Deprive and Deprave: News You May Have Missed in 2011!

By Phil Polizatto,WWH - People, who form their opinions solely from sound bites and headlines, or in the vacuum of unreported or under-reported news, add their weight to the rock that used to be called the United States, helping it pick up speed as it rolls downhill until it crashes into smithereens at the bottom of the mountain. Through sheer ignorance these people help the 1%, some of whom are media moguls, sustain and nourish the corporate oligarchy through political puppetry and punditry. If there is any news which might negatively affect their wallets, I assure you that such news will not be reported at all, or in a way that glosses over its importance, misleads, or deceives. All in an effort to keep the military-media-industrial-governmental establishment intact. All in an effort to maintain safe haven for their own selfish and vested interests worth billions and billions of dollars.

I can’t guess what events might occur between now and the end of the year, but I do know there will be some of which you will hear very little, if anything at all. Some executive of a mainstream news organization will tell his anchors what they will or will not report, and if reported, how much air time to give it. I can give some examples.

Driving with my partner’s Mom and sister to a Christmas party, the conversation turned to politics, which is usually one in which we all take turns reinforcing each others views, because we always seem to be in agreement. But I must admit that, except for my partner and I, they never get their news from anywhere other than the mainstream press, mainly TV.

I asked “Mom” what she thought about the fact that Obama had signed the National Defense Authorization Bill into law even though he had intimated that if certain provisions were included in it, he would veto it.

“What provisions,” she asked. I answered the ones that allow the creation of detention centers on our soil. They would be administered by FEMA under the auspices of Homeland Security. The detention centers would be used to “detain” suspected dissidents, which could conceivably include anyone involved with protests against the government. Detainees would be held under military jurisdiction. That would mean no habeas corpus, no requirement to formally charge the person with a crime, no obligation to notify a family member of the person’s arrest, where they were being held, or for how long.

“Mom” looked at me incredulously and said she found that to be incomprehensible in a democracy and I must be sensationalizing the facts. “Just where did you get this information? She asked.

“From Worldwide Hippies,” I answered, and added that I could easily corroborate the story. My partner told his Mom that I was right. He was also well aware of this “small” detail, conveniently overlooked by mainstream news.

“How could something so important not be the lead story on TV,” she asked. I told her that the mainstream news was simply a mouthpiece for the plutocracy and she would only hear what they wanted her to hear. Though not naïve, she still had a problem accepting the fact that our government could be up to such nasty stuff.

“Well, if you think that’s nasty, did you know that in 2011 more soldiers committed suicide than were killed in battle?” Her mouth dropped. “Did you learn that from Worldwide Hippies too?” I nodded and continued. “Did you know that Obama asked Congress to renew the FISA portion of the Patriot Act even before it was up for renewal?”

I explained that the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allowed the electronic surveillance and physical search of anyone the government suspected of being involved in espionage or international terrorism against the United States. Maybe she had heard the phrase “warrantless wiretapping, search and seizure.” The problem was that FISA was a misnomer. It was no longer limited to the surveillance of foreign operatives, but to domestic ones as well, domestic as in any citizen suspected of disrupting the status quo like peace protesters, the Occupy movement, progressive organizations, and unions… maybe even hippies like me!

“Well, I never heard that!” Mom exclaimed. “I suppose you learned that from Worldwide Hippies as well?” My partner and I responded at the same time. “Yes!” I added, “If you do not want your news to be just a cloud of propaganda, then you need to stop watching the news on TV and start getting your news from alternative sources, like Worldwide Hippies.”

Worldwide Hippies is one of the most trusted and comprehensive sources of unfiltered, no-spin, corroborated news you can find. They accept no advertising. They believe people recognize the importance of having an alternative to the mainstream pabulum that’s fed us. They appreciate a site where no one gets paid for their hard work, whether it’s compiling the most important and undiluted news from respected sources or original content and opinion from dedicated citizen journalists.

But Worldwide Hippies can only remain in existence if those who appreciate the site show their thanks by supporting it through donations or the purchase of some very fine gifts from their store. Maintaining an ad-free, informative, educational, and entertaining site like Worldwide Hippies takes money. Please help us help you stay truly informed. Don’t read, watch or listen to depraved mainstream news. Don’t deprive yourselves of the truth. Help us stay “on the air” through 2012 and the years to follow.

In these difficult economic times, if you can’t spare a buck or two, at least spread the word about Worldwide Hippies, share links to the articles, or become a citizen journalist yourself by submitting an article!

By the way, Mom asked that when we returned home, Tim and I make Worldwide Hippies the home page on her computer! You should do the same!

Oh, and if you would like to see a list of the top 25 stories of 2011 that were either censored or under-reported by the mainstream news, check this out:

http://www.projectcensored.org/the-top-25-index/

Love and peace to all in the New Year. Namaste!

To contact Phil or find out more: check out his website and blog For a copy of HUNGA DUNGA
Phil Polizatto – Worldwide Hippies Bureau Chief – West Coast USA, is a graduate of The School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He was a feature writer for the overseas division of UPI, a copywriter for CBS, and an award-winning corporate film producer. Mr. Polizatto is a published poet and a regular contributor to Worldwide Hippies as well as a variety of other arts and literary journals. Hunga Dunga is his first published novel. He resides in the Pacific Northwest.