...without incident.

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Pattern-chaser
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Re: ...without incident.

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Alias wrote: March 30th, 2021, 1:12 pm
Pattern-chaser wrote: March 30th, 2021, 12:36 pm It's a large number of samples, selected to illustrate the point. It's definitely not an "accurate cross-section", but it does clearly show us the extent to which these billionaire media-bigots (and their lackeys) will go to promote their hateful views.
I know about the special-interest publishing and broadcast network, but it's hardly fair to lump all television and magazines and newspapers in with the gutter press. In any case, these billionnaires (who probably don't care which prejudices they promote, as long as it empowers the stupidest voters to elect their political tools and thwart social reform) need to be off-set by the robust, independent public networks I mentioned earlier.
That's a nice idea. Who are these "robust, independent public networks", and where can I find them?

Oh, and billionaires do "care which prejudices they promote". They promote those that empower "the stupidest voters to elect their political tools and thwart social reform", as you say. And they care a lot about anything that constrains them and their profit-at-all-costs actions. They have multiple ocean-going yachts to maintain, after all.... 🤔
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Re: ...without incident.

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If you don't have PBS, NPR, TVO, etc, you need to invent them. If the BBC needs reform, you need to reform it. The point is to disengage communications media from profit-making, then hire the best journalists and commentators. The last bit is the easiest: the good ones would jump at the chance! The hard part is to arrange sufficient public financing without political interference.
Those who can induce you to believe absurdities can induce you to commit atrocities. - Voltaire
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Pattern-chaser
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Re: ...without incident.

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Alias wrote: March 30th, 2021, 1:12 pm In any case, these billionnaires (who probably don't care which prejudices they promote, as long as it empowers the stupidest voters to elect their political tools and thwart social reform) need to be off-set by the robust, independent public networks I mentioned earlier.

I suggest they do care, very much, because the prejudices they promote empower the stupidest voters to elect their political tools and thwart social reform. The sort of greed that drives you to obtain an ocean-going yacht for each major ocean takes dedication and concentration. Prejudices must be optimised, for the best financial return.

Murdoch is an obvious target, as he owns much of our global media, but there are hundreds of billionaires, and last year, during the pandemic, they each increased their personal gold-mountain by 27%, on average. So the poor soul who had only $40,000,000,000 now has $50,000,000,000+. And owning that kind of money gives you power that is unimaginable to ordinary people like you and me.

But where are these "robust, independent public networks", the ones with the independence and the power to flout billionaires? Remember the financial crash of 2007-8? Shortly afterward, President Obama went to the banks and said "this is your mess; you must pay to clean it up." The banks considered this for several seconds, then said "No." And that was the end of the discussion. The nation with the most weapons in the entire universe does what it's told by Big Money. I really would love to think that these networks of yours exist...?
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Re: ...without incident.

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Pattern-chaser wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 7:07 am [these billionnaires don't care which prejudices they promote]
I suggest they do care, very much, because the prejudices they promote empower the stupidest voters to elect their political tools and thwart social reform.
No, I meant they don't care which prejudices they promote. Whatever sells in a given locale and period.
Whether it's turning Muslims against infidels, or Texans against Mexicans, or Protestants against Catholics or Christians against Jews or men against women or Americans against Asians or whites against blacks or settlers against Natives or English against French or Mongols against Mandarins doesn't matter, so long as it 1. keeps the peons from communicating and cooperating among themselves 2. keeps people anxious about their livelihood and 3. suspicious of their neighbours and 4. angry enough to enlist in armies - so that 5. they look to strong government for protection 6. and allow the government increasing powers to surveillance (the fruits whereof are made available to the billionnaires' information-mill) and 7. suppression (the means of which are increasingly expensive infrastructure, hardware and manpower, contracted from said billionnaires for huge numbers of tax dollars) and incidentally 8. a free hand with tax-cuts, subsidies and bailouts to the "job creators".
I really would love to think that these networks of yours exist...?
They're not mine; they're ours and they've been around for quite a long time. https://current.org/timeline-the-histor ... n-the-u-s/ Only, what with having to compete with the far more wealthy, powerful, influential and populist commercial outlets, and with billionnaire-controlled administrations choking them financially, they're increasingly dependent on advertising revenue and billionnnaire pholantrophy, because audience donations can't keep them afloat.
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Re: ...without incident.

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Pattern-chaser wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 7:07 am I really would love to think that these networks of yours exist...?
Alias wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 8:13 am They're not mine; they're ours and they've been around for quite a long time. https://current.org/timeline-the-histor ... n-the-u-s/

Like approximately 7,600,000,000 others, I am not American. What happens in America has no direct influence on me, although the US is the current global Imperial Power, so I suppose you affect us all in that way.... In my own UK, I cannot see any able or effective opposition to billionaires and their antics. We were even removed from the EU by billionaires annoyed by EU employee protection laws that restricted their profits.
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Re: ...without incident.

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Public service broadcasting is not a US monopoly.
Canada has its own https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/ ... orporation as do some provinces https://www.broadcasting-history.ca/in- ... ing-canada Also Australia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australia ... orporation and we're none of us unique https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_p ... by_country
People have been aware since the dawn of broadcasting that this powerful new medium would be influential in public affairs. Democratic nations could see the danger of letting it fall into the hands of special interest groups; autocratic ones could see the advantage of holding onto to it themselves.
You have it; you just have to take back control of it.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Britis ... orporation
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Re: ...without incident.

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Alias wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 6:23 pm Public service broadcasting is not a US monopoly. [...] You have it; you just have to take back control of it.
We have always had it ... but what will it take for us to use it?
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Re: ...without incident.

Post by Alias »

Pattern-chaser wrote: April 3rd, 2021, 10:15 am
Alias wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 6:23 pm Public service broadcasting is not a US monopoly. [...] You have it; you just have to take back control of it.
We have always had it ... but what will it take for us to use it?
Common sense on the part of the voters. Maybe the next generation....
Maybe you'll luck into a good government that you elect for some other reason - say, panic over climate change - that not coincidentally - has a sound policy on informing the public and takes a keener interest in mass education than in the real estate bonanza or war profiteering.
I said that's what it would take to counter disinformation, that it's practicable; that the tools are ready to hand - not that we'll actually use them!
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Re: ...without incident.

Post by LuckyR »

Alias wrote: April 3rd, 2021, 11:02 am
Pattern-chaser wrote: April 3rd, 2021, 10:15 am
Alias wrote: April 2nd, 2021, 6:23 pm Public service broadcasting is not a US monopoly. [...] You have it; you just have to take back control of it.
We have always had it ... but what will it take for us to use it?
Common sense on the part of the voters. Maybe the next generation....
Maybe you'll luck into a good government that you elect for some other reason - say, panic over climate change - that not coincidentally - has a sound policy on informing the public and takes a keener interest in mass education than in the real estate bonanza or war profiteering.
I said that's what it would take to counter disinformation, that it's practicable; that the tools are ready to hand - not that we'll actually use them!
The ability to distract poor folk with social issues to get them to vote for policies that are favorable to the rich is a great demonstration of the power of the bait and switch.
"As usual... it depends."
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Re: ...without incident.

Post by LuckyR »

Shooter in Texas, one dead and five wounded... including a State trooper trying to apprehend the suspect. Captured... without incident. Any guesses on his race?

Hint: I guess the police were not "in fear for my life".
"As usual... it depends."
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