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"Just what the truth is I can't say anymore..." Problems with seeing clearly: OUR's & OTHER's...

INTRO


Peter,

Thank you for including me in your upcoming April 16 Multicultural Solidarity Friendship Circles Zoom gathering invitation in which you said:


"I am planning to repeat a circle I led in late March dealing with how we relate to feelings about our being subjected to untruths that we're bombarded with in the public space."


I was going to decline with these comments I previously sent…

“I choose not to spend my energy resources in these dark waters of controversy.”


…But then I saw your use of “media” in new ways. See, by choice, I don’t spend time on news outlets or social media sites...BUT, I do listen to a lot of music and watch movies every evening with my wife Eileen.

So, as I was drafting my declination to your invitation, I saw that school textbooks, songs and films are part of “media”…


so, I’ll be joining you and others on April 16 at 7:00 pm...


“Just what the truth is, I can’t say anymore...”

--From the Moody Blues “Nights in White Satin”...


Until we meet on 4/16, here are some things for us to consider if we’re asked…


”which side are you on boys?”



BEFORE WE GET INTO "US & THEM"... LET'S START WITH THE PERSON IN THE MIRROR...





We are only able to see as far as we've awakened...



HOW WELL DO WE SEE?


Contemplative Seeing - the Center for Action and Contemplation


"Spirituality is about seeing—seeing things in their wholeness, which can only be done through the lens of our own wholeness. That is the key! It’s about taking responsibility for our way of relating to things rather than aiming for any kind of perfect results or necessary requirements. Once you see skillfully, the rest follows. You don’t need to push the river, because you are already in it. The One Life is living itself within us, and we learn how to say yes to that one shared life, which includes both the good and the bad sides of everything. This Divine Life is so large, deep, and spacious that it even includes its seeming opposite, death. This one, great life does not end, it merely changes."




"We grow up believing that what we see and hear are true  representations of reality, when in fact, any information from any of your senses is processed in the brain through layers and screens of biases and personal beliefs—no matter how hard you try to be objective."


"Studies continue to show that eyewitness testimony can be completely unreliable."



"HOORAY FOR OUR SIDE"


Bob Dylan and Joan Baez at 1963vNewport Folk Festival
Bob Dylan and Joan Baez at 1963vNewport Folk Festival



In this next cover of the classic, I like that some young musicians are “picking” up on what their parents’ generation passed along…




"US" & "THEM"


"Forward", he cried from the rear

And the front rank died

The general sat and the lines on the map

Moved from side to side


Black and blue

And who knows which is which

And who is who


Down and out

It can't be helped

But there's a lot of it about


With, without

And who'll deny

It's what the fighting's all about


"The Pink Floyd song “Us And Them” is a deeply thought-provoking and introspective track that delves into the complexities of human nature, war, societal divisions, and the blurred lines between good and evil. The lyrics paint a vivid picture of a world filled with ordinary men caught in the chaos of war and conflict. While the overarching theme of the song is the inherent duality and commonality among people, there are several standout lyrics that help develop various thought-provoking themes within the song."

Continue reading at next link:





INFAMOUS COVERUPS


BIKO: Another infamous attempt to withhold the truth




This song tells the story of South Africa's anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko's death at the hands of his captors - a story they never willingly released. The song's background is included here.



40 years after his song's initial release, Peter Gabriel joined with musicians from Playing for Change to again tell new generations the truth that had earlier been suppressed by South Africa's racist government.





From the site of the crime: South Africa - Playing for Change sheds light on the truth...





BIKO

September '77

Port Elizabeth weather's fine

It was business as usual

In police room 619


Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko

Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko

Yihla Moja, Yihla Moja

The man is dead

The man is dead


When I try to sleep at night

I can only dream in red

The outside world is black and white

With only one colour dead


Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko

Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko

Yihla Moja, Yihla Moja

The man is dead

The man is dead


You can blow out a candle

But you can't blow out a fire

Once the flames begin to catch

The wind will blow it higher


Oh Biko, Biko, because Biko

Yihla Moja, Yihla Moja

The man is dead

The man is dead

 

And the eyes of the world are watching now, watching now


"EVERYBODY HAS ENOUGH OF WHAT THEY NEED..."


"Feed the babies

Who don't have enough to eat

Shoe the children

With no shoes on their feet

House the people

Livin' in the street

Oh, oh, there's a solution"

"Fly Like an Eagle" - Steve Miller


This new version in collaboration with Playing for Change premiered on February 20, 2025, World Day of Social Justice.




PARODY: EFFECTIVE USE OF HUMOR TO SHED LIGHT ON THE TRUTH


Here's the TRUTH we were never taught in Catholic elementary and high schools:


"Initially a tribunal would open at a location and an edict of grace would be published calling upon those who are conscious of heresy to confess; after a period of grace, the tribunal officers could make accusations. Those accused of heresy were sentenced at an auto de fe, Act of Faith. Clergyman would sit at the proceedings and would deliver the punishments. Punishments included confinement to dungeons, physical abuse and torture. Those who reconciled with the church were still punished and many had their property confiscated, as well as were banished from public life. Those who never confessed were burned at the stake without strangulation; those who did confess were strangled first. During the 16th and 17th centuries, attendance at auto de fe reached as high as the attendance at bullfights."


"In 1481 the Inquisition started in Spain and ultimately surpassed the medieval Inquisition, in both scope and intensity. Conversos (Secret Jews) and New Christians were targeted because of their close relations to the Jewish community, many of whom were Jews in all but their name. Fear of Jewish influence led Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand to write a petition to the Pope asking permission to start an Inquisition in Spain. In 1483 Tomas de Torquemada became the inquisitor-general for most of Spain, he set tribunals in many cities. Also heading the Inquisition in Spain were two Dominican monks, Miguel de Morillo and Juan de San Martin."

Source: Next link.




"Will you convert?"



"No! No! No! No!







"Last time I hada coda fish, it tasta like Permalube..."


Keep listening to hear the penance he assigns to these polluting perpetrators...




SCIENCE FICTION: ANOTHER WAY TO REVEAL THE TRUTH...


Gene Roddenberry: Visionary Creator That Boldly Went Where No One Had Been Before


"Roddenberry also addressed many societal issues in his storytelling. While he couldn't always directly confront contemporary social problems due to the television censors, he cleverly used science fiction scenarios and alien cultures to explore issues such as racism, war, and inequality."



"Living Witness" - is an episode on Star Trek Voyager's 4th season that depicts one race's efforts to present a revisionist version of what really happened. It took 700 years before the truth came to light. This and other Star Trek episodes are on Amazon Prime.


WARNING: PLOT GIVEAWAY



 
 
 

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