As IF Times

link:  https://www.rebelnews.com/nova_scotia_premier_defends_right_to_wear_poppy_after_judges_demand_staffers_remove_them

One of the most annoying things in recent modern life is the phenomenon of “shrinkflation”.  As everyone has discovered by now, the price of everything has noticeably increased in our daily lives.  Why this has happened is a topic for another discussion, but suffice to say, it’s an issue that affects mostly everyone profoundly unless you are part of a government pay regime.

Let’s clarify what this is.  Consumers become more reluctant to purchase a given product because prices increase.  For example, a bag of potato chips that used to cost 3 dollars is now 4 dollars. People notice these things and thus, they avoid buying these more expensive chips.  What to do?  Well, a genius marketing fix was created.  Why not keep prices as they once were….but decrease the amount of product being sold in the package?  This stroke of genius has been embraced by all consumer companies and thus, producers maintain their saleability on store shelves.

If the producers were totally honest, they should re-label their products for transparency, thus M&M’s would simply be “M” and potato chips would be “some chips of potato”.  That’s not even mentioning the fact that many products aren’t even as they are implied.  Kraft single slices aren’t even cheese and thus, they are not allowed to label it as such. Thus, in this way, producers can hide from consumers the fact that the product that they’re accustomed to consuming is not the same as before.  It’s not exactly bait and switch, but it is a subterfuge nonetheless.

This genius technique of selling  much less of something than what is advertised is one which the political establishment has adopted with great success.  The best example of this is the nation once known as Canada.  I say once known, because the packaging has long outlived the actual contents.

Similar to the deceptive packaging described above, Canada is still regarded by some as a proud, free nation, welcoming to all and benefactor to the planet. In fact, the labelling on the package, aka the national anthem, states boldly, “the true north strong and free”. Who doesn’t recognize the unofficial icon of Canada which is a forthright, broad shouldered, Dudley Do Right of a Mountie. This used to represent the general “goodness” and decency of the nation, or as a former prime Minister invoked, “da Canadian values”.

The main pillar of Canadian-ness, if there actually is one, is that of a free,  lawful and peaceful society.

However, if there was any nation in the world best representing the phenomenon of “shrinkflation”, it’s Canada.  Recently, the premier of Nova Scotia had to go to court to fight for the right to wear a poppy on Remembrance Day, a long honored Canadian tradition. Ironically, this is the day on which Canadians honor those that fought and died in wars for the preservation of the free society in which we live today. It was a judge that wanted to prevent this. There is so much angst about offending virtually anybody who complains loudly enough that Canadians are willing to omit all traditional Canadian customs and values. Canadians are notorious for accommodating any and all sorts of complainers, in the name of inclusivity.

THE cornerstone of a free society is the sanctity of free speech. This liberty is specifically enshrined in the foundational document of the Constitution of The United States.  Because this is the foundation of any free society, it is also explicitly written in the Canadian Charter of Rights:

“…Section 2(b) of the Charter guarantees “freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression including freedom of the press and other media or communication” This right is recognize as a fundamental freedom and is protected against actions by all levels of government…”

Seems pretty clear, BUT WAIT!  There also follows a weasel clause which states:

“…it also allows for reasonable limits on expression if those limits are prescribed by law and can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society…”

In essence, it’s free unless someone decides it’s not a good idea.  So it’s really only a strong suggestion.  As we know, any vacillations in wording on laws are like small holes in a house. Like rodents, politicians will find their way inside.  Thus, the nation has prohibitions on what can be said online under penalty of fines or jail for non-compliance.  This is a page taken from the parent nation, the UK.  Access to certain internet site are now blocked if they don’t conform to official government approval. When asked how Canadians would access information, they are referred to, you guessed it, the official government media outlet, the CBC.

Sounds like political shrinkflation to me. The Canada of today is not what they were selling even a decade ago.  At the very least, change the national anthem to reflect this reality.  Though I’m not sure how they’ll fit “the true north, weak and not really free” into music stanzas.

link: https://cbsaustin.com/news/nation-world/uk-authorities-threaten-extradition-jail-to-us-citizens-for-online-posts-stoking-riots-social-media-elon-musk-x-stabbing-taylor-swift-themed-event-children-dead-prime-minister-police-laws-free-speech

In many cultures in which there is a rich written history, one will find writings which are allegorical in nature. For example in Chinese, Japanese and Indian literature, we find stories and fables which at first pass are amusing but with deeper inspection, one will find plenty of hidden, often thinly veiled political references. Why was this?  Well for one thing, many ancient cultures had rather repressive regimes and any overt criticism of the rulers would likely lead to being disappeared from society.  These rulers imagined themselves to be kings of the world, or at least those parts that mattered, thus any negativity against them was frowned upon. One could not just paint ‘the king sucks’ on the side of a castle.

Thus, it was often through the use of allegory and fables in which artists made their points but it had to be framed in such a way that it could be excused as just entertainment without being linked directly to state criticism.  Of course, you had to expect that the autocrats wouldn’t be bright enough to figure it out. Many of the fables in Aesop’s Fables give timeless lessons and wisdom on human nature, desires and morality but often with hidden political meaning.  Western writers also contributed to this style of narrative.

Certainly some of the most notable works in this genre are by George Orwell and Ayn Rand.  Animal Farm, 1984 and Atlas Shrugged are timeless works on the proclivities of man and governments which seem all the more pertinent today.

This tradition is also evident in the west by activist music artists as they sneak messages of protest and complaint in the lyrics of their compositions.  Most don’t even know the theme of the songs until they delve into the specific lines.  An example would be “The End of The Innocence” by the Eagles in the 1980’s, an oblique critique against the Reagan years.

Over time, these types of ‘protest art’ have enriched all societies with their timeless messages and artistry.  As the world became less dominated by autocratic rulers who chafed at every imagined slight against them, criticisms of government became less oblique and in fact quite direct and pointed….at least in the West. It’s not uncommon to find images and representations of un-popular leaders depicted as all kinds of unflattering animals. Everyone in the public space was fair game.

But recently, we’ve seen a distinct thinning of the skin of those in charge (no doubt because of climate change). Increasingly, those in charge are taking umbrage at any criticism of their edicts and narratives and begin to take action or threatening to take action against any who would dare question the official narrative. The very most recent example is a functionary from Great Britain, a police commissioner named Rowley, who has threatened to reach across the oceans and prosecute and imprison anyone daring to criticize their narratives.  Though not a king, this man imagines himself to be Lord of his imaginary realm. Comically, this from the land of Monty Python which is now not only not Great, but also becoming less Britain.  It’s the equivalent of ‘I’ll cut you man!”

We can understand the frustration of those in charge since their hold on the compliant mass media has collapsed.  While there are still adherents to legacy media outlets, other sources, notably the X platform, Truth Social and Gab are now sources of real, unfiltered information without the attendant gas-lighting built into all state media.  Thanks to brave people such as Elon Musk, Tucker Carlson and recently freed Julian Assange, the real truth is exposed for all to see.

This is a sea change for information and media as the Barney Fifes of the media world flail away trying to preserve their once powerful hold over people’s views. I can imagine they’ll come up with all kinds of ridiculous methods to censor people such as charging for the use of the alphabet.  Orwell was correct.  There’s always going to be the big scale tyrant wanna-be’s but it’s the little tyrants  and bootlickers that cause the most daily grief. They seem to multiply like cold sores at an orgy and are just as hard to be rid of.