You might have heard mutterings from the corridors of Stormont buildings referring to Belfast as the cultural capital of Northern Ireland, one that has transcended a bloody 30 year war, and exited the turmoil with a renewed sense of identity and togetherness. Rhetoric aside, there is no doubt that the city, and county for that matter, have changed, but have the ghosts of the past been forgotten, or is there a now unifying force in town?
‘Capitals of culture’
This is a phrase I have been thinking about lately and something that has confused being immensely. Say it out loud, and you think of the likes of Barcelona, Athens or one of the other great European capitals which are dripping with cultural diversity, embodying what its means to be part of that culture. They have a collective identity, a common shared purpose, and despite some internal differences, speak with one voice.
Belfast, on the other hand is not one of those places that you immediately spring to mind when accumulating the European cultural top 10. Why is this you may ask? With the troubles a dinner table taboo, progress and development are now topics for post dining conversation.
The men on the hill, sitting behind their comfy desks all sing from the same hymn sheet, one that has been carefully prepared to prepare the province for modern times.
We are living in disposable times where a weary people live to work, talk about work, write about work, dream about work, gossip about work, and will eventually die because of work.
Has the ship been scuttled by our elected representatives? Has post conflict Northern Ireland been led astray by the powers that be, thus bypassing the crossroads of opportunity in favour of rampant, faceless capitalism?
I see a PFI virtual Disneyland increasingly void of character and identity, homogenized more by the day in the mirror image of the power elite.
There is no doubt that the country is a better place to live than during the troubles, but lets be honest here, that is not difficult. As a people we should not have to settle for this treatment. We are being bent over double by rising prices, combined with some of the lowest wages in Great Britain, pushing most back into a corner of debt and reliance on credit. This is creating a monster culture of servitude in which our children and children’s children will be expected to pick up the bill.
We all now have a role in the movie that is the surveillance state. The proliferation of CCTV cameras in the province is nothing short of breathtaking. Recent study showed that these highly expensive machines do nothing to reduce crime levels. So why waste public money lining the pockets of lecherous private companies profiting from the proliferation of fear? We are all now virtual prisoners in our own communities, guilty until proven otherwise.
This monster will be a difficult beast to tame and who knows which aspect of our lives it will rampage in next?
As the late, great Bill Hicks said,” It's just a ride and we can change it any time we want. It's only a choice. No effort, no work, no job, no savings and money, a choice, right now, between fear and love. The eyes of fear want you to put bigger locks on your door, buy guns, close yourself off. The eyes of love instead see all of us as one.”
So as far as I can ascertain, there is indeed a unifying cultural aspect within Northern Ireland and this is consumerism. The old religious divides and tribalism remain largely intact, despite what we are told on the news. After the political triumph of the Good Friday Agreement and St Andrew Agreement a vacuum was created in the culture of Northern Ireland. It used to be filled with horrific daily news stories about atrocities committed during the thirty year conflict on the streets of the province. The dawning of relative peace meant that something had to fill this space, something big, and something overwhelming. This where consumer culture was ushered in with it quick fix escapism and feel good therapy, soothing the wounds of war.
We don’t need to buy into this fake opulence and are only at the mercy of the masters if we hand them our support. On the surface the ghosts of the past have been blurred by frantic shopping and mirrored shopping malls, but when the veneer is lifted, one will see a society divided by old differences. Things may have moved on slightly, but not as much as we would like to believe.
Pikey
Thursday, 22 May 2008
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
The scariest thing I have ever seen......
Watch this video in full screen and it will make even the most hardened, shiver with fear.
This guy has balls the size of beachballs.
http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1438490562
Pikey
This guy has balls the size of beachballs.
http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1438490562
Pikey
Feel the Heat 3
Feel the heat three.
(Albums and tunes currently burning a hole in my speakers)
1. Orphaned Land- Mabool (The Story of the Three Sons of Seven)
2. Nine Inch Nails- The Slip
3. Cancer Bats- Hail Destroyer
4. Iron Maiden- Somewhere Back in Time
5. Anathema- Resonance
6. Cannibal Corpse- Tomb of the Mutilated
7. Trans Global Underground- Dreams of a Hundred Nations
8. Karma to Burn- Karma to Burn
9. Porcupine Tree- Fear of a Blank Planet
Some amazing albums. Download and enjoy.
Pikey
(Albums and tunes currently burning a hole in my speakers)
1. Orphaned Land- Mabool (The Story of the Three Sons of Seven)
2. Nine Inch Nails- The Slip
3. Cancer Bats- Hail Destroyer
4. Iron Maiden- Somewhere Back in Time
5. Anathema- Resonance
6. Cannibal Corpse- Tomb of the Mutilated
7. Trans Global Underground- Dreams of a Hundred Nations
8. Karma to Burn- Karma to Burn
9. Porcupine Tree- Fear of a Blank Planet
Some amazing albums. Download and enjoy.
Pikey
Monday, 19 May 2008
Non-Believers are Good Too. Are we Not?
Morality is possible without coercion. Non-believers are good too.
Well that’s what seems apparent to me anyway.
This argument is regarded with deep suspicion by people of strong faith, because religious people consider that irreligious people are, by definition, immoral.
The belief that there is no morality without a religious belief is a classic example of manipulation.
Of course you want to be moral, there are very few in the world who would dream of anything else.
The more you believe there can be no morality without religion, the stronger religion becomes in your life, effectively placing you in a straitjacket of moral panic.
Individual’s are giving away their power of moral choice, rooted in the essential goodness of human nature, something that is within everyone here on earth,
But faith makes it almost impossible for the believers to see what they are giving away to their faith. A lifetime of devotion to something that is no more provable than the Easter bunny. A scary thought indeed.
Riddled with the fear of death, entrapped in their own cultural, religious norms, they invest all in their faith and hide behind its veil of temporal security.
It doesn't have to be this way. Decisions can be made of our own doing. The answers to the big questions are contained within us all, but its having the strength to look inside that frightens us the most.
Why knee to the rules and regulations of organised religion when we are autonomous beings, capable of making our own moral decisions, without the constraint of religious authority breathing down our neck?
Too many people are filling the coffers for the first time, oblivious to what they are doing, blinded by the blinkers of cultural normality.
Religious frameworks equal coercion, and coercion, equals control plus manipulation.
Life is short. Think for yourself.
Pikey……
Well that’s what seems apparent to me anyway.
This argument is regarded with deep suspicion by people of strong faith, because religious people consider that irreligious people are, by definition, immoral.
The belief that there is no morality without a religious belief is a classic example of manipulation.
Of course you want to be moral, there are very few in the world who would dream of anything else.
The more you believe there can be no morality without religion, the stronger religion becomes in your life, effectively placing you in a straitjacket of moral panic.
Individual’s are giving away their power of moral choice, rooted in the essential goodness of human nature, something that is within everyone here on earth,
But faith makes it almost impossible for the believers to see what they are giving away to their faith. A lifetime of devotion to something that is no more provable than the Easter bunny. A scary thought indeed.
Riddled with the fear of death, entrapped in their own cultural, religious norms, they invest all in their faith and hide behind its veil of temporal security.
It doesn't have to be this way. Decisions can be made of our own doing. The answers to the big questions are contained within us all, but its having the strength to look inside that frightens us the most.
Why knee to the rules and regulations of organised religion when we are autonomous beings, capable of making our own moral decisions, without the constraint of religious authority breathing down our neck?
Too many people are filling the coffers for the first time, oblivious to what they are doing, blinded by the blinkers of cultural normality.
Religious frameworks equal coercion, and coercion, equals control plus manipulation.
Life is short. Think for yourself.
Pikey……
Friday, 9 May 2008
11:11..............................Are We Doomed?
The facts:
11: In the Universe
On 11th August 1999 at 11:11am there was a total solar eclipse observed throughout Europe
21st December 2012 at 11:11am is the winter solstice of the final day of the Mayan calendar
The current astrological sign of the zodiac is Pisces, we are currently moving into Aquarius - the 11th sign of the zodiac
21st December 2012 = 21/12/2012 = 2+1+1+2+2+0+1+2 = 11
The sunspot cycle lasts 11 years - the next one peaking in 2012.
11: Pyramid Numerology
11:11 x 11:11 = 1234321 (Numerical sequence ascending and descending in the fashion of a pyramid)
111 x 111 = 12321 (Pyramid number)
11 x 11 = 121 (Another pyramid number)
11 = 3 in binary arithmetic. 3 makes the cornerstones of the Trinity or pyramid
11: 9/11
The World Trade Centre stood like an '11'
9 + 1 + 1 = 11
September 11th is the 254th day of the year. 2+5+4 = 11
September 11th was 111 days until the end of the year
The 1st plane to hit the World Trade Centre was 'Flight 11'
Total crew on Flight 11 was '11'
New York is the 11th state of the US Constitution
September 11th 2001 stands '11' years from 2012 (Note that in the Mayan calendar, it was said that there would be 20 years of 'no-time'. A period of unrest where the planet is making a transition from one age to another. 9/11 stood 9 years from the start of this 'no-time' and 11 years from the end.)
The World Trade Centre was built between 1966 to 1977... taking 11 years
11: September 11th In History
On September 11th 1990 at 9.09PM, 11 years prior to September 11th 2001, George Bush Senior made a speech to Congress entitled "Toward A New World Order":
"A new partnership of nations has begun, and we stand today at a unique and extraordinary moment. The crisis in the Persian Gulf, as grave as it is, also offers a rare opportunity to move toward an historic period of cooperation. Out of these troubled times, our fifth objective—a new world order—can emerge."
On September 11th 1941, 60 years prior to September 11th 2001, the soil was broken and the foundations set for "The Pentagon" in Washington DC
A book written in 1981, 20 years prior to the 2001 attacks, called "The Birth of Christ Recalculated". The author, Dr. Ernest L. Martin, claims to have calculated the exact date of Jesus Christ's birth based on the celestial charts for that era. The date of Christ's birth, based on the famous Star of Bethlehem, is calculated to be September 11, 3 B.C.
According to Hebrew Scriptures September 11, 1999 was the 6,000th anniversary of Adam's creation, and year 1 on the Hebrew calendar
11: Other Significant Days
Remembrance Day - Two minutes of silence at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month (11:00 am, 11 November), supposedly marking the time (in the United Kingdom) when armistice became effective.
11: Significant Events
The first NASA space mission to successful land two men on the moon was Apollo 11
Uri Geller stopped Big Ben at 11.11 AM GMT 30th April 1997 (a hoax in my opinion, but feel free to research)
11: A summary (to be continued)
The number 11 finds itself embedded in the very fabric of existence. Observed in both the heavens and in the workings of shadowy world rulers, there are three schools of thought as to how this could be:
The first points towards a series of 'inevitable events' deep rooted in the fabric of material existence. Fate so to speak and that the universe is playing out its script.
The second speculates that 'the powers that be' have realised the significance of the number 11 in our ancient past and hijacked it for their own gain.
The third leads to an assumption that the pyramid builders, are the same people in control today, and have used the number 11 symbolically throughout recorded history. Could it be that this 'intelligence' at work, created the solar system (so as to explain the connections between the number 11 and the universe) or is it simply working to a universal numerical code?
The above information is all based on published fact
Stay tuned.
11: In the Universe
On 11th August 1999 at 11:11am there was a total solar eclipse observed throughout Europe
21st December 2012 at 11:11am is the winter solstice of the final day of the Mayan calendar
The current astrological sign of the zodiac is Pisces, we are currently moving into Aquarius - the 11th sign of the zodiac
21st December 2012 = 21/12/2012 = 2+1+1+2+2+0+1+2 = 11
The sunspot cycle lasts 11 years - the next one peaking in 2012.
11: Pyramid Numerology
11:11 x 11:11 = 1234321 (Numerical sequence ascending and descending in the fashion of a pyramid)
111 x 111 = 12321 (Pyramid number)
11 x 11 = 121 (Another pyramid number)
11 = 3 in binary arithmetic. 3 makes the cornerstones of the Trinity or pyramid
11: 9/11
The World Trade Centre stood like an '11'
9 + 1 + 1 = 11
September 11th is the 254th day of the year. 2+5+4 = 11
September 11th was 111 days until the end of the year
The 1st plane to hit the World Trade Centre was 'Flight 11'
Total crew on Flight 11 was '11'
New York is the 11th state of the US Constitution
September 11th 2001 stands '11' years from 2012 (Note that in the Mayan calendar, it was said that there would be 20 years of 'no-time'. A period of unrest where the planet is making a transition from one age to another. 9/11 stood 9 years from the start of this 'no-time' and 11 years from the end.)
The World Trade Centre was built between 1966 to 1977... taking 11 years
11: September 11th In History
On September 11th 1990 at 9.09PM, 11 years prior to September 11th 2001, George Bush Senior made a speech to Congress entitled "Toward A New World Order":
"A new partnership of nations has begun, and we stand today at a unique and extraordinary moment. The crisis in the Persian Gulf, as grave as it is, also offers a rare opportunity to move toward an historic period of cooperation. Out of these troubled times, our fifth objective—a new world order—can emerge."
On September 11th 1941, 60 years prior to September 11th 2001, the soil was broken and the foundations set for "The Pentagon" in Washington DC
A book written in 1981, 20 years prior to the 2001 attacks, called "The Birth of Christ Recalculated". The author, Dr. Ernest L. Martin, claims to have calculated the exact date of Jesus Christ's birth based on the celestial charts for that era. The date of Christ's birth, based on the famous Star of Bethlehem, is calculated to be September 11, 3 B.C.
According to Hebrew Scriptures September 11, 1999 was the 6,000th anniversary of Adam's creation, and year 1 on the Hebrew calendar
11: Other Significant Days
Remembrance Day - Two minutes of silence at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month (11:00 am, 11 November), supposedly marking the time (in the United Kingdom) when armistice became effective.
11: Significant Events
The first NASA space mission to successful land two men on the moon was Apollo 11
Uri Geller stopped Big Ben at 11.11 AM GMT 30th April 1997 (a hoax in my opinion, but feel free to research)
11: A summary (to be continued)
The number 11 finds itself embedded in the very fabric of existence. Observed in both the heavens and in the workings of shadowy world rulers, there are three schools of thought as to how this could be:
The first points towards a series of 'inevitable events' deep rooted in the fabric of material existence. Fate so to speak and that the universe is playing out its script.
The second speculates that 'the powers that be' have realised the significance of the number 11 in our ancient past and hijacked it for their own gain.
The third leads to an assumption that the pyramid builders, are the same people in control today, and have used the number 11 symbolically throughout recorded history. Could it be that this 'intelligence' at work, created the solar system (so as to explain the connections between the number 11 and the universe) or is it simply working to a universal numerical code?
The above information is all based on published fact
Stay tuned.
Sunday, 4 May 2008
First Glimse Of Summer
Tunneling,
In all directions,
Further from the essence,
Lying adrift,
From the source.
Tributaries,
vast in their expanse,
Unbalanced and decentralized,
A maze,
Of reflected mirrors.
Dazzling light,
Blurs the vision,
Tormenting,
Shielding the unknown,
Mentally overcast.
Elusive face of truth,
Hidden from view,
There to be discovered,
Inward,
Step by step.
Minute speck,
Dust on a grain of sand,
Nature's great striptease,
Silence,
Home again at last.
Pikey
In all directions,
Further from the essence,
Lying adrift,
From the source.
Tributaries,
vast in their expanse,
Unbalanced and decentralized,
A maze,
Of reflected mirrors.
Dazzling light,
Blurs the vision,
Tormenting,
Shielding the unknown,
Mentally overcast.
Elusive face of truth,
Hidden from view,
There to be discovered,
Inward,
Step by step.
Minute speck,
Dust on a grain of sand,
Nature's great striptease,
Silence,
Home again at last.
Pikey
Saturday, 3 May 2008
Feel the heat 2.
(Albums and tunes currently burning a hole in my speakers)
1. Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun
2. Tool - 10,00 Days
3. Minus - Halldor Laxness
4. Opeth - Ghost Reveries
5. Consumer Electronics - Black Cotton Wool
6. Death - Lack of Comprehension
7. Cannibal Corpse - The Bleeding
8. Deicide - -Till Death Do Us Part
9. Pagan Altar - Lords Of Hyprocrisy
10. Can - Future Days
(Albums and tunes currently burning a hole in my speakers)
1. Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun
2. Tool - 10,00 Days
3. Minus - Halldor Laxness
4. Opeth - Ghost Reveries
5. Consumer Electronics - Black Cotton Wool
6. Death - Lack of Comprehension
7. Cannibal Corpse - The Bleeding
8. Deicide - -Till Death Do Us Part
9. Pagan Altar - Lords Of Hyprocrisy
10. Can - Future Days
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)