Love's in need of love today.

Love's in need of love today.

Over the last 24 days, great Britain has experienced a series of tragedies that have ripped through the heart of communities. The loss of life and the loss of trust are devastating, and i for one need to talk a little about my feelings on these events, and so move forwards with some clear answers to the lingering question of why?

The UK general 'snap' election, called by the PM also devastated and divided communities, families and friends. Although nobody died directly due to the election, it does not seem unreasonable to suggest that the two organized 'terror' attacks were somehow influenced by the timings of the atrocities, and, that it would seem to me to be the conservatives and right-wing who would benefit from such public insecurity following the attacks. Corbyn and Labour were openly attacked by opponents for being soft on security, and for wanting to negotiate rather than 'push the button'. Fortunately it seems that not all voters were tricked by fear into voting for the right. Corbyn and Labour made great gains in both votes, seats, and new membership, following the election.

The Grenfell tower fire will not be officially recognized as a 'terror' attack. However, based on the evidence building up, a combination of housing projects managers, landlords, MPs, and the PM herself, indirectly caused extreme terror and loss of life. The measure of how consciously they inflicted this terror remains to be quantified. In contrast with the certified 'terrorist attacks' only weeks before, we can begin to see how some people view government and state sponsored 'domestic' terrorism, by way of passing laws, removing free services and putting citizens at unnecessary risk (if they don't have enough money to pay for extra protection themselves).

For example, consider the drone strike, who is 'solely' responsible? those who designed built it, those who fly it, those who order the strike, those who do not speak out against it? They all played a role, but to try to figure out one individual, a scapegoat, for the larger layered complex of causation, becomes increasingly difficult in a world of technological automation. "it wasn't me, skynet did it!"

With the case of Grenfell Towers, i found a personal connection to the plight of the residents, and the local action groups calling for better safety measures, and getting consistently ignored by those who are supposed to listen and mediate the public will: MPs. I have experienced this with local government, and know many people who feel the same way. MPs have trouble listening or acting upon the will of the people, when it has regard to public infrastructure, and comes from the poorer classes.

We share the feeling that without a lobby group and a couple of million pounds it's very hard, nearly impossible to be heard, never mind actually change official policy or get what it is that you want e.g universal basic income, cap on tax loopholes for the super rich, a new swimming pool, clearer signage, legal medical and recreational cannabis)

Yes, the new digital 'clicktavism' works, and the internet can provide a way to bring up important questions, and ensure some points get a fair hearing in parliament. Plus, digital petitions can effect companies and individuals directly, when constructed well enough. Compared with trolling, however, digital petitions are but a drop in the ocean, out there in the big waves digital shit stirrers can now impact the minds of the people in ways both 'clicktavists' and politicians can only dream of.

Enter (the media) or better yet, the UK tabloid press, spearheaded by the wig three; The Sun, The Daily Mail and the Daily Express, and followed by a 'shatalogue' of publications and broadshits that get their kicks from churning up of the emotions, like a good poet, but in order to sell more shit, and/or influence your vote on behalf of the biggest donor, usually the 'Conservative and Unionist Party', based on all previous spending figures.

There is a hatred going around--and an undefinable counter-force made of love, understanding, knowledge and imagination--which disturbs me. A language of violence and retribution which i've only ever witnessed first hand in some movies and violent TV shows. A surge of people who once never even contemplated writing, now make pale threats and loud mouthed accusations, often racist, sexist, bigoted and always overly subjective, on social media platforms.

I am personally worried about this phenomena, and hope to draw attention to it, and open up a conversation. We need to talk about the far right. We need to talk about white privilege. We need to talk about race, identity, place and certitude. It's too easy to have fun together, a little chit chat, a shared picture here, and a nice tune there. Meanwhile underneath, hatred and venom brew. Perhaps Facebook is not the arena for this conversation. I envision something along the lines of a far-right rehabilitation zone. With the finest collection of comedians, neuroscientists, logicians, poets and public speakers that can roll with any punch thrown, and yet still never take oneself too seriously. To bring up the comic side, to balance with the trending tragic, and to sprinkle all with love light and laughter.

"It's up to you, cause, love's in need of love today, don't delay, send yours in right away, hate going around, breaking many hearts, stop me please, before it's gone to far."--Stevie Wonder, Love's In Need Of Love Today.


--Steve Fly

Amsterdam

16/06/2017

https://www.justgiving.com/campaigns/charity/londoncommunity/grenfell

https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/westandtogethermanchester















Stevie Wonder - Love's In Need Of Love Today from MjDaTruth on Vimeo.

Love and Hate and tolerance rants.

After studying the works of Robert Anton Wilson for over 20 years, i can't shake this general love for all humanity and the ongoing practice of tolerance and forgiveness, at the heart of his works. When his daughter was beaten to death, and they found the culprit, he and his wife did not call for the death penalty. Instead, they managed to find it within themselves to forgive, and even love the murderer. I wonder why forgiveness can make many people so angry? who continue to bang the drums of retribution? 

I get the impression from social media, especially Facebook, that this angry mob have studied torture techniques, writing without missing a beat, of what they would 'do' to their enemies. Anything like a fair trial, or non-violent punishment is simply out of the question for them. Angry people full of hate want to get even and inflict an equal amount of suffering upon their enemies. The cycle of violence and retaliation continues. The work of RAW has been a countermeasure to this kind of certitude, and hate fueled ignorance. I sincerely wish more people would read his work, and have the courage to act upon it.

I do not expect an immediate change in the minds of the people that most matter to me, after this UK election tomorrow. These people are those i know who choose to vote conservative, and in particular those who lean to the right (and are not rich) rich to mean, say, own property worth over half a million quid! Of course, dude, the concept of rich is relative. r e l a t i v e. I have a few rich friends who i respect and admire, and who are not nasty or ignorant, i want to add.  

Compared with most of the world, the poorest people in the UK are pretty well off. Yet, at the other end you have the billionaires, who it's easy for me to understand, may have an interest in voting for whoever is best for their business. Self interest is a natural human condition, i understand and i can respect you. Good luck. Yet, those few who seem to have a hatred for Corbyn and the left principles of social justice, human rights, national basic income etc, and who exhibit a hatred stronger than their love for the conservatives baffle me. A typical line i hear is 'they're all liars' and then...'I'll never vote for that...insert ad-hominem waffle...' about Corbyn. Like something straight off the front page of The Daily Mail, The Sun. You know what I'm talking about: tabloid news for the sad droid blues.

One common thread between both ends of this conservative voting, that i have noticed, is that both the rich and strategically smart, and the relatively poor and angry (my own binary division) become ignorant to what they don't 'like', or don't agree with. They tend to show a low tolerance for new information (neophobes) Don't get me wrong now, dear readers, cognitive bias, media bias, and the conceit of scholars are not limited to conservatives. This seems to me like one major truth for us all to face: we colour and make the world as we like it, editing out what we want (usually simply what we don't like) both consiously and subconsciously, way more than we often realize. 'we are all greater artists than we realize' as Nietzche said.

An explicit example of this bias or ignorance seems to me to occur in the conservative right-wing, the ugly argumentative methods (you couldn't really call it debate) act more in line with the concept of fillabusting, at the high-brow end, combined with some neuro-linguistic programming and a shit load of data-intelligence (a.k.a Cambridge Analytica) for good measure. A powerful mixture. Oh, and lets not forget the rude and violent trolling which many alt-right groups (high and low-brow) have perfected recently.

Yes, the left (and those perpendicular to the left/right axis) also do this, but, perhaps in the tradition of Paul Krassner, Lenny Bruce, Bill Hicks, Robert Anton Wilson, Steve Coogan and other social activists. Their taste and sense for wit, even at the worst of moments, remains funny as hell to me. I am biased of course.

--Steve Fly
08/06/2017
Amsterdam

'If you push that button, your ass gotta' go'

...what necessary force

to protect and serve

by pushing the big

button


those insecure

calling for more security

naturally "protect me

save me, oh mighty one,

say you'll keep us safe by

pushing the button'


we demand the three

minutes extra life

before we get hit back

on the rebound


equal with the nihilist

terrorist philosophy

'let's wipe em' all out

every last stinking one of em'

plus family and friends

wipe em' all off the map


Can you feel the flinch

of the people's trigger finger

quick to revenge slow to forgive

insecure shaved chimps

kicked through Primark

ready to push the button to

save Top Gear

'It's fucking end times

quick act' i hear em; scream

kill kill kill


It's not often that

a relatively honest bloke

becomes a politician, even

less often with a chance to

lead the country


I find myself

agreeing with the chorus

most of the time

'they're all the same,

they're all liars


But no

stop!

Corbyn seems honest

to me

smart, and a man who's

keep his word,

and experienced with world culture

knows how to make peace

through communication


He's a poet too

i ask, who was the last

Tory to have a conscience

capable of poetry?


'push the button'

what a wuss' they cheer

how about you pull the trigger

of a loaded gun pointed at an

infants face, or you're own

mother gets her throat cut and

head removed in front of you

and the infant?


the 'will you push the button'

metaphor for mass murder

typified the Tory fetish

for drama.


Cant be easy for a human

being with a soul still intact

to murder, that most sacrilegious act


and furthermore the passive

complacency of your

tacit support of arms deals

and not free school meals

makes me sick to my stomach


drone strikes and suicide

bombings are equally acts of

cowardice


what ever happened to

gentleman's combat

fencing, martial arts, chess?


from a relatively fair

hand to hand contest depending

on physical strength, skill

strategy and a sporting fair

play to pushing buttons and

literally swiping people off

the map


whatever happened to common decency?

since the gun and the bomb and

the nuclear chemical biological warfare

coupled with white washed language

of surgical strikes and precision bombing

the sickness

combat has become a cowards game

pushing buttons, like a modern DJ

no strings or skins or horns in sight

not trying to reason with words

or martial arts but

big powerful buttons that can kill

millions in one go

imagine the most brutal violent

scenes from a movie

with 1000's of warriors fighting

from a birds-eye view

can you imagine how many

shots stabs and slices it would take

to kill 500'000 men?

'push the button'

the new slogan of the insecure

the cowards who live in

fear of anybody not them


they would willingly cut off

their own nose to spite their

face


--Steve Fly, Oosterpark

Amsterdam, 18.00 03/06/2017