#there's no outright evidence there's a ban on it or any prejudice

[lloydfrontera]

ok so you know how in china 'cut sleeve' was used as an euphemism for homosexuality. that but in lorasia they use 'lullaby singer'. or 'angel fighter'. lately 'knightly escort' is making the rounds. there's a lot of euphemisms for gay people actually.

[calajane]

About those racist lines in Shadowhunters

I’ve been seeing a lot of fans in the shadowhunters tag complain over the increase of sexist and racist remarks in season two (the most recent line of dialogue had Izzy use „stay, good doggy” when addressing a werewolf – a clearly racism remark due to the “downworlders are the minorities” metaphor the show employs). Like other people in the fandom, I find that increase disturbing and frustrating, because very little in season one prepared us for this casual racism and sexism that we are seeing.

But I also find it all incredibly realistic.

Now, I need to ask you to bear with me here, and at the same time, I need to put up a disclaimer that there’s a huge chance I’m overanalyzing and the writers probably didn’t see it the way I’m about to present it. Very few creators pay such attention to details, and shadowhunters writers and producers are definitely not among them (look no further than the flashbacks castings case if you need evidence).

Here’s a thing: season 1 events took 19 days (according to interviews). That’s three weeks, most of which was spent outside the institute and/or away from a lot of shadowhunters. Three weeks is not enough to learn about someone else’s culture in anything but broad strokes. We didn’t learn much about Idris and the shadowhunters culture outside of “must.kill.demons.” and “clave is the governing body the institutes fall under”. But in that time, we did learn that shadowhunters view themselves as superior to downworlders because of their angelic blood (as opposed to demon blood that downworlders have). Shadowhunters see downworlders as “less” because of that and employ a number of discriminatory tactics to make sure downworlders know who’s in charge.

Calling a person “warlock” or “vampire” is stripping that person of their individuality, equating their whole existence to that of the downworld race they belong to. It’s like calling a black guy a “thug”. It’s dehumanizing, which is the first thing one does to justify violence against somebody: you make them less than you, so you can tell yourself they deserve it, and that you’re not a bad person for violating them. That’s racism. If you don’t see it, you’re probably white. Congrats on your privilege.

Now, you might recall that in the Malec episode from season 1, the writers changed the homophobic shadowhunter society, took the homophobia out and replaced it with racism. Alec’s parents didn’t care he kissed a guy in front of everyone, it’s the warlock part they had a problem with. Luke has been thrown out and lost all support from his friends and family not because he had a misfortune to associate with a guy who decided to kill a lot of people, but because he got turned into a werewolf – Hodge and the Lightwood parents also associated with Valentine, but notice how they weren’t banished (de-runed). Werewolf Luke lost everything.

Now, you can’t tell me that this kind of deeply ingrained prejudice against downworlders wouldn’t come with a set of micro-aggressions, negative stereotypes and a variety of phrases and vocabulary that were (consciously or not) passed down to the younger generation. And if you’re taught from the early years that shadowhunters are superior to everyone (from the poor little mundane who can’t wipe their noses let alone protect themselves from demons to downworlders who are tainted with demon blood and victims to their own base instincts) and the only time you interact with mundane and downworlders is when you are fighting with demons, or imposing the law on downworlders or during any other interaction that is far from a friendly one, you have nowhere and no one to teach you otherwise.

People are hurt and offended that the writers had Izzy use racist language because she’s a woman and a Latina and had a relationship with Meliorn and is friends with Magnus and Simon.

Me? Frankly, I’m surprised we didn’t get more of that sooner!

We had Alec be dismissive, rude and offensive towards mundane in season one. We had Alec make a suggestive comment about Izzy’s relationship with Meliorn as if having sex with a Seelie was somehow kinky in on itself.

Saying that Izzy wouldn’t use racist language and other micro-aggressions towards a downworlder because of hers and her brother’s relationships with specific individual downworlders is like saying “I can’t be racist! Some of my best friends are black!”

We’re talking about growing up in a very racist, conservative environment where the knowledge that would expose the younger generation to outside perspectives is highly regulated if not outright banned. Hodge is not allowed to talk about the Circle and everything they did (and all the crimes and wrongness committed by the Circle on downworlders) unless he wants to endure incredible amount of pain. I’m betting a lot that both Lightwood siblings start with the “my best friend is black!” mentality in season one. Meliorn is cool and Magnus is awesome, but they are outliers. They are the exceptions and Luke used to be a shadowhunters. They are allowed their humanity, but we can’t be sure about all those other downworlders…

Those other downworlders like Camille, who turned Simon without consent. Like Raphael who is mean and threatens Simon all the time. Like Gretel, and Alaric and Gretel’s godfather.

It hasn’t been a year for these characters. It has been THREE WEEKS since they started being exposed to the notion that downworlders should not be painted with the same brush and that the shadowhunters are not superior angel warriors who can do no wrong. You cannot get rid of all the things you’ve been taught in three weeks. I’ve been exposed to different perspectives and what racism, sexist and LGBTQ discrimination looks like and how to recognize it in my own behavior for over a decade now and I still make mistakes and bite my tongue when I realize my first reaction could come off as offensive.

Do I wish the show wouldn’t have this problematic dialogue and set up? Yes. But at the same time, given the narrative we were presented with since season one, I’m surprised we haven’t seen more of that.

[dwestfieldblog]

‘’A GREAT DAY FOR CIVILIZATION’‘

THE BLACKNESS OF DARKNESS FOREVER

'Verily a polluted stream is man, One must be an ocean to receive a polluted stream without becoming unclean'. Indeed...November-December '2019'...Anarchy for the UK? Looks as if Boris is working for the other side in a similar way to Trump. Ride the populist wave and spark a gathering civil war. I remember reading some years ago about how the SAS were trained in knowing exactly where to place a small amount of explosive to bring down machinery, rather than a James Bond type explosion. Just set it right and allow the machine to destroy itself through its own natural momentum. Every time these two fat blonde fools open their mouths it reminds me of this. They appear to be helping to destroy it all from the inside...will the constitutions of these two noble (arf) countries survive their egos? The education system is breeding a mass of fools and large parts of social media are indeed being weaponised to stir up emotions, working hard to pull it all down.

A looming election in Britain and a current party in power who has received millions from Russian oligarchs to encourage various unions to split apart. Hexagram 23 is thrown again. The other choices are just as dangerous. Nobody of any use whatsoever to vote for. Don't look back, good days ahead eh? Anyone remember Boris saying in 2018 that Britain was 'truly headed for the status of colony'? Yes Mr Johnson, but not a European one. Meanwhile, onwards...

Children are born with a strong sense of curiosity to explore their senses and ask questions. By the time they leave College and University this often seems to have been reduced to mere drug taking without any actual increase in perception...and the need to join a political or religious group. The leaders of such groups do not encourage the curious in nature, as individuality is less than essential to to a leader who requires obedience and the transference of energy. Stirring up righteous emotions takes the place of both rational thought and instinct...and the inquisitive rebels become fervent drones or else passive without actually being tranquil. Never forget the accurate part in Monty Python's Life of Brian where the gathered mass repeat (apart from one) 'YES, WE ARE ALL INDIVIDUALS!' Small wonder the butchers smell easy meat on a daily basis...but at least the lambs are ‘’woke’’, eh?

I recently read the long paragraph of topics NOT to be used by comedians in universities in America and Britain. Ready? 'Racism, sexism,classism, ageism, abelism, homophobia, biophobia, transphobia, xenophobia, Islamophobia, or anti-religion or anti-atheism; These topics can be 'discussed' but 'in a respectful way'. Comedy kids! The PC snowflake future of these countries will be devoid of humour, only safe jokes on the mundane...and at some point even skits on mass murderers will be banned so as not to cause offence to killers several sandwiches short of a picnic.

P.C quote...'I happen to agree with the P.C. cult about many things. (In fact I only differ with them in not liking their intolerance, their fascist tactics, their introduction of Maoist brainwashing to our groves of Academe, their utter lack of humor, their continuous violations of ordinary common sense, their evident desire to destroy our Constitution and their lack of simple human decency') Robert Anton Wilson Cosmic Trigger Three, Hilaritas Press 1995/2018. Speaking of whom...

'The secret of power and wealth? You know how dumb the average guy is? Well, by mathematical definition, half of them are even dumber than that'. RAW. And therefore simpletons to manipulate for votes, money, sex and power. Endless slogans of 'Vote for me, I appear to share the same prejudices as you and of course I believe our country should rise again'. Etc. And so things will remain, until a few more of us consciously choose to edit less and tune in more, changing reality tunnels into reality labyrinths in good humour, there is unlikely to be the fabled phase transition... but it is coming. May Be. Trust me, I am an almost fully realised lunatic. Those with twofold vision will be unable to stop the wheel of evolution. As above, so below, inward is outward. Non simultaneously apprehended events....

China, seventy years of glorious and highly successful communism, well done to the personality cult of Winnie the Pooh. Took them this long to ban South Park. ARF. Don't forget kids, 'the imposition of order=escalation of chaos. The more laws there are, the more crime there will be.' Tell that to the judge...Remember...'The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. IT WAS THEIR FINAL,MOST ESSENTIAL COMMAND' .1984  

Trump said Greta Thunberg 'seems like a very happy girl looking forward to a bright and wonderful future. So nice to see!''. She then put that as her description on her facebook page:-) Goddess bless her. Fascinating but not surprising the papers with editors connected financially with concerns that involve oil etc, are writing editorials about how she is being manipulated and that her Asbergers (which she calls a superpower) makes her a loony. Love that she rejected the environmental award. And now she is Time magazine's Person of the Year, Trump will steam all the more and twitter out yet more methane. ('Every time he sits down, his voice gets muffled'.) Eve was the first human to think for herself...and men like you have never forgotten this eh? Grimly amazed to hear his female press secretary Grisham say his former Chief of Staff 'was totally unequipped to handle the genius of our great president'. She wasn't being sarcastic just applying more brown lipstick. North Korean platitudes in the USA. Cheese Boy and the Old Dotard, coming soon to a nightmare near you...

(A day after I wrote that paragraph, Trump did indeed tweet his disgust and jealous sarcasm, whereupon she promptly took his words once more and updated her biography again to 'A teenager working on her anger management problem. Currently chilling and watching a good old fashioned movie with a friend'. Perhaps she reminds him of a similar smart girl who refused his clumsy advances when he was that age and is seeking delayed revenge. Or just trying to make his oil/resource friends laugh.  His gimp master Putin certainly is. 'Condemned to eternal bullshit' to quote Mr John Lydon. Meanwhile away from the chaos, the darkness and the gate of the land of Night and entropy defined as a gradual decline into disorder, some levity is needed to slow the descent into bleakness ...)

Artificial Intelligence is to be given intellectual property rights...is this really a good idea? Discuss between yourself. Being Terminated by a robot is bad enough but being sued by a machine? Or do the Free Laws apply here? Well, when we cannot believe what we see, we see what we can believe. The state is concentric but the individual is eccentric eh? A random shuffle of cut ups, amazing how often they can make coherent sense, depending on what state the brain is in...I used to be a Libertarian but they had too many rules.

Or, as Alien Sex Fiend once said..'Everybody wants what everybody's got and everybody's got what everybody wants,soldier lies bleeding where a church once stood.' I love you cos you got green hair...Live fast, die young and leave a beautiful corpse, like Curt Cobain. I am a work in regress. Conditioned reflexes are built onto the imprints. Imprints are only changed through work or by a shock of one type or another. Bad news for the lazy cowards among us. 'Apothecary, give me something to sweeten my imagination!'  

...Some days later, a new campaign slogan from Boris to 'forge a new Britain'. In the meaning of fakery and counterfeits? I spent five minutes today reading Trump's Twitter account and felt my mind shivering in horror. This man seems to be seriously mentally ill. And suddenly impeachment (albeit a long time coming) is on the table.  Lurve the quote today from a Republican that 'abuse of power is not a crime'. In a democratic country? Could he be dirt on the road by next year? A smear on the wind shield, a nasty smell in the corner of a locked room? Will the Land of the Free (ARF) have a fresh awakening? Delicious to hold this thought for a while.....

One week later...

And so it was that Boris won an outright majority. And that is where we are in Britain, the other choices were so dreadful, we chose the evil of three lessers. You CAN fool most of the people all of the time. Let's keep repeatedly mentioning the millions of pounds donated to his Conservative party by oligarchs, the four jobs he lost because of lying, the children he does not pay child support to, the absolute lack of respect he commands on the world stage, his endless endless mask of buffoonery, avoidance of questions with a charade of good humour, his lack of manners, ridiculous failed projects paid for by public money, his cover ups, Brexit NHS lies and...and... and all of this happened before he was elected prime minister. THAT'S how poor the alternatives were. And his friends who are shorting stocks in order to cash in on Brexit. These businessmen, like those in the apocalyptic religions, looking forward to the End, to be raised higher in the rapture of Big Money. Nice grip on decency and morality to wish for the destruction of your country for the sake of your pockets. Mutton dressed up as a wolf in a judas goat's clothing, bleating,'This is the way, follow me and ignore the rotating knives;...

Wish and hope to be proved wrong, I have no problem whatsoever with being shown I am wrong when I am. I learn something positive about human nature then and my cynicism is overcome for a while. Not sure what we offer the world other than what we already have given and of course, weapons. Our best minds fled to America, Switzerland, New Zealand etc a long time ago. I expect Scotland to rid herself of English bullshit in no short order. Much as the USA, we became united through violence, the force of manipulation and then the desire to be stronger together. If a large part of the kingdom wishes to split in order to maintain previous relations with Europe, who seem to have behaved far better to it than did England, then go for it ye Celts. Looks as if the English really enjoy being told what to do by posh boys with a shaky grasp of morals. Pathetic. If I wasn't a Christian I'd...oh wait, I'm not...

Sick of these alpha male dumb foul-hearted swine equating power with only brute force and see those who care to evolve as weak. Those who believe respect comes only through fear will have a rude awakening, sooner...or much later. 'So this is how liberty dies, with thunderous applause'.  

And once again for all you Aristotelian black and white types, no I am not a Socialist or a Communist or a Liberal. I just have a deep dislike and mistrust of poncey arrogant lying snobs whose behaviour is far worse than those with a quarter of the education and opportunities they had. Again, perhaps I am wrong and Boris will suddenly rise and show his mettle and be the exact opposite of all he has been and done before. There is a percentage of possibility. My instinct says 'Don't hold yer breath'.  Or...'All things are a coincidence of opposites' Bruno of Nola. So, hope.

Peptides select the reality you experience, so get working on widening the spectra of possibilities and get neurotransmitting all ye psychonauts...at least laugh more...

I am sure it seems lazy just to dump yet another load of favourite quotes in these blogs as ballast,with which to add weight to my rather vague or ranted writings but you deserve some actual mind food during these screeds eh? So...'...brains are made of cells which are made of atoms which are made of electrons which are superimpositions of waves'. And the waves are influenced by...'The hidden variable theory of consciousness asserts (1) there is a sub-quantal level beneath the observational/theoretical structure of ordinary quantum mechanics; (2) events occurring on this sub-quantal level are the elements of sentient being.' Dr. E H Walker and N Herbert. Page 174. I need add nothing to that because it is all there, but...Imagine, if you Will...

And thus...

'We find that our consciousness controls physical events through the laws of quantum mechanics'

'The sum total of all minds is one'. Schroedinger.

'I don't ask that my opinion be made into law'.The republican's favourite hated comedian Bill Maher, speaking about prejudices on weed, sex, comedy, childbirth, books, films etc etc. 'Society runs at the speed of its slowest member'...Thus spake Jim Jeffries, explaining very clearly why various human made laws exist...and why the 'train' of evolution is scarcely moving thanks to all the dead weight it has to pull behind the engine/the first car. (Where within, all the scientists, philosophers, poets and engineers are thinking...; If I just pull out this peg and separate the cars 'Do you know how fast we would be moving?' ) Go for it lucid 3D dreamers...soon.....

An insane God burning its infinite energy on lower things, well why not? It passes eternity in the Akashic hologram eh? 'The hardware remains local, but nobody can localize the software'. Hope this is clear enough.  

'Beauty is nothing but the beginning of terror which we are barely able to endue and we are so awed because it serenely disdains to annihilate us. Rainer Maria Rilke. while listening to Swans from another dimension. I have never read anything from RMR, Kahil Gibran or Rumi that wasn't as magickal as Blake or Yeats. Eternity manifested in the light of day, something infinite behind everything appeared...

Time for us to step back out and away from all the old repeating news. To pay it no mind and certainly no heart. Just let go and leave it behind, allow them to get on with their ruin as we step discreetly to one side. Play your part by standing apart.

A lot of this year has felt pretty foul for various self induced reasons but has been enlightened (literally) considerably by good friends, great books, a couple of summer months on weed, and the beauty, grace, blood and power of PJ Harvey, Thighpaulsanndra, Puscifer, Swans, Killing Joke and the immortal COIL. Readers, I wish you a healthy, good hearted 2020... See you later, perhaps in a fulgurous exhalation conglobed in a cloud by the circumfused humour...

'If you have been on the upside of luck, build longer bridges, not higher fences'  

SPIRAL OUT...KEEP GOING...AND ILLUMINISE NOW )+(  LOVE.

[ultra-doctor-x-world]

Why I believe that there is no Clinton Cartel

Recently I found this video from some dweeb who kisses Crooked Donald’s ass so much he was willing to make up stories to discredit Hillary Clinton.  However, I personally recommend watching the video before reading my debunking thereof.  I’ll put a link down below.

Have you watched the video yet?  Good.  Now let’s go ahead and get started.

“What I’m about to show you in the next 5 minutes will be extremely difficult to watch… but it will also save your life.  You’re about to hear a private briefing about the TRUTH behind the 2016 election… and Hillary Clinton’s one final, desperate act still to come.”

Truth?  Excuse me while I burst out laughing for a moment.  Truth?  Come on.  There’s no truth in this.

“It also exposes a corrupt conspiracy involving Clinton, a secret society of gangsters, and other high-ranking government officials and for the last 23 years, it’s remained a total secret.  Until today...”

Get real.  If Hillary really had done a good job of keeping it a secret for all those years, how could a single person find out about it overnight?  How am I supposed to be convinced that you didn’t make any of this up?  Also, a secret society of gangsters?  Give me a break.  That sounds totally ludicrous.  Politicians would never work with gangsters, they would throw them in jail.

“To be clear: the people involved NEVER expected the inner-workings of their plan to see the light of day.  And if it weren’t just for one tiny mistake, it would have remained buried forever.”

Oh, come on.  If the people involved in some diabolical master plan never expected it to come to fruition, they would have never worked on it in the first place.  Okay, what is this “tiny mistake” you speak of, wise guy?

“So if you’re ready for the truth, keep watching.  But if you don’t think you can handle it, close this video now before you hear what I’m about to say next.  This will be your only opportunity to hear my warning and take action to protect yourself and your family.”

I find it funny how he refers to all this as “the truth” when the fact is, there isn’t a shred of truth to any of this.  And the fact that he wants us to believe that this would “protect our families” should indicate that he doesn’t want us to stop and think, “Hm… maybe this might not be true after all?”  Okay, mister, show me the lies that you plan on telling us.

“Did Hillary rig the 2016 election all the way back in 1993 and in exchange, allow a sinister act to kill 31,000 American seniors that year and MORE every year after?”

No, no, and HELL no!  If she did rig the 2016 election all the way back in 1993, she would have won the election and none of us would have had to deal with Crooked Donald’s bullshit anymore.  And there’s no need to “kill” seniors.  Being a senior is the part of life that naturally comes before death anyway, and yet this joker presents the elderly as a bunch of murder victims.  This should indicate that this guy doesn’t care about facts.  Just charge vocabulary and audience reaction.  He’s clearly using words like “sinister” and “kill” just to get his audience offended at Hillary’s completely made-up conspiracy.  

“Impossible?  Trust me.  Your liberal friends and family won’t be able to deny a thing once you show them the information I’ve been able to uncover.”

Oh, I beg to differ.  And by “uncover,” you obviously mean “fabricate,” right?

“It’s a secret plan cooked up by Crooked Hillary herself that I’ve identified as ‘Executive Plan 5.’”

Okay, first of all, the fact that this dweeb called Mrs. Clinton “Crooked Hillary” much like Donald Trump does should give you some indication as to what he’s trying to do.  He doesn’t care about facts, he cares about how to manipulate people into parroting and eating up everything he says.  And the whole thing with “Executive Plan 5” makes him sound like nothing more than some conspiracy nut.  You can accuse me of blindly believing the whole “Trump colluding with Russia” thing, but at least there is evidence to back it up that has been piling up, even with his son outright admitting it on Twitter and handing evidence to the opposition on a silver platter.  Crooked Donald’s own followers are willing to give him a free pass for any conspiracy he may be involved in, yet are willing to jump at Hillary whenever they catch a rumor of anything dubious involving her?  Hypocrites.

“And it’s a scheme so elaborate and far-reaching, it can only be defined as high treason.”

Oh, yes, never mind Crooked Donald’s constant praising of Vladimir Putin and constant belittling of America’s ally nations, not to mention his unconstitutional banning of Muslim immigrants.  Why they don’t qualify as high treason at all, do they?

“Here was the plan: On January 20th, 2017, Hillary was supposed to place her hand on the Bible and take the Presidential oath of office.  Not as the victor of an honest and fair election, but as a liar, a traitor, and the conspiracy mastermind of a rigged election.”

You’re only a quarter right.  Yes, on January 20th, 2017, she was supposed to place her hand on the Bible and take the Presidential oath of office, but definitely, definitely as the victor of an honest and fair election.  And yes, let’s completely ignore the lies, betrayals, and conspiracies of the President that we ended up with: Crooked Donald.  After all, who’s to say that he didn’t rig the election in his favor, collaborating with the Russians and all.

“Fortunately, you and I both know how her story ended… she failed to become President.  And thank God for that.”

Thank God for that?  Don’t make me laugh.  Have you been paying any attention to what Crooked Donald has been doing during his presidency?  Or have you been purposely hiding your head in the sand since his inauguration?  Maybe you have been, since Crooked Donald has been lying to you about the news being “fake” in a desperate attempt to make himself seem credible.  Because if you were to pay attention to the news, you’d realize that we would be better off with Hillary Clinton as our President after all.

“While President-elect Trump was watching his electoral votes flood in, Hillary went into hiding… practically disappearing off the face of the earth.  Why?  Because she knows this isn’t a simple case of ‘He Won; She Lost.’”

No, there were a few times where she really did publicly show up on camera and say a few things.  She even did that long after Cooked Donald’s inauguration.  And she treated it like a simple case of “He Won; She Lost.”

“No, there’s so much more to the story than that.  And the reason goes deeper than you or I could ever imagine.  So while most Americans are breathing a sigh of relief that Trump will serve as our next President...”

No, they had the exact opposite reaction.  Most Americans protested out in the streets, demanding the government to hand the Presidency over to Hillary Clinton and take it away from Cooked Donald.  They know that prejudice, racism, islamophobia, and bigotry have no place in the White House, and I completely agree.  Hell, there was even a guy who got beaten up in the streets specifically because he voted for Donald Trump!  Do you even watch the news?

“...what 99.98% of them won’t know is the uncomfortable truth.”

And by “uncomfortable truth” you mean “downright blatant lie,” right?

“The outcome of this election - arguably the most important one of our lifetime - was actually planned 23 years ago behind closed doors in a top-secret location.  And even though Hillary has all but disappeared now - her entire sinister plot is still unfolding and putting millions of American lives in jeopardy every single day.”

Oh, gimme a break.  If Hillary really had been planning the outcome of this election, she probably would have won it.  And do you have any idea what her goal is and how much supposed damage it would do?  Not to mention, let’s completely ignore the concerns that people have of how many people would lose their health care coverage if Trumpcare comes into effect.  We’re much more concerned about people losing their lives under the Trump presidency, and if they do, it’ll be the fault of Crooked Donald and his Republican cronies.

“Worse yet, Trump, Pence, or ANY of the high-powered politicos in DC are absolutely powerless to stop her.”

As if they give a rat’s ass what she does.  If Hillary’s so-called plans do happen, they’re just gonna turn a blind eye.  And if she does cause the amount of damage you say she’ll do, they’ll just think, “Hey!  We wanted to do that!”

“How do I know for sure?”

Simple.  You made it up.  Entirely.

“I’ll explain everything but let me start by introducing myself.  My name is Dr. Allan Spreen, and I work for an organization just outside Washington DC, a patriotic group that monitors our government for exactly this type of thing.”

If that were the case, then maybe, just maybe, you should monitor any potential shady business that the Republicans have been doing.  And now that Cooked Donald has become our President, why don’t you monitor his behavior and actions as well as that of his coworkers, and expose any of their corruption to the public?  This means that either A: you guys suck at your jobs, B: you guys are overly biased, or C: you guys are hypocrites!

“I can’t reveal my sources, but a network of insiders gives me special access to this kind of information.”

The fact that Allan said that he can’t reveal his sources should arouse suspicion from anyone watching this video.  If this guy wants us to believe him, the burden of proof lies with him.  And if he were to reveal his sources, his arguments and “discoveries” would have some actual credibility.  And saying that he can’t reveal his sources seems to serve two purposes here.  One: to worm his way out of said burden and further insist that you need to simply take his word for it.  And two: to paint Hillary Clinton as having a network of spies keeping watch over anything that could potentially leak out her dirty secrets, and even being willing to kill anyone that may potentially leak them out, playing even further into purpose number one.  But come on, who would really be that gullible?  If someone says they have essential information for you, and makes up excuses for not showing you proof that what they’re saying is true, you should be very suspicious of them.  Or completely disbelieve them.

“We’ve uncovered a lot of dirt over the last 19 years, but NOTHING this huge.”

In that case, you should definitely give us proof that what you’re saying is true.  Otherwise, we might just push the idea that you’re actually lying, sort of like what I’m doing right now.

“I might even be putting myself at risk to publish this report today - but it’s my duty, buth as a journalist and a proud American who loves his country.”

If you really did love your country, you would have gladly done investigating and exposing of any of Donald Trump’s dubious activity.  And stop thinking that he’s better for this country, Mr. Spreen.  I’m sorry, he’s just not.

“I’ve actually been tracking this story for years… following paper trails, checking fact, and gathering a mountain of evidence along the way…”

Evidence that you’re not even bothering to actually show your audience, Mr. Spreen?  Because if you don’t, we’ll be even more convinced that you made all of this up.

“But even I didn’t want to believe that this kind of thing could actually happen in America until I saw Hillary’s speech when she accepted the Democratic nomination.”

And if you don’t show us any of the so-called “evidence” that you supposedly ‘gathered,” (and by “gathered” I mean “fabricated”) we’ll keep not believing it.  An on a side-note, I have no idea how a person’s speech is meant to unveil a deep conspiracy theory.

“It was her smug smile and the way she waved like a queen at the crowd through the sleeves of her $12,000 pantsuit jacket… she knew she’d already won.”

Well, then, aren’t you going to show us a video clip of that speech?  Aren’t you going to show us the video where she does show off that smug smile and that regal wave?  There was a video at the very introduction of this video, why wasn’t there one here when you truly need it?  I think this guy is grasping at straws.

“I decided right then and there that I wasn’t going to let her get away with it… and I know you won’t either.”

Oh, yes, I will.  As for Crooked Donald, well, I hope you reconsider letting him get away with anything bad he had done.

“Truthfully, even the craziest of left-wing ‘libnuts’ won’t be able to deny the proof at 6:18 of this video that Hillary Clinton has co-signed the most devastating American scandal this country has ever known.”

Ha!  Oh, please.  Couldn’t be any more devastating than Crooked Donald collaborating with the Russians.  Also, you just contradicted what you said earlier about being unable to show us any proof for fear for your life.  And I bet that proof is not really proof, now is it?

“That’s right, co-signed.  Because even though I truly believe Hillary is a force of evil against our great nation, she isn’t in this alone.”

Okay, you called her a “force of evil against our great nation,” which A: No, Donald Trump is, and B: calling her things like that clearly indicate that you’re only using charge vocabulary in order to get your audience’s attention instead of relying on actual evidence.

“In fact, during my investigation, I uncovered proof of a shadowy organization operating strategically behind the scenes and manipulating Hillary’s career… with her FULL blessing.  My colleagues and I call that secret organization the Clinton Cartel.  And they’re every bit as power-hungry and despicable as Hillary herself.”

If there’s anyone power-hungry and despicable in this day of politics, it’s Crooked Donald and his cartel.  And by “cartel” I mean cabinet members and fellow Senate Republicans.  And once again, this guy claims to have proof without even bothering to show his audience any of it.  Once again, I have reason to believe that that he only pretends to have proof while making excuses to show none of it.

“Since all the way back in 1993, the Clinton Cartel has been Hillary’s ally on every rung of the political ladder, moving all the right chess pieces to buy her elections, knowing that starting in 2017 - with Queen Hillary running the show - she’d be returning the favor.  That’s right, in exchange for delivering her Presidency on a silver platter, she’d look the other way while giving the Cartel full access to run our government’s biggest agencies… for limitless profits.  Here was the plan: When Hillary’s scheme when into effect in 2017, the Cartel would have unprecedented access to our government… and a direct path to your health and money.

Do you honestly expect us to believe a story this ridiculous, Allen?  I mean, Hillary Clinton collaborating with a shadowy gang since 1993?  Promised with direct access to people’s health and money?  Oh, come on.  That’s way to ludicrous for any sensible person to believe.  But you don’t want us to be sensible do you?  You just want us to act on instinct, don’t you.  Well my instinct tells me that you’re lying through your teeth.  And besides, it’s not like the President that we actually ended up with, Crooked Donald, isn’t a threat to our good health care, now is it?  Sorry, but your attempts to protect our health have fallen flat on their face.  

More importantly, though, do you have any videos of Hillary talking to members of this imaginary Cartel?  Any audio tapes?  Any transcripts?  No?  Then I’m not gonna take your word for it.  I have no reason to believe that this Cartel thing is actually true, and I think that it’s just another completely made-up story to try to convince us that she would have been a worse President than Crooked Donald, and I’m also convinced that you’re yet another one of Crooked Donald’s toadies trying to further the smear campaign against Hillary Clinton.

With their plan set in motion, she was guaranteed to win.  GUARANTEED.  Only they didn’t pull it off.  And now, the Cartel - hungrier than ever - still wants to be paid back.  Even if it’s at the expense of American lives.

If that were the case, then maybe this made-up Cartel would have joined Crooked Donald’s cabinet and tried to help him repeal Obamacare and the Affordable Care Act.  If they were to do that, they’d get their money back while also massacring so many American lives in the process, and considering that Trump and the Cartel have that common goal, I’m surprised they’re not teaming up to accomplish that.  But they’re not.  So the Cartel doesn’t exist.

“I’ll explain exactly what I mean, but here’s the part that will really blow your mind: Clinton swore up and down the campaign trail that the Cartel are actually her ENEMIES.  She’s absolutely shameless.  She publicly denounced them and said they’re out to take advantage of middle-class Americans (and they are!) but behind closed doors, she’s been greedily accepting their money AND their help for decades.”

Oh, I’m quite convinced that Clinton said nothing about a Cartel during her election campaign.  Also, You didn’t show us any indication that she has been accepting money from this fantasy Cartel.  No photos, no audio, no video clips, nothing!  So yeah.  There is no Cartel.  And besides, what about Crooked Donald?  The Russians have been helping his campaign, so why are you doing nothing to address that?  At least loads of other people have, but not you?  Hypocrite.

“Friend, what you’re about to see next proves EXACTLY why she was always unfit to be President, and why we could never allow her into the White House.”

Funny, Crooked Donald was always unfit to be President, and yet you had no problem with letting him into the White House!  Again, hypocrisy.  And I’m still convinced, she would have made a much better President than Crooked Donald here.

“Here are the facts: When Bill first assigned Hillary to lead his Task Force on National Health Care Reform in 1993, she immediately put 33 corporate power players on her team.  Now, these were some real heavy hitters across several industries that she knew had the muscle to get things done in DC and weren’t afraid to get their hands dirty in the process.  It was a real deal with the devil, to be sure.  But this group stood to make a killing because with the approval of the new healthcare bill, they were promised a payout to the tune of $10 BILLION in new revenues.  (Yup, that’s BILLION with a B.)”

Do you have any records on who these 33 corporate power players even are?  Aren’t you going to show us screenshots of these documents in a photograph or something?  Any documents of their track records?  Any e-mails or letters talking about this deal?  Any photos or videos of a meeting?  Something?  Anything?

“Fortunately, you and I both know how that ended.  Thankfully, the bill was destroyed before it ever got off the ground, and Hillary’s ‘teammates’ never go to cash their checks.  But failure has never stopped Hillary.  She’s had plenty of it… but her lust for power is never-ending.  And she knew that in our country, money can still buy power.  But you need LOTS of it.  So she decided to form a secret alliance with this group of corporate fat cats and with nothing more than a secret meeting and brief handshake to seal their pact, the Clinton Cartel was born.”

Again, no photos, no videos, nothing indicating the existence of this meeting.  So yeah.  I must admit, Allan, you have made the most elaborate story meant for vilifying Hillary Clinton ever created. Too bad I’m going to remain convinced that it’s complete bullshit.

“They vowed to never speak of their arrangement again.  But I was watching.”

Gee, if only you had brought a camera with you during this meeting and had taken photographs or recorded the meeting… oh wait!  You didn’t!  You were supposedly watching this meeting and you have nothing to show for it?  Actually, come to think of it, if you were watching their meeting twenty-four years ago between Hillary and this Cartell, then why didn’t you tell this to the media immediately after it was done?  Why wait until now!?  Were you too scared?  Did you think that nobody would believe you?  Or are you just trying even harder to make this fake Cartel story sound even more believable!?  Yep, the Clinton Cartel is just one big lie.

“And what you’re about to hear next is a matter of public record - the undeniable proof of the Cartel’s work.  Fast forward to Hillary’s 2000 Senate bid.  The Cartel funded $86,875 in cash into her campaign, ensuring her victory.  During her re-election in 2006, they upped the ante and pumped $157,015 into her campaign… and again, she won.  Then came the 2008 presidential election when the Cartel gave her $174,000 in cash.  The Cartel didn’t even care if Hillary lost in the primaries… they had their sights on 2016 the entire time.”

Don’t you think a story like that should sound suspicious to anyone?  If the Cartel had an opportunity to get Hillary into the White House before 2016, then why didn’t they use that to their advantage!?  Did nobody on that Cartel say, “Hey!  We could get Hillary into the White before 2016!  Why don’t we give it a try?”  Don’t you find it funny that they wouldn’t be eager to hasten their goal?

“Fast forward to 2015 when Hillary announced that she was running for President.  And now the Cartel went all-in… to the tune of $7,054,871.  But they didn’t stop there either.  Trying not to draw much attention to their partnership, they privately made additional contributions to the Clinton Foundation ranging from $1 million to $5 million each.”

If that were true, they’d run out of money eventually, right?  Right?  RIGHT?

“In total, it’s estimated that Hillary has accepted $10.8 million in Cartel dirty money since 2000, and that’s only including what’s publicly shown on her books.”

If she recieved any dirty money at all, it would never be publicly shown on her books.  She’d want to keep it top secret for the rest of time.  Publicly showing it on her books would defeat that purpose to a staggering degree and hurt her reputation, and thwart her ambitions.  So, you’ve shot yourself in the foot, Mr. Spreen.

“With that kind of money buying all the votes she needed, the scheme was practically fool-proof.  Until her carefully-laid plan was OUTED in the final hours before the election.”

Um�� how?  How was it outed?  And I’m sure that so many people who heard that story knew that it was a complete lie just like I do.  Any sensible person would consider a story like that to be to ridiculous to be believed and write it off as the pathetic smear campaign that it was.

“Hillary rightfully lost, and the Cartel was once again left with their pocket turned inside out.  But that just made them even angrier.  So who exactly is this ‘faceless’ Cartel?  And why should we still be afraid of them - even after Donald Trump becomes president?”

Who is this “faceless” cartel you ask?  Simple.  They’re characters in a fanfiction you wrote in an attempt to discredit Hillary.  And why should we be afraid of them?  They’re no scarier than the stereotypical campfire ghost story.

“And most importantly, how can you protect yourself and your loved ones?”

Oh, come on.  It’s Crooked Donald and his cabinet that we need protection from.

“From my experience, I’ve found Clinton’s Cartel to be an extremely cunning and dangerous team.  They work in secret and consist of highly influential figures, lobbyists, and even corporate executives.  Now, that might not sound intimidating at first blush, but in partnership with Hillary, they’ve already launched Executive Plan 5 with one simple goal: Manipulate American politics - and the American people - for BILLIONS in pharmaceutical drug profits.  And no one would EVER catch on.  What’s even more terrifying is that this group is NOT made up of politicians.  Look, Trump has promised to ‘drain the swamp’ in DC… but these folks are too powerful to be touched.  So, even without Hillary on their side, they can still have unprecedented power to influence our government’s healthcare laws and policies.  Take for example the FDA: The Cartel has been funding that group for years.  They practically OWN it already.  How?  In just 2015 alone, the FDA received $97,605,000 in ‘standard fees’ from the Cartel.  All to allow more prescription drugs to flood the market, making BILLIONS for the Cartel.  And it’s only going to increase.  A LOT.  In fact, it should rocket to well over $100 million a year in money paid to the FDA, allowing the Cartel to continue to push their poison bills for BILLIONS in profit.”  

Well, Allan, that’s pretty elaborate for a lie, I’ll give you that much.  Shame you made up an excuse to not show your sources, otherwise, you’d be more convincing.  Also, do you have anything to indicate that the FDA is on this fantasy Cartel’s leash?  The fact that you said that you can’t show your sources should be considered to be suspicious at best.  If you really want to convince us that any of this is even remotely true, then you absolutely, positively, should show us your sources, and the fact that you’re absolutely refusing to should be considered to be highly suspicious.

“And the worst part is, they’re selling us prescription drugs that are completely unnecessary.  And many of them are deadly.  Did you know the FDA receives more than 2 million consumer complaints about prescription drugs every single year!?  It gets worse.  It’s estimated that over 350 Americans are dropping dead every single day from taking their own prescribed medications.  That means in the short time you’ve been watching this presentation, 2 more Americans have died from the Cartel’s work… and seniors are at the most risk!”

Do you have any track records as to what these prescription drugs actually are, what they do, and who is selling them?  Or how about a record of the complaints that the FDA gets from their consumers for that matter?  And the people that have been getting killed by their own medications?  You definetly, definetly should be showing something to indicate that.  But because you made an excuse to not show your sources, your story remains way to ludicrous to be believable.  Again, if you attempt to worm your way out of showing your sources, damage will be done to your credibility.

“But maybe you’re sitting here and saying, ‘That will never be me.’  Then let me ask you.  Are you over the age of 55 and taking a prescription drug?  Does your spouse take any medications?  More than 31,000 seniors will die this year from legally prescribed medications.”

What I am saying isn’t “That will never be me,” it’s, “Oh, come on.  That’s ridiculous.  How can I be sure that you’re not making any of this up?”  And no, I’m actually in my mid-twenties and I don’t take prescription drugs.  I am not married.  And being a senior is the stage of life that takes place before death anyway, so that makes it even harder to believe that their own medications are actually killing them.

“But what can you do?  Your well-meaning doctor prescribes them for high blood pressure, cholesterol, diabetes, whatever it is.  And you need them, right?  Well, that’s what the Clinton Cartel wants you to believe.  But today, we’re exposing their most dangerous LIE.”

Sorry pal, but I have my own ideas on who the liar is.

“You see, the organization I work for is called the Health Sciences Institute. (or HSI)  We’re an independent think tank of patriotic American doctors, scientists, and researchers and we are fighting back against Hillary and her slimy Cartel by exposing their biggest lie ever, starting with five words they NEVER wanted you to hear: YOU DON’T NEED PRESCRIPTION DRUGS.  Not when there are already very real cures and treatments for the diseases that plague us.  Alzheimer’s disease, arthritis, MS, heart disease, even cancer.  Cures they’ve actively covered up for the last 23 years.  And today, we’re exposing everything and revealing every disease-curing secret so they lose… and you win.  Like a cancer cure that beats chemotherapy and starts killing cancer cells in just hours… covered up by our own government!?  You won’t believe this outrageous scandal.”

Excuse me while I burst out laughing here, but honestly, if these amazing cures for all of these dangerous and complicated diseases really did exist, then why didn’t you do everything within your power to make their existence public knowledge so that people could get treated, you idiots!?

“The easy secret to reversing Alzheimer’s and dementia with the power to roll your brain’s “clock” back 12 years.  How did this one get buried?  The truth comes out today…  The only solution that erases arthritis pain and REBUILDS arthritic joints.  Pain vanishes in as little as seven days.  Are you ready for a brand new outlook on life and ZERO pain?  Want deep, restful, healing sleep night after night?  Without the danger of deadly sleeping pills?  You’ll be amazed by this new sleep wonder and just how dangerous the pharma stuff secretly is.  There’s a deadly symptom of heart failure that your doctor doesn’t know!  This is MUST-READ information to save you from a fatal heart attack: Plus, there’s a simple solution for protecting your heart now, if you know where to look.  ”

Well the truth should have come out a long time ago!  Why did you wait until now!?  That way, if the Clinton Cartel really did exist, (and there’s a reason I say “if”) Hillary would have been completely exposed, the Cartel would have fallen apart, her ambitions would have collapsed, Bernie Sanders would have won the election, and maybe, just maybe, we would have had a much better President right now!  Why didn’t you make any of this public knowledge a long time ago?  Because if you did, this would have been so much more believable.

“You see, there are TRUE cures from all over the world that work as well (or better!) than prescriptions… but with no lousy side-effects.”

You know the old saying “too good to be true?”  Well that’s what all of this sounds like to me, and that should definitely, definitely raise suspicion.

“In fact, in many countries around the world… these therapies are PRESCRIBED by doctors.  And results are flowing in that they’re curing grateful patients from cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s, and more.”

Then why don’t you provide an actual example, then?

“But why not here?  In the Greatest country in the world?”

Greatest country in the world?  I seriously beg to differ.

“Well, it interferes with the Cartel’s money machine.  You see, these are all NATURAL disease treatments… discovered by top scientists right here on God’s green earth.  But you can’t patent a plant extract or an herbal disease treatment.  And if you can’t patent something, you can’t sell it for big profits.”  

Well, there’s an old saying that goes: You’ll never know until you try.  In my opinion, you can patent these natural treatments.  It may not be easy but it is possible, and if growing, patenting, and making profits off of fruits and vegetables - naturally produced food! - is possible, why not with plant extracts or herbal disease treatments?  Don’t you think that something like that would be highly suspicious?  At best?  Grocery stores and make profits off of fruits and vegetables so pharmaceutical companies have no excuse for not trying any of this.  But maybe if they were to start giving it a try, then this story would have come up at all.

Not only that, though, but you said that the planet’s top scientists found these natural cures, so why don’t you give us their names and credentials?  Aren’t you going to give us stories on how they managed to find these supposed natural cures?  Again, more “evidence” that you’re withdrawing from us.

“So why would the Cartel even waste their time?”

Same reason grocery stores sell fruits and vegetables.  Now if they were to start taking that into consideration and give it a try, they would make money faster and more honestly.

“It makes WAY more sense for them to try to replicate the cure with something artificial that will become their next cash cow.”

No, it doesn’t.  If customers realize that there’s been a real cure and they’ve been purchasing a fake one this entire time, they’ll not want to buy their product anymore, and the Cartel’s finances would plunge down the toilet in a landslide.  

“So the Cartel bullies the FDA into making sure these natural cures STAY a secret.  While also making sure you and your doctor only hear about their ‘wonder drugs’... and keeping those deadly side-effects sealed away from the public eye.  And that keeps Americans coming back to deadly and ineffective pharma drugs over and over.”

Yet another instance where providing us with a video showing us this would be tremendously helpful.

“But, finally, that ends TODAY.  For the first time ever, I’m unmasking and counting down the Top 5 Covered-Up Cures that Hillary’s Cartel and their partners at the FDA have openly tried to discredit.  I’ll show you proof of what these cures can do for you and your family… (And yes, I do mean CURES for the deadliest diseases known to mankind.)”

I have two problems with him saying this.  One: He doesn’t actually show us the actual proof of what these cures can do or even what they look like, no photos, no interviews with the people who have gotten treated, nothing of the sort.  Two: I don’t think it’s enough to raise awareness of these supposed cures to us.  The knowledge of the existence of these cures won’t do us any good if we can’t easily obtain them.  Allan and his buddies should make the existence of these cures more wide-spread and more importantly, mass-produce them so that they can easily give them to whomever might need them most.

“You’ll also hear from ‘hopeless’ people who had their lives changed forever…  You’ll see the results from rock-solid scientific studies...”

That you won’t even bother showing us, Mr. Spreen?  

“And most importantly… I’ll show you how you can legally get your hands on all of them.  Free.”

Cue a commercial for one of his books.  I’ll skip this segment and fast-forward to the segment where it talks about the whole cure-for-cancer thing.

“For the first time ever, cancer is now a completely curable disease.  Colorectal cancer, pancreatic cancer, breast cancer, skin cancer, lung cancer, leukemia, even inoperable brain tumors and more… are NO match for this natural discovery.  It’s all thanks to this breakthrough that comes from one of the strangest places on earth… a rare type of sour honey!?”

Oh, I’m sorry, a special sour honey can cure cancer?  My scouter says that your ridiculousness levels have gone… well… how do I explain this?

Yep.  What he said.  Aren’t you going to provide us with a photograph of said honey?  Or present us with an example of how it was able to cure cancer?  A scientific diagram?  A video of a cancer patient eating some of said honey and then being magically cured of said cancer?  Do you have anything to indicate how this sour honey is able to cure cancer of any kind shape and form?  Because that is scientifically ludicrous.  And unless you have any proof of this, it will remain ludicrous.  

“Keep watching and I’ll explain.  Cancer.  Just the word alone would make anyone’s heart drop in fear.  Maybe you have a loved one going through treatment right now and you know exactly how devastating the disease can be.  Maybe you’ve even worried about it yourself… wondering how a diagnosis would impact your own life… your family, friends, even pets.  It’s a completely rational fear, considering the fact it’s estimated there are 14 MILLION Americans living with some form of cancer right now and 1.6 million new cases expected to be added by the end of this year alone.  And it’s not even the fear of living through the disease and decline that’s the worst part.  It’s the fear of dying the horrible death that comes with it.  Chemotherapy, radiation, disfiguring surgery… and then death.  More than half a million Americans a year… dead from cancer.  Imagine how angry their families would be if they could see the emails I discovered...”

Gee.  Are you even bothering to actually show them to us!?  Do you have any credibility on this matter?

“A private email exchange sent between government researchers where they ADMITTED that a natural cure was the BEST cancer treatment available.  I managed to get my hands on the message itself and am publishing the smoking gun for you to see yourself… here’s the direct quote from their email: ‘[Sour Honey] is the only effective therapeutic available on the market so far.’”

Then why don’t you directly show it to us then?  Did you screenshot the e-mail?  If you did, why didn’t you show it to us?  That “direct quote” might as well be your own words.

“Think of all the needless deaths that could have been prevented had the FDA issued a public statement about the truth behind this bona-fide natural cancer cure.  But instead, they chose to keep their email chain private and unpublished.  They didn’t want anyone to see the truth or make their Cartel ‘investors’ angry.  And this admission was dated all the way back in 2013!  Imagine if the 1.7 million people who have died since then would have known about this natural cure’s power.  But instead, they were told the same lie that the Cartel spoon-feeds the American public (so THEY can pay cash for their custom Porsches): ‘Chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery are the only way.’  And they sure don’t want you to know about a potent natural cancer-defeater that’s as easy (and save!) as adding a spoonful of honey to a cup of hot tea.”

I’m sorry, but I think you should start showing us proof that this sour honey exists, let alone that it’s able to cure cancer in an instant.  Do you have even a scrap of evidence to back this up?  Again, more claims that you’re not even bothering to show us.  Have you studied and taken notes on the chemical composition of said honey and do you plan on showing it to us?  Oh, wait, you just sent us a commercial for one of your books.  And you expect us to find the proof there.  I’m sorry, but if you were to give us some proof now, we’d have more incentive to buy your book in the first place.

“But I don’t drive a pricey luxury car… or make a single red cent off ANY cure.  So I can’t wait to share this exciting news with you today.  In the heart of the Brazilian jungle, a tiny, remote area exists where special bees create one of the rarest substances on earth.  It’s a type of ‘sour honey’ that has remained untouched for thousands of years.  Until it was recently tested in a lab and delivered these near-miraculous results: Within 24 hours, Sour Honey was shown in vitro to demolish breast cancer cells on the spot - killing 13% of the cancer in just the first day alone!  And in a separate study, looking at human-like tumors on mice, tumor growth was halted a full 50% with Sour Honey.  And on two different aggressive types of prostate cancer cells, Sour Honey was shown in vitro to boost the speed in killing the cancer destroying up to 75% of the cancer cells in the study!”

This is where a photograph of said honey and said bees would really come in handy.  On top of that, why don’t you make special farms where you breed these special bees and mass-produce said sour honey?  And aren’t you going to show us any proof at all that this “sour honey” can cure cancer as miraculously as you claim?  You’re not going to show us videos or photographs of these tests?  You’re not gonna show us photos or videos featuring the mice?  No documents of that study?  How am I supposed to be convinced that this story about this sour honey is real, let alone that it can actually cure cancer as effectively as you claim?

“So how does it work so fast and so effectively?”

Um, it doesn’t?

“Well, unlike chemo drugs that work through ‘mass extinction’... attacking every cell in your body and destroying the good with the bad, this rare Sour Honey works on a whole other level: First it teams up with your body’s own natural chemistry to selectively target “grow” signals that cancer cells put out as they multiply and spread.  Next, it marks all of those nasty little cells (kind of like a label maker) - letting the body know that they are bad news.  Then it swoops into action on the ‘marked cells,’ destroying masses of cancer cells and only cancer cells.  So your normal, healthy cells stay untouched and continue to thrive.  But that’s not all.  The thing that makes Sour Honey so one-of-a-kind, is that it has a dual-mechanism for killing cancer cells.  Meaning, in addition to eliminating cancer directly, it’s even been proven in studies to drive cancer cells to kill THEMSELVES.  I’ll save you the boring science lecture and tell you everything you need to know next.  ”

Well, the least you could have done is wrote and sold a book that actually gives us proof about this sour honey and what it can do.  What he does from here on is insist that there have been studies shown that show that sour honey cures cancer, but he doesn’t even bother to show us anything from said studies and doesn’t even bother showing us any examples thereof.  After that, it’s just a long-winded commercial for other stuff.  But if I dive into the rest of this video, we’d be here forever, so I’m gonna save myself and all of you so much time and energy and just end this here and now.

Bottom line: Not a single thing Dr. Allan Spreen said was backed up with proper evidence like photos or videos, and it seemed like he just relied on shock value to supposedly get his point across, or more accurately, to kiss Crooked Donald’s ass.  While I do think that this “Clinton Cartel” story does sound interesting, I also think that it is a load of rubbish.  What makes this assumption even more convincing is that the only other people talking about this “Clinton Cartel” are the people on Fox News, who are notorious for biased conservative viewpoints, the real “fake news.”  I do admit, though, this “Clinton Cartel” story does sound pretty interesting, but I am convinced that he made it up, and will remain that way unless he provides actual proof.  But because he didn’t provide his audience with any proof of the whole “Clinton Cartel” thing, I have more reason to believe that the Clinton Cartel is a complete lie.  A lie that I nearly fell for hook, line, and sinker and I’m here to make sure that you don’t.  I hope the maker of this video actually reads this blog and watches in horror as I completely expose what a liar he is, and destroy his credibility.  I should expose the notion to the public that there is no Clinton Cartel!  Crooked Donald’s lies haven’t fooled the sensible, intelligent people of America.  What chance does this loser have?  And I’m quite certain that this clown is doing the very thing that he’s accusing Hillary’s so-called “cartel” of doing.

[slutornut]

One Year Later: How we have been holding our judges accountable

By Stephanie Stella

Without a doubt, the Jian Ghomeshi trial sparked a shift in the public's awareness of sexual assault law and the treatment of complainants on the stand.

Since then, we've seen cases like the one judged by Gregory Lenehan, who proclaimed "a drunk can consent." Or judged by Robin Camp, who asked,  "Why couldn't you keep your knees together?” In the case of a young woman raped in Calgary.

Even in cases where there is clear evidence of the victim saying “no,” there was no guarantee of a conviction. Judge Michael Savaryn decided a particular victim in court did not dissent enough. Her lack of consent was disproven by the Judge, despite her having said "no" multiple times, because at one point in her assault she smiled and laughed her attacker off.

In the rare instances we saw a conviction, the criminal was shown sympathy and given a minimal sentence, so as not to ‘interfere with’ or ‘ruin their life.’

These cases continue making news, not because they are a new phenomenon, but because the public is more interested and aware of the prevalence and pattern of disregard to sexual assault complainants in the justice system.

Past cases are now being brought back from the dead to scrutinize the sitting judge. For example, a 2015 ruling by Judge Pat McIlhargey is being challenged because his acquittal of the accused was based upon apparent disparities between the victim and a host of rape myths. Another ruling, delivered by the Honourable Keith Yamauchi in 2013, is up for appeal, on the grounds that the acquittal hinged on the accusation that multiple complainants did NOT report sooner.

In another case, R v. Ururyar, in which Mandi Gray- the complainant waived her publication ban, and publicly denounced the judicial system’s mistreatment of her, the case ended in a conviction in July 2016. It was immediately challenged, both by the appellant's lawyer and the internet. The appeal posited that Justice Marvin Zuker, the judge presiding over that case, suffered from a feminist bias toward the complainant.  The appeal was heard by a new judge in March- Judge Michael Dambrot. I sat in the courtroom to listen, as I had done during the trial. Within ten minutes, the judge was already agreeing with the appellant's attorneys, talking in a familiar, jovial tone, and openly insulting Judge Zuker's verdict. When the complainant's side stood up to speak, the change in the judge's tone was palpable. Every comment Judge Dambrot made was criticizing, condescending, or outright rude to the Crown and the intervener. Multiple times, he interrupted or actually shushed them as they were speaking. He seemed to have already decided which direction he was going to rule, before hearing any arguments.

Remember, this was the appeal hearing for a trial judge's verdict, on the grounds that the trial judge was biased. The irony would be comical if the consequences were not so serious.

Judge Dambrot showed little knowledge or understanding of what actually happens during a rape trial, and was dangerously resistant to correction by people with knowledge of the process. According to Judge Dambrot, rape myths aren't used in court; if they become apparent, the judge will simply reject them. He claims that these myths do not influence the verdict, and they certainly are not used as the basis for a ruling. According to Dambrot's fantasy world, the biases of Pat McIlhargey and Keith Yamauchi trials never happened.

We already know rape myths have no place in court, Mr. Dambrot, but a glimpse into any current rape trial reveals that we have not yet reached a point where they are not there at all. In the meantime, pretending these myths don't influence people - including lawmakers and judges - is just plain naive.

One of Dambrot's freshly minted myths is actually an already-established myth gone meta: that sexual assault complainants report their assaults to push their own secret agenda. It was one of the many myths repeated in the Gomeshi trial as well as in the R vs Ururyar trial, and one that men’s right’s activist of the social media love to toss around. The new version? That myth doesn't even exist.

After the judge decried the existence of rape myths again, a group of survivors walked out of the R Vs Ururyar appeal, and the complainant announced that she will not testify again, in the clearly inevitable event that the original conviction verdict is overturned. One year later from the Ghomeshi verdict, we have a still-too-common sight: a judge who demonstrates a concerning lack of knowledge of the basic facts of rape and power dynamics.

So I will ask again, a year past the Gomeshi trial, has anything changed?

Are society and the justice system ready to make the shift from blaming victims to believing survivors and listening to their stories? Are we ready to hold our judges accountable for their prejudices and mistakes? Did we need to see it play out publicly in the Gomeshi scandal before we could collectively accept that the systematic injustice is indeed real?

The difference between a year ago and now is that survivors are feeling more empowered than ever to go public and speak out, both against their attackers and against the courts who demonize them in the witness box.

Yes, victim witnesses are mistreated in the system. This is happening, and it is absolutely unacceptable. And yes, we do have more options other than being forced to ‘lie back and take it’.

[scrawnydutchman]

In Defense of Religion (and Spirituality in General)

It seems superfluous to outright state the obvious as a beginning of this post, but Religion has always been a taboo subject, especially in modern times. Many highly respected writers and social commentators, not the least of which being Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens, Penn Jillette and the late George Carlin, have contributed to shifting people’s perception of being faithful to what many other authors have penned as the rising age of Atheism. None of these men are the originators of course, there are many other philosophers from earlier times who could be considered responsible for that, first example coming to mind being Friedrich Nietzsche, famous for coining the phrase “God is dead and we have killed him.” Of course it doesn’t help that people are very polarized in our day and age, not just with faith but in politics as well. It just seems like we’re getting more and more divided all the time. Contrary to what we all believe however, this division isn’t a result of us being intolerant of just how different we are. In truth it’s a result of us being more alike then we would care to admit. Many like to attribute violent and extreme behavior to a corrupt or poorly established doctrine as a means to reinforce their own stance to themselves, but in my honest to God perception of the whole thing it just seems like everybody is suffering from the same hypocrisies and negative effects of confirmation bias and they fail to even realize it.

Now, as the reader has likely gathered from the title, this post will be coming to the defense of religion, but before doing so I want to make one thing perfectly clear; this is not meant to convert you. If you’re a proud Atheist or Muslim or Christian or Buddhist or whatever you identify with, I hope you find happiness and solace in the path you’ve chosen, and if not may you find it wherever else you look. What this post IS meant to do is address commonly made points for the fallacies within their logic, mainly points Anti-theists make against believing in God, so they’ll see a bit more of themselves in people they disagree with and perhaps have an easier time allowing people to be who they want to be. Because while I don’t want to push any opinion on which faith is true on you, the stance I DO uphold without shame is that any thought provoking discussion for the way the universe works is worth indulging, to engage with others and to consider things one may not have considered otherwise. The points I will address and counter are as follows:

1. Religion is overly violent and encourages prejudice and hatred.

2. Religion is non-progressive, holding back scientific research as well as social and political issues.

3. What reason to people have for believing in God anyway?

1A. I will concede that faith has an ugly history behind it. One need look no further then the Crusades, Galileo, and the recent ISIS attacks to confirm this. It’s unfortunate that people use their worldviews which ironically preach peace and kindness towards fellow man to such horrid ends as such. However, contrary to what many may believe, this justification of negative action doesn’t come from a refusal to rationalize. It actually comes from the opposite; rationalizing violent impulse through teachings of scripture to the point of practically having internal debate with one self to fulfill these actions without harming one’s conscience. Basically it’s researching not for the sake of learning the truth, but for the sake of proving that you are right. This is what’s known as confirmation bias: You’ll research so long as you can find the answers you’re looking for regardless of whether they’re credible or not, and then dismiss any counter evidence brought forward to you either entirely or you’ll provide some half hazard counter argument. It’s why there are people in the world who think vaccines cause Autism; they’ll keep digging until they find something that agrees with them.

Non religious based pieces of literature can provoke the same violent responses in unforeseeable ways too. The murderer of John Lennon claimed that the statement he was making in Lennon’s murder was J.D. Salingers Catcher In the Rye. Where in the book about an adolescent Holden Caulfield having a mental breakdown about the pressures of growing up condone murder? I have no idea. But surely because the novel compelled Mark Chapman to shoot John Lennon it ought to be banned so that nobody is ever influenced like that again, right? Is this information to be locked away forever because of an unfortunate tale it is tied with? Many have thought so, but I was still able to read it in high school and I turned out fine, if only a little opinionated.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_David_Chapman

Some of the works of the founding fathers of Atheism and Nihilism have similar stories behind them. Enter the German Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, previously noted for the phrase “God is dead and we have killed him” as a symbol for a rising age in which man no longer needs the alleged illusion of God to encourage righteous behavior. Beyond that, another famous theory of Nietzsche that has been carried on into our pop culture is the idea of the Ubermensch, roughly translated into English as the “Superman”. Essentially Nietzsche spoke of a superior man among men who was psychologically superior in many ways. One who took pride in his greatness, one that made great breakthroughs, one that will be misunderstood and thus held back against the masses and one that took living life to the fullest into his own hands. One such man would be a leader among a herd of naturally inferior people and make innovations propelling society forward. Some regimes of later centuries took this idea of a superman very seriously, but perhaps not in a way Nietzsche may have anticipated.

Nietzsche’s sister, Elizabeth, reedited his works so as to be integrated into Fascist Ideology. The Ubermensch essentially went from meaning one who was gifted and inherently great in ways not achievable by normal people, to meaning an entire race of superior people who had every right to bear all races below them in chains. This is how Nietzsche became something of a hero to the Third Reich. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuQzE2YYPNE (skip to 34:40)

Not only that, but he was also the personal hero of former Italian dictator Benito Mussolini, who adopted Nietzsche’s mentality of the superman and applied it to his own protest against religious belief, as Denis Mack Smith describes, “ In Nietzsche he found justification for his crusade against the Christian virtues of humility, resignation, charity, and goodness”. Mussolini was gifted the complete works of Nietzsche on his 60th birthday by Adolf Hitler.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benito_Mussolini#Religious_views section 7.1: Atheism and Anti-Clericalism.

I bring this all up merely to demonstrate that, while Atheism cannot be defined as a religion and is rather the absence of one, it is still built on a principle one must abide by in order to be considered an atheist; that being, the disbelief in God until he is undeniably been proven to exist. And it also has founding fathers that propel it into the mainstream with texts and documents influencing our current culture and it’s ideals such as Nietzsche. But as just discussed, such documentation can and has been reused to rationalize ill intent and hatred towards those who are different, not unlike how the Bible and the Quran have been interpreted.. So my question to atheists is:

If it isn’t considered fair to judge followers and readers of Nietzsche based on the actions of the Nazi’s or Mussolini or other negative examples of the lack of faith including Stalin, why then is it fair to judge all modern day Christians or Muslims based on the negative examples that they have? 

Fact of the matter is, no ideology is perfect because no single person was ever perfect, Ubermensch or otherwise. Anyone can take a simple principle in belief and warp it for malicious intent. “These Christians are slowing down our progression with their bogus beliefs. We ought to ostracize them and take them down”. The truth is, some people are malicious and power hungry and will find whatever justification they need for their actions; it really doesn’t matter where that justification comes from. And it’s no real service to say “they aren’t real Christians” or “they aren’t real Feminists”. They aren’t products of misunderstanding the source, they are the embodiment of the sources fundamental flaws. Atheism is not immune to this phenomenon; the 20th century is proof of that. But that said, every ideology is capable of inhibiting positive examples to society as well. For every King Henry the 8th there’s an Oscar Romero, for every Benito Mussolini there’s a Stephen Hawking, for every Osama Bin Laden there’s a Muhammad Ali.

2A. Religion is also often credited for being non progressive. Holding back scientific advancement, denying what has been proven to be fact or at the very least more securely rooted in evidence then anything the church preaches, and holding back the civil rights of people such as Homosexuals on the merits of a book they are at no obligation to follow in the first place. Once again, I concede that faith has an ugly history. Galileo was unfairly prosecuted for proving the earth is not in fact in the center of the milky way, and many people are of the opinion that evolution is a fallacy, the earth is only a few thousand years old and it is even flat. But is it fair to say religion has made NO contributions to the advancement of science, therefore isn’t compatible with it? Not necessarily true.

For starters, let’s look at one of the most widely accepted theories for the beginning of the universe among Atheists and otherwise: The Big Bang. The theory that at one point there was nothing. All there ever was was a focal point of extremely high density and temperature from which the universe expanded and continued to expand. This theory was originated by Belgian scientist Georges Lemaitre, in what he referred to as a “Cosmic Egg”. He was a professor of physics, and astronomer . .  .. and a roman catholic priest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhLQ_b3bKdI

Lemaitre’s theory has since then been expanded on and praised as a monumental innovation of modern science, even prompting Albert Einstein to say  "This is the most beautiful and satisfactory explanation of creation to which I have ever listened." I find it very ironic how the modern view of religion is so often associated as anti-science when one of the most prominent theories of our time originated from a holy man.

There are other examples of highly influential religious scientists such as Copernicus, Roger Bacon, Pascal, just to name a few. But rather then go on that long tangent my only point was that while religion can unfortunately be used as a means to justify dismissal of what may be proven to be verifiable fact, therefore reaffirming confirmation bias, it’s not like one is incapable of indulging in scientific advancement as WELL as spirituality simultaneously. One does not necessarily have to compromise one for the other. The same goes for being an activist on social issues such as the rights of Homosexuals. Bishop Desmond Tutu has been a prominent activist for such issues for years, and was awarded several awards including the nobel peace prize in 1984

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desmond_Tutu

One does not need to compromise his faith to be an advocate for rights and for advancement. In fact, I would argue that advancement can only truly happen by considering all possibilities and allowing people the opportunity to go about those possibilities how they choose. Which brings me to my final counter.

3A. So why even believe in God in the first place? I’ll allow any believer to answer for themselves, but as of this last point it’s going to solely be an opinion piece and nothing more. The way I see it is, there is a 50/50 chance God exists. Either he does or he doesn’t. So as long as this is the most we know, until further notice we might as well just choose which ever thesis suits us best. For myself, I’m fascinated and intrigued by nearly every world religion and philosophy I come across, namely Hinduism, because it promotes the idea of God being everywhere and coming to everyone with infinite manifestations, thus any pursuit for spirituality and higher understanding is a noble one (I don’t necessarily agree that’s 100 percent true in every case but I appreciate the open minded nature of it). I often research other faiths and take my favorite parts of them and apply them to my own life. Some call that cherry picking, which it is, but I don’t consider that a bad thing. Ultimately nobody on planet earth thinks exactly the same way. There are as many worldviews as there are people, and almost as many versions of God. The more we encourage open discussion and freedom to expression between each other, the closer we will become, the more enlightened we will be and, afterlife or no afterlife, we will have lived our time on earth to the very fullest. 

I think of it as a giant game of roulette; only one round, you gotta bet all your chips. Everybody’s got their “lucky number” to which they abide by because of a long history of winning with that number, and while they may technically only have a 1 in 38 chance of winning just like everyone else . . . I can’t deny that’s still a chance. Myself, I prefer to divide my chips across the board and dabble in a little bit of everything, just to play the game safe. Whatever I get in return is good enough for me.

I was inspired to write this up not because I’m an expert, because in truth I’m not. I’ll admit I’m very biased myself. But if I can encourage open discussion, encouragement to understand and the contentment of people choosing what’s right for them, I’ll take the risk of embarrassing myself. My life has been touched very positively with religion. My mother is a devout catholic and she’s one of the strongest and most compassionate people I know in the whole world. My ex was a Buddhist who took it up during one of the hardest moments of her life and it helped her push through. There’s no way in hell I’m invalidating that. God or no God, afterlife or no afterlife, you can’t argue with results. So by all means; go out and hug a Muslim. Give a Christian a high five, take a Mormon out to lunch, meditate with a Buddhist, and be the nicest and most pleasant religious friend your atheist buddy ever had. If we do right by ourselves and we do right by each other, there would be no need for a heaven . . we’d already be there.

(Last line shamelessly ripped off from the Simpsons).