Transparency for the powerful would solve most of our problems. Corrupt power structures and their corrupt systems simply cannot function in the light. This is what Assange and WikiLeaks have tried to address. This is why Assange and WikiLeaks have been so aggressively targeted.
Your observation on the consistency of American presidential administrations struck home. I'm afraid my NYT MSNBC-addled family member cares not at all about imperialism or injustice but was only bothered by Trump's rough edges. Now he can brunch and tell himself he's a decent person. It's beyond disheartening.
After having been lied to constantly for years, when the lie is no longer useful and the liars concede their earlier lie, many people praise the liars for their "honesty" in disclosing their earlier lies, then believe the very next lie the liars tell. Yes, "You can fool some of the people all of the time." It's Caitlin's and our job to shrink that pool of "some people," and the best way to do that is to correct the problem at its root.
I don't claim perfection. I've been complicit with evil in the past, but I've been fighting the propaganda thing for over 60 years. When my 7th grade social studies teacher said Pravda could not be trusted because it's run by the Communists, I pointed out that all our media (especially back then) was owned by capitalists. For readers here that are teachers, it's important for you to point that out to your students. The rest of us should make that clear to our children, as I believe my parents did for me. And never, ever take corporate media at face value, even when no "alternate media" contradicts them. Don't even bother listening or reading. For those with money, donate to reader supported news sources and support platforms that don't censor.
As an Italian-American, I'd suggest that the job of our psychological incarceration is mainly the province of the Catholic Church, with the concentration camps known as churches and cathedrals. The CIA et al. are no match for the brainwashing skills of a 2000 y-o organization selling fables as the guiding principles for life. Eliminating this brainwashing of young minds (by all religions) would be taking a giant step toward clearing the fog of susceptibility to propaganda, conspiracy-based or otherwise.
This point by Caitlin must be understood, that mental illness does discriminate because of: "...income. The less you have, the more likely you will suffer from depression, anxiety, substance abuse and other contributing factors to mental illness. To promote mental health, promote economic justice."
In that regard, I highly recommend a well-written and authoritative work that highlights this point in many of its chapters. It is: "Rebel Minds: Class War, Mass Suffering, and the Urgent Need for Socialism" by Susan Rosenthal. If any think Caitlin is on the wrong track, read this book. It will show her as spot in its analysis of our capitalistic system, and maybe just turn you into a socialist.
As someone who's been propagandized successfully into the Irak war the first few years, being deceived once really opened my eyes to the power of propaganda. So when I read and listen to all the fools who believe once again some propaganda like the so-called "Chinese genocide" I'm sure whether to laugh or cry in despair at how people are STILL believing bullshit. It's amazing.
Your observation on the consistency of American presidential administrations struck home. I'm afraid my NYT MSNBC-addled family member cares not at all about imperialism or injustice but was only bothered by Trump's rough edges. Now he can brunch and tell himself he's a decent person. It's beyond disheartening.
After having been lied to constantly for years, when the lie is no longer useful and the liars concede their earlier lie, many people praise the liars for their "honesty" in disclosing their earlier lies, then believe the very next lie the liars tell. Yes, "You can fool some of the people all of the time." It's Caitlin's and our job to shrink that pool of "some people," and the best way to do that is to correct the problem at its root.
I don't claim perfection. I've been complicit with evil in the past, but I've been fighting the propaganda thing for over 60 years. When my 7th grade social studies teacher said Pravda could not be trusted because it's run by the Communists, I pointed out that all our media (especially back then) was owned by capitalists. For readers here that are teachers, it's important for you to point that out to your students. The rest of us should make that clear to our children, as I believe my parents did for me. And never, ever take corporate media at face value, even when no "alternate media" contradicts them. Don't even bother listening or reading. For those with money, donate to reader supported news sources and support platforms that don't censor.
As an Italian-American, I'd suggest that the job of our psychological incarceration is mainly the province of the Catholic Church, with the concentration camps known as churches and cathedrals. The CIA et al. are no match for the brainwashing skills of a 2000 y-o organization selling fables as the guiding principles for life. Eliminating this brainwashing of young minds (by all religions) would be taking a giant step toward clearing the fog of susceptibility to propaganda, conspiracy-based or otherwise.
Thanks for putting "leftist" in quotes. Liberals leftism is as solid as a popcorn fart.
This point by Caitlin must be understood, that mental illness does discriminate because of: "...income. The less you have, the more likely you will suffer from depression, anxiety, substance abuse and other contributing factors to mental illness. To promote mental health, promote economic justice."
In that regard, I highly recommend a well-written and authoritative work that highlights this point in many of its chapters. It is: "Rebel Minds: Class War, Mass Suffering, and the Urgent Need for Socialism" by Susan Rosenthal. If any think Caitlin is on the wrong track, read this book. It will show her as spot in its analysis of our capitalistic system, and maybe just turn you into a socialist.
As someone who's been propagandized successfully into the Irak war the first few years, being deceived once really opened my eyes to the power of propaganda. So when I read and listen to all the fools who believe once again some propaganda like the so-called "Chinese genocide" I'm sure whether to laugh or cry in despair at how people are STILL believing bullshit. It's amazing.