Can We Trust The News? Can We Trust The Systems That Drive The News?

We seem to be going through a time of great controversy over what is reported in the news, versus what is actually going on. Can we trust the news? In Canada, it is pretty much state owned, so we also have to ask if we trust the government.

Governments are made up of large numbers of people, and like all professions, there is a mix of good and bad among them. But, like big corporations, the leaders of those organizations create the agendas, set the policies, create the rules, develop the culture, share their values, or lack of values, and are driven by a galaxy of crossed motives. Some of it we see, but most of it we can only surmise. Although most are driven by profit, total power and control is the real goal. Greed is a type of addiction, like trying to fill the void of a bottomless pit.

Power and control on the other hand, involves stealth, planning, double-crossing, abusing power to gain an advantage, collusion with like minded people, conglomerates, king pins, fast talkers, and street smart wolves. Are they at peace though?

You see – money by itself is never enough. When couples go through acrimonious divorces centred on money, what is really at the core of the conflicts? Power.

Power is more seductive than money, because power is what drives the ego of greed and idolatry. Power shows you have wealth, influence, high intellect, clout, or whatever you want to call it. It is the protection and projection of pride and ego. The quest for ultimate power burns up a great deal of energy. It is a waste of energy, because true leadership comes from harmony and cooperation, not sheer force of one will against another.

So we could safely say we are facing a crisis in leadership. If the laws, ethics and mainstream journalism are bent on manipulating public perception based on deception and ulterior motives, it shows. They cannot hide it because the systems are too complex to be laden with falsehoods without collapsing.

Our foundation has to be based on truth, or it crumbles. The systems cannot function if they do not follow orderly principles, including ethics. Truth stays constant, but lies need more and more layers to keep the lies afloat. The increasing levels of complexity are meant to befuddle and distract us. But since things are interconnected, the lies or lawlessness has to transfer from one system to another seamlessly in order to be believed. They don’t, therefore more and more people see through the deception.

To be fair, the rich should not face broad generalizations about their characters, just as poor people should not be judged, or called losers. Not every wealthy person is a scoundrel. But if wealth is acquired through deception and exploitation, it creates one crisis after another, along with a great deal of conflict.

It used to be the news, and the government had some degree of ethics and credibility. They cared about public perception enough to present themselves as honest and ethical, with a few exceptions that the public could tolerate. But now, they have so much power and control, they don’t seem to care what the public thinks. In fact they simply want to punish people for thinking “wrong” about what they are trying to pass off as news.

There is an angle for managing public perception through the use of polls. But polls are easily biased, ask questions to get a specific response, and will provide rewards to get a desired response. So are they the least bit accurate when it comes to widespread public opinion?

News has always been based on sensationalism, but the health care and health scare tactics are now taken to the extreme. If we are covid deniers – it is like denying some kind of deity. Personally, after reading volumes of news on the subject, I hardly believe any of it.

At first I did believe there might be a nasty strain of flu or respiratory virus. I worked in health care, and knew there were cycles, and every few years a particular virulent strain would emerge. I was well aware that many of the elderly would die if they caught a nasty virus. I also knew throughout the time I worked as an RN, that it was very difficult, if not impossible to isolate or treat a specific virus. Therefore treatment was usually based on symptoms.

As I have followed the news, I am still not convinced there is an accurate diagnostic test for covid, and seriously wonder if it ever has been officially isolated and identified. Since covid seems to have every symptom in the book now, much of it comes across as hyperbole and bias. A respiratory infection caused by a virus in the same family of viruses as the common cold, somehow morphed into a pervasive disease. Like the virus that ate the world. It just doesn’t seem the least bit logical from a medical perspective. Nor does it seem truthful based on observing the world around us.

Now every sniffle, and even asymptomatic people who are perfectly healthy, are diagnosed with covid. Meanwhile, people are dying while waiting for emergency services, or any kind of health care service. Covid matters, but nothing else does. Hmmm. But why?

How many people ever recall a pandemic going on for more than four or five months? We don’t have to be epidemiologists, virologists or experts to doubt the logistics of what they are telling us. They shame us for not believing it, yet we would be fools not to question it by now.

I don’t recall a time when there was so much censorship, and refusal to have open debates about our views. Instead alternative views are called unacceptable, or misinformation, or against community guidelines. The other day I posted a comment on FB about the travel restrictions and mandates in Canada that read: But how can we trust the government when they change the rules every second day? FaceBook banned the comment, and sent me a warning that they would remove my account. Not that I really care. But still. Was it an outrageous comment given the circumstances?

People have on average sixty to eighty thousand thoughts per day. We cannot be thought reformed, even if we do comply with orders. If they make no sense, people are going to think about it, and then talk about it.

Naively, I used to think the moderators on various publishing platforms were sincere about screening out hateful language, name calling stereotyping to the point of bigotry, and of course any threats made. However, they too are showing extreme political bias.

There are so many things that do not make sense out of the entire covid narrative – yet we are continually steered to believe all of it. If we don’t believe it we are labelled as anti-vaxxers, anti science, anti-government, far right extremists, etc.

Oddly enough, I don’t consider myself to be extreme right or extreme left. I think the least corrupt government is the best option, since we need a balance of capitalism and socialism to meet societal needs. I consider myself to be centrist.

I do not understand why all opposition is called far right extremism. Don’t they know when there is a mentality of “us against them” or extreme polarization – there has to be two poles? Therefore they too are extremist in their views. Much more so than those they are accusing of being extremists.

Just based on observation, the extreme left seems to exhibit more violent crime, and unlawful extremism during protests. By extremism, I mean criminal conduct such as vandalism, church burnings, and wild stunts to protest climate change, logging, pipelines, etc.

Although violence is not limited to a left or right political viewpoint, there seems to be escalating levels of anger in general. In my opinion, anger is generally based on fear and betrayal. The feeling or emotion of anger may be justified, but violence is never justified. So how are people supposed to make a grievance known? Words. Debates. Logic. Established laws. Wisdom, knowledge, and understanding do not come from corrupt leaders – yet we desperately need help and hope, if not for ourselves, for our children and grandchildren’s sake.

In my opinion it is very important to maintain control over what goes into our bodies, especially when it comes to an injectable medicine. Informed consent must be clung to with a fervour, not a fever. Clearly we each have unique genetics, and immune responses, based on a myriad of factors. Again, there should not be stereotypical generalizations when it comes to personal medical choices.

So how do people deal with the anger and polarizations we are faced with today? Is it possible to just go along with it all, without developing an opinion? How can we not formulate an opinion based on what we have seen unfolding during the past two or three years?

The corruption is so extensive, the people in power no longer care about exposure. They know that if it goes against the narrative, it won’t get far. They know there is no justice for those who are poor, weak, or even average.

One of the saddest things to hear over this past weekend, is news of a three hour wait for those who call an ambulance. Day by day, we are witnessing a collapse of the systems. Three hours is a long time to do CPR. It means if a person is bleeding, they will bleed out before they get help.

It’s quite traumatic to watch people die, especially if you feel helpless, or do not know what to do. Every minute waiting and hoping for help to arrive, seems like an eternity. It looks like it is time to promote first aid courses in every community.

The world has tipped over. The systems no longer serve the public. We are being hammered on a daily basis about health, vaccines, failing health, covid, variants, monkeypox – and yet the system can no longer handle the basics.

All we can hope for is that our loved ones do not get injured. Be careful! And for ourselves, self care, and hope that by the grace of God, we don’t fall into the jaws of a chaotic and broken system.

More pharmaceuticals are most certainly not the solution. I think it is best to take the news with a grain of salt, and realize most of it is now integrated with a massive pharmaceutical marketing campaign.

We should not be ashamed of using our minds, or voicing an opinion on behalf of public interests. However, the fact it gives us trepidation, is another sad reality and symptom of the times. It’s like we have been immersed in a B grade science fiction plot – and are not allowed  to critique it.

In response to an article in the National Post about systemic racism, I wrote the following response, and it was rejected too. Here it is:

“Never mind the exclusive focus on race and gender. Target the bullies, the abusers, the lawless exploitations, especially of minors. Go after the criminals. Stop the corruption, scheming, and dominance over others based on power, control and raw greed. Make rich people accountable when they harm others. Make the big corporations, especially BigPharma move to arm’s length with the governments. Treat all people with dignity. Skin colour has nothing to do with our moral compass. Stop the stereotyping, so you can open your eyes to what is actually out there causing societal harm.”

If it was a movie plot, instead of reality – what genre is it in? Who are the heroes, and who are the villains? What is the theme, and all the motifs surrounding the plot? What are the sub-plots? Who are the leaders on the polarized spectrums? What is their true agenda? And most of all – how does it end?

Tall tales have short legs, and cannot run very fast. In the end – truth will beat the bad guys!

Copyright Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West (2022). Unauthorised use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author/owner is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to Valerie J. Hayes and Quiet West with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.