WORD OF THE DAY

Propaganda



According to ThinkQuest: "The exact meaning of propaganda is constantly debated, however, and no specific definition is completely true"

The reason for the debate? The word "propaganda" has been condemned with negative connotation for most people but there is another group who argue that propaganda can be used in situations with either good intentions or bad ones. It is not an ABSOLUTE that propaganda always represents deception and lies. Basically, propaganda is presenting something from a very one-sided point of view in order to persuade its audience of the validity of what is being presented.

So in that sense, this blog is my own personal propaganda. Everything told from my perspective and, as such, meant to persuade the reader to see things "my way". I am not particularly seeking approval or agreement with my views and opinions because everyone is free to come to their own conclusions...and feel free to post them as well.

I will end with a quote by American political journalist and author, Elizabeth Drew: "Propaganda has a bad name, but its root meaning is simply to disseminate through a medium, and all writing therefore is propaganda for something. It's a seeding of the self in the consciousness of others."

Now THAT was persuasive!!!

*Oh yes...propaganda is SO my new favorite word*

~Afterthought~ Someone needs to start an Organization or Coalition for Propaganda Awareness and Understanding...Any volunteers?????

Propaganda I'm Pondering:

• Money = Perfection
• Crisis Counseling - Schooling Required
• Men Who Can't or Won't Emote - Lost Causes or Still Redeemable

ROOM 258

 *NOTE* All names have been and will be changed in my posts in order to protect the innocent in addition to saving those that are "stuck on stupid" from any embarrassment

Sitting in the hospital with Sam. Before losing my brother, I would have dreaded this and pretty much downright avoided it. Even when my grandfather, one of the most important people in my life, was in the hospital I had to force myself to go sit with him every day. I loved him more than words can say, but going to a hospital?? I've shuddered the thought for as long as I can remember. I just have a strong aversion to pain and illness - everything I equate to a hospital. I just can't seem to view a hospital as a place of healing and wellness - I view it as a place of sickness and death...hence the avoidance.

Even though my view hasn't changed much, my ability to set those personal feelings aside to try to bring comfort to someone else is stronger. Losing my brother has changed my perspective about a lot of things. Losing my brother has changed me. I can say this with total conviction because Sam, of all people, is not an easy person to be around - to put it mildly. The fact that his illness causes him so much confusion only adds to his already difficult nature and it's hard, to say the least, to balance feelings of anger and frustration with sympathy and pity.

*Nurse just came in - asked if I was his daughter. Sam commented that I just like to "check him out". I corrected him that I wouldn't need to since I snagged his younger version. Sam's response to the nurse, about me: "Yeah, she's a real witch"*

So...my case in point right there: anger/frustration vs. sympathy/pity. But the bottom line is that I love John's family as a whole, so I would do anything for them that would make things easier regardless of my personal feelings about any one individual...even if that individual happens to be SAM.

~ It is so hard to sit here patiently and wait for someone to relive me when I know everyone else is stalling due to their own discomfort about having to deal with Sam ~

Topics I'm Pondering or "Personal Propaganda" 

• Hope
• Moral vs Immoral and How it Relates to Suicide
• Being Desensitized - By Media, Peers, and Desensitizing Yourself
• Thought vs Feeling - Checks & Balances
• The Family Dynamic

 

This is probably not the best time to start a blog. But then again, there is something so extremely purging and satisfying about getting all the mental meanderings out of my head. My own personal propaganda. Putting thoughts into written form seems to help make sense of them rather than trying to sort them in the chaotic filing system in my brain. 

So what for today??? All I can think about is my brother. I think with this, I should stop for now. Not really ready to explore those thoughts deeply. So my first post..short & sweet. Off to ponder what I can write about. Too many topics to choose from..the craziness I see in the world today, the psychopaths that have crossed my path, something on a lighter note maybe. Hmmm..maybe I should've thought this out a little more. But oh well, I've started and now I'll have to continue. I have a mission..it's for myself...the picture just isn't quite as clear as I would like it to be yet.

I'll be back.