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Janice P - Words Beyond Me's avatar

Twitter reminds me of a kid with a nasty room who desperately starts stuffing trash and dirty clothes in the closet and under the bed when he hears Mom coming down the hall.

On another note, it’s Flag Day… I used to feel (maybe naively) a warm, national pride when I would see our flag. Then it morphed into sadness, righteous anger, and disgust.

I wrote the following poem in 2014. In light of all the horrible events in the years since, it takes on an even sadder, more desperate tone than it did eight years ago. God help us.

Look Upon the Flag

When I look upon the flag

I think of liberty

Of lives lain down in sacrifice

To make a nation free.

Then I look upon the flag

And think how can it be

That I could be so blessed

That someone died for me.

Again I look upon the flag

And tears come to my eyes

As I think of all the freedoms lost

And hear our soldiers’ cries.

For what, they ask, do we risk it all

So a nation can trample our blood?

No! We serve, we die, to stem the tide

Of oppression roaring as a flood.

Look upon the flag, my people,

And see the freedom there

Remember what our nation was

And fall to your knees in prayer.

May God Most High restore this land

And bring us back to Him

And may our flag humbly wave

As a banner of freedom again.

β€”Janice Powell ©️2014

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Margaret Anna Alice's avatar

β€œI feel okay, but that’s because I got my shots.”

Trudeau tests positive for COVID-19 a second time (the possibility of his first being a scaredy-cat maneuver notwithstanding), he feels β€œokay” (note the deviation from the standard script, suggesting his symptoms are worse than mild: β€œThankfully, I am only experiencing mild symptoms and am grateful for the protection that comes from being vaccinated and boosted.”), and he thinks that makes for a compelling sales pitch for the β€œsafe and effective” injection.

This is a prime example of the repetition and ridicule fallacy described by Neil Morton in β€œPsychological Warfare & Deception”:

β€œIf you hear something enough times, you will believe it. No matter how ridiculous, if you are presented with β€˜facts’ in a certain way, you are hardwired to believe them. This is known as the appeal to ridicule fallacy. Mocking an idea makes it less relevant. If you associate an idea, a person, or behavior with ridicule and shame, you will dismiss it. Alternatively, if a ridiculous idea is given gravitas and treated with reverence, it will seem more viable. Repetition is a powerful tool, and when teamed with a shaming technique, it can be effective.”

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