skip to main |
skip to sidebar
I write this blog to discuss my opinions, but also to share the facts that brought me to those opinions. I hope you read the facts and my opinions, BUT I hope you use your own brain to come to your own opinions. I am of the belief that people just really need some facts to go on. In this day and age with so much disinformation going around, it is harder and harder to find truth and facts. That is what motivated me to write this blog, to share truth and facts and share my opinions.
Of late I am seeing a job title that I swear came right off the pages of George Orwell's "1984." It is "Thought Leader." Really. Really? Yes, really. I guess this job title has been percolating for a while now, since I am seeing articles as far back as 2003. But really?
Here is an article on 6 Ways to Establish Yourself as an Industry Thought Leader
(I suddenly had to laugh... thinking about something my mother used to say about "too many chiefs and not enough indians.")
O.K., so where did this "Thought Leadership" idea come from? Marketing, that's where. "Thought Leadership" is no more than selling a brand. I especially found this blog amusing on the subject. There you can find out there is a "Thought Leadership" Seminar at Columbia. I probably missed it. Hmmmm.
Here is a good one from Fortune Magazine who advertizes this: "Extending the magazine's cutting-edge content and exclusive insider access Fortune Conferences bring together the world's business people with government officials and thought leaders."
I think I missed out on those conferences, too. I wasn't invited.
All those government officials gathering together with world business leaders and "Thought Leaders".....somehow that does not make me too terribly comfortable. There comes a point when too much input from too many people becomes a chaotic cacophony of nonsensical blathering. The loudest or the squeakiest wheel is going to get the most attention. This is why America was founded on allowing individuals to make their own decisions and lead their lives without tyrannical force, so "Thought Leaders" would leave us alone. Now we are generating a collection of "Thought Leaders," who have nothing else in mind but trying to tell you how and what to think?
Another funny thing about this "Thought Leadership" business is this: Everywhere I look I see the same thoughts. There is a veritable consensus of "thought" on the latest trends, sustainability in everything, global citizenship, social values and responsibility, environmental ethics, green economics, and "smart" anything. I find it quite mind numbing that the popular "Thought Leaders" of the day are all saying the same things. By the time everyone is inundated with the drip drip drip of the same thoughts and philosophies, whose brain is even trying to think for itself? Why bother? The "Thought Leaders" have done all of the thinking for you.
So whose thoughts are "Thought Leaders" leading? Can you think for yourself? If you read my blog, I hope you are thinking for yourself, but taking in enough factual truth to facilitate your thinking. Don't just read my writings, but read all you need to in order to form an educated opinion. Beware of "garbage in, garbage out.
As we have seen throughout history, "Thought Leaders" can be very dangerous to the rest of the human population. Marx's thoughts have already translated into millions of deaths. Now we are seeing Marxist methods and ideas permeating our entire nation. It is very clever that Marx's ideas are being marketed so adeptly by "Thought Leaders" who have learned to rename and package the entire doctrine under such cozy and warm sounding words.
Oh, here's one I just read: "Having a blog doesn’t make you a thought leader in the same way that having an iPhone will not make you think like Steve Jobs. "
Uh oh, I guess I don't qualify as a "Thought Leader." Oh well. Maybe you read all of this for nothing. And maybe you'll have to go think of something else ....on your own. Sorry. I hope I didn't ruin your day by warning you there are "Thought Leaders" about and you might want to watch out for them.
Here are some more sites on "Thought Leaders:"
Be a Thought Leader
Stanford U.
Top 100 Thought Leaders
I attended a Municipal Planning Board (MPO) hearing the other night for the purpose of observing and trying to get a handle on what is going on behind the scenes in our government. My motivation is a degree of shock and outrage at how much of our government has gone behind the curtain, so to speak. While the meeting was advertised in the classified section 10 days beforehand, and stated it was open to the public, I think the mass public is very unaware of how boards such as this one operate and who is calling the shots. I was one of only three citizens who went to this MPO meeting to observe. I report that there was little to no opportunity to address the board on any issue they discussed. It was a fait รก complit.
The MPO board is appointed and unpaid. They make decisions on what roads and development may be allowed in our area. And then they send their recommendations on to the State DOT or whichever agency in the State government that would have jurisdiction over the requested development or road. Supposedly these are "recommendations." Supposedly these are not "cut in stone" decisions. Supposedly, once the State has blessed the recommendations, the issue comes back to our city council or county commissioners for further blessings. None of the issues before this board ever come to the public on a ballot for referendum, but all of the issues require the use of taxpayer money.
Sitting on this board are a few local elected officials who volunteer their time to attend, just enough to give the board some local "elected" credibility. There are a few government agency bureaucrats on the board. Also, sitting on this board are developers, those who want the board to bless their development activities. The members of this board are known as "stakeholders." Supposedly "stakeholders" are citizens who have a vested interest in the outcome of government actions.
Stakeholders. Hmmmmm....who are "Stakeholders?" Time was when "stakeholders" in America were voters. They approved or disapproved their "stake" by voting on for specific issues and elected officials. Not any more. "Stakeholders" are now those who are appointed to boards who make the decisions on specific issues. They are appointed to those boards by those who want the boards to mime the same ideology as those who appoint them. In short, it is a crony system where like-minded people appoint like-minded people to override and circumvent the voters. And so far it is very successfully doing exactly what the like-minded want this system to do....rubber stamp the goals of the few over the wishes of the masses.
Stakeholder boards are another hallmark of the Soviet System. Michael Shaw Explains "At a young age I learned that a "soviet" was a system of interconnected councils that work to destroy individual personality, suppress individual potential, and centralize power into the hands of those who seek to control human action and human production."
"The Definition of a Soviet:
- A soviet is a system of councils that report to an apex council and implement a predetermined outcome, often by consensus, affecting a region or neighborhood.
- Members of a soviet council are chosen by virtue of their willingness to comply with that outcome and their one-mindedness with the group
- Soviets are the operating mechanism of a government-controlled economy, whether it be socialism or government-corporate ("public-private") partnerships"
In our area in central North Carolina alone we have multiple unelected Soviet councils. There is the Centralina Council of Governments (CCOG). There is the Unified Development Organization (UDO). There is the Municipal Planning Organization (MPO). There is the Economic Development Council (EDC). Under the actual city council resides the Stormwater Runoff Committee. There is the Citizens Advisory Committee. There is the Clean City Board. There is the Gaston County Restructuring Committee. There is Gaston Together. There is the Historic Preservation Committee. There is the Uptown Revitalization Committee. Of course on top of these you have the usual Chamber of Commerce, United Way, and Rotary Club groups. Then you have countless environmental groups who have emerged over the last few years. The River Keepers being the first one to pop into my head. The Carolina Thread Trail is another.
Groups of committees all vying for the favors of government to suit their own goals. Well, O.k. fine, but this involves more than just petitioning the government for grievances or favors. This involves groups forming what they call "consensus," when in fact they are a bunch of fractured special interest groups who are not representing "consensus" at all.
In America's founding documents, the true stakeholders of our country are the citizens. The Constitution does not say that some well-connected, appointed, few are the deciders of the fate of our citizens. Through our elected representatives, we, as citizens, hold the keys to our own policy decisions. At least that is the promise of our America.
Now comes a structure into our country that we Americans do not recognize as legitimate, but is so flattering to some egotistical and corrupt power hungry citizens that they are participating in the destruction of our freedoms, our Constitution itself. Somewhere along the way we have created too many chiefs and not enough Indians. In other words, there are a lot of Americans sitting around wanting to be chiefs, thinking they can tell other Americans how to live and what to do without going through the electoral process.
As I write this, unelected boards with the new "stakeholders" are making decisions about our lives. If you aren't one of them, be assured these "stakeholders" are not looking out for your interest, but their own. Should you be invited to be a "stakeholder" realize you are disenfranchising the rest of your fellow Americans by participating in a process that gives them no voice. That, friends, is wrong. That is the Soviet system, not the American way. That makes you an enemy of the U.S. Constitution and no friend of mine.
Up Next: "Viewsheds"
Double Tongued Dictionary
"viewshed n. the landscape or topography visible from a geographic point, especially that having aesthetic value."
Today's buzzword is "STAKEHOLDER." You are hearing this word in comprehensive planning from your local leadership all the way up to the federal government. So who are these "STAKEHOLDERS?"
Accordiing to the online dictionary
stakeholder
- 3 dictionary results
–noun
1.
the holder of the stakes of a wager.
2.
a person or group that has an investment, share, or interest in something, as a business or industry.
3.
Law . a person holding money or property to which two or more persons make rival claims.
Hmmmm... I think we can eliminate the #1 definition here because the subject I address is not Poker. But how about #2 and #3? #3 is not quite it because it refers to legal ownership. So, #2 it is. #2 defines who fits into schemes being presented by government officials who are "transforming" the nature of our Republic.
But lets' say you are just Joe Citizen and you see that "STAKEHOLDERS" are now on consulting boards who are making decisions on how your city is run. Excuse me? Joe Citizen used to be THE STAKEHOLDER in this process. It was Joe Citizen who elected persons to run his city. The persons elected were the decision makers. Now we find out that elected officials are conferring with "STAKEHOLDERS" to decide on all of the issues facing his city. Who are the STAKEHOLDERS?
Hint: If you don't like Facism and if you don't like crony capitalism, you are not going to like "STAKEHOLDER" government.
"Stakeholder councils are called by many names and are created for a variety of specific purposes. Whatever they are called, and whatever the stated purpose for which they are created, they all have several common characteristics, and all have a common objective: the implementation of some component of Agenda 21."Sovereignty.net
STAKEHOLDERS are the wealthy, influential leaders of corporate, business, and non-profit organizations in the community. So if Joe Citizen is not wealthy or influential by his association with one of those groups...well, Joe Citizen is no longer a STAKEHOLDER in his community. And because the STAKEHOLDERS are chosen by government officials to sit on the decision making boards, who do you think government officials are going to appoint? It isn't very likely that the government officials are going to appoint small government conservatives because government officials like big government and control. In fact, small government conservatives would not disenfranchise Joe Citizen by STAKEHOLDER COUNCILS anyway. (just google the words "stakeholder council in yourtown USA," and you will see what I mean.) So it is the Progressive Democrat / Republican politician who buys into this set up. As if Joe Citizen doesn't exist, he is out of the loop, out of the sphere of influence, and S___ out of luck.
The more public / private government deals with STAKEHOLDER COUNCILS arranged by politicians, the more Facist our government becomes and the less our citizens have to say about how our tax money is spent.
The Founders made every citizen a STAKEHOLDER in our government. The Socialists and Fascists on both the left and the right have removed the citizen from the process. So when you see the word STAKEHOLDER(s) in plans and articles about plans for your local government, remember you are not included. Our government is no longer supposed to be about you, Joe Citizen. Now it's supposed to be about who has the most money and influence in your community.
Oh, you say, that's the way it has always been anyway, so what's new under the sun? Well, not quite. Yes, wealth and position have always had influence. I don't deny it. But the voter was the trump card against that influence, preventing the steam-roller effect from running over the Joe Citizens of the country. Now we have a system in place that never makes it to the ballot box, but just implements policies based on STAKEHOLDER COUNCILS, the voter be damned.
What to do to stop this? Find candidates who understand the process has been corrupted and who will no longer rule by fiat on the basis of STAKEHOLDERS. Simple solution....not so simple to do. But if we don't stop this, the spiral of out of control government continues until our country is simply unrecognizable. It's almost there already....so get busy out there.
