@mikealfred God is a concept by which we measure our pain (Lennon). It's human projection, mythbuilding in order to keep it all together. It's a story about ourselves; a limited fleshing out of meaning in the vast unknown.
@aaronbronsteter 40 + fights into his career, he conveniently "comes to realize" *after* his opponent nearly completes his cut?? What a joke. Hopefully the MMA gods respond in kind tomorrow.
I was detained this week by the Austrian police and intelligence services.
They raided my house, office, and took all my devices.
They are accusing me of being a member of Hamas and threatened me with 10 years in prison.
Journalism is not a crime.
The empire's favorite trick is to begin the historical record at the moment its enemies retaliate against its abuses. Oh no, a health insurance CEO was victimized by an evil act of terrorism. Oh no, Israel was just innocently minding its own business when it was viciously attacked by Hamas. Oh no, Iran attacked Israel completely out of the blue and now Israel must retaliate. Oh no, Russia just launched an entirely unprovoked war on Ukraine.
Everything that led up to the unauthorized act of violence is erased from the record, because all of the violence, provocations and abuse which gave rise to the unauthorized act of violence were authorized by the empire. Authorized aggression doesn't count as aggression.
Whoever controls the narrative controls the world. If you control the narrative you can control not only when the historical record of violence begins but what kinds of violence qualify as violence. Killing people by depriving them of healthcare because denying healthcare services is how your company increases its profit margins? That's not violence. Inflicting tyranny and abuse upon a deliberately marginalized ethnic group in and apartheid state? That's not violence. Violence is when you respond to those forceful aggressions with forceful aggressions of your own.
If we are to become a healthy society, we're going to have to stop allowing some forms of violence, aggression and abuse be redacted from the official records while others are listed and condemned. Those who care about truth and justice account for ALL forms of violence, aggression and abuse, not only those which inconvenience the rich and powerful.
It is an act of aggression to do things which sicken and impoverish others in order to advance your own wealth.
It is an act of aggression to pollute the biosphere we all depend on for survival in order to increase your profit margins.
It is an act of aggression to use your wealth to manipulate your nation's politics in ways which exacerbate inequality and injustice.
It is an act of aggression to maintain an apartheid state which cannot exist without nonstop violence.
It is an act of aggression to surround the earth with military bases and encircle nations which disobey your dictates.
It is an act of aggression to try to rule the world using military violence, proxy conflicts, staged coups, threats, starvation sanctions, and financial and economic coercion.
These are all acts of aggression, and any retaliation against them will never be an unprovoked attack. As we move into the future while these abuses exacerbate, it's going to become very important to maintain an acute awareness of this.