Communication Tools

 

Growing up, one of my favourite shows on television was The Incredible Hulk starring Bill Bixby in the role of Dr. David Banner, a widowed scientist caught in the middle of an experiment gone bad. As a result, whenever Dr. Banner gets extremely upset or stressed out, he turns into a huge green monster called the Hulk, with awesome strength and rage to match. I would dream of becoming a little replicable of the Incredible Hulk and wake up smiling as I prepared for a fun day at school. Can you imagine how busy the Hulk would be today? He wouldn't have a moment for a lovely glass of Merlot with a delicious bowl of mussels. The real question is where he would start to try to correct all the unfairness, deceit, misinformation, hatred, miscommunication, and racism in the world.

 

The Hulk was a mild-mannered person that travelled around helping those in need despite his secret. I would love to have him around to handle many of the world's issues. Here are a few items that I would have him get upset about:

• Homophobia. It's a good place to start since June is Gay Pride Month. It feels like so many governments, especially in America have returned to recreating life in the 50s with so much hatred, racism, and discrimination being used to put others down that are not identical images of themselves. Why would anyone care what a group of people is doing in a different town or community? Yet, they insist on getting in their cars, painting their faces, buying assault weapons with a plan to commit murder, and screaming racial and homophobic slurs at people they don't know? Like Pepé the wise crow, I often lean my head to the side and wonder why they don't have other important things to do like taking a closer look at why they believe all the bullshit right-wing politicians and fake media tell them to believe. Well, that may take more time than purchasing a gun since there is no such thing as gun control in America.

• Gun Violence. Gun violence is a fixture in American life. Still, the issue is a highly political one, pitting gun control advocates against people who are fiercely protective of their right to bear arms. There have been more than 200 mass shootings across the United States this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as an incident in which four or more people are injured or killed. Their figures include shootings that happen in homes and in public places. In each of the last three years, there have been more than 600 mass shootings, almost two a day on average. In 2022, more than 5,800 children under the age of 18 got injured or killed by shootings in the United States, and the number of school shootings amounted to 302. Why are there so many mass shootings, especially at schools? According to research done with students, they believe that revenge is clearly the major reason for school shootings. Many young shooters were bullied or mistreated when they were in high school. They return to cause havoc on people that never caused them any harm. Clearly, there is a serious mental health issue. Other issues leading to mass shootings include physical & verbal abuse at home, no value of life, drug or alcohol abuse, and easy access to purchasing a gun. So, why are assault weapons so easy to purchase by people walking the fine line of mental illness? That's a question taxpayers should be demanding from their elected representatives that often take disguised donations from organisations like the NRA (National Rifle Association).

• Banning Books. Why are so many right-wing politicians and religious groups determined to remove books from libraries to conceal the truth? What are they trying to hide from future generations? Banning books has the potential to create gaps in knowledge for young learners. Whether it's a classic novel or a new book that has been banned, banning books limits access and has the potential to leave students behind some of their classmates. The most obvious reason why book banning is bad is that it is a form of censorship. Censorship is the suppression of ideas or information. The First Amendment protects citizens against censorship by the government, but not by private citizens or organizations. Book banning has the power to isolate marginalised populations. The U.S. prides itself on being a country where people of diverse beliefs and backgrounds can unite to build something great. Yet the stories presented by books and movies are often less diverse than the groups meant to consume them. As a result, people with lived experiences that differ from what’s taught in the classroom, presented in a summer reading list, or shown in the cinema can feel outcast, ostracized, and alone. Having books from various lifestyles and perspectives allows marginalized groups to feel more connected in a world that already overlooks them. The Los Angeles School Board President, Jackie Goldberg is someone that stands up for what's right. She defended the right for children to read the banned book The Great Big Book of Families by Mary Hoffman. It describes how families can be different but the same. For example, a family may consist of a mother and a father, 2 fathers, or 2 mothers -- it's still a family that loves their children. Are you aware of the books that have been banned? Here is a list of the 50 most banned books in America.

• Religious Freaks. God taught us to hate, discriminate, rape, murder, and attend church services every Sunday, and oh, don't forget to put money, as much as you can in the collection plate, if you want your prayers to be answered by God or the person standing up spewing words that someone made up and called it the bible. For some reason, people who question everything accept things they are told by a preacher, pastor, minister, priest, or whomever they call themselves. Whatever happened to the rule of the separation of religion and state? Well, it was formalized in a 1905 law providing for the separation of church and state, that is, the separation of religion from political power. This model of a secularist state protects the religious institutions from state interference, but public religious expression to some extent is frowned upon.

• Police Violence and Murders. Growing up breathing while Black is a frightening experience if you reside in America. It doesn't matter if it's 1823, 1923, or 2023, the same racist acts of violence continue to exist in most major cities and states. Racism is known to be a major cause of police brutality directed at African Americans, Latinos/Latinx, and other ethnic groups. Other factors concern the unique institutional culture of urban police departments, which stresses group solidarity, loyalty, and a “show of force” approach to any perceived challenge to an officer’s authority. For rookie officers, acceptance, success, and promotion within the department depend upon adopting the attitudes, values, and racial profiling practices of the group, which historically have been infused with anti-black racism.

• Corrupt Elected Officials. Political corruption is the use of powers by government officials or their network contacts for illegitimate private gain. In a kleptocracy, corrupt politicians enrich themselves secretly outside the rule of law, through kickbacks, bribes, and special favours from lobbyists and corporations, or they simply direct state funds to themselves and their associates. They pretend to serve those that voted for them, but it's all a lie that too many people believe. They only care about themselves and the potential power and money it may bring them. Can you name several politicians that fall into this barrel of bullshit?

• Thieves. Why are shoplifting and home invasions out of control? Once again, most people will say that it's a result of COVID-19, but that's not true. People are willing to risk their lives or go to jail/prison for their actions. When I visited San Francisco in 2022, I was shocked by the number of thieves walking into grocery stores, pharmacies, or department stores and walking in and grabbing items, and running out the door. Usually, the security staff hired to prevent such things from happening do absolutely nothing in most cases and staff feel they aren't paid enough to stop a thief. So instead of trying to fix the problem and tighten security, most businesses are simply closing and moving to other locations. What are police departments doing about it? Nothing, it's not considered an emergency. Sounds like the right time to locate an original Louis Vuitton or Gucci bag for your next trip abroad.

• War. What is it good for, absolutely nothing was a popular song by Edwin Starr. It's a counterculture protest song by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1969. It was released by the Motown label in 1970. If we look at all the wars that political leaders have waged against other countries, ask yourself, was it worth it and were we told the truth about the war? I can barely watch or listen to the news about continuous attacks on Ukraine by Russia with so many dead innocent people just trying to live their lives. Vladimir Putin began the war by claiming Russia's neighbour needed to be “demilitarised and de-Nazified”, a baseless pretext on which to launch a landgrab against an independent state that happens to have a Jewish president in Volodymyr Zelensky. It appears to be all about power and not about the people of Russia or Ukraine. Tons of money is being spent to kill people.

• Human Rights. Where would the Hulk even start? On the short list of violating human rights, I would include a dysfunctional civil rights protection system, an empty or hollowed-out American-style electoral democracy, an increased rate of racial discrimination and inequality, a worsening subsistence crisis among the U.S underclass, and the historic retrogression of women's right to make decisions about their own bodies. Women have lost constitutional protections for abortion, and children's living environment is of great concern. The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling overturning Roe v. Wade has ended women's right to abortion protected by the U.S. Constitution for nearly 50 years, which lands a huge blow to women's human rights and gender equality. 

• The Media. And finally, the fake news media outlets that knowingly broadcast disinformation. There is a difference between misinformation and disinformation. Misinformation is false information that is spread due to ignorance, or by error or mistake, without the intent to deceive. Disinformation is knowingly false information designed to deliberately mislead and influence public opinion or obscure the truth for malicious or deceptive purposes. Here are a few types of disinformation that consumers encounter every day, many are unaware of the impact it may have on their beliefs and opinions:

1. Fabricated Content: False information
2. Manipulated Content: Genuine information or imagery that has been distorted on purpose to trick or fool the consumer. Often a sensational headline is created.
3. Imposter Content: Impersonation of authentic sources, such as using the branding of an established agency.
4. Misleading Content: Deceptive information presented on purpose as fact.
5. False Context: Factually accurate content combined with false contextual information, especially when the headline of an article or news segment does not reflect the content on purpose.
6. Sponsored Content: Advertising or Public Relations disguised as editorial content.
7. Propaganda: Content used to manage attitudes, opinions, values, and knowledge.

Can you think of any events when false information led to violence? They occur all over the world, but there have been many in America. There is one that stands out in my mind. On January 6, 2021, following the defeat of U.S. President Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election, a mob of his misinformed supporters attacked the U.S. Capitol Building in Washington, DC. Their goal was to keep the loser of the election in power by preventing a joint session of Congress from counting the electoral college votes to formalise the victory of the new President. According to the House of Representatives select committee investigating the incident, the attack was the culmination of a seven-part plan by Trump to overturn the election. Five people died shortly before, during, or following the event. As of July 7, 2022, monetary damages caused by attackers exceeded $2.7 million. Facilitated by Trump, thousands of his supporters, which included white supremacists and racists, gathered in Washington, D.C. in support of his false claim. More than 2,000 rioters entered the U.S. Capitol building, many of whom vandalised & looted, assaulted Capitol Police officers and reporters, and searched for key lawmakers to capture, abuse, or kill. Trump resisted sending the National Guard to control the mob and protect other lawmakers and staff. It's amazing how powerful misinformation can be when key media outlets support and promote the misinformation that leads to turmoil and destruction.

 

Now, imagine for a moment that you have the ear and support of the incredible Hulk, what task would you have him start with in trying to make the world a better or fairer place for all the people and not just some of the people?