Again and again, I am reminded of the need for humility, as well as dignity and confidence. I am reminded not only by my own faults and errors, which are numerous enough, but also by many of the people I respect the most. Again, and again, I read an exceptionally
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Writings of J. Todd Ring: Welcome To The Brave New World
Speaking of censorious scrupulosity…. While censorship is rising rapidly, with Google, Facebook and Twitter, as well as the major media, controlling and restricting what people can see or read, say or share; Facebook is now blocking me from posting my own essays from my blog to my Farcebook page. Welcome
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Laying Waste To The Religious Right
A few brief thoughts for perspective: “Censorious scrupulosity” – Stephen Toulmin is as witty as he is brilliant. Make it viral (so to speak… Yikes, we will soon have to be censoriously scrupulous in avoiding that phrase, now that the global police state is here): “Is that a touch of censorious
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Six Founding Principles Of Good Government
Or, Public Policy 101: Tax “Bads”, Not Goods Public policy, or government policy, should reflect certain basic principles. Let’s set out a few. Not everyone will agree, but polls repeatedly show the great majority, from the moderate grassroots right, across to the left, in general agree, and in general strongly
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Waiting For The Crazed Clown Show To End – Or, Welcome To The Brave New World
I don’t know when I will be able to go to the gym or library again, or a park, or my favourite local bookstore or record store – or whether they will still be in business when this is over, if it does indeed end; or when I will be
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Propaganda Lessons From History: A Very Short Review – 9/11 to the Coronavirus
Generally I post only essays I have written myself, on my blog. There have been a few exceptions for films, videos or articles that I feel are of exceptional importance – such as Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine, which we should all watch and read again, and which explains perfectly
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Chomsky On The Coronavirus: Perspective Is Urgently Needed
Chomsky clarifies the situation with the coronavirus, saying: it’s serious enough, but it represents not even a fraction of the biggest dangers we are facing, which are nuclear war, global warming, and the rising plague of neoliberal fascism. (Exactly what I have been saying since January, and before.) He began
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Step Number One
Stephen Toulmin’s proposal of a return to a modest Renaissance humanism sounds wonderful (as a fresh start, so to speak, and only a start) compared to dogmatic ideology-fetishizing modernism on the one hand, or the arguably even worse alternative of polysyllabic post-modernist nihilism on the other. But when the people
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Global Geopolitics Analysis 2020: Sinking All Ships (But Our Own): Elite Aim To Sink Global Economy, In Order To Consolidate Global Neo-Feudal Corporate Rule
The currently reigning political-economic orthodoxy, philosophy or ideology, both East and West, and in virtually every nation, with only a few exceptions, has rightly been called neoliberalism. What that means, is the merger of business and the state, which as Mussolini himself defined it, is properly called corporatism – which,
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Global Health System Failure – It’s Not What You Think
Who do we turn to for reliable health information? That is one of the critical questions we need to ask now. (Another is, when is it justified to suspend all civil rights, due process of law, and constitutional rule? Hint: never.) What the media is telling us is that: a)
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Media Failure, Again
Remember the Iraq War? Remember the lies that were passed off by the elite, and repeated by the media without question, without any fact-checking or investigation? Well, it’s happening again. But every time we repeat the mistakes of history, the stakes get higher. * On the eve of the
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Coronavirus: Key Facts
“Acting true to form as the US military-intelligence community propaganda agent it is, the Washington Post recently published an opinion piece asserting, “America Needs To Be on a War Footing.” In it, Danielle Allen asserts, “The appropriate analogy for this moment is Pearl Harbor… The country needs to transform to
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Coronavirus: Martial Law & The New Police State
An excellent live webstream discussion was given last night by Sayer Ji, the founder of GreenMedInfo – the best source I know of for science-based health information. His remarks offer a calm, well-reasoned, fact-based entry into the discussion as to what in the world is really going on with the
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: When the lights go on for the people…
While the world is currently in Chamberlain mode (denial), it may soon go to Vichy/Quisling mode (collaboration & surrender – giving up). Despite his enormous faults, we need people like Churchill now: “We shall never surrender.” JTR, March 22, 2020 #FightTheFascists Here is Churchill’s famous speech: https://youtu.be/MkTw3_PmKtc via @YouTube
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Political-Economy 101
Governments and corporations, and the state-corporate media they control, systematically distort or conceal the truth, peddle illusions and starkly deceitful false narratives, and lie. (Does anyone remember Iraq’s WMDs?) This is political-economy and media studies 101. Unsurprisingly, vested interests tend to serve their own narrow interests – and routinely
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Coronavirus: Facts & Fall-Out
Four explanations of coronavirus outbreak: 1. Standard narrative of Western governments and media: natural virus, extreme danger, draconian measures needed, justified 2. Weaponized biowarfare virus accidentally leaked from Wuhan BSL4 bioweapons lab 3. US elites (military industrial complex, or deep state) launched biowarfare in hybrid war with China, without informing
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Political Philosophy 101: Democracy vs Elite Rule
Use anything and anyone to gain and maintain power. That is the Machiavellian philosophy which rules the minds of the power elite, both East and West, as Howard Zinn has indicated as well. Public health, human well-being, conscience, principles, morals, freedom, democracy, other high ideals, have nothing to do with
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Coronavirus: Facts, Anyone?
Perspective is helpful, and critical. Panic is not. Consider the figures: Japan: Just under 5,000 deaths per year from bathtub drownings; just over 5,000 deaths per year from traffic accidents; 27 deaths from coronavirus, as of March 16 Italy: 3,300 deaths from traffic accidents per year 2,158 deaths
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Central Challenge Of Our Time
What is the central challenge of our time? It is not what most people think it is. It is not race or gender, or climate change, or the environment broadly, or issues of war and peace, or poverty, or justice, or equality, or fighting terrorism, crime or violence, WMDs and
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: The Collapse of Modern Civilization
More than 150 years ago Thoreau commented, “Our sills are all rotten.” He was right. It is for that reason that Western, and Westernized, “modern” “civilization” is collapsing. This could be cataclysmic, of course, (as in, an ecological holocaust), or relatively peaceful, (akin to the Maya abandoning their great cities
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