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British author, George Orwell informs us that in a time of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act. It gives me no joy to say it, but we live in such a time. There's a corresponding urgent need for truth tellers and truth-telling, which in some quarters in the West, has in some respects and forums been prohibited. To enforce the ban, the corporate media and Big Info powers resort to silence, half truths, smearing targets as "fake news", and demonetizing the websites of independent journalists. It's something I never expected to see in my lifetime.
I can't say however, that I wasn't warned or I was completely surprised by the war on truth and corresponding decline in our democratic freedoms. My dad, a man with an instinct for free thinking and an insatiable need to know, read widely. The boundaries of his reading and thinking often exceeded the range of the politically correct or the approved truths du jour of the mainstream. It was this habit on his part that led to some very interesting conversations in my youth which today, more than 50 year later, seem more timely than ever. Dad had no illusions as to whom big government really served, the motivations of international bankers or the allegiance of the multinational powers that be. Yes, he was a skeptic, and yet his skepticism didn't consume him. Dad remained the kind of parent, friend and neighbour that the best of us aspires to be. In a sense Dad's time has come. Anyone who reads and listens beyond the mainstream is likely to sense that we are in the throes of an all out information war with tangible real world impacts. While much of it is being fought covertly, it's becoming ever more visible and playing out with historic consequences. I am most grateful for a father who in many respects anticipated its coming. (See Conversations with a Dangerous Man, another in the Red Pill essay series) -Rod, December 27, 2017. Conversations with a dangerous man © Futurescapes21C all rights reserved March 10-17 draft rev Aug 1-17 Posted December 27, 2017 “The ultimate tyranny in a society is not control by martial law. It is control by the psychological manipulation of consciousness, through which reality is defined so that those who exist within it do not even realize that they are in prison. They do not even realize that there is something outside of where they exist. You have been controlled like sheep in a pen by those who think they own you…” (Barbara Marciniak, Bringers of the Dawn) I marvel to this day that my dad, a man with a partial grade eight education, had the foresight to have “the talk” with me. I’m not referring to a talk about the “birds and the bees”, but rather a series of conversations regarding our fabricated reality and the shadowy “powers that be” (PTB) behind it. It was the kind of stuff that would certainly then, and possibly even now in some quarters, have gotten him branded a “conspiracy theorist.” More than fifty years on, however, the inconvenient truth is that these so-called conspiracy theories are no longer theories; they are facts of our existence. It was, for me a unique education. Imagine a day on the farm in the Canadian Prairies. The rays of a warming sun are streaming in the south bay window of the living room of our farmhouse. The morning chores are done, and Dad has some time before Mom calls him to the kitchen for lunch. Dad, wearing his stripped coveralls, plaid shirt and worn leather slippers has retreated to his favourite spot. It’s the one strategically located at the end of the chesterfield. Not only does it put him in the warmth of the sunshine, it places him directly across from our TV set for his analysis of the evening news. And there, conveniently located to his left on the end table beside the chesterfield, is the latest book he is consuming. Comfortably ensconced, he opens it where he left off and continues his reading. A few minutes in he might pause, peer over his glasses and share the latest insight. I can hear him saying: “Not many people realize this because of its name, but the Federal Reserve Board isn’t a department of the US government, it’s a private institution.” And so our conversations regarding the PTB and covert geopolitics would begin. It’s unlikely that many high school or university students living in rural Manitoba in the late sixties experienced such an education. It was a tumultuous period of course, and revolution the theme of the decade. Parents and their children had lots of other subjects to discuss and debate. In my case, however, the list of topics included systems of government, national monetary systems, and national and international politics. Some of the more memorable discussions concerned the Powers that Be (PTB) or Illuminati and the dark ambitions of its members like the Rockefellers and Rothschild families.1 The Rothschild family’s control of international finance was a central topic. Of particular significance was their profiteering from global conflicts by financing both sides. And equally or more troubling was the elite’s (the Illuminati's) plan to create a single world government.2 Fifty years later, these subjects and these two families in particular are the subjects of daily speculation and intrigue in on-line “alternative" media communities. Neither Dad nor I could have imagined then what we are now witnessing in terms of the urgency for awakened citizens to free themselves from the tyrannical rule of these “bloodline" families. I smile when I think of the seeming contradictions in my dad’s persona. On the one hand, he was an immensely practical man, a livestock producer, and an environmentally-conscientious farmer long before it was fashionable. He was also a devout Christian and a man who loved big ideas, far-ranging conversations and passionate debates. He had no doubt heard numerous references in church to the importance of loyalty to country, “rendering unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s,…”3 and prayerfully supporting government leaders. And yet, he remained defiant, refusing to be herded unquestioning into the coral of consensus when it came to small or big “P” politics. Dad’s appreciation for what it meant to live and think free ran deeply. To this day, I can’t say what it was in his background that honed his sense of true North on his internal compass to such a degree. He never said. But it seems that U.S President, John Adams captured one of his operating principles beautifully. "Let us tenderly and kindly cherish, therefore, the means of knowledge. Let us dare to read, think, speak, and write."4 And let us dare to question. It was almost as if Einstein had personally whispered his famous exhortation to not stop questioning directly into Dad’s ear. So question he did. Often, these political questions provided the substance of our family conversations around the dinner or supper table. Those conversations weren’t restricted to family and friends. Occasionally, an unsuspecting sales rep that happened to be in the yard when Mom announced lunch was welcomed, ready or not, into our forum. Ultimately, Dad likely saw no contradiction in his private rebellion. He may have simply seen his quest for a deeper understanding of politics and the motives and methods of the puppeteers behind the curtain as the mandate of every good Christian. Scripture makes clear the centrality of truth- seeking for all Christians. And it’s also pretty clear about the nature of our struggle against the dark powers that be. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. (Ephesians 6:12 NIV)5 Looking back, I’m surprised by the fact we found time for such, some would say, “esoteric” conversations, given the many demands on my parents’ time. At times, there was a herd of up to 200 or so beef cattle and close to a section (640 acres) of grain and hay land to manage. There were five kids to drive to school, hockey, baseball games, 4H club meetings and Sunday School and church on Sundays. Dad also drove a school bus route on the side. Mom raised chickens, miked cows managed the household, led 4H and tended a large garden. If that wasn’t demanding enough, the familiar routines of farm life were frequently punctuated by la crise de l'année. It could be a spring flood, an crop pest infestation, an early fall frost, unexpected livestock deaths or other pressures. The fact that my parents managed it all while serving as contributing members of our rural community was a testament to their faith, work ethic and resilience. I can think of a couple reasons why Dad may have selected me as his sounding board. First, I was the eldest of five, the kid branded “a thinker” by his grade three teacher and one with an apparent appetite for learning. Conversely, it was unlikely his peers down at the local curling rink, cafe or grain elevator would have taken much interest in the machinations of the Illuminati. Just how would that compete with the post-mortem on the latest Habs versus Leafs hockey game? There’s a good chance that the conversations regarding covert geopolitics were a subconscious expression of Dad’s concern for us and our futures. We were poor farmers, outsiders in some respects, trying to make our way in a sometimes inhospitable world. I base this conclusion in part on Dad’s use of a particular term for naive individuals ripe for exploitation. He called them “babes in the woods.” Conclusion: Dad didn’t want to raise any babes likely to fall prey to figurative wolves. What parent can’t identify with this sentiment? Who wants their kids to grow up to become complacent members of a “sheeple-ocracy”? Don’t most aspire to raise children capable of something more -- of greatness even? If so, we can be certain that their path doesn’t end within the confines of some version of The Truman Show6 created for the benefit of the powers that be. Fully awakened to the real nature of this world, who knows what this generation might achieve? Might they not, like Howard Beale in the movie, Network (1976),7 rise up and in a righteous rage issue their personal declaration of independence? Could they not serve notice to the PTB that it’s over… that they have had enough of the lies, the deception and the dictates from on high, and they aren’t going to take it anymore? This is a central question of our time. Today, Dad, the lonely rebel, would find himself in good company. It’s fragmented, but there is a growing "Patriot/Truther" movement afoot dedicated to awakening the masses to the reality of the illusion. Depending upon their particular background and political and religious leaning, its members may identify themselves as “sovereigntists,” “patriots” or “truthers.” The movement encompasses both religious and secular adherents and motivations. Like any movement, it has its share of fakirs, false prophets and infiltrators of course, so discernment is always required. Many of the members of the movement are independent journalists and bloggers. Some are former members of the military, security agencies or politicians who have become whistleblowers. Typically, these folks share a commitment to truthful reporting and analysis of world events as a counterforce to a sold out, scripted mainstream media (MSM). Some of its members are committed to investigating the covert activities and crimes of politicians and their controllers. Its fair to say however, that even beyond such groups, increasing numbers of the West’s masses are uneasy. They sense that something is profoundly wrong and they suspect their leaders are lying to them. It’s not simply that trust in corporate media and political leaders has declined dramatically, it’s the sense that the Western world has been turned upside down, gone insane or both. I don’t say that glibly. Was there ever a time in history when so much energy was dedicated to presenting evil as virtue, trivia as substance, delusion as wisdom and mental dysfunction as a new “normal” worthy of imitation? Central to this, is our society’s acquired distain for truth. Journalist, Jon Rappoport captures it succinctly in an explanation he recalls coming from a well-known reporter: “We don’t call it lying. We call it editing.”8 Some sources in the edges of in the alternative media sector describe other levels of conflict including battles on physical, inter-dimensional and spiritual levels. A number of “edge” sources describe a covert global conflict occurring beyond the range of sight of the citizenry. According to these sources, a coalition called “The Alliance” is engaged in an historic battle to end the long, tyrannical reign of “The Cabal” or the Illuminati over humanity. The Cabal consists of those representing and allied with 13 historic bloodline families that have ruled the world for millennia (including the Rothschilds and Rockefellers). It also includes the Jesuits and the Pope, the global “banksters” and a particular global network of Freemasons. The Alliance, a coalition of Gnostic freemasons, supported by patriotic members of the military, police and other security agencies, is attempting to overturn the rule of the Cabal sometimes described as New World Order Globalists9. Suffice to say, all of this contributes to my current dilemma. On the one hand I feel a powerful obligation to share such information with my family just as my dad shared with me his understanding of our faux reality. At the same time, however, my kids are adults with careers, busy lives and interests of their own. And candidly, I haven’t detected much of an appetite on their part for a look behind the curtain. In fact, my attempts to expose the edges of our faux reality over the past two or three years has been met with skepticism and largely rejected as “conspiracy theories.” The fact that they use the very term coined by the CIA to discourage scrutiny of the JFK assassination is telling in itself. Here are a few of my those observations which have been summarily rejected as "conspiracy theories." Mainstream corporate media is deeply corrupted and widely used by the CIA for propaganda purposes. Similarly, Hollywood is an important vehicle for CIA propaganda.10 11 12 It’s now legal for the United States government to engage in targeting propaganda at its own citizens, something that it is doing with a vengeance.13 A number of reported shootings and so-called terrorist attacks in the US and abroad have the markings of false flags orchestrated by government security agencies. (These are typically staged in order to keep the public fearful and looking to government for solutions to problems that are often of the government’s making.)14 15 The United States and its allies have been funding, arming and training various terrorist groups allied with Al Qaeda and ISIS in their efforts to achieve regime change in Syria.16 17 US elections are typically Deep State-orchestrated events designed to create the appearance of choice and maintain the delusion that U.S. citizens have participated in a democratic exercise.18 19 I could go on, but this gives you a sense of the problem. Logically, there is no escaping from something that one doesn’t acknowledge exists. Beyond that one also requires some motive, some good reason for attempting to exit the matrix. If any of my disbelieving friends or family asked, I would suggest that there are at least three good reasons for leaving and joining the truth revolution. The first is to free the mind and soul, enabling us to fulfill our life’s potential and mission. One feature of the tyranny of the Cabal is that it is oppressive. Psychologically and spiritually it is soul -crushing. The author of “What happens when you rebel against the herd?” observes people all around him that he describes as suppressed and psychologically suffering under the pressures of conformity. He contends that in order to experience a life of freedom, contentment and peace, a shift in consciousness is required. … and a good first step to achieve this is to escape the herd mentality that surrounds us and rebel against anything that is imprisoning our minds and filling our souls with toxic energy. When you gather the courage to say a big NO to conformity and break free from the mental shackles that were imposed on you since the very day you were born, great things will start happening that may turn your life upside down.20 The psychological breakdown may be more widespread than he envisions. There are many signs of its seriousness in the addiction problems and mental health issues of mainstream society. But, there are also new signs of distress emerging at the edges. One is the retreat of Millennial university students to “safe spaces” equipped with colouring books, cookies, blankets and bubbles within the cloistered halls of their universities.21 A development perhaps illustrative of the times is the opening of an adult day care in “Chicago. It’s a facility where adults can engage in toddler activities while wearing diapers.22 Infantilism, it seems, is on the rise. Other observers like feminist, Camille Paglia sees signs of cultural collapse in the rise of transgender mania.23 A second compelling reason for exiting the matrix is in order to restore integrity and meaning to one’s work and profession. Today’s “knowledge workers” are increasingly trapped within the confines of corrupted research, professional no-go zones, false assumptions, and false, albeit convenient political narratives. I am thinking in particular of those working in government policy and in corporate communication. It’s no wonder that governments continue to promulgate outdated policies and thinking long after their best before date. Somehow they become oblivious to the fact that they are victims of their own self-imposed delusions. (Russia doesn’t appear to be about to invade the West, so we should be bringing the NATO troops perched on its border home and go about forging more constructive international relationships.) The credibility of professionals operating within the false parameters of the matrix is quickly declining. I laughed when I read about nutritionists contracted by Coca Cola to convince consumers that a mini can of Coke was part of a healthy snack.24 I cringed when I saw the readiness with which major PR firms are prepared to abandon their ethics and engage in the manufacturing of the most obscene and duplicitous war propaganda.25 And, it was borderline nausea-inducing to discover that when it came to the Syrian conflict, mainstream Canadian and American journalists uniformly parroted the talking points of the hawks in Obama’s State Department. Was this the high calling to which they aspired – serving as an echo chamber for Washington’s warmongers? The decline doesn’t end there. Sound medical practice is being crushed under the wheels of Big Pharma’s profit-driven, total dominance strategy. Zealous agriculture professionals unquestioningly defend the Monsanto GMO crop-glyphosate paradigm despite a growing number of concerns. And each year, Big Bank economists dutifully hype imaginary annual GDP growth rates based on imaginary economic recoveries, and then move the goal posts back after mid-year. (This has been standard practice since the start of the great Recession in 2008.) Sadly, the Cabal’s corporatocracy is reducing growing numbers of professionals to pitiful peddlers of nonsensical blather, and their reputations and those of their professions are suffering accordingly. Critics in independent media now refer to journalists and news anchors serving mainstream corporate media (MSM) as media “whores” and “presstutitues”.26 Surprisingly, many employed the MSM seem blissfully ignorant of their situation. They would all be well advised to read some history concerning Operation Mockingbird.27 A third reason is for the very survival of humanity. The Cabal isn’t content to simply hold the world captive in perpetual servitude. Its mission is more ambitious. Endless war is a central feature of its plan as it is both good for business, a source of enormous profits for the military industrial complex and a means of population control. The prospects for WWIII are real. Many of those who have seriously considered the brutal machinations of the ruling Cabal have come to a stark conclusion. It is simply that that the world is run by psychopaths. What is their end game? Social psychologist Preston James concludes it is “hell on earth”, which includes the destruction of the “family, sex roles and basic right and wrong morality.“28 If there is the slightest chance this is true, we have no choice but to resist. I was recently pondering the fact that many of my family and friends had not yet awakened to truths known to my dad more than fifty years ago. Then I had my ahaa moment. Twenty years earlier, in a similar frame of mind, I wondered how I might help my children, in grade school at the time, prepare for an increasingly turbulent workplace and uncertain career futures. My solution was to produce a workbook on the emerging world of work, complete with stories, exercises and strategies. It gave me the space I needed to articulate coming trends and developments and suggest how they might prepare for them. It was at the same time a digestible and non-threatening way for my children to consider the possibilities when they were so inclined. In our career-related conversations in the intervening years, there have been occasional opportunities to reference the career principles I articulated years earlier. So, now I must begin a new conversation about the essential nature of our socio-political reality and a quest for freedom. It will take us far beyond the boundaries of the known world and the figurative dragons that guard its borders. I undertake this journey with any who care to join me in a spirit of profound gratitude to a father who took time for some very important discussions. Among other things, he taught me to reserve my reverence for God not governments or their leaders, and to carefully sift the received wisdom of the day. American journalist, H.L. Mencken once said: “The most dangerous man, to any government, is the man who is able to think things out for himself…Almost inevitably, he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane, and intolerable.” I didn’t know it at the time, but now I do; my dad was a dangerous man. 1 The world order: How it works, Veterans Today, July 24, 2017, http://www.veteranstoday.com/2017/07/24/world-order/ 2 One world government, United Earth http://www.unitedearth.com.au/oneworldgovernment.html 3 Mark 12:17, Biblehub.com http://biblehub.com/mark/12-17.htm 4 BrainyQuote, https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/j/johnadams391246.html 5 Biblehub.com, Ephesians 6;12 New International Version http://biblehub.com/niv/ephesians/6-12.htm 6 The Truman Show, 1998, Wikipedia.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Truman_Show 7 Howard Beale (Network, 1976), Wikipedia.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Howard_Beale_(Network) 8 Official reality is psychotic – You are not, Jon Rappoport, Waking Times, October 21, 2016 http://www.wakingtimes.com/2016/10/21/official-reality-psychotic-not/ 9 The shadow war between the banking cabal and global alliance is escalating, Phillip J. Watt, The Waking Times, October 15, 2015. http://www.wakingtimes.com/2015/10/15/the-shadow-war-between-the-banking-cabal-global-alliance-is-escalating/ 10 The CIA and Deep State have controlled US media and Hollywood for decades, Blacklisted News, Feb 27, 2017. http://www.blacklistednews.com/The_CIA_and_deep_state_have_controlled_US_media_and_Hollywood_for_decades./57055/0/38/38/Y/M.html 11 CIA asset news reporter admits all news is fake. Reporters are bought off, YouTube, January 17, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Adz-cLDZGBU&app=desktop 12 Mockingbird Mirror: Declassified docs depict deeper link between the CIA and American media, 21 Century Wire, March 1, 2017. http://21stcenturywire.com/2017/03/01/mockingbird-mirror-declassified-docs-depict-deeper-link-between-the-cia-and-american-media/ 13 The NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act) legalizes propaganda on US public, Business Insider, May 21-2012. http://www.businessinsider.com/ndaa-legalizes-propaganda-2012-5 14 Former MI5 officer sparks outrage claiming Paris terror strikes were ‘inside job not ISIS’, Sunday Express, Dec 30, 2015. http://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/630279/Former-MI5-officer-outrage-claiming-Paris-terror-attacks-inside-job-ISIS-Daesh?_ga=1.91221662.508441681.1476763940 15 False flags” are legal propaganda produced by the Department of Defense, The Millennium Report, January 18, 2017. http://themillenniumreport.com/2016/01/false-flags-are-legal-propaganda-produced-by-the-department-of-defense/ 16 Rep. Tulsi Gabbard smokes CNN shill: ‘ US is funding terrorists’ in Syria (video), Russia Today, December 9, 2016. http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/rep-tulsi-gabbard-smokes-cnn-shill-us-funding-terrorists-syria-video/ri18105 17 The US government is secretly allied with America’s enemies, Strategic Culture, December 12, 2016. http://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2016/12/12/us-government-secretly-allied-with-americas-enemies.html 18 Entire US election is fake, from start to finish, Sleuthjournal, September 10, 2016. http://www.thesleuthjournal.com/entire-us-presidential-election-fake-start-finish-video/ 19 The Illuminati-staged US presidential election, Michael Shore, Rense.com, August 8, 2004. http://rense.com/general58/suspre.htm 20 What happens when you rebel against the herd?, Fourwinds10.com, March 1, 2017. http://www.fourwinds10.com/siterun_data/health/morality_ethics_values/news.php?q=1488565163 21 In college and hiding from scary ideas, Sunday Review, The New York Times, March 21, 2015. https://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/22/opinion/sunday/judith-shulevitz-hiding-from-scary-ideas.html 22 Chicago daycare opens for adult to wear diapers, act like babies (21 Century Wire, June 17, 2016. http://21stcenturywire.com/2016/06/17/chicago-daycare-opens-for-adults-to-wear-diapers-act-like-babies/ 23 Paglia: ‘Transgender Mania’ is a sign of West’s cultural collapse, CNSnews.com, November 3, 2015. http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/sam-dorman/camille-paglia-transgender-mania-symptom-cultural-collapse 24 Coca Cola paid nutrition experts to recommend soda as a healthy snack, Business Insider, March 16, 2015. http://www.businessinsider.com/coca-cola-paid-nutrition-experts-to-recommend-soda-as-a-healthy-snack-2015-3 25 Fake news and false flags: How the Pentagon paid a British PR firm $500 million for tip secret Iraq propaganda, Common Dreams, October 2, 2016. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/10/02/fake-news-false-flags-how-pentagon-paid-british-pr-firm-500-million-top-secret-iraq 27 Newly declassified government documents reveal operation Mockingbird is alive and well, thefreethoughtproject.com, October 2, 2015. http://thefreethoughtproject.com/feds-exposed-planting-talking-points-questions-60-minutes-episode-wikileaks/ 28 Babylonian endgame – Hell on Earth, Veteran’s Today, February 28, 2017. http://www.veteranstoday.com/author/jim/ (c) Futurescapes21C All rights reserved
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On the importance of allegory, parody and political satire
Throughout history, when those seeking change discover that straight talk and honest dialogue are suppressed or shouted down, writers, artists and playwrights have resorted to more subtle forms of expression and protest. They might have turned to parody, political allegory or satire. For various reasons, Jesus often spoke in parables laden with meaning and spiked with messages for his intended audience. This was also the tactic of the joker or court jester in medieval times. According to some, the court jester's role was that of a professional provocateur. The jester subtly skewered the delusions and inanities of the King or the establishment. I've come to a deeper appreciation for the jesters and their satirical words and ways in the last decade or so. Perhaps it can be attributed in part to Comedy Central and Jon Stewart. The Jester's gift is telling truth to power in a way that few others can. For a great example, search YouTube for Bob Dylan entertaining a fancy pants audience including some former US politicians seated near the front. To appreciate the deliciousness of the the situation, he's singing "(You) Gotta serve somebody" (the Devil or the Lord) to at least one US president and alumni of Yale's dark secret society, the Skull and Crossbones. The skilled jester can make his performance simultaneously palatable, entertaining and thought-provoking. Often, in the process, the best of jesters decodes the hidden messages behind the behaviours of the Powers that Be, revealing the truth to those among the masses with discerning eyes and ears. Perhaps the role of provocateur is one that futurists can play when necessary. I recall reading that our family served as bards to one of the kings of ancient Ireland. I wonder if any of them injected a touch of political satire into their verse. On that note, Why can't Sam learn?, is another in the Red Pill Essays series (See blog). It is my political allegory of the US ("Sam") and its foreign policy. It was written in early February of 2016, but remains timely. (The Editor, December 22, 2017) Why Can’t Sam Learn? – A political allegory regarding the sheer madness of US foreign policy and the collective mind behind it Feb 6, 2017, rev. Posted December 22, 2017 © Futurescapes21C For a part of my career I was an educator serving in the K-12 and college level systems. For the educator, the mission is unleashing human learning capabilities, so people can fulfill their life potential. In basic terms, learning is the ability of an organism to respond intelligently to stimuli in its environment. So, when people touch the proverbial hot stove, withdraw their hands and refrain from repeating the mistake, they have demonstrated an ability to learn. The desire and ability to learn is considered natural in healthy, well-adjusted human beings. When a student develops bad grades, or engages in destructive behaviour, or is frequently caught fighting with others, the problem is sometimes traced to a learning disability. If the child’s condition can be diagnosed on a timely basis, corrective therapies or medical treatment can be undertaken. In some cases however, the roots of a behavioral problem may run deeper and can be attributed to some type of personality disorder or other form of mental illness. But what if that schoolchild creating havoc on the figurative schoolyard or playground is really a nation, (the United States or “Sam” for our purposes)? And what if Sam’s gang (NATO) has taken control of most of the playground? Who, in this case will intervene, restore peace and seek to determine what ails Sam and his bullying buddies? It seems that it falls to independent analysts and journalists to sound the alarm and call attention to the misbehaviours. It’s clearly time to ask, Why can’t Sam learn? It’s worth noting at the outset that Sam has many positive attributes. In the past he has demonstrated that he can be industrious, creative, generous and sometimes even a visionary leader. Sam is, in many ways, a gifted child. His unique combination of personality traits and abilities makes him very influential among his peers and greatly feared by others on the playground. For many years now, however, part of Sam has been at war with his better self, and the dark side of his personality has been winning. This manifests itself in incoherent and destructive foreign policy ventures, few more destructive than his ill-conceived war on terror (WOT). A timely intervention is required before Sam does further injury to himself and/or those around him. Newly elected US president, Donald Trump himself has called for an end to the catastrophic foreign policy of the US. In the course of his election campaign, he declared the country is going to change course. “We will pursue a new foreign policy that finally learns from the mistakes of the past…We will stop looking to topple regimes and overthrow governments…. Our goal is stability not chaos, because we want to rebuild our country [the United States]… We will partner with any nation that is willing to join us in the effort to defeat ISIS and radical Islamic terrorism …In our dealings with other countries, we will seek shared interests wherever possible and pursue a new era of peace, understanding, and good will.”1 It’s a remarkable speech, if for no other reason than because it stands in such sharp contrast to today’s reality. If President Trump is serious about changing US thinking and behaviour, a logical place to start would be Sam's case file. The foreign policy failures go back decades. I first began to seriously wonder about Sammy’s learning ability in the 1980’s following the War in Lebanon. I clearly recall the leaden feeling in my gut when I read in October of 1984 that the barracks of US marines serving in Lebanon as part of a peace keeping mission had been blown up killing more than 200 US marines. The message was clear: Whether you are labeled ‘peace keepers’ or not, you’re not welcome in Lebanon. On Feb 26, 1984, the bulk of the US troops withdrew. I remember feeling relieved. I naively concluded this was a costly lesson and one that would no doubt lead to the end of American involvement in the Middle East.2 I couldn’t have been more wrong. Sam was undeterred. One summary lists 25 US interventions in the Middle East between 1984 and 2001.3 So looking back on the Beirut bombing, it appears no lessons sufficient to reshape US foreign policy in the Middle East were learned. If anything was learned, it was merely that the US needed to better fortify US troops barracks and embassies. The deadly outcomes of subsequent attacks around the world, however, left me wondering if even that was learned. The George W. Bush era brought a new chapter in aggressive US foreign policy with the launch of the so-called WOT in the wake of the attacks on 9/11. Over the course of the subsequent 16 years, the US invaded, attacked and supported conflict in seven countries in the Middle East and Northern Africa. In his final year in office, Obama’s military dropped a record 26,121 bombs on seven countries.4 It’s worth noting that the US still maintains a military presence in Afghanistan after 15 years, is engaged in its third Iraq conflict, while silent regarding the mess NATO created in Libya in 2011.5 The US is also engaged in a proxy war in Syria and covertly supporting Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen. A growing segment of the US public, along with disaffected members of the US military are voicing their alarm regarding their nation’s dysfunctional behaviour. Former soldier Mike Prysner, for example, looking back on his military service, stated he tried to be proud of his service, but confessed, remorsefully that “the real terrorist was me”.6 Ex-Bush official, Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, is quoted as saying that he is “tired of the corporate interests that we go abroad to slay monsters for” and labels his country the “death merchant of the world”.7 As for Sam’s gang, critics of its regime change wars label NATO the North Atlantic Terrorist Organization.8 Sam’s aggressive behaviour is routinely encouraged by the country’s policy think tanks. Michael Ledeen, holder of the Freedom Chair at the American Enterprise Institute offered US leadership a memorable nugget of advice. Ledeen suggested that, “Every ten years or so, the United States needs to pick up some small crappy little country and throw it against the wall, just to show the world we mean business.”9 Brilliant! If only that were the extent of its bullying. Again a closer look at Sam’s file provides a revealing picture of how his brain (Congress) and its decision process works. Investigative journalist, Glenn Greenwald of the Intercept describes how Congress reached a foreign policy decision with far reaching consequences and catastrophic repercussions for the world. In the wake of 9/11, President George Bush demanded Congress grant the president the authority to use military force against those responsible for the attack. The resolution stated: “the President is authorized to use all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001, or harbored such organizations or persons.” Greenwald reports that the House of Representatives approved the resolution on Sept 14 by a vote of 420-1 and the Senate the same day by a vote of 98-0. The single dissenting vote came from Democratic rep., Barbara Lee of California. Lee explained that her vote was based on a concern that passing the resolution would amount to giving “a blank check to the president to attack anyone involved in September 11 events –anywhere, in any country, without regard to our nation’s long-term foreign policy, economic and national security interests, and without time limit.” She added: “A rush to launch precipitous military counterattacks runs too great a risk that more innocent men, women, children will be killed.” 10 Lee’s response to the resolution was remarkably prescient, but it fell on deaf ears. Out of a total of 519 members of Congress, only one had the good judgment to made the case for restraint. Only one foresaw the longer-term risks and possible consequences likely to follow a decision reached three days after the 9/11 attacks. Common sense would suggest a cooling off period was in order. Equally revealing of Sam’s illness is the fact that Senator Lee was smeared and demonized by politicos for her courageous stand. Sam’s history of promoting wars on the basis of lies didn’t begin with the first Iraq war, but it is, nonetheless, instructive. Ultimately, to sell the first Iraq war to a skeptical public, the daughter of the Kuwaiti ambassador was coached to offer a poignant (but false) testimony. Her story that Iraqi soldiers had invaded Kuwaiti hospitals and had tossed babies from their incubators unto the floor provided an emotional hook for a yet-skeptical public.11 The subsequent WOT was similarly sold to the public and sustained on the basis of lies. The George W. Bush administration misled the public in wrongly blaming Saddam Hussein for the attack on the Twin Towers. It also advanced the lie that Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, making him an imminent threat to the US.12 Today, the very pretext for the war on terror, the official 9/11 narrative wobbles on shaky footings. A 2013 survey found that most Americans are open to an alternative explanation.13 Sam maintains a pattern of lying and deceit to this day. If anything, he and his NATO gang have become increasingly devious in their attempts to hide their behind-the-scenes roles in regime change wars in the Middle East. In his Syrian regime change campaign, for example, Sam has employed a combination of NATO members, mercenaries, regional allies and support for terrorist groups to pursue his goal of regime change.14 This is why it is described as a proxy war. This proxy war has been sustained by a massive on-going campaign of denial and misdirection.15 In 2016, a propaganda campaign was launched to demonize Vladimir Putin and infect the Western publics with a case of Russia-phobia. Even as NATO troops and weaponry are arrayed on Russia’s border, and the Ukraine engages in periodic provocations, we are told that it’s the Russian bear that is the aggressor.16 Meanwhile, it’s Sam and his NATO buddies that continue lying about Russia and Crimea.17 And when the world’s attention is fixed on Russia and the Ukraine, Sam’s alter egos, the CIA and USAID are busily seeking to extend US hegemony elsewhere across the world.18 Sam has become a specialist in deception. During Obama’s last term, psy ops including false flags were frequently employed to ensure American citizens remained supportive of the WOT. This tactic is said to date back to Nero.19 Former Marine Corps intelligence officer, Robert Steele contends that most terrorist attacks are government-orchestrated false flags.20 Seemingly, they are successful, as citizens have yet to demand accountability from their government for the US role in the WOT. They also reveal of course, the pathological mindset of a tyrant. The costs and consequences arising from Congress’ decision to grant the war-making authority to the president are immense and still mounting. The financial cost of the war on terror to American taxpayers alone is estimated at $5 trillion dollars and counting.21 It has been pointed out, this bill has been run up on the credit card of a country that is essentially bankrupt. Estimates of the number of lives lost as a result range from 1.3 million upward.22 This cost accounting vastly understates the reality. It doesn’t consider the damage to targeted nations in relation to their physical infrastructure, natural environment, human health and well-being, social stability and historic artifacts. It also fails to take the damage to the reputation of the United States into account. Given the damage and losses inflicted on seven countries in seven years by Sam’s duplicitous WOT, one would imagine he might show some pang of conscience. I have not, however seen any signs of guilt or remorse to date. He also demonstrates no sense of responsibility or interest in making amends. It’s the absence of empathy that concerns me the most. Sam just doesn’t seem to care. Whenever someone calls attention to his behaviour, Sam goes on the offence accusing others of the very things he is guilty of doing (projection was a Nazi tactic). He constantly attempts to diminish the seriousness of his crimes. The reaction is the same whether it’s the use of torture on political prisoners or the killing of innocent men, women and children in countries targeted for regime change. For Sam, it’s always a matter of the primacy of American interests over all else. Sam continues to engage in rambling self-talk about American exceptionalism. In the 2016 US election, losing candidate, Hilary Clinton offered the delusional slogan, “We’re great, because we’re good.” Such notions reveal a massive disconnect with reality. Looking ahead, I see no signs that the risk Sam represents to others will abate. There are signs that it will grow. The US’s military advanced research agency, DARPA, is continuing the development of robotic war machines and potentially something even more alarming, genetically modified, “Super Soldiers.” It is said that such soldiers will have advantages over human soldiers in several respects. By eliminating empathy, the Department of Defense (DoD) hopes to “enhance” a soldier’s ability to “kill without care or remorse, shows no fear, can fight battle after battle without fatigue and generally behave more like a machine than a man.”23 It’s clear that such technological advances will do nothing to make the world any safer or more secure. Sam's tendency to invent new enemies in order to justify his aggression make this a certainty. In summary, a cursory look at Sam’s file reveals some disturbing patterns. They include the following:
While the record clearly reveals that Sam has a learning disability, it also points to a much more serious problem. A casual comparison of Sam’s behaviours with Dr. Hare’s psychopathy checklist reveals a remarkable correlation.24 In short, Sam checks many of the boxes right from superficial charm, grandiosity and pathological lying, to manipulativeness, impulsivity and failure to accept responsibility. In light of this, some recommendations are in order. First, Sam’s condition demands an intervention and immediate attention. It’s important to determine specifically what is impairing Sam’s thinking and decision-making. Nothing can be ruled out at this point, including the possibility of a brain tumour resulting from exotic parasites. (Some have suggested it could be Neoconus fascisti.) This in turn could be causing pressure on the control or (moral) judgment centres of the brain. Second, the NATO gang should be immediately broken up and each of its members given a similar assessment. Their aggressive behaviours and their enabling of Sam’s intimidation and bullying suggest that some of them may also suffering from a similar condition. To some extent however, they are also Sam’s victims. (Canada, is no exception.) Third, intensive monitoring and reporting by vigilant independent media and concerned citizens is essential. This is all the more important now as it's clear that corporate media has been co-opted by the military-security complex (MSC). President Trump implies that Sam can learn from his past foreign policy failures and change that nation’s behaviour. It's an extremely optimistic position. While I hope he is right, I am a realist, and realistically the challenge is monumental. Historically, neither the US nor actual psychopaths have demonstrated much ability to learn from their past failures and reform on their own. Sadly, Sam may be beyond our help. If Sam and his buddies pause long enough to digest the lessons from their past foreign policy failures and adopt a more benevolent posture, it will be nothing short of a miracle. It will, in fact, be a new day for humanity. We must continue to pray and work toward such a miracle; the alternative is simply too dark to contemplate. All rights reserved, Futurescapes21C 2017. References 1 The trump speech that no one heard, Counterpunch, January 19, 2017. http://www.counterpunch.org/2017/01/19/the-trump-speech-that-no-one-heard/ 2 Beirut Barracks blown up (History.com) http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/beirut-barracks-blown-up 3 US interventions in the Middle East http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article6308.htm 4 America dropped 26, 171 bombs in 2016. What a bloody end to Obama’s reign, The Guardian, January 9, 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jan/09/america-dropped-26171-bombs-2016-obama-legacy 5NATO’s humanitarian intervention in Syria exacerbated “human suffering” (New Eastern Outlook, Oct 17-2015) http://journal-neo.org/2015/10/17/nato-s-humanitarian-intervention-in-libya-exacerbated-humanitarian-suffering/ 6 Michael Prysner: ‘The real terrorist was me…’, Oriental Review, December 16, 2012. http://orientalreview.org/2012/12/16/michael-prysner-the-real-terrorist-was-me/ 7 “We are the death merchant of the world”: Ex-Bush official Lawrence Wilkerson condemns military-industrial complex, Salon, March 29, 2016. http://www.salon.com/2016/03/29/we_are_the_death_merchant_of_the_world_ex_bush_official_lawrence_wilkerson_condemns_military_industrial_complex/ 8 Stop the North Atlantic Terrorist Organization – NATO, Youtube, October 3, 2015. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4XLDt1qWYc 9 Controversial theories, Michael Ledeen, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Ledeen 10 Barbara Lee’s lone vote on September 14, 2001, was as prescient as it was brave and heroic, The Intercept, September 11, 2016. https://theintercept.com/2016/09/11/barbara-lees-lone-vote-on-sept-14-2001-was-as-prescient-as-it-was-brave-and-heroic/ 11 Nayirah testimony, Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nayirah_(testimony) 12 George W Bush didn’t just lie about the Iraq war. What he did was much worse, The Week, May 20, 2015. http://theweek.com/articles/555921/george-w-bush-didnt-just-lie-about-iraq-war-what-did-much-worse 13 New poll finds most Americans open to alternative 9/11 theories, 9/11Truth.org, September 10, 2013. http://www.911truth.org/new-poll-finds-americans-open-alternative-911-theories/ 14 NATO’s playbook of proxy wars in the Middle East (Blacklisted News, January 1, 2017. http://www.blacklistednews.com/NATO%E2%80%99s_Playbook_of_Proxy_Wars_in_the_Middle_East/56109/0/38/38/Y/M.html 15 US and NATO launch disinformation terror war, New Eastern Outlook, October 10, 2015. http://journal-neo.org/2015/10/10/us-and-nato-launch-disinformation-terror-war/ 16 Germany slams NATO ‘warmongering” on Russia, Yahoo, June 18, 2016. https://www.yahoo.com/news/germany-slams-nato-warmongering-russia-115515814.html 17 Things will get worse until the US stops lying about Crimea, Strategic Culture, February 7, 2017. http://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2017/02/07/things-will-get-worse-until-us-stops-lying-about-crimea.html 18 A primer: USAID and US hegemony, New Eastern Outlook, July 8, 2016. http://journal-neo.org/2016/07/08/a-primer-usaid-us-hegemony/ 19 More Obama false flags on the horizon, Dave Hodges, The Common Sense Show, August 31, 2013. http://www.thecommonsenseshow.com/2013/08/31/more-obama-false-flag-events-on-the-near-horizon/ 20 Intelligence officer: Every single terrorist attack in the US was a false flag – or egged on by the government, Infowars, Mach 15-15. http://www.infowars.com/intelligence-officer-every-single-terrorist-attack-in-u-s-was-a-false-flag-attack-or-egged-on-by-the-government/ 21 Post-9/11 wars have cost nearly $5 trillion and counting: Report, Common Dreams, September 13, 2016. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/09/13/post-911-wars-have-cost-nearly-5-trillion-and-counting-report 22 Body Count report reveals at least 1.3 million lives lost to the US-led war on terror, Common Dreams, March 26, 2015. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/03/26/body-count-report-reveals-least-13-million-lives-lost-us-led-war-terror 23 DARPA continues human experiments to create military super soldiers, Occupy Corporatism, April 10, 2013. https://www.occupycorporatism.com/darpa-continues-human-experiments-to-create-military-super-soldiers/ 24 Encyclopedia of mental disorders forum, Hare psychopathy checklist, http://www.minddisorders.com/Flu-Inv/Hare-Psychopathy-Checklist.html (c) Futurescapes21C All rights reserved. December 18, 2017 Blog
(C) Futurescapes 2017 All rights reserved Whistleblowing: The disclosure by a person, usually an employee in a government agency or private enterprise, to the public or to those in authority, of mismanagement, corruption, illegality, or some other wrongdoing. (The Free Dictionary by Farlex) Whoever walks in integrity walks in security, but whoever walks in crooked paths will be found out. (Proverbs 10:9). Today, December 16, is an especially good day. I say this in part because I have learned that at least one courageous individual and possibly more whistleblowers are reported to have revealed what really transpired during the stand off between the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Cliven Bundy ranch protestors. The whistleblower is Special Agent, Larry Wooten, lead investigator for the BLM's investigation into the operation at the Bundy Ranch in April 2014. Wooten has documented numerous unethical and possibly illegal activities on the part of Special Agent in Charge, Daniel P. Love. Unfortunately, when Wooten reported these things to his supervisor, his supervisor was dismissive and indifferent. Wooten's whistleblowing complaint alleges suppression of evidence, excessive use of force civil rights violations policy violations, cover ups and gross misconduct on the part of BLM management. Wooten also indicates that BLM Special Agent Dan Love had a "kill book" containing the names of protestors targeted for shooting. The whistleblower adds that he was the victim of whistleblower retaliation by the BLM. His report also implicates the US Attorney's office in a cover up. If this information proves correct, Agent Wooten's actions will be an encouragement to those who value justice and serve as an inspiration on multiple fronts. First, they give hope to every US citizen seeking fair treatment under the law in the face of government corruption and over-reach. Second, Wooten's actions should also serve as inspiration to every employee committed to serving with integrity and hesitant to speak up regarding wrong-doing. In our Post-Truth Era, the value of truth, trustworthiness and correspondingly, whistleblowing has risen dramatically. The post-truth context, replete with its corruption, deception, and compromised group think is the cauldron in which the courage of the whistleblower rises to the surface. Those individuals who are bold enough to take action should know (as Wooten now knows) that their future career prospects are uncertain. Sure most government and many private sector corporations boast a commitment to encouraging whistleblowing and protecting whistleblowers. But that's PR paint. How they really handle things at the critical moment when a whistleblower comes forward is another matter. In reality, "going public" is fraught with dangers. First, there's the difficulty of navigating the doublespeak of cowardly or complicit supervisors. And as Wooten found, they may be multiple layers of management complicity. Then there's the prospect of harassment and ostrazisation from colleagues. Add to this the stigmatization that haunts whistleblowers and their careers. The hardships whistleblowers and truth tellers often face prompted me to coin my personal bumpersticker message and motivational slogan on the subject. I often find myself saying: "God bless the whistleblower, because few else will." I used to share an exhortation with former colleagues facing workplace pressures to conform to: "Act like your mortgage is paid." You see, if management really valued whistleblowers, then more of employees would feel confident in reporting wrong-doing rather than "going along to get along." They would expect management to review and address reported misdeeds and protect them from backlash. If whistleblowers were admired and valued, why are Assange and Snowden living in exile? Why were there shouts of "traitor" and calls for the killing of Assange? And why are some many investigative reporters killed each year? The many risks inherent in whistleblowing explain why so few rise to the challenge. Most of us choose to look the other way and carry on. It's not hard to rationalize and opt for "see no evil, hear no evil" silence when the risks are weighed. What if I lost my job? And without a job, how could I provide for my family? What if colleagues became so hostile and the atmosphere so toxic, that I couldn't cope? In some professions, "going public" is considered to be an unpardonable violation of "the code." In some cases, there are ethical considerations associated with sworn oath's of confidentiality and security clearances. What does one do when going through official channels fails? This explains why some in the military and security agencies postpone whistleblowing until retirement. Some have waited until they were near death before disclosing things they felt the public had a right to know. For some, the freedom to voice their opinion doesn't even come with advanced careers. As recently as last week, an acquaintance spoke of his hesitation to speak out on political matters out of a concern there could be repercussions for his children's careers. It's not surprising. We inhabit a world where every key stroke, every word, and every movement is tracked and analyzed. The obscene intrusions of Big Brother in our lives today exceeds even the extremes portrayed in Orwell's dystopian Nineteen Eighty Four. Today, however, we can draw fresh inspiration from the example of Mr. Wooten and the whistleblowers and truth tellers who proceeded him. A few were ultimately rewarded for their efforts. Many endured real hardship. Some lost their careers and reputations, and some lost their lives. I can recall being inspired in my youth by the story of Frank Serpico, the former New York City Police Department officer who exposed police corruption in the late sixties and early seventies. Remarkably, Wikipedia states Serpico who prefers the term "lamp lighters," was "the first police officer in the history of the department to report and testify openly about widespread systemic corruption... ." Self-imposed blindness must have been rampant in the department until that point. Many will have heard of Daniel Ellsberg, the former US military analyst who, while employed by Rand Corporation, released the secret Pentagon Papers in 1971. The documents, which revealed US government decision-making regarding the War in Vietnam, were released to the New York Times and other papers. Ellsberg's charges carried a total sentence of 115 years. Due to an effective legal defence and governmental misconduct and illegal evidence gathering, all charges were dismissed in June of 1973. Karen Silkwood was an American chemical technician and labour union activist who raised concerns about corporate practices related to worker health and safety in a nuclear facility. In 1974, she testified about her concerns to the Atomic Energy Commission. Her death in a car accident on November 13, 1974 is described as "mysterious." She was 28 years of age. Chelsea Elizabeth Manning (born Bradley Edward Manning), a former US army soldier, handed 750,000 classified and, unclassified but sensitive military and diplomatic documents over to Wikileaks. Manning's 22 charges included aiding the enemy which could have resulted in a death sentence. She was convicted of violating the Espionage Act and other offences in July of 2013. Ultimately, Manning's sentence was commuted by Barack Obama to nearly seven years of confinement dating from her arrest in May of 2010. A soul-deep commitment to whistleblowing and truth telling in journalism is essential. Serna Shim was a naturalized American citizen working as a reporter for Press TV. In October 2014, an assignment took her to the border between Syria and Turkey to report on the conflict between Iraqi Kurdish fighters and ISIS. Shim reported the ISIS-affiliated Al Qaeda militants were being smuggled over the Turkish border into Syria by hiding in the back of food aid vehicles owned by non-governmental organizations. Some of the vehicles bore the emblem of the UN's World Food Organization. It seems Shim hit a political nerve within Turkey's government. Turkey's intelligence agency accused her of being a foreign spy, and two days later a large cement truck collided with her rental car. Then there's the case of journalist, Daphne Caruana Galizia. As an investigative reporter in Malta, Galizia had been reporting links between the island nation and offshore tax havens through the leaked Panama Papers. Over the course of her career, Galizia didn't play favourites when it came to exposing corruption. She turned up the heat on the leader of the Opposition, the Prime Minister and the PM's wife, the governments chief of staff and energy minister, among others. In early October, Galizia filed a police report indicating that she was receiving threats. Shortly after driving away from her home on October 16, 2017, Galizia was killed when a bomb exploded in her car. While the details are still under investigation, it's fair to say that Galizia's death was most likely linked to her work. This is a just a small sample of the men and women who have broken through the barriers of indifference, intimidation and their own fears to call attention to wrong-doing. We could use many more of them as we live in an age of deception. While the word, "hero" is often used gratuitously today, whistleblowers and truth tellers of this variety are genuinely worthy of the accolade. Much of my research and writing of late amounts to an exploration of the darker side of human activity, our society and its governance. The whistleblower and truth teller, or "lamp lighter" as Serpico prefers, are shedding much needed light into that darkness. May God bless them. Sources: Bombshell: Washington State Rep, Matt Shea on sealed hearings in Bundy Ranch Trial and why this could get the Bundy case tossed, The Washington Standard, December 15, 2017, http://thewashingtonstandard.com/bombshell-washington-state-rep-matt-shea-sealed-hearings-bundy-ranch-trial-get-bundy-case-tossed/ Summary of BLM whistleblower -- re Bundy, YouTube, December 14, 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0QAT4grJYM The government has screwed up the Bundy case even worse than we realized, Mother Jones, December 20, 2017, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/12/the-government-has-screwed-up-the-bundy-case-even-worse-than-we-realized/ The Post-Truth Era: Dishonesty and Deception in Contemporary Life, Ralph Keyes, 2004, https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-312-30648-9 Wikipedia (extracts of Serpico, Silkwood, Ellsberg and Manning stories) 10 suspicious deaths of whistleblowers, Listverse, December 2, 2015, https://listverse.com/2015/12/02/10-suspicious-deaths-of-whistle-blowers/ Bomb kills reported who covered Malta's "Panama Papers" link, Chicago Tribune, October 16, 2017, http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-malta-journalist-killed-panama-papers-link-20171016-story.html (c) Futurescapes21C All rights reserved I wrote this essay on January 23, 2017 hoping that sometime during its 150th anniversary year Canada would have a moment of truth. Perhaps its leaders would acknowledge the falsity of war-making in general, and the war on terror in particular including Canada's own criminal role in destabilizing Libya. Alas, Canada's leadership has not yet been convinced that it's time to admit its duplicity and criminality in participating in the farcical war on terror. Our opportunity to demonstrate genuine leadership has almost slipped away. (the editor, December 15, 2017).
Prayers for Canada's “Pogo” Moment in 2017 January 23, 2017 © Futurescapes 21C all rights reserved For there is nothing hidden that will not be disclosed, and nothing concealed that will not be known or brought out into the open. (Luke 8:17) Canada’s moment of truth, or what I would call its “Pogo moment” is coming, and while it won’t be pleasant, it is necessary to our future well-being. Pogo, some may recall, was a central character is a 1960s to mid-seventies American comic strip with a gift for political and social satire. Its most enduring punch line is, “We have met the enemy and he is us.” The witticism is particularly applicable to the US’s so-called “war on terror” (WOT) and Canada’s role in it. The WOT was launched in the wake of the reported 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers in New York and the Pentagon. The Bush administration then declared a worldwide “war on terror.” Among other things, the war on terror took the form of a combination of open and covert military operations, new security legislation and efforts to block the financing of terrorism.1 By any measure, the toll exacted through these measuress has been immense. Over a span of six of the 15 plus years since 9/11, the United States and its allies have launched attacks in seven countries.2 The cost of the campaign to U.S. taxpayers alone is estimated to be nearly $5 trillion dollars and counting.3 And, an estimated 1.3 million lives have been lost as a result of this policy.4 Other sources meanwhile put the death toll as high as 4 or more million.5 Newly elected President Trump has signaled his intention to bring an end to US regime change wars. That said, there was certainly no sign of that in the final year of the Obama administration when it registered a new high in aggressive action. The number of bombs dropped on foreign countries in 2016 surpassed that of 2015 totaling 26,171. This amounts to three bombs per hour, 24 hours per day.6 One wonders whether, as observer-participants in the WOT, we have become numbed to the magnitude and global consequences of these numbers. Could our humanity itself have become a casualty of this brutal war? A line in the Leonard Cohen’ song, Anthem reads, “There’s a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.”7 Perhaps, the light is slowly penetrating the cracks in the war on terror. From time to time, I read of individuals who have “awakened” to the inconvenient truth regarding the WOT. In the process, their understanding of its dark realities is abruptly turned on its head and the truth is clear. They discover that the situation wasn’t what they thought, nor was the enemy who they thought it was. It isn’t “them”; it’s “us.” It’s what I call their Pogo moment. Guy Parmeter, a US soldier deployed in Iraq in 2004, experienced such a revelation in an interaction with an Iraqi farmer near Samarra in Salahuddin province. Then-Major Guy Parmeter recalled asking a farmer if he’d “seen any foreign fighters” lurking about. The farmer’s reply was direct and telling: “Yes, you.” 8 The Iraqi farmer’s, “Yes, you”, triggered an epiphany for Parmeter. He was seeking a window of intelligence into the identity and whereabouts of an elusive enemy. He was handed a mirror instead. And the image of the dark and dangerous invader he glimpsed in the mirror was his. In an instant, his white hat turned black. More than a decade later, the Pogo moment of another former Iraqi soldier led him to the same conclusion regarding the identity of the real enemy. An extract of a speech by ex-US soldier Mike Prysner conveys his profound remorse tinged with anger at the deceptions pushed by his commanders. The tone of Prysner’s confession stands in sharp contrast with the hegemonic chant, “We’re number one!” And I tried hard to be proud of my service. But all I could feel was shame. Racism could no longer mask the reality of the occupation. These were people, these were human beings …We were told we were fighting terrorists. The real terrorist was me, and the real terrorism is this occupation.” 9 More recently, US Virginia State senator, Richard Black, curious about the deeper motives behind the US military campaign in the Middle East, went to Syria to see the situation firsthand. In a May 5, 2016 interview with Jeffrey Steinberg (Executive Intelligence Review Magazine) following his return, Senator Black’s observations reveal the extent of his mind shift. But when you go there and you actually walk the grounds and you shake hands with the soldiers and meet with the refugees and people like that, it turns black and white into Technicolor. And I’m going to tell you: Syria is one of the most incredibly wonderful nations on Earth. And the fact that America set out to topple the government and destroy it, long before there was the faintest hint of civil unrest, it’s really one of the great stains on American honor. The veil was lifted. Senator Black’s amazement at what he had witnessed in terms of Syrian unity and resilience doesn’t hide his outrage regarding the role of the US in the conflict. “We have never done anything more loathsome or despicable than what we are doing in Syria,” he concludes.10 Much of the WOT has been covert and conducted via regional allies, contractors and mercenaries. Thus, the conflict in Syria is widely described as a proxy war. In 2016, Wikileaks released a Hillary Clinton email that acknowledged that Qatar and Saudi Arabia were providing financial and logistical support to ISIS and other extremist Sunni groups. The email doesn’t mention the fact however, that both these terrorist-funding states were big league donors to the Clinton Foundation. The hypocrisy in the US decision to sell aircraft, munitions, spare parts training, maintenance and logistics to the Saudis is apparent.11 The analysis of American comic and political commentator, Jimmy Dore, is every bit as critical as that of Senator Black. It’s also irreverent, expletive-laden plain speak. Dore condemns the duplicity of US President Obama and Secretary of State, John Kerry for their false narrative regarding the role of the US in Syria. His commentary is delivered against the backdrop of a video of an Obama press conference. The US president portrays the US as a deeply concerned force for good attempting to bring about peace and relieve suffering in Syria. Dore doesn’t buy it. (Language caution). We’re inflicting (not relieving) human suffering in Syria. …We should get the “F” out of there. And somebody else is the bad guy…somebody else is the bad guy? We can’t bring clean water to Flint Michigan, to our own (expletive) people…but we’re going to straighten shit out in Syria? 12 Dore’s critique of UN Ambassador Samatha Powers is equally scathing. He focuses on her disingenuous condemnation of President Bashar Assad for killings allegedly carried out by the Syrian army during its liberation of the residents of East Aleppo. (Thus far no evidence of such an event has been provided.) Dore is clear that the real villains in Syria are US-supported terrorist proxies. We’re doing it. That’s why Tulsi Gabbard had to put a… a bill in congress that says… the United States should stop funding terrorists today. So that’s what going on in Syria… just so you know what’s going on in Syria. We’re the bad guys… as usual. We need to get the (expletive) out of Syria… and stop the fighting in Syria. 13 These dissenters are far from alone in rejecting a misguided US foreign policy and exposing the deceptions of the WOT. Dozens of independent journalists and analysts have come to the same uncomfortable conclusions. A small sample of other dissenters includes: Dr. Paul Craig Roberts (Former Assistant Secretary of State, Reagan administration); Eva Bartlett, Vanessa Beeley, Phil Butler, Robert Parry (Consortium News); Patrick Henningsen (21st Century Wire); and F. William Engdahl (New Eastern Outlook). Ironically, their analysis has either been ignored or hypocritically dismissed to date by the mainstream corporate media as “fake news.” It’s sobering to consider that it’s taken 80 years for a relatively small minority to voice the same conclusion regarding the WOT that US Marine Corps General Smedley Butler reached in 1935 regarding the wars of his day. Butler, in his 1935 book, War is a Racket declared, in effect, that he had seen the enemy and that enemy was “us” or, in that case, the United States. I served in all commissioned ranks from a second Lieutenant to a Major General. And during that time, I spent most of my time being a high-class muscle man for Big Business, for Wall Street, and for the bankers. In short, I was a racketeer for capitalism. 14 How is it that the hard-earned wisdom of such a man and the cautions of the dissenters since his day go unheeded by Western Nations? Must every generation start from zero and re-learn the lessons of the previous one? Where’s the celebrated ability of the leaders of advanced societies to stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before? And, why have so few chosen to stand on the shoulders of Smedley Butler and enlightened successors who learned that war is a racket? I have to attribute this failure in large part to what could be called the smog of war. This isn’t to be confused with the fog of war. Typically the latter term is used to describe the hazy, confused state of affairs that develops within the military in the heat of battle and the theatre of war. Thus, when a military death results from friendly fire for example, it is often attributed to the fog of war. The smog (fog plus pollutants) of war is different. It’s the manufactured distortions, misinformation and other forms of propaganda directed at an ususpecting citizenry in order to first gain, and then maintain public support for the cause. The Deep State and (and the shadow government) directing the elected government) are the dark force behind the call for war. War-makers within the Deep State have mastered the art and science of manufacturing pro-war propaganda or “smog”. In the run- up to war and over the course of war, their smog-making public relations machines run full throttle. The goal is to envelop an unsuspecting populace within a thick blanket of informational smog cloaking the unpalatable realities of war from the eyes of the public. War smog serves multiple purposes. It impairs logic and obscures our moral and ethical markers. Effective campaigns embed a justification for war while camouflaging the identity of the real aggressors and their motives. Properly applied, it also effectively marginalizes dissenters by smearing them as unpatriotic or disloyal to a necessary or even noble cause. With mind-numbing daily repetition, the public acquiesces. CJ Hopkins provides a further explanation as to why official propaganda continues to work despite is absurdity, including the current “Russian hacking” hysteria.15 Hopkins points to the work of Edward Bernays, the father of modern day public relations whose greatest contribution it was said, was convincing the American public to join the First World War. Bernays was remarkably candid about the goal of PR: the deliberate manipulation of the public mind. The conscious and intelligent manipulation of the organized habits and opinions of the masses is an important element in democratic society. Those who manipulate this unseen mechanism of society constitute an invisible government which is the true ruling power of our country. We are governed, our minds are molded, our tastes formed, and our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of…. It is they who pull the wires that control the public mind.16 Vijhay Prashad, Professor of International Affairs at Trinity College, Connecticut, explains how wars are dressed up in order to hide the facts. Note: subterfuge is essential. No Great Power claims to exercise authority for its own interests or for the interests of those businesses that dominate its institutions. They like to speak about humanitarian obligations – whether to protect civilians from other humans or from natural disasters. They put on the cloak of protection to suggest that they are above crass monetary interests, whether theft of resources or control of markets. … In our liberal age, it is hard to define wars in terms of self-interest. …We are told that they are the bitter medicine for the good of the planet, when in fact they are the use of force – by gun or by pen – for the betterment of very small numbers of people against the collective interest of the working-people of the planet. Our bewilderment comes from the thick cloak of ideology that covers over the real motivations of the powerful. 17 It seems little has changed over the years. War-makers, assisted by their faithful servants in the corporate media have repeatedly sold us regime-change wars over the last 15 years using well-honed, Bernays - inspired PR practices. Journalist, John Pilger describes the critical role played by corporate media and their persuasive star talent in engineering consent in support of war. Propaganda is most effective when our consent is engineered by those with a fine education – Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard, Columbia – and with careers on the BBC, the Guardian, the New York Times, the Washington Post. These organizations are known as the “liberal media.” They present themselves as enlightened, progressive tribunes of the moral zeitgeist. They are anti-racist, pro-feminist and pro-LGBT. And they love war. While they speak up for feminism, they support rapacious wars that deny the rights of countless women, including the right to life.18 The screw continues to turn as of the researching of this paper in January of 2017. The majority of the public has not yet come to a full understanding of the role of the US, NATO and non-NATO allies in regime-change wars in the Middle East. This is particularly true regarding the latest attempt at regime-change in Syria. Nonetheless, even as the Deep State’s campaign in Syria floundered in 2016, it was diligently fabricating and marketing a new boogeyman. There’s an argument that this strategy was undertaken because the now 15-year-old terrorist threat was losing its potency. What if it was no longer capable of inducing sufficient fear to mobilize public support for increasing defense department budgets and military campaigns? Perhaps terrorism’s value as a psychological hot button had reached its best-before-date. If so, a dark new villain would be needed. Voila, a new enemy in the form of “resurgent Russia” under Putin was introduced. Accordingly, the dials on the propaganda machines in Washington, London and Brussels were turned up to “high” regarding the Russian threat. But, there is a problem. The “Russia-phobia” campaign is so blatantly obvious and lacking in credibility that has become something of a joke within the independent alternative media. The Deep State-CIA appears undeterred, however. Joseph Goebbels taught that with sufficient repetition, the public can be persuaded to swallow the biggest of lies. So, give it time. And just in case Russiaphobia isn’t sufficient to grip the public psyche, new provocations are at the ready to be used to cultivate hostility with China and Iran. Seemingly, an unsuspecting citizenry isn’t equipped to see through the theatre offered by the magicians of war. To understand some of the moves on the geopolitical chessboard, we return to the analysis of Professor Prashad. And, once again, some of Smedley Butler’s sentiments are reflected in his observations. Those U.S. ships that sail in the South-China Sea are not there to protect Taiwan or South Korea. They are there to protect the Global Commodity Chain. With the emergence of Russia and China – in particular – as regional powers, the US has tried to hem them in. The tension between the United States and Russia-China is not because the former is benevolent and the latter are malevolent, but because they are in the midst of a geo-strategic battle over whether the United States and its allies should be the only ones to control the supply lines and the commodity chain, as well as how money is moved around (the SWIFT network) and how money is valued (whether the Dollar remains the main currency).19 Pervasive deception is central to effective war-making. It finds expression in sophisticated media propaganda and false flags involving orchestrated theatre on the geopolitical chessboard. It’s sobering to consider, but when the Deep State goes to war, it declares an informational war against its civilian population in addition to any external enemy. The equipping of citizens for the onslaught must begin long before the propaganda campaign is launched. It requires more than casually listening to “the news” from co-opted corporate media. It means consciously absorbing the instructive experiences of individuals like Major Parmeter’s in his moment of truth in Iraq in 2004. Parmeter recognized the warring predisposition of his country, and recommended that his fellow Americans take a collective look in the mirror. We are the empire of US military interventions, alien disaster movies and Star Wars. We Americans, proud denizens of the land of the gun and of the only superpower left standing, don’t, of course, want to think of ourselves as aliens. Who does? We go to movies like Independence Day or Star Wars to identify with the outgunned rebels. Evidence to the contrary, we still think of ourselves as the underdogs, the rebels, the liberators. We need to take a long hard look at ourselves. Like Pogo, we need to be willing to see the evidence of our own invasive nature. Only then can we begin to become the kind of land we say we want to be. 20 On the occasion of our country’s 150th anniversary, Canadians would be well advised to do the same. Outside the bubble, Canada is described as a vassal of the United States? It is such a long way from a “True North” strong and free. How is such a role consistent in any way with our aspirations to become an island of hope and opportunity in a troubled and often chaotic world? The disconnect from reality is eye watering. The disconnects and delusions abound. I recall viewing in 2011, a Canadian TV news segment polishing the country’s military brass for an admirable NATO contribution in Libya. In a similar vein, Salman Rafi Sheikh reports that in 2013, he heard NATO declare that the mission in Libya had been one of the most successful in NATO’s history. Really? Perhaps it’s time we took a closer look and evaluated the fruits of our labours. A report from the British foreign affairs committee challenges NATO’s positive assessment of its performance. The report acknowledges that the Western intervention in Libya in 2011 was “not only based on false intelligence (sound familiar) but also directly paved the way for an insurgence of Islamist terror groups in the country.” 21 It’s a remarkable indictment, given the humanitarian framing and rosy evaluation of the intervention. Journalist, John Pilger adds some additional detail regarding the outcome of what he calls the “catastrophe in Libya.” In 2011, Obama said Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi was planning “genocide” against his own people. “We knew … that if we waited one more day, Benghazi, a city the size of Charlotte, could suffer a massacre that would have reverberated across the region and stained the conscience of the world.” This was the known lie of Islamist militias facing defeat by Libyan government forces. It became the media story; and NATO – led by Obama and Hillary Clinton – launched 9,700 “strike sorties” against Libya, of which more than a third were aimed at civilian targets. Uranium warheads were used; the cities of Misurata and Sirte were carpet-bombed. The Red Cross identified mass graves, and Unicef reported “most [of the children killed] were under the age of ten.” 22 So, scrape off the self-congratulatory veneer and lies and we’re left with the objective reality that Canada and fellow-NATO members murdered the leader of a non-aggressor nation, created acres of rubble, degraded a highly functioning country in political, social and economic terms and paved the way for encroachment by Islamist terrorists. And, in the process, we also contributed to the chaotic immigrant crisis of the last two to three years and committed war crimes. The scale of the Libya fiasco can be put into clearer perspective with a capsule description of it before and after the NATO intervention. In 1967 Colonel Gaddafi inherited one of the poorest nations in Africa; however, by the time he was assassinated, Gaddafi had turned Libya into Africa’s wealthiest nation. Libya had the highest GDP per capita and life expectancy on the continent. Less people lived below the poverty line than in the Netherlands. After NATO’s intervention in 2011, Libya is now a failed state and its economy is in shambles. As the government’s control slips through their fingers and into to the militia fighters’ hands, oil production has all but stopped.23 You can top it off with Barack Obama’s description of post- Gaddafi Libya as a “shit show”, something he blamed on British PM, David Cameron.24 Libyans have seen the enemy and it is us. Given the global power shifts underway, there’s no better time than now for a review of Canada’s recent foreign policy and specifically, our role in the WOT. Canada and its leaders really only have two choices and the sand is quickly running out of the glass on the first. Their first option is to step back and take a long, honest look in the mirror and evaluate our role in the WOT. It’s project management 101: Document the lessons learned. This is likely to unearth some useful lessons and provide a basis for a timely re-think of our foreign policy including the matter of our responsibilities to allies. It could give new meaning to the current Responsibility to Protect (R2P) policy. A popular anti-drunk driving message is: Friends don’t let friends drive drunk. A corollary for a military ally might be, Friends don’t let friends needlessly destroy other countries and their populations while intoxicated with delusions of exceptionalism. The second choice is an avoidance strategy. It’s one where Canada keeps its head down and tries to run out the clock on any WOT post mortem. It means continuing to seek cover in a frayed terrorism script while hoping the world is soon distracted by the next global threat. Oh yes, Canada would of course have to continue playing along with any the false flag psy ops designed keep the public cowed and compliant. Oh look…it’s a bird, it’s a drone…”it’s a terrorist attack…or is a Russian or a Chinese invasion…? As tempting as an avoidance strategy might be, it would also be cowardly and shortsighted, limiting Canada’s prospects on several fronts. Here are five reasons why an honest look in the mirror is would be a better choice. 1. It’s important for the nation’s mental health and spiritual well-being. It’s said the confession is good for the soul. As Canada’s complicity in the WOT is fully understood reported and the seriousness of our crimes sinks in, cognitive dissonance is likely. Some will likely have difficulty reconciling our White Hat self image with reality. Other Canadians may experience a form of Macbeth syndrome, a condition that is called Perpetration Induced Traumatic Stress (PITS). Coming clean could be a meaningful part in our collective national therapy. 2. It can be a time of re-visioning a more independent Canada. I’ve noted earlier that Colonel Parmeter has described his country as “the Empire of US military interventions.” Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson has described his country as “Death Merchant of the World.” Canada’s association with and support for the wars led by a nation described by members of its military in these dark terms means they no doubt cloud our future. Can we envision a future free of these weights? 3. The review can inform a move on Canada’s part to repair damaged international relationships and reorienting Canadian foreign policy in a positive direction. Our allegiance to the US and its misguided WOT has skewed our foreign policy and international relationships. Disentangling ourselves would mean more than simply rejecting the premise and duplicity of the WOT and ending our military support for it. We would of necessity also need to bring our self-destructive economic, diplomatic and information wars with other nations to an end and pursue rapprochement. The implications of the rise of Eurasia and corresponding shift to a multi-polar world invite a more thorough examination unobscured by the distortions of the WOT. This means taking into account the development of new security alliances, trade relationships, infrastructure development, financial institutions and monetary systems. See F. William Engdahl’s article on the rise of Eurasia.25 4. It would naturally segway into a review of our membership in NATO and a review of NATO itself. The following questions might be considered in our review of Canada’s participation in NATO. In what ways has Canadian participation in foreign conflicts as a NATO member contributed to or exacerbated conflicts in the Middle East and elsewhere in the world? In what ways has Canada as a NATO member with the backing of the military industrial complex, contributed to a more dangerous and less secure world? Which of our current NATO obligations predispose our acting wither now or in the future in ways at odds with Canadian values and our vision for the future? It what ways does our participation in NATO undercut our understanding of what is essential for the long-term global good and our desired contribution to it? Many critics regard NATO as a cold war relic that has outlived its purpose. The criticisms aren’t solely coming from outside NATO membership. President Donald Trump has said it’s obsolete.26 Marine Le Pen has said that if she wins the French presidential election this year, she will take the country out of the EU and NATO. 27And the leader of Germany’s Left is calling for the dissolution and replacement of NATO.27 28 5. Ultimately, Canada’s complicity in the misguided WOT will be fully exposed. It is the Age of Disclosure, and a full airing of our support for and participation in the WOT is coming. Citizen journalism and rise an independent media-led truth movement ensure it. Consider that with each passing year, more and more Americans are concluding that the official 9/11 narrative isn’t credible. When the 9/11 narrative collapses, it will bring down the entire web of lies and deceptions used to sustain more than 15 years of brutal conflicts. In the process, the full cast of enablers and perpetrators will be exposed. Even now, new witnesses are emerging from the rubble of US-led regime change wars bearing testimony to what they have seen and experienced. The light seeps in and the truth seeps out. Like Pogo, Major Parmeter, Mike Prysner, Jim Dore, Eva Bartlett and Paul Craig Roberts, and others, I have met the enemy and struggled with its delusions. Our victims have, of course known the identity and dark motives of the real terrorists for some time. Unlike us, they need no awakening. It is we who need to take a critical look at the enemy in the mirror. The only question at that point will be whether we will allow it to continue holding us captive. © Futurescapes21C, 2017 All rights reserved. Endnotes 1 War on terrorism, Global Policy Forum, https://www.globalpolicy.org/war-on-terrorism.html#a2011 2 ‘Peace’ president? How Obama came to bomb seven countries in six years, Independent, September 24, 2014, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/peace-president-how-obama-came-to-bomb-seven-countries-in-six-years-9753131.html 3 Syrian wars have cost nearly $5 trillion (and counting): Report, Common Dreams, September 13, 2016. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2016/09/13/post-911-wars-have-cost-nearly-5-trillion-and-counting-report 4 Body count report reveals at least 1.3 million lives lost to the US-led war on terror, Common Dreams, March 26, 2015. http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/03/26/body-count-report-reveals-least-13-million-lives-lost-us-led-war-terror 5 Do the math: Global war on terror has killed 4 million Muslims or more, Mint Press News, August 3, 2015. http://www.mintpressnews.com/do-the-math-global-war-on-terror-has-killed-4-million-muslims-or-more/208225/ 6 America dropped 26,171 bombs in 2016. What a bloody end to Obama’s reign, The Guardian, January 9, 2017. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/jan/09/america-dropped-26171-bombs-2016-obama-legacy 7 Anthem, Leonard Cohen lyrics. http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/leonardcohen/anthem.html 8 We are the empire: Of US military interventions, aliens disaster movies and “Star Wars”, Veterans Truth Network, July 14, 2016. http://veteranstruthnetwork.com/index.php/2016/07/14/we-are-the-empire-of-us-military-interventions-alien-disaster-movies-and-star-wars/ 9 Mike Prysner testimony: The real terrorist was the real terrorism and this occupation, November 2, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5uKt9orWlnQ 10 US Senator: “We have never done anything more loathsome that what we’re doing in Syria, Fort Russ, July 9, 2016. http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/07/us-senator-we-have-never-done-anything.html 11 “The terrorists R us”: Hillary Clinton admits Clinton Foundation Donors Fund ISIS-Daesh. Global Research, October 29, 2016. http://www.globalresearch.ca/the-terrorists-r-us-hillary-admits-clinton-foundation-donors-fund-isis-daesh/5553722 12 President Obama offers hilarious reasons for why we are Syria, Jimmy Dore Show, YouTube, December 22, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiqwqP_iXsc 13 You’re being lied to on Syria/United States the real terrorists, Jimmy Dore Show, YouTube, December 16, 2016. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zj7yzpeXWEw 14 Smedley Butler quotes, Brainy Quotes https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/s/smedley_butler.html 15 Why ridiculous official propaganda still works, Counterpunch, January 13, 2017. http://www.counterpunch.org/2017/01/13/why-ridiculous-official-propaganda-still-works/ 16 The manipulation of the American mind – Edward Bernays and the birth of public relations, Phys.Org, July 9, 2015. https://phys.org/news/2015-07-american-mindedward-bernays-birth.html 17 When will the US confront its role in fueling terror attack across the planet?, Alternet, January 4, 2017. http://www.alternet.org/world/when-will-us-confront-its-role-fueling-terror-attacks-across-planet 18 Inside the invisible government: War, propaganda, Clinton & Trump, John Pilger.com, October 27, 2016. http://johnpilger.com/articles/inside-the-invisible-government-war-propaganda-clinton-trump 19 When will the US confront its role in fueling terror attack across the planet?, Alternet, January 4, 2017. http://www.alternet.org/world/when-will-us-confront-its-role-fueling-terror-attacks-across-planet 20 We are the empire: Of US military interventions, aliens disaster movies and “Star Wars”, Veterans Truth Network, July 14, 2016. http://veteranstruthnetwork.com/index.php/2016/07/14/we-are-the-empire-of-us-military-interventions-alien-disaster-movies-and-star-wars/ 21 Libya is a complete Western disaster finds a British parliamentary report, New Eastern Outlook, October 28, 2016. http://journal-neo.org/2016/10/28/libya-is-a-complete-western-disaster-finds-a-british-parliamentary-report/ 22 The rise of a ‘democratic fascism, Consortiumnews.com, March 2, 2015. https://consortiumnews.com/2015/03/02/the-rise-of-a-democratic-fascism/ 23 Libya, from Africa’s richest state under Gaddafi, to failed state under NATO intervention, Global Research, September 14, 2016. http://www.globalresearch.ca/libya-from-africas-richest-state-under-gaddafi-to-failed-state-after-nato-intervention/5408740 24 Barack Obama says David Cameron allowed Libya to become a ‘sh** show’, Independent, March 10, 2016. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/barack-obama-says-david-cameron-allowed-libya-to-become-a-s-show-a6923976.html 25 The Eurasian Century is now unstoppable, New Eastern Outlook, October 4, 2016. http://journal-neo.org/2016/10/04/the-eurasian-century-is-now-unstoppable-2/ 26 Donald Trump causing NATO ‘anxiety’ after saying alliance is ‘obsolete’. SkyNews, January 20,2017.http://news.sky.com/story/germany-donald-trump-causing-anxiety-in-nato-after-saying-alliance-obsolete-10730886 27 Frexit: Le Pen promises to take France out of EU and NATO, RT, December 24, 2016. https://www.rt.com/news/371611-frexit-le-pen-promises-nato/ 28 Breaking: German opposition leader calls for collective security union with Russia, Dissolution of NATO. Global Research, January 20, 2017. http://www.globalresearch.ca/breaking-german-opposition-leader-calls-for-security-union-with-russia-dissolution-of-nato/5569929 |
RodFor the better part of the last four decades, I have been encouraging people and organizations to anticipate the shape of their futures and plan accordingly. It can be daunting, but it can also be immensely practical. It can be as practical as using a set of binoculars to scope out a distant slope when hiking or winterizing your car before winter’s onslaught. Organizations that develop foresight capabilities are, among other things, creating a kind of organizational radar. This enables them to integrate discernible elements of tomorrow into today’s strategies and decisions. Archives
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