Switch off CNN!  Switch off Fox News! And not even BBC News can be exempt from the big news Switch-off (although, they are slightly better than the previous two).

Who can say that the aforementioned news channels are always being “Fair and Balanced” in their reporting?  Have they not demonstrated more than once biased reporting in favour of the sinister motives and policies of those in power?

If the conspiracy theorists are right, the mainstream news is a major propaganda tool used by the rich and powerful to brainwash the masses into relinquishing their inalienable rights and consenting for our elected masters to expand their profits at our very expense.

What seems to be mostly self-evident is that these so-called “Media Moguls of Truth” continuously bombard us with nothing but trivial events, media circuses (the recent hysteria surrounding The X-Factor here in the UK is an example of the media gone mad) and features on the superficial and banal lifestyles of the rich and famous – all this instead of concentrating on truthful reporting and serious issues happening worldwide.

I somehow get the feeling that most of this is done on purpose to distract, or more like deceive us from the knowing the truth of what’s really going on outside of our comfort zone.
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The following BBC news article detailing the most noble of charitable habits of moral philosopher, Toby Ord, whose actions teaches us about frugal living which can not only help us, but can help others too.

So in these difficult times of financial cuts, we can all learn from Mr Ord on how to live within our means, as well as being aware not to spend too lavishly on presents this Christmas.

Toby Ord is a university researcher earning not much more than the average salary. So why is he giving away £1m over his lifetime to help address global poverty?

When Facebook founder and billionaire Mark Zuckerberg pledged to give away most of his wealth during his lifetime, some British commentators bemoaned the lack of philanthropy on this side of the Atlantic.

But an academic at Oxford University is living off little more than £300 a month in an act of charity-giving that is arguably more impressive than those of Zuckerberg, Gates, Buffett and co.

Toby Ord, 31, has in the past year given more than a third of his earnings, £10,000, to charities working in the poorest countries. He also gave away £15,000 of savings, as the start of his pledge to give away £1m over his lifetime [...]

Read more: Toby Ord: Why I’m giving £1m to charity

Whilst we’re here, some more advice on the small matter of frugality: Become Rich by Living a Frugal Life

Lovely story this from off the BBC News website…

Canadian couple give away millions in lottery winnings

A Canadian couple who won $10.9m (£6.7m) in lottery winnings in July say they have given away $10.2m of the prize to groups in their community.

Allen and Violet Large said they were plain country folks who needed no more than “what we’ve got”.

The two said they had donated about 98% of the cash after helping their family.

The elderly pair gave the money to churches, fire departments, cemeteries, the Red Cross and hospitals, where Ms Large has undergone cancer treatment.

“We haven’t bought one thing. That’s because there is nothing that we need,” Mr Large, 75, told the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

Mr Large, a retired welder from Canada’s Nova Scotia province, added that he and his wife were quite content with their 147-year-old home and everything else they already owned.

“You can’t buy happiness,” he said.

Who says there are no contented and simple living human beings in today’s world which is mostly pervaded with superficiality and materialism?

I’m just wondering, would you have done the same?

Here is a promising update of the post Will ‘Ten Years’ Be Enough To Solve Nature Crisis?.

Read the following news article (excerpt):

UN talks on a new deal aimed at protecting nature and equitably sharing in its benefits seem to be on course for a positive conclusion.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) meeting saw intense diplomacy in its final hours as delegates tried to iron out remaining differences.

The Japanese hosts in particular have been desperate for a successful end.

Western nations appear to have given ground on the thorniest issue – sharing of natural genetic resources.
Continue reading the main story

It is not yet clear how – or even if – resolution has been reached on other outstanding points, such as how much of the Earth’s lands and oceans should be placed under protection.

China has been criticised by environment campaigners for insisting that the agreement in Nagoya should call for protection of no more than 6% of the marine environment – and none at all outside coastal waters.

The current global target is 10%.

The other outstanding issue has been money, with Brazil and its allies arguing that by 2020, $200bn (£125bn) per year should be made available for biodiversity conservation.

BBC News understands that a deal has been reached under which countries will agree to have such a plan in place by 2012, when Brazil will host the second Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro.

Read more: Nature talks heading for success, delegates say

Here in the UK, Prime Minister David Cameron announced yesterday that defence spending would fall by 8% over four years. This is in line with other cuts in Britain due to the deficit being unsustainable – which is presently being felt around the world.

Personally for me the Britain shouldn’t be in Afghanistan to begin with.  They first went to war with Iraq on the back of lies (still no sign of weapons of mass destruction) and now they find themselves in a war they cannot win against Al-Qaeda/Taliban in Afghanistan.

The British public are practically paying billions of pounds a year for operations in Afghanistan (and elsewhere), high tech weaponry/vehicles and military equipment.  Money which could be better used elsewhere, such as for education and NHS (National Health Service) to name but a few.

A cynical view is that the general population are paying human beings to kill other human beings in the name of democracy and liberation – and that is without us having any say in the matter.

So why not cut spending by 50% or more? Obviously people will lose their jobs (which the government could subsidise or give them jobs doing something more meaningful for the community), but surely the financial burden put on the rest of us (through involuntary income tax) and human costs (through mostly avoidable deaths of a few thousand innocent human beings yearly) far outweighs the need of a military force.

War is an outdated instrument of profit and imperialism.  Let us instead cooperate and come up with peaceful solutions for us all to benefit from, rather than compete for what little is left on this most resourceful planet.

So Mr Cameron, if you really want to save a huge amount of money (which may mean not needing to cut as much in other more important areas, so that it will help to make it less stressful financially for the rest of us) bring the boys back home NOW – and for good.

Take a look at how much the public spends yearly on Defence in the UK: Defence Spending Chart

Read the following excerpt regarding defence cuts from the BBC News website:

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Will Man continue to destroy nature, which in turn will end up destroying him?

There maybe some hope for the human race after all, as someone is at last aware of the huge problem of the continued erosion of nature and wildlife – something which is mostly down to the hands of Man.

Not to mention the current worship of technology which only serves to encourage neglect and ignorance of this most important life providing source.

Hopefully, Man can find a viable solution to reverse the effects he has had on the environment before it is too late.

And maybe he will find a wise solution…read the following excerpt from a BBC news article written today:

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