news

Fake News

It was a funny thing, watching people complain about the spectacle that they had created.  There were all the little jabs and the inanity of it all.  One side would whoop and holler, cheering and churning them on while the other side would be appalled and protest.  The protests were most entertaining to the cabinet, those that were the creators of the spectacle.  The were entertaining because they actually took themselves seriously.  The Leader would send troops to “break up unrest” and he smiled.  Even that was spectacle.

But now even that wasn’t necessary.  There were certain statements that would work.

“The enemies of our great nation…” The Leader would begin and whatever he said wouldn’t matter as long as he included these statements.

Don’t believe that the vermin will…there will be ‘tax breaks’.  They just want to steal from your hard-earned wages!” 

There it was, the phrase, the statement, the secret of the spectacle.  Other little gems like “traitors”, “liberals” and any number of things would be used as long as they kept the spectacle going.  People liked the spectacle.  Everything was entertainment.  It was all about the spectacle and nothing else.  It amazed him that it was so easy.  The assistant had been right.

“Just make shit up!”  the assistant had said, “The make shit up on the fly and smoke the hive and watch it rumble and while you do steal the honey.”

The Real World

the world

What is the real world, but the result of our actions? How we act defines not only who we are, but the purpose that we define for ourselves. In order to live in the world as it is, we must act according to the reality of the world not what we would like the world to be. While this may sound complicated, it isn’t. What is complicated is why we nevertheless continue to act as if we define the world and not the other way around. Examples abound:

“House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) says he’s “not qualified” to debate the science of climate change, but insists that President Obama should “absolutely consider” a ban on U.S. travel to West African countries experiencing Ebola outbreaks. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) says he’s “not a scientist” when it comes to climate change, but also says it would be “a good idea to discontinue flights” from Ebola-affected countries. Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal — who studied science in college — says he’ll “leave it to the scientists” to talk about climate change, but says it’s “common sense” to institute a flight ban.”

                -Kate Sheppard, Huffington Post

 

The fact that there are individuals and corporations that would like to insist on the “illusion” of climate change does not change the consequences of climate change. The fact that individuals react in fear does not change the nature of what is feared. Again, Ms. Sheppard:

 

“Meanwhile, actual doctors and medical professionals have made it clear that Ebola does not spread through the air, it is not “incredibly contagious” and there is little likelihood of a large-scale outbreak in the United States.”

-Kate Sheppard, Huffington Post

 

Irrationality is part and parcel of the world in which we live. However, we can change not only who we are, but the purpose that we define for ourselves. To say that we must live “in the real world” is not to say that the world is defined by those who live in it. Rather, it is to say that we must adhere to the real consequences of our actions and our beliefs.  Reason can happen.

Make no mistake: the real world in which we live is defined in a relatively exact, measurable and wholly reasonable way. However, the world by which I mean the one in which we make decisions and create beliefs is dependent upon us as individuals and as societies. We can only hope that there is some way that the quality of the relationship between the idea of the world and the real world itself can rise to the occasion. Otherwise, the often very unreasonable world in our minds will eventually determine the very real world in which we live.