If you’ve spent any time on my blog, you’re probably aware of my anti-TV attitude. I’m a little disappointed in myself - I think I’ve found myself giving in to the YouTube kool-aid. Online video is hard to resist once they hook ya’…I can’t even tell you how many YouTube junkies are out there…but I know it’s a LOT. I feel like such a hypocrite. Hell, my blog is plastered with videos…admittedly, a lot of words, too…but still, I’m up to probably somewhere around 20 videos.

It’s times like this that I try to remember why I stopped watching TV in the first place back in 1997. 1) I wanted to explore it as a social experiment. 2) I hate advertising. 3) I found my quality of life and interests improved when not spending so much time watching TV. 4) Television wasn’t that good, anyways.

OK, then I compare those same reasons to YouTube and this is what I came up with. 1) YouTube is an interesting social experiment. 2) Not near as much advertising, but it’s still present. 3) I’ve enjoyed hearing & seeing “people” talk/teach/complain/etc and, in a way, it contributes to my quality of life 4) I’ve found a ton of kewl videos & if I don’t like it, I press the “Back” button and it’s gone.  (I do banish all thee who think dumb is the kewlest thing.  It is NOT kewl to be dumb.)  So, as you can see, I’ve managed to justify every single point. I’m wondering if I’m a hypocrite - to denounce television, yet to watch *television* on YouTube (albeit directed and on-topic) seems a little contradictory.

I don’t really have a problem with motion video - I’ve watched enough movies & documentaries to prove that. My issue is more with the ever increasing level of manipulation that a viewer subjects themselves to. With television, people are presented a “mainstream” that has nearly become the bar to which we live our lives. It’s authority over the average American has taken on unprecedented proportions - it’s almost as if they accept it as reality. When in fact, it is not.

I really don’t get this feeling from YouTube. It’s television clips, sure…but it’s also Vlogs (video blogs), DIY videos, educational videos, amazing video and many other things. Real stuff. You can dive in and really direct your viewing towards specific interests or just click through the vast array of video interconnectedness…and with the size of it, there is a substantial amount to choose from. I don’t feel like there’s some great big hand guiding my thoughts with the bombardment of many common ideas and zippy video editing. It’s just different than TV.

So, I think I’ll keep posting videos to my blog - ’cause hey, I like ‘em. And if I’m a hypocrite, that’s fine. I know enough to veer away from becoming a total YouTube junkie, so you can’t accuse me of that. I’ve also promised myself that I will continue to do text only blog entries as there should be moderation in all things. So, them’s the breaks with me, TV & online video.

So, was cruising around YouTube the other night and this video caught my eye. I’m always game for any guest that Bill O’Reilly interviews that has the courage to throw it right back in his face. Here, we see Phil Donahue performing an anal-cranial extraction on my most-hated media pundit.

I’m no big fan of Phil Donahue…but I gotta say, I give him props for this one. Anyone that can go toe-to-toe with Bill the moron is at least semi-decent in my book.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

I was particularly offended by O’Reilly’s stance that our country should be able to declare war upon whomever they choose without oversight and Congress can only “take action if they want to take action.” O’Reilly is an enemy of the Constitution. He might as well stand for treason.

Hope you enjoy! Remember, if you listen to this moron, I can’t help it if you become ignorant and stupid! O’Reilly’s bad for the brain.

So, a question…who’s smarter: Bill O’Reilly, media swill and spinmaster, or Dr. Ron Paul, 10th term Congressman from Texas? Well, two things are clear: Bill O’Reilly is still a lying, ignorant idiot and Fox news still has an interest in brainwashing their viewers with fearmongering and lies.

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

In typical O’Reilly style, he ignorantly fumbles historical fact, rudely interrupts an *Honorable* Congressman, squirms like a tickled school girl when he must avoid confirming his guest’s accuracy, disrupts conversation about sensitive topics so they get no coverage and, worst of all, goes so far as to insult a US Congressman. O’Reilly says himself, “We don’t need a history lesson!” God forbid, it might teach him to have a little more respect for those that lead our nation. Bill, you’re not that good.

Ummm…just for anyone that’s not clear on the subject, the CIA did state that Iran was 10 years away from even possibly having a nuclear weapon and found no evidence of such a program in place. Apparently, Fox news has better sources that say the danger is more like 5 years. Who has more authority…the CIA or the “everybody says” that Fox News just conjured up?

Oh, and notice when Dr. Paul brings up that 50% of the suicide attackers are Saudi…O’Reilly wasn’t going to touch that one. Or the Pakistan reference. Subjects broiling with controversy…and a Google search will pretty much lay it all out for you…but O’Reilly won’t pause for you to think about it. Why can’t we talk about it, O’Reilly?

Just for the record, if O’Reilly told me I was living in Oz and treated me like that, I think I’d throw off my microphone, crawl over the desk and strangle the guy on air. I don’t know how his guests stay so composed when he gets like that. Dr. Paul’s a better man than I.

So you can see what happens when Ron Paul is interviewed by a reasonable host, you can view Bill Maher’s new hero here:

Get the Flash Player to see this player.

Remember…vote Ron Paul for President in 2008…and stop watching Fox News!

I found these videos the other day…for those that watch television, Keith Olbermann might be familiar to you…but for me, a guy that hasn’t really watched TV much in the last decade, he was a new find. Say what you will, but he seems to be relatively informed (for a sports caster) and has a much appreciated command of the vernacular. Rest assured, just ’cause I like this guy all right, doesn’t mean I’ll rush right out and get me a TV antenna…no, online video works just fine for me.

In the first, titled “The Beginning of the End of America,” Keith addresses the Military Commissions Act rather eloquently…his scathing rant is well researched, filled with historical information and accurately portrays what this law actually represents. For people that disagree or think the “anti-terrorism” laws don’t apply to actual Americans, you need to go check out the laws yourself. It’s actually rather frightening to read the words on paper.

.

In the second, he puts Bill O’Reilly in his place…it’s probably one of the best commentaries I’ve ever seen done on him…I just absolutely love it. In this video, we are clearly shown O’Reilly’s blatant disregard for factual information and accurate reporting…he’s literally willing to misrepresent history in a very shameful manner. Keith also exposes the fact the Fox News has manipulated history by “rewriting” transcripts of O’Reilly’s show after the fact. Though this doesn’t come as any surprise to me, for anyone that might still have the slightest bit of faith in Fox news, it’s your wakeup call.

.

I’ve been interested in what I’ve heared termed as “soft” mind control for a long time. “Soft” mind control is best defined as the manipulation of thought through persuasion, appeal and suggestion. It’s extremely prevalent in modern day - television & radio advertising, billboards, signs and other (typically corporate) “mindshare” gatherers. People probably don’t even think of it as mind control, but at a fundamental level, it really is just that. To persuade one into spending money where they otherwise might not, is to manipulate the decision of that person to purchase. Since the basis of a decision is largely formulated in one’s brain, the manipulation of that decision towards one outcome or another is a mild form of mind control. The field of sales, in general, is heavily dependant on discovery & manipulation tactics - we’re all familiar with the “high-pressure” salesman at the car lot or elsewhere. Outside of even this, sales tactics that “urge the customer to buy” have been studied and spoken about for countless years. This type of manipulation has become a science because it’s a formula that works for many people and most people can undeniably be manipulated, even without being aware of it. Though they have all kinds of fancy terms for their techniques, fundamentally…it’s you know what.

Everywhere, everyday we’re exposed to some sort of manipulation that seeks to control our choice. Whether it’s the billboard, the conversation at the water cooler, watching a television show, watching a movie or simply driving down the freeway…we are constantly bombarded with information that manipulates the way we think, act and behave. The power of suggestion is, again at it’s base, a form of mind control…it engages the mind in choice whereas perhaps the choice had not existed before. In some cases, people may participate in mind control without even knowing they’re doing it. Disinformation is a perfect example of this…the people who perpetuate the information largely believe it’s truth, when, in most cases of disinformation, the exact opposite is true.

This field of study has been underway for many, many years. It’s neither secret, nor intended to be - at least until you get into the higher eschelons of the subject. I’ve also done a small amount of research into more advanced mind control - particularly the use of violence to break down a person’s mind to the point where choice can be controlled. It’s interesting and I absolutely know such experiments have taken place. You can’t live in a world that fostered Hitler (and countless other inhumanities to man) and think something like this is out of reach. My interest is found in the scope it’s possibilities and concern over it’s consequence, rather than the perpetuation of the act. In fact, I would decidedly be against mind control in all forms…but that would mean the abolishment of advertising and I’ve learned to pick my battles.

Furthering this research of mind control into programs like MK-Ultra, Operation Open Eyes, and others, I’ve re-discovered an interesting gal by the name of Cathy O’Brien that claims (and documented) that she was subject to Federal mind control experiments of a rather horrifying nature. I was turned on to her by a friend of mine that read her book that was stunned by it and felt it was important enough to pass on. After briefly reading about 30 pages of an E-Book version of her book, “Trance Formation In America,” I decided to order her suite of books to get the full spread of information surrounding her case. Probably most interesting to me is their offer of a CD that contains 17,000 Government documents they’ve obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, of which many have since been re-classified by the current administration. These documents will hopefully be very beneficial to furthering my knowledge of mind control experiments that have been conducted in official capacity.

Interestingly enough, I met Cathy O’Brien years ago at a David Icke conference. She was there, getting the word out. I was in a whole different place then…the subject of her story hadn’t really been that interesting to me at the time because I was focused on other ideas. With the subsequent furthering of my knowledge and awareness of “soft” mind control and the other control mechanisms that exist in every day society, I suppose that I am now finally ready to absorb the information at the level that it must be absorbed. Until I was capable of seeing the small manipulation and the larger government/media manipulation, as well as having a much more solid understanding of history and “how the world works,” I don’t think I would have been ready to read this kind of material with a truly open mind. It’s just too controversial, too forward, too scary.

I still haven’t read the full books but am committed to keeping an open mind about the subject. I’ve found it best to approach issues without preconceived notions of what is and what isn’t. My initial pre-read caught my interest because the book didn’t strike me as subversive or the work of a mad-woman…I thought to myself, “Hmmmm…this has the potential for plausibility…I need to know more.” So, off I go to research the interesting subject of mind control again…

If this peaks your interest, you can find more information from Cathy O’Brien’s website or you can read the electronic version I received here. If you find this interesting and plausible, I would encourage you to support her work by purchasing materials. If it’s really true, she needs all the help she can get.