I mean, I sometimes just can't believe that some of the controversies that go around the news, both on and off the web have reached such epic proportions, while much more serious events, such as daily loss of life and/or limb, the falling ecomomy, lack of confidence in our leaders, etc.... seems to be so much more important.

For example, O.K., I personally am not particularly religious, however, I don't mind others practicing whatever religion they choose (as long, of course that it does not cause undu harm to others). But give me a break, remembember all the recent controversy over whether there can be a monument of the 10 Commandments, what to do about the line in the "Pledge of Allegience" that has been recited by kids and adults alike since the dawn of America, that has the audacity[sarcasm] to say "One Nation, Under God..... I mean, does anyone really care if the word God is said or not? If someone is stongly opposed to the word and what it symbolizes, then, wtf, just mouth it and get over it! Or if it must be changed, at least reflect the change to be cuirrent with the times, and use the currently most truthful expression: "One Nation, Under Surveillance....

"
But seriously, a monument has been erected ages ago here and there that happens to have the 10 commandments on it. So What! If it is bothersome, then don't read it!

And when Bush was campaigning, perhaps in an attempt to deflect attention from hjis handling of the the war in Iraq, he focused so much on his pride at being a "born again Christian", then onto being a devoted Evangelical. So much so, that he was hearing callings from beyond the stars, and God was whispering in his ear at night, informing him of exacly when an embryo becomes a person, etc.....

Yet, the latest (petty, IMO) controversy seems to be whether the politically correcta greeting for the Winter season, is now officially (I think), "Happy Hollidays". Is that an infringement on the First Ammendment? I would think so! Even Christmas Trees are becoming controversia! They are an old custom, bringing the evergreens into the home to brighten it up and put people in a mood of good will, happiness, love and peace. etc.... Now, they seem to be in the mindsof more than I would like to think, that they are somehow, or at least should be "taboo".

Why all the fuss about nothing? These are all long standing traditions, that I dont' believe have really afected people in the negative way that they seem to portray. I'm no expert on all religions or anything, but the ones that I am even a little familuar wth, I think that they all believe in a "God", "Goddess", or as in some of the pagan religions, which seem to have been basically shunned ever since Christianity, both a male and a female God/Goddess. The Jewish People, they believe in the "Old Testament", in which they are taught about "God". And isn't "Allah" the Islamic word for "God"? So who is being offended by that line in the Pledge of Allegience, "One Nation, Under God..."?

Perhaps this is all just cases of people knowing that the world is in a very unstable, uncertain state right now, and either don't want to deal with the harsh realities, or simply don't know how to cope, so they take the easier way, and criticize things that when you look at the "big picture", are really quite insigifidant.



Does anyone else feel this way? Or do you disagree with my views on the subject. I am truly astonished at this relatively newphenominum, and whether you agree o you disagree, I'm really curious to see what the majority of at least the community here at ATS thinks about this - if anything.

I totally agree, it has become like some kind of circus. There is no meat and poatoes, just the garnish when it comes to the state of the world. I thisnk its all a distraction, like the Monica Lewinski thing, its like who cares about that, the real crimes that slick Willie comitted were just blow off.

Its all become a dog and ponie show, and everyone has become soooo politcly correct I want to get sick! The news is without a doubt being controlled.

Originally posted by CyberKat

Perhaps this is all just cases of people knowing that the world is in a very unstable, uncertain state right now, and either don't want to deal with the harsh realities, or simply don't know how to cope, so they take the easier way, and criticize things that when you look at the "big picture", are really quite insigifidant.

I think that's pretty much what it is, although I think it might not be entirely accurate to ascribe it to the world being in a "very unstable, uncertain state right now." Granted that it is, and granted that, at least for some people, that is the issue, I think that much of it is in fact quite a bit simpler than that.

Throughout history, ignorant people have, when discontent in their own lives, sought to place the blame for that discontent on others. They have harangued and oppressed and attacked other groups of people simply because, in their ignorance and self-involvement, they have been unable or unwilling to reflect on their own lives.

We've reached a point in western civilization at which, due to the debased, propagandized and ossified condition of our educational system, it's possible for people to be relatively well educated and yet remain largely ignorant and incapable of rational reflection. Just as has always been true of the uneducated, those educated yet ignorant people have been given, in part by shallow and misguided teachers, and in part through the manipulation of power-seekers, convenient targets at which to aim their compensatory derision.

Just as ignorant and spiteful whites in the post-Civil War south blamed blacks for their own discontent, ignorant and spiteful non- and anti-Christians in modern America blame the Christians for their own discontent. The fact that these shallow reactionaries are nominally "educated" does nothing to relieve their fundamental ignorance, and actually seems to make them even more deliberately and willfully oblivious to reality than the least educated Middle Ages peasant, burning "witches" at the stake to assuage their own fears and doubts. The peasant no doubt recognized that there was much that s/he didn't know, while the educated yet ignorant reationary lives under the delusion that his/her preconceptions are complete and unassailable.

That said, this tendency to ignorantly attack those who believe differently is by no means the sole domain of the modern reactionary anti-Christians. As a matter of fact, the historical attacks on leftists and atheists by Christians have a great part of the blame for the reactionary attacks they're now facing. And of course, a much more obvious and direct version of this dynamic is the endless screeching and finger-pointing that goes back and forth between left- and right-wing politicians and their lackeys. Personally though, I find the actions of the anti-Christians to be the most intriguing, simply because of the marked contrast between their claims to intellectual superiority and the ignorance and superficiality that is demonstrated by their actions.

My take on this is completely conspiratorial.

There are very well funded think tanks designed exclusively to set the priorities of the masses. They control people in the most subtle, yet effective ways thru the media, print, advertising, public education and disinformation. I'm not sure about direct mind control thru HAARP, but it remains a distinct possibility.

Also I think the puppetmaster elite, purposly design the economic conditions the masses have to endure. If both parents have to work just to maintain a decent lifestyle; they aren't really capable of critical thinking when not working. Relaxation and entertainment become the focus, not learning and research. Hardly their fault. It's much easier to manipulate a citizenry thats fatigued.

We who have discresionary income and free time are fortunate indeed!

What we eat, wear, think and act like is the focus of many groups of reasearchers that the average person dosen't even know exists and their methods of gathering information borders on science fiction. They are Watching.

Merry Christmas!



[edit on 11-12-2005 by whaaa]

After thinking about this for a couple of days and shopping in town; I feel I have made to many excuses for our citizenry.

Some people could care less about priorities, they are just kneejerk monkeys and take the easy way out reguardless of the situation.

time for my medication...

Originally posted by Bob LaoTse

Originally posted by CyberKat
Perhaps this is all just cases of people knowing that the world is in a very unstable, uncertain state right now, and either don't want to deal with the harsh realities, or simply don't know how to cope, so they take the easier way, and criticize things that when you look at the "big picture", are really quite insigifidant.

Originally posted by Bob LaoTse
hroughout history, ignorant people have, when discontent in their own lives, sought to place the blame for that discontent on others. They have harangued and oppressed and attacked other groups of people simply because, in their ignorance and self-involvement, they have been unable or unwilling to reflect on their own lives.

Yes, I have often noticed this to be the case. On any level, regarding just about any subject, and within about any group of people or individuals.

It seems to be either learned behavior from early childhood, or is simply ingrained into the human brain function. I can remember way back in like Kindergarden, a kid would do something against the rules, and as soon as a teacher would come out, that kid would be the first to point at another and say, "He/She did it!" And that trait follows all the way through to top Polititians playing the so called "Blame Game". Really not so much difference in actions.

That said, this tendency to ignorantly attack those who believe differently is by no means the sole domain of the modern reactionary anti-Christians. As a matter of fact, the historical attacks on leftists and atheists by Christians have a great part of the blame for the reactionary attacks they're now facing. And of course, a much more obvious and direct version of this dynamic is the endless screeching and finger-pointing that goes back and forth between left- and right-wing politicians and their lackeys.

Also seems to be true. It is sad that people for one thing are so afraid/ashamed, whatever - to own up to their own faults. Everyone has them. No one is perfect, and it really makes those who claim to be perfect, or "Holyer(sp?) than Thou" show their true ignorance. I have always believed that hate stems from one main emotion. And that is fear of the unknown. I don't mean that each culture needs to take the time to learn and understand all facets of every other culture, but, it wouldn't hurt for people to simply understand that for many reasons, there have always been, and probably will always be fundamental differences in the way that different groups of people from different parts of the world think and believe.

Simply accepting that fact, rather than fearing it, would go so far, IMO in bringing peace. People can be a non-Christian, without being an anti-Christian, and same goes for every other religion and non-religion. I am not even close to being the most intelligent person in the world, but some of these concepts seem so obvious. Doesn't anyone else think it might be a good idea to at least put at least some version of this simplicity to work, and see what happens?

I really do think, though, that focusing on being generic, when it comes to the celebrations that almost efery culture and religion seem to have all around the same time, in the winter, only irritates people, and makes them feel as if the government is once again attempting to control - even in this counry where we are supposed to be guaranteed our freedom of religion or lack of religion (wording something like that).

Self expression is very important to most people. Let the Christians celebrate Christmas, Jewish people celebrate Hannukah, and each person of every other religion celebrate their respective special day.

IMO, stuffing them all together into a "Happy Hollidays" is stupid and demeaning. Besides, why does the 'news' have to be flooded with stories like what the Bush's have on their "Holliday" cards? I don't expect to receive one, and I doubt that most of the general population is on their list either.

O.K. end of rant.

CyberKat

[edit on 12/13/2005 by CyberKat]

I tend to believe many modern "controversies" are really a means of testing the political waters. TPTB, NWO types etc like to know what their populations are thinking, hence the prevalance of polling. With these manufactured conspiracies they can accomplish several things at once.

- They can distract people, and divert attention away from more sinister stories.

- They can introduce false logic, fallacies, and damage the population's critical thinking abilities by planting two imaginary sides with "debates" that are really nothing more than talking-points and filler.

- They indoctrinate people into a "two sides to everything" mentality, when almost nothing in life is black and white.

- They guage the public's attitude to social change and control. Hmmm, lets see what the peasants do if we suggest the removal of religious symbols?

- They try to influence opinion with group think. "70% of Americans believe that orange juice is more healthy than grape juice" means the same thing as "orange juice is more healthy than grape juice" to many people.

- Introducing controversy sets the stage for change. Many people don't care about Merry Xmas vs Happy Holidays, but some people do. Make a controversy and have people picking sides. Polarize the populace, divide and conquer.

I think that those who hold sway are critically interested in what the consumer/slave populace is thinking. They want to constantly monitor and control that thinking. If you can manipulate what people are thinking about, then you can eventually manipulate what they ultimately think.

Just my humble opinion, (but an observant one )

Informatu, I think that you have made a very good observation. In addition to what I had written in the original post I made to this thread, I wasn't taking into consideration the fact that while I feel as if I see right through the "non-news", and feel as if many ATSers do also, I sometimes forget that there are more that suck that stuff right up.

They truly do get themselves involved with worrying about what they see on television and take it as gospel. So, I guess that what I'm trying to say, is that you have added a very legitamate and important part to the point I was trying to make. I mean, even here, I have seen I don't know how many threads that basically are along the same lines as "War on Christmas". And the news is full is that theme. So, because of that (especially the news stories, the public is actually debating that between themselves and it has truly become important to many.

It is too bad that so many intelligent people can be so easily manipulated.

I believe there are essential steps to reclaiming your mind:

1) STOP WATCHING TELEVISION...... The non-stop bombardment on your senses will numb your mind and open it up to suggestion and manipulation.

2) READ, READ, AND READ SOME MORE...... Not only does reading give a more in-depth and complete story (this applies to books and news print) but it stimulates the mind and forces the brain to think critically.

3) TRAIN YOURSELF TO BE A B.S. DETECTOR...... This is not an easy one for most people. We want to believe people are good. Getting ripped off or conned can really open your eyes.

4) SEEK OUT ALTERNATIVE SOURCES OF INFORMATION...... This includes public records, independent news sources (ie internet), and of course our very own ATS (WAY ABOVE).

5) DENY IGNORANCE...... Duh!.

[edit on 20-12-2005 by informatu]