When we study math, we see that there are positive and negative numbers. If we have a net worth, our personal numbers are positive. If we are in debt, our net worth is negative. Every human being finds, either to our joy or sorrow, that there are both positive and negative numbers.
We all know that we are largely made of, and surrounded by, matter. At the same time, we have a vague notion that there is anti-matter. Black holes in space appear to be making the matter that’s drawn into them disappear.
As yesterday’s column indicated, there is “News”, information that’s real or imaginary, to which we are exposed by a convoluted process that ensures we are told only what the highest earthly powers want us to know. There is also “Non-news”, information that is kept from us.
When the town watchman cried, “It’s four o’clock and all is well!”, he was providing both news and non-news. He might have discovered that the King was embezzling money from the treasury and giving it to mistresses. If that discovery prompted him to cry out: “It’s four o’clock and the King is spending so much money on Madame Pompadour that he can’t pay the soldiers, who are about to mutiny.”, he would be, at best, fired and most likely jailed or killed.
How often have we seen a “News Personality” provide such a “Non-Approved News” item? If the answer is “Never.”, we see how trustworthy the entire “News” process is.
