Discuss or Claim – Shoot Down in Flames

I’ll start into this with some statements, see if you agree with them.

  • It is easier to discount than to prove.
  • There is a section of humanity that has a very negative mindset and is personally insecure. It is sceptical and seeks approval by negating everything and disproving it, thereby showing just how very clever it is while claiming kudos from other negative peers for its I-told-you-so cleverness. There is an element of look-at-me to these behaviours. Strangely people seek to be both smug and clever, which at first pass seems contradictory.
  • It is easier to disprove than it is to prove.
  • People derive a great deal of seeming pleasure from shooting others down in flames and arguing the toss so as to apparently “win”.
  • They are stuck in their ways, primitive, possibly bigoted and old-fashioned.

In writing this blog I have chosen a largely discursive approach and have been fairly careful to not make any claims, profess said claims or adamantly proclaim accuracy. I have been careful in my use of language to avoid dogmatic assertion.

This dogmatic assertion habit is perhaps a bane of our times.

Were I to make claims there is a danger that people would prime their Gatling guns and take aim. Many like an assertion to aim at, particularly ones with numbers in so that the petty can nit-pick.

“You said you would limit immigration to 200,000 in fact we had 215,000 last year, you did not do what you said you were going to do. You lying bastard!!”

This pseudo-journalistic mentality is pervasive and makes arguments out of petty trivial stuff. Comparison mind never strays too far from the adolescent urinal pissing contest.

In approaching this blog I had one question, “What is the best way to approach closed concretised mind insistent on proof where none may exist?”

The answer I came up with was to adopt a discursive approach in the vain hope that these might at least stimulate some thinking. I am aware that the human mind is bullet-point and sound-byte, click-bait oriented these days. It is easy to gain wide publicity by making outrageous claims.

“Tariffs are already bringing trillions of dollars into the US treasury!!”

{US GDP ~ 30 trillion dollars, Federal tax revenue ~ 5 trillion }

Tariffs then {according to Trump} must already account  for more than 20% of the annual Federal income by use of the plural “trillions”. This statement cannot yet be factual.

It is the easiest thing in the world to make wild assertions, to gob-off and to make outrageous claims. Even were these factual it would be straightforward to find some way of discounting, casting doubt upon and otherwise undermining any claim. People love to find fault and pick holes in things.

Most people are already finding fault before they have reached the end of a sentence or heard what someone is trying to communicate. They can place so much stock in arguing the toss and dissing others. It can make them feel big.

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Do you like to shoot people down in flames?

Does it give you a boner or make you go damp?

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Do You Bat for the Same Team as Jesus and Buddha?

In our times where once again brutality and coercion are to the fore, where people soap box to gain attention, where adamant dogmatic assertion tries to overcome and suppress considered debate, there are many who do not bat on their team. The gargantuan ego of ME swells and seeks airtime. Many a brutalist claims God is on their side and that divine will is aback their wholly “justified” actions. But at one level we know that this is bullshit.

I’ll postulate that the gobshite occurrence frequency per unit population has risen sharply in recent years and that the decibel count of their most welcome interventions is significantly enhanced. After all, where would we be without the benefit of their omniscience?

I don’t recall either of these gentlemen advocating the use of 2000 pound bombs to blow poor, near defenceless people and their families, to smithereens. That is not the action of team Jesus or team Buddha. I don’t recall them ever mentioning doing “deals”, for mutual benefit. That is Mephisto talking. They never said love thy neighbour but only if he gives you a large wad of cash or rare-earth metals. Neither of these guys was conditional.

Viewed from more than one angle humanity and western humanity in particular is no longer bound by morals and decency. A “what is in it for me” mentality can be found on many sides. Genuine, as opposed to PR, altruism is rare. Sodom and Gomorrah would be seen as bastions of morality in our times. We have a president who allegedly knobs a porn star. There are many “leaders” whose legality is questionable. The corrupt get elected by the corruptible. There is a bit of a lads club.

We could re-write Matthew 5

Blessed are the loud gobshites, for they will talk over everyone and browbeat them into silence.

Blessed are the corrupt for they will slightly lower our tax burdens as a bribe for our collusion.

Blessed are the warmongers for they will enhance the values of our shares in the defence industries.

Blessed are the hypocrites for they will ban abortion but allow God like IVF. They have the power of life and death.

Blessed are the vengeful for they will stir our righteous ire to get our backing for their slaughter and death. We the just, shall prevail whatever the cost to the heathen subhuman hordes.

I don’t think Buddha and Jesus have many on their pre-season roster, they cannot afford the salaries, the perks nor can they give big kudos and internet fame. They can’t offer backhanders and jobs for the sycophants, pals and donors. It is not their way.

Whose team are you on?