UPU2

               Genius is the infinite capacity to take life by the scruff of the neck.

It would be nice if there was some form of international award for those who write for protest websites. The main stream outlets have their own awards, so why not one for those who write the truth and refuse to parrot official lines. It's not unusual for the Noble Peace Prize to be awarded to somebody hated by their own government. Some form of official recognition would be to everybody's advantage.

It doesn't have to be money. But it would be advantageous if a suitable sponsor came
forward.   Bill Gates would be ideal because he loves ignoring the establishment. How about an Oscar type statue of a clenched fist with two raised fingers? We could call it, UPU2. I'm sure we could all find a place on our mantelpieces for an UPU2, if we pushed our patriotism aside for a few hours. After all, it doesn't take long to write an article. It doesn't stop us loving our countries and defending our way of life unto the politician's death.   Being a patriot can be a bit tedious when politicians regard us as security risks and spend multimillions of our money trying to shut down our sites. UPU2 Herr Politician!

The competition could be run via the Internet. A special website is all that would be needed. Or maybe tacked onto an existing site. For example, I could do it on my site and it wouldn't cost anything except time. I'm sure we could find an ISP willing to host a stand alone site for nothing. Genuine protest website could register and a list will evolve. I don't know where the judges will come from but there's bound to be a few retired journalists who have a social conscience. It's no good asking anybody from the establishment. Those with vested interests rarely acknowledge commonsense or truth.

There are thousands of protest sites around the world and language shouldn't be a problem. Translations could be provided by the site. It's the truthful substance that drags the readers,not the language. Think of the international crowing if your favourite site hosted a writer that won an UPU2.

I suggest two awards. One for the best article and one for the most consistent writer with the highest standard over the previous year. Nominations from readers would be preferable. This would ensure independence of the nominations. But only writers from proven and registered protest sites would qualify. Perhaps $1 per nomination would cover the costs of the web master. But if a sponsor came forward, who knows what the future holds?

Protest sites are about alternative opinions and poking fun at the mindless rhetoric of the main stream media. There will be negative publicity from the 'experts' (there's no such thing as bad publicity) but you can bet your boots they won't hesitate to publish the results. This will mean protest sites will be promoted worldwide. The winners will be on TV. Multi millions more readers and sponsors for protest sites. Everybody benefits.

Hopefully the politicians will recognise that at the end of the day, public opnion does count. They depend on the public for votes but can the public depend on them to do the right thing? Ask yourself why protest sites exist. Please give my UPU2 suggestion some serious thought. Intelligent thinking costs nothing. But political thinking costs us our savings and millions of innocent lives. Need I say more?

                                                  Calamity is the test of integrity.