Well, in spite of promising to have a Post ready for today, I was UNABLE to get it DONE. Being Poor and less well known IS overall a great Joy, but it does lack that certain . . . Money . . . that allows one to not have to struggle to survive everyday. So, it is NOW my Plan to have a Post ready for Monday, when everyone should be aroused and ready for my "Love." Until then, ciao.
Your long wait for Sarcasm and unfair Criticism will soon be over! I will be posting a new Blog Entry on Sunday February 26th, 2012! Assuming that you have not already turned to Heroin or Anonymous Sex for relief, you should start to feel much better as I massage your Brains with my Words! Hang in there!
I had to extend my break from Posting for a few days more. I know that many of my two or three Readers may be having withdrawal symptoms from my Wit and Sarcasm. Be assured, however, that I will be back shortly. I have been busy with a number of projects, including one that took up much of the time I would normally SLEEP. Relief for the damned is on the way, however!
It is actually amazing that the United States is still a functioning Nation at all. With some of our more vocal Citizens proclaiming that we are the "Greatest Nation ever," one might expect the rest of the World to resent our assertions and be hostile towards us. [THEY ARE] Nevermind that we are the only Nation EVER to actually use Nuclear Weapons on another Nation, we claim to be "Peace and Liberty Loving People." Are we really?
One of the greatest Liberties that I can personally imagine, is to start off Life in a Healthy and Robust manner. Apparently, the Children born in the United States are not starting off Life with the greatest of advantage. Low Birth Weight is frequently a sign of poor Prenatal Care. Since the United States has no Universal Healthcare System which would provide access to Free or at least Affordable Prenatal Care, we suffer the consequences in terms of large numbers of our Children being born at below recommended Birth Weight.
One of the Freedoms that I value greatly is the idea of living a LifeFree of being a Criminal, or a Victim of Crime. If you look at the Chart at the Link above, you will see immediately that the United States is nowhere near being Free of Criminals or Victims of Crime. Is that something that Fox News Nazi Sean Hannity forgotto brag about relative to the Absolute Greatness of the United States of America?
Do Americans actually even know much about the rest of the World? Are we knowledgeable about how the rest of the World works, and what is going on in it?
Much of what Americans currently know about the World has come from learning about Regions of the World as we invade them. And by that time, the information we receive is laden with the Propaganda of World Conquest, along with the usual Market-BasedCommercialism.
Are Americans any more knowledgeable about their own Nation though? Are Americans "Experts" on the Democratic Republic that the United States is?
There are numerous indications that Americans are greatly ignorant of, and confused by, the manner in which Government operates in the United States. The United States has one of the longest [never-ending] and most expensive Campaign Seasons of any Industrialized Nation in the World.
Some estimates have suggested that it can take up to a Billion United States Dollars in campaign related spending to conduct a successful run for the Office of President of the United States. Since there are not a Billion people living in the United States, that means that Candidates must depend on a small number of Groups and/or Individuals to give them a lot of money to conduct their campaigns.
Just on face value, it would appear that a small group of donors are influencing our Elections by providing the greatest amount of Money. It would be naive to assume that there is no HiddenAgenda behind making such donations. People usually have some reason for providing resources, and after the recent Citizens United Supreme Court Decision, we have to assume that it may not be one that benefits the Masses.
So, here we are in a Country where Free Speech has been equated to Dollars. The Net Effect is that Power in Concentrated into the hands of a Few Wealthy Groups and Individuals. Is this what makes the United States the "Greatest Best Nation Ever"? There appears to be something about the Reality that does not match the Assertion.
If one is lonely and bored enough to read that entire Article, and do some additional research, one will find something very interesting. It appears that there are numerous similarities between the implementation of a Democratic Republican Government in the United States and ModernFascism as it has existed around the World. That might shock and anger many reading this, but it is a fair assessment based on the facts.
While the Documentary Film above is controversial in the extreme nature of its claims, there is much of interest in it. There is little doubt, especially since Citizens United Decision, that Corporations exert an ever increasing level of influence over the Political Operations of the United States. That does not bode well, under any empirical method of evaluation, for the largest majority of Citizens of the Nation. Since there is limited influence to be had, by definition, and Money is now Free Speech, those with the most Money now have the largestBody of Free Speech Rights. If the Government is not hearing us, we are not truly being represented in the Political Process.
A rise in Corporate Power has historically been associated with the development of mostFascist States. Corporations do not exist, generally, to advance the common good. They are remnants of Mercantile Ideologies of Imperialist Nations of the past. They exist to promote the interests of a select few, who either have either inherited, forcefully taken, or otherwise gained control of great persuasive power in a Nation. Imperialism, Fascism, and Corporatism are all essentially the same.
So, I again find myself wondering what people like Fox News' Sean Hannity base their ideas about American Exceptionalism on. Perhaps he is just engaging in one of the otherGreat Activities of the American Corporate Media: Lying. Without invoking a God, Religion, or any other Magical Ideation, there is no empirical basis for making the claim that the United States of America is the "Greatest, Freest, Best Nation ever given to Mankind by God." And realistically, Nationalism is really just another form of Fascism.
At the end of any sane assessment of the United States, one might come to the conclusion that it is just another Country out of many that exist, have existed, and will ever exist. While there are many unique features to this Country, there aremore that are almost exactly the same as every other Country on Earth. America is just a place to live, and its people are just simple Human Beings. We really should strive to grow beyond pedestrian notions of being Better or Greater than all the other Better and Great People on the Planet. If we are to survive and thrive, it is essential that we learn to cooperate rather than compete. American Exceptionalism is a game that is being played by those of questionable sanity, lower intelligence, and compromised morals. I hope the idea will eventually fade away, and become just a bad memory from our History.
While I do not profess to be any Expert on Library Science, or the Media, or much of anything at all, I am aware that there is a perception in the general Population that Wikipedia, the Free Online Encyclopedia is less than trustworthy. That is an interesting idea, that needs to be at least briefly explored.
Wikipedia is unique in both design and function. It is can be edited by anyone who can access it, and the Articles are thereby constantly under review by any and everyone reading them. It is considered to be an Open Source Website.
The Reliability of the information in Wikipedia is often called into question. As it is an Open SourceProject, as mentioned before, there are some who feel that it does not have sufficient controls on the accuracy of the information in the Articles. I find that an odd assertion. Conceivably, Experts from various areas of Research and Media can and do read Wikipedia Articles regularly. Does that not actually make Wikipedia ultimately MORE Democratic than other Sources? And be aware, Recorded Depictions of Reality are often the Product of Consensus, so Facts are sometimes in dispute.
With the recent rise of Websites that actually check the accuracy of information provided in the Media, and by Politicians and others, it probably should not surprise many People that it appears that we are not living in a World where accurate information is valued so much. Most of what we see and hear via Popular Corporate Media is provided under specific Editorial Guidelines. Does that imply impartiality, or the guarantee that the information is free of Editorial Slant? Not really. There could easily be an Agenda driving the completeness and manner in which information is presented.
If we consider that even Popular Corporate and Governmental Information Distribution Sources can be adulterated in their depiction of Reality, Wikipedia might be considered as viable a source as any. I personally use Wikipedia more as a starting point for any research than as a definitive source for Citation.
So, when I use a Wikipedia Article on this Blog, it should be with the understanding that, while it is no worse than any other source available, it is likely no better. We should never really simply accept information provided to us without double-checking, and should always do as much as we can to verify its accuracy. And no, the "I'm too busy" excuse does not cut it. Double-checking information is as important as any other primary task in Life.
We consume information, so we should be certain that what we consume is wholesome, and accurate. If we are fooled by those who mean to trick and harm us, we might just consider that we may not have exercised due diligence in checking on the accuracy of the information provided to us. I do not mean to blame the victim, but I am suggesting that it is better if we try to avoid becoming victims when it is wholly avoidable.
Much as I would LOVE to be able to produce my HATEFUL and HYPERCRITICAL Blog Posts 24/365, I am limited by the desire to have enough Money for myself and my family [yes, I have a Wife and Son] to Eat, Pay Bills, and continue Living Indoors. So, owing to an Injury [I will not bore you with the details] and an OVERLOAD of work, I will be taking a few days OFF from making new Posts. I will be back to my Maniacal Posts on the Weekend. But, in the meantime, I would be very happy if some kind Soul [no, I do not believe in an actual Soul, I am a Soto Zen Buddhist] would go to the Link on this Blog and donate enough Money so I could live with fewer Stressors. I would gladly make a long-winded and patronizing Post about that Person, and fall all over myself praising them in an unwarranted fashion. See you this Weekend!
