There are perhaps many reasons why we hold the beliefs we do. The education we've received, the homes in which we were raised, the experiences we've had, and the people we've met - often randomly - all contribute to shape our worldviews. However, we also cannot escape the fact that we live in a media-saturated environment and that corporations, political leaders, governments, religions and media outlets are all very savvy in understanding this reality and more importantly they all excel at using various forms of "perception management" to gain power and control over us.

And, we find ourselves locked in a two-party system where the status quo is maintained even though that status quo doesn't work for the vast majority of us. It is doubtful that much will be different regardless of the outcome of the current election cycle here in the United States. At the margins perhaps there will be some small differences in policy between an Obama administration and a Romney administration just as there were some small differences at the margins between the Bush administration and the current one. But, the influence of Wall Street will continue unabated, just as we will have continued military misadventures abroad, an expansion of the bi-partisan surveillance state, a continuation of the failed policy called the Drug War, continuing and growing deficits, and a continuation of the standard of living for most American even though nearly all of us agree that these are not the things we want.

This will happen in large part because people will vote for one of two false options based upon what they believe, or rather, what they've been conditioned to believe through the process of perception management. A while back, Metanoia films put up a fascinating documentary about how we got to this point where public relations, media, advertisers and lobbyists control not only what we think, but how we think. Our suggestion at TPR is that without a new way of thinking, we cannot change the path on which we find ourselves. And, before we can change our way of thinking, we must first come to understand why we believe what we do. As a first step in that direction, we can recommend Metanoia's film Psywar which you can stream for free on their website. Instead of spending today watching a "reality" TV show or being distracted by a video game, Hollywood gossip or some other entertainment, perhaps a little time trying to gain some understanding might be better spent.