Nicole Morgan, Ph.D on LinkedIn: Europe on high alert after suspected Moscow-linked arson and sabotage (2024)

HE END OF THE UNITED STATE OF AMERICA? CAUSE OF DEATH : SELF-INFLICTED WOUNDSToynbee argued that "Civilizations die from suicide, not by murder." For Toynbee, civilizations were not intangible or unalterable machines but a network of social relationships within its borders and therefore subject to both wise and unwise decisions made" . The more successful a civilization is, the more prone to embracing its hubris, this dangerous co*cktail of overconfidence, over-ambition, arrogance and pride fueled by power and success. (George Clemenceau, complained that generals sitting on their laurels, "always prepare to fight the last war, especially if they won it" )The Almighty USA who ruled the world had not seen it coming: the old "soft warfare"using new technologiesis destroying its structure from within .A quote attributed to the late Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev comes to mind "We do not have to invade the United States, we will destroy you from within."Vladimir Putin implemented it. Thom Hartman opens a sub chapter the chapter IW .This sort of propaganda is called “irregular warfare” (IW) — warfare by means outside of troops, bombs, navies, etc. — and the US used to be an expert at it. Typically, irregular warfare involves the use of propaganda, proxies, or people willing to betray their own country.It is a harrowing article since it demonstrates that Donald Trump has been far more than a useful idiot but has actively betrayed his country.Here comes the hubris again. In any other country he would have been arrested for high treason a long time ago but he was not....

TWO POLITICAL PERFORMANCE ARTISTS.....BOTH VERY SICK1) Comparisons between the ex-president and the 20th-century Nazi leader are controversial but a new book says they resemble each other as political performance artists.. 2) All tyrants are "show off" and we should now focus on the "casting" of the show which with the help of new technologies make tyrants more dangerous than ever. 3) On the Hitler-Trump comparison, listen to this recent YouTube: "The Secrets Of Hitler's Deteriorating Mental & Physical Health" https://lnkd.in/e46_b6kbhttps://lnkd.in/erku65VK

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LONG TERM PLANNING IMPOSSIBLE: IT SHOULD MAKE US HUMBLE.... and not only in Canada.“We’ve all got to be humble in the face of more extreme weather,” said Chris O’Riley, president and chief executive of the British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, which operates hydroelectric dams in western Canada. “We manage from year to year the ups and downs of water, and when we have the downs like we’re having, the lower levels, it’s common for us to import power, and we expect to continue that this year.”- "In February, the United States did something that it had not done in many years — the country sent more electricity to Canada than it received from its northern neighbor. Then, in March, U.S. electricity exports to Canada climbed even more, reaching their highest level since at least 2010.The increasing flow of power north is part of a worrying trend for North America: Demand for energy is growing robustly everywhere, but the supply of power — in Canada’s case from https://lnkd.in/eDtkktaJ

THE FAR RIGHT IS RELENTLESS IN ITS HATRED OF HUMANITYTODAY TARGET: THE 15 MINUTES CITIESIn GB " Far-right groups are using a “populist frame” to attack 15‑minute cities. A “frame” is the way social movements define problems, propose solutions, and motivate action (Snow and Benford 1988). A populist frame blames the “people’s” grievances on an “elite” (Aslanidis 2016). The far right derives its populist frame from an authoritarian ideology that defines the ruling class as an oppressive technocratic elite and the people as a socially hom*ogeneous interest group that is oppressed by elites (Sager 2020). This supports demagogues who disenfranchise minority groups and sabotage liberal institutions.Britain’s far right uses this frame to interpret 15‑minute cities and recruit residents into their movement. Not Our Future (NOF) is a far-right organization spearheading opposition to 15‑minute city plans. It defines the “elites” as governments creating a “dystopian” future through sustainable development. Like the rest of the far right, NOF demonizes multilateral groups like the WEF as “globalist” organizations that “force” local governments to implement things like 15‑minute cities. Britain’s far right expands this definition to include “sub-elites” such as “Big Tech,” “mainstream” media, Left politicians, and academics who supposedly help globalists create 15‑minute cities.“The people” is the protagonist in the far right’s 15‑minute city frame. This moral “majority” is the so-called “victim” of elite oppression. Britain’s far right narrowly defines the people as heterosexual motorists who belong to a nuclear family. Far-right pundits also “class” this protagonist by problematizing 15‑minute city plans for “working-class” households. This construction negates the interests of LGBT+ populations, active travelers, single households, and white-collar workers in disputes over local transport policy.The far right problematizes 15‑minute cities in two ways. First, they criticize “undemocratic” processes that produced 15‑minute city plans. Despite public consultations and policy changes to accommodate resident concerns, the far right has blasted councils for marginalizing the people’s interests. Doing so uses the idea of democracy to conceptualize residents as the victim of elite oppression who should feel offended by 15‑minute cities." https://lnkd.in/eyihFpJfhttps://lnkd.in/e342Ti3c

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CHRISTMAS SHOPPING (in case Santa Claus is still working)This looks very handy (no pun intended). I better stop here...https://lnkd.in/e4rU3zft

THE DEMOGRAPHIC ISSUEThere is a lot to read about demography these days. Very few analysis attempt to think it about "the bombs" (too many or not enough births) within the context of a rapid climate change. The following analysis is interesting as a "classic" Translated "The world's youngest continent is the last to begin its demographic transition. The African population continues to grow at a sustained rate, at the risk of neutralizing the effects of economic growth. When faced with investors, demographics hardly benefit from being presented as a potential time bomb. Even when she is galloping. “We have the largest and most dynamic youth in Africa,” boasted the President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, in Berlin, at the end of 2023, in front of an audience of businesses gathered to explore the opportunities of this country of some 220 million of inhabitants. “A gigantic market,” argued the manager. Rich in promise for some, excessive for others, Nigerian population growth is certainly dizzying. Every year, 5 to 6 million babies are born in Nigeria, more than in the entire European Union (EU). Its population has already increased fivefold since its independence in 1960. fertility rate (4.6 children per woman in 2021) is double the world average (2.26)."....

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SUNDAY BREAK: THE PHILOSOPHY CORNERREAD SCHOPENHAUER, “THE GREAT PESSIMIST" .HE IS IN FACT "UPLIFTING"'Eloquence, pessimism, plus a bad mood... These are the hallmarks of Arthur Schopenhauer, an outstanding German philosopher, misanthrope, inveterate bachelor, and one of the most famous thinkers of irrationalism."I personally found him far more interesting.than the hyper "theatrical" Nietsche,and agree with the conclusion of the following article "Arthur Schopenhauer was the last German philosopher who attempted to create a comprehensive system capable of solving the fundamental problems of being, unraveling its mystery. The thinker, who was disliked not only by his contemporaries but also by his descendants, who accused him of many sins, left to humanity a beautiful analytical system in the form of a voluminous treatise." Addendum: "Schopenhauer was ill-tempered, hypersensitive and vain. (He hated Hegel for instance, and planned his lectures at the same time as Hegel held his.)" If I may say so, this description would fit quite a few contemporary "legends"I met. He may just have been a tad more "obvious". https://lnkd.in/ehw_3Uet

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LUCY(FER) SAID: "IT IS AN IMPORTANT FALL TRADITION" COME ON ...LET'S STOP THE CHARADE. IS IT REALLY NECESSARY TO SPEND SO MUCH MONEY ON THE ELECTIONS?Since the results are already a given. Trump said he willonly accept 2024electionresults ‘if everything’s honest’ and we all know what he means by "honest" https://lnkd.in/eMByRHchhttps://lnkd.in/e4Tddzqh

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