During this season and throughout 2014, may our hearts be attuned to those who can inspire us rather than to those who seek to manipulate and subjugate. May we begin to rediscover, as our greatest moral heroes amply demonstrate, that it is possible to prevail over our natural selfishness and shortsightedness; we can be a much better people, and the world can still be a wondrous place in which to fulfill our potential.
And as we confront those who want us to believe only the worst about ourselves and our fellow human beings so as to make their policies easier to enact, we need to
Organize
Resist
Challenge
Change
Merry Christmas, everyone.
Something has to change...I hope 2014 is the year it starts.
ReplyDeleteI will second that, double nickel.
DeleteThe change starts with each of us, Lorne.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, Owen. We all have an important role to play in this battle.
Delete.. remember Thomas Nast's cartoons re Tammany Hall & New York City corruption... William M. Tweed reportedly said about them.. "Stop them damned pictures. I don't care so much what the papers say about me.
ReplyDeleteMy constituents don't know how to read, but they can't help seeing them damned pictures
.. remember that Stephen J. Harper's base are seemingly incapable of understanding the destructive values, policies, narcissism and entitlement inherent in Harper and all his political franchise.. but they too can understand simple pictures, cartoons and brief truthful & undeniable messages.
ie Linking Peter Kent with a wolf poisoned by airdropped strychnine to 'save' boreal & woodland caribou (see Canada 25 cent piece) who's habitat is being destroyed by tar sands, fracking and pipelines.
ie Stephen Harper (image) does not want Canada or countries we export to, that we are shipping infected commercial salmon & killing off our wild salmon.
ie John Baird (image) thinks its OK to drive indigenous Bedouins off their tribal lands to make room for Israeli settlements
ie Jim Flaherty (image) is A-OK with Nigel Wright and Onex, managing the Canada Pension Plan & delaying when you receive your benefits (not by mail!)
ie ice covered F-35's being sniffed by curious polar bears
ie Benjamin Perrin (image) 'I swear to uphold solicitor/client privilege ..'
ie Jason Kenney is getting by just fine.. but then he lives with his mommy
ie Dean Del Mastro is getting smeared by himself and crying to us about it
ie Senator Gertstein.. too big, too important, to go to jail or tell the truth
ie Ray Novak (image) Just 'friends' with Stephen Harper.. Canada, not so much
The list is endless.. and could facilitate the 4 steps you defined ..
and that's just one type of campaign .. There are others ..... ....
How about videos on Youtube that go viral.. !!!
and gain International attention ??
and millions of views ??
Remember the farcical interview with Kathyn Hammond re 'ethical oil' funding ???
and the puppet version done later ?
How about 'Tell Vic Everything' ? That went big .. and his name is now mud
Spread a little funding among brilliant, patriotic and scathing artists
and you have political dynamite .. especially if you target that weird fragmented 10% of voters the Conservative Party is so desperate to recover or deceive
Merry Christmas ... !!
These are excellent ideas, Salamander. For tomorrow's post, I will take the liberty of reproducing your comments and suggestions as a guest post.
DeleteThank you, and Merry Christmas.
.. Lorne .. I dream of how bright individuals, the power of groupthink or lateral thinking solutions could help initiate such campaigns. I always think about Franke James http://www.frankejames.com/ and how she reaches into public areas with her brilliant work.. I wonder how we can stimulate & promote hundreds, even a thousand like her. And how we can piggyback or point to articles and blogs such as yours, Simon, MoS and all the others with their varying approaches yet incisive, critical information..
ReplyDeleteBottom line ? I cannot believe a farmer from Saskatchewan will vote for his local Conservative MP.. or a young Tamil in Pickering, or a fisherman in BC upon realizing their MP cannot explain why PM Harper, leader of The Conservative Party is litigating against wounded Canadian military veterans.. So the challenge is.. how do you get across a simple undeniable truth.. that mainstream media fails to deliver? Probably with humor, truth, hard work and good old real Canadian values and can do - will do - ingenuity..
PS .. apologies.. glaring error..
missed two words 'to realize' preceding 'that we are shipping infected..'
.. from the icy flatlands.. Best wishes & thanks.. & A Merry Christmas
After reading your post last night, Salamander, I awoke this morning with a renewed optimism. Thank you, and I will be posting your comments shortly.
Delete.. inspired by indy Canadian bloggers like you, and so many others that present undeniable truths.. am beginning to tweet suggestions for PM Harper Commemorative CP One Dollar postage stamps. Well, actually one could stick them anywhere - can't cost much to produce limited runs of sheets, say 9 by 9 (81) stamps.
DeleteI've already tweeted a suggestion for a wonderful stamp..
a heroic Stephen Harper image with copy such as
'I've Been Very Clear - Spying On Canadians is Canadian Values'
Stamps like these would be great on telephones & computer screens
Organize - Resist - Challenge - Change can be driven in two directions at once in a McLuhanesque mischievous way..
More on that later.. plus the '#AskHarperWhy?' hashtag
.. and I do want to initiate the concept of 'the glowing hearts'
I dream of the day when Stephen Harper starts shouting in a bathroom.. 'those stamps are ruining me !!'