Have you heard the news today?
Did you notice that the lights have changed?
or when?
seems we've all been driving for too long
and that's the song-
but it doesn't have to be
we can be free
If you'd just listen to the fool on the hill-
but you never listened to fools, did you?
and those experts
oh boy
so you kept your cents close
and spent profligately,
willingly
Yeah, well, that's a luxury
it's time to notice that your rights are gone
there's no flying on
when we cage the poor
no-one sings sweeter
when we throw our brothers, our sisters
off the cliff
it's not if
But who pays the piper -
to pick up the pieces.
A.J. Ponder
NB Yes, of course I acknowledge the influence of a couple of lines from The Beatles song. Comes from listening to their music in the car while thinking about current events.
Best wishes to all, and have a great week,
A.J.
Showing posts with label news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label news. Show all posts
Tuesday, June 20, 2017
Tuesday, January 10, 2017
Have you heard the news?
If you're reading my blog at the moment this will be a horribly familiar theme.
Anyone can make a stand - not just Meryl Streep in her Golden Globes 2017 speech. But on the phones, in the street -banding with friends and doing whatever needs to be done for human rights environmental needs, and democratic principles. Corporate interests have shown money will trump all, and they're framing the debate. They tell us that we're not powerful and we can't change the world - well, that's only right if they can keep you at home and ignoring politics because you feel powerless. So...
Have you heard the
News?
Do you know?
Where you were
When
democracy died?
When
the free world fell?
Have you seen the news
What did you choose?
Where the f*ck were you
When
the lies flew
And before we knew
The meme had set
Did you see #maga become #masa
Make America Scared Again
And all because
We forgot it's our job
To stand up to power
And make the world a better place.
Have you seen the
Show?
Do you know?
Where you were
When
the free vote fell?
Did you see?
When
Jim Crow raised his head
Did you raise your voice?
Or did you watch him
Tear the vote
Away
From the poor
The huddled masses
Yearning to breathe free?
Now you can choose to sing
Everything is
Awesome
To drown out
Reality.
Or you can stand against
The entity that is corporate greed
And demand our world back.
Where are you?
The world is falling.
A.J.
Right, and lets get to it. What can we do?
Well, I have only one thing to say- Are you Ready? okay nobody's really ready for "interesting times"
But small things can make a huge difference. Here's a piece from Ecowatch. 6 Lessons Learned Fighting Oppressive Regimes While Trying to Protect People and Planet.
We can do this.
If we stand for truth, human rights, and the environment, and try to make a tiny difference for at least one of those we can make this world a better place. :)
One of the most important things an American can do is protect their voting rights. " The US Civil Rights Commission concluded that the odds of your vote being miscounted or tossed out are 900% greater if you vote in a community of color." So if I was an American I'd join the local @ACLU https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights But there are other great organizations you might prefer.
Stay strong, have fun, and never give up hope. We need you. :)
A.J. Ponder
Anyone can make a stand - not just Meryl Streep in her Golden Globes 2017 speech. But on the phones, in the street -banding with friends and doing whatever needs to be done for human rights environmental needs, and democratic principles. Corporate interests have shown money will trump all, and they're framing the debate. They tell us that we're not powerful and we can't change the world - well, that's only right if they can keep you at home and ignoring politics because you feel powerless. So...
Have you heard the
News?
Do you know?
Where you were
When
democracy died?
When
the free world fell?
Have you seen the news
What did you choose?
Where the f*ck were you
When
the lies flew
And before we knew
The meme had set
Did you see #maga become #masa
Make America Scared Again
And all because
We forgot it's our job
To stand up to power
And make the world a better place.
Have you seen the
Show?
Do you know?
Where you were
When
the free vote fell?
Did you see?
When
Jim Crow raised his head
Did you raise your voice?
Or did you watch him
Tear the vote
Away
From the poor
The huddled masses
Yearning to breathe free?
Now you can choose to sing
Everything is
Awesome
To drown out
Reality.
Or you can stand against
The entity that is corporate greed
And demand our world back.
Where are you?
The world is falling.
A.J.
Right, and lets get to it. What can we do?
Well, I have only one thing to say- Are you Ready? okay nobody's really ready for "interesting times"
But small things can make a huge difference. Here's a piece from Ecowatch. 6 Lessons Learned Fighting Oppressive Regimes While Trying to Protect People and Planet.
We can do this.
If we stand for truth, human rights, and the environment, and try to make a tiny difference for at least one of those we can make this world a better place. :)
One of the most important things an American can do is protect their voting rights. " The US Civil Rights Commission concluded that the odds of your vote being miscounted or tossed out are 900% greater if you vote in a community of color." So if I was an American I'd join the local @ACLU https://www.aclu.org/issues/voting-rights But there are other great organizations you might prefer.
Stay strong, have fun, and never give up hope. We need you. :)
A.J. Ponder
Wednesday, November 30, 2016
This is not a #posttruth world
Facts are not confetti
to be thrown in our faces
Journalism is not he said she said
it's the building up of a picture
a story
a truth
without partisan political
or monetary bias.
Facts are:
#StandingRock police are militarised
#WaterProtectors have been brutally injured
#WaterProtectors were met in freezing temperatures with a water-cannon rubber bullets, pepper spray and more.
There is a police blockade across an important bridge
One that would allow better access to emergency services?
Why should this be denied them?
It's been a long time since the safety of the bridge was questioned
Find an engineer already.
I mean, seriously
The lies are thin as a coat of
whitewash
Scratch the paint.
A.J. Ponder
It's said we live in a post-truth world - but the truth is the organisations that give most of us our news have failed us. "He said/she said is not the news, not when the reporter have evidence that one side is lying. But it's more than that, news has become about ratings, not about truth, it has become about what corporations want reported, because that's where the money is. So now very few sources of media are working for us. The Guardian is one of the last major stalwarts. But it can't tell the truth alone, on almost no budget. So yes, it could do better.
Standing Rock is one of the clearest illustrations of the injustices of the modern world, and the way media can ignore, twist and distort a story about peaceful people, protecting the drinking water of millions against an oil company who has bought a supplied a militarised police force who have used their new "toys" to seriously injure men and women who posed absolutely no threat to them. Something that has been clearly documented. But look now. Online evidence (as I know from a previous cause) can be quickly removed. And what cannot be removed will be discredited or muddied with false evidence. The police at Standing Rock changed their story 3 times within 24 hours after a particularly brutal action - as they discovered the protestors had footage that clearly showed their lies. (Nov 20 2016)
A girl had her arm mangled so badly she'll almost certainly never get the use of it back, another was fighting to keep her eyesight days later, after she was assaulted by a chemical weapon that would be illegal in international warfare. And hundreds battled hypothermia after being blasted by a water-canon in freezing temperatures. This is against Waterprotectors who have been so fiercely non-violent that they even managed to diffuse a pipeline worker who drove into their campsite and threatened them with a gun. (There is video)
I've seen this before. Truth turns to lies, and vicious public attacks as people are silenced "for the greater good." So remember "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither." Benjamin Franklin
Below are the techniques used to prevent us from seeing the truth. Watch out for them. And stay safe.
A.J. Ponder
Misleading Techniques to watch for:
1. Lying by Omission
2. Controlling the Debate
3. Scripting and Synchronizing News
4. Politicizing Everything
5 Chasing and creating buzzwords and memes
6. Asking the Wrong Questions
7. Closing down the topic - or airing it like the birther conspiracy long after it was dead.
8 Triviality and Distraction
9. Outright Lying
to be thrown in our faces
Journalism is not he said she said
it's the building up of a picture
a story
a truth
without partisan political
or monetary bias.
Facts are:
#StandingRock police are militarised
#WaterProtectors have been brutally injured
#WaterProtectors were met in freezing temperatures with a water-cannon rubber bullets, pepper spray and more.
There is a police blockade across an important bridge
One that would allow better access to emergency services?
Why should this be denied them?
It's been a long time since the safety of the bridge was questioned
Find an engineer already.
I mean, seriously
The lies are thin as a coat of
whitewash
Scratch the paint.
A.J. Ponder
It's said we live in a post-truth world - but the truth is the organisations that give most of us our news have failed us. "He said/she said is not the news, not when the reporter have evidence that one side is lying. But it's more than that, news has become about ratings, not about truth, it has become about what corporations want reported, because that's where the money is. So now very few sources of media are working for us. The Guardian is one of the last major stalwarts. But it can't tell the truth alone, on almost no budget. So yes, it could do better.
Standing Rock is one of the clearest illustrations of the injustices of the modern world, and the way media can ignore, twist and distort a story about peaceful people, protecting the drinking water of millions against an oil company who has bought a supplied a militarised police force who have used their new "toys" to seriously injure men and women who posed absolutely no threat to them. Something that has been clearly documented. But look now. Online evidence (as I know from a previous cause) can be quickly removed. And what cannot be removed will be discredited or muddied with false evidence. The police at Standing Rock changed their story 3 times within 24 hours after a particularly brutal action - as they discovered the protestors had footage that clearly showed their lies. (Nov 20 2016)
A girl had her arm mangled so badly she'll almost certainly never get the use of it back, another was fighting to keep her eyesight days later, after she was assaulted by a chemical weapon that would be illegal in international warfare. And hundreds battled hypothermia after being blasted by a water-canon in freezing temperatures. This is against Waterprotectors who have been so fiercely non-violent that they even managed to diffuse a pipeline worker who drove into their campsite and threatened them with a gun. (There is video)
I've seen this before. Truth turns to lies, and vicious public attacks as people are silenced "for the greater good." So remember "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither." Benjamin Franklin
Below are the techniques used to prevent us from seeing the truth. Watch out for them. And stay safe.
A.J. Ponder
Misleading Techniques to watch for:
1. Lying by Omission
2. Controlling the Debate
3. Scripting and Synchronizing News
4. Politicizing Everything
5 Chasing and creating buzzwords and memes
6. Asking the Wrong Questions
7. Closing down the topic - or airing it like the birther conspiracy long after it was dead.
8 Triviality and Distraction
9. Outright Lying
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
Tuesday Poem: Schrödinger's News
Schrödinger's News
We heard the news today,on the inside there was an unknown
No letter from God
proclaiming the obvious-
that cat's been in there without air or water for some time
it's probably not doing so well
OK
I'm running so late, it's just this nub this week - one day I might even explain it - but not today
Hope you all have a fab week
A.J. Ponder
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
Tuesday Poem: No Comment
I guess you heard the news today
oh boy
Nobody said a thing
Nobody had to
What I heard
I couldn't say
oh boy
I didn't say a thing
I didn't have to
A.J. Ponder
Yes, it's get out the tin foil hats time - kitch sci-fi has taken over the world and become reality - not that tin foil's going to help much - except possibly to obscure your identity (although I dare say clothes would do a better job).
And while nobody is probably going to care too much about what you wrote to Auntie Muriel in your last email, privacy is privacy, including how that information is used, but before anybody can begina serious discussion of - how far is too far- the moment is gone...cue dramatic chipmunk!! ;)
For mroe dramatic moments, and some great poetry check out the Tuesday Poetry Blog here
I particularly liked Helen Lowe's choice this week of “July 1914″ by Anna Akhmatova.
oh boy
Nobody said a thing
Nobody had to
What I heard
I couldn't say
oh boy
I didn't say a thing
I didn't have to
A.J. Ponder
 |
And while nobody is probably going to care too much about what you wrote to Auntie Muriel in your last email, privacy is privacy, including how that information is used, but before anybody can begina serious discussion of - how far is too far- the moment is gone...cue dramatic chipmunk!! ;)
For mroe dramatic moments, and some great poetry check out the Tuesday Poetry Blog here
I particularly liked Helen Lowe's choice this week of “July 1914″ by Anna Akhmatova.
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