Today the hive mind seems fairly inert - they even dragged in George Williams to hint that the lizard Oz had some connection to reality.
But last night's Media Watch report on the reptile war involving former chairman Rudd and the Murdochians was a potent reminder of what happens when the hive mind is stirred into action.
The pond likes to think of this as warrior wasp syndrome ...
Synoeca is a genus of eusocial paper wasps found in the tropical forests of the Americas. Commonly known as warrior wasps or drumming wasps, they are known for their aggressive behavior, a threat display consisting of multiple insects guarding a nest beating their wings in a synchronized fashion, and an extremely painful sting. The sting is barbed and if used often kills the wasp, which may be the reason why such a striking defensive display is used. This display escalates from drumming inside the nest to hundreds of wasps moving on to the envelope of the nest and of continuing to drum and only if this does not deter the threat do the wasps begin to sting.
The pond was particularly delighted by this effort by Chris Dore (pdf here), wanker in chief at the lizard Oz, in response to the show:
It's been 10 years now since his own party dumped him and 7 years since he lost office. Covid has been tough on everyone. And while not many Australians can sit in a multi-million dollar beachside mansion or luxury digs on the Brisbane River through this tough time Australians no doubt hope Mr Rudd has the support he needs and can one day find solace. The Australian has no desire to smear Mr Rudd...
Of course that's a selective quote, in the style of the reptiles, but as the last line was just another smear, it seemed better to highlight the post-modern, post-ironic style of the Dore, with no desire to smear while delivering an epic smear ...
Meanwhile, with things quiet, the pond thought it might indulge itself with a sampling of ancient, ruined Troy ...
Perhaps when the posturing is over? A hunger for something more thoughtful and nuanced? What, like the work of warrior wasps, always ready to attack the ABC, climate science and whatever, and pretend that John Bolton is the new normal?
What a comedian the lizard Oz editorialist is. With comedy stylings like that, of course digital media should subsidise them so they can return to handing out their tree killer rags at airports for free ...
What a frabjous day ... even the immortal Rowe seemed a little more relaxed at the prospect of a world in flames ...
Phew, note to self, stay on the immortal Rowe's good side ...
And so, as it's a laid-back, lackadaisical sort of day, on to another treat.
It's not realised that as well as being an expert on how to kill in pandemics, and how to kill with climate science, Killer Creighton is pretty much an expert on everything ... and so he showed a hive mind empathy with the lizard Oz editorialist this day ...
Astonishing insights ... though the pond was disappointed that the reptiles failed to honour Killer's genius with an illustration ... perhaps of someone smashing up a computer as a sign of the ruin it has wreaked on the reptiles' business model ... a celebration of the Luddite way of doing things ...
Ah the Killer has turned meditative and nostalgic, almost Wordsworthian, and yearns for a golden age, and yet, and yet ...
There was a time when meadow, grove, and stream,
The earth, and every common sight,
To me did seem
Apparelled in celestial light,
The glory and the freshness of a dream.
It is not now as it hath been of yore;—
Turn wheresoe'er I may,
By night or day.
The things which I have seen I now can see no more.
And there's a lot more of that here ... but back to the Killer, undone with intimations of mortality by technology ...
Keynes correct in time? How could this be, how could the Killer be so tainted by heresy?
Yes, fewer useless academics, but won't someone think of the reptiles and their business model?
Keynes showed the way forward ... government stimulus, a little wealth redistribution, a hearty subsidy straight to the reptile purse, so that the reptiles might continue to develop their hive mind and sting whoever or whatever happens to pass their way, but not before there's an enormous flapping and drumming and beating of winds ...
And now to wrap up this mellow pond day, an infallible Pope, also pleasantly relaxed ...
What a treat, as the pond's partner heads down south to visit the rellies and welcome back to the fold those hapless Victorians in the grip of comrade Dan, who resolutely refused to produce a killing field of the kind that Killer Creighton and other reptiles so devoutly wanted ...
Greetings mellow DP. You’ve provided such an entertaining and inspirational pond today I thought it only fair to assist your tireless research on the hive mind by relaying some taxonomic information from the Sauropedia Hypothetica on yet another psycho-swarm phenomenon.
ReplyDelete“Sauronica australianus is a genus of antisocial newspaper WASP reptiles found in the rhetorical swamp of Surry Hills. Commonly known as wearisome WASPs or drumbeat WASPs, they are known for their regressive behaviour, a propaganda publishing process consisting of multiple repbot columnists typing hyperbolic commentary in synchronisation, and an extremely right-wing spin cycle.”
So, Blandston said, that Bolton said, that;
ReplyDelete“...Trump was ignorant of basic facts, lacked a rational and consistent foreign policy, and was consumed with doing whatever it took to get re-elected.”
Sorry Tawdry, seven point eight billion earth dwellers already knew those things about Trump. Only a fawning reptile like you would think anyone cares what one reptile says about another reptile. Especially when it’s UN-basher Bolton commenting on Trump. You need to lift your game mate. Even your accompanying Jellett graphic is more pathetic than usual. Trump plays golf not baseball. It’s just reptile upon reptile all the way down to infinite tedium I reckon.
Oh, you idealistic pedant, you.
DeleteGracious, haven't heard the steady drone of a swarm of WASPs for many a day - and there used to be so many of them. But I have been blown away by The Editorialist's self -perception when he delivered this: "Consumers accessing news through [News Corpse] platforms potentially risk exposure to unreliable news through 'filter bubbles' and the spread of disinformation, malinformation and misinformation ('fake news')"
ReplyDeleteAnd he wants to get paid for it too.
‘It’s customary to make fun of the Luddites, who two centuries ago sought to destroy the world’s first range of machines . . . . fearful they would take their jobs.’
ReplyDeleteThe Adumbrate Creighton returns, with his glib er ‘understanding’ of Luddism, before calling up the triumphalist march of progress, all done for the good of the working man. And, of course, working children, because what was the worth of a 4-year-old if not to earn a fraction of the pittance that a man might receive? And that pittance was declining steadily in real terms because of the bumbling response of the government to events in Europe and in those recalcitrant colonies to the west. That supposed economic ‘war’ with Europe made the Boris Johnson administration look almost competent.
It also saw price of basic foods rise. The response of a government seeking to protect its citizens (nah - joking - trying to keep its new industrialists out of bankruptcy) was, of course, to whip up some suitable laws to set the army on those ungrateful clods who could not see their way clear to working for insufficient money to keep themselves fed so they could continue to work to . . .
Two centuries ago? Try 1769 for the first Act of the English parliament clearly intended to put down resistance to ‘industrialisation’ - for the Limehouse sawmills.
Of course, what the silly people should have done was wait for the Reform Acts. The first of them was only 60-some years away, although the one that extended real reform of the franchise to the counties did not materialise until 1884 - and then only if you were a man who happened to own a home. Yes - democracy was the way.
Having that little exchange with GB recently on the writings of Dean Swift, I suspect the Adumbrate would have found much sound reasoning in Swift’s ‘Modest Proposal’, particularly as Swift closed with the declaration - in the stye of reptiles now - that he had ‘not the least personal interest in promoting this necessary work, having no other motive than the public good of my country, by advancing our trade, providing for infants, relieving the poor.’
You can't say we haven't implemented Swift's 'Modest Proposal' after a fashion, Chad. But we did it just by having fewer children in the first place: fewer to find jobs for, fewer to provide pensions for etc. Surely nobody thinks we could find gainful employment in this mechanised, automated and computerised age for an average of, say, 5 or 6 kids per family. Not to mention finding food for them all (that is, if they aren't their own food as the good Dean might advise).
DeleteThere is just one 'job' that will be truly hard to dispense with: paying consumer. If we can make and do all the things we want to make and do without paying a lot of people wages, then who will there be to buy all of the things we make and thus provide the 'profits' that feed the incomes of the wealthy ?
Hi Dorothy,
ReplyDeleteWhilst reading Adam’s rather feeble attempt at forecasting “future shocks” I was slowly drawn to the feeling that I should apply the “Turing test” to the execrable thing.
Was this the work of a right-wing sociopathic wanker with a degree in economics or was it the output of a barely functional AI that had been pumped full of NewsCorp cliches?
Creighton or KillBot V.2.3?
In the end I realised it didn’t matter the result was still a load of shit.
DiddyWrote