Paris Attacks: Solidarity Against Barbarism

Friday November 13th was a busy night in the City of Lights.  Paris was hosting a friendly soccer match between the French and the German national teams in which French President Francois Hollande attended at the Stade de France. Former American Vice President Al Gore was conducting a "Live Earth" a marathon 24 hour webcast concert to raise consciences about Climate Change at the foot of the Eiffel Tower featuring luminaries like Duran Duran.  The Eagles of Death Metal, a southern California rock band was playing the storied Bataclan music hall. And the bars and cafes in the 11th arrondissement were packed with revelers.

But Paris was rocked with a half dozen coordinated bombings and shootings.  A terrorist tried to come late to the soccer match in Saint Denny but was turned away by security, hence he blew himself up outside of the Stade de France.  Several minutes later, his comrades in arms exploded their suicide vests nearby.  This was a probable assassination attempt against President Hollande with the intent to kill more from the potential of 80,000 spectators.

Five minutes after the bombings at the soccer match, gunmen with submachine guns began shooting people in the sidewalk cafes and bars in the 10th and 11th  arrondissements.  

But where the most carnage occurred was at the Bataclan Music Hall in which several terrorists took hundreds hostage, killing at least 80 with many more critically injured. These barbarians deliberately shot spectators in wheel chairs one by one.  If there was any doubt as to the motivation of these savages, they shouted Allahu Akbar( ("God is Great" the war chant of jihadists)  and "Free Syria" as they reloaded and continued their atrocities.

The world sought to show solidarity through gatherings of remembrance and sympathetic light displays. Yet some protested these humanistic expressions as the same consciousness does not occur when lives are lost by Palestinians or in Africa.  Black Lives Matter activists reached out to social media to proclaim "F#ck Pray for Paris".  And after some progressive politicians like socialist Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) made pro forma expressions of sympathy, they still maintain that Climate Change is more of a threat to the world today than radical Islamist terrorism. 

Hence it is ironic to consider the irony that Duran Duran kicked off the "24 Hours of Reality" with "What Are the Chances?" to pressure the Climate Change Summit which is scheduled to be held in Paris at the beginning of December.  The ponderous lyrics muse about our place in the world.  Yet idealists perseverate on the theory of anthropogenic global warming over a 100 years yet ignore the danger which is right down the boulevard. 

So, what are the chances Of seeing an uptick of violence from forces creating chaos and tyranny? ~Quite likely.  But what of solidarity against barbarism? The foundation exists amongst those who love liberty and the value of individuals. Alas, it is unknown how those noble sentiments will hold up during the Storm.

Are You Happy About Star Studded Climate Change Hypocrisy?

Pop music phenom Pharrell Williams has been lending his voice to star studded crusades against global warming global climate disruption  carbon pollution anthropogenic  climate change.

First, the singer songwriter who originated the peppy hit "Happy" jetted to Davos, Switzerland to be with former Vice President (and Inconvenient Truth purveyor) Al Gore to announce a second round of Live Earth concerts in June which is intended to "harmonize humanity all at once."  

[L] Al Gore [C] Pharrell Williams at World Economic Summit in Davos, Switzerland 2015

While Pharrell Williams fondly remembers having a ball at the Rio de Janeiro concert in 2007, he lamented:  “You would have pundits and comedians who didn’t understand global warming and we were often ridiculed. We wanted to do something very different this time.”

Pharrell lent his celebrity status to the International Day of Happiness at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on March 20th.




His clarion call to convert from Climate Change to Climate Action rings hollow considering his hypocrisy.  Pharrell sits alone on a private plane and globe trots in order to attend  green dog and pony shows, yet the little people are supposed to sacrifice for climate change.


To celebrate Earth Day with a telling backdrop, President Barack Obama flew to the Everglades for an event (as Alligator Alley can be portrayed to be already effected by Climate Change).  Per Mark Knoller, that day trip to Florida was an 1869 mile jaunt in which Air Force One 9,180 gallons of fuel alone.  But that's OK, since the President's plane also ferried Bill Nye the Mechanical Engineer billing himself as a Science Guy for PBS Kids, in a "Call to Action" 

 That must have covered their carbon footprint, right?

If that's not enough policy pollution, consider the Global Citizen Earth Day Concert on the National Mall last weekend.  Hoards of ecologically conscious citizens of the world flocked to see Mary Blige Usher and the Fall Out Boy. The organizers may have been proud that the concert was powered through solar power, they ought to be ashamed at how their people left the open space in the District of Calamity (sic).

h/t: A.F. Branco