Attention citizen. Pay no attention to the looming economic recession, critical deflation of house equity and inevitable economic hardship sure to affect the majority of households for the foreseeable future. For this purpose we will continue to expose the scandalous behavior of some of our out-of-favor ruling elite for your distraction and amusement.
-Fark.com Forums
Look, I'm as fascinated as the next guy by a scandal. I get a kick out of watching some hypocritical jerk take a well-deserved fall, whether he/she be a Democrat or a Republican. I understand that news media is motivated 95% by ratings and 5% by influence.
But this is getting out of hand!
I have to dig through the news to find things relevant to my life. Did you know that the Euro is worth $1.55? No, you probably didn't, because Eliot Spitzer hired a hooker. Did you know that Barack Obama won a primary in Mississippi? No, you probably didn't, because Geraldine Ferraro, D-Irrelevant, said something stupid. Did you know that the Fed is lending $200,000,000,000 to securities firms to help stave off recession? You probably saw that, since it caused stocks to jump, but you're more likely to know that Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island got caught with some weed in her car. Wouldn't it be nice if some mega-billionaire would start an impartial news network that wasn't beholden to ratings? Somewhere that concerned citizens could tune in to find out things which are IMPORTANT? GRRRRRRRRRR. I'm having a bad day, so this is going to be interesting.
That said, I recognize that the Spitzer thing is a big deal. I was listening to Mac Watson and Larry Gaydos yesterday on KTAR as they basically ripped apart Silda Spitzer and other wives of scandalized politicians, saying that she shouldn't be up there standing by him, or sticking with him at ALL, and basically accused her of being a useless golddigger, someone addicted to being married to power. As if they have ANY idea what's going on in her life. What's she supposed to do, leave her husband within the hour of some news outlet making an accusation? Some of us place higher value on marriage than that - and that's a good thing. I hope the Spitzers work things out, and if she leaves him, I hope she does it out of the public spotlight, because it's not our friggin' business. And does anyone think that any successful, married politician got there without the help of their wives? That's such a naive notion. Political careers are usually a team effort, and marriages are a partnership. One spouse can't go out and be governor if the other isn't at home taking care of the FAMILY. Why does this carry no weight for them? "Trying to keep your family together, Silda Spitzer? YOU'RE POWER-HUNGRY - YOU'RE JUST AS BAD AS A HOOKER - NO, YOU'RE WORSE, AT LEAST THE HOOKER KNOWS THEY'RE A HOOKER." Does that sound too outrageous to be real? That's a real quote, and something I've seen echoed on blogs, etc., and it's frankly unbelievable.
WHO CARES IF GERALDINE FERRARO SAID SOMETHING STUPID ABOUT BARACK OBAMA? She doesn't represent Hillary Clinton; indeed Clinton called her remarks "regrettable". She suggested that he'd be a non-issue for Clinton if he wasn't black. She's wrong about that - he'd certainly still be around - but guess what? I believe his race has been to his advantage, for a couple of reasons. One, it's neutralized the bump Clinton was due to receive as the first viable female candidate. In other words, if Barack Obama was white, her gender would be a big selling point for her; since he's black, it's "the first black and first female candidates". Two, his is a message of change, and you don't think it helps that he looks different than the 40 presidents which preceded him? Do you think his message of change would be as effective if he were a 60-year-old white guy?
Larry Gaydos also said last night that, though it isn't ok to consider race and gender when evaluating a candidate, it IS ok to consider age, and I don't understand that at all. McCain, as much as I don't like the guy, should be considered solely on his actual merits. The fact that he is old should not affect your vote for him. It seems natural to say, "But wait, the older people get the more likely they are to lose their mental faculty, so it's reasonable to take that into consideration." OK. Here's some more statistics (that I'm making up, to illustrate my point): Women are less likely to hold executive jobs than men. Do I take that into consideration for Hillary? Does that imply that they're less qualified? Blacks are less likely to graduate high school than whites. Relevant for Obama? Does it indicate lower intellect across the board? Homosexuals are more likely to contract HIV than heterosexuals. Pass on a gay candidate? They might die sooner? No. Individuals need to be considered INDIVIDUALLY. To the best of my knowledge, McCain has showed no signs of age-related mental decline. If he did, that'd be one thing... but he doesn't. Give the guy a fair shake.
I'm going to go drink some hot chocolate or something...
Stream of Consciousness: Spitzer, Ferraro, McCain
Posted by Unknown on 3/12/2008
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13 comments:
My concerns with McCain have less to do with age than his spotty medical and mental history. He was diagnosed with a malignant melanoma in 2000, but has since been given a clean bill of health. I am very concerned about his general temperament - he has a short temper and tends to explode at people. I want a president who is cool and collected in a crisis, and I just can't imagine John McCain ever being cool and collected. Here is an (admittedly biased) article that lays out some of these concerns:
http://archive.newsmax.com/archives/articles/2006/8/30/123006.shtml
I am disgusted that the media is focusing so much on Silda Spitzer and demonizing her - even more than her husband, in my opinion. My heart aches for her and her children.
I actually kind of like it that McCain is so old. My thinking goes like this: McCain takes on Romney as VP on his ticket. A year or two into his presidency, McCain passes from old age. Romney is President!
I have been watching the stock market. I'm ticked off at the fed for pumping $200B more into the market. When are they going to realize/accept that it is going down? It needs to correct. When it does, it is going to hurt even more if they keep interfering. Does anyone want to write a blog about this? :)
Yeah, I've been feeling pretty much the same way for the past few days. Who Spitzer sleeps with and why isn't really anyone's business outside of New York, and only slightly relevant to them.
The war and economy, among other things, are much more important to me.
I do have one response to something though: "Wouldn't it be nice if some mega-billionaire would start an impartial news network that wasn't beholden to ratings? Somewhere that concerned citizens could tune in to find out things which are IMPORTANT? GRRRRRRRRRR."
I don't know about any millionaires, but have you tried NPR? They still have to worry about pleasing their listeners, but luckily their listeners are generally less prone to scandal-mania than the general public. They're generally quite nonpartisan, as well; they analyze stories from all angles (not just "both angles" if you know what I mean).
I <3 NPR.
Except for the fact that the big story with Spitzer is the hypocrisy factor. He prosecuted people on the same laws he broke. I think it was important to break the story. Reveling in it, accusing and humiliating his wife, etc. is another thing. Fox News just had an alibi expert on, talking about what Spitzer did "wrong" (he should have used a disposable cell phone, he should have used cash). Oh, give me a break. Time to move on.
I think NPR leans left (but then again, I would, wouldn't I?) Have you tried talk radio? :)
Jackson, I like that when you quote me you make sure to include the "GRRRRRRRRRR." Guess I should have taken a nap before posting today. :)
I listen to NPR on occasion, but I actually spend most of my time listening to KTAR - nearly all conservative shows. I like my news/entertainment to make me scream and throw the radio on occasion; and I call in all the time. Just this morning I called in to Ankarlo and got hung up on after calling his guest host despicable (he had just compared Spitzer's wife to the hooker). NPR is probably better for news but never as entertaining!
From your article, Dave:
"At other times, McCain is simply nasty, those who know him say. Last February, McCain sent Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., a mocking letter, saying he wanted to 'apologize' for 'assuming' Obama's private assurances of working together were sincere.
'I'm embarrassed to admit that after all these years in politics, I failed to interpret your previous assurances as typical rhetorical gloss routinely used in politics to make self-interested partisan posturing appear more noble,' McCain said sarcastically. 'Again, sorry for the confusion, but please be assured I won't make the same mistake again.'
McCain and Obama later talked and agreed to 'move on,' as McCain put it. Senators joke among themselves about their collection of 'McCain Notes' — apologies McCain sends after he has unleashed a tirade."
That actually sounds like a seriously hilarious letter, but it kinda loses its humor when you realize he might be the leader of the free world in a year. :/
Wow, Mike, - do I see a little "Harry the Horse" coming out after all these years? everytime i think of mccain, I think of this picture http://punchup.files.wordpress.com/2007/06/john_mccain.jpg
Maybe that slants the way I look at him, but it fits in with this blog.
I agree, Mike - a non-partisan non-profit driven form of news media wold be good - hey, so, for that matter would a non-profit driven politician. But alas.
Ankarlo! I love him! He used to be on 570 KLIF here in Dallas, but he left for a "better" offer. His replacement is not nearly so entertaining.
I don't see a "non-profit driven" form of news media ever happening. Who would run it? The government? I wouldn't trust that to be unbiased. In fact, I think that if someone felt strongly enough to start a "non-profit driven" media, it is probably because they have an agenda of some sort. Profit makes the world go round. :)
I took journalism for 3 years in high school (was Editor-in-Chief my senior year). I have always been amazed since entering the "real world" how much more the actual news resembles the "yellow journalism" that I learned about in U.S. History than it does the ethical principles of journalism that I learned about in my journalism class.
This is making me think of this short yet very honest video: What We Call The News
Oh! I just remembered, there's something called "The Real News Network" - they refuse to accept money from governments or corporations, and their goal is to provide important, unbiased news. They have news in video and written formats.
It's just getting started, and it probably won't make you throw your computer across the room (GRRRRRRR!), but it has some promise.
Amy: Thanks for the link, it cracked me up! Jibjab seems to be down right now, so anyone who missed it can see it on LiveLeak.
I wonder who the donors are. It will be interesting to see how it works out.
A non-partisan non-profit news program would never work. As stated previously, anyone wanting to start a non-partisan program most likely has an agenda. My biggest complaint for the news as is would be the lack of positive news. If I don't like a particular stations views I don't watch or listen.
I do find it amusing that there are those who think conservative talk radio should be taken off the air, or that there should be equal amounts of liberal talk. Well liberal talk radio has been tried but quite unsuccessful.
If there were not "crazy conservatives" like Glenn Beck where would liberal hosts like Keith Olberman get there material for bits like "worst person in the world"?
Have you ever been on "Media Matters" site? (Keith Olbermans main source of material) I went on this site the other day and I couldn't help but to laugh. Here's their mission: "A non-profit progressive research and information center dedicated to comprehensively monitoring, analyzing, and correcting conservative misinformation." What are they so afraid of? It reminds me of the "Concerned Christians" concern for Mormons.
Yes, the news is driven by ratings, if it weren't it would be call the "stats". Seeing some guy reading the "stats" of the day sounds pretty boring to me.
Well, there is something inherently satisfying about a guy known as "Mr. Clean" caught in a hooker scandal. Yes, tasty!
That said, I am an NPR listener myself. It's not perfect, but it's the closest thing I've found to a rational source of news and information. I'm what you might call non-confrontational, and I'm sooooooooooo not interested in seeking out things to be angry about! Yeesh. I don't find it fun at all!
And yes, I am a little worried about McCain's age. Ronald Regan seemed fine when he was elected too. I guess we could start with one term and see how he is...
I swore to myself that if McCain won the nomination, I'd vote for the Democrat instead. And that's what I'm going to do. He's no Republican, except for his support of what we're doing for Iraq.
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