Forget Any Credible Truthful Statements (F.A.C.T.S)

If the facts don’t fit the theory, change the facts. – Albert Einstein

Facts are strange things. No matter what our likes, dislikes, inclinations, and insecurities; no matter what our wishes or passions we can’t make facts and evidence disappear. But as 2016 has shown us repeatedly and most profoundly, facts can and often are, ignored. Whether it’s a deliberate manipulation of a truth spliced with a fallacy (the Brexiters promising £100 million a week for the NHS) or an outright lie perpetuated as a certainty (Fuhrer Drumpf claiming that he personally saw thousands and thousands of Muslims celebrating the destruction of the twin towers), we have learnt that political discourse no longer has to adhere to standards of integrity and honesty. But who am I to judge, eh? After all, a lie is just a great story someone ruins with the truth.

As a result of lies being peddled as facts so consistently, the media has coined the phrase, ‘post-truth’, which apparently means “relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”. Thanks for that media. That’s almost as incongruous as my mum not seeing the irony in calling me a son of a bitch. Face it – like facts, media objectivity is like a snow leopard. We know they exist and when we see them we marvel at their beauty and weep at their paucity. They’re seen all to rarely and when they are, we’re reminded of the fact that we have driven them to the brink of extinction.

What to do, what to do? Cynicism seems like a pragmatic place to live and we don’t even need a passport. The way I feel is that politicians and nappies have a great deal in common; they both need to be changed regularly for exactly the same reason. And as we seem to have developed mass cognitive dissonance (a polite way of saying we all seem to be ****ing stupid) then maybe indifference and mistrust is the safest way to go. At least then we’ll survive.

Personally I say **** that. Just because the world doesn’t seem to share too many of my sensibilities right now, I’m not going to throw my toys out the pram. Just because a bunch of extreme racists and xenophobes have hijacked the frustrations of the poor and the political movements they follow I’m not going to cower in a corner whimpering. No. When you want to remove the darkness from anything you have to cleanse it with light. And that requires reflection and truth. And a reminder of facts. Because facts & lies matter.

Let’s start that process. Let’s remember Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson and Michael Gove promising we’d have that extra £100 million a week for the NHS, that there will be a significant drop in immigration levels, that the UK will save £350 million a week, that we aren’t going to save a £2 billion in energy bills, that…..ahhh **** it, I could go on forever about the lies the three ****wits told us. How about we remember what the angry American sunset told us over the past 18 months? Actually, over his lifetime. Climate change is a hoax promoted by the Chinese to reduce America’s economic competitiveness, African Americans kill 81% of white homicide victims, Mexico are…..no, sorry, I can’t go on. I mean do I really have to? How about in his case we try and remember what he said that was true which is much more difficult.

So moving forward let’s look at some facts that are being obfuscated by our understandable shock whilst thinking what in the holy **** happened? Yes, it’s important to remember how we got here so that we can identify the trajectory we took and remind ourselves to pay attention in the present. The UK government have implemented the greatest ever assault on the poor and they’re hiding this shit with platitudes and distractions with the help of our ****ing inept media. The benefit cap has been cut by £3,000 a year in London and double that in the rest of the country. Apparently this is okay because most of the voting population thinks that people on benefits are skivers rather than people who temporarily need a helping hand. I hope the self-centred who voted for these policies feel the same when they see the destitution heading our way this Christmas. People with disabilities lose £30 a week in April in Employment Support Allowance. 71,000 people entitled to mobility allowances (including irreversible diseases like Multiple Sclerosis and Parkinson’s) have been reassessed and 31,000 have had their £57.40 weekly allowance stopped. There is no entitlement to legal aid any more. The DWP is delaying the release of benefit death reports. In some parts of England 80% of children with mental health problems are being denied access to treatment and passed over to a school counsellor or charity. The government sold off part of the NHS care system to a private company for £700 million. And of course, with the snoopers’ charter (or the Investigatory Powers Bill if you prefer) supplementing the mass video surveillance in our society, we won’t even be able to fart in piece anymore.

Meanwhile, the tangerine dingo is already creating a kleptocracy by installing 3 of his children in his transition team. And his girlfriend….she’s not? Sorry, his daughter already has her company milking a press conference by trying to flog a $10,000 gold bracelet she wore to…..well who the **** knows, but I doubt any of the potential purchasers live in the rust belt. Steve Bannon is in place in the White House, ensuring that the promise to make Amerikkka white again is kept. Trump University has had to acknowledge its theft and settle with plaintiffs for $25 million. His charity has…anyway, you get the gist.

Facts. They really, really matter, now more than ever. I understand that it is critical to have opinions and that it’s much easier to throw a few around without consequence. After all, our leaders have set a great example. But we need to remember that often, lies uttered with immense confidence can be more appealing than facts spoken with doubt.

What is it Frank Lloyd Wright said? The truth is more important than the facts.