media – Engaging Peace

Thoughts about Thoughts

Posted on December 3, 2019December 3, 2019 by kathiemm

by Anthony J. Marsella, Ph.D.

Seeking Respite . . .

We seek respite from a relentless assault of information bombarding senses. Consciousness and conscience beg retreat. Daily life trials, media, commercials, TV/radio/music, ambient noise levels, are onslaughts, pressing for a response.

A quiet dinner with family, a glass of sherry, hugging a child, a good novel, a deep sleep, a smile from a loved one, a halt in bombing, food, water, a warm fire . . . temporary escapes from the world about us. Tides of information flood our lives. “There are tides in the life of men, which taken at the flood, . . . .”

Uncertainty thrives! Connection in our hand; solutions, problems, doubt . . . “To open or not to open, that is the question!”

A window beckons! Habit presses! St. Thomas Aquinas: “Habit is our second nature.” What have we become? We are I-Phone, screen, words! How distant from the time Pablo Neruda (Full Powers, 1962) poetically claimed the first word was uttered:

The word was born in the blood,

it grew in the dark body, pulsing,

and took flight with the lips and mouth.

. . . even now there is no thunder

that thunders with the iron sound

of that word, the first word uttered:

. . . perhaps it was just a whisper, a raindrop,

but its cascade still falls and falls.

With words came a desperate need to explore, to label reality, an inherent tendency to describe, understand, predict, control; functions of brain! Poetry, music, functions of mind! Information torrents flow with a click: fact, fiction, lies, deceit, betrayal, never truths, only endless representations.

A New Ontology . . .

Ambivalence! Seduction of the senses tempts us with words, images, sounds; we cannot ignore the call! We are, in a moment, alerted to a new reality, a digital reality, a binary code of 0s and 1s, quantum reality, and beyond! A digital reality! At last escape from place and mind! How distant from the first word uttered!

Existence! We are one with a glowing window in our palm. Certainty, uncertainty, who cares? We seek affirmation amid tenuous habits, beliefs, hopes; prisoner now to a habit, addiction ushered upon us by the times.

“What have I missed? What do I not know? What places me at risk? What offers me favor?” Information negotiation amid rapid access to knowledge, wisdom, impulse. 5G will offer faster speeds, solutions, confusion.

We withdraw to protect sanity! We refuse to contest! We pretend our life, all lives, are to be questioned, accepted, avoided! It cannot be! Stop! Start!

All is personal! Events in distant lands beg awareness, judgment, action. Floods in Bangladesh! It is what it is? Killing and rape in Myanmar! Tragic! Helpless! Plastic wrapper on food! Do not purchase in future. So little choice! Share opinions on political candidates. Minions reply!

Treasured virtues fall before us, demands upon our being: justice, honor, courage, honesty, compassion, patience. Who said these were admirable? Ancients! Priests! Prophets! Gone! Commission and omission sins!

What can I do? What should I do? Conscience asks too much of me! Others ask more! Foes are legion!

“I am only one……. but I am one!

In me are others! Many others!

Many denied me! Many hurt me! Many cared! Many………

Response is a test; always a test, never free from tests! Tests every day, in many ways; demanding tests of nature, character, breeding, identity!

I flee from foe, but I return for the struggle! Delude myself I will survive. Mirror image remains. What did we do before mirrors? Narcissus used a pond! Image essential. Deceit possible! Daily encounter with self!

If I succumb to pretense, and retreat, it is I! If I take up challenges, it is I! If I . . . “Aye that’s the rub!”

Thoughts on thoughts on thoughts . . . . . .

How to overcome gridlock

Posted on February 9, 2018February 25, 2018 by kathiemm

By Dr. Neil Wollman

Note from Kathie MM: This is a lightly edited version of an article by Dr. Wollman originally published by National Issues Forums in 2013—a message as important as ever in 2018.

In the face of recent partisan government gridlocks, let’s consider a new way to make some policy decisions. What if citizens voted not only for candidates in presidential elections, but also for policies directly affecting their own welfare—including budget priorities? A strong, definitive public voice on contentious issues could reduce government gridlock and perhaps even avert a government shutdown!

One advantage of public referenda or initiatives would be giving legislators political cover to cross party lines and get government working. Who knows, maybe legislators would start working together. But beyond this, voter turn-out could increase and some measure of faith in government might be restored as people feel their voices being heard. Candidates for political office would be pushed to discuss policies that were up for a vote. Once elected, they would be more beholden to the public’s interests and less able to claim a policy mandate simply because they won.

In Colorado, ballot initiatives are now common practice , and they energize and engage the voting public. Over more than 20 years, Colorado citizens have supported measures like a strong ban on gifts from lobbyists to politicians, the first renewable energy mandate, campaign finance reform, increased K-12 funding, and term limits.

Many details must be addressed if direct democracy is to be implemented on a national level. How many items should be presented, and how would they be chosen? Should the closeness of a vote affect implementation? Should items involve very broad issues or relatively specific policies? Would the President and Congress be bound by a vote or required to follow particular guidelines in considering voting results? Would there be “referenda” (introduced by legislators) or “initiatives” (initiated by citizens)?

Admittedly, this process likely requires a constitutional amendment, initiated by Congress or by a constitutional convention called by state legislatures (all amendments thus far went through Congress first). So, indeed, which groups and leaders must be brought on board before this system is approved? Citizens’ groups, media, public interest groups, and others will need to pressure Congress to bring this proposal to fruition. A sympathetic president would surely help. A non-partisan commission, including both government and non-government constituencies, could work through the details and enlist those needed to implement the proposal.

This would not be a perfect system (none is). However, if you find merit in this proposal, discuss it with your neighbors, elected officials, and others. Interested organizations could collaborate to make direct democracy a reality. Many Americans are dissatisfied with our current political system. Let’s give real democracy a try.

Neil Wollman, Ph.D., Senior Fellow, Bentley Alliance for Ethics and Social Responsibility; Bentley University; 260-568-0116

Media and Gun Violence: Allies or Combatants?

Posted on March 13, 2017March 9, 2017 by kathiemm

by Sarah Mensch

The Columbine High School Massacre in 1999 resulted in the deaths of twelve students, a teacher, and two shooters. Most recall that April day and feel sorrow, grief, fear. Such is not the case for the 74 people who planned their own shootings inspired by the Columbine massacre in 30 different states since the 1999 shooting . Twenty-one of those planners were successful in their plots, killing 89 more people, and injuring 16 others; nine of the perpetrators themselves died in the attacks.

These post-Colombine attacks reflect a phenomenon dubbed “copycat crimes,” in which prospective perpetrators are so in awe of a homicidal crime (usually a shooting) that they aim to honor it or out-do it by carrying out their own attack on the anniversary of the event that inspired them or planning to kill more victims than the attackers they mimic.

The media appear to play an enormous role in supplying the details and perhaps enhancing the motivations for copycat crimes.

Movies, TV shows, and social media platforms provide stories that contribute to glamorizing the criminals. After a shooting, the perpetrator’s face is plastered all over cyberspace and the news. His tactics are revealed in detail, and speculations are made about what kind of person the shooter was, what drove him to act as he did. Debates proliferate and are rehashed.

The shooter is generally portrayed as a loner, and this makes him an antihero. The antihero image and bombardment of information and imagery may provide a fertile seedbed for copycat crimes to take root.

What we have learned about copycat crimes should serve as a powerful impetus for a change in media rhetoric. News media have an obligation to report truthful news, but how about shifting the focus of the shooting stories from the perpetrators to the victims?

Why not emphasize the victims’ stories, the grief to their families and friends? How about information on the role of the media in the impact that gun crimes have on various audiences? Giving media power to victims of shootings might counteract the glamorized antihero status that often seems to be given to the shooter.

Isn’t it time to share widely the research on the media role in supporting gun violence and stimulate public efforts to curb the role of the media in copycat crimes?

Sarah Mensch is a psychology major at Boston University. She is thrilled to be working on a Directed Study focusing on the effect of the media on gun violence under the supervision of Dr. Malley Morrison. When Sarah graduates, she aims to go on to graduate school to earn an MSW and become a therapist. In her spare time, Sarah enjoys pursuing her minor in Deaf Studies, photography, and exploring Boston.

The first casualty of the last war, and the next war, and the next

Posted on January 8, 2015January 8, 2015 by kathiemm

: Aeschylus, an Ancient Greek writer of theatrical plays. This file is made available under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication

Greek writer and poet Aeschylus (525–456 BCE—a very long time ago!) proclaimed that “Truth is the first casualty of war.” Isn’t it just as true in the US as elsewhere that supporters of war try to prove they are in the right, and use lies and distortions to support their position?

And think of the advantages to the military-industrial-media complex of gaining support for a “war on terror” instead of a war only on the selected evil country of the moment. Given our government’s policies, there are likely always to be a few terrorists around. What a swell way to guarantee a perpetual war with perpetual profits—in money and/or power.

In his Monday post, Dr. Anthony Marsella wrote passionately about how the power structure in the US has used Propaganda, Media Deception and Abuses, and Lies to convince Americans that being dragged along one path of violence after another is not only in their best interests but also the right thing to do.

Once the mainstream corporate media, a strong arm of the power structure, has planted misinformation in people’s minds, it can be a challenge to get those people to rethink their views. (Remember the expression “Don’t confuse me with facts. My mind is made up.”) For example, long after it was well established that Iraq did not have the weapons of mass destruction that were the purported reason for the 2003 US invasion, some people, especially conservatives, continued to insist that the weapons were there.

In order to override misinformation, lies, and propaganda, it is helpful to have the facts communicated by people who are seen by their audience as having some credibility. That is why the efforts of anti-war veteran activists to lead us from the path of war to the path of peace are so important.

Check out the sites for:

Iraq Veterans Against War: http://www.ivaw.org/

Vietnam Veterans Against the War: http://www.vvaw.org/

Veterans for Peace: http://www.veteransforpeace.org/

And, in particular, listen to this interview with Ross Caputi, a frequent contributor to this blog: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7ZwuizScxw

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