The Monday Night Muse - January 04 2016

If you want to know what’s going on in the world, there are places that will tell you the truth, not paint you a picture, maintain the status quo or be part of any international/inter-business synergy.

This is one of those places.

Stories, truths and angles that you need to know and have probably been sheltered from by the powers that be or your own search bubble.

Every Monday evening.

The system that can hack any smartphone 

 

A group of researchers have developed a system which can hack and steal data from any smartphone user.

Today, one of the most troubling issues for smartphone users is its privacy and that points to the apps and websites they visit from the smartphone. Almost all websites and apps gather user’s data to get make money by using the data themselves or by selling it on to advertisers.

Though, the market for the data buyer is not only limited to internet market. It also involves law enforcement and even government officials. However, there is a company which claims to have developed an intelligence system with the ability to steal data from the smartphone of any user.

Now with so much to offer for this data, an Israeli group “Rayzone” has developed a system known as “InterApp” which can steal intimate information of any phone user, which is in the system’s proximity. The collected data includes user email address and password, contact list, Dropbox, operating system of the phone, photos, Internet history browsing, locations and a lot more.

According to the system’s website it can collect “intimate information of any phone user… in the system’s proximity.”

Scientists claim to be able to record dreams

Researchers have found a way to translate our every thought and dream into a video that can be watched later.

This innovative device utilizes existing technologies like Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and supercomputers to make a video of what a person is thinking about through computational models.

The first ever study in the United States was conducted at Brown University in 2011 and in it, three people were asked to wear an EEG device while they slept. They were then woken up in the height of dream activity and asked what they were dreaming about. 

The device cataloged all of the brain images and stored them.

The scientists repeated this process 200 hundred times for each person and made a database of all of the images. Once they were awake, the scientists showed them the images and scanned their brains again based on their responses. 

While this was exciting, at this point the scientists reached only broad object recognition and it wasn’t until researchers at the University of Berkley, took it one step further and were able to get video clips from dreams.

It is exciting to see where the story could go next and this technology could be revolutionary. 

WikiLeaks strike again - US, Israel and Saudis planned to overthrow Syrian 10 years ago

 

Speaking from Ecuador’s embassy in London, Julian Assange revealed that the United States planned to overthrow the Syrian government as far back as 2006, several years before the start of the current crisis.

The founder of WikiLeaks took refuge in the Embassy of Ecuador in 2012. The premises remain under siege 24 hours a day by a large team of police to prevent Assange from ever stepping foot outside, at a cost to taxpayers that now exceeds £12 million.

The ongoing threat to his freedom hasn’t kept Assange from continuing his work revealing the dirty secrets of world governments. His latest revelations come in an interview with RT in support of his new book, “The WikiLeaks Files,” published late last month.

The United States and its allies in the Middle East, including Turkey and Israel, have been frequently accused of contributing to the ongoing destabilization of Syria in the wake of the uprising and subsequent civil war which began in 2011. But according to cables from the WikiLeaks archive, discussed in the Syria chapter of Assange’s book, plans to deliberately destabilize the region go back at least five years further.

“In that chapter is a cable from US Ambassador William Roebuck, who was stationed in Damascus, which apparently discusses a plan for the overthrow of the Assad government in Syria,” RT reported.

In his appearance on the RT program “Going Underground,” Assange elaborated on the cable’s contents:

“…that plan was to use a number of different factors to create paranoia within the Syrian government; to push it to overreact, to make it fear there’s a coup…”

Assange continued, explaining that the U.S. government sought to make the Syrian government appear weak by causing Assad to overreact to the threat of Islamic extremists crossing into his country.

Priest: women are abused because they dress provocatively and don't cook warm meals anymore 

 

Catholic priest Father Piero Corsi actually said the following words:

"How often do we see girls and mature women going around scantily dressed and in provocative clothes? They provoke the worst instincts, which end in violence or sexual abuse. They should search their consciences and ask: did we bring this on ourselves? 

  

"Is it possible that all of a sudden men have gone mad? We don’t believe it. The fact is that women are increasingly provocative, they become arrogant, they believe themselves to be self-sufficient and end up exacerbating the situation.

"Children are abandoned to their own devices, homes are dirty, meals are cold or fast food, clothes are filthy."

No words are necessary!

And finally...

Twitter fight of the week!

 

Spot on!

Never accept the world with which you are presented.

 

The Monday Night Muse - December 14 2015

If you want to know what’s going on in the world, there are places that will tell you the truth, not paint you a picture, maintain the status quo or be part of any international/inter-business synergy.

This is one of those places.

Stories, truths and angles that you need to know and have probably been sheltered from by the powers that be or your own search bubble.

Every Monday evening.

Marijuana activists to honour Bernie Sanders

 

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will receive an award from marijuana activists Monday evening for his efforts to legalize the drug. 

The Democratic presidential candidate will be honored at the High Times Business Summit in Washington, D.C., with the group’s first-ever trail blazer award. Sanders, a self-desribed Democratic socialist, is backing legislation that would end the long-time federal prohibition on marijuana.

Currently, the federal government maintains a ban on marijuana — even in states that have legalized the drug. The Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act introduced last month by Sanders would remove the barriers for states that want to legalize recreational and medical marijuana without interference from the federal government. 

However, other states could still choose to prohibit pot.

"We need major changes in our criminal justice system — including changes in drug laws,” Sanders recently told students at Virginia's George Mason University. “Too many Americans have seen their lives destroyed because they have criminal records as a result of marijuana use. That’s wrong. That has got to change.”

Dead terrorist's unclaimed body unwanted By Muslim groups

 

The mysterious jihadi bride who helped her husband kill 14 and wound 21 in last week’s terror attack in San Bernardino could get the unceremonious – and un-Islamic – funeral she deserves, as no Muslim leaders want anything to do with her.

The bullet-riddled body of Tashfeen Malik is still at the San Bernardino County morgue, along with that of her husband, Syed Rizwan Farook. But while his remains are expected to soon be released to his family, community and mosque leaders are treating her corpse like a hot potato.

“No one wants to claim her and no one wants to do the funeral,” a well-placed source within the Muslim community told a dubious American news network. 

"They are all waiting for someone else to be the one to take care of this part of it.”

 NASA astronaut claims alien sighting on space mission

 

Clark C. McClelland, a former ScO of the Space Shuttle Fleet, claims he personally observed an eight to nine foot tall extraterrestrial on his monitor while on duty in the Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Control Center. 

He claims that the ET was standing upright in the Space Shuttle Payload Bay having a discussion with two tethered US NASA Astronauts. He also claims to have observed (on his monitors) the spacecraft of the ET as it was stabilized safely in orbit to the rear of the Space Shuttle main engine pods. 

On his website he writes:

"How did it communicate? I have no idea. It did move its arms a lot. Almost like giving instructions! I heard no voice communications. The helmet was not as large as our two NASA Astronauts, and had a viewport to look forward. It had a small, perhaps a communication device, attached only to the right side of the helmet! I saw no oxygen tank(s). It had a wide belt like wrapping around it.. It did not appear to be tethered as the two Astronauts were to the sides of the shuttle structure. I observed nothing that appeared to be a weapon. The time of this amazing scene was one minute and seven seconds, I timed it on my Astronaut chronograph watch."

 American town rejects solar power because they "suck up all the energy from the sun" and "cause cancer"

  

A town meeting in Woodland, North Carolina heard public comments on a proposed solar farm in which citizens, including a retired science teacher called Jane Mann spoke out against the proposal. 

Ms Mann opposes the solar expansion because she believes it would lower her property values. She also said that plants near solar farms do not thrive because there wasn't enough sunshine left over for them to photosynthesize. She also evinced a belief that solar panels cause cancer. Her husband added that solar panels "suck up all the energy from the sun." 

She is a retired Northampton science teacher and is concerned that photosynthesis, which depends upon sunlight, would not happen and would keep the plants from growing. She said she has observed areas near solar panels where the plants are brown and dead because they did not get enough sunlight.

She also questioned the high number of cancer deaths in the area, saying no one could tell her that solar panels didn’t cause cancer.

“I want to know what’s going to happen,” she said. “I want information. Enough is enough. I don’t see the profit for the town. People come with hidden agendas,” she said. “Until we can find if anything is going to damage this community, we shouldn’t sign any paper.”

Bobby Mann said he watched communities dry up when I-95 came along and warned that would happen to Woodland because of the solar farms. “You’re killing your town,” he said. “All the young people are going to move out.”

He said the solar farms would suck up all the energy from the sun and businesses would not come to Woodland. 

Letter of the week

Viz reader sticks up for Bono

Meme of the week

When the Joker makes sense...

 

Never accept the world with which you are presented

The Monday Night Muse - December 7 2015

If you want to know what’s going on in the world, there are places that will tell you the truth, not paint you a picture, maintain the status quo or be part of any international/inter-business synergy.

This is one of those places.

Stories, truths and angles that you need to know and have probably been sheltered from by the powers that be or your own search bubble.

Every Monday evening.

Iceland - where they jail the bankers and pay the people

First, Iceland jailed its crooked bankers for their direct involvement in the financial crisis of 2008. Now, every Icelander will receive a payout for the sale of one of its three largest banks, Íslandsbanki.

If Finance Minister Bjarni Benediktsson has his way — and he likely will — Icelanders will be paid kr 30,000 after the government takes over ownership of the bank. Íslandsbanki would be second of the three largest banks under State proprietorship.

“I am saying that the government take [sic] some decided portion, 5%, and simply hand it over to the people of this country,” he stated.

Because Icelanders took control of their government, they effectively own the banks. Benediktsson believes this will bring foreign capital into the country and ultimately fuel the economy — which, incidentally, remains the only European nation to recover fully from the 2008 crisis. Iceland even managed to pay its outstanding debt to the IMF in full — in advance of the due date.

Guðlaugur Þór Þórðarson, Budget Committee vice chairperson, explained the move would facilitate the lifting of capital controls, though he wasn’t convinced State ownership would be the ideal solution. Former Finance Minister Steingrímur J. Sigfússon sided with Þórðarson, telling a radio show, “we shouldn’t lose the banks to the hands of fools” and that Iceland would benefit from a shift in focus to separate“commercial banking from investment banking.”

Plans haven’t yet been firmly set for when the takeover and subsequent payments to every person in the country will occur, but Iceland’s revolutionary approach to dealing with the international financial meltdown of 2008 certainly deserves every bit of the attention it’s garnered.

Monsanto Sued For Crimes Against Humanity At International Criminal Court

The person in the picture of this article is Clarence Thomas, a supreme court judge of the United States. Prior to holding this position, he was an assistant to State Attorney General John Danforth. When Danforth was elected into the U.S. Senate, Thomas became an attorney for Monsanto.

This isn’t the first time Monsanto has been sued, and it certainly won’t be the last. Last week, dozens of environmental activist groups, farmers, and sustainable food organizations joined forces at the COP21 Paris to announce that Monsanto will face international tribunal over crimes against humanity and the environment. Their trial is set to place in October of 2016; more specifically, on World Food Day.

The announcement took place at the climate summit because Monsanto is a major contributor to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, not to mention the depletion of soil and water resources, declining biodiversity, species extinction, and the displacement of  millions of small farmers worldwide.

“The Tribunal will rely on the ‘Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights’ adopted at the UN in 2011. It will also assess potential criminal liability on the basis of the Rome Statute that created the International Criminal Court in The Hague in 2002, and it will consider whether a reform of international criminal law is warranted to include crimes against the environment, or ecocide, as a prosecutable criminal offense, so that natural persons could incur criminal liability.”

The committee members as of now include: Vandana Shiva, Corinne Lepage, Marie-Monique Robin, Olivier de Schutter, Gilles-Eric Séralini, and Hans Herren. This is quite an impressive list; Dr. Seralini published a groundbreaking study last year in Environmental Sciences Europe showing severe liver and kidney damage as well as hormonal disturbances in rats fed with GM maize in conjunction with low levels of Roundup — levels which were even below those permitted in most drinking water across Europe. Results also indicated high rates of large tumors and mortality in most treatment groups.

Republican Michele Fiore on refugees: "I'll shoot them myself...end their miserable lives" 

The Nevada Republican who sent out a Christmas card featuring armed toddlers has put her proverbial foot in her mouth once again – this time in a much more offensive fashion. Michele Fiore, Assemblywoman of the Fourth District, when asked by a Las Vegas radio show about why she refused to sign a statement by Republicans opposing the resettlement of Syrian refugees, indicated it didn’t go far enough for her:

“What–are you kidding me? I’m about to fly to Paris and shoot ‘em in the head myself! I am not OK with Syrian refugees. I’m not OK with terrorists. I’m OK with putting them down, blacking them out, just put a piece of brass in their ocular cavity and end their miserable life. I’m good with that.”

Where to start with this outrageously offensive and dangerously delusional statement? The automatic equivocation of Syrian refugees and the terrorists that they are fleeing from is a very dangerous sign, not to mention her apparent willingness to commit extrajudicial murders without any evidence. The enthusiasm for said killings is also very upsetting. Despite being a mother herself, she shows no compassion or empathy for the families fleeing horrific violence and looking for safety and stability. 

AND FINALLY...

TV show of the week

There really could only be one winner. RTÉ are known for bending to the will of business and politicians but tonight they restored some legitimacy by showing a riveting and unbelievable expose on the levels of corruption in Ireland.

The hard-hitting documentary, presented by former Irish Examiner Correspondent Conor Ryan, detailed Cllr Queenan and other local politicians appearing to agree to lobby on behalf of a dummy company in exchange for cash or the promise of cash.

The show has literally changed lives. In a statement tonight, Fianna Fáil said: “Following the Primetime Investigates Standards in Public Office programme, tonight the Party has accepted the resignation of Cllr Joe Queenan”.

The statement went on to say that "some of the behaviour displayed in tonight's programme was shocking and completely unacceptable."

Get the RTÉ player and watch  Prime Time Investigates, you won't be disappointed.


Never accept the world with which you are presented.

 

The Monday Night Muse - November 24 2015

If you want to know what’s going on in the world, there are places that will tell you the truth, not paint you a picture, maintain the status quo or be part of any international/inter-business synergy.

This is one of those places.

Stories, truths and angles that you need to know and have probably been sheltered from by the powers that be or your own search bubble.

Every Monday evening.

 

 

Can Pot cure Parkinson's? The science says so

 

 

  

Despite the political controversy surrounding medical marijuana use, research has begun to emerge showing that a component of this plant known as cannabidiol (CBD), and which does not have the controversial psychoactive properties associated with tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), may have a wide range of therapeutic applications, including treating conditions that are refractory to conventional drug-based approaches.

One such condition is Parkinson's disease, to which there is, at present, no effective conventional treatment. In fact, the primary treatment involves dopamine increasing drugs that also increase a neurotoxic metabolite known as with 6-hydroxy-dopamine, and which therefore can actually accelerate the progression of the disease. This is why natural alternatives that are safe, effective, and backed up by scientific evidence, are so needed today. 

Thankfully, preclinical research on cannabidiol has already revealed some promising results, including two studies in animal models of Parkinson's disease (PD) assessing its neuroprotective properties:

"In the first one, Lastres-Becker et al. (2005) showed that the administration of CBD counteracted neurodegeneration caused by the injection of 6-hydroxy-dopamine in the medial prosencephalic bundle, an effect that could be related to the modulation of glial cells and to antioxidant effects (Lastres- Becker et al., 2005). In the next year, Garcia-Arencibia et al. (2007) tested many cannabinoid compounds following the lesion of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra with 6-hydroxy-dopamine and found that the acute administration of CBD seemed to have a neuroprotective action; nonetheless, the administration of CBD one week after the lesion had no significant effects (Garcia-Arencibia et al., 2007). This study also pointed to a possible antioxidant effect with the upregulation of  mRNA of the enzyme Cu-Zn-superoxide dismutase following the administration of CBD."

In addition to these animal studies, the following three human clinical trials have been conducted to evaluate cannabidiol's neuroprotective effects.

 

 

Greece Hit By Bomb Blast

 

 

The blast, in the business centre of Athens, went off in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

 

Prior to the blast at 2:50am an anonymous caller notified the Lambrakis Press that a bomb has been placed near the offices on the Xenophon, warning that the bomb would explode roughly 40 minutes after the call ended. The journalists immediately notified Athens police who dispatched special units to the scene.

Prior to the blast, authorities completely cordoned off the area of the specified threat. A violent explosion indeed followed, with witnesses reporting hearing the blast in several different parts of the capital.

Police are now examining security footage from surveillance cameras surrounding the area. So far no one has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Police sources told Reuters, that domestic guerrilla groups are most likely behind the assault. Attacks against the Greek political establishment and business interests have become pretty commonplace in the wake of harsh austerity measures in the country that were first introduced in 2010.

The last time a similar incident took place was April 2014 when a group of activists called the Revolutionary Struggle attacked the Bank of Greece.

 

 

Moscow bans Church of Scientology

 

 

Moscow City Court has ordered the dissolution of the local branch of the Church of Scientology, ruling that religious freedom must not be restricted by trademarks. Scientologists vowed to appeal the alleged “anti-religious” abuse of their worshipers’ rights.

The Russian Ministry has argued that the since the term Scientology is registered as a US trademark, the Church cannot be considered a religious organization, RIA Novosti news agency reported.

“The representatives of the Church of Scientology themselves have created many legal conflicts by restricting the religious freedom through the use of trademarks,” the Ministry of Justice said. “So it turns out a commercial partnership was spreading the religion, while religion can only be spread by religions organisations,” the ministry said, adding that the organization should rather be regulated by consumer protection laws.

Now the Moscow branch of the Church of Scientology has six months to officially cease activity in the Russian capital under the court’s ruling. However, the organization plans to appeal the Moscow court’s ruling in High Court as it, they claim, violates the rights of its parishioners in Russia.

Facebook post of the week

This award has to go to The Rubberbandits for the dig at the ridiculous response to the terror attacks that are happening all over the world.

Just look at the reaction, a mere hour after posting. It says it all really! 

Never accept the world with which you are presented.

The Monday Night Muse - November 10 2015

If you want to know what’s going on in the world, there are places that will tell you the truth, not paint you a picture, maintain the status quo or be part of any international/inter-business synergy.

This is one of those places.

Stories, truths and angles that you need to know and have probably been sheltered from by the powers that be or your own search bubble.

Every Monday evening.

 

 

SeaWorld to pull the plug on orca captivity at only one centre

 

 

 

SeaWorld will end theatrical orca shows at its theme park in San Diego next year as part of a comprehensive overhaul of the company in the wake of mounting protests over its treatment of animals. 

 

Joel Manby, SeaWorld’s chief executive, said he had listened to guests’ criticism of its Shamu stadium whale circus and it would end the “theatrical killer whale experience” in San Diego by the end of 2016.

He said the company will replace its Californian Shamu show – in which whales dive, jump and splash guests to the demands of their trainers – with “an all new orca experience focused on the natural environment [of the whales]”.
 

“We are listening to our guests, evolving as a company, we are always changing,” Manby said as he unveiled a new corporate strategy on Monday. “In 2017 we will launch an all new orca experience focused on natural environment [of whales]. 2016 will be the last year of our theatrical killer whale experience in San Diego.” 

He said the decision to end the orca shows in California was in direct response to customers, who he said had made it clear that they want less of a theatrical experience and would rather see the whales in a more natural setting. Attendance at the San Diego park is falling fast. Visitor numbers dropped 17% last year to 3.8 million, according to city authorities, and Manby warned investors last week that numbers are still falling and would contribute to a $10m hit to SeaWorld’s profits this year.

The orca whale theatrical performances will continue at SeaWorld’s other killer whale parks in San Antonio, Texas, and Orlando, Florida.

NASA scientists reveal similarities between Earth and Mars 

Last weekend, NASA called for a press conference to announce a major discovery regarding the planet Mars. During the meeting, they revealed some pretty shocking information, completely changing what we once thought about the “red” planet that, suddenly, doesn’t seem so red anymore.

1. Mars Has Flowing Rivers Of Water On It

Yesterday, NASA announced that Mars actually has rivers of flowing water on it. What we once believed to be an arid and rocky desert of a planet is actually seasonal, not unlike our own planet Earth.

Lujendra Ojha, a planetary scientist at the Georgia Institute of Technology, made the discovery by using images from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

This raises a number of other questions, many of which are brought up in the press conference below.

“Mars is not the dry, arid planet that we thought of in the past … [and] liquid water has been found on Mars.” – James Green, NASA director of planetary sciences

2. Mars Could Have Had Extraterrestrial Life Living On It

“We are going to Mars, our journey to Mars is a science led expedition right now, but soon I hope we’ll be sending humans to the red planet to explore and science will lead the way. And today’s announcement of a really fascinating result about current water on Mars is one of the reasons why I feel it’s even more imperative that we send astrobiologists and planetary scientists to Mars to explore the question of, ‘Is there current life on Mars?’ ” – John Grunsfeld, five time space flown astronaut, Associate Administrator Head of NASA Science Mission Directive.

Obviously, with the announcement that there is water on Mars, the possibility of life near the surface becomes ever more plausible. The press conference also goes into more details about the atmosphere and condition of Mars, and how the planet could have supported life in the past. I will elaborate on this in the next section.

  

3. Mars Was Once A Planet Very Much Like Earth, With A Giant Ocean

“The more we observe Mars, the more information we’re getting that it really is a fascinating planet, from the Curiosity Rover we now know that Mars once was like a planet very much like Earth, with long salty seas, with fresh water lakes, probably with snow capped peaks and clouds and a water cycle just like we’re studying here on Earth … Something has happened to Mars, it lost its water.” – John Grunsfeld, five time space flown astronaut, Associate Administrator Head of NASA Science Mission Directive

John also goes on to discuss the high likelihood that Mars previously sustained life, before whatever happened to the planet that lead to its change in climate. Scientists are still struggling to work out what exactly that event or series of events may have been. 

“Mars is the planet most like Earth … [and in the past,] Mars was a very different planet, it had an extensive atmosphere, and in fact it had what we believe was a huge ocean, perhaps as large as two thirds the Northern Hemisphere. And that ocean may have been as much as a mile deep. So Mars indeed three billion years ago had extensive water resources. But something happened. Mars suffered a major climate change and lost its surface water.” – James Green, NASA director of planetary physics

As pointed out in the press conference, this discovery is so exciting because it suggests that Mars could possibly sustain life in the present day. This is not only due to the presence of water; rovers have discovered that there is a lot more humidity in the air than we once thought. Indeed, the soils are moist, hydrated, and full of water.

“Today’s announcement  is one of the reasons why it’s even more imperative that we send astrobiologists and planetary scientists to Mars to explore the question of is there current life on Mars.” – Alfred McEwen, Principal Investigator, HiRISE, University of Arizona.

4. Something Happened To The Planet That Drastically Changed Its Climate

As you can see from the two quotes in the above section by John Grunsfeld and James Green (taken from the press conference below), something happened to Mars that drastically changed its environment. It seems the climate altered significantly, but what caused this change? Scientists at NASA have yet to figure this out, but some interesting theories have been proposed.

US soldier claims to have fought soldiers on Mars

 

The ex marine, who goes by the name of Captain Kaye, says that there are five human colonies on the Red Planet and he has spent 17 years fighting to protect them.

Serving in a space fleet known as the Earth Defense Force – that recruited military personnel from countries like America, Russia and China – the one-time ex-naval infantryman was trainee to fly a variety of bombers and Star Wars-style space fighters.

He then spent his time protecting the colonies from martians, who presumably wanted to take over and make the planet their own.

Captain Kaye's incredible testimony to ExoNews TV doesn't end with Mars, either.

Spacecraft training apparently took place on the MOON, as well as on Saturn's moon Titan and even in deep space.
His retirement ceremony after 20 years of service also took place on the moon, with guests including ex US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfield.

 And finally...something you should watch because nobody in the western media will show you...

Putin addresses US and IS in bid to puncture New Cold War balloon

 WATCH THIS!!!!!!

http://www.collective-evolution.com/2015/11/05/putin-the-russian-president-says-something-about-isis-that-western-media-wont-air/ 

Never accept the world with which you are presented.

The poppy - war propaganda and social fascism

Social media and regular media outlets are filled with people discussing the reasons behind wearing a poppy. Turn on any British news outlet and you will see folk with a little red flower upon their lapel. It is a tradition at this time of year but why? Why do British people wear them? Why is there an abundance of people wearing the flower in the British media? Why do people receive such widespread criticism for refusing to wear one?

You have to challenge your views sometimes and research objectively. A history lecturer once told me that it is impossible to research objectively, that the impetus for knowledge mining comes from a desire to reinforce your own prejudices. She also said that sitting on a fence is very difficult; there are too many nails on it and you never stay up there for long.

Historically the poppy was originally worn to represent those who died in the First World War.  American poet, John McCrae, wrote a poem entitled In Flanders Fields at an unspecified time during the war. Though he originally discarded the poem, believing it to be substandard, the poem would be printed in Britain’s Punch magazine.

Here are the opening lines of the poem:

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

From then on, the poem was used to commemorate soldiers who died in battle. Such was the popularity of the poem, the Americans used it as a propaganda tool, recognising the emotion McCrae’s words elicited and capitalising on a resurgence in the war machine. From World War I through to World War II and beyond, the Americans and the British (among others) adopted the tradition of wearing a poppy to remember their men and women who died in service of their country. 

From here, we shall focus on Britain’s use of the poppy as it is Britain which is the subject of this blog.

During both world wars, on a very human level, men and women at home in the UK suffered tremendous losses of life throughout their circles of friends and family. The average Blighter sought to wear the poppy as a comfort, an outward representation that they had suffered immeasurable loss in wartime. It was also a badge of honour; their friend/family member died doing what was right; fighting the villainous, imperious Hun and keeping alive the principles of democracy and freedom.

 

World War I ended in 1918.

World War II ended in 1945.

These days, the poppy is worn to commemorate every soldier killed in the line of battle. Every soldier. What should be recognised is the fact that every conflict that Britain has been involved in since the Second World War has occurred for one reason only; monetary gain/power. There are those that believe British imperialism ended with the dawn of the modern age or indeed the turn of the twentieth century, depending on your historical perspective. 

However, there are many who believe that British imperialism continues to this day. Since 1945, Britain and her allies have been involved in numerous conflicts and not once was the instigator of the conflict an opponent. People rightly blame the USA for much of the world’s conflicts since 1945 – Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan etc – but rarely do the USA bombard a country without the support of their historical enemy yet modern ally – Britain. No more so than the Americans, the British have never had moral right or reason, other than monetary gain/power, to invade any of these countries and to murder their locals. 

Britain has been involved in many armed conflicts that we are aware of and many British soldiers have been killed in the line of duty. According to figures by the British Ministry of Defence, over 7,000 men and women were killed serving Britain since 1945. Make no mistake about it, that is a tremendous loss of life and a waste of human potential. However, to commemorate their deaths is to justify their part-taking in worldwide, imperialistic campaign of bigotry. To commemorate their deaths is to commemorate the war machine with machinations on the death, destruction, capitalist gain, the imposing of their political will, the writing of their own skewed history and worldwide pillaging that the British still bring to parts of the world today.

These “fallen heroes” have been taken for fools and been nothing more than gears in the British war machine, convinced to commit horrible acts for what they believe to be a worthy cause. This machine is allowed to motor on because young, talent and most importantly, expendable Brits are brainwashed into thinking that going to the Middle East is justified and that their deaths are mere collateral damage, unfortunate occurrences on the road to final and just victory. Sympathy must be limited; picking up a gun and invading a country where you are not wanted or needed, a country where there are plenty of people equally armed and determined to remove you from THEIR land, is tantamount to suicide; you are the insurgent.

There are arguments for wearing a poppy.

- Your ancestors fought for the British

You may hear that many of your ancestors donned a British military uniform and murdered for the queen. The fact is that this is true and it is true of my ancestors on both sides of the family. To that I simply say that yes, my own relatives murdered for the British but that was at a time when your choice in life was to starve and see your wife and children starve or go fight with the British. At times they were literally the only options available to an Irishman. Antiquarianism is rife in modern times.

- Soldiers perform important peacekeeping duties

It may be put to you that the military undertake the important task of peacekeeping in exotic yet dangerous locations. The fact is that the loss of lives while peace keeping deserves sympathy, empathy and commemoration but this service of peacekeeping is often required in states that were initially thrown into disarray by the nations deploying the peacekeepers. It is common that peacekeeping is the extensive cleaning up of spilled milk.

- The poppy represents all life lost

There is a truth to the adage that poppies represent all of life lost and by wearing a poppy, you are remembering everyone that dies, not just British soldiers. However, there remains an unavoidable question; why only wear one in early November if this is true? By wearing a poppy around Remembrance Day you are taking part in Remembrance Day, not celebrating a romantic and general loss of life in your own idealistic way.

- The money raised looks after the injured

This has to be the most valid reason to buy a poppy and to donate to the British Legion and other charities. Soldiers, poor men and women, are injured in battle and upon return, require expensive medical attention. Sometimes around the clock care is required. However, the cost of this should and easily could lie with the government. If you insist on supporting the British Legion for this reason, call them or go to their website (www.britishlegion.org.uk/) to donate money. The trouble is that people need the world to see the great things that they do anonymously.

The fact is that the cost should lie with the government and no amount of poppy-wearing, faux nationalism will change their minds. The cost of veteran care should be included in the war machine’s budget. According to the MoD, in 2014, the British government spent more than £43bn on 'defence'. In terms of defence expenditure as a percentage of GDP, it is second in the world, only behind the war industry of the USA. So much being spent to murder, so little done to care for their own.

Since the Thatcher government and crushing of the Argies in the Malvinas, the poppy has been used by the British establishment to support foreign military adventures and these days there is a social fascism attached to wearing one. It is sustained propaganda, there to instill a sense of pseudo-nationalism and build a community of support for future and sadly inevitable foreign invasions.

Everyone is entitled to their beliefs but everyone is also entitled to keep those beliefs to themselves. You are entitled to believe in god but you are not entitled to ram it down my throat. You are entitled to celebrate murder but to wear a poppy in its honour spits on the graves of over a million lives lost and generations of families ruined.

The dead are nothing more than poor men that died for the will of rich men. That is all that any war is. No more. No less.

There are reasons to wear a poppy, however, the reasons not to far outweigh them and are far greater in number.

By not wearing a poppy, I am supporting those who died at the hands of the British and her allies.

Here is a small example of who I support.

Kenya – 2,000+ estimated killed

Northern Ireland – 4,000+ estimated killed (many more pre-1945)

The Gulf War – 35,000+ estimated killed

The Bosnian War – 100,000+ estimated killed

The War on Terror – 1,300,000+ estimated killed

Post WWII occupation of Palestine – thousands and still climbing

I feel I have to make something clear for the narrow-minded reader; I am not in any way anti-British, I am an anti-war journalist.

I empathise with the abused not the abuser.

Never accept the world with which you are presented.