@"News and Web2.0rhea"
I wish all news sources were reliable. I wish everything I heard was the truth, but unfortunately life isn't like that. Sadly not all humans are like that. Some lie to get their own way. Therefore we have to guard against the potential for lies and manipulation. Its a tiresome lesson but one everyone has to learn for their own protection. Everyone has to test what they are being told to see if it really is true or not.
The issue of reliability of news sources is a very important one, but ironically its an important lesson long over due. Media was once held up far too much as an authoritative source of views on subjects. Yet whenever we hold any source as authoritative, we expose ourselves to the potential that what we think we are being told is the truth. This is how propaganda has been disseminated throughout the centuries. Its how people in high profile positions have been able to abuse their high profile to manipulate and bias public opinion very often for their own gain.
So ironically the Internet's ability to expose the extent of unreliability of news sources is a big step forward for society.
History is filled with examples of groups of society believing too much in what their high profile leaders tell them and it is still a massive problem today in every country. Even more importantly this need to test what we are being told applies to all forms of leaders in every aspect of society and thankfully the Internet is starting to help expose leaders of groups who lie.
Yet one of the biggest problems we still face in society are the people who still follow their leaders unwilling to even believe their leaders could be lying to them. The worst lying leaders even teach their followers to look away from anyone who questions the intentions of these leaders. The leaders don't want their followers to see the truth. Fortunately the Internet is helping to expose these liars for what they really are.
For example, leaders are very often Narcissistic people who are desperate to have power over others because they fear anyone ever having power over them ever again the way they suffered excessive control and abuse as a child. So these Narcissistic people seek to become leaders of groups of people by whipping up their followers to allow the leader to have more power to influence all around them. Plus the Narcissists who are also Histrionic enjoy and love being the centre of attention that their power gives them. These also Histrionic people love attention because they seek to make up for the lack of parental attention they suffered as a child, which leaves them forever craving being in the centre of attention. So we have two personality disorders that both give reasons for these people to lie to others, to give them what they want for their own gain. The people with these personality disorders crave power and attention. Sound familiar?!
Now apply that to the behaviour of the terrorist leaders to see why they behave the way the do!. Its the very reason why we are all today remembering 911 with its incredibly horrific lesson that groups of people can be whipping up by their leaders to commit such horrific acts against other people. Don't forget leaders need a group to follow them to give the leader a feeling of power over people. So in the case of these terrorist leaders their rallying cry to get people to follow these leaders was to portray the American financial district as the centre of America power and these terrorist leaders wanted to destroy the symbol of that power. Look at the horrific lack of empathy these leaders showed driven ultimately by their endlessly desperate need to gain power themselves and through that need they were prepared to kill as many people as they could to gain their feeling of power over others.
Look also at how many times leaders of groups of people have committed horrific acts of violence to maintain their position of power over others. Its the same pattern time and time again, their need for power over others at any cost no matter how many die in the process. A Narcissistic personality disorder is ultimately about their need to be seen as having power over others. Its why they have such a need to portray themselves in having such a grandiose superior way over others. Sound Familiar?!
High profile people are able to use their high profile to lead and bias the views of large numbers of people and we have to question their intentions, but its still not happening enough. Too many people still want to believe too much of what others tell them.
What makes it harder to see the truth is some of the liars in society are not so aggressive people. The aggressive ones are easier to see for what they are. But the passive ones are still just as capable of lying just the same for their need to feel power over others and attention from others. They just let their followers do their bidding whilst pretending to be above such behaviour themselves. For example, even now, there are still many followers of religious leaders who refuse to believe their leaders are capable of any form of mental and even physical abuse of any of their followers. Yet try telling the idea that religious leaders don't abuse their followers to the many thousands who have been abused by catholic church leaders. Try telling the families of the millions who have died in the name of religions throughout history. Try telling so many millions of poor in so many countries that their money is making their religious leaders rich whilst they suffer poverty. Ask yourself what the leaders get out of telling their followers what to do.
Unfortunately the terrible horrors of the events of 911 illustrates all too well the importance that we all, in all societies around the world must learn to question all who seek to lead all groups of society. We must all bring an end to the lying manipulations of all leaders in all aspects of society and only collectively can we do that. So the Internet's ability to expose the extent of unreliability of news sources and the lying words of high profile people is a hugely important step forward for every society, that we all must defend from all who lead whilst seek to hide anything they and their groups do in society. The Internet finally provides us with a way to learn to build a better world for all of us.
Then hopeful some good can finally come out of the terrible pain and horrors of the events of 911 as we all try to build a better world for all of us and all future generations.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
