Look Who the Enemy Is Now!

The New Enemy Within




The victory of the Parliamentarian New Model Army over the Royalist Army at the Battle of Naseby on 14 June 1645 marked the decisive turning point in the English Civil War.

Here we are in 21st Century Britain, with all the people's money stashed away in Bank vaults and accruing more money on computer accounts for the Banker's and their Corporate clients. And yet, more and more of the "hard working people" are getting poorer and poorer, set to get even more so down the road. When I say the "hard working people" I quote the Tory government's mantra during their term in office since the austerity policy has come into force and continues to be implemented.

We all know that "hard working people" are hard pressed to earn a crust in this country. They seem to work all the hours God sends and have very little to show for it. All the stress and worry, all the years working for the company that doesn't really appreciate them and almost exploits them for all their worth. Yet, the British Tory government wants to glorify these workers on the one hand, and make their position even more precarious and stressful on the other. Zero hours contracts, unfavourable working conditions, pay freezes, redundancy threats, union constrictions etc, etc. need I go on!

The mantra of the "hard working people" of Britain is heard practically every day in the media. Every opportunity to voice this piece of rhetoric by the parliamentarians is seized upon in an effort to drive the point home to us all. The rhetoric that states that the "hard working people" won't stand for any other people who don't work any more. The hard working people are almost heard thinking, "No, I work hard for the money. Why should the people who don't work get paid when I have to work my guts out for very little!" After all they conclude, they pay their hard earned taxes for all these Welfare "scroungers" to do nothing for their money.

The term "scroungers" has gained more of a high profile since the recession. But interestingly not before, presumably because the "hard working people" didn't give them a second thought and possibly could afford a little compassion. But not no more they can't! Not since the rhetoric seems to be in the very ether they breath that they are being hard done by this new "enemy".

Apparently, the new "enemy"is made up of the Welfare "scroungers"who have chosen it as a lifestyle. Who are these so called "scroungers"? It seems they are the half dozen or so examples that the right wing press have unearthed and "outed" in screaming headlines drawing our attention to just where our hard earned taxes are going. The 21st century equivalent of the ducking stool, stocks or pillory, and we think we are so civilized today. We even want to watch programmes on the TV which showcase such people who live in the community such as "Benefits Street" on Channel 4.

The other enemy on Benefits are the "scroungers" who are on Disability allowances who are being targeted as "swinging the lead" and are being persecuted as such. If you are thinking that "persecuted" might be too strong then you might be wrong. Taking Benefits from these disabled people while they are being investigated for months on end is cruel and is a form of persecution. The government calls them "sanctions" in order soften the blow. Disabled people are either ill or suffering from mental health issues of all kinds. They are not on the whole people who are glad to be in that position.

I think that the majority of "the hard working people" would know this if they had time to really think about this issue. But then, they don't have much time to think what with all the work they have to do and all the stress of losing their jobs taking it's toll on them. Ironic really since, if they did think about it beyond the rhetoric, they might just realise that they might end up being these "scroungers" that they are being encouraged to scorn and vilify. Is half the voting public of this country so scared that they voted in the Tory government in order to implement further cuts in Benefits? It seems to me like shooting yourself in the foot.

For all the Tory voters out there, how about we go after the Bankers who are the real villains and not the most vulnerable and poor. I despair to think about the level of intelligence of the average Tory voter. This is a very rich country which is the envy of the world because of the hard earned Welfare state and the hard earned National Health Service. Once these are dismantled, they are gone for good. They will have to be hard earned again by the next generation, if they can. It seems we only know what we have when it's gone and it's too late.

It seems the powers that be always need an enemy to point the finger at and divert the "hard working people's" attention away from the real enemy. All the people need to think more clearly about just who is to blame for the recession and who the enemy really is. Before we all lose.               

Dirty, Sexy Money...and Power

Statue of Alfred the Great in Winchester

Dirty, Sexy Money...and Power

Ever since man stumbled out of the cave and started to run things for their own benefit and not for the collective good, man has sought to gain power. Power means other people do the hunting and gathering for you. Not only that, they look up to you and make more wealth for you at the same time - what's not to like? The only thing that you have to do when you gain the power is to keep it. But how do you gain it in the first place?

Well, let us go back in time to just after man had left his cave and started to slice the cake up. First let's imagine that the cake is the world land mass and the man chasing power was a big hairy cave dweller. Then let's imagine this man had enough wits to think up of just how could he do that successfully, then we get the idea. Well, I suppose he had to gain the upper hand first, possibly he had to push his weight about. Perhaps he would be like the alpha male beast of the fields who have strive to be the king of the pride of lions in order to reign over all. So when this is achieved he would gain the pick of the lady lions to mate with. He would systematically do so just to prove himself to the others in the pack and then be able to start making some rules.

Over time, the alpha male must show his strength by gathering an army and showing his strength and mastery over any given situation. Thus, he slowly gains the respect of his fellow tribesmen and women and at the same time gathers wealth for himself. He then eventually becomes King in this patriarchal society; where muscle and power is all. As the time rolls by; folk lore and history is manipulated to such a degree that he has now been elevated to a divine being who is the embodiment of God on earth and ruler of all he surveys.

Thus hierarchical structures are slowly but surely put into place down the centuries. The earth is cut up and divided into section areas and countries owned and run by rulers. Rules turn into strategic methods in which folk lore is turned into history. Thus, belief and behaviour is insidiously manipulated so that the ruler and the ruled are entrenched in subliminal behaviours and role play. Each man and woman play out their appointed roles and each must know their place and stick to it, or else.

And so it goes, down the centuries just by an accident of birth. If you think of all the stupid and in-bred examples in Royal families around the world throughout history, then it is quite obvious that the first bright sparks of Royalty did not necessarily pass that on to their offspring. It would then follow that even if you were the alpha male back in time, it does not mean that your offspring are deserving of all the inherited wealth and position you have "won" because of your talents.

Now, you may wonder why the saying goes, "dirty, sexy, money". Let me put forth some thoughts here for you dear reader to ponder. Firstly, let me take the word "dirty" which for most people will have connotations of immorality; in that sins are usually connected to religion. Therefore,  if sinning is construed as "dirty" then the love of money is definitely seen as one of the deadly sins. Indeed, in the Bible it is usually referred to as the "root of all evil". Why "sexy" (as above) power equals sexy usually because men have proved themselves to be alpha and can have their pick of the women. In a patriarchal society where women frequently (until very recently) have bartered themselves for such men, money and power go hand in hand.

Power is the key to this. All the structures within all the so called "civilised" societies around the world are run by hierarchies of men. We usually  refer to the class structure as from the "bottom to the top" with all the connotations that that implies. The top being the most powerful and the bottom being the least. These structures have been put in place down the centuries and held together with the help of Religion. Sometimes religions have been very violent in keeping their power in place; using violent means in showing their strength lest any free thinkers ask too many questions.

Fast forward to today. Over the last century or so, mainly because of the radical revolutionary changes in the industrial and technological world, society is much harder to control. Religion has been questioned and does not hold as much of its power for the Western world. The Eastern religions have not lost their power but (arguably) have been tinkered with it in order to keep a tighter hold on their followers. Consequently, the world is divided as never before.

In the West, we have been kept in our place using various methods in the modern world. We no longer see the sins of religion as having any power over us. Therefore, the powerful who seek to keep that for themselves at any cost, must use modern methods. For one, they use the modern worlds goods and chattels to entice us all. By using very powerful advertising methods which utilise subliminal and psychological methods in order to persuade us that we can attain them. We just have to climb the greasy pole to the top and gain some of the power and the cake for ourselves and our offspring.

Whilst this is clearly true for some, it is only attainable for the few. It is increasingly being made much more difficult to do so because the strictures of every country's monitory system is actually set up to keep this under control. It is slowly dawning on a lot of very intelligent people that this is actually the case.  It is the way the wealthy elite of the world have put measures into place to help them keep their wealth and prevent it trickling down to the rest of us. In fact statistics prove that only one per cent of the population owns all the power in the world. Everyone else has very little of that wealth and power. In fact, it is believed that a lot of the world's population is deliberately kept in poverty.

As for the West, many ambitious people quite understandably aspire to "better themselves" by paying for a good education and eventually buying a house. By acquiring a little piece of the cake for themselves and their family. However, it is somewhat an illusion that they can be middle class if they remain hard working and tow the line. It increasingly seems that in the future generations, the middle class home owner will not find it so easy to fulfil their ambitions. Indeed it is questionable just how much their ambitions are actually their own? Could they actually be more ideas that have been subliminally induced in us through the powerful methods mentioned above? It is difficult sometimes to know where our own ideas spring from.

I hope that all the people of the world, regardless of their religion become free thinking and see that a belief can survive no matter what religion a person is born into by accident an of birth. I hope that slowly but surely everybody will be set free to think for themselves and not blindly follow what they have been indoctrinated with. You only have to look how history has been manipulated down the centuries to see that we have all been unwittingly brainwashed in order to keep the few in power and keep most of us in our place. It's up to us to change things, or else they just stay the same and we remain in chains.


                  

Sensational!

     Sensational!

It would not be too much of an exaggerated generalisation to suggest that the modern media; such as TV, Radio, Newspapers, Film etc. is constantly permeating and insinuating itself into all our daily lives. I have to add here, that I am constantly told by some people who claim that they are not unduly influenced by "the media" that they do not read the Newspapers or indeed even own a TV. To them, I have to answer that we are all part of a community and society, and thus we influence each other in many ways. Therefore, even if you are not consciously aware that you are being influenced by "the media", you most certainly are influenced by the people you mix with and all the other media that you unconsciously consume. 

So, therefore it would be safe to assume that we are all influenced by the all pervasive media we are constantly exposed to, either directly or indirectly. We are all also in broad agreement that advertising works because, otherwise why would companies spend so much on advertising? Therefore, it could be argued that the media works in much the same way. If the media didn't influence us, then it's only remit is to inform. 

However, this can't be it's only function.We all know that during times of War, that the Government of all countries uses various media for propaganda purposes. I site the first and second world wars in which various poster and news reel campaigns were circulated for public consumption. These propaganda campaigns certainly worked; in that many thousands of young men felt it was their duty to go and fight for their country. Every day they where exposed to heavy and relentless messages permeating their social and working life. Very quickly, they were more or less "brainwashed" into believing that they had to fight the "enemy" for their country. Thousands did not come back and those that did, were irrevocably damaged. 

This post is not going to argue the rights and wrongs of war, only to argue that the media is very powerful in influencing us all. If we can agree then that this is the case, I would argue that we must therefore make ourselves much more consciously aware how this happens, and in so doing guard against the more pernicious aspects of it. I would like to now move onto how the various media we consume influences us and how this has an impact on our lives. 

I have called this post "Sensational!" for a reason. This is in order to describe how many of the news reports and radio programmes which discuss the news are framed in a sensational format. That is to say, they are consciously made to be as sensationalist as possible in order to grab our attention and keep it. Just imagine for a moment the news read in a slow and conversational style by someone less formal. In the West certainly, the TV news is read in a formal authoritative way by a figure dressed in formal suited attire. This is to convey gravitas and the seriousness of the message they wish to convey. But just what is the message they wish to convey? Well, usually it's something very brutal, violent and worrying and it is mostly political in its nature and origin. 

Here, I would ask the reader to imagine their day to day life without being exposed to the news in any form by the media. They say that ignorance is bliss, and therefore so would our existence be so much more peaceful for it. But, I now will argue, that is the whole point of the news being the way it is now. It is as it is, so that we are made to feel frightened and worried for the world state of affairs and our part in it. Why? Well I would argue that in the past Religion played that role and now the modern world needs other types of control. When Religion kept most of us in check by fear, now the establishment must find other ways to do so. That is where the media steps in as their tool for such means.

I ask the reader now to think of the many ways that sensationalist ways and means in various forms are used in the media to influence and manipulate us. I could give examples here, but I have a feeling that the dear reader will have many examples that they have consciously or unconsciously realised was occurring. However, I will be continuing this blog with more posts on how this is achieved. 

For now, I would argue that it is very important for us all to wise up to the extent of media manipulation which is influencing us all, politically and socially. If we are more conscious of this, we can then have a better chance of understanding and therefore changing and challenging the Status Quo. We would clearly see how the various political parties who "Govern" us use the media to so, and how the West's relentless Capitalist mentality rules our lives with the "sensationalist" rhetoric which permeates the media outlets we all consume today. Stay tuned for more of my posts to follow, which will serialise the many ways the "Sensational" media is permeating all our lives today. 

The Great Parliamentary Swindle: How the System Hoodwinks Us From the Cradle to the Grave

The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons 1835 - J.M.W. Turner watched the fire of 1834 in London and depicted it in several paintings, including the one above


We are all born equal only in the fact that we are innocent and pure babies (we can all usually agree on that unless you believe that some are born evil) but that is another matter. We live out our lives as best we can in the country we happen to be born into, and we die usually in the same place. The main aspect of all our lives is how we live our short lives. There can be very few (if none at all) who do not face some struggle and strife and suffer some unfortunate circumstances somewhere along the line. I hope that up till now we can all agree on that. However, what mainly concerns me in this piece is the way of life which is unfairly foisted upon us as innocent babies. Born, as we all are, unconsciously into the time and place in which we all come into this world.

We enter into life without having asked to be born; but once we are here we have to live our lives in the circumstances and with the personal assets that we have been dealt. That is why the way of life we are born into and foisted upon us is unfair, as mentioned earlier. Unfair because of the inequality which still exists within society in Britain in the 21 century. Some of us are born into privilege and some into poverty and social oppression. We are lead to believe, by the aspirational machine which exists in full force in the Capitalist country we live in, that if we strive hard enough we can move up if we are on the bottom rung of the ladder. However, if we really think about it this applies only to the few. Most of us will never move significantly up or down the social ladder. The few exceptions that we know of personally or are shown in the media are just that, exceptions to the rule.

Yes we can strive by acquiring a good education and eventually a good career and in turn sending our children to better schools etc.  However, the status quo will remain in place. And it is set up to remain so; the system is in place to ensure that the social structure remains in place and that the few own the real assets. It is no coincidence that only a handful of families and a handful of powerful people run the world. Most crucially the government, and in Britain, Parliament. This is the inequality and the unfairness to which the innocent children of the poor are born into. They, through an accident of birth and no fault of their own, suffer a life of drudgery when they could have a much better quality of life. In Britain today, the social inequality is growing much wider, the poor are getting poorer and the wealthy are growing the pile they have amassed over the centuries.

The swindle that Parliament perpetuate is the illusion of democracy. We are made to believe through the media (which is run by the wealthy and powerful who are the elite) that we are in a democracy in which we can vote in the government which has our best interest as a country in their hands. We are under the illusion that the government is running the country for us. However, the poor are getting poorer and getting the blame, and the rich are getting richer and getting all the pleasure. Anyone old enough may know that reference, it seems it will endure because it is true.

When will society eventually wake up to the fact that this life is precious for all innocent babies born into it. That no matter what circumstances they are brought up in, they deserve better than poverty. They deserve much more than to be made to feel second or even third class in a the class based system they happen to be born into. When people wake up from the delusional life we are made to experience now, then the revolution should come about. Then the majority poor of this country should take back the assets that their children deserve. Just like the powers that be who run the country and perpetuate the status quo, took the power and the assets over the centuries. Power is never given over freely, it has to be taken. A fairer society can come about because it exists in other countries.        

Sandy Hook Elementary School Shooting: Killing The Children - The Monster Who's Afraid to Look In The Mirror

Who is the monster who's afraid to look in the mirror?

My heart goes out to all the victims who tragically died last week in a senseless crime that took place last week in Sandy Hook elementary school in Ridgefield Connecticut in the USA. That also includes the murderer and his family members. Why? Because it might help the families of the victims come to terms with this tragedy if they realise that the murderer is a victim too.  

Why is there the increasing phenomenon of mass shootings of young children occurring in recent years in various countries in the developed world? I ask this in response to the tragic shooting in Sandy Hook elementary school in the US state of Connecticut just a week or so before Christmas.

This hugely tragic event not only has America reeling, it has the rest of the world asking why? The next knee jerk reaction is to point the finger at the gun culture that is rife and embedded within the culture of the USA. From there, the next question seems to be what can be done about this. The all consuming reaction is to take some sort of action. President Obama is taking a measured response and at least asking about mental health issues which are obviously part of the equation in this scenario.

However, I would like to look at the picture in 3D so to speak. Above, I mentioned that this was a phenomenon which seems to be increasing in the so called 'developed' world. I believe that this is not only due to the ready availability of guns and arms in these countries; but that it is undoubtedly inextricably linked to mental health, especially of the young men who are more often than not the perpetrators of these acts of violence. Also to the society in which they live and it's fundamental issues concerning the modern world and the youths place therein.

As I referred to above, there is a monster who is afraid to look in the mirror. Who is that monster? You might have a knee jerk thought or reaction and instantly think of the perpetrators of the murders of these school children - the murderers. Who are labelled by the media variously as evil, deranged, and indeed sick and mentally ill. Not many will show or voice any sympathy or ask any deeper questions about these young people. Why? for instance instead of how?

Indeed, they might briefly ask themselves why and instantly think it is because any of the above labels conveniently given to them by the media. Then, they might add the label of mentally ill and hopeless. Or they might go a little further and conclude that if the murderer had had some help from any of the mental health operatives in the community that this would surely have prevented this.

This is of course valid and indeed true. But I would like to go further and as I said above, try to see the picture in 3D. Yes, these young murderers have committed a heinous crime against humanity and the society in which they live(d). I will call them murderers, not in any way as a value judgement or as a label  but because that is what they have done and therefore what they have become. However, they usually only become a murderer for a short time because they usually turn the fury on themselves and kill themselves too.

I ask in all earnestness that we ask the question, who is the monster who can't look in the mirror? Is it the murderer who can't bear themselves any more and must kill? But I ask also, why do they usually pick the most innocent and vulnerable targets for there self-loathing and shame? Why do I think the murderer is a victim too? Because, although I think they have become a monster who can't bear to look in the mirror any more, but crucially they are also a victim of the society they live in.

Why at the beginning of this did I mention that it seems to be that this happens more frequently in the developed world? Well, because I think that the real monster who can't bear to look in the mirror is the sick society that most of the so called 'developed' countries have become. We cannot bear to look closely at our selves and how our way of life has driven these sick young people to act out and take their own lives in such a tragic way.

Maybe they always choose the most innocent and vulnerable to murder, not only because they are an easy target, but because in a twisted way they are killing that part of themselves that they have lost. By murdering these untainted and innocent children, they are avenging that part of themselves that was killed within them. Now, I realise this might seem like far fetched psychoanalysis and that they might just be evil. But this cannot be the case. The case is clearly one of mental illness and as mentioned above one which is increasing and therefore consequently must have it's roots in the modern world.

I submit that we are bringing up the next generation in a world which does not examine itself enough, but feels that it must look outside itself to seek answers to ugly questions. I submit that individually and collectively we look in the mirror to face the ugly truth and not point the mirror away from ourselves. I think it would be a good thing to mourn for these victims and their families and the murder and his family too, over the Christmas period. But also to look deeper into the causes of the sickness that is growing in the modern developed world and in particular the youths who feel alienated within these societies.

After all, it cannot be incidental that this happened in the week before Christmas when we are supposed to celebrate the birth of the Saviour. The One who was the ultimate example of selflessness and love of all mankind. Whether you believe in Christianity or not, the message is to love all mankind regardless of there sins. To love and try to understand one another however hard that is. I believe this cannot be truly undertaken if  we cannot look in the mirror as a society and examine ourselves.

Don't Believe The Novel Hype!

Don't believe the hype!

Below is part of a review I wrote about a novel I read recently. I won't name it here but it is real and you can see it on Goodreads if you have a mind to. I post it now as a blog because it contains some truths which the reader of fiction novels might find interesting. ...

"I didn't finish this novel (the paperback edition) because I couldn't even get half way through it. I found it mediocre at best and full of clichés concerning the therapist/patient relationship. Please don't believe the blurb on the covers of novels as they are full of praise from critics who are usually in the pay of the publishing houses. The object is to sell the novel at all costs because if they did put any negative comments on the back of the cover or in any review at the launch of the book, it simply would not sell."

Just imagine the first part of my review on the back of the cover; would it entice you to buy and read it? Have you ever read anything approaching a negative comment on any novel printed by a publishing house? I would guess it's a 'no', because I've never seen one. The blurb on the back is so overly hyped in order to entice the reader to buy that it often bares little resemblance to the novel's literary content and can be said therefore to delve into the realm of fiction itself. It is so expensive to print and distribute a traditional novel, that these publishing houses need to build the reputation of their writers and recoup their money. Therefore, any negative comments, reviews or articles written by a journalist or reviewer would not be published because they would lose their job. The media are all linked together in order to serve a common purpose and that is to create interest in the market and sell.

I had to have a rant about this because I know how the publishing world works. I hope that some of the unsuspecting readers who swallow the hype will wake up to this and not lose their hard earned cash on believing the blurb on the back of novels and being disappointed. Also, they may feel that their disappointment is not valid when compared to these comments by so called "respected" journalists and reviewers. But if they knew the reasons why this might be, they may well be angry too.

I don't know the answer to this, because how is anyone to know what is good to read if not by the so called "respected" critics. Maybe the answer might be to know your critics better and find an independent that has some integrity. Good luck with that these days. Choose wisely!



The picture above is thought to be a portrait of Jane Austin.

Hitchcock - Master Of Suspense And Filmaking

Hitchcock - master or misogynist - one or both, or is it not for us to decide?

Hello there all you movie fans who are reading this. I recently went to see Hitchcock at the Barbican cinema with a very good friend of mine because we are both big fans of his and realise his genius as a film director. Whilst I enjoyed the film, I did however find myself questioning the fascination we all have with the private life of famous and talented people like Alfred Hitchcock. I suspect that he was really quite a private man, who devoted his life to his craft as well as to his wife. I doubt very much if he even had an inkling that all these years later, his audience would be in the least bit interested with his private life.

I also doubt very much that he and his wife Alma ever thought that their private married life would make a good film in itself - and they would have been right! Yes, it's interesting that as a couple they collaborated on most of the films and that those films form part of the most innovative and ground breaking films of the last century. And yes, it is interesting that Alfred Hitchcock had a keen fascination for all his beautiful blond leading ladies and that he may have crossed a professional line in some cases. But, I do ask you to consider the idea that most men probably would have reacted in a similar fashion. Most men, when their senses are stirred and they are working in very close proximity and in a very intense situation with such irresistible sirens of the silver screen, would I think react in some way and some would have even gone further than he did, I venture to suggest.

So yes, whilst he did in some cases react very badly to having his male ego battered by any one of these screen goddesses (naming no names nor going into any detail) I submit that he reacted in much the same way as many a man who has been scorned. Especially when he is no real oil painting himself and when all he has is a cracking sense of humour, talent, genius and his portly belly to keep him warm. Oh yes, and his thirty year or so marriage to his soul-mate and long suffering wife Alma.

I also submit that Alma also possessed a certain amount of genius and talent of her own; in that she helped in the whole of the creative process on the films and indeed deserves more recognition for that fact. But does she deserve to be pitied for being this long suffering wife of a suspected misogynist?  Just how true would that be, and does anyone deserve to have their private life raked over the coals for all to speculate about? I submit that many a marriage would not survive such close scrutiny and many a marriage negotiates and brokers many a deal between its partners.

I also submit that Alfred Hitchcock was no more a misogynist than any other man in his situation and that Alma knew this more than any other person. That's why I think she stayed with him for over thirty years. I think she must have understood the situation; his sexual, emotional and psychological fascination with his alluring leading ladies and their inextricably entwined relation to his work and the nature of the films. Even though it must have hurt her deeply.

Mr Alfred Hitchcock in my view was a genius of the genre he excelled in, regardless of the foibles he fell victim to. Here's to all the great films in his oeuvre!