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By Dr. Abbas Bakhtiar (about the author)
Become a Fan -- Page 4 of 4 page(s)
But what should we do? How do we stop this slide towards hell? Well, to start with we live in democratic societies (such as it is). We should stop and reverse the concentration of the media in the hands of a few people. It is through media that values are undermined and people are so brain washed to accept the unacceptable. We should demand that every newspaper, TV channel, magazine and internet site, put the name of the real owner or the majority shareholder on the corner of the front page. We would like to know who is manipulating us. We should not allow an individual or a corporation to own more than 2% of the media in any one country. We should also make sure that these wealthy individuals do not control media companies through proxies. It is EXTREMELY IMPORTANT that this concentration of media in the hand of a few wealthy individuals/corporations is stopped and reversed. For it is through media that they bribe/blackmail the politicians. In democracies media is the corridor to power. It should be people that control this corridor and not the wealthy corporations and individuals. Currently we have the illusion of democracy and not the real thing.
Next we have to control the funding of elections. This is directly connected to the issue of media. Advertising is expensive. Politicians want to take their message to the people. The best way is through media. They need two things: money for advertising/air time, and access. Before each election, the list of all contributors to the campaigns should be published. We would like to know who is paying for what. Lobbying should be forbidden. It is unacceptable for corporations and individuals to hire companies to buy political influence. These POLITICAL PIMPS should be put out of business. Media access should also be regulated. All candidates should be given equal access.
The next step is to break the two-party system. It is always very easy for the wealthy to buy into both parties (as it is done now). We see that certain wealthy individuals and corporations give money to both parties and thereby ensure that no matter who wins the election, it is their guy at the top. By supporting other parties and forcing the government to allocate larger sums to minor parties (above for example 3% to 4% of the votes), we ensure that other voices are heard on the national level. Proportional representation is also extremely useful in breaking the monopolies of the old established parties.
Another important point is to hold politicians accountable. If they lie they should be punished and punished severely. If a politician lies, then he should be punished doubly as hard as a non-politician. The top politicians should know that if they lie they end-up in prison. THERE SHOULD BE NO POSSIBILITY OF PARDON FOR POLITICIANS.
We should stop the growth of hyper-rich people. I mean if $5 billion dollars is not enough, then $50 billion will not be enough either. To stop the continuous rise in the rich dynasties' fortunes, we have to set limits on how much can be passed on to the next generation. Anything above a certain limit (e.g. $5 billion dollars) should be taken by the government and used for the welfare of the less fortunate and as tax incentives to small businesses etc. The economists can sit down and come-up with a formula that estimates how much would keep the next 3 generations wealthy and comfortable. The rest should be taken away. Let us face it, if they are as smart as their fathers, then they will have no problem, and if they are not, then they will waste less money. On the other hand if a person feels poor (monetarily) with 1 to 5 billion dollars then only the grave will satisfy his/her greed.
Another important issue is our liberties. Under tremendous propaganda and scare tactics we are forced to surrender more and more of our liberties. Those who control the media and the politicians need to control us as well. They try their best to do this through peaceful means: through the media; but those who refuse to go along and try to work against these people's wishes have to be closely watched, discredited and if necessary neutralised. Look carefully at how much liberty you have lost in just 5 years and imagine if this continues, how much more you will lose in 10 years time.
We also have to watch out for big lies, for they are easiest to accept. Watch out for open-ended conflicts for it is the bread and butter of these people. The "war on terror" is the first big lie of this century. This is an un-ending war. Under this banner, many wars will be started and if not stopped millions will be killed. Under this banner they are trying to start the war of religions and civilizations. While we are scared, fighting each other, killing and getting killed, our liberties are curtailed, and our values are undermined. If we allow them, we will become the amoral Homo Economicus worshiping profit and seeing nothing in the world except the distorted reflection of our self-interest in everything.
So please be careful. Be very very careful.
Copyright Abbas Bakhtiar, all rights reserved.
Become a Fan -- Page 4 of 4 page(s)
Next we have to control the funding of elections. This is directly connected to the issue of media. Advertising is expensive. Politicians want to take their message to the people. The best way is through media. They need two things: money for advertising/air time, and access. Before each election, the list of all contributors to the campaigns should be published. We would like to know who is paying for what. Lobbying should be forbidden. It is unacceptable for corporations and individuals to hire companies to buy political influence. These POLITICAL PIMPS should be put out of business. Media access should also be regulated. All candidates should be given equal access.
The next step is to break the two-party system. It is always very easy for the wealthy to buy into both parties (as it is done now). We see that certain wealthy individuals and corporations give money to both parties and thereby ensure that no matter who wins the election, it is their guy at the top. By supporting other parties and forcing the government to allocate larger sums to minor parties (above for example 3% to 4% of the votes), we ensure that other voices are heard on the national level. Proportional representation is also extremely useful in breaking the monopolies of the old established parties.
Another important point is to hold politicians accountable. If they lie they should be punished and punished severely. If a politician lies, then he should be punished doubly as hard as a non-politician. The top politicians should know that if they lie they end-up in prison. THERE SHOULD BE NO POSSIBILITY OF PARDON FOR POLITICIANS.
We should stop the growth of hyper-rich people. I mean if $5 billion dollars is not enough, then $50 billion will not be enough either. To stop the continuous rise in the rich dynasties' fortunes, we have to set limits on how much can be passed on to the next generation. Anything above a certain limit (e.g. $5 billion dollars) should be taken by the government and used for the welfare of the less fortunate and as tax incentives to small businesses etc. The economists can sit down and come-up with a formula that estimates how much would keep the next 3 generations wealthy and comfortable. The rest should be taken away. Let us face it, if they are as smart as their fathers, then they will have no problem, and if they are not, then they will waste less money. On the other hand if a person feels poor (monetarily) with 1 to 5 billion dollars then only the grave will satisfy his/her greed.
Another important issue is our liberties. Under tremendous propaganda and scare tactics we are forced to surrender more and more of our liberties. Those who control the media and the politicians need to control us as well. They try their best to do this through peaceful means: through the media; but those who refuse to go along and try to work against these people's wishes have to be closely watched, discredited and if necessary neutralised. Look carefully at how much liberty you have lost in just 5 years and imagine if this continues, how much more you will lose in 10 years time.
We also have to watch out for big lies, for they are easiest to accept. Watch out for open-ended conflicts for it is the bread and butter of these people. The "war on terror" is the first big lie of this century. This is an un-ending war. Under this banner, many wars will be started and if not stopped millions will be killed. Under this banner they are trying to start the war of religions and civilizations. While we are scared, fighting each other, killing and getting killed, our liberties are curtailed, and our values are undermined. If we allow them, we will become the amoral Homo Economicus worshiping profit and seeing nothing in the world except the distorted reflection of our self-interest in everything.
So please be careful. Be very very careful.
Copyright Abbas Bakhtiar, all rights reserved.
Dr. Abbas Bakhtiar lives in Norway. He works as a management consultant.He is also a contributing writer for many online journals.
The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author
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