Terrorism Disguised As News

 

 

It came to me after seeing the rants of both Rove and Trump that they are terrorists.  If one looks at the definition of the term one finds that it states among other definitions that a terroist is “a person who terrorizes or frightens others.”  An interesting discussion on Morning Joe observed that there are those who profit from exploiting the bias and hate that permeates our society.  This group of supposed analysts continues to present a position that does little but reduce any serious discussion to name-calling.  That we face a gridlock in our government is owed to the fact that this minority of supposed objective observers are little more than snake oil salesmen selling a product that does little but enflame the fear that they create.

The fact is this operation is only about making money and if the country is broken beyond repair they smile a wry smile for it means that they can sell more junk on its commercial breaks and books and papers.  That a sacred trust, The First Amendment, can be torn to shed in the pursuit of profit should be a telltale sign that fair and balanced is only a slogan, a fabricated catch phrase.  Any discussion of Fox must be done in the context of News Corp, its parent company.  A corporation found to have violated decency and privacy to get sensationalistic stories to adorn its front pages.  That a corporate culture can allow a young victim’s phone to be hacked in the pursuit of its “reporting” demonstrates that there are no depths, no gutter too slimy for this company.  That a man with a vision colored in slime can then become a force in American journalism affirms his view that there is sizable gullible population ready to buy into its own bias.  The formula for success was quite simple:  First, populate air waves with a legion of leggy blondes (see Mr. Murdoch’s British papers and its reliance on sex to sell), Second hire an army of glib analysts, and lastly enlist zealot politicians.  In short, round up a large collection of whores willing to sell their souls for money and feed their ambitions.

That this collection of reprobates actually had duped a vast majority of Americans is to realize that humanity often times like the lemmings willing rush head long without an idea of where the throng is going.  That this collection of supposed journalists can interpret reality to further enhance their wrongheaded opinions is to realize that honesty in the face bullying stands a formidable opponent.

One hates to put limitations on rights, but the question remains how can an Australian sleaze merchant get to operate a “news” network in the United States.   How?  Of course, sitting on the throne of power is Roger Ailes, a media consultant for Reagan, Nixon, and Giuliani.  One can only imagine how this Jabba the Hut like character presides over the operations, indeed the Star Wars analogy is not that far off.   One thing is certain with Fox is that you either stay in lock step or you are banish.  When Beck stepped out of line, he was banished to the internet.  No one messes with Jabba, no one.

This collection of supposed news people have garnered a sizable audience, proving little save that people are hungry and need the solace of drones who feed them what they want to hear.  That presentations are caustic and inflammatory provide an outlet for the angst that seethes inside.  That glib blondes and vociferous egg heads pontificate about morals and issues while ignoring decency and ethics and get away with by calling it fair and balance is a paradox of 21^st century media.  All the while, this farce continues to stroke the hatred that consumes individuals, the nation, and the government.  That the electorate sent a resounding message of compassion and concern should give this monolith of hate and ignorance a wake-up call, but it won’t, for there is still a profit to be made in stroking the flames of hatred and ignorance.  Lincoln’s words ring out, “You can’t fool some of the people all of the time.”

Looking at the demographics, it is clear that the country is changing.  We are no long a white country with a black minority.  No, the face of the nation is changing with the many hues and combinations of humanity itself.  If we look deeply at our history we see the many wrongs perpetrated with the ideal that there was some who believed that it was their god given right to do whatever it felt like doing.  Adding profit and greed to this affliction made the tragedy left in the wake no surprise.  What the future holds I believe is that the many who followed the nonsense being peddle at Fox with continue to diminish in size and influence.  This election shows that the white scourge of hatred and supposed superiority is but a diminishing influence.  That is why Rove and Trump can scream and yell and claim that everything is wrong.  Indeed from their perspective it is.  Fortunately, their reality doesn’t exist and their influence diminishes as their audience fades away.

Our Dirty Little Secret

 

 

The long arduous presidential campaign season is coming to close.  Thankfully, we all have endured the constant and deafening cries of half-truths and lies.  The candidates have done much to obfuscate and stay clear of issues that are the more compelling, like gun control and global warming.  I lean to the left on all issues and hence my man is the president.  I dislike “etch-a-sketch” Romney not so much for what he is but what he isn’t.  He reminds me of the hard sell snake oil salesman who will do anything; say anything to make the sale.  He is a man without a core, a vacuous salesman.  The only true portrait I have seen was on the Daily Show.  Obama didn’t do much when he had the chance and the fact that the “know nothings” and the “do nothings” Congressmen can point that out is unpardonable in my opinion.  Rather than attempt to work with the troglodytes, on day one of his administration he should have pushed through a budget and a single payer health care.  That said, I still have got to stick with the only hope of turning the corner on the mass stupidity that seems to have a grip on our government. 

Underlying this election, indeed the past four years, has been the rampant racism that still holds this country in a death grip.  While the right will scream at Obama yelling he is dividing this country with his penchant for class warfare, the truth is that the right and its noise makers are little more than a bunch of racists.  So bigoted are they, that if they were to be truly honest with the people they would don white hoods when they go on the air waves.  The sad and most troubling aspect of that scenario would be that they would not lose a single devoted follower. 

Fact is Obama started his presidency with three strikes against him.  Remember that for the longest time, a black man couldn’t be a quarter back in football because of their supposed inferior mental ability.  What preconceived notions did we hold for black politicians.  Our society has place the bar for a black person to be accepted so high that only the truly superior can measure up to it. Thus, we can have a mediocre even an inferior white man, like George W. Bush, and he can sail into a second term based on little save the ability of the apparatchiks and devious handlers, especially the likes of Karl Rove.   To touch a raw nerve of many conservatives, we can see a senile old B actor raised to the status of an icon, based on the some glib remarks and an affable smile.  Yes, President Reagan was slowly slipping into that dark and murky world of an Alzheimer patient while in the oval office. 

We have a president who is bi-racial and has overcome the stiffest of all odds to become a highly educated man.  Yet we can have a nincompoop like Palin mock him as “jive ass” while she is little more than that.  We have Sununu speaks of an endorsement as a racial thing.  Behind all this blather is a deep seated prejudice that I would bet this collection of bigots would deny and scream that the race card was being played if it were mentioned.  Yet the race card was being played time and time again, and it was they who were playing it, not overtly but subtly in all they said and didn’t say.

The election will be tough and close because this country was never really the land of the free.  It was basically the land of the free white people.  It is ironic that the same folks who misread the constitution claiming that it is Christian government oftentimes merely overlook the key amendments to the constitution that truly made this country free, at least on paper. 

To understand how deep the divide is among us, just look at the break down of who is supporting Romney; it is the white folks, especially the old white males.  Interesting to say the least.  Obama needs to be reelected for no other reason than it is time for this country to shed that skin of prejudice.  Like a snake, we need a new skin.  We need to wiggle ourselves from our past.  Most importantly, we need to give the President a fighting chance to do the things he wants to do.  If the old bigots and hate mongers don’t want to go along with this change than we need to do all we can to vote these people out of office and send them back to their caves where they can live out their days in the darkness that have spent their life in.