Where to start?

 

Where do I start? Consider this as tipping my head out because it is one way to cope with increasing Covid infections and electioneering.

Two weeks of this election campaign to go and shall we survive? Yes, yes we shall. If you go to the source,  you generally get good information which is helpful and enlightening. If you  only pay attention to the campaign, then there is a lot to be concerned about. Smiling family photos somehow equal good government. Really? Have you looked at the facts and what has or has not been achieved? Too many  media people  are playing daft games and thinking they are stealing the limelight and the campaign narrative. The lack of thought and literacy in some of them is embarrassing and not worthy of us. Baffling why any public platform finds it acceptable . Candidate corflutes have been removed, damaged , defaced and remastered to the extend some independents have been recreated as Greens candidates. Is that because the people doing it think Greens are a liability.? I do wonder what goes on in some people's heads when they get up in the morning. And why would they actually print and distribute false signs? So much wrong with these false campaign corflutes and the vandalism. AEC is investigating it. Pity they have had to put up with some people thinking they are not. Whoever is behind this misrepresentation of candidates needs to be established and dealt with. It is awful. 

Our coronavirus infections are escalating and the deaths as well. We are not getting enough people vaccinated and boosted. We are not getting enough people tested. If you are sick with covid and vomiting or have an upset stomach, testing would be hard. Some are thinking , why bother and just carrying on. Masks are being abandoned and that is irrational because they stop the spread! Sanitising stops the spread. Social distancing stops the spread. It simply is not logical to think this is not a problem when our numbers are going up and up. We have no leadership in this matter other than some medical people who keep trying to put sensible messages out on social media.

Then we have our medical system. It is hard to get a doctor's appointment if you have suspected covid. Some doctors don't seem to want to know you or your child. So you ring the covid helpline and get told to go to emergency and emergency isn't the place. You need a proper consultation if you have a child with a fever, vomiting and not eating and drinking for more than a day. There are adults who can't get proper consultations. I accept clinics want to keep themselves safe. RATs can come up negative even though you have symptoms on the Covid  list. We need to know. This is not going away. We keep supplying hosts. Maybe we need a possibly covid clinic  so people with covid symptoms can get timely and effective help. No one wants to go to emergency but how can they get proper medical advice if there is no one to see? It is especially important for older people and young children. 

We have no leadership and we need it. Two more weeks of things being as they feel like being with these negative undercurrents means we shall grow weary. We need direction. 

Surviving the election 22 campaign

 

Image: covid19data
If this week is anything to go by , surviving the election 22 campaign will require skill and a plan. The emphasis seems to be on pain. It is painful to listen to the nonsense masquerading as election programming. We have had politicians and journalists forming coteries. We have had journalists playing daily trivia games. At times, we do have to lighten up but, heavens, the campaign has hardly started. Officially, that is. We have had months of PM photo ops and his photographers can come up with some interesting images. Many people don't like them, but some of Adam Taylor's photographs are really worth contemplating. 

So how to survive this campaign? Some have tuned out completely and are staying in their own bubble until they need to vote. Some will keep an eye on it and just catch up every few days. 

1. Cover a variety of sources: different radio stations, different TV stations, Twitter, different websites, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube . By covering sources widely you get to see more and can sort out the brainwashing messages from relevant information. 

2. Do image searches for politicians. Get an idea of how they present photographically.

3. Keep your eye on coronavirus information and spread. It is still there. Masks work. We need to pay attention and not get distracted and know how to manage this for ourselves. Dumping health measures will not make the virus go away. We have been increasing cases. See the comparison of countries image with this post. 

4. Listen to National Press Club speeches. You will hear people who play significant roles in our society make speeches. The politics around those speeches is worth taking in and thinking about. A good speech will make you think more. A bad speech will remind you how not to think. 

5. Know how the media creates bias.  OpinionFront gives you a start. There are other websites which go into more detail. Be aware of how media manipulate messages when they want to. 

6. Talk to real people about what they are thinking. It might be quite different from you. Have boundaries. There are times when polar opposites in thinking cannot find common ground. There are also times when the way somebody thinks about something is enlightening. 

7. Have other things to do and plenty of them. Now is a good time to start some projects. 

8. If you can't stand what you are reading and hearing , find something else to read and hear. 

9. Look at politics in other countries and how it is reported . Let some of their ways and views inform your own but also start noticing global patterns and how and where they occur. 

10. Get out into nature or be with others. Go for a walk, go in the garden, get outside and look at the sky.  Go to the beach or for a walk in a forest area. Don't just sit there ...do something :) Phone home. Cuddle your pet. Play with children or grandchildren. They aren't worried about politics and have some hilarious takes on life which cut through.