HELL & BRIMSTONE: the new religion – BAD NEWS

 

Wake up. Check your cell, laptop, TV, radio, and the morning paper. If you've got any marbles at all, the news scares the bejeezus outta you. War, atrocities, Covid variants, crime, inflation, starvation, global warming. All there in spades - 24/7.

It's become a hard and fast ritual. I know addicts who turn CNN on in the morning and shut it off when they go to bed. In the US Trump was, and is the great love/hate divider. One fervent cultist called him "God on earth".

Got a  break from Bad News when I read Finland was the Happiest Country in the world for the 5th year. To an outsider, Finland's evolution is a bloody miracle: 750 years under Swedish rule, 109 years under Russian rule, 1939-1940 wars with Russia. Today the country is prosperous and at peace, but prepared* for war and disasters. A beautiful, democratic country, with one of the best educational systems in the world and good social support. Finns have a lot to be happy about. Especially in these sad and terrible times.

"I'm 100% for President Niinistö." - The Shark

Source: *Financial Times, internet

Next week: STRONGMEN: the BULLY CLUB That wants to rule the world 

Note: Gotta admit, I'm no stranger to doomscrolling. And sure, there's plenty of doom to scroll. The last few years have been remarkably horrible. But at the same time, I guess we should remember that a postman biting a dog is news. A dog biting the postman is not.

Even when it comes to war reporting, we see the houses the bombs hit, not the ones that are intact. I guess what I'm trying to say, is that doom sells. Something being okay does not. Everyday good news, well, is not news and has low sales potential.

It's spring out there. Today was a beautiful clear-sky day, one could really feel the sun warm. For the first time this year, I sat about half an hour on a park bench, just enjoying being there (and okay, fiddling with my phone... but you get the point).

CU

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Eki