Just when I was hoping the bottom was in on the nearly-incomprehensible decline of American’s critical-thinking, here comes another example of how Musitics and Politainment are wrecking our future.
The latest example of the blending of politics and music came with the Grammy’s. A typical headline from Mediaite? “Michelle Obama Shows Up at the Grammy Awards; Audience Promptly Lose Their Sh*t...”
America has failed the Global Critical-Thinking Contest. China’s ahead. India is ahead, Russia is ahead and there are a few other enclaves of people whose leaders understand that maybe it’s better to hold to some divisions between “news,” “entertainment,” and “politics.”
Join me for a second and let’s ask a couple of simple questions:
- Do people in the entertainment world have a better ability to lead that, oh, the head of any Fortune 500 company?
My guess is not only no, but an emphatic Hell no!
And yet, year after year we have seen the ongoing merger of entertainment and politics. It’s been slow, but steady progress.
Not only was Ronald Reagan an actor, but people like Bill Clinton played the entertainment game with this saxophone now and then. Didn’t the Bush family have something to do with the Texas Rangers of baseball? And isn’t one of Donald Trump’s claims to fame based on the TV show The Apprentice?
This should be sounding alarms high and low, but not a peep in the MainStreamMedia because they all know that journalism has decline to the point where there’s not really enough to fill up all the available channel-hours with legit “news.” So the blend is on.
Which gets me back to last night.
2. Do we want to American Aristocracy?
Call me old-school, but I cling tightly to the “term limits” idea. Ever since FDR went to the title democrats have sought-after since his 4-terms effort, thinking people have gone along with the idea that two terms in the presidency is enough. George Washington was right.
We have seen a number of “family aristocracies” appear in Washington. There was the Kennedy Clan – then there was the Bush family, and with last nights “hints” we can hardly wait to see another family make the run at aristocratic ambitions.
If you haven’t, block off an hour, or so, and read everything on Professor G. William Domhoff’s site over in University of California Santa Barbara territory. Which the site sums up this way:
The story of how the corporate rich won all the big battles is complicated, but most of the answers are in the new Who Rules America? and/or this Web site; you can also watch some videos of Bill giving invited lectures on the topic..
As Domhoff’s work has evolved over the years, it’s the 7th edition now, the subtitles have changed-up. Presently its Who Rules America? The Triumph of the Corporate Rich sums up the problem. But, I doubt the good professor would argue with our characterization of America descending into The Checkbook Republic, although corporate socialism is a weird major arcana of how we’re steering the American ship of state nowadays…
The implications of Musitics & Politainment are, in our view, most dangerous and it leads the country further into the online revolution and uprising against common sense as digitalantism and Digital Mob Rule (DMR) continue to evolve.
It is, of course, the “event marketer’s dream.” Unfettered by clear divisions in thinking, that has maintained “separation of Church and State” for a few centuries, there has been not such boundary or border surveyed to keep the “business of governing” business-like.
Entertainment, as we hold should be evident to all, is very similar to religions anymore: People “join” in supporting groups, perhaps being first “baptized” into the merger at an ancient AC/DC concert. Like churches, music groups (and certain film genres) have “mass” gatherings. They also hold to certain kinds of ethics – depending on your poison of choice in entertainment.
Marketers, quick to seize on any opportunity, have embraced Musitics and Politainment which accounts for why presidents (since Kennedy) have made such a “big deal” of musical performances at the White House. You see, it all serves to blur-the-vision of the dimly-sighted who can not see that music should have nothing to do with public policy.
Yet, from a Goebbels or either of the American corporately-owned parties standpoint, having a president “work the music” crowds is one of the key ways to differentiate from others. That because there are only four quadrants when it comes to politics:
The way Politainment and Musitics works goes something like this:
Say I have am strategizing for a political wannbe former first lady. How would I get her “lined up” with music people who aren’t savvy enough to understand group membership and the divide and conquer processes?
Well, stand her up in front of a multiple musics crowd and then have her give a rundown of what groups she wants. The implication (of the propagandists) is clear: If you like (insert from Michelle O’s playlist), then you must be A Michelle O supporter. (Or, an idiot, but I digress…)
Where this all turns into a nightmare, or at least becomes a bit dicey, is when people like Elaine and I come along. We’re very damn clear that music belongs in one room and politics in another. Elaine’s a dance-all-night disco diva but does that mean she’d vote for Barry White or Jeffrey Osborne in a political contest? No. Wouldn’t even begin to influence her.
Similarly, my taste for classic jazz (pretty much anything on the old Atlantic-Blue Note label would be fine…) doesn’t influence my politics.
But, for lazy-thinkers, what Bono or Keith Richards, or Baba has to say somehow matters. Then is slops over into comedy and it’s poor imitators (late night shows and SNL…) and the merger is complete.
While it will be somewhat clinically interesting to compare playlists of people in office, we hope you would pass along this revolutionary idea (keep music out of politics and politics out of music) to any of your friends who aren’t up to speed on how corporate exploitation works.
Thank you…uh…thank you very much. George is leaving the building now..
Seattle’s Snowpocalypse
As readers know, I am originally from Seattle where, until the lure of money became overpowering, I was quite content living on a 40-foot sailboat out at Shilshole. Four of the combined offspring of Elaine and I, plus many friends and one sister, are still in the Puget Sound area.
When is snows, we hear about it. Sister north of Seattle told me about 17-inches on the ground on Saturday..and there was more.
Eventually, we’d have caught on via the USA Today story “Seattle is having its snowiest February in 70 years – and more is on the way…” A look at the forecast says there will be flurries through tomorrow – unless the forecast changes.
All of this led to some interesting conversations with related parties on Climate Change. “Dad, see, this is climate changing!”
Sadly I had to inform otherwise: “Media bullsh*t hand-wringing. When Pappy was young, it got so cold that Green Lake froze over hard enough that he could ride his motorcycle across it. When it gets that cold, get me to me. In the meantime, Climate has been changing since the Laurentide Ice sheet melted so what’s going on now is just-another monetization…”
Slowly, it’s dawning on us why the kids don’t visit. Reality’s a bitch and they’d just as soon not deal with it. Fine…
Both coasts chill as Strong system brings wintry mix to Northeast.
Meantime, the power of marketing is revealed as Climate Change, ISIS and Cyberattacks Are Seen as the World’s Top Threats in a New Pew Poll.
Markets With No News Rally
We are expecting a rally today in the market since Dow futures are up 114 before the open. But what’s more, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the rally continue into the rest of the week since in our wildly speculative, never to be followed, view, there’s a small Elliott 5 to finish before we begin another slip-n-slide.
In the meantime Futures climb as U.S.-China trade talks resume.
U.S. Irreverency Department
Elizabeth Warren Says Trump ‘May Not Even Be a Free Person’ by 2020. Will her DNA change by then?
First U.S. tax filings under Trump’s overhaul off to slow start but we know that tons of investors won’t be able to file until a certain tyrading firm or several makes download of data available and on our platform that’s the 15th so maybe a pop next week in filings?
What kind of chess player is Putin, telling the world Russia: Venezuela hasn’t asked for military assistance?
Madness on bordering continues unabated as California Plans to Withdraw Hundreds of Troops From the Border in Defiance of Trump. You ctaching this, NORTHCOM?
Little news scheduled, so enjoy the “made up” stuff and we’ll have moron the ‘morrow with me playing the lead role of moron…
George it seems strange that all the commentators and Dem politicians call him lying Trump but they never seem to mention what he is lying about. Am I missing something?
No.
I have looked at starting a website called “CheckingtheFactCheckersWhoChecktheFactCheckersCheckingtheFacts.com.”
(When opened it would simply display)
IYSM?
How is self confessed liar Elizabeth Warren, on her Bar application in Texas still a lawyer in Texas. I thought lying, to the Bar no less, would be a basic disqualifier.
The most elemental requirements of integrity are gone.
George,
look at the 6 corporations that control the “NEWS”.
they are all really entertainment companies.
The are just pushing their brands.
Ding ding ding…we have a winner!
STOP all Federal funding to California since they do not want to follow Federal Law but ONLY want federal funds….Why do they even send tax payer monies to DC , just keep it and then DC does not have to be involved with a ‘rebel state’….by the way The STATE NATIONAL GUARD is under FEDERAL COMMAND and is FUNDED BY THE FEDS no state monies fund the National Guard in ANY STATE…that is why ‘State National Guards ‘ are not considered a ‘state militia’…as required by the “old relic’ Constitution…of which it is not in use today…except for TV shows interviewing political scumbags that ALWAYS reference the Constitution, but NEVER seem to OBEY it…imo
D:
“…political scumbags that ALWAYS reference the Constitution, but NEVER seem to OBEY it…”
These ‘political scumbags’ all take an oath to support the Constitution (although they don’t say which one). This oath is just as important as the one taken in a courtroom (or before testifying before the Congress). It is really swearing to the people using a government agency as an intermediary.
This means when they routinely break their oath they are committing a classI felony of perjury! A good current example is when one supports, in voice or deed, a ‘one world government’ which in my view is both sedition and treason. They routinely will claim that treason doesn’t apply since we are not in a declared war this would easily explain since we haven’t been in a declared war since WWII. But WAIT- this is by statute, and since when does a statute modify or supercede the Constitution?
It should be clear that these ‘political scumbags’ have, by their actions, declared war on us and we are too asleep, denial or distracted to notice.
What mechanism is available to hold these people to account if it is not already too late?
George,
Can’t take credit for the first two comments today, they belong to my wife.
First of all, she cut right to the heart of the matter. In her opinion, if we have no need to secure our borders and thus the security of we commoners; then why do we need security guards at the United States Capitol. I mean,after all, if there are no threats so why waste the money on security.
Second, if all the celebrity types and liberal politicians think socialism is so great; why don’t the celebs perform for free and the politicians work without pay and give up their accumulated wealth. Isn’t socialism supposed to mean equal across the board? Why is everyone in Congress so stirred up over China stealing intellectual property? Shouldn’t China benefit from our ideas, since they embrace socialism?
Now for my part. All these starry eyed snowflakes need to understand one thing. When the true hammer of socialism comes down, you will be told where, when, how, and if you can do anything. Get out of line and you will either disappear or possibly wish you could. The democratic-socialists may forgive your student debt, but there will be a price you have to pay. Big Brother will have his payment in some form.
I blame the entire problem on our public education system. I graduated high school in 1969, and even during my last few years in high school; I witnessed the corruption of our educational system. I was a small kid in high school (out grew that) of about 160 total enrollment. My senior year, our school somehow managed to send both a boys and girls basketball team to the state tournament. Our geography teacher, who also coached basketball, announced that since those teams would be busy with tournament play that they would receive a smooth 100 on the term exam. I politely informed my teacher that I had no problem with team members being given a make-up exam totally different to the one I would take; but if he insisted on giving them an unearned grade I wanted my 100 as well. At the time I had an average of around 98 in this class. I explained that I had no problem taking my complaint as high as necessary, if he persisted in this plan. May have lost some friends, but I made my point.
My point to the above, is that in any system; those in power will abuse that power if allowed to go unchallenged. Socialist government allows for the ultimate abuse of power. Which leads to one more thing that you should address in your power prepping handbook. Disguising the fact that you have power, water, food, etc. when the socialist masses do not. Better to disguise the fact that you have creature comforts, than have to constantly fight off those who were not prepared or wish the free ride. Not that you won’t have to fight upon occasion, but camouflage works wonders. Better to pretend to be without, than face a constant onslaught of beggars and thieves.
Chinese proverb: Rich man keep poor gate.
Michelle Obama showing Up at the Grammy Awards makes a prediction that Bill O’Reilly made on the Glen Beck show seem ever more likely to come true. Bill sees the huge field of Dem candidates basically destroying each other during the primaries, without a consensus nominee emerging by convention time.
Then comes the perfect candidate, unscathed by the months of negative campaigning. Yes, Michelle Obama, made to order with already high approval ratings and low negatives. She is the one person most all Dems would approve of and the “best” part is you get Barack back.
This seems way to likely. Thanks for the bad dream Mr. O’Reilly
Here’s a worse one: Hillary and Michelle run together, lol.
Moochil would play second fiddle to hildibeast and pres Moochil would be watching her back for fear of being arkansided.
Then the sider’s to the sidelines and Moochil goes on to pres after…God what a marvelous soap it will be.
Michelle and Hillary:
Ugh and Ogre.
No, Michelle and Oprah….. what a hormonal circle jerk!
Professor Dumhoff is at UC Santa Cruz, not Santa Barbara and I have seen him talk at Silicon Valley and San Francisco Commonwealth Club lectures. He is very engaging. His book is a must read. I have actually paraphrased that book a few times in my ranting here a few times.
About morphing entertainment and Politics…That’s 1000% the reason Trump was elected. He used the populist media trends of the day and rode that to victory. He could have campaigned in Pig Latin (his vocabulary sort of mimics that anyway) and still won, because he had the reality show format down pat. He took the best of the worst from shows like the Khardahsian’s (the reason why Kim K is his friend) Honey Boo, Wives of New Jersey etc. and turned it into a Presidential campaign. The sorry viewers of those shows became transfixed and binge watched Trump all the way to the voting booth….with a little help from Putin.
As far as the weather…the Bay Area is having it’s coldest winter as well. All the peaks are covered in snow. We occasionally get a dusting in the peaks of Mt Hamilton, Diablo and Tam, but the snow has been falling as low as 1,500 feet and even the coastal peaks have snow…which is extremely rare. Technically it is climate change…because the climate is changing. How it’s happening, I will leave to the experts. I just want my mid 60’s to 70 degree winters back.
Sorry Mark, you can’t have them.
They have been sacrificed on the alter of demagogues a tax-bloating scheme to fund the ultimate in non-productive human activity – making up more government.
Clean, non polluting, funded with paper, it’s the charlatan’s dream which is why, in the longer term, Founders of Falsity like Obama (carbon exchange promoter in Ill)_ and the veep-Gore will be seen in stark clarity over time. But not until we are wiser and that will only come from pain.
Gosh, though, it’s a fun sleigh ride, ain’t it?
George, really? The Republicans just added another $2 trillion to the national debt, debasing your beloved strong dollar, and you are off in La La Land about the Grammy’s and the EX-first lady?? As your lead??
While Your Guy is playing patty cake with the Russians? And all Your Guy’s key players are in jail or indicted?
Really? Really? Wow. Embarrassing. Wake up. Get your head in the game. Best, Mike.
1. Politics is money.
2. I defy anyone to find where I endorse the “strong dollar” notion
3. If there’d been pattycake with the Ruskies, Trump would have been indicted long ago. Nada. Stay up with the class..
Although considering playing pattycake with ladies from russia.. I have met a couple of ladies from Russia that I would gladly play pattycake with .And thank god for the opportunity..lol lol lol
Now, after thinking that I feel like a lecherous old man..
But you may be qualified to run for president somewhere, too
Actually, Mike, it’s a wash, since the $2 Trillion is offset by leaving the Paris Climate Accords. BTW, what is the price tag of the Green New Deal Your Team is proposing?
Mean the one from Canada they borrowed? (sorry, couldn’t help myself….)
I bet the new green whatever was more than the wall….
Come on George. We’ve been feeding anti-flatulence powder to the cattle in Canada now for a long time. No more global warming here!
What a great monetization, huh? Wonder if eating beef with anti-fart stuff in it is good or more tender?
https://www.pilulepet.com/en/5-fart-pill-for-humans
its to late to order for valentines day..
Just think a city with over a million residents.. a crowded office building.. confined in some lecture hall.. this one product could make the meeting go so much better..
No one of concern
There is a Japanese word that may have your answer but I don’t know if I can spell it correctly its etshetndye
PT’s Tax Scam Reform Act is starting to get bad press. If you get more money in your paycheck during the year, you will get a smaller refund or owe taxes. It is a rule of money. PT never mentioned this to the public & now it is showing up in the lower refunds being processed by the IRS. Millenials need to be told this because they don’t like to think of the consequences of their actions. They think, “Wow, more money in my paycheck, this has to be good” (assuming they even realize it). No, it is only good for the rich who pay the political corruption dues. PT’s tax reform was not designed to benefit the common man. It was rammed down our throats like Obamacare.
PT continues to waffle on the Wall. Has he reached his “Level of Incometence” as President.
ECS… that started with Reagan and Bush.. after congress tossed president Carter and Congress under the bus in 78 with the millionaire relief act… ( just like the new spending bill I might add..) Reagan had the thought that things still ran like they did when he was young man.. so the lets give it to the top and let it trickle down.. He should have asked any waitress he met on just how that works.. ( the absolute worst tippers are the ones with the money) ( I learned that the hard way delivering pizza’s LOL) and once they got the programs in place to try it it failed. in the early eighties. The country was about to stall and to bail out the banks they took the funds fro SS and used them.. I can still see and hear the pres on the news while I was eating supper.. LOL on top of it he deregulated necessities..and signed into affect NAFTA sending the world on the course we are on today. to stimulate the economy they gave out tax rebates and cheese …(and some of the best peanut butter I ever ate.. people just didn’t realize that when they store it for long term they remove a lot of the oil)
when that wasn’t enough they adopted a giveaway program called EIC that what most family middle class groups get…. where they could give the low income that was affected the most by NAFTA and the deregulation’s a way to continue to spend money and stabilize the economy..
in affect give thirty three percent more on their income.
When that failed to stabilize the economy with those in the lower and middle incomes not getting the programs they changed several times how to deduct taxes and would take out less but the tax remains the same. in order to make it so you didn’t have to pay in some ungodly amount.. I am trying to save up the several thousand I will have to pay in.. where I get upset is I know people that make ten times what we do and pay in less or nothing at all..
then again I am a bottom feeder and can’t afford to make any mistakes.. for a wealthy person they give a lot more room for them to mess with them a bottom feeder they would eat alive..
I got a cute story about a friend of mine and four hundred dollars..
they called him in and said he owed four hundred dollars.. he wasn’t trying to mess with them but it was a five year old return and he got angry.. yup angry.. he said he told the guy at the IRS well you can just go and SUCK WALLY… and the Irs guy let him know what he was going to do.. my friend came over and he was sheet white.. told me never ever tell anyone at the IRS to suck wally … they were not gentle and he ended up paying many times more than the four hundred dollars..
No questionable tax deductions will be done here..none it is as straight up as you will ever get. Life is different at the bottom.. at work you claim single at a higher rate and add twenty dollars to your deduction.
I have heard several times how they are giving away this or that.. well my sibling was ranting and raving one day and I said you know.. I never made enough to qualify for any of those give away programs.. LOL to own our home I had to get a loan that was at 18 percent interest and a balloon.. ( I was lucky though my banker I knew him since he was in High school so mine was written with no penalties if I paid it off early)
and I could make flexible payments.. pay half a payment every payday and ten dollars.. on principle.. the magic of compounding interests..
unfortunately most banks won’t let you do that..or make you pay interest first..
which brings up something that I Pizza’d off the homeless guy.. I offered to help him get setup.. but then not asking like how my wife suggested I should ask asked him if he ever learned how to budget.. with me my father would have him and mom and all the kids sit around the kitchen table and once a month go over the have to have items the must pays and the wants.. lay the income out on the table and the list then work out the months expenses.. with us we did envelopes.. same thing.. but most people I come across the subject of budgeting for your expenses comes off as sensitive as the SEX subject and the kids don’t seem to learn.. I was at my kids house and the grand daughter was asking about budgeting for an apartment they were like clams snapped shut thinking it was to private to speak about.. I jumped at the kids and said come on.. you got to let them know this stuff.. and told her honey if you want to know I will sit down with you and help you figure it out.. if you have any other questions please ask.. there isn’t any subject to taboo to talk about.
Billy gave China military secrets for personnel gain and hilary. Odama plains of cash to enemies of America personnel gain trash. Big drug bust in LA how many connuts and sennuts involved. They care about America
What type of world has the Democrat Liberal Agenda given us as millions are now living alone or as single parents, unable to establish an intimate relationship or unwilling to repeat the insane drama of past relationships. Others go from one relationship to another, from one pleasure-and-pain cycle to another, in search of the elusive goal of fulfillment through union with the opposite sex. Still others compromise and continue to be together in a dysfunctional relationship in which negativity prevails, for the sake of the children or security, through force of habit, fear of being alone, or some other mutually “beneficial” arrangement, or even through the unconscious addiction to the excitement of emotional drama and pain.
I read the “article” from the first link. It was appalling! If I was in the audience, I’d lose my sh*t for real. And I’d not clean up the mess! I see zero qualifications in Mrs obama for any political office – especially the presidency. She’s never run a business, never held political office, and is simply another rabble rousing housewife with too much time on her hands.
BTW, I can’t stand her preferred “music”, though that’s irrelevant. And how did she manage to get invited to the Grammy’s? I never got my invitation. She’s not a musician to my knowledge. In fact, I’m not sure she has any claim to fame, other than implicitly having screwed a former president at least twice and written a horrible “thesis” at Princeton that would have failed her other than for her racial “preference”. I read the thing and tried not to gag. This is the woman who was ashamed of her country until her husband ran for the presidency.
She and halfwit hildog are about as bad as it could get as candidates. They wouldn’t even make it as a comedy team, but without voter ID and a paper trail on ballots, all bets are off.
…Speaking of “entertainment:”
Junior is sulking today. I saw him a while ago and asked what was up. His reply was “The ‘Fortnite’ effect.”
He made money last week on EA, but can’t get out of his Activision position. Whodathunk a free game could upset the gaming market so much, and make so much money while doing so…
I sometime drop by and read http://www.what does it mean.com Kinda different read.
“Dad, see, this is climate changing!”
He’s absolutely Right!
it changed from me thinking about starting my seeds for the garden.. to getting another gallon or two of gasoline for the snowblower LOL….
“we know that tons of investors won’t be able to file until a certain tyrading firm or several makes download of data available and on our platform that’s the 15th so maybe a pop next week in filings?”
I called the insurance company to find out about the tax paperwork on what we spent for insurance…
oh we won’t start processing them till March 31….. what.. why not wait till may or june..