Who Protects Us Now?

Tags

Bush, Faux Noise, journalism, Media, Muslims, Rudi Giuliani, terror attacks, terrorism

It’s ironic that in an age of ever increasing access to information, we are quickly becoming the most uninformed generation in perhaps all of American history. That might be going a bit far, but not by much.

We live with Internet access to literally millions of bits of news and facts, along with the ability to turn to 24-hour cable “news” 24/7. You’d think we would be experts on the political scene and all those other “scenes” as well. But ‘fraid not.

Surely, something can be said for our educational lack. I went to a fairly passable county school back in the 60’s. Yet, given our small size, the choice of classes was lacking and certainly only the basics were taught.

I, and my classmates learned to read and write and cypher adequately. We learned the importance of voting, and being patriotic. We learned that some bad things were done (not soo00 important), but we had a continent to conquer and ultimately we were the next best hope for humanity. I guess this was adequate to the middle of the 2oth century, but it is woefully inadequate now.

We are assured that there is only one worthwhile economic system–the free market one–as we slide into economic hell. The fact that most Americans today spend most of their waking hours just keeping their heads above water might account for the fact that we spend almost no time actually learning the facts of health care, our foreign policy, the state of the rest of the world, the truth about scientific advances, and on and on.

So it’s not surprising that Rudi Giuliani tells lies to the likes of George Stephanopolous and nobody, including George even blinks an eye. If you missed it, Rudi joined a list of shabby neo-cons who are spreading the lie that there were no terrorist attacks under Bush at all! George, I’m told, has admitted his faux pas  at not challenging the former mayor, but what matter? Heck, those who knew better still do, and those that don’t, well they don’t watch George anyway. They are firmly attached at the hip to the Faux Noise liars who know this routine so well.

Yesterday, a Brit stopped by the blog and dropped a few f-bombs around (since deleted by me) and basically railed as how I as a liberal was a sodomite supporting, Muslim defender. He, who goes by the name “Larry” of course is a proper Christian, despite his sexual invitation for me to have sex with a goat.

Now being from Britain, I can only say, whew. . . .just goes to show that idiocy is spread across the globe and is not the sole province of the US of A. More, I can point at Larry as another of those who so helps to radicalize people left and right. Contrary to his ugly opinion of Muslims, from what I hear, they are doing their best, at least in America, to decry in the strongest terms that those Muslims who espouse radical jihad are NOT Muslims according to their understanding of Koran.

Yet, this kind of truth, doesn’t find much purchase in the media. They have succumbed to the simpler mode of journalism, that requires little in the way of research or actual work. Just grab a camera, take a few shots, grab a microphone, and shove it in the faces of passersby for their input. Voila` we are ready for air.

Was it only a few years ago that Woodward and Bernstein offered us a glimpse of real investigative reporting? How soon that turned into investigating marital infidelities, and drug usage. It has failed completely to actually investigate truth. Somewhere and somehow, journalism has become the duty of journalists to let everyone have their opinion voiced, without “editorial” comment.

Well, I agree, I don’t care what the reporter’s opinion is, but I do care what the facts are. And when AHole is spouting verifiable “facts” I want them verified and confirmed or denied. And that is your job Ms reporter. It’s what you get paid for. Yet we find little of this any more. In fact  organizations called “Media Matters” and “Factcheck” and others are designed to actually do that job, the one that journalists don’t bother with any more.

Yet, you have to be motivated to learn the truth to even know of the existence of these sites, let alone actually read them. And precious few of us are. Most of us are plainly not interested at all, or we have hitched our horse to the teabagger supporters at Foxy and depend on them to ‘splain things.

Maybe this has always been so. Maybe in 1884, the US landscape was made up of essentially the same percentages of know some things and know nothings. I don’t know. I do know that at one time, most towns, not cities mind you, had competing  newspapers. Cities might have as many as four major voices, and lots of smaller ones. Today, most cities are owned by one media conglomerate or other.  A failure of course of our fine “regulatory agency” the FCC.

It often seems like beating one’s head against the wall to decry the never ending failure of the media to tell us truth rather than the usual gossipy innuendo that passes for facts. It was called in the past the 4th estate. It was accorded some respect. It was feared by politicians and corporate heads. It could uncover the hidden lies. It could make or break an industry. It had integrity. It was like superman, out for Justice and the American way.

How far it has fallen, and how dumbed down we have become. We need a super hero, and we need one fast.

Sly Fox or Crazy Boy

Tags

conservativism, conspiracy theories, Faux Noise, Glenn Beck, Jesus, political pundits, religious right, social issues, truth

Well, what can be said of Glenn Lee Beck that has not already been said by muses more wordalicious than me.

I can summarize his life in a few paragraphs, and truly there is nothing much of interest to be found. He was raised a Catholic, his mother may have committed suicide, and he became addicted to both alcohol and drugs.

He found a home in radio, and exhibited early signs of ethnic racism in the way that radio personalities often offend one group for the guffaws of other groups.

He married, divorced and remarried and somewhere in that mix he converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. His main mentor was a guy by the name of W. Cleon Skousen, who was some self-styled anti-communist, John Bircher, Mormon, conspiracy theorist. Beck apparently thinks he is essential reading to “understand” Merika, or at least his version of it.

Many have claimed that Beck is more showman, entertainer than political analyst. Anyone who has tried to follow his convoluted conspiracy theories would be forced to agree. His command of general history is weak, he pulls together disparate “facts” from all over the map, and forces them into unnatural alliance with others and creates bizarre scenarios of evil intent. One can point to his expose` on the reliefs at Rockefeller Center as an example.

It is therefore unclear whether Beck is really crazy and believes all this nonsense, or whether he in fact knows exactly what is going on, and has discovered the cash cow of financial success for himself. One can hardly vilify the man if he is certifiable of course. One can only pity him and vilify Faux Noise for deliberately presenting him as a sane voice of the right.

If he is that sly fox who is milking this cow for all she’s worth. . . .well then, another question comes to mind. And that is simply this:

How does  a person who nominally or otherwise declares them self “Christian” justify the blatant misleading of Americans for personal gain?

There is much in the workings of Beck that suggest that that is indeed what he is doing. There have been reports that he uses Vicks Vaporub to cause his eyes to tear for those dear moments in his monologues when he breaks down, so deeply felt is his angst for America’s woes. He often refers to himself as more showman that political pundit.

There are others besides Beck of course that we might ask a similar question. How about the insurance worker whose job is to sift through claims to find loopholes that can be used to deny coverage and remove perhaps the last hope of patients and their families for life itself? How do these folks, many of whom no doubt, claim Christian beliefs, justify their work?

Not limiting ourselves to Christians, how does the soldier in al Qaeda justify his job of hanging out at mosques and universities, always on the lookout for hapless, lonely, rejected individuals who might be propagandized into giving up their lives as suicide bombers?

How sleep those who organize and disseminate drugs to the addicted–the depressed and mentally challenged, the under educated, and under employed? Whether they be “soldiers in the streets” or their rich counterparts in upscale neighborhoods, how exactly do you live with what you do to other humans?

How rest the scam artists who target the old and mentally soft, securing often entire life savings on bogus schemes to get rich. What do they think as they turn back the bed at the Waldorf, having made another hit, leaving some elderly woman with nothing but shame at her mistaken trust?

It has been said by somebody, that conservatives are just those people who think up reasons to justify their selfishness. I’m not sure that that is a fair statement, but it comes close I think from a liberal stand. Time and time again, we are told all the reasons why we can’t eliminate poverty and homelessness, why we can’t educate everyone well, why we can’t give health care to all. It is always couched in economics, but what it always comes down to is, don’t expect me to pay for it.

The fortunate among us declare that they worked hard for what they have. But in truth, a number of other factors contributed to their success. Their position in the world, their actual place, their family, their ethnic background, and sometimes just grand old luck. Those who have not had the privilege of place and family background has as much right to these things as they.

One can smell behind all the excuses, the really selfish bottom line. I don’t want to give up any of mine, even if it means you will live in deep poverty and misery. Your kids won’t have a chance, and I’ll work very hard to find even more reasons why I shouldn’t be asked to relinquish any of mine. The Beck’s and the O’Reilly’s and the Hannity’s and the Colter’s and the Limbaugh’s and the Bachmann’s, they all are there to tell you that you are right.

The sorry thing is, most of them don’t mean it or care really. They are so wildly rich by comparison, that it doesn’t matter one whit to them. They are happy to feed your selfish desires by telling you you are morally right, because to them its raw greenbacks in return. That’s all it means to them, period.

They have the perfect storm. You don’t watch real news. You watch them, since they feed your fears and your excuses. You in truth don’t know it’s all lies, and they know you don’t know. So of course, they lie with impunity. And all the Jon Stewart’s, all the Keith Olbermann’s and all the Stephen Colbert’s  and Bill Moyer’s, multiplied a hundred fold won’t make a difference, because you will never watch them anyway.

Jesus spent his ministry turning the social system on its ear. He challenged the powers that be that their responsibilities in the end were to the least among us. Jesus spent his time calling out the liars and making people listen to truth. But you have opted out, taking your bible lessons from the Faux Noise crowd. It’s a new kind of Christianity, and one that I suspect Jesus would not be happy with.

How sleep you this nigh?

Memories. . . .like the pages of my mind

Tags

Barack Obama, Faux Noise, Fox News, George Bush, good old days, Media, psychology, truthiness

Once upon a time, in a land just around the bend,(pun intended!!!) a wunderkid named Dubya held the keys to the kingdom of Merika. And he and his counselors put forth a new way of disseminating propaganda–and it was called “talking points” memos. All the land ooh’ed and aah’ed, especially their knuckle-dragging cohorts in a house called Kapital, and among their drooling followers.

A news agency, named Fox, which was really Faux, for no such thing as actual news crossed its camera lens, watched in rapt attention and learned about “talking points.” Eager to help the boy wonder regent, they received their marching orders from the talking points heads, and dutifully regurgitated the phrase of the day through eight long and dark years.

Suddenly, the sun broke forth, and a sheriff was hired. He threw out all the propagandists and returned the kingdom to some sense of normalcy. Faux Noise, was distraught. How to keep their minions in line when actual governing was going on!

But wait, they had learned the fine ability to doublespeak and babble. “Just give ’em what we want to be truth, and they will know no better,” Rupert crowed. “These minions are barely sentient and surely can’t read or research our bucket of goo.”

So Faux started their own brand of “talking points” though they were careful to keep them oral, so no black hearted liberal might hack their emails and discover the fix was in. Suddenly the airwaves were filled with faux news–of birthers, and death panels, and other such fluffery. It seemed to work, but of course, we knew it would. Fox followers are not known to be able to do more than basic breathing.

One week the crew of the various scrabble shows decided that they would tell their minions, whose brains don’t take to actual thinking or recall, that the “good old days” were in jeopardy. It seems the sheriff, according to them, was about the business of “destroying the way of life they had all enjoyed as youngsters.”

Sean said it, and he was probably a child of the 70’s, and Billy said it, and he was a child of the 40’s. And Glenn said it and he was a child of Satan, and well, they all said it, and they used the same words and the same phrasing, so you know it must be true.

Then one of the Sheriff’s deputies (deputy in the sense of having a working mind), did a bit of research. Were all those memories of the “good old days”  actually true?  Deputy Comedy meister, Jon “Of Jersey” Stewart, reported that a fair examination of the various decades preceding, showed not a lot of “good” though there was plenty of “old.” There were nasty wars, depressions, economic downturns, oil crises, hostage taking, and the like in each and every one. Women were discriminated against, and so were people of color. It was hard to find much “good” on the national or international scene.

After all, it seemed to be that the “good old days” didn’t really exist at all. Each decade no doubt had plenty of personal happiness, but overall, we suffered from a number of malaise that we would not like to revisit today. The Stewart and his sidekick The Oliver, found that most people, (those who thought at least) didn’t remember the years of their growing up as glowing examples of perfection that the Faux Noise talking heads so effervescently approved of.

It was, alas, all a ploy to continue maligning the sheriff who was doing a pretty good job in actuality against very big odds. It turns out the boys of Faux were just pissy cuz nobody wanted to talk to them from the sheriff’s office any more. They had to stand at the back of the crowd and were seldom given a tidbit that they could get their teeth into. They were not “special” any more.

You see, it’s evolutionary that we have a strong capacity to “see” the best in the past. It keeps us going. But the best we see is personal, and not national. When we remember the world we lived in, we are glad to have survived at all! And the Faux fools knew that of course, but they also knew that appeals to the “glorious past” S O U N D true, and that’s all that matters in the world of Faux.

So our hats are off to Deputy Stewart and his crew for helping us to remember the truth. If the sheriff is about the business of trying to destroy the world we grew up in as kids (which there of course is no real evidence of anyway) that probably wouldn’t be such a bad thing, if it means that we are pushing for freedom for all, education for all, equality for all, and inclusion for all. But perhaps the Faux boys mean that their world was grand in those “olden” days. For they were white and male, and I guess, perhaps, they did see the world as arrayed at their feet as so many pearl filled oysters to pluck.

So maybe, they were just meanin’ that heck, they just wanted to be the fat, white, rich males in charge of everything again. Yeah, I bet they were. But that means we (all the rest of us) well, you probably have that figured out by now huh?

Just sayin’.