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An essay on opportunity

In the not too distant past, people understood the world around them primarily through words. Spoken or written words which created a complex emblem in their heads. An emblem which described their 'tribe', but with subtle differences between members of the same (intellectual and practical) tribe. If images were used, as they increasingly were, they were meant to support the words as an illustration. 

 

These past two, or three decades, we lost the capacity to communicate reliably with words, inserting images, preferably moving images, to replace them. A member of an opposition party in Holland posted a photoshopped image of a minster raising a nazi flag, next to the original picture, where he is seen raising yet another unfamiliar multicoloured flag on the front of the office building he occupies on behalf of the Dutch people, signalling his commitment to a UN agenda promoting 'sustainability'. I personally reject the use of images to convey a message, and prefer written or spoken text to understand what the emblem in the head of the other person is about. And it shows, because there are no illustrations on this blog itself. Although I do link to articles which are illustrated, and stand-alone images occasionally, but my thinking is in the text.

 

When communicating effectively we need to be able to be as clear as possible about what we want, and what we expect of others. Or that was the message I grew up with. To find the correct words to convey your message is far from easy, especially if you are not familiar with those who read or hear what you have to say, since the optimum is only reached  when you know how your words are received on the other end. Knowing this will make a person more careful if they are serious. But when the message you want to slip to the other people is urgent, you are likely to use 'powerful' words which carry the risk of being misunderstood, overshooting your aim. The very moment this sense of urgency has passed, you need to go back to repair the damage to avoid that lingering misconceptions return at some later stage to set the world around you on fire. 

 

The fabled story of the building of the 'Tower of Babel' told us what would happen when language was lost, and words no longer had a meaning. Now, let me return to the incident described above. Interestingly, when I look at that picture of the two images next to each other, one real, the other clearly photoshopped, it strikes me as a need to convey the message that embracing this UN agenda is, in some way, equal to embracing Nazism, which we all detest. Or, should I say, most of us, since various political organisations in Ukraine, and elsewhere, are openly embracing the ideology of their ancestors who identified with Hitler-led Germany. But this politician I'm talking about is vilified in Holland because he is seen as opposing our support for Ukraine today, and embracing Putin, who is vowing to fight Nazism in Ukraine and beyond, as the allies agreed to do after the Second World War. Yet, those who reject the use of that particular image do not recognise what it appears to convey. They see the Nazi-flag, and claim that the politician who posted that image on his Twitter-account identifies as 'extreme right wing', because he is including Nazi-symbols in his message. And they want the Justice Department to prosecute him for promoting Nazi-ideology, which, if you ask me, he wants to fight. 

 

There is a fair chance that he will have his day in court, given the mood in Holland, despite the fact that judges and prosecutors are in short supply, and a formal decision has been made to drop 'victimless' cases, and let the criminals walk. Now, certainly in this case, but in many other 'high profile' cases today in Holland, which include judges passing verdicts in truckloads of 'Climate-Goal'-cases, I'd say that fighting crime should be far more important, but those who pull the strings argue that I'm mistaken. Burglars, people trafficking and selling drugs, and many other criminals actually add to the GDP, and boosting our fake economy is taking priority over everything else. If you want to prevent burglary as a citizen, don't expect the government to deter these burglars, but buy an alarm, and pay a monthly fee for the subscription. It may deter burglars, or not. And if it doesn't, you can claim the damage done with your insurance company, if you paid the premiums, adding to GDP, while buying new stuff to replace what was stolen adds to GDP as well. 

 

Now, let me return to the geopolitical arena, where the news over the weekend was about these referenda in those territories in the East and South of Ukraine which Russia and its DPR/LPR-militia are occupying. According to the New York Times the 'Biden-Administration' has been super-busy passing vague threats to Russia about catastrophic consequences if Russia should decide to use nuclear arms. Which is standing, and openly published public policy if any nation threatens Russian territory in a serious way, and soon these parts of Ukraine will be Russian territory. So there will be consequences if NATO insists on retaking them after the people decided they want to be part of Russia, and the Russian Duma made it so. The article said that being vague was a deliberate policy. Clear communications are a thing of the past in western countries, and lying and cheating are the norm, as well as introducing confusion by misrepresenting your own understanding of what was conveyed to you. The example of this incident I just described above serves as an illustration. It is not a world-shattering incident, and it won't change the course of history, nor is it useful to describe a problem which can be solved by passing some kind of law. The description of the incident may be used to calibrate your own emblem, and improve our capacity to find common ground, if we let the illustration itself alone. 

 

On these pages I've highlighted the fact that the Russians and the Chinese do not 'speak in tongues', and they reject our 'nudging' and insincerity, which is promoting unpredictability to an art-form, creating nothing but chaos, and cheering this innovation as the ultimate in governing: The 'Rules Based Society'. The 'Biden Administration' and its supporters, who may detest Biden and his party, but embrace this notion of being unpredictable as the way to go, do not carry around any concept of what the world should be like to save us from annihilation, one way or the other. They look no further than the next 'Opportunity', and trade perspectives of what the world is about with reference to Hollywood-productions. The very idea of bringing back the 'Rule of Law' is anathema to them, as it would put a cap on their 'Freedom'. What they are missing, is that 'Freedom' as envisioned by philosophers in the past is not this child-like concept of being able to 'Play all Day', and do as you like, without paying attention to the consequences, except for yourself, but 'Freedom' as in 'Being Equal for the Law', and understanding the law, and its consequences. Which requires them to be known. A community led astray by thinking that the images of Hollywood, and powerful incidents, are all we ever need to live a happy and productive life are going to be hit. By nuclear weapons if some punk in an office somewhere pushes the wrong buttons, rubbing the Russians, or the Chinese, the wrong way, with no other excuse than seeing an 'Opportunity'. 

 

We're a long way from home.

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