As a social justice and anti-corruption activist I have three main goals in mind: to prove it is possible to organize an overwhelmingly powerful coalition of progressives into an extremely organized, cohesive, and strategic force; to prove it is possible to help awaken a large-enough segment of the population as to how power elites manipulate them through propaganda; and to help develop a widespread understanding that that there are an almost unlimited amount of variations as to how a society can organize itself socioeconomically, thus helping break the powerful "mental" framework people have come accept--a framework that conveniently benefits the power/ruling elites.
I'm going to keep this diary short and to the point. As I carefully study how the power elites use propaganda to manipulate the population, one recurring theme I'm running into is that two of the major elements in their tool kits are the use of mindless repetition of whatever messaging they want to get out there (regardless of veracity), and simplicity in the concepts they propagate.
I don't think I can call myself a propagandist (for the the good guys) yet, but I'm trying to learn so I can join with others in launching a powerful counter-propaganda campaign. One that needs to be constant (24/7), focused, on message, aiming to reach every single individual in this 300 million-plus country.
Before I get to the point of the diary, I want the reader to know that this diary is building on three previous diaries, as follow (in order of importance): (1) How Billionaires-Funded Propaganda is Unraveling The Country; (2) The reason the population is acting irrationally, and what to do about it; (3) The Power Elites: Understanding How They Control The Citizenry.
This exercise is meant to be a small confidence-building step to prove the proposition that a highly organized, cohesive and strategic progressive movement can operate at a nationwide level. I argue that it can be applied not only by individuals but by the myriad of progressive organizations around the country.
I'm going to ask the reader to follow three very easy steps: (1) First determine whether the two statements below are 100 percent accurate; my goal is to get total agreement on these two very straightforward and simple statements; (2) Follow the very simple request I'm making as related to the two statements; (3) Take a final step to certified the two requested tasks were completed.
TASK 1: BRIEF EMAIL TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS
Dear Member of Congress:
As a citizen I'm concerned about the gridlock in Washington, which I believe is interfering with the proper functioning of our government institutions. One particular area of concern is the effect the so-called "revolving door that shuffles former federal employees into jobs as lobbyists, consultants and strategists just as the door pulls former hired guns into government careers," as reported by the Center for Responsive Politics.
The CPP reports that "from 1998 to 2011, of the 352 members of Congress who left office, 79 percent ended up working as lobbyists at some point." I happen to believe that this situation may be one of the root causes of government dysfunction in Washington, D.C.
As a concerned citizen, I would like to know how you would address this situation.
Respectfully Yours,
-- Sender's Name --
TASK 2: BRIEF EMAIL TO NEWS MEDIA OUTLETS
Dear News Media Professional:
As a citizen who values freedom of the press, I'm very concerned about the potential effects of news media ownership by a handful (6) of corporate conglomerates.
I recently came across a master's degree thesis that addressed this very important issue.
In it, the master's degree candidate argues that media conglomeration increases the risk of harm to the public interest: "The more concentrated the media landscape becomes the greater risk of harm there is to the public interest. As powerful corporations grow increasingly wealthier, powerful, influential, and politically affiliated the greater risk there is to the political economy on a global scale. The risk inherent with affluential transcultural media corporations is the mass homogenization of content and, thus, propagandist reinforcement of corporate and political interests serving only the dominant elites and, in turn, harming and marginalizing non-elites."
As a news media professional, what do you think would be the best way to dismantle powerful corporate media conglomerates in order to protect the public's interest of having a true free press?
Sincerely,
-- Sender's Name --
TASK 3: CONFIRMATION
One thing I'd like to make clear to the reader is that to me, this is not about a particular campaign, but about what I see as a need to engage in an ongoing, non-stop, 24/7 counter-propaganda campaign in the face of the incredible amount of lies, misinformation, false narratives and propaganda to which we are being exposed.
My goal is that once we prove the concept that it is possible to coordinate strategically, nationwide, that we'll be able to build on these initial steps... And as confidence builds, we'll start seeing the real possibilities and power we really have.
If you sent at least one email to each of the entities (Congress, News Media), please use this form to confirm that you have completed these the previous simple tasks. Sending at least one email to any member of Congress, or to any news media organization (newspapers, TV, radio) meets the request for completion of the tasks.
Please use the link below to go to the confirmation form. You'll be asked to confirmed whether you completed the tasks, and to enter your city, state, and zip code.
Team Building Exercise 1: Task Verification Form
I also added this diary to my website where people can add comments:
Three Easy Ways to Prove You The Power To Take on Gov. Corruption
That's all! Very easy to do, but the implications are profound. My intention is to take very small steps to help people in the network build confidence in the notion that it is possible to unite progressives into a powerful and effective force (with real muscle). Again, I highly recommend people read
the diary where I mention the effects of the Powell Memo on the "business activist" movement that helped bring about the current situation we are facing.
I look forward to readers' comments, feedback, suggestions, and participation.
Thank you!
Each blue dot on the map below represents a member of a growing nation-wide network of social justice and anti-corruption activists committed to finding the best way forward. Join us in the effort!
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Ray Pensador |
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