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This is a short documentary on the Global Climate from an outstanding short film maker who gained fame with his work with the Fallen short on World War II.  Which also highlights the folly of throwing away democracy to put your faith in a autocratic leader such as Hitler or Stalin in how many lives that will cost in the end.  Especially when you think about current trends in modern day politics. While this Climate video was only posted in the last week or so it deserves more views than it currently has. His ability to paint a picture with hard data and graphs is unmatched in my view. Although this can be best described as those who are comfortable with uncertainty as their truth and others who are willing to accept science as the certainty. At the moment in Australia we have our own sense of shame with a conservative government who seem to be placing their bets on uncertainty as the future rather than science. To any rational logical thinker this is much the same as arguing with God.

While I come across informative videos all the time online, these guys at Polymatter go the extra mile with subject matter. It is well thought out and researched not unlike a Think Tank analysis on numerous subjects. Analysing Population growth, Industry, Economics, Technology, Science and Politics. This is an interesting video on China’s housing crisis plus the demographic hurdle coming for them in the future with it’s ageing population. It shows how the real value of politics for any country are with those who can deal with reality and plan ahead without succumbing to the comfort zone of wishful thinking. This can be anything from infrastructure spending or just how you plan your social welfare, population growth and education programs decades ahead. Getting it wrong can mean total economic collapse if the productive segment of the population gets out of balance with the non productive segment.

For decades now Conservatism globally has been slowly walking this path back to a dark age by it’s inability to adapt to a modern world. Instead they have trended to be more extreme with nationalism and isolationist views. This lack of any long term vision and being entirely comfortable taking on absurdities to prop up a belief system only amplifies how lost they have become ,  some don’t even believe in the value of government. The election of Trump tested this viewpoint like no other. On the line was a politician’s integrity, easily identified defending blatant falsehoods or just by staying silent when they should have spoken out.  In Australia it’s the same, while we don’t have the extremes of Trumpism it’s clear that certain conservative politicians and media still want to ignore facts in order to protect these precious beliefs. No different in Britain with Brexit, conservatism propped up with falsehoods walking the same path. Meanwhile China, a communist regime turned it’s ideology in knots to adapt to a modern world. A totally focused plan weaponizing Capitalism with it’s thirst for profit and lower costs becoming manufacturer to the world.  Including the many infringements of western innovations but was given a pass because of companies chasing a quick profit. Meanwhile in the USA, it operates like 50 small countries instead of thinking as one.  The obsession with individualism, on one hand that’s a good thing but in a nation that has now grown to over 325+ million, one would think it might be time to take a second look. Especially when 700,000+ covid deaths puts up a litmus test on what is most important, Individual or Country. Instead conservatism now wants to double down, unlike in previous times they could see the value in universal rules for seat belts, gun control, finance or even scientific facts. Now its Climate change is a leftest fantasy, any form of Socialism is evil except if it benefits Wall St, wearing a mask in public during a pandemic is an infringement of “My” rights or election results are fake when it doesn’t go your way.  The fractured logic of the anti-vaxers and protesting school children wearing masks as an individual freedom infringement vs the community benefit. Is the same as protesting why they can’t travel through a school zone at a 100 mph. All those other rules that we live by day to day are also government mandates  that have been with us for centuries. Now they are best known as being the Party of “NO” without any policies for the past 13 yrs. Totally tribal, blocking any attempt at governance for the country while just being content to be angry. They want to believe a government with no oversight is the best government , but the reality of that is exactly the same as communism or a dictatorship. A small group of the powerful elite rule the world and Democracy plays no part. Once it gets to this then you know that is an ideology gone rogue and more of a threat to humanity than its saviour. I replaced the video link with a more up to date commentary by the same Fareed Zakaria as it is more relevant to the post.  As one commentator on YouTube said, the Conservative movement is like a ship adrift at sea without a rudder searching for the 1950’s

Writing political comment on a blog is one thing, but making a point economically with few words is another. This is a skill I wish I had, because this guy has it in spades. His ability to do just that in a short sentence or using a metaphor is amazing. Plus being capable of zooming out to grasp the bigger picture is also very impressive. His name is Anand Giridharadas a journalist and Editor at large to Time magazine along with other news outlets with a book he published two years back called ” Winners Take All: The Elite Charade of Changing the World “. After seeing him interviewed one day on a business network I was impressed and purchased his book not long after. Mainly because it covered things I viewed as being problem issues over the years but never thought of it collectively in the way he does. It’s a great reflection on how the modern world economy works and also how plutocracy works to undermine democracy. This is one of his interviews conducted by a Dutch network when he was invited to give a speech to the Dutch parliament on the same subject. It would be nice if 2021 was the start in correcting some of these issues.