Searching for Truth in a Post-Fact World

It's been such a wacky year.  I've never encountered such a volume of false news stories, or Fake News, as in 2016. I'm not referring to inaccurate news stories; rather, it's the deliberately fallacious articles/clips/tweets that serve to appall, agitate and promote political action. Part of this, of course, derives from the intensely partisan nature of our election year-and-a-half. It's natural that talking points/lies are disseminated by political parties to coat their opponents with whatever mud is available, justifiable or not. Same as ever.

But there's much more this time. We have a president-elect who thrives by asserting that traditional news media are liars and deceitful "scum". At his campaign and now post-election rallies, he revs his base by giving them a news media-directed 2 Minute Hate, a la Orwell's 1984. This isn't Nixonian paranoia or Spiro Agnew's ridiculous "nattering nabobs of negativism." This is a calculated effort to de-legitimize The Fourth Estate. Such disruption has immense value for political propaganda and the framing of societal perception of policies and events.

Some citizens may feel that Mainstream News is an institution suffering from integral rot. Others may need news sources that provide constant affirmation of their belief systems. Still others may not  understand the difference between vetted journalism and slick click bait.  And some have decided that any news/info source that presents any evidence rebutting their candidate/party/position/belief is partisan and cannot be trusted.

It's been downhill since the avuncular Walter Cronkite signed off with his final "And that's the way it is." Most people believed him. They believed his news organization, and others like it. Since then, there has arisen such a multiplicity of cable and internet news media that a Point-Of-View Balkanization has occurred. Advocacy journalism has flourished. And so has Partisan Journalism. And in between the fractures and odd angles of this Cubist-like rendering has emerged Profit Journalism, which is not journalism at all. And it's what constitutes Fake News.

I came across this swell chart on aplus.com that reads like a contemporary News User Reference Guide. It makes complete sense:

It should be simple. Read more than one news source. Make occasional forays into opposing ideological news sites. There is truth in more than one set of political or cultural perspectives. If you come across something that makes you think, "this can't really be true, can it?" go to a fact-checking site like snopes.com or politifact.com or factcheck.org. It's great to question authority. It's also good to question possible political or profit motivations.

Now to help us all along with our pursuit of The Truth, here's our old friend, Grace Slick. "When the truth is found to be lies, and all the joy within you dies -" Click on this bait:

It's Alive!!

Something has ripped the Time Space Continuum! Lightning and thunder! Earthquakes and tsunamis!    Dogs howling and children screaming! What unearthly entity emerges from the ether? Why, it's The Daily Shmaa! Yes, it's the return of the award-winning blog that captivated and often perplexed readers for a portion of 2008-9. It disappeared under a shroud of mystery, leaving followers with a cruel choice of reading The Atlantic, New York Times, or sputniknews.com.

And why has this gloried remnant from a golden age of blogdom been resurrected today? Could it be that a pleading call has been issued across the land, a blasting note from the horn of Roland, a devotional prayer for the return of Arthur, a holographic entreaty to Obi-Wan Kenobe?

Well, maybe.

Call it boredom, call it a need to figure out what's happening in our wonderful country, call it a cab. I've decided to give it another whirl. So please forgive this and probably the next few entries as I attempt to shake the rust off of the old bones. I will strive to return this enterprise to the ascendent standards it never enjoyed.

Anyway, I heard about an election that took place last month. Sounds like it was crazy! The winner lost the popular vote by 2 percentages, 2.7 million votes. The winner got his electoral college edge in three states where his cumulative edge was less than 80,000 votes. Wowzer.

And now there's some fuss about how the winner is unfit for office, a demagogic reprobate, whose election received subterfuge from Russia, and is set to make appointments and policies that will please The Putin Bear.  This can't be right, right?

Back in the day, the Electoral College was created to prevent a demagogue from being popularly elected. Educated and sophisticated patriots - Electors - would cast their mandated state votes, thus bypassing a direct popular vote.  They would be the fire wall to prevent disaster. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

However, irony loves a good rich laugh. Here's a comment I read somewhere that nails it:

"A very American outcome. The institution designed to prevent the installation of an unqualified candidate despite the popular vote is instead going to overturn the popular vote to institute the unqualified candidate."

So. If you have an interest in persuading Electors to hold off on their votes to the winner until they've been briefed by Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper, call his office:

1. CALL DIRECTOR JAMES CLAPPER: (703) 733-8600
2. TELL HIM TO BRIEF THE ELECTORS

You can click the following link for more information:

https://electoralcollegepetition.com/brief-the-electors/#gs.7zXHkZs

Whether or not you call to action, it's time to enjoy something really stupid. The set-up: Pee Wee Football players against Pro Team Mascots. The Pee Wees are probably about 10 years old. The Mascots are fully grown adults, and cloaked in foam and plastic. There's a lot of awful in this video, but it really is funny, in a way that is difficult to admit to.

Enjoy?

That's it for now. Please let me know what you think of The Shmaa's return, and how to improve it (no, not that!!).

Observing The Anniversary

I'm back again from another lengthy visit to Health Care Land, a place that really should be make-believe. If I ever hear another beeping IV monitor, it will be too soon.

There has been much hoopla regarding the 100-Day observance of the new Obama administration. The media buildup to this day has been considerable and would have truly reached critical mass except for the emerging Swine Flu hysteria that has swept across the national consciousness.

So yesterday was a day for proper reflection and remembrance, but not for the 100 Days and the problems of the nation. No, I refer, instead, to the 26th anniversary of the remarkable tirade by then-manager of the Chicago Cubs, Lee Elia.

Tirade is really too soft a word to describe the verbal blowout and mental meltdown that has placed Elia in the pantheon of spectacular self-immolators.

Much hope had been placed on the tough-talking Elia, who had been brought in to instill a rugged discipline to a perennially under-achieving team.

I recall how the Cubs created a pre-season TV ad campaign around Elia, featuring the grizzled guy talking directly to the viewer, describing his plans for an intense boot-camp-like spring training regimen. After reciting an exhaustive array of drills and exercises, he paused and said, "and then we take a lunch break..." and winked at the camera. As his visage was supplanted by the Cubs Logo and season ticket information, the soundtrack was that of a martial drum corps, pounding away in precise, thunderous rhythm.

And so when Elia's Cubs had lost another game on April 29, 1983, their record stood at a woeful 5 - 15. Cub Fan-dom was not happy. Many boos were released that day, reflecting a fan consensus that Elia's makeover plan had not taken root. Pressure was building on the manager, and on that day, this nut cracked. Here is a clip of his press conference following the game. Sensitive ears should not listen:

YouTube - Lee Elia Tirade - Chicago Cubs - 4/29/83

Wow. The hefty swath of grandmothers and Iowa families that constituted such a significant portion of Cubbie Fan-Dom were mortified. (Bear in mind that Harry Carey had just begun his reign of inebriation there after having been shown the door by White Sox management. His Cubbie cult of personality had just begun. And there were no lights at Wrigley yet. The emergence of Cub Fan as drunken Frat Boy hadn't taken hold.)

The die was cast. Elia had instantly alienated whatever niche of fans remained that believed in his "we're going to make these overpaid pussies perform!" schtick. Elia was removed as manager later that year. But his legendary rant lives on.

And as a bit of counter-balance, here is the always composed, ever-thoughtful White Sox manager, Ozzie Guillen, expanding on why his club was not performing to his expectations:

YouTube - Ozzie Guillen: Eessnadabeegdeal....to heeen

I love baseball.

Quote of the Day:

"I have discovered in 20 years of moving around a ballpark, that the knowledge of the game is usually in inverse proportion to the price of the seats." -- Former White Sox owner Bill Veeck

Happy Passover!!

Behold!!

Yes, I'm back from a prolonged immersion into our nation's fabled health care system. Feeling fine here, but I'm not the immerse-ee, though I would gladly switch places...

One of my all-time favorite movies is The Ten Commandments. It's so gaudy and vulgar and fun. Who can beat Edward G. Robinson's famous bleat, "Where's your Moses now?" Or Yul Brynner's shameless posturing. The under-appreciated Anne Baxter, playing against type, with her sultry "Moses, Moses, Moses" ... enough to tempt any man of God.

Of course, there is Chuck Heston as the reed, the man whom God would speak, Mr. Moses himself. He fills out the screen magnificently. As a physical specimen, Heston was a pretty good actor.

My favorite scene in the movie comes after the Israelites have been freed, and follows the Pillar of Fire and Parting of the Red Sea. As the tribes are sojourning their way across the dried Red Sea bottom, they approach the other side. They climb towards that shoreline. As they continue their upward hike, someone calls out to Moses: "Moses!! Climb up upon that rock so the people can see you and have hope!!"

Honestly. They've been improbably freed by Pharoah after numerous divine demonstrations of mighty and terrible plagues. God has placed a Pillar of Fire to block off Pharoah's army. God has parted the Red Sea for them to cross. And this fella in the crowd needs Moses up on a rock to give people hope???

No wonder they end up cavorting around a golden calf.

Great movie, and a terrific holiday. Too bad matzoh constipates like it does...

And here's George Carlin weighing in on The Ten Commandments:

YouTube - George Carlin: The Ten Commandments

Have a good Passover week!!

A Government Too Big To Fail

So much bother and bluster about bonuses to scoundrels, it's enough to be distracted from other more important aspects to our continuing economic debacle. Like the Fed (architects of the AIG bonus fiasco) announcing it will print up 1.2 trillion bucks so it can "purchase" more Treasury and mortgage bonds. What will happen when this action works its way through the economic system? Dollar death? Weimar-style inflation? Ugh.

At this point, I believe that the Fed is simply throwing stuff up onto the wall to see what sticks. It reminds me of when Mikhail Gorbachev was issuing rapid, wide-ranging, and system-changing policies during the heady Perestroika days. Turns out he was trying to shove his country out of the collapsing house of Communism before its rotten timbers buried them all. It is all so reminescent of today, where there are no more playbooks. And it may be that the system has to be destroyed in order to save the system.

Speaking of systems, here is a fun, even thoughtful, take on Obama's selections of the upcoming NCAA tournament:

A Bracket You Can Believe In - The Atlantic Politics Channel

It kinda cracks me up to read the comments. Some people have no sense of humor. And speaking of humor, here is a sorely-needed humor break, featuring Old Jews Telling Jokes!!

Old Jews Telling Jokes

Oh, what can be funnier? Well, how about this timely piece of economic satire?

YouTube - SponsorAnExecutive

Ho, ho. If it weren't so true, I'd really be laughing. Is it time for the pitchforks yet?

Quote of the Day:
"No amount of political freedom will satisfy the hungry masses." -- Vladimir Lenin

The Economy as Illusion

As I recall, there was a nifty moment within Kurt Vonnegut's neglected book, "Galapagos" where the narrator spoke about the long-past days of human civilization, and commerce. Money, he said, was not a concrete thing, not a set value, but existed because "we" as society gave it thought and ephemeral value. It wasn't real; it was an idea, a concept that required transparency and consent. But it was never more than an illusion.

In the book, the whole of human civilization came crashing down, creating a pandemic of panic and chaos, accompanied by a wicked plague that wiped out every person on Earth... except for a handful of survivors on the Galapagos Islands. Here is what the NY Times said about the book:

NYTimes

Ponzi schemes are constructed on illusion. Investors think they are getting something that is not. There is no transparency, only consent. All economic bubbles are based on the illusion that their growth will continue against all odds and timelines. "Bubble" investors think they are getting something, hoping onto the gravy train with everyone else. There often is transparency with Bubbles, but the eagerness of investors brush them past sober reality and into the realm of delusion and unsustainability.

Ponzi schemes. Bubbles. Scams (Enron and Worldcom take the cake for creating near-worlds of faux financial dynamics; but the future champions of the world may yet be revealed when the public gets its glimpse into Wall Street Banks). These are the viruses, the cancers that debilitate our economic structures. When they coincide, like they have over the last few years, the result is truly catastrophic.

So now we are poised at the precipice. The bulwarks of our economy indicate that there is no "there" there. Our major banks are zombies. Insurance companies are discovering they are wiped out. Pension funds/401Ks are dead. Firm after firm are examining their net worth and shuddering. What was once real is not real.

So where do we go from here? A further unveiling of fraud and stupendous, egregious awful judgments rendered by a smorgasbord of business execs who chose to pursue unsustainable profits via opaque financial techniques. As we all get pulled down into the maelstrom, it may come as a small comfort to know that... it's all an illusion.

And now, to lighten up a bit, here is a piece of anti-capitalism by those old agitators, The Clash:

YouTube - The clash - Police and Thieves

And the Quote of the Day:
"Nothing can have value without being an object of utility."
-- Karl Marx