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Imagine you are a mouse — a placid little creature — living in a labyrinth. You don’t know it’s a labyrinth; it’s just where you live. You follow a well worn path, meandering along, chasing the red button. The red button provides you with food or whatever makes you happy. But you’ve started to notice that things are changing. It’s not as good as it used to be in the labyrinth, not as easy to get to the button. And the payoff when you get there isn’t as good anymore. You’re anxious, but you’re not sure what to do. You’re...

Dr William Makis has reviewed 8 published papers that clearly show the techniques employed by governments world wide to ensure vaccine uptake. From punishments and threats to employment and reputation, to rewards for complying, studies show that the Covid vaccine rollout was aided by the the greatest psychological fear campaign in human history using tried and tested brainwashing techniques.Propaganda Series – Brainwashing Techniques Used to Increase COVID-19 Vaccine Uptake – 8 papers reviewed, looking at the psychological manipulation of the massesThis article originally appeared on makismd.substack.com by Dr. William MakisPapers Reviewed:2023 Jun – Steffens et al – “Testing persuasive messages...

resident Biden’s Sept. 1 speech in Philadelphia on “unity” is a poignant example of the confusion surrounding the concept of democracy. Mr. Biden declared that MAGA Republicans threaten “the very foundations of our republic.” The phrase a “threat to American democracy” is so commonplace these days that it hardly carries any meaning—except that it encapsulates the reigning ideology of our time, an ideology so pervasive that it almost goes unnoticed. It is like the air we breathe. I call it democratism. It is an imaginative and idealistic understanding of popular rule that disdains ordinary people and looks to a cadre...

The past two weeks have been quite an adventure for people who are concerned about the direction which American civil society has been taking recently. The widely reported leak of the Supreme Court’s impending decision in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organisation led to a system-wide meltdown on the Left. Since then, they’ve been “protesting” at the homes (and threatening the safety) of conservative SCOTUS justices, which is a federal crime. Violent left-wing fanatics have been firebombing pro-life HQs and pregnancy centres across the country. More generally, lefties have been making royal nuisances of themselves as they’ve...

I studied Latin for ten years at high school and then Melbourne University in an era when the classics mattered more than now. Vergil was one of my personal favourites. I still love the way his ancient words are woven together. That time of Latin poetry was very different to what the political rubbish heap onto my love of language now. In my modern life, under the misandry of the Socialist Left police state of Victoria in Southeast Australia, actions like lobbying a politician for WW2 commemoration, looking at a window and asking a young woman to obey the laws...

We may witness the final unraveling of the social contract in America Having won the White House, the House and the Senate, the victorious Republicans have handed the Democrats the budget process. In doing so they have surrendered everything they were supposedly fighting for: no wall, no end to Obamacare, no end to sanctuary cities, and no end to funding for Planned Parenthood. The Democrat leaders are celebrating their victory after losing election after election. Those of us who voted Republican, who voted to get our country back, are mourning a loss after winning election after election. This does not...

There was a time, within living memory, when the achievements of others were not only admired but were often taken as an inspiration for imitation of the same qualities that had served these achievers well, even if we were not in the same field of endeavor and were not expecting to achieve on the same scale. The perseverance of Thomas Edison, as he tried scores of materials for the filament of the light bulb; the dedication of Abraham Lincoln as he studied law on his own while struggling to make a living — these were things young people were taught...

This week President Obama said the obvious: that wealthy Americans, many of whom pay remarkably little in taxes, should bear part of the cost of reducing the long-run budget deficit. And Republicans like Representative Paul Ryan responded with shrieks of “class warfare.” It was, of course, nothing of the sort. On the contrary, it’s people like Mr. Ryan, who want to exempt the very rich from bearing any of the burden of making our finances sustainable, who are waging class war. As background, it helps to know what has been happening to incomes over the past three decades. Detailed estimates...

The Fix Is In: Washington's Planned Social Contract Destruction Politics / US Politics Jul 24, 2011 - 06:17 AM By: Stephen Lendman The criminal class in Washington is bipartisan, united against working household interests. In fact, lawmakers yield on virtually everything big money wants, notably when banks and other corporate favorites are affected. Last December, Obama capitulated to Republicans, rigging a deal for up to $1 trillion dollars in handouts, mostly to corporate giants and America's wealthy with working households almost entirely left out. They still are, enduring a protracted Main Street depression, stiff-armed by Obama-led bipartisan crooks. In fact,...

For the second time since he arrived on his Hawaii vacation, President Obama came out of seclusion to address the American People about the almost tragedy, committed by the Burnt-Ball-Bomb-in-Brief Bomber. The first time on Monday, he was too late (three days after the attack) and uninspired. The second speech he proved that the priorities of his administration have been wrong all along. The POTUS characterized the lapse in Airport security as "totally unacceptable. "It's becoming clear that the system that has been in place for years now is not sufficiently up to date to take full advantage of the...

The English philosopher Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) is remembered for his political philosophy. His 1651 book Leviathan influenced the thought of John Locke and the Founding Fathers of the United States. Many of his ideas are taken as good but can be understood as "good" only when viewed through the Enlightenment and Protestant Humanism. In the Eastern Church, Hobbes' work is rarely considered, except to recognize that it departs from and has little in common with Holy Tradition. In Leviathan, Hobbes develops his contractarian political philosophy, often quoting the book of Genesis. He dances around the "orders of creation", which for...

I’m going to start with a most controversial proposition: No government has the right to exist. First, I must specify what I mean by a right. We can define a right in many different ways, but the one thing that all conceptions have in common is that they are, ultimately, a justification for the use of force, or more simply, “I’ll kick your ass if you try to take this away.” If I have, for instance, a right to action or property, this means ultimately that I am ethically justified in using force to oppose you if you try to...

Cradle to Grave Conservatism? by: Bethany Stotts, January 05, 2009 Airing a new book which purports to think outside the policy box, Joseph V. Kennedy, author of Ending Poverty, explained his solution to the problem of American poverty at Heritage this December. “Conservatism does not imply the complete absence of government involvement in the market, nor does it imply that economic interests always are paramount and that raising [Gross Domestic Product] GDP should be the sole goal of public policy,” he argued. “What conservatives do advocate for are the importance of individual freedom, restrictions on the arbitrary powers of government,...

I left my headlights yesterday at work and so I couldn't drive home. There were few people around, but I asked this group of people for a jump (I told them I already have cables). One guy said to call the wrecking company. I have no money for a wrecking company, I'm a father of 3 young kids and we barely squeeze by each month. They had their cars there, all they had to do was drive a whole 20 yards and pop a hood open to let me hook up the cable. It would cost them absolutelly nothing besides...

NewsweekFeb. 14 issue - He got the ball rolling at the State of the Union. But it's no ordinary fight. On trial: America's core belief in the social contract, and its faith in the private sector. In the abbreviated genealogy of wristband empathy, "Live Strong" yellow was first, followed by pink for breast cancer, blue for tsunami relief and olive green for the troops in Iraq. Now Rock the Vote, a youth-oriented grass-roots group, hopes to make a new jewelry statement. The color is unchosen but the message is settled: "I [Heart] Social Security." In tandem with AARP, the seniors'...

<p>After years of government deregulation of energy markets, telecommunications, the airlines, and other major industries, Democratic presidential candidate Howard Dean is proposing a significant reversal: a comprehensive "reregulation" of US businesses.</p> <p>The former Vermont governor said he would reverse the trend toward deregulation pursued by recent presidents -- including, in some respects, Bill Clinton -- to help restore faith in scandal-plagued US corporations and better protect US workers.</p>

Reich Sees Need for New Social Contract By Stefanie Cohen, Eagle Correspondent LENOX -- Whatever happened to the social contract? What happened to the tacit, but guaranteed understanding that if a company performed well, then its employees would benefit? That raises would be offered, and pensions would grow? Robert Reich, the former secretary of labor under President Clinton and one of four Democratic hopefuls for governor of Massachusetts, argued Monday evening that certain unwritten, but nonetheless understood, ideals about labor in the U.S. can no longer be expected by citizens. But Reich believes the time is ripe for their return....

The Social Contract and Other Myths by Butler Shaffer Myths and lies have been major contributors to the indoctrination of children into the prevailing culture. Our earliest experiences usually included stories about Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and the Tooth Fairy, characters we swore were integral parts of the cosmic scheme. In time – usually with the help of our more skeptical friends or forthright parents – we experienced the pains of disillusionment, and even prided ourselves on how sophisticated we were vis-a-vis our more gullible younger siblings. As young adults in a "bottom-line" world, we managed to discard more...