters, and then pledges Mandalore to fight with Republic on the condition that they get at least partial control of Kamino’s security. They’re not going to be fighting for the Republic, Korkie says, they’re gonna be fighting for all the Mandalorian citizens they’ve enslaved for this war. (Clone freedom underground go brrrrr)

The Senate’s going crazy. One guy, maybe the Senator from Nemodia, questions what he’s done with good Duchess Satine and why should they entrust the source of their army to an illegitimate ruler? Korkie responds with “Honestly, do you all think I killed my aunt?” and sets the record straight but like, everyone comes away feeling nervous and with the impression that the Kryze family needs serious therapy.

Obi-Wan lets out the world’s tiniest sigh of relief upon hearing the news that Satine was okay. And also kinda surprised that she has a nephew because last he checked her and Bo-Katan didn’t have any siblings? Eh, she probably just adopted a more distant clan member or something.

Anakin’s not sure how to feel about the new Mand’alor. Like, the guy said he’d fight with them, and he made it really clear he hates slavery. Two massive pluses in his book. But he had rubbed the Chancellor the wrong way. Anakin’s knows this because Palpatine stopped Padme to chat about how much of a power grab Mandalore was making with these demands and how much of threat this was and stuff. And Anakin trusts the Chancellor. Plus, Obi-Wan’s been super freaked out since news of the coup hit the holo. Anakin is supposed to be the biggest source of stress in Obi-Wan’s life!

The Senate quickly comes to anticipate Korkie’s visits with a healthy combination of fear and awe. It seems like every time he shows up another dozen or so Senators are arrested for corruption related reasons. One time he just pops in to read off Orn Fre Taa’s crimes for over three hours. Each individual offense is read out, and when he gets to the slaving he reads out every name. Every goddamn name.

Bo can’t help but be proud and also a little sad, When he’s up there giving his passionate speeches about tyranny she’s reminded of another Korkie, one who may have lived had he not kept running back into the fires that night.

Anyway, Korkie’s always wearing armor and the helmet mic + they fact that this boy is tall makes him seem older than he is. The first time anyone outside of Mandalore sees him without his helmet he’s on the Coronet, escorting his Aunt Satine to go speak on his behalf on the issue of clone rights. The cast of who’s on the ship changes only slightly, Padme joins in place of Orn Fre Taa and Mandalore’s new senator is Vel Batin, who’s honestly just so cool and may or may not have adopted like seven vode.

Korkie takes off his helmet for dinner and everyone just kinda chokes cause that is a child. Well, except Obi-Wan. He chokes cause that is teenage him sitting across the way. Well, except the ears, but seriously what the hell? Anakin pulls a pro-gamer move and says something like “Huh, I didn’t know Mandalore had child politicians too. How old are you?”

And Korkie being a cheeky little shit answers 17 while putting on his best Kenobi smile, and then immediately goes back to texting Fenn about the new ad Bo totally isn’t adopting. Obi-Wan proceeds to have a mental breakdown over the salad, Satine is just left sitting there awkwardly, and Anakin and Padme are left sipping martinis while everyone else is confused what just happened and still reeling from the revelation that the Mand’alor is a teenage boy. Orn Fre Taa was thrown in prison by a teenage boy. The senate was read for filth by a teenage boy. Suddenly a lot of things make a lot more sense.

The GAR love Korkie. Like, when he shows up to the Senate every brother who’s able tunes in to watch his speeches. The Coruscant Guard have named him their official vod’ika. The 212th contest this on the grounds that he is their general’s biological son. The 501st just likes that he sent the Children of the Watch to the Kamino system just in time to save those stationed at Rishi base.

Palpatine’s attempts to discredit the kid or paint him as a savage monster Mando of old keep getting derailed by the fact Korkie’s just a genuinely nice kid with an excellent PR team (our favorite nameless theater kid found his calling). A holo recording of him giving Satine the “sorry I overthrew your government” card goes viral, people love that sheepish smile he has on. A whole news segment is dedicated to times he’s saved children/clones/government officials. Not to mention the cadre of animals that always follow him around.

41 notes · View notes

maitanii · 1 year

Text

So I received this ask but I don't why I can't answer it normally, so I'm going to write it here because I'm really passionate about what I do. Hope you see it anon 🌸🤍

Being a journalist is hard.

It's fucking hard.

It's frustrating.

But, it's also the best thing that has ever happened to me.

Because it has made me more human.

I chose this path back in 2016, when I downloaded Tumblr for the first time and US elections were around the corner. Honestly, i didn't know much about it, but I found it quite interesting (and Donald Trump was named like Donald duck, so it was funny). When he actually won, I went to school the next day and my English teacher was crying. And I couldn't understand why it was a bad thing. I didn't know much English and politics at that time. So she explained to me what It meant. And I became interested in knowing how things were developing in the US. And I started following the news. And the rest is history!

JOURNALISM (long post ahead):

Being a journalist is dedicating yourself to the people, because you're telling them not only what to think, but how and why should they think.

Now, i'd like to start by saying that journalism is completely different depending on which part of the world you are from.

Thankfully, I'm from a country with freedom of speech and even though our government is far from perfect, it protects us. On the other hand, you can work in any newspaper without having a degree, so it makes the system corrupt, and it's hard to get hired without having contacts (this is different in other European countries). This is the first downside that I find, but as I said, it changes depending on where you are from.

Another bad thing it's that nowadays, journalism has lost the trust that it used to have. It's so easy to post a video on Twitter, write the words "breaking news" and scare hundreds of people. Social Media has done great things, it allows me to write this! But it also changed journalism. And young journalist are paying the price of being called liars.

Humanity changed, and following Darwinism, to survive, journalism had to adapt. As we say in my country, dress me slowly because I'm in a hurry. In order to do things good, you have to do them carefully. But we live in a hurry, and we need to know things quickly. Fake news, clickbait and many other dirty techniques have developed because all we care about it's making money. Making money fast.

Now, starting with good things: you get to know the world.

Last year, I had the chance to interview a young man from Senegal who is training to compete in the next Olympic Games. I talked with a Moroccan influencer that spreads body positivity. I got to know a teacher who spent some years in Syria. I have always been an open minded person, but journalism changed me even more.

I get to do the things I love the most: reading and writing stories. But this time, everything is real.

Also, knowing a second language is so useful and amazing. People don't understand how incredible it feels to communicate with people from all around the globe. Interviewing someone in your language it's great, but in another language? It's just, woah, they understand me! (I have to say that I'm lucky that my first language is Spanish)

Journalism is the fourth power. For real, is such a powerful profession. You are in charge of investigating what's going on and tell the people on a daily basis stories from everywhere. People do not seem to ealize the impact that it has.

I'm not going to lie, sometimes i's depressing. My body is here, but my mind is in Ukraine, Iran, Taiwan. I have anxiety issues and this year, the world's current situation has not helped. But at the end of the day, I go to sleep having learned something new.

I hope I helped you a bit. In case you have another question, here I am!

PS: English is not my first language, so if you don't understand something, let me know!

#—marta talks

2 notes · View notes

mineofilms · 1 year

Text

Proodeftikés Énnoies

Progressivism - Progressive politics generally wants to change government in a new way. Unlike conservatism, which wants to keep government similar. It most often refers to a political movement in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, called “the Progressive Era.” In the United States, these people want to change politics, which tends to be believed as run by big business and corrupt political machines. (From Wikipedia, Progressivism)

As this is just a rough definition of Progressivism. When you start to look at Webster’s dictionary definition of Progressivism it takes you down a rabbit hole of other definitions. The first points you to the definition of Progressives, which is about ten definitions of different nonsensical variations of the same thing. On average, most people tend to believe Progressivism to be in part of the brief wiki definition above and a radical group of “yes” people. A group that does not want to upset their voters so they just push nonsensical agendas that steer the human race backward, with less freedom and more control. Additionally wanting to take your free speech and right to bare arms away all under the ruse of Progressivism.

How I interrupt Progressivism is more associated to the root word, “progress,” as it is generally defined as; forward or onward movement toward a destination or a goal. It should be noted that when one or a group moves forward that is what progression means. When you literally go backward, one or the group cannot say they are being progressive. That isn’t at all accurate. That isn’t progressive. Going backward is not progressive…

I have made it very well-known that I find both sides of the political coin just variations of the same disgusting monster. How I tend to define “Cancel Culture” and how both sides try to sell us on their version of AIR QUOTES, “FACTS.” The LEFT/RIGHT both tend to take poop, redress it up, change the smell to sweet apple pie, and tell people it is good for human consumption with the expectation all the sheepeople, (us), will accept that blindly because it comes from people we either voted in or trust with our well-being, our freedom. Anyone who actually eats the poop without question is the idiot. Not the ones that question where this “food for human consumption” came from and what it was before they dressed it up. You cannot blame the politician for being a politician, which is what they do. However, at the end of the day, dude, you just ate poop. No doubt about it, you’re a poop-eater.

Is that progressive? Is that being progressive? What direction are you going? What direction are we going? PROGRESSIVE!!!

Like everything… Things change… Perspectives change… Point of views change… “FACTS” do not change… They are deemed “FACTS” because one or a group cannot take said “FACT” and argue that it is not a “FACT.” Sure, they can argue it, but arguing it and proving it are not one in the same. This goes hand and hand with, just because one or the group want something to be real so badly that just wishful thinking makes it real by default. With no effort whatsoever to make the thing they want real, in fact, real. That is what delusional means…

I ask; how can one or a group of self-proclaimed “progressive thinkers” say we are progressing when the actual thinkers, the people that did the work, did the research, studied for decades to take concepts of things and turn them into things we interact with in our reality, which we call “FACTS.” How can they be progressive, when they are going backwards? And it is very clear they are leading us in that direction. Not forward, but backward. This group and/or the one cannot change the definition of backward; because they identify with that concept as progression? It’s not about being on the right/wrong side of history. It’s about being philosophically moral in a society where we are taught at a very young age right/wrong with false data displayed as “FACTS” in order to gain a perspective of the concept of right and wrong to begin with all in the name of being progressive. If you're a Left Lifer or a Right Lifer you will never see, experience, or adopt new concepts, which is the textbook definition of progression... Going backward can never be associated with progression, it is literally the opposite. Both sides go backward, but try to tell us/sell us that is what “progression” actually is. Progression is when one or many “progress and go forward.” The opposite cannot be associated with progression, yet here we are…

We keep going backward as a culture under the ruse of progression.

Why do we do this? Why are we allowing it to happen? Are we so afraid of being canceled on social media?

Social Media is now the number one source for news in the world. BAD IDEA… Most of the articles posted are from News organizations the public no longer trusts, FAKE NEWS sites pretending to be real news sites, or opinion sites. That isn’t credible in my opinion. So take a subject, any subject. I read an opinion piece on it assuming its “FACT” and not opinion. I do no other research or look up on the subject. Then I post my own personal thoughts about it. How much of this is actually FACT? I do not know really. That’s right, you don’t know… You are having an opinion of someone else’s opinion; you do not know how much fact checking they did.

Answer me ALL that?

Proodeftikés Énnoies (Greek for Progressive Concepts) by David-Angelo Mineo 11/18/2022 938 Words

0 notes

peach-astrology · 3 years

Text

Jupiter in the houses

Jupiter in the first house:

1)Gives good advice,has a broad outlook and is quite lucky.

2)You have an optimistic outlook on life,and you give the impression of being cheerful,confident.You can cry at night,but try to do something again during the day.You are very strong personalities!

3)With bad aspects,it can be too trusting,careless and frivolous.

4)It is easy for this person to adapt to any place and society(but look at Mercury)Religion,culture,and philosophical generalizations will attract people,and they will want to master them.They will probably insert foreign words or quotes from various authors into their speech.

5)He is endowed with administrative abilities and is able to take power leading positions in the fields of politics,business and pedagogy.May be successful as a banker,doctor,judge,theologian,lawyer,or major government official.

Jupiter in the second house:

1)He wants to buy clothes of famous brands,fine furniture,comfortable cars,luxury apartments,etc.Such people don’t like to deny themselves anything.

2)The harmonious aspects of Jupiter attract financial luck.The work of the subject will be adequately paid,and investments will pay off well.

3)The bad aspects of Jupiter make a person wasteful and frivolous.He needs to realize that you can’t spend the last money on candy and that you need to earn only in an honest way.

4)You are very generous and can help your parents financially in the future.Financial well-being is very important.

5)He speaks very calmly,logically and pragmatically.

Jupiter in the third house:

1)Their circle of acquaintances is large,and they easily start relationships with a variety of people.A person can maintain foreign contacts and have many friends and well-wishers abroad.

2)He will make a very good teacher.Not only does he have a broad outlook,but he is also very respectful of other people's opinions.He is not stubborn and likes to constantly learn and develop.

3)The harmonious aspects of Jupiter will tell you about the easy and fast assimilation of educational material.The information you need to study will always be available to you.Others will provide such a person with good books.

4)The more Jupiter is facetted,the greater the intellectual potential of a person and the wider the opportunities for his development.

5)Stressful aspects may indicate congestion.A person wants to know everything at once.Their schedule is very unstable and it is difficult for them to study on schedule.

Jupiter in the fourth house:

1)Their parents were attentive to their studies.Perhaps such a child started reading or speaking early.

2)He likes to take care of his house.Quite hospitable,although it requires personal space.

3)It may indicate that a person will have several properties in the future.

4)These people tend to learn yoga,meditation,and other practices.They like to learn new things about foreign cultures.They like to watch travel blogs.

5)With bad aspects,serious scandals with parents,a tendency to frivolous behavior and waste of family wealth are possible.

Jupiter in the fifth house:

1)Indicates that the person will be a good parent.They understand children well,can have a lot of fun with them,but at the same time educate and spend a lot of time studying.Their children will be active and smart.

2)With bad aspects,a person can lead a debauched lifestyle and be frivolous.

3)People trust and are attracted to you.You give off good energy.You can often be appointed as a manager or director in a company.Be more confident in yourself and show all the strength of the Leo,just do not be too stubborn please.

4)This position is good in sports,because a person has competitiveness.He doesn't want to cheat,because he wants to be honest with himself first of all.Such a person,if desired,can train for days and nights.

5)When bad aspects with Venus can indicate a womanizer.

Jupiter in the sixth house:

1)With good aspects,a person easily recovers and has a good physical shape.With bad aspects,a person can often get seriouslyill,they often come across bad doctors or common diseases(colds)pass harder than others.

2)A mixture of creative freedom and discipline.Such people understand that inspiration comes when they want to.They perform their work conscientiously,can work in their specialty,and have good relations with their boss and colleagues.

3)The sixth house is responsible for pets,so most likely you are a good host,you can often walk with them or teach new abilities.Even cats near you become calmer and more well-mannered.

4)Your weak point is your hips.Please always look at your feet!5)Also,such people often overexert themselves,they strive to do everything in a short time.But they have good and influential bosses.They can work in one of the well-known companies.They respect statuses at work(but not in life)

5)Also,such people often overexert themselves,they strive to do everything in a short time.But they have good and influential bosses.They can work in one of the well-known companies.They respect statuses at work(but not in life)

Jupiter in the seventh house:

1)Oh,I hope your Venus is okay,because this Jupiter position is one of the best for marriage.It's like saying,"You'll be happy with him,baby,be brave"

2)Fair,friendly and caring person in communication.You like to listen to people's different points of view.You can even have smart friends who help with your homework.

3)Sometimes it points to a person "from dirt to princes".They can be much richer and more influential than their parents(if Mars is ok)

4)You are attracted to socially active people.You often support your partner in their endeavors and strongly inspire,rarely jealous.

5)Your karma is playing tricks on you.If you have offended a person,then with a hundred percent probability in a few days you will have just a terrible day.If you have done a good deed,then your finances can grow and luck will be on your side.

Jupiter in the eighth house:

1)As a child,such a person could do many things hastily.With age,such a person becomes more and more calm and risks little(especially money)

2)Such a person most often faces shocking situations in his life.Unlike ordinary people,he knows what to do and how to behave in difficult situations.

3)Sometimes indicates occult abilities.If there are favorable aspects,then be careful with the words that you say.Your insults can come back to you in the form of illnesses or other serious problems.Better not hold a grudge for your own good.

4)Good aspects create a kind of shield around the person,he is safe in any difficult situations.Bad aspects give even more problems to a person,and in what areas of life?You need to look at the planets that form the aspects.

5)8th house is responsible for the inheritance,so you will most likely receive it from your distant relatives,or from the person from whom you didn’t expect.

Jupiter in the ninth house:

1)Such a person may have several educations,or he will not learn in his native language.

2)Negative aspects indicate high self-esteem and lack of seriousness.

3)Very tolerant and versatile person.You can discuss literally everything with him.he may not read much,but he knows a lot.HOW?

4)Their family could be deeply religious or their religion was very important to them.The person himself rarely denies religion,but can change it if he rethinks his beliefs.

5)Just like religion,philosophy is important to them.Such a person gives good advice,he knows how to listen and has a good life experience.He has a lot to tell and listen to.

Jupiter in the tenth house:

1)A person sees his self-development in work.It can reveal his best qualities and inspire.They may have good working conditions, such as frequent bonuses or a lucrative contract.Sometimes indicates that their work is related to travel.

2)Most likely they will be successful after 30 years(due to the influence of Saturn,aka the 10th house)

3)Bad aspects point to the difficult relations with the authorities.A person can be too independent and listen to the opinions of others.Luck is not on their side.

4)Good aspects indicate a person's ability to communicate with colleagues.He has good business partners,has connections abroad and is constantly expanding his circle of acquaintances.Most likely,they were supported in their endeavors by their father or mother.Such a person becomes part of the team,often helps others(in a good way)

5)Air signs are most lucky in intellectual,research,and scientific activities.Fire signs are better to realize themselves in a profession that is associated with public activities or public performances.The main thing for Water and Earth signs is to show a creative streak,develop entrepreneurial inclinations,and the field of activity is not particularly important,they can achieve success in anything.

Jupiter in the eleventh house:

1)You have good friends who will help you with advice or financial assistance.You are sociable and have several groups of friends(but look at the house)

2)You can be inspired by other people through socializing, walking, or posting with other people's thoughts.If you want to get inspired, go to Pinterest or Tumblr.At the same time,you have a good imagination,you do not copy the others, but only get inspired by small things.for example, a color palette or atmosphere.

3)When the bad aspects of the person becomes materialistic.He looks for benefits even in friends and family.Their feelings become drier and angrier.

4)Such a person can become a successful programmer,politician,diplomat or administrator.He may be interested in space exploration,astronomy,and astrology.He likes the aesthetics of space and stars,he is ready to admire them for hours.

5)Good aspects give a person a friendly energy.People want to meet them,pay attention to them.Their money is reliable and sometimes grows.

Jupiter in the twelfth house:

1)He always feels that he is being underestimated.Whatever such a person does,his merits don't become public.He has low self-esteem.

2)A wonderful aspect for an astrologer,fortune teller or clairvoyant.A person literally feels the cards or energy of a person.They notice the signs of fate.

3)Bad aspects indicate a weak immune system.A person can catch a cold from a light breeze.It is necessary to monitor the level of vitamins and water levels in the body.

4)Good aspects indicate good friendships.Friends respect and appreciate a person's empathy and often ask for advice.Most likely,such a person has been friends for years and very rarely changes his environment.

5)A person gets tired of communicating with people and periodically needs to be alone with himself to restore his energy level.I really recommend that you make a playlist for a bad mood,because you will cry and your emotions will be released.Your condition will improve and you may be inspired.

2K notes · View notes

ruby-whistler · 3 years

Text

a lot of people seem to have the attitude "he should've just let them had what they wanted!" when it comes to technoblade and dream both going against l'manberg, and absolutely no offense, but that seems... so awfully naive to me?

[ /dsmp /rp | the other reason why l'manberg deserved to fall ]

it looks like people automatically assume "what they wanted" was good, and that everything would've been fine if it wasn't for techno and dream being in the way. so let's look at what the leaders they fought against actually wanted, shall we?

let's start at the beginning, then.

wilbur (all names in this essay refer to the characters) made l'manberg after he failed to take control of the economy by making a capitalist empire based on lies, rumors and theft.

we're starting off strong, i see.

he referred to tommy as someone to mould or build upon multiple times, saying he is naive and calling it a good thing, even mentioning people like tubbo or fundy as the "a lot of tommyinnits" he could use take advantage of for his plans. these were people who were the most useful in terms of being hardworking and passionate, and arguably the most easily manipulated.

...cool. this still doesn't tell us what he wanted to do with l'manberg, but it gives us a sense of this guy's moral compass and honesty.

wilbur, to his soldiers at least, says that he made l'manberg for freedom and protection. ...freedom to steal from people? protection from... everyone except the guy who wants to exploit them?

yeah no, i'm not trusting anything he says.

let's turn to what wilbur said out of character about the motives with which wilbur the character created l'manberg.

"you could create something that you believe is worth having power over, and because you want to have power over it, everyone else will believe it's important, even though it's not." [ link ]

...alright, well that sorts out that question i suppose.

wilbur after his revival says that l'manberg was a "useful tool" that did what it was supposed to do; it divided. since naturally i'm not going to take his words at face value if it would kill me, let's turn back to what wilbur was actually saying and doing back when he made l'manberg, because maybe his memory has just faded, right?

*rewatching the vod* is he. is he quoting tr*mp's speech about building a wall and "making the mexicans pay for it" while being openly xenophobic towards the people who originally lived in the lands and building a giant wall?

ooo boy. cc!wilbur knew what he was doing, wasn't he?

see, if you rewatch the vods and look at them as satire on american propaganda (including the hamilton references) everything starts to fall into place.

but hey, l'manberg changed, right? it grew into something more than that initial quest for glory... right? i mean, the l'manberg government wasn't even corrupt up until schlatt's reign, right?

*laughs* no.

let's fast-forward.

l'manberg... hadn't done much after the revolution. it was just a safe space, but not really. people are living just as they did before, and neither wilbur nor l'manberg really changed much.

wilbur doesn't like that, and that is clear from what happens next.

Wilbur: “Tommy, we need power.”

Tommy: “Yeah?”

Wilbur: “I’ve tried – I spoke to Fundy and Tubbo yesterday, I told them how I didn’t like the civil war they were having, you know the fights that were going on.”

Tommy: “Yeah, that huge war in our name, yeah.”

Wilbur: “I told them I wasn’t happy with it, I told them to stop. Do you remember when you started getting angry at Dream, and I tried to control you, and you ignored me? …Yeah. See, this is the thing. Tommy, I…I led the revolution, right, but the issue is, is that I sort of became the de facto President, but no one listens to me. No one cares about mine – or your – power. No one cares! To us, we may be in anarchy, you know?”

alright, so a) wilbur dislikes anarchy, that's a good thing to remember for later, b) he's pissed off that people aren't listening to him (and tommy, but he definitely just added that on to make him care about the subject) and he can't "control" them c) he sees more power as a solution. well... maybe he just doesn't want people to fight, right? he's talking about a civil war he couldn't stop, after all.

Wilbur: “We can either, Tommy, right – we can either become a dictatorship, okay…we can just suddenly decide, ‘right, we’re in charge,’ and we just start – we start asserting our dominance. Now the key thing to being a dictator, is we need to control the center of power…so we get an army going –”

Tommy: “What is the center of power? Is it like some cube, or like an orb?”

Wilbur: “The army! The army! The banks, you know? We take control of those, and then people will do exactly as we say, right? That’s the dictatorship route, right. The other route is the democracy route. Now, this route’s gonna be slightly harder, but I have a plan. So I was thinking…what better way of making people believe that you’re in charge than by having them vote for you, right?”

so, wilbur was thinking of getting "an army going" to "control the center of power" and to "take control" of "the banks". he saw this as a valid solution to people not bending to his authority.

then he turned to election fraud instead, which he puts as straight-up manipulation of his people into believing he isn't a dictator.

...what. i'm not going to praise him for that decision, that's not even the bare minimum - he's still being a prick and showing just how much he actually doesn't care about what the "people he claims to care about" (cc!wilbur's words again) want.

but let's get back to the point; so, according to all of the current evidence, what did wilbur want?

wilbur wanted glory, power and division, to be able to enforce his authority and take control of his people.

...this is what people are saying dream shouldn't have stood up against in his land and "left them alone". that is what people are saying he should've "let wilbur have" in the home he worked to protect and build for the people he cared about - and keep in mind the dream smp was pretty much an anarchy back then.

this was willbur's intentions, and the first instinct of a lot of people was to paint dream as the tyrant. that just doesn't sit right with me, i'll be honest with you.

what about techno, then?

well, new l'manberg was ruled by tubbo, who was only doing his best - truly doing his best to turn wilbur's lies into a reality. no corruption, no conflict, only a home.

but tubbo was not ever actually in charge, was he?

let's talk about post-16th quackity.

i remember the second tubbo livestream i ever saw live was him rebuilding the crater; putting up grass blocks over the top, with quackity and fundy helping him out. it was when quackity first proposed the idea of getting rid of techno.

tubbo didn't want conflict, and he disagreed at first because it went against his ideals and his morals.

that didn't pan out well for him - and i think that's enough evidence quackity was pulling the strings of the cabinet, if you take into consideration the propaganda, riling up, and overall vengefulness that we suddenly seemed to be working with.

quackity's words didn't speak louder than his actions, but they are still interesting to note; "bring this country to power" being a common theme in his motivation for getting techno and dream "out of the way".

so quackity wanted power as well, and this desire only grew as it was taken further from his reach, but ever since the 16th, it has been very prominent in the way he instructed the new l'manberg government.

techno, the local anarchist who fought (only) oppressive governments that hurt people, was supposed to not do doomsday and "leave l'manberg alone", while what quackity wanted was nothing else than to turn l'manberg back into a tool of power and control.

i'm beginning to see a pattern here.

i am all for giving people the benefit of the doubt, really; but the constant glorification of a revolution leader who did everything for his own power and benefit, and a "secretary" that committed multiple war crimes and literally harmed and manipulated innocents in his quest for power; plus the instantaneous villainization of those who stood as obstacles in their path, is a bit too much even for this fandom's standards, even for me.

i get wilbur and quackity are both silver-tongued bastards able to shift the narrative in their favor, but the grudges people will hold against characters that fight against them and the measures to which they'll reach in order to defend them is wild.

it's not as easy as "they should've let l'manberg be". the people leading l'manberg were far from innocent and had sinister intentions.

184 notes · View notes

usernamesuggestionsarefunny · 3 years

Text

Hot take: I unapologetically like John Walker, like, not even in a "he is morally gray and interesting" kind of way. He was brave and had good intentions, he just wasn't as quick to search for peaceful solutions and had several realistic flaws such as being insecure, ambitious and quick to follow orders for the establishment. Most people (on tumblr) just hate him because he is white so he must be evil or symbolically represent male white priviledge or something, because he didn´t romanticize terrorism as the writers made Sam start doing, and because he “unfairly” got the shield (The shield the dumb ass writers made Sam DECIDE to give up so they could have that sweet drama? THAT shield?). People say that Steve Rogers would have never done what John did, not even after his literal best friend was killed in front of his eyes, ehem... did we even watch the same movies? Did everyone just forget about that scene in Civil War after Tony tried to kill Bucky?

His reasons for murdering that terrorist guy that took part in the killing of his best friend and for wanting to apprehend a potentially dangerous group were waay more understandable than any of Karli's actions AFTER she started killing innocent people "to send a message" while still claiming to have the moral highground instead of, you know, keep stealing and distributing food and medicines like they were exclusively doing at the beginning or something.

I get that it sucks the writers made the flag smashers the villians (I hate what they did with the good hearted and idealistic Sharon Carter as well), I myself would have prefered if Karli had been writen as an anti-hero or even new hero who teams up with Sam and Bucky, maybe the flag smashers could have been divided into different factions, some more extremist than others, and a government guy could have been the real or worst villain, but that sadly didn't happen. The moment they wrote her blowing up that building full of unarmed people though, she was a self-righteous murderer just like Zemo, which would have been fine if that was the point of her character.

I was very irritated by the way the show writers, via Sam, tried to minimize her actions and make us feel sorry for her, dehumanizing the people she had killed in the process. We barely ever see her victims, they are mostly faceless entities who don´t matter in comparison to “poor well intentioned baby Karli”.

If the writers wanted to send the audience a message about “doing better” for refugees they could have done so by making the flag smashers the heroes that have been unjustly framed for the terrorist attacks (Which would have been an AMAZING plot twist), or writing them to be more complicated by making most of its members stand against the extemism of certain factions of the group, or by showing the good things they do, making them fight armed guards only. They should NOT have made terrorism seem “cool” and “trendy”, the deaths of civilians “necessary”, and the terrorists the “real” victims of... *gasp* being called... terrorists! The poor babies, noo, so offensive! The correct term is freedom fighters, nooo!

Needless to say, the woobification of the poor baby terrorists didn't work for me and I wasn't exactly horrified by Karli´s death or impressed by Sam´s corny victim blaming speech where he doesn´t actually give any practical ideas on how to solve the refugee crisis caused by the snap but sure does love to say the government officials all, indiscriminately (Maybe AOCortez or someone was there? I mean, idk), deserved to feel powerless as hostages because that, apparently, will make them sympathize with the people that made them fear for their lives instead of, I don´t know, seeing them as way too unreasonable to negociate with??

Now, I would have preferred for John Walker´s actor to play Lemar and viceversa, because I get that black characters get killed to motivate white characters far too often, so it would have been nicer to see it done the other way around for once. For John Walker to be the new flawed yet good hearted war veteran who has to redeem himself after making a huge mistake born out of pain for the loss of his friend, someone who has to develop and learn different tactics other than violence in order to defend people, someone who has to learn to question the status quo... and he just happens to be black like Sam. Their rivalry would not be even implicitly about race, but exclusively about differences in methods and about who gets the Captain America legacy. We could still have Bucky hating on him, the funny rivalry moments, no changes.

But sadly the writers needed a character to represent the white that didn't deserve Sam's shield but only got it for his race, or for looking similar to Steve, which is an important theme, but one that was perfectly explored already with the plotline about the original black supersoldier who was erased from history, and one that didn´t work for me because they made Sam give up the shield willingly BEFORE it was given to John, a war hero, so all I am getting is that simply being chosen for something important and accepting it because you think you can do the job, wanting justice for a friend, and not trusting terrorists to change their murderous ways is what made John “less than” Sam and Bucky.

I guess what I am trying to say is that John doesn´t deserve half the hate he gets and maybe if the writers had changed his race from the comic books then his character would have suffered less from being placed into a specific “personification of white male priviledge” box here on tumblr. No offence to the actor though, he was great.

#john walker #lemar hoskins #the falcon and the winter solider spoilers #the falcon and the winter soldier #anti karli #sorry not sorry #the falcon and the winter soldier rant #the original supersoldier who was black was a good plotline though #i love the ending at the museum #pro john walker #john walker positive post #john walker positivity

73 notes · View notes

minecraftkerfuffle · 3 years

Text

Well, now that I’ve had a chance to calm down after my previous post (being at home in pjs instead of at work helps so much) I need to work on that c!Technoblade post I’ve been trying to string together over the last several days. The basic themes of which are listed below... Also, random punctuation has been added to certain names to keep Tumblr’s scuffed search system from picking them up. Sincere apologies text-to-speech users D:

A. That “You are Bad Guy, but that does not mean you are bad guy” line from Wr.eck It Ral.ph

B. The fact that De.adpo.ol is such a popular character and yet I’ve seen practically no one point out the similarities between between him and c!Technoblade (admittedly a tangent wrt this list as-is, but just trust me on this one...)

C. My opinion that, if Ma.gneto only ever went after people in power and refused to so much as frighten or injure an innocent/uninvolved civilian, you would have a very, very hard time convincing me that he wasn’t much more In The Right than the (way-too-passive) X-M.en

D. The fact that I basically never read comics or watch cartoons and I was still able to make those references /j

E. The fact that so many people in the DSMP fandom seem to unironically think that the members of a authoritarian government are the Good Guys, and that the pro-freedom, anti-tyranny anarchist is the Bad Guy because he very justifiably believes that being violent is the only thing that will make people ever listen to him... and worryingly few people seem to realize and acknowledge the issue with this.

Like I said, these are just semi-disjointed thoughts in a draft, but I think the general message I’m trying to aim for is: What is it about the Dream SMP and its fandom (Techno-Critical people especially), that we’ve somehow ended up with people genuinely believing “Government Good, Violence Towards Government Bad”?

#dream smp #Technoblade #dream smp meta #my posts

22 notes · View notes

a-god-in-ruins-rises · 2 years

Note

With your endorsement of a conscious and prevalent state religion, how would you work around the freedom of religion provision in the first amendment, would it be repealed?

this is a good question. and it's a topic i plan on explore more in depth in future posts. but anyway, yeah, if a big part of the constitution is freedom of religion then how would it make sense to contradict it?

well, there are a few answers to this. one, as you mentioned, it could jus be repealed or amended. but tbh this isn't my ideal because while i do think amending is always valid i think it should be used very very sparingly. especially when it comes to repealing or replacing one of the original ten amendments. also, just as a matter of principle i tend to be in favor of freedom of religion. for one, because it permits the creation of new religions (and i'm all about creativity) but also, though it's not intuitive, it is conducive to stability and unity. like i mentioned yesterday about king philip ii of spain. if he had shown the dutch religious tolerance instead of persecution, i imagine things might have gone very differently. and while i'm certainly no liberal in the sense that i think infinite tolerance is a great virtue, some degree of tolerance is a hallmark of many of the greatest civilizations.

so what other options are there? well, in my ideal america (since that's what we're discussing), my vision of the pagan american civil religion is simply so widespread and ubiquitous that it doesn't need to be an official state religion. everyone already practices it willingly and as a result it bleeds into the public sphere and governmental institutions indirectly. but again, this is part of the point behind the american civil religion. it is already a real thing, it's just a matter of getting the people to acknowledge and embrace it. the government doesn't necessarily need to make it the official state religion because....it kind of already is the unofficial state religion. and this is going to be the topic of a future post. the way in which the american civil religion resembles the ancient greco-roman civil religions. because they didn't have official state religions like we think of them. they were just....intimately entwined in politics by nature. the first state religion in western civ was christianity, because it was christianity which drew a hard distinction between the religious and secular.

and this kinda leads into my final point. there is already a constitutional basis that permits that government to engage in a public quasi-faith. that's why our motto is in god we trust, or our legislature has a open prayer, or how the government can recognize holidays, or the pledge of allegiance, etc. it's called ceremonial deism. where public religious references and practices are in fact constitutional as long as they are, well, mostly ceremonial and nonsectarian. there's the way in which the president has an unofficial religious role in american society and can freely make religious references in their speeches. or how the state reigns supreme and is able to regulate religious practices considered contrary to american law. and public schools already teach patriotism and classical myth and even our own founding myth in fairly "secular" ways.

so i guess my point is that the divine and state is already sufficiently intermingled here in america unofficially. it’s just a matter of making the people recognize and embrace it. and i think that would be enough. i don’t think there’s a necessity for an official state religion (nor do i think it’s really desirable). it’s too christian of an idea imo. i think the american civil religion already very closely resembles the pagan civil religions of classical greece and rome. yeah maybe there won’t be state-sanctioned cattle sacrifices or official religious offices in the government. but that’s okay imo. those aren’t the important parts. those roles can be filled by non-state groups. let’s just call it an evolution. like how human sacrifice wasn’t unheard of in early rome (though it was always fairly rare) but was virtually nonexistent by the later republic. religious practices and the role the government plays in them can change and that’s okay.

that’s my answer to your question.

1 note · View note

timac-extraversal · 3 years

Text

Big Dumb Legitimacy, Part I

(TIMAC #004, ~2,300 words, 10 minutes)

Summary: When the mythic basis for a country's government is disputed, the government should consider justifying itself by successfully delivering practical, easy-to-measure projects instead.

Epistemic Status: Political speculation.

-☆☆☆-

In early 2019, I discussed the appeal of Trump's Wall.

Previous government programs were seen as ineffective, it's difficult for voters to tell if a program is working, and congress could always quietly defund or nerf a program when voters aren't paying attention. (Lobbyists for companies that employ unauthorized migrants might also have something to say to the senators about any immigration control program that works.) If you think that illegal immigrants coming over the southern border are driving down wages, and you don't trust the government, the appeal of the wall is obvious:

It's a big dumb object.

You know exactly what it is. You know it can be done. And you can easily tell if the government followed through. Even if you don't trust the newspapers, or the President, you can simply drive down to the Texas border and check if it's physically there.

Many on the left (and among the liberals) abhor the idea of Trump's wall, but with the Trump era coming to an end (for now), some are now starting to admit what was once more of a right-contrarian viewpoint - America's institutions have spent down some of their social capital. People just don't trust them as much.

And that's why the big dumb object may be an echo of things to come.

Latino Voters

In Texas, Trump made big gains in 18 counties where Latinos made up at least 80% of the population. A state Democratic party official said Latinos were worried about threats to the fracking industry, a major local employer, and that Republicans were also helped by 'a network of Border Patrol agents, families and unions.' [1☆] That Latinos are in the Border Patrol shouldn't come as a surprise. Latinos climbed from 7.8 to 12.5% of the country's police forces between 1997 and 2016. Previous efforts at integration were in part driven by policing as well-compensated, blue collar work. [2☆]

Latino voters might be more interested in practical issues than abstract ones. Are they productively employed? Are the places they live safe and secure? Philosophical debate and moral posturing can last all day, and with social media, well into the night. But at some point, someone actually has to get out of a truck and pour asphalt if we want to fix the potholes.

At least one hispanic man was not amused with last year's rioting and, infamously, showed up with a chainsaw and shouted for protesters to go home - and that wasn't the meanest thing he had to say. [3☆]

Spiritual Legitimacy

...and practical issues may be for the best.

To pile up recent heated rhetoric, it would be difficult for a "white supremacist" government of a country "built on stolen land" "by the hands of slaves," founded in slavery 1619 (rather than, more famously, in freedom in 1776), to legitimize itself on intergenerational moral grounds. We would need to repair or replace its legitimizing myth.

Countries are social phenomena, not just physical ones. A country is an idea, not just a place or a people. [4] The narrative of what makes a country legitimate is the story that binds the population together towards a shared project, and convinces the people to accept what, due to the limits of information, must necessarily be the rule of a small number of individuals. A country without a legitimizing myth is vulnerable, and from multiple directions at once.

The state is a shape in the minds of the population, and in a high-energy society its boundaries are maintained by the invisible threat of force. If a police precinct building is set on fire where everyone can see, rival rioters might get the idea that they can just bust open a few windows and pay a visit to the national Capitol building, perhaps smiling as they carry off the speakers' podium or live-blog from the offices of congressional representatives. [5]

There is no such thing as a safe riot. The entire point of a riot is that law enforcement is unable to control the situation. There especially isn't such a thing as a safe riot in the national Capitol building, where rioters might make contact with the nation's lawmakers (who carry much of government's sins), and where, for that reason, security personnel may be even more jumpy than usual. It's the sort of thing that might spark the fires of revolution, either in showing the weakness of the central government, or in retaliation for a massacre.

January 6 was bad, but it could have gone much, much worse.

A spiritual struggle for the soul of the nation is certainly exciting. We might imagine it gets excellent television ratings, social media engagement scores, and clicks. In fact, CNN declined from 2.5 million primetime viewers during what we might call the 'President Trump season finale' to 1.6 million primetime viewers after Biden took office. [6☆] Michael Bloomberg's failed candidacy suggests that you can't buy the kind of entertainment provided by pro-wrestling's now most legendary and infamous heel.

...so it might be better to focus on a form of legitimacy that can be achieved more easily, with something more concrete, like bulldozers.

This does not mean we need to 'abandon' suffering minorities or struggling rural residents 'to their fate.'

Streets Before Trust

On the last day of 2020, Alon Levy of Pedestrian Observations posted Streets Before Trust. Alon notes that in a "trust before streets" approach, the focus is on getting community buy-in before starting a project. Often the idea is to avoid disrupting low-income or minority neighborhoods. However, Alon writes that,

The reality of low-trust politics is about the opposite of what educated Americans think it is. It is incredibly concrete. Abstract ideas like social justice, rights, democracy, and free speech do not exist in that reality, to the point that authoritarian populists have exploited low-trust societies like those of Eastern Europe to produce democratic backsliding.

His theory is that the state proves to people that it can provide tangible goods by successfully providing tangible goods. However, he writes,

Such provisions of tangible goods cannot happen in a trust before streets environment. This works when the state takes action, and endless public meetings in which every objection must be taken seriously are the death of the state. ... Low trust is downstream of low state capacity. Build the streets and trust will follow.

On January 6th, Matt Yglesias expanded the concept and provided more examples. [7☆]

The correct way to respond to a low-trust environment is not to double down on proceduralism, but to commit yourself to the “it does exactly what it says on the tin” principle and implement policies that have the following characteristics:

◆ It’s easy for everyone, whether they agree with you or disagree with you, to understand what it is you say you are doing.

◆ It’s easy for everyone to see whether or not you are, in fact, doing what you said you would do.

◆ It’s easy for you and your team to meet the goal of doing the thing that you said you would do.

That’s not a guarantee of political or policy success. Maybe you will pick terrible ideas and be a huge failure anyway. But this triad for success under conditions of distrust at least creates the possibility of success, where people will look back and decide that what you did worked. Committing yourself to that triad may involve some waste and inefficiency relative to a more theoretically optimal scheme with more means-testing.

There's been a running joke among some parts of right-contrarian twitter that Matt Yglesias is a secret reactionary. After a passage like that, we might joke that he's secretly a Rationalist. (He isn't either, of course.) [8]

Who Do You Trust?

Alon writes,

Low trust in many cases exists because people perceive the state to be hostile to their interests,

Right now, many Americans, both left and right, don't trust the state. Even a writer from Sri Lanka wrote that America is in a collapse - and that collapse isn't a single moment, but a low-level hum punctuated by violence that's in the background unless it happens to you. [9☆]

Many liberals will blame this on Trump. From their perspective, the logical thing to do to restore trust is to criticize Trump. The thinking goes something like this: if Trump is discredited, it follows that all his criticisms of other institutions are discredited - and if those criticisms are discredited, you should trust those institutions as much as you did back in, say, 2013.

This will not work. First, the doubt is not solely caused by Trump. Second, if right-wingers trusted the institutions (such as newspapers) needed to make the criticism of Trump, they would not have voted for Trump a second time. (Trump received about 11 million more votes in 2020 than he did in 2016. [10☆]) Their trust in these institutions seemed to erode after 2015, [11☆] accelerating in 2020, culminating in the spectacular fireball of the Trump election fraud allegations and the 2021 MAGA Capitol Riot.

For the left and liberal people, a rising 'consciousness of racial injustice' leads them to question (and distrust) every Western institution. "Will this program benefit People of Color?" Historically, there have been some serious questions about that. [12] If the program is complex or difficult to measure, it will allow those suspicions to sneak in, or even dominate: could the criteria, even if they look reasonable, have been chosen by a racist? What if it's subconscious racism ("implicit bias")? Some institution might tell us the program isn't racist, but what if that institution is itself racist, or unwittingly working from racist data? Etc.

Each of these worldviews has layers of memetic defenses - complex procedures to handle opposing arguments. Each also has a network of paid actors that perpetuate them. The New York Times cannot criticize a MAGA into trusting the New York Times. A self-identified progressive is unlikely to be convinced that a MAGA's criticism of 'racial justice' rhetoric isn't motivated by 'a desire to protect white privilege'. [13] And contemporary political constellations [14] can fabricate entire scandals that would take months for a normal person to fully disprove.

You can't go through it. That's too expensive. You have to go around it.

-☆☆☆-

[1☆] How Latino support for Trump grew in Texas borderlands Los Angeles Times, (2020/11)

[2☆] Latino officers are helping diversify police. Can they help reform the ranks? NBC News, (2020/05)

[3☆] McAllen man who waved chainsaw at protesters charged with assault KRQE, (2020/05)

[4] A country is also a people, not just a proposition, as well as a process and a place. But that's an essay for another time.

[5] Perhaps fittingly given the Florida Man genre of news stories, the man carrying off Nancy Pelosi's lecturn was from Florida. But unlike the more whimsical examples of the Florida Man genre, which might see an alligator thrown a drive-through window, people did die during the 2021 MAGA Capitol Riot, including one of the white women who entered the Capitol building. There were even early reports that a police officer was mortally wounded after being hit with a fire extinguisher, though this may not have been accurate.

[6☆] CNN viewership plummeted after Trump left office New York Post, 2021/03

[7☆] Making policy for a low-trust world Matt Yglesias, Slow Boring, (2021/01)

[8] In both cases, he's just integrating information from outside the current consensus and presenting the resulting outputs from adding it to his considerations politely. This creates a sensation of coherent but novel depth under the surface, in the same sense that Japan is an entire culture with its own sets of unspoken cultural assumptions, providing more novelty to manga and anime for Western readers.

[9☆] I Lived Through Collapse. America Is Already There. Indi Samarajiva, (2020/09)

One day, I was at work when someone left a bomb at the NOLIMIT clothing store. It exploded, killing 17 people. When these types of traumatic events take place, no two people experience the same thing. For me, it was seeing the phone lines getting clogged for an hour. For my wife, it was feeling the explosion a half-kilometer from her house. But for the families of the 17 victims, this was the end. And their grief goes on.

As you can see, this is not a uniform experience of chaos. For some people it destroys their bodies, others their hearts, but for most people it’s just a low-level hum at the back of their minds.

[10☆] An Australian news piece from Nov 5 reports Trump had about 63 million votes in 2016. A later USA Today piece reports a final total of about 74 million for 2020.

[11☆] This is my personal judgment, but tracks a Gallup Poll that ends in 2019. Trust in government remains near historic lows (2019).

[12] From a right-wing perspective, if we consider some norms, beliefs, values, or expectations a form of "social technology," there are even more questions.

From a left-wing perspective, during the Obama Administration, I remember one writer suggesting that Black Lives Matter wanted to convince politicians to want to help black folks rather than agreeing to a specific policy, because they didn't trust the details of policy (which could easily hide implementation details that disadvantage black people).

[13] If members of the white working class seem suspicious of this antiracist explanation, however, it might have something to do with white privilege theory lowering white liberals' sympathy for poor white people.

[14] Networks of interrelated organizations and actors acting semi-independently in a way which, due to conditions, gives the appearance of coordination. No one is specifically 'in charge,' and many actions take place in the open.

#timac #politics #racepol

14 notes · View notes

ceceys · 2 years

Text

Blog Post #10 Due 11/11

How does law enforcement take advantage of the public nature of social media?

Since social media posts are public, law enforcement agencies can use posts to monitor a persons movements and build a case against them. People may think that their online speech is protected, but their data can be sold to or accessed by almost anyone, including cops. Sites like Facebook will share personal information with law enforcement that may lead to searches or arrests they would otherwise not have had evidence for. Social media can also be used to find a persons location, as most sites geotag posts even if the poster is not aware.

How does the ‘soft cage’ of the surveillance state trick us into believing it is for the best?

The trick of the surveillance state is that each piece, when viewed in isolation, does not seem particularly dangerous if it will keep us safe. Under the guise of stopping terrorism, US law enforcement has illegally tapped phones, intercepted electronic communications, and stalked and taped citizens without cause. In addition, there has been a huge rise in the use of administrative warrants, which don’t require the same burden of proof as judicial ones. When each incident is looked at without context, it may seem necessary for the greater good of the country. But each piece feeds in to a larger eroding of privacy and freedom that is used almost surgically to target already oppressed groups.

Why are tools like password protectors and VPN’s necessary in todays digital landscape?

Online privacy tools are needed to help people protect themselves from both government surveillance and hackers. A tool like a VPN blocks locational data and keeps browsing habits safe from surveillance. This keeps ones private internet use out of the hands of those who may want to use it to either sell products or prove suspected criminal activity. A password protector similarly keeps potentially sensitive information out of the hands of those who would use it to harm people. These tools are necessary because as the internet becomes more connected and commercialized, personal data becomes a commodity. Sites are incentivized to sell that data and hackers to steal it. Protecting ones digital footprint is part of being a safe online citizen.

Why is it so easy to spread misleading information on social media?

Due to the personal nature of social media, people tend to be more trusting of what is shared. A news article from a friend or family member may be taken at face value and believed without thinking critically. However, there are more and less reliable sources, and it is easy to fake things like screenshots or headlines. Because social media encourages outrage over critical thought to garner more clicks, misinformation can take hold and be shared thousands of times before being discredited. This makes it hard to keep up with and even more essential for digital consumers to investigate information before sharing.

#CSUFWGST320BADDIES

3 notes · View notes

dreaminginthedeepsouth · 3 years

Link

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

July 11, 2021

Heather Cox Richardson

On Friday, as President Joe Biden signed “An Executive Order Promoting Competition in the American Economy,” he echoed the language of his predecessors. “[C]ompetition keeps the economy moving and keeps it growing,” he said. “Fair competition is why capitalism has been the world’s greatest force for prosperity and growth…. But what we’ve seen over the past few decades is less competition and more concentration that holds our economy back.”

Biden listed how prescription drugs, hearing aids, internet service, and agricultural supplies are all overpriced in the U.S. because of a lack of competition (RFD TV, the nation’s rural channel, has a long-running ad complaining of the cost of hearing aids). He also noted that noncompete clauses make it hard for workers to change jobs, another issue straight out of the late nineteenth century, when southern states tried to keep prices low by prohibiting employers from hiring Black workers away from their current jobs.

“I’m a proud capitalist,” Biden said. “I know America can’t succeed unless American business succeeds…. But let me be very clear: Capitalism without competition isn’t capitalism; it’s exploitation. Without healthy competition, big players can change and charge whatever they want and treat you however they want…. “[W]e know we’ve got a problem—a major problem. But we also have an incredible opportunity. We can bring back more competition to more of the country, helping entrepreneurs and small businesses get in the game, helping workers get a better deal, helping families save money every month. The good news is: We’ve done it before.”

Biden reached into our history to reclaim our long tradition of opposing economic consolidation. Calling out both Roosevelt presidents—Republican Theodore Roosevelt, who oversaw part of the Progressive Era, and Democrat Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who oversaw the New Deal—Biden celebrated their attempt to rein in the power of big business, first by focusing on the abuses of those businesses, and then by championing competition.

Civil War era Republicans had organized around the idea that the American economy enjoyed what they called a “harmony of interest.” By that, they meant that everyone had the same economic interests. People at the bottom of the economy, people who drew value out of the products of nature—trees, or fish, or grain—produced value through their hard work. They created more value than they could consume, and this value, in the form of capital, employed people on the next level of the economy: shoemakers, dry goods merchants, cabinetmakers, and so on. They, in turn, produced more than they could consume, and their excess supported a few industrialists and financiers at the top of the pyramid who, in their turn, employed those just starting out. In this vision, the economy was a web in which every person shared a harmony of interest.

But by the 1880s, this idea that all Americans shared the same economic interest had changed into the idea that protecting American businesses would be good for everyone. American businessmen had begun to consolidate their enterprises into trusts, bringing a number of corporations under the same umbrella. The trusts stifled competition and colluded to raise the prices paid by consumers. Their power and funding gave them increasing power over lawmakers. As wealth migrated upward and working Americans felt like they had less and less control over their lives, they began to wonder what had happened to the equality for which they had fought the Civil War.

Labor leaders, newspapers, and Democratic lawmakers began to complain about the power of the wealthy in society and to claim the economic game was rigged, but their general critiques of the economy simply left them open to charges of being “socialists” who wanted to overturn society. Congress in 1890 finally gave in and passed an antitrust act, but it was so toothless that only one senator in the staunchly pro-business Senate voted against it, and no one in the House of Representatives voted no.

Then, around 1900, the so-called muckrakers hit their stride. Muckrakers were journalists who took on the political corruption and the concentration of wealth that plagued their era, but rather than making general moral statements, they did deep research into the workings of specific industries and political machines—Standard Oil, for example, and Minneapolis city government—and revealed the details behind the general outrage.

Their stories built pressure to regulate the robber barons, as they were called by then, but Congress, dominated by business interests, had no interest. Instead, President Theodore Roosevelt and his successor, William Howard Taft, tended to rein in the trusts through the executive branch of the government, especially by legal action undertaken by the Department of Justice.

On Friday, Biden promised to use the power of the executive branch to rein in corporations, much as Theodore Roosevelt did during his terms of office. But there was more to Biden’s statement than that. His emphasis on restoring competition is from the next historical phase of antitrust action.

In the 1912 election, political language turned away from the evils of trusts and toward the economic competition so central to American life. Both Republican Theodore Roosevelt and Democrat Woodrow Wilson centered their campaigns around the idea that big business was strangling competition. Wilson called for a “New Freedom” that would get rid of the trusts once and for all and return the nation to a world of small enterprise and opportunity. Roosevelt scoffed at this idea. He talked of the “New Nationalism,” in which a large government would restore competition by regulating big businesses. (He said that if you got rid of trusts and then looked away, they would immediately spring up again.)

While their solutions were different, both Roosevelt and Wilson had reframed the stratified economy not solely as a problem, but also as an opportunity. Trimming the sails of the corporations was not an attack on the liberty of industrialists, but rather a restoration of the competition that had, in the past, enabled the country’s economy to thrive. And, once elected, Wilson managed to get key items of that agenda passed through Congress.

That positive emphasis on competition carried into the administration of the next Roosevelt president, FDR. Biden noted that FDR called for Congress to pass an economic bill of rights, including “the right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies.” And indeed, the idea of restoring a level playing field for all businesses, rather than letting them succeed or fail based on the whims of economic wirepullers, persuaded businessmen who had previously opposed regulation to line up behind the establishment of our Securities and Exchange Act of 1934.

Americans have lost this tradition since 1980, Biden said, when we abandoned the “fundamental American idea that true capitalism depends on fair and open competition.” Reframing business regulation as “laws to promote competition,” he promised 72 specific actions to enforce antitrust laws, stop “abusive actions by monopolies,” and end “bad mergers that lead to mass layoffs, higher prices, fewer options for workers and consumers alike.”

For 40 years, the Republican Party has offered a vision of America as a land of hyperindividualism, in which any government intervention in the economy is seen as an attack on individual liberty because it hampers the accumulation of wealth. Biden’s speech on Friday reclaims a different theme in our history, that of government protecting individualism by keeping the economic playing field level.

—-

Notes:

https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2021/07/09/remarks-by-president-biden-at-signing-of-an-executive-order-promoting-competition-in-the-american-economy/

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

#political #Heather Cox Richardson #Letters From An American #capitalism #history #fair competition #competition #hyperindividualism

6 notes · View notes

love-and-anarchy-au · 3 years

Text

Love & Anarchy: Chapter 23

hey, merry xmas!! i hope you are having a pleasant morning/evening as i am <3 i decided to post this chapter as i have nothing else to do but finish this harmful au (and im not ready ofc). consider this a small present, as its not violent nor painful, just a bunch of prodigies gathering and organizating a ‘small’ revolt. merry xmas again! hope you enjoy this little chapter <3

REMEMBER THIS AU HAPPENS IN THE SAME UNIVERSE THAT THIS ONE

Find out what this AU is about here

Masterlist

Tag list: @healing-winston-pratt @honey-hippie-harper @obsidianfr3sk @nodrianbcyes @everyone-has-a-nightmare @magykaldealings @nobellrenaissance @cerenoya @cassin-the-assasin @cindersnightmare

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Words:

11,163

Part 2: A teen named Ace Artino

17 years old Alec

“Here we are.”

Each and every one of the recruits was present, present where they had been called to meet. Leroy Flinn, wearing a pair of faded jeans here and there, a T-shirt from an old band, and his greasy hair. Henry Bleach, in his baggy hoodie, his paint-stained high-end sneakers, and his hair on fire. Bruce Chapman, in a worn out wool sweater, round glasses, and the strange ashen guidy jaff of him. Margot Climat, her hair in a very long braid, a glossy black leather jacket and boots, and a shiny white shirt that boasted the word ‘purchasing power’ in Alec’s eyes. Carrie Harper, in a jean jacket and pants, an old worn out short-sleeved T-shirt, and her hair in a bun. Honey Harper, in a soft yellow dress, a pair of old leather sandals, and her hair like a curly blonde cloud.

And Alec, in the blackish blue sweater that had been Alexandra’s, the coat James had given him for his last birthday, stolen leather boots, and his hair combed to the side. He had decided to be relaxed, to give an impression of respect but also of confidence; that was also the reason why he had called them to that specific place.

A twenty-four-hour pizzeria in the middle of the western suburbs.

So there they were, at three in the morning, eating the cold pizza that was left over from the kitchen of the place.

Alec inhaled subtly.

“Before I start telling you the ideas I had for our project,” they had decided to call their revolution a ‘project’, so as not to take any risks; although it was most likely that only they were listening, “we should introduce ourselves, as I am (and not even completely), the only one that knows you all. You already know who I am, so please, Leroy, could you start?”

The aforementioned looked at Alec with wide eyes; he had cut him off in the middle of putting a slice of pizza in his mouth. Leroy cleared his throat.

“Well mmm... I'm Leroy Flinn, I'm nineteen years old…”

That was when Honey cut him off with a sarcastic laugh.

“What is this? Alcoholic Anonymous?”

Leroy blushed, Alec took a breath, Carrie gave her sister a reproachful look.

“No, Miss Harper, we are planning a project, a big one; it will take our lives forever.” Alec paused and looked at everyone. The next thing he said to everyone was, in a stern voice to make them feel what he was saying. “Maybe you’re thinking ‘It's just a project’ but no, my dears, it’s a pledge. This is a choice you make now and that will change your lives completely. If any of you just don't feel like liberating the most oppressed group of society, fine then, you can leave and miss the glory of doing this. It is your choice and your choice only.”

Nobody said anything. Everyone except Margot looked at the ground.

His and James’ voice complimented him on being so persuasive.

I’m so proud, my dear Ace.

He cleared his throat and motioned for Leroy to continue, with a nod of his head.

“As I was saying, I'm nineteen years old and I have the ability of generating acids that ooze on my skin,” Leroy said, his voice a little shaky. To demonstrate, he took a napkin from the table, placed it on his hand, and without applying pressure, burned it only with his powers. Honey arched an eyebrow, not being dismissive or shocked.

“Thank you, Leroy. May you continue, Henry?”

He smiled friendly and settled into his seat.

“Hey everyone, my name is Henry Bleach, but please just call me Henry. I'm eighteen and I can melt into magma anytime,” he introduced himself, his smile still on his lips.

“Wouldn't you mind doing a demonstration?” Honey asked, in a clearly sarcastic voice. Alec resisted the urge to ask Honey to be quiet until it was her turn, but he had a better idea.

“Miss Harper, wouldn't you mind introducing yourself? I can see you can’t resist talking so…”

She blushed but nodded.

“My name is Honey Harper, I'm twenty years old and I can control any kind of bee. Watch,” she requested and a bee crawled out of her fluffy hair, landing on one of her knuckles like a ring. Margot was looking at her mesmerized, Carrie was looking at her with wide eyes, as if she was still shocked by such ability.

“Bruce, can you continue?”

He nodded enthusiastically.

“Hi folks! I'm Bruce Chapman, twenty-three years old, psychics student. My power is to manipulate atoms, break them and put them together,” he introduced himself radiantly, and to exemplify his complicated power, he took up another napkin; he turned it to dust in one blink and a paper cup in another. Everyone except Alec, who could do the exact same thing but with another concept, was surprised and cheered softly. Bruce blushed.

“Margot…” Alec said, when Margot herself began to introduce herself.

“I am Margot Climat, fifteen years old, and my ability is complicated. I'm able not only to control the weather but also change with it. The color of my eyes is defined by the color of the sky and my hairstyle, by the wind and humidity. It’s insane, I know.”

“It is fantastic,” Alec expressed, and the others agreed with a nod. Margot smiled with her teeth, which were as radiant as her clothes.

“Who's next? Carrie?” Alec inquired and granted the word to the quiet Carrie Harper.

“Good night everyone, I’m named Carrie Harper, I’m seventeen years old and as you must have noticed, I’m Honey’s little sister. My power isn’t as cool as hers but here’s what I can do.”

She closed her eyes and the plant that was on the table behind her began to grow and grow and spread until it curled up on Carrie's forearm, which was a couple of meters away until that moment. The plant had grown so much that it began to wither and return to its original place, intact though it had just died. Carrie opened her eyes and breathed out, at the same time that she reached for a slice of pizza and brought it to her mouth, as if recharging energy. Honey snickered and gave her sister a friendly nudge.

“Well done, Flower Power,” she crooned.

Carrie didn't reply.

Alec rubbed his palms together and cleared her throat.

“Now that we know each other's names and ages, we can proceed to the plan. Let’s not ever forget what we are here for, what’s our goal. It isn’t getting power, nor fame, nor destroying this society just because. It is freeing our people, once and for all. It is making a change, an unforgettable one. No matter what it takes, no matter how many sacrifices we have to make, we will change this world.”

At all costs, whispered the voice in his mind.

“At all costs,” Alec repeated.

They all nodded.

“To make a change, we have to destroy this empire. Turning down an empire has three parts: infrastructure, government and society. First, we're going to knock down bridges. Shatter roads. Tear down buildings. Smash everything we can. To the sake of this, under the cause of freeing prodigies, freeing ourselves from the chains we have around our necks. We’re going to warn them, and when they don’t listen (because they won’t, they don’t even try to), we’re going to keep breaking down every significant construction in Gatlon.”

Those present gulped. Honey's eyes were shining.

“Are you willing to do this?”

They nodded again. A fire flared in Alec's chest.

“Now, the next part of this project is the hardest. Being the Saviors of our kind means sacrificing many things but above all of them, means sacrificing innocence. We’ll have to wash our hands with blood, when we erase the government, and do what has to be done. These people we’re going to punish, aren’t innocent at all. These people deserve the worst punishment they can receive, and that’s what we’re going to give them.”

He looked each of them in the eye, one at a time. There was fear, anxiety, courage, but above all, a will stronger than a diamond.

“Are you willing to do this?”

This time, they responded with their voices.

“Yes, I am.”

Alec grinned with his teeth, trying not to look like a maniac.

“The last part of this plan is society. Once their leaders are gone, we’ll proclaim ourselves the ones that made that possible. We’re going to demand rights for prodigies, and encourage prodigies to be themselves, to break everything, to do what has to be done, to be anarchic.”

From Leroy to Carrie, they watched him, spellbound by his speech, by his promise of freedom. Seeing everyone so trusting in him gave Alec his identity.

“Because that's what we are: Anarchists.”

It was with that that he ended his speech. They applauded him silently, so as not to attract attention (although they had the place to themselves), but the true compliment was the euphoria on their faces, the hope, the strength.

They were unstoppable under his leadership.

They drank their soda cans.

They ate the remaining slices of pizza.

They laughed, chatted and got to know each other more thoroughly. They told where they came from, how they came, why they came. They mourned their losses, and fell silent to remember the lost. They remembered why they were planning what they were planning. They discussed more details of the plan, until they reached one of vital importance.

“Wait! What about the costumes, and the aliases and the…?” vomited Honey, waving her hands hysterically, shaking her slice of pizza.

Alec raised his index finger and placed it on Honey's lips, brushing them more than touching them.

“Say that again, but slowly and justified,” he asked, and let her speak.

She took a breath.

“I mean, we will just go dressed in normal clothes, using our names? We must have the attention of every citizen in Gatlon, and dressing this kind of clothes,” she pointed out to herself and her sister, “and using such a boring name like 'Honey Harper', we won't be disguised. We must be unique, have names that are unforgettable, be… heroes.”

Carrie sighed and was about to say something when Alec nodded.

“I find your idea, Miss Harper, very practical. Let's do it.”

She blushed.

“Choose your alias, please. One by one; Leroy, you start,” Alec indicated and granted the word to the first recruit.

Leroy stuttered and proclaimed himself as:

“Cyanide? I guess it's okay.”

Alec nodded.

“It’s perfect. Henry, please continue.”

Henry grinned with his teeth.

“Magma.”

Alec smiled in amusement, perhaps because it was a very specific alias.

“Bruce, your turn.”

He laughed as a child.

“Atomic Brain. It’s ingenious, I believe.”

Alec smiled subtly and looked at Margot, asking her to name herself

“Tempest,” she announced, sure of herself and her new identity.

She gave Alec a smile.

He just looked at her, and he requested:

“Carrie?”

She gulped.

“Flower Power.”

Honey laughed.

“You got attached to it, didn’t you?”

Alec cleared his throat.

“Miss Harper, please.”

Honey sighed, dramatic.

“Queen Bee, of course.”

Alec sighed, and uttered his alias.

“I am Ace Anarchy.”

Honey smiled, and commented:

“Of course you are.”

12 notes · View notes

giftofshewbread · 3 years

Text

In Place (Prophecy Update)

By Daymond Duck Published on:July 11, 2021

I think it was the great Bible prophecy teacher Jan Markell that said, “Things are falling in place, not falling apart.”

Here are events that seem to be falling in place.

One, concerning the decline of America at the end of the age to allow the rise of one-world government: on July 1, 2021, the conservative pro-liberty group Brighteon wrote:

“Today in America, every pillar of sustainable civilization is being ripped to shreds: The rule of law, the family, logic and reason, the First Amendment, and even the very concept of due process.”

“It’s all part of an effort to take down America so that the U.S. Constitution can be nullified by globalist interests. After exterminating billions of humans, they want to rule over the survivors via global government.”

“Like a building with a broken foundation, America is about to shift into the ‘gravity free-fall’ collapse scenario, which will likely start with banking and finance.”

Brighteon’s statements are horrible, but they summarize the globalist agenda and seem to be shadows of the coming Tribulation Period.

Two, concerning the ‘free-fall” of America: on July 2, 2021, White House correspondent and prophecy teacher William Koenig wrote (https://watch.org):

“The outcome of the 2020 audits in Arizona, Georgia, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin are making it look more likely Trump could be determined the winner. More details are pending. The Arizona audit in Maricopa County (Phoenix area) is almost complete. Georgia looks as though they are moving toward a Fulton County audit and possibly the whole state. Pennsylvania Republican leaders are moving forward with an audit, as well as Wisconsin. They are at different stages, and they all look favorable to Trump.”

“Major U.S. cities were locked down and/or boarded in the event Trump won the November 3 election.”

“The fear over civil unrest prevented some of the Republican majority legislatures from challenging the election results, and that very possibly caused the Supreme Court not to take the Texas lawsuit that contested election results in four battleground states and was supported by 19 other states.”

“We know the Democrats and the mainstream media reactions and their violent factions could cause major disruption and violence in U.S. cities.”

Pray for America.

Three, the UN is a godless, anti-Israel organization that wants to become a world government.

It constantly passes anti-Israel resolutions, investigates Israel, condemns Israel, etc.

Its attitude and actions fit what the prophets foretold for the end of the age.

On June 29, 2021, Israel’s departing Pres. Reuven Rivlin met with UN Sec.-Gen. Guterres at the UN building in New York.

Rivlin told Guterres, “Our region, the Middle East, needs trust between people.”

“Peace between Israel and the Palestinians will never ever be achieved by anti-Israeli resolutions or investigation committees.”

According to the Bible, peace will not be achieved until Israel accepts Jesus as their Messiah.

Four, those that believe in a Psa. 83 war before the Battle of Gog and Magog are aware that Asaph prayed in part because Israel’s enemies would say, “Let us cut them (Israel) off from being a nation” (Psa. 83:4).

On July 5, 2021, Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah delivered a major speech at a conference in Lebanon and said, “There are no people in the Israeli entity; they are all occupiers and settlers.”

If Psa. 83 prophesies a future war, as some excellent prophecy teachers think, Mr. Nasrallah could be in for a big surprise.

Five, concerning the Mark of the Beast in one’s forehead or in their right hand (notice “in” not “on”): on June 30, 2021, it was reported that current tiniest nano storage devices are at least 100 atoms thick, but researchers in Israel have discovered a way to store data on film that is 2-atoms thick.

Storing information on chips inside the human body (in the forehead or right hand) is getting easier and easier.

Six, Greg Hunter, producer and creator of USAWatchdog.com, recently interviewed the former Assistant Sec. of Housing, Catherine Austin Fitts, and here is some of what she said about the economic situation:

“The central bankers are using the government to shut down the main street economy, and then they are going direct and injecting money into the private equity firms and Wall Street who are running around the country buying things. Think of this as a leverage buyout of the world. We are being purchased with our own money. Also, we are liable. If you look at all the debt the government is issuing, our assets are liable for that debt.”

For those that may doubt what Fitts said, it has been widely reported that Bill Gates now owns more farmland than anyone in the U.S., and World Economic Forum globalist Klaus Schwab said under the Great Reset, “You will own nothing and be happy.”

Here is an interesting comment Fitts made about the role of Covid-19 in the globalist ownership of everything in the world:

“This is freedom or tyranny, and tyranny is slavery. We are talking about very invasive slavery because they are planning on installing the smart grid into our bodies. There will be 24/7 surveillance and control of your money. If you don’t behave, they will turn off your money. If they don’t want you to go more than five miles, your money won’t work further than five miles.”

If this writer understands this, Fitts (not a kook; the former Sec. of Housing) believes Covid-19 is part of a coming surveillance system that will use buying and selling to control people.

Understand that many of those that are left behind after the Rapture will be watched (surveilled), they will not be allowed to buy and sell unless they take the Mark of the Beast, and they will perish in the Lake of Fire if they do (Rev. 14:9-11).

Seven, concerning a peace treaty in the Middle East: on July 1, 2021, a writer for a publication with close ties to Saudi Arabia’s royal family carried an article that said many Saudis believe that Crown Prince Muhammed bin Salman (MBS) has concluded that his nation is making a mistake by clinging to the Palestinian peace process until the Palestinians and Israel agree to the Two-State solution.

MBS and others have concluded that the Palestinians will never agree to peace with Israel because the Palestinians want the destruction of Israel, not peace with Israel.

According to the article, MBS believes Saudi Arabia needs to expand its economy for the good of its own people instead of restraining it to achieve a Two-State solution that the Palestinians do not intend to accept.

Past reports about this issue have indicated that Saudi Arabia’s move toward normalization will be followed by many other Arab nations.

The Bible tells us these 4 things:

1) No one knows the day or the hour of our Lord’s return (Matt. 24).

2) Christians can see the day approaching (Heb. 10:25).

3) It will come upon the world like a snare (Luke 21:35).

4) The Antichrist will confirm a covenant after the Rapture of the Church (Dan. 9:27; II Thess. 2:7).

Eight, on July 6, 2021, Pres. Biden announced his “community by community,” “neighborhood-by-neighborhood,” “door-to-door” effort to vaccinate America’s unvaccinated citizens.

How will the government know who hasn’t been vaccinated if the government is not tracking people?

Is the government now going to monitor citizen’s medical records?

Concerning abortion, this writer believes he has heard Biden say a woman has a right to choose what to do with her own body.

If a woman has a right to kill her baby, doesn’t she have a right to refuse to be vaccinated?

America’s economy is being destroyed.

America’s military is being weakened.

America’s border with Mexico is wide open to terrorists, human traffickers and drug smugglers.

America’s large cities are plagued with shootings and other crimes.

America is beginning to see food shortages.

American companies are under attack by computer hackers.

America’s Pres. supports world gov, world religion, and the Two-State solution.

He thinks Climate Change is the greatest threat to America.

He has dementia, and his son is corrupt.

America’s FBI and CIA are corrupt and turning a blind eye.

America’s election was probably stolen.

America is divided, and a nation divided against itself cannot stand.

America’s pulpits are mostly silent; etc., etc., etc.

Where do we think America will go from here?

Nine, here is a link to a website that Geri Ungurean sent out that provides stories about adverse reactions from Covid-19 vaccinations: https://1000covidstories.com/

Finally, are you Rapture Ready?

If you want to be rapture ready and go to heaven, you must be born again (John 3:3). God loves you, and if you have not done so, sincerely admit that you are a sinner; believe that Jesus is the virgin-born, sinless Son of God who died for the sins of the world, was buried, and raised from the dead; ask Him to forgive your sins, cleanse you, come into your heart and be your Saviour; then tell someone that you have done this.

2 notes · View notes

ataswegianabroad · 3 years

Text

Alone Amongst the Gum Trees Part 4 - Digital News Report: Australia - A Murdoch Review

NOTE - this article has been migrated to Medium. As of 2021, A Taswegian Abroad will be closed down, and all of my writing will be published on my Medium profile.

---

After seeing a significant public outcry to my story based on a response to Sally McManus on twitter - I recently spoke with the ABC on being an Aussie overseas and the challenges we’ve faced getting home. The failure once again of Morrison’s government to provide enough vaccines and a proper quarantine system (covered up by the Murdoch Press protection racket) is having real implications on everyday Australians.

I strongly believe that for this to change, the media needs to perform its function of holding both elected officials, and their peers in the press, accountable for such actions.

Until Australia has reestablished media fairness among the press, improved media literacy amongst its citizens, and have mostly removed the cancer of Murdoch’s News Corp dominating mainstream media, we will never break this cycle of government ineptitude, gaslighting, negligence, and outright corruption with little to almost zero accountability.

You don't need to look far for proof. The ones that immediately come to mind for me:

2020 Bushfires and consistent climate change denial - "I don't hold a hose mate"

Freedom of speech is threatened where internet comedians get arrested in their own homes for making jokes about a LNP Deputy Premier

Kate and the horrendous Christian Porter alleged rape case

The four stage plan to make a plan about having a plan for Covid, 18 months into the pandemic, with literally no dates or vaccination targets.

Back in March, I caught onto calls for a Murdoch Royal Commission by former prime minister Kevin Rudd, and since then I’ve been keeping a very sharp eye on the Australian media landscape.

Despite over 500,000 petition signatures and the ramping exposure by Rudd online (leading to a full senate enquiry), the Murdoch press is doing its best to discredit, misdirect, or, blatantly ignore the storm that’s brewing. A couple of major things have caught my attention since that date.

News Corp outlets are still consistently cowing their competitors at Nine, Seven, the ABC, and more into towing the pro-Coalition narrative THEY choose, or, risk facing character assassination. This applies to everyone who dares step out of line: reporters, ministers, producers, senators, editors, presenters, janitors… no one is safe.

This sort of behaviour and influence is not easy to show on graphs and charts, but if you read between the lines, you can see it. Let me show you.

The ABC Presents the Data

In April of 2021, the ABC published a fact-file article outlining the power of the Murdoch press - the first article from an at least somewhat reputable source addressing this that I’ve seen on this topic.

The biggest things I took from it are that despite there seeming to be a diverse ownership pool across many mediums, News Corp (Murdoch) newspapers significantly dominate the national market for print papers, and, have recently been crowned leaders of the #1 source of news for Australians: social media (via mostly viral, opinion, and video based content primarily from News.com.au and Sky News pages on Facebook and YouTube).

Remember this point - spoiler alert: it’s important.

At the recent senate enquiries, News Corp claims there is in fact diversity - focusing on different mediums such as online, social media, radio, television etc. available to represent “diversity”. This is response refers to medium diversity, and is quite frankly a misdirection based on a technicality to avoid the real question. Classic News Corp.

Rudd says “each story published online or broadcast over the airwaves finds its point of origin in a print story, often a Murdoch print story". The former PM is referring to content diversity where factual reporting reigns supreme, and different points of view are given equal time in the sun without the blurring of opinion and fact.

As Kevin likes to say: “pigs might fly”

While you might be thinking “so what? News Corp is strong in print and social, Nine is strong for television and online news, ABC is strong on radio and social, Seven is strong on radio and television etc” - I’d like to ask you a question: where then is the accountability for elected officials in the media?

The Murdoch press won’t say a word about the Coalition’s ever growing laundry list of corruption, negligence, ineptitude or incompetence, but if a Labor politician sneezes, they’re likely to be labelled a Covid super spreader on the front page of 15 national and state papers the next day.

How about this doozy from the Herald Sun in May 2021 after Dan Andrews quite literally broke his back and took medical leave:

I didn’t see one peep from the Murdoch reptiles about Morrison's three day actual disappearing act only last week after his bogus "AstraZeneca is OK for under 40’s / go to your GP” comments.

The key thing to point out here is that the news provider who ranks number one in Australia's largest news medium (social media) is a well known right wing protection racket that doesn’t show any signs of slowing down, and there's mountains of evidence that exists to prove they don’t play a fair game.

Let’s Go To the Numbers

To really drill down into how important online media control is, I found the Digital News Report: Australia 2021 (i.e “the report” for the rest of this article), recently published by the University of Canberra by way of the Reuters Digital News Report: 2021

Below I've outlined a number of key headers from the report, and more specifically tried to point out exactly where Murdoch and News Corp are exploiting and manipulating their way into control. The data shows us both what has been going on, and the direction it will likely continue in.

Having worked in digital marketing for the better part of the last four years, I couldn’t wait to dive into this data and explain just how much of a rort this all is for the sake of profit.

1: Local News

Replaced by Murdoch Sky News, Invests in Social Media

“For ‘hard news’ such as local politics, economy, crime and health, local news consumers continue to turn to traditional local news outlets, such as the newspaper or TV. However, for most other news and information, consumers are using internet search and other internet sites to get localised information.”

The report tells us that:

“2020 was a difficult year in Australian news sector, with news companies closing or suspended. This is in part a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it reflects a longer-term gradual decline in newspaper consumption that is replaced by online offerings”

So why did the BBC report in 2020 that Murdoch shuts 112 Australia print papers in major digital shift? CNN covered it too, as did the Guardian. I couldn’t find anything on a Murdoch owned site or outlet. That’s because Rupert is rolling out “Sky News Regional” to replace them all.

The report outlines:

“This year’s data highlights the important role of newspapers in generating a sense of community, particularly among older news consumers . Further, newspapers are perceived to be the best source of information about local government and politics, which is central to the functioning and accountability of local communities. It is important for industry and government to remember that the closure of a local newspaper not only leaves a gap in the provision of quality news, but also a loss of critical information that is connected to people’s sense of attachment to their community”

How on earth does one far-right Sydney run “news” channel represent hundreds of regional communities? Answer: It doesn’t - it’s designed to influence regional voters to think the way that suits the Murdoch press agenda.

2: Impartiality of News

Murdoch Cuts ABC Funding via Coalition, Ramps-Up Online Polarisation

The report tells us that

“traditionally, values of independence, and impartiality — or ‘objectivity’ — have been central to journalism’s mission and deemed important to perceptions of trust in news. However, in the digital media environment, former demarcations between news, features, opinion, and advertising continue to blur.

“News audiences are becoming more polarised and are increasingly attracted to news brands that offer partisan perspectives.”

What you’re seeing here is that while the data reveals a strong desire for news outlets to attempt fairness, balance, and an impartial approach to reporting - the demographics more likely to use social media (the medium that Murdoch now leads, mostly containing Millennials and Gen Z) are less supportive of impartiality, neutrality and giving equal time. More on this in Part 8.

On the flip side:

"news consumers who prefer impartiality are much more likely to say they distrust news on social media.”

“Both the 2020 and 2021 data highlight that these traditional journalism ideals are more strongly supported by older generations and those who use traditional sources of news."

You need not look further than the blatant defunding of the ABC to see how the Murdoch Cancer continues to take over.

So, if the majority of Australians believe the ABC is impartial and does a “good job”, why has the ABC had $783m in funding cut since 2014 by the Coalition government?

Seems to suit the Murdoch agenda pretty nicely.

3: News Representation

Low Media Literacy in Under-Represented Demographics

“Importantly, a large proportion of Australians say they don’t know if the amount of media coverage of ‘people like them’ is sufficient or fair. Those who have low education are much more likely to say they don’t know. This indicates a lack of engagement and adequate media literacy to identify misrepresentation and bias in the news.

“Combined with a lack of awareness about misinformation, lower interest in and consumption of news, these findings confirm the ongoing need for targeted media literacy interventions"

The only way the public can push back against misinformation is by knowing they’re witnessing it first hand. That does not suit what Murdoch is selling.

Misinformation breeds confusion, smoke and mirrors, and is aided by political spin, gaslighting and stone throwing to keep people moderately confused and ultimately giving up on understanding the “truth”, or, deciding their own convenient version of truth.

The closure of the Australian Alternative Press due to revoked funding by Nine and News Corp in 2020 should be enough to tell you the media landscape is gravitating consistently to the right.

4: News Access

People Losing Interest, Murdoch Keeps the Elderly Onside

As traditional mediums (television, radio, and print) are on the decline, social media and online news is on the rise with the aid of mobile device popularity (45% of Australians preferred news devices).

It's not a surprise to learn that during COVID-19, older Australians have increasingly turned to social media platforms to get news.

“The percentage of 75+ who use social media as their main source of news has more than tripled in two years from 3% to 10%. Among this age group, social media is now comparable to print use.” the report states.

While it’s hard to point this as a direct plot by News Corp, this is still great news for Murdoch. All News Corp had to do was weaken the traditional mediums that aren’t making them as much money, and push the audience toward social media. It worked.

75+ votes still count, and they are more likely to click the “clickbait” articles to make News Corp that sweet, sweet ad platform revenue.

5: Emerging New Habits

Murdoch Funds the Fuel for the Fire

Despite people being somewhat varied on their social media usage for news specifically, the important statistic here is that more than half of Australians consume news videos.

The below statistics from the ABC should set alarm bells screaming. To put it plainly:

More people on social media than ever before

Murdoch ramps up social media content (Facebook posts / videos & YouTube videos mainly), then mega-funds paid advertising on said content

Drives subscribers and views through the roof

Overtakes ABC (yes, the one he’s got his politician friends/puppets actively defunding)

Don’t believe me? See for yourself.

The ABC outlines that:

“Fact Check has analysed audience data for media accounts on what Canberra University found were the two most popular platforms: Facebook (used by 39 per cent of news consumers ) and YouTube (21 per cent).”

“Data from the analytics site Social Blade shows that Sky News Australia's YouTube channel had more than a million subscribers at the start of 2021, having doubled its following in just six months. Its subscriber base began to pull ahead of Channel 7 and Channel 9 from mid-2020, and by March 2021 Sky had overtaken ABC News”

The University of Canberra report aligns to these trends, and summaries that:

“Australian news consumers are accessing news online from a diverse range of sources including news videos, podcast apps, and numerous social media platforms alongside traditional branded news websites.”

“Although social (media) is the most common main pathway to news online it is common for consumers on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram to say they mostly see news incidentally while they are on those platforms for other reasons.”

6: Trust and Misinformation

Rupert’s Bread & Butter

“Tackling disinformation and misinformation is complex and won’t be solved by platforms alone. Responsibility must be shared across governments, digital platforms, users, news media and society to make sure Australians can access accurate and reliable news and information online, while ensuring rights to freedom of expression are protected.”

Creina Chapman, Deputy Chair, Australian Communications and Media Authority

This in part ties back to my earlier points in part 3 regarding media literacy - the report indicates that trust remains high where people use both multiple mediums AND multiple sources for news. This is further compounded by the evidence that low educated readers are less likely to know they’ve encountered misinformation.

The report confirms this by indicating:

“The differences between high and low educated Australian consumers in relation to concern about COVID-19 misinformation and their ability to discern it, points to an ongoing need to boost media and information literacy among socio-economically disadvantaged groups in Australia”

The ABC and SBS still continue to be the most trusted brands, however, it needs to be highlighted that “Local or Regional Newspaper” comes in third (62% trustworthy) - the vast majority of which Murdoch owns.

In 2020, survey participants were most concerned about Australian governments and politicians being sources of general misinformation (35%), followed by activists or activist groups (20%).

Despite this, 2021 shows that trust in news has increased in 2021 (43%), rebounding off trust associated with COVID-19 news reporting. The report breaks this down further:

“The data show(s) that concern about journalism as a source of misinformation about COVID-19 is very low (9%). In 2018, we asked about ‘fake news’ and 63% of news consumers said they were concerned about poor quality journalism as a source of ‘fake news’, and 40% said they had encountered it. This signals a possible positive shift in perception of journalism after 12 months of reporting expert health advice about the COVID-19 pandemic.”

"The data also highlight(s) ongoing low levels of trust in news found on social media (18%) compared to trust in news generally. Given much of the news encountered on digital platforms is the same as that which appears on the homepages and front pages of well-respected news brands, the findings suggest that the nature of the online environment itself is one the factors lowering perceptions of trust, rather than the news content."

Creina Chapman, Deputy Chair, Australian Communications and Media Authority states in the report that:

“In the context of online news, nearly two-thirds of Australians remain concerned about what is real and fake on the internet. And a variety of surveys over the past 12 months have shown a concerning portion of the population believe dangerous falsehoods about COVID-19 that have been circulating online.

"Any lack of trust in authoritative or reliable sources of news and information is particularly worrisome during a global pandemic, as it may drive people to spaces where misinformation is more prevalent. This, in turn, increases exposure to false conspiratorial narratives that can result in real-world harm to both individual users and broader societal institutions”

Where does Murdoch benefit here? Same as always: smoke, mirrors, confusion, and spin all wrapped into enormous volumes of social media content.

7: Paying for News and Funding Journalism

Conveniently Avoiding the Issue

“To ensure media diversity and plurality in Australia, a mix of substantive, fiscal measures is necessary to support, transition and stimulate existing news businesses and encourage new entrants”

Anna Draffin, Chief Executive Officer, Public Interest Journalism Initiative

Despite a fair and balanced media being a must-have for any democracy - this is not surprising, given the low amounts of trust for online media content. Overall, given that Australians are not concerned about the poor financial state of news outlets, it’s sad but not surprising that many feel the government should not step in to help.

What is the most dangerous here is the simple fact that when there’s no money to fund decent and ethical journalism, we end up with tabloids, opinion pieces, shock jocks, and anything that just gets you to first: SEE it (an “impression” in the marketing world) and second: CLICK on it. Both of these things make News Corp richer.

Here’s the report evidence:

“A quarter (25%) of left-wing news consumers and 27% of centre-leaning are supportive of government intervention (to assist struggling journalism). However, more than half of right-wing (58%) news consumers are opposed to government assistance for financially struggling news companies."

“This is consistent with the findings that left-wing news consumers are more likely to say they are concerned about the financial state of news businesses (41%) compared to centre (37%) or right-wing (34%) news consumers”.

News consumers who think their political views are represented fairly for online news are another win for Murdoch. This is compounded by the fact that those who think news should take a position are also more likely to pay for that news.

That means if the mainstream media is pro-right wing, for example, then more people look at right wing news and pay for right wing reporting, ultimately leaving the left without funding, and fighting a losing battle. All Murdoch needs to do is discredit who he deems as “left” and it’s game over.

But Murdoch doesn’t need subscriptions. That’s just pocket money for him. With the introduction of the News Media Bargaining Code, Rupert & News Corp continue to improve their financial revenue streams through digital marketing strategies (views and clicks) without needing people to pay for fact based, objective journalism.

8: Political Orientation

Stealing the Centre & Making Opinion the “News”

Of all the elements of this report, this one shocks and upsets me the most.

The majority of Australians (61%) identify with the centre-left of politics (30% political ‘centre’ and 31% identify as either ‘very left-wing’, ‘fairly left-wing’ or ‘slightly left of centre’).

Only 22% of Australians align themselves with the right wing, and 18% don’t know their political orientation.

Younger generations have historically been the drivers of progressive social change, and younger Australians are more concerned about the environment and the impacts of things like climate change and equality.

Clare Armstrong, National Political Reporter at the The Daily Telegraph outlines in the commentary that:

“many young Australians may rightly feel their futures, livelihoods and social activities have been either jeopardised or overlooked by a centre-right government, and subsequently a larger cohort has been pushed toward the left”

To begin in closing, based on this - how do Conservative/Right Wing parties keep winning federal elections?

It’s by doing exactly what we’ve mentioned in the first 7 sections:

Flooding the online and social media landscape with non-factual spin and confusion

This is aided by the bedrock of owning the majority of national, capital city, and regional papers which in turn steer the daily political narrative on television/radio

This is all driven home by bullying competitors into following suit, or, suffering the consequences

There is no governing or peer run body with teeth (or guts) to hold Murdoch and News Corp responsible or accountable

According to the report;

“Younger generations, who say they feel less attached to their local community, and who also access social media widely for general news, are more likely to seek local news and information from the internet and online platforms.”

As Clare Armstrong also states:

“Social media has significantly fuelled political polarisation in the last decade as its algorithms, by design, show users more of what they want to see, rather than a broader mix of ideas presented in traditional media.”

In summary - this quote from the Political Orientation trends leaves a long-lasting impression on my psyche:

“Left-wing news consumers (61% of the country) are more comfortable with news that takes a position rather than maintaining neutrality.”

Rupert has them right where he wants them: thinking that opinion is news.

#murdochroyalcommission #scotty from marketing #covid australia #auspol

3 notes · View notes

losille2000 · 4 years

Text

Mister America, Prologue: Massachusetts

CHAPTER NUMBER: 1/? CHARACTERS: President!Chris Evans/OFC (see notes) GENRE: Romance/Drama FIC SUMMARY: After a massive social media write-in campaign organized by others, Chris finds himself thrust into a spotlight that he is unprepared to handle. His campaign managers suggest that a political marriage might help him weather the storm and help his image during the campaign... just so long as it isn’t the one woman Chris really wants. RATING: M WARNINGS: Nothing. AUTHORS NOTES: This story is AU in the fact that this is the 2020 presidential race, and Chris is a candidate. But everything in the past is still the same with him being an actor. Also, COVID-19 is not a part of this story. I needed to play in a land where COVID didn’t exist and “Captain America,” in his alter ego, punched out a Nazi in a metaphorical(?) way. For more on the story, go here.

This first part is prologue-y.

I have also curated a soundtrack for all 50 states, and then some. You can listen on Spotify right now, may eventually put it on Youtube. There will be 50 chapters (I’m hoping), but many of them will be shorter.

Also on AO3!

Boston, MA Evans for President Campaign Headquarters November 3rd, 2020 30 Minutes Before First Polls Close

Stage fright is no joke.

When it hits, it hits like a semi truck going seventy on an icy Massachusetts road. In the blink of an eye, you’re completely obliterated. Except this is on stage and you’re not dead, even though you wish you were. In fact, you’re very much alive. Alive enough to feel the force of the impact, followed by the squeezing in your chest and choking on your breathless words. Paralysis takes over. Cold clammy sweat slicks your palms and also trickles down your back to that one spot between your shoulder blades you can’t reach, but causes your costume to uncomfortably stick to your skin.

There’s no escape. You know what’s coming. You worry you’ll forget your lines, or trip on your cue, or make a complete and utter fool of yourself. You feel like an imposter, questioning why you’re here, in this role, when that dude, JD, from your acting class years ago was a million times more talented than you, and you’re the one that got that teen movie deal. You’re the one who became one of America's most beloved superheroes for a decade.

You’re also the one who has a very real chance of winning the 2020 presidential election, despite no college education, limited understanding of what elected officials in DC actually do on a day to day basis, and the closest thing you have to experience as a “boss” or “commander in chief” of anything was a movie set or two where you were director and executive producer.

Nope.

What I, Chris Evans, have is a dedicated online fan base who took the time to write my name into ballots when they discovered I had filed for ballot access in every state of the union. I didn’t do the filing on a whim; we sat around late one night talking about the interviews I had been conducting in DC for a website about party positions on important issues. My business partners and I came up with the idea that a long form documentary about campaigning would be interesting, and we determined the best way to understand the process was to become a “candidate” myself. Meaning, we only planned to use the credentials to be on the front line of the campaigning process. I was never going to create signs and make speeches or debate with others.

I never intended to run a legitimate campaign.

But, as I mentioned, something strange happened during the Democratic primaries. People started to vote for me, a trickle of rain in a hurricane.

I won a few primary delegates.

Without even trying.

Not enough to win the Democratic ticket, but enough to make pollsters sit up and take notice.

My loyal fans stepped in again, undaunted, and ignited a storm. They dubbed it “Operation America’s Ass” and created a grassroots campaign across the country with GoFundMe donations and a lot of pluck. I thought it was a joke. A part of me still does think it’s a joke. I mean, what other explanation is there for this mess? For the red, white and blue bunting hanging on the walls with the “Chris Evans for President” sign plastered underneath it? For the staffers who stop briefly to see if I need anything...‘Would you like a drink, sir?’... or, upon seeing how pale I look, give me a vote of confidence… ‘Are you ready for your acceptance speech?’ There’s absolutely no good explanation as to why there are twenty or thirty people buzzing around the hotel suite waiting for results. They’re so energized with hope for a better future.

Hope that I can be everything they ever wanted in a president.

An Independent president, free from party oversight.

A president with class.

A president for the people.

A president who can bring the United States back from the brink of destruction at the hands of previous leaders.

I wish I had their confidence.

When they asked me on career day in school what I wanted to be when I grew up, I always said artist. When I was older, in high school, I knew I was going to be an actor. Never president. The job never entered my mind as being a possibility, not even when I used to work for my uncle’s congressional campaigns. Or when I started filming those interviews.

Why does anyone think I, a straight white momma’s boy from Boston should be president in 2020? Just because I made a few popular Tweets about the current president’s lack of leadership?

It has to be a joke. A cosmic one. I’m a punchline. I am convinced they’ll jump out from behind a doorway and yell “You’ve been PUNK’D! We really got you this time, now here, Bernie, you’re the better candidate.”

And yet…

What if they see in me something I do not?

I place a lot of stock in being in the moment. I’ve also put a lot of work into accepting the twists and turns of life instead of allowing all the “what ifs” and “what should I dos” to eat away at me. I told everybody after I was done with Marvel and financially secure enough to only work on projects I really wanted to, I’d take life as it came at me.

Well, it came after me.

To be fair, I originally chose to get into politics, even in a tiny way, because I wanted to be informed about my choices. I created a website so others could learn, as well. As time went on, I became more involved on Capitol Hill. I even did some lobbying for a few causes dear to my heart. And, yes, I did file the ballot access paperwork.

Had I unintentionally set my path in this direction? Was it inevitable for me to become a contender for the presidency?

Fortunately, I learned early on in the process that a lot of being a presidential candidate is being a convincing showman. An actor. The world's a stage, after all, and I am but a player. You have to have some solid ideas and convictions to back up the image, but a lot of the governing comes from other members of the executive branch. Should I win, I’d only be signing off on everything.

Of course, that “everything” affects the lives of more than 300 million souls. I wouldn’t trust me with a kitchen knife, much less nuclear launch codes and people's livelihoods and education and health and…

My hands shake with nerves just thinking about it.

Let it be said, once I do make it out onto the stage--be it as an actor or presidential candidate--I rise to the challenge. The energy from the audience buoys me. Makes me feel alive. But I am not, by nature, someone who likes to sign away so much personal freedom in exchange for the weight of carrying an albatross around my neck. I thought signing for Captain America would be tough; the human toll of running for president even moreso.

Actually being President? I can’t even wrap my mind around that.

It would be easy to call it quits, even now when the votes are already cast. I could have done it a long time ago, when the reality of the situation hit me the first time. I didn’t. Something told me to hold back, play it out. I persevered. Why? Somewhere, along the line, I began to believe I could do this. I could make a positive difference in the lives of Americans.

I certainly want to do right by all my supporters--and my detractors. I want to be a leader for all Americans.

But can I, really, while knowing my incredible deficiencies?

Maybe I can’t, but I can be the team leader. A brand ambassador, if you will. A good leader delegates. And I intend, should I win, to surround myself with the best and brightest. I will accept no less. I will do ‘Whatever It Takes,’ as our slogan boasts. I am American, first and foremost, and I care deeply about this country.

A real Captain America, if you will. Maybe not as strong or powerful as others, but I sure as hell can give a great speech and will defend my country from bullies until my last breath, whether they be purple… or orange.

Except, I suppose if I’m elected, I won’t be Captain America anymore. They’ll call me Mr. President.

Or, horror of horrors, what if the new name my nearest and dearest coined makes it out into the public. They tease me with it just to see my visceral revulsion and get a laugh. But if I have learned anything about the internet--and pop culture--is that if something is catchy, it sticks around for a long time.

Maybe I ought to get used to the idea of being a punchline.

So, I suppose I have a question for you.

Won’t you consider a vote for Mr. America?

#chris evans #captain america #chris evans fanfiction #chris evans fan fiction #chris evans fanfic #chris evans fan fic #mister america #president!chris evans #president

54 notes · View notes