Contrarian's Corner -> Comedy (or not) with ideology

[Contrarian]

 I will be sharing a video which displays the passion, and irrationality of the European football fans. 

Passion over Reason. 

GREECE:  PAOK Saloniki vs Olympiacos Piraeus

[Contrarian]

 

“A politician divides mankind into two classes: tools and enemies.”

- Friedrich Nietzsche
*Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche was a German philosopher, cultural critic and philologist whose work has exerted a profound influence on modern intellectual history.

[Contrarian]

 

“There are 360 degrees. Why stick to one?”

- Zara Hadid
*Dame Zaha Mohammad Hadid DBE RA was a British-Iraqi architect, artist and designer, recognized as a major figure in architecture of the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Edited September 7, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

 

"We become what we think about."

- Earl Nightingale
*Earl Nightingale V (March 12, 1921 – March 25, 1989) was an American radio speaker and author, dealing mostly with the subjects of human character development, motivation, and meaningful existence.

[Contrarian]

"Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that this thing must be attained."

- Marie Curie
*Marie Salomea Skłodowska–Curie was a Polish and naturalized-French physicist and chemist who conducted pioneering research on radioactivity. She was the first woman to receive a Nobel Prize and the only woman to receive two Nobel prizes.

Edited September 9, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

Documentary - The Man Who Knew | FRONTLINE

When the Twin Towers fell on September 11, 2001, among the thousands killed was the one man who may have known more about Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda than any other person in America: John O'Neill.

This documentary chronicles John O'Neill's struggle to convince the FBI to pay attention to the threat posed by Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. The former head of the FBI's flagship antiterrorism unit in New York City, O'Neill had investigated the bombings of the U.S. embassies in Africa and the USS Cole in Yemen. For five years, he led the fight to track down and prosecute Al Qaeda operatives throughout the world. But he was a controversial figure inside the buttoned-down world of the FBI. O'Neill's critics contend that his personal failings proved fatal to his FBI career. His supporters, however, believe his main failing was refusing to conform to the standard-issue FBI mold. 
 

Edited September 11, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

On 9/1/2022 at 12:10 PM, Contrarian said:

A collection of Stoic quotes powerfully narrated by voice-over artist Chris Lines. 
*Stoicism is a school of philosophy that hails from ancient Greece and Rome in the early parts of the 3rd century, BC.

This video contains wisdom from the three most notable stoic thinkers: Marcus Aurelius, Seneca and Epictetus.

The trio lived during the times of ancient Rome and became avid scholars of philosophy, with stoicism being their primary focus and guide for life.

Thousands of years later their teachings remain intact and still ring true, applicable to the challenges we face today.

Marcus Aurelius had the burden of managing the largest empire the world had ever seen as the emperor of Rome. He would go on to have a prosperous rule for 20 years and went down in history as one of the great rulers.

Seneca who was a successful financial clerk and writer found himself exiled for adultery. He was later hired to tutor a young boy called Nero who would become a tyrannical emperor of Rome. Nero later had Seneca execute himself for allegedly conspiring against him. A claim that was most likely untrue.

Epictetus who was born a slave asked his master for permission to study. He was granted this right and went on to teach philosophy in Rome.

Each of these men faced great challenges in their lives and were able to navigate them through the philosophy of stoicism.

https://youtu.be/2bguEiUgDA4

Related to the above: 

This is a selection of quotes from Western and Eastern philosophy quotes to help rewire negative modes of thinking and live more resilient and happier lives.
 

 

Edited September 12, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

"For my part I know nothing with any certainty, but the sight of the stars makes me dream."

- Vincent van Gogh
*Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, including around 860 oil paintings, most of which date from the last two years of his life.

\

Edited September 13, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

From July 2009

Obama & Putin Breakfast - No comment

Don't miss the scene at 0:50. 
 

 

[Contrarian]

#WeekendAhead. 

[Contrarian]

Documentary - BBC The Conspiracy Files (Documentary) - David Kelly
*The British Broadcasting Corporation is the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom.
 

 

Edited September 18, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

Both Left and Right Are Converging on Authoritarianism from Reason.com
*As the magazine of free minds, Reason.com exists outside of the left/right echo chamber.

The problem with American politics isn't polarization—it's rising illiberalism.

Something is broken in our politics. Just about everyone knows it, but it can be hard to put your finger on what it is.

As the media attempt to grapple with this felt reality, they reach over and over for the same word: polarization.

That, we're told, is the shorthand for what has gone wrong. Where once the country had its share of conservative Democrats, liberal Republicans, and mushy moderates, today the two parties are more internally consolidated—and further apart from each other—than ever.

But what if that explanation is missing something? What if there's a sense in which left and right are actually converging, and the nature of that convergence is the real source of the perception that something isn't right?

In 2014, Pew Research Center released a report on the crisis of polarization. "The overall share of Americans who express consistently conservative or consistently liberal opinions has doubled over the past two decades," it explained. "Today, 92% of Republicans are to the right of the median Democrat, and 94% of Democrats are to the left of the median Republican."

According to the report, as the center of gravity within each party shifted out toward the extremes (ideological polarization), dislike and distrust of those on the other side of the aisle increased as well (affective polarization). We disagree on more than ever and like each other less than ever. There you have it: the recipe for toxic politics.

Full article: 
https://reason.com/2022/09/13/the-authoritarian-convergence/

Edited September 19, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

A poem by Unknown, 1100 A.D.

When I was a young, I wanted to change the world.

I found it was difficult to change the world, so I tried to change my nation.

When I found I couldn't change the nation, I began to focus on my town.

I couldn't change the town and as an older man, I tried to change my family.

Now, as an old man, I realize the only thing I can change is myself, and suddenly I realize that if long ago I had changed myself, I could have made an impact on my family.

My family and I could have made an impact on our town. Their impact could have changed the nation and I could indeed have changed the world. 

Edited September 20, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

“As I review the events of my past life I realize how subtle are the influences that shape our destinies.”

- Nikola Telsa
*A Serbian-American inventor, electrical engineer, mechanical engineer, and futurist best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current electricity supply system.

[Contrarian]

Video from 1963. 

This video features 45 minutes of "man in the street" type interviews that were conducted on the streets of several U.S. cities (New York, Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, and San Francisco) following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy.

These television interviews cover a three-day period, from November 22 to November 24, 1963.

Edited September 22, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

"Too often we enjoy the comfort of opinion without the discomfort of thought."

- John F. Kennedy
*Often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination near the end of his third year in office. Kennedy was the youngest person to assume the presidency by election.

[Contrarian]

DOCUMENTARY - BBC The Death Of Yugoslavia

This captivating 1995 documentary covers the struggles of the Yugoslavian people during the collapse of their country, and the subsequent wars to finally find hope with the signing of the Final Peace Accords.

Part 1:

Part 2-6: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrkUV4-k4qc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DDPI1AFhVI0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY7BwM952ZY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oy9aqSWE5dc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cm8IsQhZYLs

Edited September 24, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

"We will always have STEM with us. Some things will drop out of the public eye and will go away, but there will always be science, engineering, and technology. And there will always, always be mathematics."

- Katherine Johnson
*A mathematician whose calculations of orbital mechanics as a NASA employee were critical to the success of the first and subsequent U.S. crewed spaceflights.

Edited September 26, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

On 9/4/2022 at 10:06 AM, Contrarian said:

 I will be sharing a video which displays the passion, and irrationality of the European football fans. 

Passion over Reason. 

GREECE:  PAOK Saloniki vs Olympiacos Piraeus

Episode 2 into the irrationality of the Football Scene: 

Documentary - Welcome to Turkey

Edited September 27, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

Tip of the day:

Password Do’s and Don’ts

• Create unique passwords that that use a combination of words, numbers, symbols, and both upper- and lower-case letters.
• Do not use your network username as your password.
• Don’t use easily guessed passwords, such as “password” or “user.”
• Do not choose passwords based upon details that may not be as confidential as you’d expect, such as your birth date, your Social Security or phone number, or names of family members.
• Do not use words that can be found in the dictionary. Password-cracking tools freely available online often come with dictionary lists that will try thousands of common names and passwords. If you must use dictionary words, try adding a numeral to them, as well as punctuation at the beginning or end of the word (or both!).
• Avoid using simple adjacent keyboard combinations: For example, “qwerty” and “asdzxc” and “123456” are horrible passwords and that are trivial to crack.
• Avoid using the same password at multiple Web sites. It’s generally safe to re-use the same password at sites that do not store sensitive information about you (like a news Web site) provided you don’t use this same password at sites that are sensitive.

Full Article via Krebsonsecurity: 
https://krebsonsecurity.com/password-dos-and-donts/

Edited September 28, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

"Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself."

- Count Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy

*A Russian writer who is regarded as one of the greatest authors of all time.

Edited September 30, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

Documentary - The Mystery of the Sherman Murders

The Fifth Estate

Barry Sherman was Canada’s top pharmaceutical executive, worth over $4 billion dollars.

His wife, Honey was a philanthropist who raised millions for charities.

They were loved and admired for their success and generosity.

But Barry also had a long list of enemies which had grown over time as he battled rivals in courtrooms and boardrooms, always determined to win, whatever the cost.

So when the couple were found strangled in their Toronto home, the whispers began in 2017.

Did someone really hate them enough to kill them? Was it a professional hit, an act of bitter vengeance from someone known to the Shermans, or was there another explanation?

Video of a suspect: 

Edited October 2, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

"Failure is only a temporary change in direction to set you straight for your next success.

Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly."

- Unknown

[Contrarian]

Mexico's Drug War

This 2014 BBC Documentary describes the horrors in Mexico over the drug cartel's use of violence to continue shipping drugs to the USA.
*The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is the national broadcaster of the United Kingdom.

Edited October 4, 2022 by Contrarian

[Contrarian]

Lately, this thread has been sharing documentaries, tips, quotes, historic video clips -> which will be ongoing. 

Today is a small reminder as to where the far-left and the far-right lead to. The Details are below. 

Actors: Far-Left & Far-Right

Location: Portland 

Year: 2021