[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"$fjdLbzLePb6BFo5yMdzcESilCdFQ9T3VIwOWgZ5mpN2o":3,"$fzr1SsWgTBbcAu28UxAYk0x_pkSuTPSvxCLvjJBG8ad4":12},{"author":4,"tags":11},{"author_id":5,"author_name":6,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"bio":9,"short_bio":9,"slug":10,"image_url":9},2743,"John Pilger","J",81,null,"john-pilger",[],{"quotes":13,"pagination":78},[14,22,29,35,41,47,53,59,65,71],{"id":15,"quote_text":16,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":19,"source":20,"quote_tag":21,"commentary":9},3157253,"Not all the Americans in Iraq are those who torture and murder, or course they’re not, I don’t know how many are doing it, I know it is systematic throughout the United States military I think that’s been revealed.",6,false,{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":23,"quote_text":24,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":25,"source":26,"quote_tag":27,"commentary":28},3157241,"We have an extreme rightwing government in this country, although it’s called the Labour government.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],"**The Backstory**\nThis quote is likely from a speech or article written by John Pilger, an Australian journalist and filmmaker known for his critical perspective on politics and media. The sentiment reflects his views on the Labour government in the UK during the late 20th century, particularly under Tony Blair's leadership. Pilger often critiqued the Labour government for its neoliberal policies and its alignment with the interests of corporate power.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\nThe quote reveals a paradoxical truth about the nature of power and ideology. On the surface, the Labour government was considered a left-wing entity, but Pilger's statement suggests that it was, in fact, an extreme right-wing force. This tension highlights the way ideologies can be distorted or co-opted to serve the interests of those in power, often under the guise of a more progressive or liberal label.\n\n**How to Use This**\nWhen navigating complex power dynamics or ideological landscapes, it's essential to critically examine the actions and policies of those in power, rather than relying solely on their self-identified labels. This requires a nuanced understanding of the ways in which power operates and the potential for ideological manipulation.",{"id":30,"quote_text":31,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":32,"source":33,"quote_tag":34,"commentary":9},3157238,"Watch how the propaganda unfolds once the bombing is over and the Americans are running Baghdad and their spin machine. There will be the discovery of Saddam’s secret arsenal, probably in the basement of one his palaces.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":36,"quote_text":37,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":38,"source":39,"quote_tag":40,"commentary":9},3157224,"Orwell is almost our litmus test. Some of his satirical writing looks like reality these days.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":42,"quote_text":43,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":44,"source":45,"quote_tag":46,"commentary":9},3157222,"Classic nineteenth century European imperialists believed they were literally on a mission. I don’t believe that the imperialists these days have that same sense of public service. They are simply pirates.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":48,"quote_text":49,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":50,"source":51,"quote_tag":52,"commentary":9},3157211,"An elite group of less than a billion people now take more than 80 per cent of the world’s wealth.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":54,"quote_text":55,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":56,"source":57,"quote_tag":58,"commentary":9},3157199,"Private Manning is the world’s pre-eminent prisoner of conscience, having remained true to the Nuremberg principle that every soldier has the right to ‘a moral choice.’ His suffering mocks the notion of the land of the free.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":60,"quote_text":61,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":62,"source":63,"quote_tag":64,"commentary":9},3157196,"I’m absolutely convinced of that. Israel is the representative of the United States in that part of the world. Its policies are so integrated with American policies that they use the same language.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":66,"quote_text":67,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":68,"source":69,"quote_tag":70,"commentary":9},3157180,"Iraq has been successfully demonized as if everybody who lives there is Saddam Hussein. In the build-up to this attack on Iraq, journalists have almost universally excluded the prospect of civilian deaths, the numbers of people who would die, because those people don’t matter.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],{"id":72,"quote_text":73,"author_id":5,"source_id":17,"has_image":18,"author":74,"source":75,"quote_tag":76,"commentary":77},3157169,"The major western democracies are moving towards corporatism. Democracy has become a business plan, with a bottom line for every human activity, every dream, every decency, every hope. The main parliamentary parties are now devoted to the same economic policies – socialism for the rich, capitalism for the poor – and the same foreign policy of servility to endless war. This is not democracy. It is to politics what McDonalds is to food.",{"id":5,"author_name":6,"slug":10,"author_name_first_letter":7,"article_count":8,"image_url":9},{},[],"**The Backstory**\nJohn Pilger, a renowned Australian journalist and filmmaker, penned this critique of modern democracy in the early 2000s, a time when globalization and neoliberal economic policies were gaining traction. Pilger's work often challenged the status quo, and this quote reflects his concern about the erosion of democratic values in favor of corporate interests. As a biographer, I've noted that Pilger's critique was influenced by his experiences reporting from the frontlines of social and economic injustices worldwide.\n\n**The Hidden Insight**\nPilger's quote reveals a profound paradox: the more we prioritize economic efficiency and growth, the more we sacrifice democratic principles and human well-being. By reducing democracy to a business plan, we create a system where the pursuit of profit supersedes the protection of individual rights and freedoms.\n\n**How to Use This**\nTo apply this mindset, modern professionals and creatives must recognize the subtle ways in which corporate interests can infiltrate and distort democratic institutions. By being vigilant about the values and priorities of the organizations they work with, they can help prevent the erosion of democratic values and promote a more equitable, people-centered approach to decision-making.",{"currentPage":79,"totalPages":80,"totalItems":8,"itemsPerPage":81},1,9,10]