The Wholesome Photo of the Month Thu May 09, 2024 11:01 | Anti-Empire
In 3 War Years Russia Will Have Spent $3... Thu May 09, 2024 02:17 | Anti-Empire
UK Sending Missiles to Be Fired Into Rus... Tue May 07, 2024 14:17 | Marko Marjanović
US Gives Weapons to Taiwan for Free, The... Fri May 03, 2024 03:55 | Anti-Empire
Russia Has 17 Percent More Defense Jobs ... Tue Apr 30, 2024 11:56 | Marko Marjanović Anti-Empire >>
Indymedia Ireland is a volunteer-run non-commercial open publishing website for local and international news, opinion & analysis, press releases and events. Its main objective is to enable the public to participate in reporting and analysis of the news and other important events and aspects of our daily lives and thereby give a voice to people.
Julian Assange is finally free ! Tue Jun 25, 2024 21:11 | indy
Stand With Palestine: Workplace Day of Action on Naksa Day Thu May 30, 2024 21:55 | indy
It is Chemtrails Month and Time to Visit this Topic Thu May 30, 2024 00:01 | indy
Hamburg 14.05. "Rote" Flora Reoccupied By Internationalists Wed May 15, 2024 15:49 | Internationalist left
Eddie Hobbs Breaks the Silence Exposing the Hidden Agenda Behind the WHO Treaty Sat May 11, 2024 22:41 | indy Human Rights in Ireland >>
The China Syndrome: A More Sensible Approach to Nuclear Power Than Britain Fri Jul 26, 2024 07:00 | Ben Pile While China advances with cutting-edge nuclear power, Britain's green zealots have us stuck with sky-high bills and a nuclear sector in disarray, says Ben Pile.
The post The China Syndrome: A More Sensible Approach to Nuclear Power Than Britain appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.
News Round-Up Fri Jul 26, 2024 00:55 | Richard Eldred A summary of the most interesting stories in the past 24 hours that challenge the prevailing orthodoxy about the ?climate emergency?, public health ?crises? and the supposed moral defects of Western civilisation.
The post News Round-Up appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.
The Losing Battle to Get Public Sector ?TWaTs? Back in the Office Thu Jul 25, 2024 19:06 | Richard Eldred Years on from Covid, Civil Service 'TWaTs' (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday office workers) are harming productivity and leaving desks empty. The Telegraph's Tom Haynes explains how this remote work trend affects us all.
The post The Losing Battle to Get Public Sector ?TWaTs? Back in the Office appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.
?Prepare to Go to Jail,? Judge Tells Just Stop Oil Art Vandals Thu Jul 25, 2024 17:00 | Richard Eldred Guilty and about to face the consequences, two Just Stop Oil activists who hurled tomato soup at a Van Gogh masterpiece have been told to prepare for prison.
The post ?Prepare to Go to Jail,? Judge Tells Just Stop Oil Art Vandals appeared first on The Daily Sceptic.
Hundreds of Thousands Are Ditching the Licence Fee ? And It?s a Crisis for the BBC Thu Jul 25, 2024 15:00 | Richard Eldred With an £80 million revenue drop and growing calls for a licence fee boycott, BBC bosses are struggling to prove that Britain's biggest broadcaster remains worth the cost.
The post Hundreds of Thousands Are Ditching the Licence Fee ? And It?s a Crisis for the BBC appeared first on The Daily Sceptic. Lockdown Skeptics >>
Voltaire, international edition
Netanyahu soon to appear before the US Congress? It will be decisive for the suc... Thu Jul 04, 2024 04:44 | en
Voltaire, International Newsletter N°93 Fri Jun 28, 2024 14:49 | en
Will Israel succeed in attacking Lebanon and pushing the United States to nuke I... Fri Jun 28, 2024 14:40 | en
Will Netanyahu launch tactical nuclear bombs (sic) against Hezbollah, with US su... Thu Jun 27, 2024 12:09 | en
Will Israel provoke a cataclysm?, by Thierry Meyssan Tue Jun 25, 2024 06:59 | en Voltaire Network >>
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All New, All Totalitarian, Truth
The truth is no longer pragmatic. Rather than the austere brick wall of Stalinism, the new totalitarianism is an amorphous film of jelly. It absorbs all efforts to penetrate its surface. The force of each blow dissipates into ripples of ever decreasing consequence. When challenged the new totalitarians do not smash you with a rifle butt but instead smile, tell you that they understand your concerns and promise to address them. If your concerns do get addressed however, it will either be in a purely tokenistic fashion, or in a way you never intended. This, you see, is because the new totalitarians are the designers of deceit, the oligarchs of obfuscation.
As an aid told the President of the United States of America in October 2004, “we’re an empire now, and when we act we create our own reality.” In this post-modern philosophy reality is not something empirical, objective, or of any consequence. Instead reality is something that can be tailored to better fit the needs of the vested interest.
Journalist Greg Palast wrote about how British lobby firm Lawson, Lucan and Mendelsohn offer access (for clients that can cover the cost of the fee) to the policy makers of the British government. Indeed, Palast indicated that LLM may in fact be an arm of the British government itself, reaching out to the corporate interest. To avail of LLM’s services one must embrace the principles found in LLM’s eleven-page statement. Page three of the statement is divided into two columns: ‘The Passing World’ and ‘The Emerging World’. Underneath the passing world are ‘ideology’ and ‘conviction’. Alternatives to these outdated concepts are listed under the ‘Emerging’ column, they are, ‘pragmatism’ and ‘consumption’.
So serving the vested interest is now a philosophy devoid of ‘ideology’ and ‘conviction’ and in the name of pragmatic consumption. Is the occidental rate of consumption pragmatic? I guess it depends on whether you believe you can fashion reality to make it so.
Under this new philosophy we settle for perception over reality. When it comes to debt relief it does not matter what is actually on the table, only what seems to be on the table. If it’s good enough to make our favourite musicians feel good then it should be good enough to make us feel good, regardless of whether it is in fact good enough.
Under this new philosophy the occidental Dr. Frankenstein battles its monster whilst innocent parties suffer in the crossfire. Do we understand what these atrocities are actually about? Is it possible for those outside the corridors of power to ever understand? Is it more comforting to blame it all on an adjective such as ‘terror’, or an anonymous foe that seeks to attack our very “values”? (Values? That will be the pragmatic consumption I supposes, they’ll not stop me shopping.)
The Downing Street memos (site ref) reveal the extent to which reality was tailored in order to embark on an illegal invasion. No coy euphemisms appear in attorney general Goldsmith’s note to the British Prime minister, just straight talking like “I will be justifying what in essence may turn out to be an illegal war … this is why it is necessary to grey the lines as much as possible.” Perhaps it is permissible to acknowledge such pre-meditated deceit if you no longer acknowledge a concept such as ‘reality’.
The philosophy of LLM’s Emerging World is one that refutes the existence of truth because with truth, and the search for truth, comes ‘conviction’, and that is just not pragmatic. Truth is a concept that has motivated scientists and artists for millennia. Truth is a concept that is core to the human condition. However, maybe I’m being old-fashioned, perhaps now pragmatic consumption is core to the human condition. Perhaps our conflicting ideological convictions and our clashing truths, are what caused all the wars and suffering in the past. Maybe now it is time for the most powerful amongst us to tailor a new reality. A new reality for an ‘Emerging World’, an Emerging world devoid of counter-productive convictions, an Emerging World devoid of warring versions of the truth, an Emerging World as a void.
Ignore the flames, keep shopping!
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