News media has now become the most powerful force in our society, controlling how we think, who we elect and our values as a whole. Alarming as this is, the most disturbing part is the number of people totally unaware of its power and control over us.
You have undoubtedly heard of “Fake News” but did you know about “Biased News”, “Incomplete Facts News”, “Taken Out Of Context News”, “Selective Broadcast News”, “Selective Interview News”, and “Quantitative Broadcast News”? By using these techniques regardless of the facts, reporters can slant any story to be positive or negative, affecting our perception and opinions on any topic or person. Over the past 10 years, slanted news has become so powerful, it is having an effect on justice and freedom of speech, the very foundations of a free society.
As human beings, we can be easily influenced. Evidence exists we are even influenced on a subconscious level which is why these types of slanted news propaganda techniques are so dangerous.
A recent example was on November 10, 2019. CTV National News in Canada, trusted for decades by Canadians to provide them with unbiased headline news from around the world, did anything but, and it wasn’t the first time by far.
The story was on controversial remarks that could be interpreted as racist made by sports commentator Don Cherry. First of all, I am not a fan of Don Cherry but realize when doing live improve broadcasting it’s easy to say something that can be taken out of context. Whether Cherry was trying to get the message out to new Canadian’s about the importance in our society of buying a poppy, or making a racist remark depends on who you talk to. (Cherry later insisted his remarks were not meant to be racist). Either way, any network complaints from offended viewers watching the original broadcast should have been enough to determine Cherry’s fate. What happened in the news media after is much more concerning.
It’s not that CTV National News ran this story, but the fact they spent 3-4 minutes of the 23-minute broadcast on it, out of all the news in the world it was their lead story, and they did the same thing the following 2 days when he was eventually fired because of public complaints. CTV was not the only one to do this, for 3 days on the front page of newspapers, on radio and TV the message “Don Cherry is a racist” was drilled into us. If you still believed his remarks were just taken out of context or the media was overreacting you felt intimidated to speak out in public, effecting your freedom of speech. This silence combined with the deliberate slanting of the story by media made it seem like not only did the entire nation believed Cherry is racist but if you didn’t, you were racist too.
World news media like CTV has the responsibility to prioritize news from all over the world to inform the public on what is happening. They are also responsible to report all the facts unbiased so we can form our own opinions. The fact that one sports announcer of thousands said something that could be considered racist is hardly a national/world news story that deserves more than even a few seconds of air time. Yet in an example of “Selective Broadcast news” and “Quantitive news”, this was the lead story on CTV for 3 days making up 13-20 percent of the entire news broadcast each time. On each of the 3 days, a carefully edited (“Incomplete Facts”) video of Cherry’s remarks was shown. “Selective interviews” comprised of almost all negative public reactions condemning him were also shown. He was even called ignorant by what should have been an unbiased news anchor covering the story. This reckless, relentless coverage was repeated across the country over and over and over again, until finally, public outcry based on their perception through media, ended a career of over 40 years in disgrace (News Media Justice).
With the amount of sensationalism, it’s clear news media has become less about reporting facts and more about competing for viewers. At first, the motive behind slanted news techniques may have been to obtain viewers but with its continuous use, now expanded to political coverage, it’s obvious some people have begun to understand the power and influence it has on us. Unless addressed and corrected soon, slanted news techniques will continue to advance, becoming as complex as our psychology. Manipulation will not be obvious and news that appears to be positive on a topic could be done in a way to trigger a negative reaction. In the case of Don Cherry, how would the people that thought Cherry’s comments were taken out of context and intimidated into silence vote on future political racism issues?
40 years ago, on a cold winter night in the middle of a dark field. I had been fidgeting with my brand new $90 telescope for over half an hour trying to locate the planet Saturn. I knew approximately where it was from information in the newspaper that day but was getting frustrated trying to aim the telescope. All I had been able to see so far was thousands of unimpressive stars. Numb from the cold, I was ready to give up when during one of my final sweeps of the sky, something different appeared in the eyepiece. The excitement of discovery built as I adjusted the focus to pinpoint sharpness and was looking at a distinct tiny disc with a ring around it. Although the image showed no detail and was pathetic compared to the photos in books, I was in awe. Finding it myself and seeing that eerie ring with my own eyes brought a new reality to science. That along with being alone in the dark, somehow in my mind for a moment, science and science fiction merged. Every hair on my back stood straight up as a feeling came across me so intense, it sent tremors through my body.
In the weeks following, I would go back out looking at stars and the moon but without any understanding of where to look and what I was looking at, I quickly became bored. Nothing came close to the experience of the first night. Like thousands of other people that buy their first telescope, I gave up within a month and the telescope got stored away in the back of the closet.
30 years later I moved to a farm. I still wanted to learn more about the universe and with the dark clear skies at night it was the perfect opportunity to take up astronomy again. I bought new, more expensive equipment. This time I was determined to find a way to keep it more interesting by figuring out what made the first time I saw Saturn was so exciting.
I soon figured out what the keys to making astronomy exciting and interesting were:
Knowing about what you will be looking at beforehand (what it is, how far away it is, how big it is, etcetera)
Finding the object yourself
Although you would think after figuring out the keys it would be simple, it wasn’t. Reading up on objects I was going to search for was easy, finding them myself with the telescope wasn’t. At first, like before, aiming the telescope was frustrating enough to make me want to give up again. I tried different techniques and encountered problems not covered in any of the books I read. Eventually, I found a solution. What I learned on my own is vital to anyone new to astronomy that wants to have the best experience and keep from quickly losing interest.
So you know what you are getting into, here’s a complete list of equipment I consider to be essential for someone starting out:
The Book “Night Watch” by Terence Dickinson $35.00
A Telescope $400.00+
An Astronomical Laser Pointer and telescope mount $60.00
Astronomical Binoculars $100.00
A star wheel $30.00
A Red Flashlight $20.00
A Scrapbook and Pencil $15.00
Hairdryer $20.00
Step 1: For the most part, the images you will see in the telescope will be nowhere near as impressive as the photos in astronomy books but they can be much more powerful. In order for this to happen, you need to appreciate what you see by understanding what you are looking at. Before buying anything, pick up a copy of the book “Night Watch”. The book has everything you need to know about astronomy including an explanation of the universe and the best objects there are to see, along with star charts showing where to find them. It also has information on buying and using telescopes. This comprehensive book is one of the most, well written, easy to understand books I have ever read. Even if you don’t buy a telescope it makes just reading about astronomy an experience on its own.
After reading the book you will have a vital understanding of the universe, distances, and all the interesting objects there are to see. You will also know from the included star charts, what and where the best objects in each of the constellations are located. The only thing not in the book is the observing method I came up with.
Step 2: The next thing you need to do is buy a telescope. If you can, buy one with a motorized drive that keeps the object you are viewing centered in the eyepiece as the earth rotates. A corded remote control to move the motorized telescope up/down/left/right is also a big help. You can now buy affordable computerized telescopes that have all the features you need as well as the ability to move to any object in the sky with the push of a button. However, if you do buy a computerized scope do not fall into the trap of using the computer for locating objects, you will quickly become bored! Like I keep saying, for the best experience, you need to find objects yourself with charts. Finding it yourself adds excitement and a feeling of being an explorer.
To find things yourself you need to be able to aim the telescope to an exact point in the sky roughly shown on a star chart (map of the sky). Here is where the problem began for me. Because of the magnification, you can never really tell where in the sky the telescope is pointed. Most telescopes have a small magnified finder scope mounted on the main tube to help you aim. The problem is because of the optics everything in the finder scope is upside down and backward to what you see with the naked eye and what is shown on star charts. Other methods of aiming the scope are not accurate enough and because of the small field of view in the telescope eyepiece, after aiming they still require you to sweep back and forth, up and down looking for the object. You soon forget where you are in relation to where you started leading to more frustration. After months of trying to solve the problem, I came up with a much better way.
The first part of my method is nothing new. Buy an astronomical laser pointer with a mount that attaches to the main tube of the telescope. This laser pointer differs from the common ones most people are used to in that you don’t just see the dot from the beam but the entire beam itself is visible. When used outside at night, it looks like the beam of light goes from the laser pointer right to whatever celestial thing its aimed at.
After attaching the laser mount to the tube of the telescope you need to calibrate it. To do this find the brightest star you can and aim the telescope so the star is visible in the center of the telescope’s eyepiece. With the laser in the mount and turned on adjust the screws on the mount so that the laser points to the same star. When done, whatever the laser is aimed at is what is seen in the telescope eyepiece.
Step 4: Get ready to go exploring! Use the star wheel to see what constellations will be visible in the next few weeks, they change depending on the time of year and time of night. Pick a target in one of the visible constellations from the star charts in the Night Watch book, say “M51 / Whirlpool Galaxy” In the Canes Venatici constellation. Again, it is vital you do a little reading before you go out so you understand what you will be seeing.
On the next dark, clear night head outside with all the items I listed above. Open the book to the star chart you will be using. Use the red astronomical flashlight to see, red light helps to keep the pupils in your eyes open for better night vision. Look for the target again in the star chart (shown above). You see that the Whirlpool Galaxy is below and to the right of the last star in the big dipper spout. Turn on the laser (mounted and calibrated to the telescope) and aim it to that area of the sky as accurately as you can from the chart. Turn off the laser and have a look through the eyepiece of the telescope (use the lowest power eyepiece you have, it allows you to see the largest area when searching). If you happen to see it, your really lucky, aiming this way, like most, is still not very accurate and most times the telescope will still be off, but you will be in the right area.
Step 5: Here is where my method comes in. Instead of doing the back and forth sweeps that become frustrating because you forget where you started, turn the telescope laser back on. Take out the Astronomical binoculars. Using the binoculars look up in the sky and find the end of the laser. Use the binoculars to search the area around the end of the laser for your target. Because binoculars do not magnify as much as the telescope the object you are searching for will probably be very faint. It may take a while to see, the pupils in your eyes need to really open up. Eventually, you will see something, or maybe even just think you see something. When you do, while still looking through the binoculars use your other hand to move the telescope so the laser is pointing right at it (this is where it’s nice to have a telescope with a motorized drive and wired remote). Put the binoculars down, turn off the laser and look through the telescope. You should be looking at the Whirlpool Galaxy. Congratulations! you will be feeling that exciting sense of exploration and accomplishment that comes from finding it on your own! (If you didn’t see it start over again.) Now center the galaxy in the low power eyepiece than switch to a higher power eyepiece to see more detail.
Step 6: Now that you found it, take the time to really look at what you are seeing. Use the scrapbook and pencil along with the red flashlight and draw it. Try to spend at least 30 min and do as much detail as possible. It doesn’t matter if you have no drawing ability at all, by trying to draw it, you force yourself to really take the time to see the detail and absorb what you see.
One other piece of advice, sometimes in your observations, you will notice the image in the telescope isn’t sharp anymore no matter how you adjust the focus. Have a look at the lens at the end of the telescope and you will find it covered with condensation. A few minutes of using the hot air from a hairdryer will clear it right back up again. You can also stick the hairdryer under your coat to warm yourself up on cold nights.
I spent 3 years exploring the universe with my telescope and had many more incredible experiences. Although I never quite experienced a feeling as intense as the first time I saw Saturn, using this method made every night interesting and exciting.
Our planet is such an insignificant speck, floating in an incomprehensible size universe yet few people take the time to be aware of what’s out there. Taking up astronomy even for a year or two is an enlightening experience that provides an important perspective of life.
Although I support most aspects of unions, the right to strike is not one of them. Walking off the job and shutting a company down in a contest to see who can hold out the longest has absolutely nothing to do with getting a fair deal. In fact, in any other case, it would be called extortion. On top of that, often it is unionized and lower-paid people that end up suffering the most.
There is nothing wrong with workers uniting and walking off the job in protest if they feel it is warranted, but the right to form picket lines or other actions that would interfere with company operations should be illegal. Also, if employees have the right to walk off the job it makes sense the company should also have the right to replace those people permanently if they can find new employees to work under the same conditions and wages. This would make it fairer because if the reason for the employees walking off the job is sound, then the company will have trouble finding anyone to replace them with. If the employees walking off the job feel their skills are worth more than their current pay and conditions, they should have no problem finding a better job elsewhere. Issues over job safety should be settled by the labor board.
For most of us workers it’s hard to get perspective or care about a company’s point of view so imagine this: You hire a baby sitter to come to your house to look after your kids while you are at work. Both of you agree to a wage, hours and working conditions. After 6 months the babysitter demands more money, wants you to pay for a pension for them and wants more time off. There is no way you can afford there demands so you refuse. The next day they are at the end of your sidewalk with a picket sign blocking your car from leaving the driveway and holding up friends and visitors trying to enter and leave your house. You call the police but are told the babysitter is not breaking the law and there is nothing they can do. Not only that even though there are many other qualified people that would be happy to do your striking babysitter’s job for less, you are not allowed to hire them and must come to an agreement with the striking babysitter. The babysitter has other financial means of support and is able to stay on strike for 6 months or longer.
The worst part of a strike however, is not about being unfair for companies. The real victims are the less fortunate ones that have nothing to do with it. Farmers that can’t get their harvest to market because of a rail strike. Single parents scrambling for daycare once again because just after school support workers avert a strike the teachers threaten to walk off. Or people making minimum wage that can’t get to work because of transit workers making multiple times their salary walk off the job.
Imagine all of a sudden one day, across the entire country, everyone’s bank account is emptied, business and government computers become inaccessible, power grids shut down, no internet or communications, our defense weapons and power plants become inoperative, cars stop dead in the street, and planes and trains become unsafe to use. How hard would it then be for another country to just walk in and take over or even remain anonymous demanding hundreds of billions in ransom to restore? With world tension on the rise and nuclear weapons not an option without counter strikes that would destroy the planet, will the next major confrontation be digital?
The news is more frequently reporting business and government hacks where computers are encrypted and data held hostage until the company forks over a ransom. The relativity small amounts of ransoms indicate they are most likely done by lone basement hackers. Now imagine a foreign country with thousands of highly trained computer experts spending years secretly hacking into another country’s computers, preparing for a sudden digital Pearl Harbour type attack.
At first it may sound far fetched but consider the following. Keystroke recording spyware can already secretly record every key pushed on your computer including user name and passwords to your accounts. Spyware able to secretly track and turn on cell phone microphones and cameras has also exists not to mention Google Home and Alexia that if hacked can allow someone to listen to conversations undetected. The list of possibilities goes as far as our imaginations. Hacking of companies like OnStar would allow someone to activate the antitheft software on all their vehicles and shut them down. It could take years to fix the damage. Boeing’s Max 8 aircraft have been grounded for months with software problems and they weren’t even attacked with a virus.
Countries like Canada being digitally attacked by another country may at first sound ridicules but consider this, we buy items from countries that are made, assembled, shipped from the other side of the world and sold for a profit here at $1.25. These third-world conditions combined with increasing populations and ever-dwindling resources and food are slowly turning these countries into hungry sharks. Canada with its abundance of natural resources, fertile land and wealth combined with complacency when it comes to peace and trust make it the perfect unsuspecting seal.
Now is the time to improve and tighten up our cybersecurity as well as backing up the countries critical systems with computers on offline sterile closed loops.
What’s your “financial norm” in life? No matter what your current “normal” lifestyle is, finding happiness always seems to be about having more. Now imagine winning the lottery and getting all the things you ever wanted, you would be ecstatic for months. But how would you feel several years later when your new lifestyle became the norm? Like everything in life, how can we appreciate the positive if we have no negatives to measure it by? Is finding long term happiness through excessive wealth an illusion?
I can remember a time in my life when we could rarely afford to eat out. Having the odd meal in a fast-food restaurant was something to look forward to. As things got better, eating fast-food more frequently became the new norm. To achieve the same feeling we had to go to fancier, more expensive restaurants. We assume that newfound happiness will last forever, but over time it becomes part of our normal lifestyle and we want more. A cycle with no end.
As improvements to our norm make us happy, negative changes have a much more adverse effect. Anyone that has had to give up air conditioning during a hot summer, or sell their car and start taking the bus would agree, negative changes to our norm have much more impact on happiness. Even when these negative changes eventually through time become our new norm we never quite get used to it like we would if we had never had them.
Ever wonder why happiness evades some wealthy people? After getting everything they could ever want, have they come to realize the illusion. Maybe the rest of us are the lucky ones, still with something to strive for, believing eternal happiness is just a pay increase or lottery win away.
