tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post6876897678652973925..comments2024-03-16T09:24:45.474+01:00Comments on 22 Billion Energy Slaves: Q is for Quotidian Fluctuations in a TeacupJason Heppenstallhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-56174832106015244662017-08-23T11:29:30.658+02:002017-08-23T11:29:30.658+02:00Jason
I only just now returned to your website. My...Jason<br />I only just now returned to your website. My goodness - glad to hear your hand has mended! <br />I missed your post-election piece about Britland in a teacup – a bit late in the day to comment but nicely done if you don’t mind my saying so. <br />I spent Election Day in a Labour constituency which had thought it was under threat. On the doorstep Labour supporters were pretty cheered to be contacted: NHS, Education, no-brainers. In the Constituency Office they had a wall poster with 100 points from the manifesto. I read it while taking a coffee break and it was an impressive accumulation.<br />A guy turned up who had been at an impressive Corbyn rally in Gateshead a day or so before. He was a newcomer to Labour activity and was sufficiently fired up to spend a day on the street. <br />It occurred to me that though I am older than Corbyn, I too have a beard and ride my bike and grow organic veg. What’s not to like?! Grin. I never had the bottle to ride a motorbike behind the Iron Curtain although I did jog once into what had been East Germany not long after the fence had been taken down. Anyway all things considered I wish the old boy well.<br />Keep up the good work your end of the realm.<br />best<br />Philphilsharrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16992266289232459952noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-62633492032808492222017-07-18T01:41:10.267+02:002017-07-18T01:41:10.267+02:00That was an entertaining synopsis of the clustercu...That was an entertaining synopsis of the clustercuss on your side of the pond. I don't even keep up with the monkey show in Merika because it's all bullshit and propaganda paid for by the corporatocracy. The fact that President Dump is the president makes it clear that it's all a crock of shit. <br /><br />I'm glad to see you writing again. It's been slow with JMG taking the break and you getting hurt. <br />Luciddreamshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02128676983998762432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-72987757900351806352017-07-16T20:21:05.566+02:002017-07-16T20:21:05.566+02:00> "And these people once ran a whole empir...> "And these people once ran a whole empire?"<br /><br />No, not /these/ people. It was /some/ of their parents and grandparents. This lot are the wasters and playboy superbrats who inherited empire after all the hard work had been done.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-79228986979354186992017-06-27T23:07:58.405+02:002017-06-27T23:07:58.405+02:00More satire, please! It is satire, isn't it?
...More satire, please! It is satire, isn't it?<br /><br />'Life's a jest/ I always thought it/ Now I'm dead/ I know it!'<br /><br />The author of that inscription had it nailed. <br /><br /> The contortions of the hypocritical Guardian regarding Corby are a delight, and also their posturing on social housing -I remember how snooty the rather wealthy Polly Toynbee was in the office lift, having to share space with the peons......<br /><br />Delighted you are writing again.<br /><br />Xabier<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-83354241531691698162017-06-22T12:50:30.071+02:002017-06-22T12:50:30.071+02:00Yes - if I wrote it all out in prose it would be s...Yes - if I wrote it all out in prose it would be several thousand words long!Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-31644139346194086652017-06-20T15:38:13.822+02:002017-06-20T15:38:13.822+02:00Don't blame you for doing the recap as bullet ...Don't blame you for doing the recap as bullet points. Thing are so convoluted and illogical, a linear narrative would turn in to a surreal novel. Bullet pointing the last hundred days here in Trump's reality show would be a large depressing task.<br /><br />Steve Carrowhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11706114439618856525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-83868601202731981102017-06-15T22:19:32.918+02:002017-06-15T22:19:32.918+02:00Ah yes - the perfect background music!
Either th...Ah yes - the perfect background music! <br /><br />Either that or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MK6TXMsvgQg" rel="nofollow">this.</a>Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-45839900659011694962017-06-15T14:06:25.747+02:002017-06-15T14:06:25.747+02:00This post is best read, IMHO, while playing the th...This post is best read, IMHO, while playing <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QejBwptSQZc" rel="nofollow">the theme to the seventies sitcom "Soap"</a> on a repeating loop.Mister Robotohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08724938709642010624noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-15014971116780689642017-06-14T11:05:23.021+02:002017-06-14T11:05:23.021+02:00Coincidentally ... someone just sent me a link to ...Coincidentally ... someone just sent me a link to this article about what's wrong with journalism and how to fix it. It's written by Nafeez Ahmed, who you may know is a kind of collapse writer and blogger, but is also quite well known as a decent journalist. I haven't read the whole thing yet, and most of it seems to be his life story, but it seems like it could be interesting. <br /><br /><br /><a href="https://medium.com/insurge-intelligence/journalisms-next-frontier-crossing-the-threshold-from-having-to-being-cdedb1d5f498" rel="nofollow">Journalism's Next Frontier</a>Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-40209403186091606552017-06-14T10:57:17.572+02:002017-06-14T10:57:17.572+02:00Hi Dennis - brewing ale is a key skill in a civili...Hi Dennis - brewing ale is a key skill in a civilisational collapse scenario. There can be no bleaker image of the future than a bleak image of the future without a pint of craft nettle ale in your hand!Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-69570519700192489902017-06-14T10:54:31.241+02:002017-06-14T10:54:31.241+02:00Hi Chris - yes, I've been trying to figure thi...Hi Chris - yes, I've been trying to figure this out for a number of years as well. I know people like to blame media barons for the poor state of the media, but I think there's more going on than that. I really do think that human being as narrative-driven animals, and whoever gets to control the flow of narratives we are being fed, also controls how we think, feel and act. John Michael Greer wrote about thaumaturgy (magical mind control) a while back, and it seems very plausible that the media, along with the advertising industry, really is shaping the human narrative to their advantage.<br /><br />The internet may well have kicked that door down good and proper and woken people up to the fact that we can create our of narratives and ways of living in the world. This must be truly scary for them and may account for their business model circling the drain. This can only be a good thing.<br /><br />Young people want to get into 'the media' because they think it will be exciting and glamorous. In my experience there isn't much truth in this. Most of them will end up being interns for years before eventually moving onto something more profitable, such as window cleaning or street sweeping. The ones who 'make it' will mostly be the sycophants, although good, talented journalists do still exist in isolated numbers.<br /><br />Most journalism, however, is crap. One of the main reasons it is crap is because intellectualism is discouraged. The modern journalist has to produce articles at a breakneck speed, meaning there is only time to scratch the surface of the subject. To meet their targets they must copy one another and not get bogged down in twee details, such as whether it is true or not. There's a saying that "99% of journalism is plagiarism" - and that's an old pre-internet saying too. <br /><br />That's my very potted take on it, at least - but it's a huge subject and there are no obvious answers.Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-51278457528748712222017-06-13T23:55:15.315+02:002017-06-13T23:55:15.315+02:00Hi Jason,
You know, I have been wondering for a w...Hi Jason,<br /><br />You know, I have been wondering for a while - and you may have more thoughts about this than I - whether the problems in the media are because:<br /><br />a) the concentration of media ownership has reduced in recent years;<br /><br />b) the number of journalists employed by that media has reduced (incidentally we apparently have more students studying journalism in this country than there are even jobs available - how does that work?) in recent years. Job security in that industry must not be good as a consequence;<br /><br />c) I reckon that paid articles must be on the rise because it is hard to maintain the same level of output whilst at the same time reducing the number of employees producing said output; and / or<br /><br />d) The whole social media thing is a bit of a chicken and egg argument. Which came first? Or is one the cause of the other, or is one the effect of the other?<br /><br />Dunno, but to be so consistently wrong must ring alarm bells for them? Maybe that is why the shrill tone has snuck its way into the discourse?<br /><br />Thanks for taking the time to write your synopsis and if it means anything to you, I'm also very impressed with the efforts at the ever expanding the money supply. It really is quite an impressive feat. It would be distressing for the people having to press the print button. Surely they must know that they can't get off the carousel?<br /><br />Cheers<br /><br />ChrisFernglade Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06950962122594709186noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-69971851114975121162017-06-13T17:57:15.475+02:002017-06-13T17:57:15.475+02:00As a sign of American exceptionalism. We manage to...As a sign of American exceptionalism. We manage to create the same insanity with only two parties. I do admit we first learned empire building and bumbling from the mother country. More importantly we are beginning to learn to brew a half decent ale. Unfortunately I learned to drink in London so I developed early onset alcoholism and have not be able to enjoy our micro breweries. Life is humbling if you pay attention!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02036092622549367667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-73424306599797086982017-06-13T15:07:03.966+02:002017-06-13T15:07:03.966+02:00Hi Chris. Oh, yes, it's pretty much all monkey...Hi Chris. Oh, yes, it's pretty much all monkey business at this point. As for the media, well, the joke's on them. Even older people are turning away from the established newspapers as they've too become hooked into the social media vortex. I personally know a 70ish year old man who has been a lifelong Tory supporter and is now 100% against them. <br /><br />I'm sure a thousand PhDs could be written on the effect of the electronic and social media on people's state of consciousness ....<br /><br />We don't produce an awful lot of useful stuff these days, compared to when we were coal-powered and could export wherever we liked. Since the 1970s we've been moving towards a service economy backed by fiat currency and asset bubbles. It's amazing that this kind of magic trick could have lasted so long but it seems that it is caving in on us and all sorts of political groupings are scrambling to claim the largest chunks of debris. If and when people realise how bad the situation really is I'm going to put on my tin hat and move into the basement until the shouting stops. If it ever does.<br /><br />Jason Heppenstallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17886109260870545074noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5584699251999622098.post-69350068444694494612017-06-13T14:11:30.286+02:002017-06-13T14:11:30.286+02:00Hi Jason,
A thoroughly enjoyable study of the sit...Hi Jason,<br /><br />A thoroughly enjoyable study of the situation and I personally have been very entertained by the recent goings on up your way. You may find it interesting that we have had the same shenanigans going on down here in Parliament for a while. The inescapable conclusions to me is that:<br /><br />a) the media is certainly not being listened too by the general populace - otherwise how could they get it so wrong. They look to me like the mage that believes their own spells; and<br /><br />b) if the Parliament is anything like the monkey business down here, then clearly they are not doing their jobs of governing and sooner or later someone will point that out.<br /><br />PS: Really got a laugh out of the: (yet)!<br /><br />Cheers and good luck!<br /><br />ChrisFernglade Farmhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06950962122594709186noreply@blogger.com