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I don't want to say a word about this. I don't want to analyze it, or to even think about the implications of America's most recent horrid emotional shock. The profound grief and loss experienced by the families in Newtown CT is so overwhelming, so unthinkable, so achingly painful to contemplate that I really just want to be quiet for them - out of respect, out of profound empathy, I just want to be quiet and hold them in my mind and heart. For the last three days that's what I've done. But now it's time to speak, out of that same respect and profound empathy, because we, as a nation, are in a state of psychological shock and during such times, that shock makes us more easily moved, more easily influenced and more easily herded by the people who, by their very nature, do not have our best interests at heart.

From the beginning, the information coming out of Newtown was sketchy, which is not unusual in such situations, but when our national and personal emotions are being so worked, we must strive to pay attention to what is really going on, no matter how much our emotions pull us in the direction of feeling only and thinking not at all. This article goes into the preliminary details (there's more to come) of what doesn't quite fit about this event, so I'm not going to go into that right now. What I would like to do is take a look at how we are being moved to think and feel about this heart-wrenching slaughter by those in the position to change the future of our society. In very much the same way, our society was fundamentally changed on and in the days following September 11th 2001, when America was herded toward previously unimaginable control through emotional trauma and manipulation resulting in things like this being the "new normal".

The reason I feel it's now time to say something is that President Obama gave a brief speech last night from the Sandy Hook Interfaith Prayer Vigil in Newtown, CT and I'd like to go through it with the focus on the real message, not the illusion.

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Thank you. Thank you, Governor. To all the families, first responders, to the community of Newtown, clergy, guests - Scripture tells us: "...do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away...inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands."
It's not unusual to open a speech at a prayer vigil with scripture, though it is a bit unusual for Obama to wax scriptural since his public base of support tends to be made uncomfortable by the mixing of Church and State (his private base is another matter altogether!). With that said, it's an interesting scripture to quote - to pay attention to the unseen, that it is eternal. In situations such as these, when we are vulnerable, en masse, due to unthinkable tragedy, it is vitally important to try to see the unseen, lest we end up herded more quickly into a world our very souls cannot abide.
We gather here in memory of twenty beautiful children and six remarkable adults. They lost their lives in a school that could have been any school; in a quiet town full of good and decent people that could be any town in America.
This can happen to you. It happened to these people who, if they are not like you, they are who you likely aspire to be - wealthy, living in a quiet, beautiful town with talented, beautiful children - safe, untouched by the economic burdens most of you have been struggling with for the last decade. These are the people who populate the 'American Dream' - and it happened to them. No one is safe, most certainly not you. If this can happen here, it can - and will - happen anywhere.
Here in Newtown, I come to offer the love and prayers of a nation. I am very mindful that mere words cannot match the depths of your sorrow, nor can they heal your wounded hearts. I can only hope it helps for you to know that you're not alone in your grief; that our world too has been torn apart; that all across this land of ours, we have wept with you, we've pulled our children tight. And you must know that whatever measure of comfort we can provide, we will provide; whatever portion of sadness that we can share with you to ease this heavy load, we will gladly bear it. Newtown - you are not alone.
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This is so painful. It is not that his words here are untrue - they are not untrue - we have wept, we have pulled back in horror, we have felt kicked in the chest by this reality and anyone who has ever hugged a six year old cannot turn away from this with dry eyes, but in these words he uses here, he is beginning the emotional manipulation that prefaces his real message. These emotions that are being aroused are so strong, so primal, fierce and hot that they will (and they do) drive out rational thought, leaving us open to suggestion in an effort to ease that pain, or at the very least make some sense of it. He continues by using select quotes and names from the thousands of news articles that have been written in three short days.
As these difficult days have unfolded, you've also inspired us with stories of strength and resolve and sacrifice. We know that when danger arrived in the halls of Sandy Hook Elementary, the school's staff did not flinch, they did not hesitate. Dawn Hochsprung and Mary Sherlach,Vicki Soto, Lauren Rousseau, Rachel Davino and Anne Marie Murphy - they responded as we all hope we might respond in such terrifying circumstances - with courage and with love, giving their lives to protect the children in their care.

We know that there were other teachers who barricaded themselves inside classrooms, and kept steady through it all, and reassured their students by saying "wait for the good guys, they're coming"; "show me your smile." And we know that good guys came. The first responders who raced to the scene, helping to guide those in harm's way to safety, and comfort those in need, holding at bay their own shock and trauma because they had a job to do, and others needed them more.

And then there were the scenes of the schoolchildren, helping one another, holding each other, dutifully following instructions in the way that young children sometimes do; one child even trying to encourage a grown-up by saying, "I know karate. So it's okay. I'll lead the way out." (Laughter.)
This portion of his speech just pulled us all through these events again, in detail. We are reminded, and as we are reminded, we relive the pain, the fear, the horror and the loss. He has his audience (all regular television programming in the US was interrupted last night to carry this speech) reliving the most painful moments of the last few days, and it is effective and horrible.
As a community, you've inspired us, Newtown. In the face of indescribable violence, in the face of unconscionable evil, you've looked out for each other, and you've cared for one another, and you've loved one another. This is how Newtown will be remembered. And with time, and God's grace, that love will see you through.
No, it will not "see them through". The reality is that nothing will ever be the same for these people. Nothing. No aspect of their lives will ever be the same. This level of loss and trauma is not "recovered from" - it is eventually dealt with, by some, it is eventually worked around in one of a million different ways, but there is no force that will "see these people through" so much as they will painfully survive it, forever changed by the evil and violence that has become normal in the United States of America in the early 21st century. A society that has allowed its leaders to define it by warfare, violence and domination of the weak by the strong, cannot then expect these same leaders to offer real comfort and solutions when it all comes home to roost.
But we, as a nation, we are left with some hard questions. Someone once described the joy and anxiety of parenthood as the equivalent of having your heart outside of your body all the time, walking around. With their very first cry, this most precious, vital part of ourselves - our child - is suddenly exposed to the world, to possible mishap or malice. And every parent knows there is nothing we will not do to shield our children from harm. And yet, we also know that with that child's very first step, and each step after that, they are separating from us; that we won't - that we can't always be there for them. They'll suffer sickness and setbacks and broken hearts and disappointments. And we learn that our most important job is to give them what they need to become self-reliant and capable and resilient, ready to face the world without fear.

And we know we can't do this by ourselves. It comes as a shock at a certain point where you realize, no matter how much you love these kids, you can't do it by yourself. That this job of keeping our children safe, and teaching them well, is something we can only do together, with the help of friends and neighbors, the help of a community, and the help of a nation. And in that way, we come to realize that we bear a responsibility for every child because we're counting on everybody else to help look after ours; that we're all parents; that they're all our children.

This is our first task - caring for our children. It's our first job. If we don't get that right, we don't get anything right. That's how, as a society, we will be judged.
It is so difficult to hear this man speak these words and then try to reconcile them with the fact that he sanctions the drone bombing of innocent children and families in Pakistan on a daily basis, while also materially and spiritually supporting the Palestinian genocide by the Israelis. This is the psychological manipulation - the PSYOP. Nothing he has said can be argued with - of course it's the truth in this specific context - yet, we, as a nation are bringing untold trauma and death and suffering to thousands of families in other countries - the vast majority of which have never - ever - lifted a finger or spoken a word against us. How can this man say these words that strike so near our hearts, that are so true in the context of our singular and collective communities - but that don't apply to one family outside our borders? It is madness. It is madness to try to reconcile these two realities and that is by design. A populace that is emotionally manipulated cannot think, and if we cannot think, we cannot have a hand in the direction our country is moving, but it appears that we are so far down that road already that we can't even see where we started, or how to turn it around.

We have all been so manipulated, so lied to, so traumatized and so psychologically battered by the incessant stream of lies we are exposed to every single day that we are left powerless in the face of manipulation - unless - we start to work really hard to see it as it is happening, in real time. That can get our brains moving, but first we have to try to see it when it is most difficult to do so.
And by that measure, can we truly say, as a nation, that we are meeting our obligations? Can we honestly say that we're doing enough to keep our children - all of them - safe from harm? Can we claim, as a nation, that we're all together there, letting them know that they are loved, and teaching them to love in return? Can we say that we're truly doing enough to give all the children of this country the chance they deserve to live out their lives in happiness and with purpose?

I've been reflecting on this the last few days, and if we're honest with ourselves, the answer is no. We're not doing enough. And we will have to change.
So, the emotional string pulling has led to his main message - "we will have to change". Truer words were never spoken, though he doesn't mean them the way most normal people would - the way he should. Make no mistake - this event will be used to install a finer and firmer level of control over the American populace - it can be no other way, it is what those in power do. Since September 11th, 2001, has there been one change to our society that has increased our personal or collective well-being, freedom or quality of life? No, there hasn't. It has been a downward slide of increasing control and decreasing quality of life - all predicated on the idea that we are not safe and that our government, police and military organizations are the only solution to make us safer. It has all been a lie and this is the latest installment. While we are bleeding - while our hearts are so wrecked that we can't even find the words - those in power are - right this minute - working on implementing finer levels of control over us and using the deaths of those so precious to do it.

If that doesn't rip your heart out, then you need to find your heart.
Since I've been President, this is the fourth time we have come together to comfort a grieving community torn apart by a mass shooting. The fourth time we've hugged survivors. The fourth time we've consoled the families of victims. And in between, there have been an endless series of deadly shootings across the country, almost daily reports of victims, many of them children, in small towns and big cities all across America - victims whose - much of the time, their only fault was being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

We can't tolerate this anymore. These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change. We will be told that the causes of such violence are complex, and that is true. No single law - no set of laws can eliminate evil from the world, or prevent every senseless act of violence in our society.
There is considerable evidence that all of these acts of violence were coordinated by more than one "lone gunman" and - if so - that there is a larger game afoot that deals directly with the total control of all aspects of American society through fear and the manufactured "solutions" to that fear.
But that can't be an excuse for inaction. Surely, we can do better than this. If there is even one step we can take to save another child, or another parent, or another town, from the grief that has visited Tucson, and Aurora, and Oak Creek, and Newtown, and communities from Columbine to Blacksburg before that - then surely we have an obligation to try.

In the coming weeks, I will use whatever power this office holds to engage my fellow citizens - from law enforcement to mental health professionals to parents and educators - in an effort aimed at preventing more tragedies like this. Because what choice do we have? We can't accept events like this as routine. Are we really prepared to say that we're powerless in the face of such carnage, that the politics are too hard? Are we prepared to say that such violence visited on our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom?
Again, make no mistake - this event will be used to install a finer and firmer level of control over the American populace - it can be no other way, it is what those in power do. Since September 11th, 2001 has there been one change to our society that has increased our personal or collective well-being, freedom or quality of life? No, there hasn't. It has been a downward slide of increasing control and decreasing quality of life - all predicated on the idea that we are not safe and that our government, police and military organizations are the only solution to make us safer. It has all been a lie and this is the latest installment. While we are bleeding - while our hearts are so wrecked to not even be able to find words - those in power are - right this minute - working on implementing finer levels of control over us and using the deaths of those so precious to do it.

If that doesn't rip your heart out, then you need to find your heart.
All the world's religions - so many of them represented here today - start with a simple question: Why are we here? What gives our life meaning? What gives our acts purpose? We know our time on this Earth is fleeting. We know that we will each have our share of pleasure and pain; that even after we chase after some earthly goal, whether it's wealth or power or fame, or just simple comfort, we will, in some fashion, fall short of what we had hoped. We know that no matter how good our intentions, we will all stumble sometimes, in some way. We will make mistakes, we will experience hardships. And even when we're trying to do the right thing, we know that much of our time will be spent groping through the darkness, so often unable to discern God's heavenly plans.

There's only one thing we can be sure of, and that is the love that we have - for our children, for our families, for each other. The warmth of a small child's embrace - that is true. The memories we have of them, the joy that they bring, the wonder we see through their eyes, that fierce and boundless love we feel for them, a love that takes us out of ourselves, and binds us to something larger - we know that's what matters. We know we're always doing right when we're taking care of them, when we're teaching them well, when we're showing acts of kindness. We don't go wrong when we do that.

That's what we can be sure of. And that's what you, the people of Newtown, have reminded us. That's how you've inspired us. You remind us what matters. And that's what should drive us forward in everything we do, for as long as God sees fit to keep us on this Earth.

"Let the little children come to me," Jesus said, "and do not hinder them - for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven."

Charlotte. Daniel. Olivia. Josephine. Ana. Dylan. Madeleine. Catherine. Chase. Jesse. James. Grace. Emilie. Jack. Noah. Caroline. Jessica.Benjamin. Avielle. Allison.

God has called them all home. For those of us who remain, let us find the strength to carry on, and make our country worthy of their memory.

May God bless and keep those we've lost in His heavenly place. May He grace those we still have with His holy comfort. And may He bless and watch over this community, and the United States of America.
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And, at the above, in the context of the current bloody global and American reality, in the context of the man who is saying it, a man who is the current spokesperson for the American Empire - I am almost at a loss for words. Is there anything more vile than using the balm of religion to sooth broken hearts in order to manipulate a populace into accepting finer levels of control? Is there anything more vile than using the capacity for human compassion, love and empathy against those humans who are capable of it - in using those best parts of us to disarm our minds and take advantage of them in order to enslave us into a reality that is - at its core - inhuman?

I still don't want to say a word about this - I still don't - even after watching this president speak, even after watching the media frenzy and emotional programming - even after repeatedly waking in tears at the losses our entire human family has suffered over the last 11 years - I don't want to say a word. I want to sit in reverent silence for all humanity is, and for all it has lost due to being duped, herded and lied to by a group of non-human, pathological individuals who turn life into war and dollars and whose effect on society leave little kids who are ready for Christmas in bloody heaps on a classroom floor. But, I have to say a word. I have to speak because what is happening IS happening by design. We ARE being manipulated and our society at this time next year will be worse for what is in the pipeline right now as a direct result of this horrific event. The writing is on the wall, as they say, and it's time we started saying a word about it because to not do so, is to ensure that these little lives lost (and all little lives lost to lies and violence) were lost in silence and futility.

This is a nightmare - our collective nightmare - and the only way to end a nightmare is to wake up - and that takes difficult conversations at very painful times, else our nightmares will continue to define us.

For more information on societal manipulation via emotional shock and trauma, see Naomi Klein's The Shock Doctrine. For more information on the "Patriot Act" and the ceaseless machinations of those seeking complete control, simply search the Sott.net page.