Amerika is driving at full speed in reverse, proscriptive, self-righteous, sanctimonious, yet still arrogant, materialistic, bigoted and violent. It was E Pluribus Unum, now it's In God We Trust, so that a Bronze-Age delusion is the cornerstone of credibility and the necessary portal to high office, while the intellectual calibre of the nation has reached an all-time low. Surely the Temple must now fall and other nations will carry the torch of humanity into the future?
managed to keep eyes open to the end, just. As ever well made reiterative points. Cutting to chase., political assignations are to be abhorred, they threaten all of us, just dont whitewash their character.
What is alarming is this same extreme divisive demonising speech is now current in the UK. Whipping up extreme reactions against marginalised groups, stirring discontent with easy phrases that have no content.
You make me laugh, Tony. (In a good way!) Substack is not Twitter. It's here for authors who want to express their thoughts in more than 256 characters. That is how I use it and that is why many people enjoy reading it. Your constant narrative about getting bored reading my work says more about you and your attention span than it does me and my Substacks. You remind me of the guy in that "Free Guitar Lessons" sketch by Ricky Gervais. If you can't be bothered to read 800-900 words on often nuanced subjects, move along. Twitter is only a click away. 😘
missing my thrust. Oh yes I read, lots. But you are circular and expansive. We both are wanting to counter the empty one-liner stabs so current. Pithy content possibly might do it. How do we counter with positive messages that go to the heart of an issue but doesnt take paragraphs to get there!
We desperately need that alternate voice to be aired.
Why not cut-n-paste my articles into ChatGPT asking it to condense them into a pithy summary? Then you can just read its output and post it wherever you like. (But good luck dealing with all the hares it set running without the nuance provided in those flabby paragraphs you allude to.)
Personally I have no problem with the long read as long as it is full of relevant detail and not prone to endless repetition. When debating with followers of Farage, Yakley-Lennon and their ilk details are very useful as their arguments tend to be completely lacking. It's noticeable that when confronted by fact the only response they have is personal abuse as their arguments lack any meaningful substance.
I did not know anything about this man until his assasination.What I do know now is extremely worrying. We must not sit back and allow the far right to gain power.Apathy is dangerous
Thanks Mark, I read a similar post on Facebook from a black woman who had terrible treatment from the man, who definitely was no saint by her account. You have written with grace as of course political or other violence does not address an argument or improve a situation, and we can mourn the loss of a human being without the whitewash.
The phrase "Free Speech" is fast becoming another soundbite, used to fire up the less thoughtful in society. Remember "Take Back Control" & "Clearing The Swamp"? It is a distortion of meaning used by the likes of Trump, Kirk, and of course Farage, where your right to Free Speech actually means your right to agree with them; if you disagree with them, it becames "Hate Speech".
Oh Mr Orwell, you were so right about so many things: The Ministry of Truth, The Thought Police...
1984 should be read by everyone, before we all end up goose-stepping along under huge banners of an orange moron and his puppy dog, whislt wearing identical grey uniforms. Let's all wake up and remind ourselves of the real meaning of "Free Speech"!
Excellent summation - condemn the killing (which is a normal reaction in a civilised society), but speak the truth about the victim - in this case a man whose ideology I despised when he was alive, and whose ideology I continue to despise despite his death.
Who would have mourned Hitlers assassination in the 1930's? The Nazi's yes, the free world and sensible reasonable people? I doubt it. This is the same, the world really doesn't need vicious bigots, the less the better.
An excellent honest report. This continual distortion of the truth/facts is a huge danger to us all. Deliberate lying and deceit should be made a criminal offence not just restricted to perjury made in a court.
Thank you for this thoughtful and perceptive analysis. It is scary that the false narrative is not being better challenged and also that we aren't making ordinary citizens lives better so they aren't likely to believe it. Why do we keep blaming other's rather than working with each other?
Every organisation welcomes its martyrs, accidental or otherwise, from the Suffragettes to Hamas. It is a brave commentator who refuses to go along with the collective hand-wringing when this happens, opening themselves to attacks from the aggrieved party. Frankly, how many people had heard of Charlie Kirk in this country before he was assassinated ? The most depressing thing is that there will now be many ready to take his place. That is the attraction of martyrdom.
Totally agree with this thoughtful article, says everything I’ve been thinking, thank you
It's important to recognize what Kirk truly stood for--and it wasn't for free speech.
Amerika is driving at full speed in reverse, proscriptive, self-righteous, sanctimonious, yet still arrogant, materialistic, bigoted and violent. It was E Pluribus Unum, now it's In God We Trust, so that a Bronze-Age delusion is the cornerstone of credibility and the necessary portal to high office, while the intellectual calibre of the nation has reached an all-time low. Surely the Temple must now fall and other nations will carry the torch of humanity into the future?
managed to keep eyes open to the end, just. As ever well made reiterative points. Cutting to chase., political assignations are to be abhorred, they threaten all of us, just dont whitewash their character.
What is alarming is this same extreme divisive demonising speech is now current in the UK. Whipping up extreme reactions against marginalised groups, stirring discontent with easy phrases that have no content.
You make me laugh, Tony. (In a good way!) Substack is not Twitter. It's here for authors who want to express their thoughts in more than 256 characters. That is how I use it and that is why many people enjoy reading it. Your constant narrative about getting bored reading my work says more about you and your attention span than it does me and my Substacks. You remind me of the guy in that "Free Guitar Lessons" sketch by Ricky Gervais. If you can't be bothered to read 800-900 words on often nuanced subjects, move along. Twitter is only a click away. 😘
missing my thrust. Oh yes I read, lots. But you are circular and expansive. We both are wanting to counter the empty one-liner stabs so current. Pithy content possibly might do it. How do we counter with positive messages that go to the heart of an issue but doesnt take paragraphs to get there!
We desperately need that alternate voice to be aired.
summation of all that is said:
"We categorically condemn the assassination, but we recall that Kirk advocated extremism."
Any improvements anyone?
😂 I'm guessing this is some Somerset humour...right? If so, bravo! 👏
Why not cut-n-paste my articles into ChatGPT asking it to condense them into a pithy summary? Then you can just read its output and post it wherever you like. (But good luck dealing with all the hares it set running without the nuance provided in those flabby paragraphs you allude to.)
Personally I have no problem with the long read as long as it is full of relevant detail and not prone to endless repetition. When debating with followers of Farage, Yakley-Lennon and their ilk details are very useful as their arguments tend to be completely lacking. It's noticeable that when confronted by fact the only response they have is personal abuse as their arguments lack any meaningful substance.
I did not know anything about this man until his assasination.What I do know now is extremely worrying. We must not sit back and allow the far right to gain power.Apathy is dangerous
Thanks Mark, I read a similar post on Facebook from a black woman who had terrible treatment from the man, who definitely was no saint by her account. You have written with grace as of course political or other violence does not address an argument or improve a situation, and we can mourn the loss of a human being without the whitewash.
I agree with every word you wrote about Charlie Kirk.
Some much-needed honesty here - thank you.
The phrase "Free Speech" is fast becoming another soundbite, used to fire up the less thoughtful in society. Remember "Take Back Control" & "Clearing The Swamp"? It is a distortion of meaning used by the likes of Trump, Kirk, and of course Farage, where your right to Free Speech actually means your right to agree with them; if you disagree with them, it becames "Hate Speech".
Oh Mr Orwell, you were so right about so many things: The Ministry of Truth, The Thought Police...
1984 should be read by everyone, before we all end up goose-stepping along under huge banners of an orange moron and his puppy dog, whislt wearing identical grey uniforms. Let's all wake up and remind ourselves of the real meaning of "Free Speech"!
Excellent summation - condemn the killing (which is a normal reaction in a civilised society), but speak the truth about the victim - in this case a man whose ideology I despised when he was alive, and whose ideology I continue to despise despite his death.
Liked, restacked & shared to Bluesky.
True - every word. In the USA, all the poisons that lurk in the mud are hatching out.
Who would have mourned Hitlers assassination in the 1930's? The Nazi's yes, the free world and sensible reasonable people? I doubt it. This is the same, the world really doesn't need vicious bigots, the less the better.
Excellent article, thank you.
An excellent honest report. This continual distortion of the truth/facts is a huge danger to us all. Deliberate lying and deceit should be made a criminal offence not just restricted to perjury made in a court.
Thank you for this thoughtful and perceptive analysis. It is scary that the false narrative is not being better challenged and also that we aren't making ordinary citizens lives better so they aren't likely to believe it. Why do we keep blaming other's rather than working with each other?
Every organisation welcomes its martyrs, accidental or otherwise, from the Suffragettes to Hamas. It is a brave commentator who refuses to go along with the collective hand-wringing when this happens, opening themselves to attacks from the aggrieved party. Frankly, how many people had heard of Charlie Kirk in this country before he was assassinated ? The most depressing thing is that there will now be many ready to take his place. That is the attraction of martyrdom.