"Everything is a distraction from something much, much worse"

brianlux

Exactly what I and other have been thinking/saying for a while now.  Please read and consider:

"Americans, you need to start paying attention. Like, really paying attention — to the issues that actually matter.  Stop getting distracted! Take this Russian collusion nonsense. Lots of Americans are obsessed with it, but it’s just a shiny distraction.  Yeah, sure, it looks as though members of the Trump campaign lied repeatedly, including on live TV and in Senate testimony and on security clearance forms about their contacts with Russians. It looks as though they may have been eager to get their hands on possibly illegally obtained information from a hostile nation. “I love it,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote when offered dirt on Hillary Clinton explicitly offered as “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.”

But that’s merely what the nine-dimensional-chess players in the White House want you to be obsessing over. Focusing on the terrible things Team Trump did during the campaign and transition conveniently distracts you from all the terrible things Team Trump is doing during the presidency."

The administration is repealing consumer and environmental protections left and right. The Education Department is making it easier for for-profit colleges to defraud students. The Environmental Protection Agency has delayed an air pollution rule that the agency had determined would likely prevent the poisoning of children. The Trump deregulatory team is rife with former lobbyists and others who have conflicts of interest.  President Trump and his family members likewise appear to be financially benefiting from his role in the White House.

Yet fussing over regulatory decisions and vaguely sleazy behavior is itself a distraction from an even more important issue: the fact that Republicans are trying to remake one-sixth of the U.S. economy, largely in secret, while ripping health insurance away from 22 million Americans."

Read more here:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/everything-is-a-distraction-from-something-much-much-worse/2017/07/13/a42384e0-6809-11e7-a1d7-9a32c91c6f40_story.html?tid=sm_fb&utm_term=.167c6325b19b

bootlegger10

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

brianlux

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

brianlux

I told my wife about this article and I said, "It's like someone's house is on fire and they're more worried about having ants in the kitchen." 
She said, "Exactly!"

Bentleyspop

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

Much more powerful forces?
Like ZOG?
NWO?
The Rothschilds?

brianlux

Bentleyspop said:

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

Much more powerful forces?
Like ZOG?
NWO?
The Rothschilds?

LOL. "forces" was a weak choice of words.   

brianlux

Let's not be afraid or uncomfortable talking about the subject of this article.  It's serious stuff, for sure.

PJ_Soul

I think many are aware of this, and it's the media who are allowing the loud shit overpower the most important shit. It is unfortunate (not that a lot of the loud shit isn't important too, a lot of the time BTW! It's not so much that that isn't what we should be paying attention to. We just need to be paying attention to MORE stuff). I don't blame the media 100% for such a narrow offering of news. It is ultimately the fault of the consumers. it's not like the news media hasn't tried to cover the more important but less exciting and juicy content... the consumers weren't consuming it enough though. They chose the more spectacular offerings, which shapes the media and dictates what they focus on. Yes, the media should have perseverered, but consumers still caused the problem at the end of the day IMO .... It's at times like this that I'm very grateful for social media, where all the issues come up and we have the option to pay attention, not just the main talking points. That isn't the case with TV sources, op-ed programs, etc. Also, I feel like this problem is more an American problem than it is an international one (in a very general sense, obviously). I feel like people around the world are perhaps a little more cognizant of the issues you're talking about because the international news media is rather more responsible than the American news media is a lot of the time, and somewhat less sensationalized. I guess that bit of detachment from the whole crazy deal helps people see the bigger picture a little more clearly.

brianlux

PJ_Soul said:

I think many are aware of this, and it's the media who are allowing the loud shit overpower the most important shit. It is unfortunate (not that a lot of the loud shit isn't important too, a lot of the time BTW! It's not so much that that isn't what we should be paying attention to. We just need to be paying attention to MORE stuff). I don't blame the media 100% for such a narrow offering of news. It is ultimately the fault of the consumers. it's not like the news media hasn't tried to cover the more important but less exciting and juicy content... the consumers weren't consuming it enough though. They chose the more spectacular offerings, which shapes the media and dictates what they focus on. Yes, the media should have perseverered, but consumers still caused the problem at the end of the day IMO .... It's at times like this that I'm very grateful for social media, where all the issues come up and we have the option to pay attention, not just the main talking points. That isn't the case with TV sources, op-ed programs, etc. Also, I feel like this problem is more an American problem than it is an international one (in a very general sense, obviously). I feel like people around the world are perhaps a little more cognizant of the issues you're talking about because the international news media is rather more responsible than the American news media is a lot of the time, and somewhat less sensationalized. I guess that bit of detachment from the whole crazy deal helps people see the bigger picture a little more clearly.

We Americans certainly love a liberal dose of sensationalism (be it liberal or conservative, lol) in our news.  It's so much easier to deal with distraction than it is to prioritize and solve.

bootlegger10

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

I read it. I wasn't disagreeing.  I just think companies that are doing everything they can to make sure there are no jobs in 30 years for a good chunk of the population and that wealth rises even faster to the 1% should be scrutinized a little. 

benjs

bootlegger10 said:

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

I read it. I wasn't disagreeing.  I just think companies that are doing everything they can to make sure there are no jobs in 30 years for a good chunk of the population and that wealth rises even faster to the 1% should be scrutinized a little. 

If you're referring to machine learning and automation, only the naive think the impact will only be felt by tradespersons and unskilled workers. AI has the potential to affect jobs on all levels. That said, I personally think that criticizing companies who want to save costs by utilizing technology in lieu of humans is backwards.

I say that logic courses and programming ought to be part of any standard high school curriculum. I'd also say law and statistics should be too, as these will all be invaluable to approximating human thought and decision-making in computers. Governments would also be wise to subsidize adult learning for these courses, as otherwise an unemployment epidemic will likely be a reality.

With the era of AI rapidly approaching, our jobs will be increasingly designing logic and decision streams for machines. 

PJ_Soul

bootlegger10 said:

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

I read it. I wasn't disagreeing.  I just think companies that are doing everything they can to make sure there are no jobs in 30 years for a good chunk of the population and that wealth rises even faster to the 1% should be scrutinized a little. 

Amazon created 110,000 jobs just in the last year alone ... But in any case, I understand what you mean, but the solution is for work forces to adapt to advancing technologies and what they mean to society, not the other way around. As Brian said, education and training needs to adapt to the businesses and technological advancement. That is the only possible way to proceed. Otherwise you are asking companies and innovators to stop progress and innovation just to maintain inefficiencies so workers can keep doing things that are outdated. That doesn't make sense. It is possible for technology to progress and not put everyone out of work. The nature of the work that people are doing just has to change with the times. This is, of course, a huge topic that reaches so many aspects of society and government.

brianlux

bootlegger10 said:

brianlux said:

bootlegger10 said:

The writer should have included the unelected leaders that are truly the ones shaping our future:  Google, Amazon, Facebook.    I am so glad that I live now before the world goes to digital shit completely. 

Google, Amazon and Facebook are a reflection of who we are and who we are becoming, that is true, but they are not shaping our future.  There are much more powerful forces out there.  But this has little to do with the article.  Did you read it?

I read it. I wasn't disagreeing.  I just think companies that are doing everything they can to make sure there are no jobs in 30 years for a good chunk of the population and that wealth rises even faster to the 1% should be scrutinized a little. 

OK, sorry I misunderstood.  Good point!

PJ_Soul

brianlux said:

PJ_Soul said:

I think many are aware of this, and it's the media who are allowing the loud shit overpower the most important shit. It is unfortunate (not that a lot of the loud shit isn't important too, a lot of the time BTW! It's not so much that that isn't what we should be paying attention to. We just need to be paying attention to MORE stuff). I don't blame the media 100% for such a narrow offering of news. It is ultimately the fault of the consumers. it's not like the news media hasn't tried to cover the more important but less exciting and juicy content... the consumers weren't consuming it enough though. They chose the more spectacular offerings, which shapes the media and dictates what they focus on. Yes, the media should have perseverered, but consumers still caused the problem at the end of the day IMO .... It's at times like this that I'm very grateful for social media, where all the issues come up and we have the option to pay attention, not just the main talking points. That isn't the case with TV sources, op-ed programs, etc. Also, I feel like this problem is more an American problem than it is an international one (in a very general sense, obviously). I feel like people around the world are perhaps a little more cognizant of the issues you're talking about because the international news media is rather more responsible than the American news media is a lot of the time, and somewhat less sensationalized. I guess that bit of detachment from the whole crazy deal helps people see the bigger picture a little more clearly.

We Americans certainly love a liberal dose of sensationalism (be it liberal or conservative, lol) in our news.  It's so much easier to deal with distraction than it is to prioritize and solve.

It does seem that way.
To be clear though, I think most of the big stories right now are very important news stories. The Russia thing is a big deal. Trump's behaviour is a very big deal. Politicians acting crazy and white nationalists in the WH are a huge deal (and that is not being covered enough IMO).... It's just that so many other stories are too, and we're not getting enough of those "fed" to us, and since there are only so many hours in the day, it would be great if the media would curate the stories more evenly instead of just packing the day with the minutiae of only one or two of the most sensational. Poeple aren't being informed anywhere near enough about policy changes and legislation and the stuff that actually affects them day to day - I keep reading so many stories online that have huge consequences and nobody even knows it's happening. Nobody is paying close enough attention to what the government is actually getting done - all too focused on what they are constantly fucking up.

brianlux

Creating jobs is important.  I'd say creating jobs where we actually do something worthwhile is even more important like, say, working at creating alternative energy, cleaning up the trash and pollution, actually curing cancer and other disease or a finding better ways to prevent them, preserving wilderness and wildlife, working as liaisons to countries we are at odds with to increase the chances of peace.  And all sorts of other jobs that would be good for us and the planet.  But not enough of this is happening because it all goes back to the premise of this thread and the article at the top which is about the distractions  we are allowing to get in the way of true progress. 

PJ_Soul

maybe it's less that they are distractions in a lot of cases (I think some of those so-called distractions are also important to know about). Maybe it's that people need to learn to have a much less narrow focus, or grow their attention spans? It's not like all the things you are talking about can't be done while we are still exposed to the "distractions" as well. I think this may be a case of people just smartening up and widening their world views? I think that has to be the case, because I don't think ignoring government collusion with Russia or the POTUS acting insane in favour of other things is a reasonable option either. I think people just need to widen their view. It's like a mindset.... The BIG problem is really that America is now largely run by people who actually couldn't care less about anybody but themselves, so nobody should be looking to them for anything at all. That is why Bernie Sanders is so very right in his message. Grass roots is the only option to America right now and then somehow injecting that into the standing government, unless you just want bullshit. SO the problem is that it's hard to both focus on all the "distractions", which actually still need attention, as well as on all the rest of it - the things you're talking about. That's not so easy obviously... It seems to me that big positive change requires a majority of people to be on board.... I just don't see that happening anytime soon.

PJfanwillneverleave1

brianlux said:

Exactly what I and other have been thinking/saying for a while now.  Please read and consider:

"Americans, you need to start paying attention. Like, really paying attention — to the issues that actually matter.  Stop getting distracted! Take this Russian collusion nonsense. Lots of Americans are obsessed with it, but it’s just a shiny distraction.  Yeah, sure, it looks as though members of the Trump campaign lied repeatedly, including on live TV and in Senate testimony and on security clearance forms about their contacts with Russians. It looks as though they may have been eager to get their hands on possibly illegally obtained information from a hostile nation. “I love it,” Donald Trump Jr. wrote when offered dirt on Hillary Clinton explicitly offered as “part of Russia and its government’s support for Mr. Trump.”

But that’s merely what the nine-dimensional-chess players in the White House want you to be obsessing over. Focusing on the terrible things Team Trump did during the campaign and transition conveniently distracts you from all the terrible things Team Trump is doing during the presidency."

The administration is repealing consumer and environmental protections left and right. The Education Department is making it easier for for-profit colleges to defraud students. The Environmental Protection Agency has delayed an air pollution rule that the agency had determined would likely prevent the poisoning of children. The Trump deregulatory team is rife with former lobbyists and others who have conflicts of interest.  President Trump and his family members likewise appear to be financially benefiting from his role in the White House.

Yet fussing over regulatory decisions and vaguely sleazy behavior is itself a distraction from an even more important issue: the fact that Republicans are trying to remake one-sixth of the U.S. economy, largely in secret, while ripping health insurance away from 22 million Americans."

Read more here:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/everything-is-a-distraction-from-something-much-much-worse/2017/07/13/a42384e0-6809-11e7-a1d7-9a32c91c6f40_story.html?tid=sm_fb&utm_term=.167c6325b19b

What I gather is that all players are on the chessboard and the dems want more dimensions.

brianlux

PJ_Soul said:

maybe it's less that they are distractions in a lot of cases (I think some of those so-called distractions are also important to know about). Maybe it's that people need to learn to have a much less narrow focus, or grow their attention spans? It's not like all the things you are talking about can't be done while we are still exposed to the "distractions" as well. I think this may be a case of people just smartening up and widening their world views? I think that has to be the case, because I don't think ignoring government collusion with Russia or the POTUS acting insane in favour of other things is a reasonable option either. I think people just need to widen their view. It's like a mindset.... The BIG problem is really that America is now largely run by people who actually couldn't care less about anybody but themselves, so nobody should be looking to them for anything at all. That is why Bernie Sanders is so very right in his message. Grass roots is the only option to America right now and then somehow injecting that into the standing government, unless you just want bullshit. SO the problem is that it's hard to both focus on all the "distractions", which actually still need attention, as well as on all the rest of it - the things you're talking about. That's not so easy obviously... It seems to me that big positive change requires a majority of people to be on board.... I just don't see that happening anytime soon.

I'm not convinced that the collusion with Russia is as real as the media, particularly the New York Times, makes it out to be but for arguments sake, let's say it is.  I still think the emphasis on that subject is distracting from more serious problems and that's where you idea of people having a "much less narrow focus" would be very wise.  But I don't think a lot of the media OR the current admin wants that to happen. 

JC29856

W, Obomba, 5 Deferment Don
appearance style and mannerisms, differ greatly, foreign policy, not so much

US bombed a girl's school in Kunduz, Afghanistan today.

tbergs

JC29856 said:

W, Obomba, 5 Deferment Don
appearance style and mannerisms, differ greatly, foreign policy, not so much

US bombed a girl's school in Kunduz, Afghanistan today.

You mean this:

http://1tvnews.af/en/news/afghanistan/30213-coalition-airstrike-hits-afghan-school-in-kunduz-city

Careful with your headline.

WhatYouTaughtMe

brianlux said:

PJ_Soul said:

maybe it's less that they are distractions in a lot of cases (I think some of those so-called distractions are also important to know about). Maybe it's that people need to learn to have a much less narrow focus, or grow their attention spans? It's not like all the things you are talking about can't be done while we are still exposed to the "distractions" as well. I think this may be a case of people just smartening up and widening their world views? I think that has to be the case, because I don't think ignoring government collusion with Russia or the POTUS acting insane in favour of other things is a reasonable option either. I think people just need to widen their view. It's like a mindset.... The BIG problem is really that America is now largely run by people who actually couldn't care less about anybody but themselves, so nobody should be looking to them for anything at all. That is why Bernie Sanders is so very right in his message. Grass roots is the only option to America right now and then somehow injecting that into the standing government, unless you just want bullshit. SO the problem is that it's hard to both focus on all the "distractions", which actually still need attention, as well as on all the rest of it - the things you're talking about. That's not so easy obviously... It seems to me that big positive change requires a majority of people to be on board.... I just don't see that happening anytime soon.

I'm not convinced that the collusion with Russia is as real as the media, particularly the New York Times, makes it out to be but for arguments sake, let's say it is.  I still think the emphasis on that subject is distracting from more serious problems and that's where you idea of people having a "much less narrow focus" would be very wise.  But I don't think a lot of the media OR the current admin wants that to happen. 

I agree to an extent, but as long as the administration continues to lie and change the story I think it it is important to shine a light on. In fact, there is no reason for the media to not shine a light on everything. Information is readily available everywhere and you're right, they should broaden their focus to include every ass backwards thing this administration does. I don't think they should ignore the Russia issue though. What is the alternative? Just ignore the lies and write it off as a distraction tactic? Then we start to normalize the bullshit. They need to be called out on every single lie, every single time. Trivial or not.

Edit - maybe admin wasn't the right word. As long as anyone involved continues to throw out bullshit answers. Family members, lawyers etc...