What's wrong?

I'm not revealing any secrets here, but most of our news reporting isn't all that objective anymore. Let's face it, there are any number of agendas that are alive and well and are being used to, let us say, influence what it is that we "know" in the end.

What does surprise me, at least a little, is that regardless of which agenda is being pushed, some certain "facts" seem to seep through anyway. I use the word "facts" cautiously, because there does seem to be some topics, or themes, that appear to be the agreed subject of discussion at any rate, even if there isn't agreement on the details.

Depending on where you are, these topics will vary. In the US, they seem to focus on security, gun ownership, dirty energy, and banking/finance. In Germany, they tend more toward healthcare, green energy, and banking/finance. In Southern Europe, unemployment, especially youth unemployment is a big deal, along with banking/finance. And since I'm no expert on Latin America, Africa or Asia, I can't really say what's making their tongues wag, but I can't help but think that the topics there can't really be all that different, and I'm sure there is some cross-section that they share with the rest of us.

In other words, regardless of how good or bad the press may be, there is really little, if any, excuse not to be aware of the big-ticket issues of the day, and the one that apparently affects us all has to do with money and those who handle money matters, the banks. We know it. We are aware of it. We all feel it at some point, either at the gas station or the supermarket or when we realize we won't be taking a vacation this year. What's worse, jobs seem to be disappearing faster than people (we do have declining populations in most of the industrialized world at any rate), and things aren't looking all that rosy for our kids and grandkids.

And this is what surprises me about that: nobody seems to want to talk or do anything about it. Why? Is it because most of us believe we have enough that it's not our problem? Is it because we haven't got a clue what I'm talking about? Is it because we don't understand the issues themselves? Or is it, perhaps, simply because we're to fat, dumb, and lazy to care?

I don't mean any of this as an insult. There's more frustration involved than anything. But, it just amazes me how many people I do talk to from so many different places who have become aware of problems, have identified the difficulties, but when asked what they intend to do about it, all seem to agree that there's nothing they can do, so they'll just do nothing at all.

Only conspiracy theorists like to think there is some great, secret cabal out to gain control of the world, but that's perfect nonsense. We are perfectly capable of suppressing ourselves.