Can the US Afford Peace?

I was just thinking, always dangerous, but, what if the Middle East laid down their arms tomorrow? What if they recognized Israel? Would the US just have to invent new enemies? The US military budget is roughly equivalent to the military budgets of every other country on the planet combined. Makes you go, mmmmm? Do you think there maybe an economic element in all these wars that no one ever really talks about much? You certainly aren’t gonna’ hear a lot about that aspect of the wars in the mainstream media. As a matter of fact you aren’t going to hear anything discussed in depth in the main stream media. It is more profitable to keep people ignorant and it’s easier to manage them as well. Do you think that just maybe a lot of people are making a lot of money off of the US taxpayer by selling wars?

Here are some more dangerous thoughts for you. Let me see, how should I put this? Do you think that maybe there are people out there who like to retain elite positions of power by promoting class warfare? Maybe some who like to garner votes by creating boogie men and making promises they know they cannot keep? The caretakers? “Trust us, we are looking out for you! We just need a little more power to take back what has been stolen from you.” Do you think that maybe sometimes maybe large segments of uneducated people get played like fiddles? Do you think maybe there is a lot of money in playing on peoples emotions and tugging at their heart strings. “If you care for your fellow man then the obvious choice is me”. Do you think that maybe there is a lot of money being divvied up by interested parties in selling theft as “care for your fellow man”.

Do you think sometimes that maybe all of these people protecting us and caring for us may really just be robbing us? I do.

Let’s keep the ignorant ignorant. Throw them a few crumbs and they will be good for votes. And for those on whom it will not work, we will control them by using their own decency against them. We will convince them that WE are the ones who care. There are other wolves who like to keep us distracted by exaggerating the power of our enemies. And, of course, there are those who just realize that the important thing is to keep them divided. “If they stop fighting they will see behind the curtain”.

Does “a people” get the government it deserves? I don’t know. Who is to blame if ignorant people choose to remain ignorant? Who is to blame if ignorance is fostered by those in power? Is it good to “steer the ignorant” for their own good? Is it good to steer them for your own good? Evil, more likely. The ends don’t always justify the means. Isn’t truth always best? Who is to blame if you allow yourself to be manipulated? Fool me once or twice and maybe I am not to blame. Fool me ten times and maybe it is time to admit that I am a fool. Are we a nation of fools?

I know, I know…

I was half asleep when I wrote that, but I’m gonna leave it up anyway.
In other news The FDA Declares that You DO NOT have food freedom Think you have a right to choose what you eat?
The FDA says you don’t. I wonder why? Could it be, dare I say it, special interests?

The Power of “Because”
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Robert Cialdini’s Influence is a good book. It explains how individuals, businesses and governments can use “automatic responses” to influence our thinking and behavior. Just one example given in the book revolves around the word “because”. It turns out that it is far more likely to get someone to comply with a request if you give a reason for compliance. What was really fascinating was that the reason given isn’t really all that important. It’s just important to give A reason. If you are in line to use a copier and say “Excuse me, I have only five pages to copy. May I skip ahead”. You will get about a 60% compliance. If you say “Excuse me, I have only five pages to copy. May I skip ahead, because I am in a rush”. You will get about a 95% compliance. The really interesting thing is that if you say “Excuse me, I have only five pages to copy. May I skip ahead, because I am bored”. You will also get about a 95% compliance. Researchers discovered the magic word was “because”. When it comes to automatic responses, it’s not what the reason is, it’s just that there is A reason for compliance.

There are all sorts of “eye-opening” things in the book and I encourage you to get a copy.