Speaker 1 00:00:02 Welcome to the fourth degree podcast
Speaker 2 00:00:16 Tales from Perga Tree.
Speaker 3 00:00:18 I just got back from Mexico. I know it seems odd that someone in my position would go to Mexico, but the trip was paid for when I existed under better circumstances and I was invited to a wedding, so why not? I'm back now and I was catching up with Old Lady Mac this morning. We talked a bit about a nasty bowel movement I had while in Mexico, among other things. Her friend Cam, who I consider to be the human equivalent of no name dog food came up. I can never tell what she really thinks about him. She will insult him and then say nice things about him. I wish she would make up her mind so that I can judge her. We also chatted about my current situation and then of course she wanted to talk about the trans ableist movement and often to tales of purgatory.
Speaker 3 00:00:56 We go chats with Old Lady Mac almost always veer into purgatory territory. It's either that or she starts up with the what would it take to make you believe in the resurrection and accept Jesus as your savior. And I'd rather talk about trans ableism. Thank you, but I digress. I suppose you might wonder, how do you know when you're looking at proof that we are all living in purgatory? You know this, this state of temporary punishment or purification where we are being tested to see if we ascend to heaven or rotten hell. Well, for me, I know this is purgatory when I see something reported in the news and I can't figure out if it's real or if it's satire. This seems to happen a lot. Now imagine time traveling here from 1980 and reading a newspaper. You would naturally assume that Mad magazine had taken over the news industry and everything is satire now, but it isn't.
Speaker 3 00:01:45 So if it isn't satire and it is just too weird and stupid to be real, I assume it's a sign that we're living in purgatory. You would have to be stark raving, mad to accept all of the gibberish and bullshit we get bombarded with daily as the real world. No, this is all a test. But enough of that, I think we were talking about trans ableism. Uh, well, this isn't satire. This is a real thing kind of trans ableism is a strange and curious phenomenon. It is the desire to be disabled or impaired or to have a limb amputated or your eyes ruined or poked out or to use a wheelchair even if there's no medical reason for it. It's like a twisted form of identity and a longing to be something other than what you are. Now, some folks compare trans ableism to transgenderism where individuals identify with a gender other than the one they were assigned at birth.
Speaker 3 00:02:35 But let's be clear, trans ableism is not a recognized medical or psychological condition. It's more like a bizarre cork of the mind, a gnarled and twisted branch of the human experience. It is the literal definition of crazy what normal, healthy person would lose a limb or one of their senses just for the hell of it. Some say it's a form of body dysmorphia. Maybe be a mental health issue that needs to be treated. Others argue that it's a legitimate identity and it should be respected. But I think it's crazy, but you're not supposed to say that. Why can't we just call crazy people crazy anymore? I guess it's because some people would say the term crazy has been used historically as a derogatory and stigmatizing label for people with mental health issues. And I am told it can perpetuate harmful stereotypes and discrimination as such, mental health professionals and advocates generally discourage using such terms and instead recommend using more accurate, respectful, and empathetic language.
Speaker 3 00:03:34 Well, wasn't Charlie Manson crazy? How about Jack the Ripper? He was pretty crazy. Crazy must be a thing. No indeed. If we let trans ableism become a normal and respected choice, where does it stop? How far down this rabbit hole do we get before someone finally says, wait, this is crazy. Well, I think now's a good time to start wanting to cut off a limb or poke out your own eyes or anything like that is crazy. Period. While researching this, I found two philosophers, Tim Bain and Neil Levy who asked if people can choose to reject life-saving treatments, why shouldn't they be allowed to elect a surgery that will leave them disabled? Well, because it's crazy. See, easy. Now, treat these people like crazy people. What does that mean? I don't know. But don't cut off their goddamn limbs or poke out their eyes. Have you ever felt strongly that you would like to have K ffc for dinner and then later regretted it?
Speaker 3 00:04:24 We all misread our own desires. Sometimes well imagine realizing that your need to be unique didn't need to involve having your leg chopped off, but a well-meaning person had decided to treat your crazy request as normal and now all you have is a stump. That is a hard nut. Weird news, not since Pancho Villa led the infamous Columbus raid in 1916. Has the United States faced a very real prospect of invasion? Not counting though 1.7 million people estimated to cross the Mexican border illegally. That is up north is a different story. Though Canada and United States famously share the world's longest undefended border at over 5,500 miles. The one thing Americans do not fear is a Canadian invasion until now, but it isn't. The woefully unequipped Canadian armed forces threatening to invade. It is pigs and it seems Armageddon is at hand. Wild bores were imported into Canada in the eighties and nineties.
Speaker 3 00:05:21 It became fashionable to crossbreed them with domestic pigs to create a larger animal that could be farmed. The resulting animal was more wild bore than domestic pig. And after a brief period of popularity, eh, the interest kind of waned. Eventually some super pigs escaped or they were released into the wild. Initially, the animals were not expected to survive the harsh Canadian winters. However, it turns out the pigs aren't just super big, but they're also super smart. Instead of dying out, they adapted to the winters by burrowing into the snow and creating, get this <laugh> pig lus. It turns out pigs are the most adaptable large mammal on the planet, and they are everywhere. Super pigs will eat anything problematically. They eat crops and animal feed, however, they will eat insects, reptiles, small mammals, and even birds. I would love to see a pig catch and eat a bird.
Speaker 3 00:06:15 It doesn't seem possible, but I read that they do it in a report by the University of Saskatchewan, and if anyone knows pigs, know what I mean? Super pigs use their long sns to dig up and rip up vegetation. They destroy other animals' habitats and they leave a trail of destruction in their wake and let's not talk about what they do to water. Well, you could imagine because basically it's the same thing we do to water or in water. On average, a sow will have a litter of six piglets at a time and they can give birth twice a year and in any season. So there are a lot of them and their numbers are growing and these things are smart. We can't just go out and hunt them down because they've figured out that the best way to stay alive is to stay away from people.
Speaker 3 00:06:56 This is the craziest part. It's all the authorities in Canada can do is try to figure out where the hell they are. Nobody ever sees them. Cities in Canada, like Edmonton and Winnipeg are drafting plans to deal with upcoming feal, hog invasions. It's war. These super pigs are spread from the west coast of Canada all the way to Quebec. For those that don't know their geography, Quebec is north of Vermont and Maine. So basically we're talking about the width of the continental United States, the largest group those in South central Saskatchewan. How many? Well, that's a thing. Who knows? People who see phal pigs are encouraged to call in and report them like they're Sasquatch or something. So despite not really knowing how many feral super pigs there are or where they are, the one thing we do know is that they are preparing to invade en mass the United States.
Speaker 3 00:07:45 Why is this news? Who knows? There are already 3 million phal pigs in Texas alone. The United States already has its own phal pig problem. But you see creating a headline that implies any sort of invasion of the United States is a good recipe for generating clicks and attention. It's just good business. So my friends, to paraphrase, bond Scott, lock up your daughter, lock up your wife, lock up your back door and run for your life. The feral super pigs are coming for you. All right, this next one is about a year old. And so maybe it's not news, but whatever. Researchers at the Menses Health Institute Queensland at Griffiths University released a study entitled Chlamydia Pneumonia can affect the central nervous system via the olfactory and trigeminal nerves and contributes to Alzheimer's disease risk. This was promptly reported eight months later as picking your nose, <laugh>, picking your nose leads to Alzheimer's disease.
Speaker 3 00:08:42 Let's dig in. 15 years ago, researchers discovered that Alzheimer patients often had concentrations of the bacteria, chlamydia, pneumonia present in their brains. This study sought to find out a bacteria present in the nose could travel to the brain. The study shows that it can in mice. Anyway, you see the study was done on mice and they had the bacteria shoved into their nose. 28 days later, those mice did have accumulations of both the bacteria and an accompanying amyloid protein. That's it. Now, nine out of 10 people admit to <laugh>. Nine out of 10 people admit to picking their noses and it is estimated by me that all 10 of them actually pick their noses. But how does a mouse pick its nose and why is this study associated with nose picking? The study does not actually mention nose picking. Well, the news over-reported a comment made by one of the researchers where they suggested that anything that damages the lining of the nose such as nose picking could increase the chance of introducing bacteria into the brain. Is it possible maybe? Does nose picking cause Alzheimer's? No, of course not. We would all have Alzheimer's before we were out of high school if that was the case.
Speaker 2 00:09:53 Hot steak.
Speaker 3 00:09:54 We need to focus on more important things with all due respect to the social justice warriors, the conspiracy theorists and all you crazy bastards trying to convince everyone that you know something that the rest of us don't. You all need to expand your horizons. Most of the time it seems, I end up cutting off conversations with people and responding to whatever they tell me With a hardy who cares, you're part of the problem, man, not the solution. This doesn't matter and you should forget all about it. I have to point out to them that whatever, but all gibberish they are trying to repeat is just a distraction and that they should focus on what's important. They always look at me bail fully and hoo out. So what's important then Figure it out. I tell them, but I realize I'm giving them too much credit. Most people these days are routinely outsmarted by bugs.
Speaker 3 00:10:38 If it wasn't for the fact that you can buy pretty much everything and have it delivered to your house, half of the people out there would die in the street like pronghorns in a cold winter. There are a lot of real problems out there. So here's a small list put together as these segments always are. Well, I'm sitting on the can. The world is not doing well. Suicide rates over the past few years have been nothing short of savage and under relenting. The numbers are staggering and the reality is brutal. Suicide rates have been climbing for years after a long downward trend. Someone kills themselves every 11 minutes in the United States. 80% of those are men, and the older you get, the more likely it is that you will kill yourself. We live in a world where the pressures of modern life alienation and disconnection from community and purpose and the relentless onslaught of digital technology have pushed people to despair.
Speaker 3 00:11:29 The victims are not just statistics, but human beings with stories, dreams, and fears. The tragedy of suicide is not just a loss of life, but the loss of potential and creativity and possibility. But most of all, it's a clear indicator that something is wrong in society. The clock is ticking. My friends and the stakes are high. In the United States, the poverty rate has not changed. In 50 years, income inequality just keeps getting worse and worse. In Canada, wages earned by the top 1% have gone up $200,000 since 2000, and for the bottom 50%, 8,200, the world is still dealing with the financial effects of covid 19. First, the economy tanked and now we have runaway inflation. But the 10 richest people in the world, they are doing just fine. The 10 richest people in the world, more than doubled their wealth from 700 billion to 1.5 trillion during the pandemic.
Speaker 3 00:12:26 That means they have six times the amount of wealth that the bottom 3 billion people have in 2022. There was a new billionaire every day and a half while a person died of poverty. Every four seconds, perhaps you're a pull yourself up by the bootstrap sort of person. Well, just getting by is a hard dollar these days. The official line is that cash printed during the pandemic, labor shortages and supply chain issues fuel our current runaway inflation. Well, I'm not buying that, but we'll talk about that in a minute. Inflation does not hit all of us equally, especially when the price of food, rent and utilities goes up. Those with families to feed people living paycheck to paycheck, and those on fixed incomes get hit much worse than those with disposable income. Skipping meals is a lot different than going out for dinner fewer times a week to save money, especially if you have kids.
Speaker 3 00:13:16 Food and living costs are driving our current inflation crisis. Those higher rates that are in place to slow down inflation are driving mortgages and rents higher and food. Jesus Christ. The cost of food, instead of giving you a bunch of stats, I'll make it simple. In 2022, the price of food increased by 10% in Canada and the United States, it will increase another 5% in 2023. That means that compared to 2021, $10 worth of groceries now costs $11 and 55 cents. $200 of groceries now costs over $30 more. So what if you were just making ends meat in 2021? Well, you're screwed now, aren't you? To make things worse, premium items like beef, chicken, vegetables, whole foods and healthy foods have increased even more. This forces people to eat differently and often the foods they're forced to choose or of lesser quality and are less healthy when pressed grocers like to blame it on suppliers and eventually farmers.
Speaker 3 00:14:10 But here's the crazy part, the prices farmers receive for that food keeps going down. The price increase is then explained by, you know, energy prices and labor prices and such. Getting the food to your table just costs more. They say bullshit. Most of the jobs in the food industry are very low paying. The real reason is that our food supply is controlled by fat corporations that care far more about shareholder return than feeding families because that is their job. In the United States, four companies or fewer control at least 50% of the market for 79% of all groceries. This scale allows 'em to control the pricing to their advantage. And for almost one third of everything in the grocery store, they control over 75% of the market. It wasn't until the pandemic started closing meat packing plants in Canada that the public learned that just three meat packing plants control 85% of the beef in the entire country.
Speaker 3 00:15:03 Most of us aren't being forced to make hard decisions about how we will eat because of a lack of food. It is because our food supply system is controlled by fat greedy corporations run by fat, greedy people who only care that they make their next bonus. This is what unregulated capitalism gets us folks, and it is the world we live in now, capitalism is all right. I'm not against capitalism. Capitalism is the reason that we have a lot of the things that we do now, but the point of capitalism is to provide growth opportunity and real improvement to society, not to make a handful of people trillionaires. You can't really blame the wealthy corporations. It is, as I said, their job to maximize shareholder return. The government is responsible for providing oversight through regulation and policy and keeping the scales balanced. But that doesn't happen anymore.
Speaker 3 00:15:50 Wanna know why? It's because we elect incompetent shallow beasts to run our governments. We do. We all do. All we seem to care about is that the other side is wrong and our side is right. We don't talk about policy anymore. We don't insist that government does its job and protects us. We accept their lies and scandals and treachery. As Hunter s Thompson said, when you look into the dark heart of politics, you'll find that it is rotten to the core full of deceit, greed, and corruption. It is a place where the powerful prey on the powerless or justices for sale to the highest bidder and where the needs of the people are ignored in favor of the interests of the wealthy and well connected. How do they get away with it all? Well, it's because we are so distracted by all the bullshit that surrounds us.
Speaker 3 00:16:35 Instead of being held accountable by meaningful engagement of the polity and sober debate of the issues, politicians distract us with the ever worsening political division. And we all let it happen. We just let it happen. So what can you do about it? Get engaged and stop letting the government and media distract you. Shut up about your far left or far right boogeyman ideas and move to the center where your opinion can start to mean something. Figure out what matters to you, not some asshole on TV or Facebook. Definitely not. What matters to the rich person that is just getting richer off of your life and labor. Fuck that guy. Figure out what matters to just you no matter how big or small it is, and start talking about that. You might find that everyone is scared and worried about things like food and inflation and our governments abandoning us to greedy corporations because it serves their interests or don't whatever. But the next time we chat, if you start telling me that there's a secret organization that meets in Davos to make their plans for depopulating the world, or that Democrats or pedophiles or the Republicans are evil, or whatever you just discovered, the new greatest scandal is just know that you are the problem friend and I am judging you as such.
Speaker 1 00:17:52 This has been an Abilities of Blaze podcast. Find
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