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Sunday, Nov 8, 2009
JackHughes
Published Letters: 704 Editor's Choice: 10
When did the major media become incapable of inference? We can be slapped in the face with ample evidence of governmental malfeasance, with a parade of obvious -- and often laughably inane -- false denials, yet the corporate media is utterly oblivious unless a guilty verdict is rendered in a court of law or someone literally confesses.
Our "media watchdogs" seem unable to remember the lies that have spewed forth from this administration for the last six years -- and then respond with puzzled indignation to any signs of skepticism.
Glenn, your ABC flack was simply incapable of inferring why you would need the source to contextualize their report. As Colbert put it: "The White House says it and (the media) types it up."
The real story (based on news reports in the corporate media) is: When Republicans do it it's "good." When Democrats do it it's "bad."
The Iraq debacle began in 2000 when the media actively promoted the twin myths that Gore was a "big, fat liar" and that Bush was a "uniter, not a divider."
When the press allowed Bush's lies to go unchallenged and Gore's truth's to be falsely labeled as lies, they set the stage for the disaster we're now in. Invading Iraq was on the agenda for the first meeting of Bush's National Security Council.
Our national media is still -- to this day -- indistinguishable from the old Soviet state-controlled press.
Hiatt made a rational inference about malfeasance in the Justice Department. This is a historic event!
With the Bush administration, we don't need the documents. At this point, it's not "partisan" to assume the absolute worst without hard evidence -- it's common sense.
With their track record of lies, deceit and outright criminality, the burden of proof should be on them to prove their "innocence" (as if that were even in the realm of possibility).
Shooter said:
"Like it or not, characterizing this blog as a hate site isn't far fetched. I have seen not a single instance of anything less than derision for the Bush administration. Certainly there is no praise anywhere."
There you have it: the RWA definition of a left-wing "hate site," i.e., one that criticizes rather than sing the praises of George W. Bush.
Hey Shooter, by all means list the successes and praiseworthy acts of the Bush administration. It will be a very short list at best -- especially when measured against their f*ck-ups.
I'm old enough to remember AM radio under the "Fairness Doctrine." Back then, you actually had informative debate and civil discussions by guests with opposing viewpoints.
The content was inarguably better than in today's era of one-sided polemics, vein-popping rants and outright propaganda.
When the enemy is "fairness," it's easy to spot the bad guys.
Gonzales -- and all Bush aparatchiks subjected to congressional/legal scrutiny -- can't tell the truth (political suicide) and can't lie (perjury charges). Therefore their only recourse is the lame "I don't recall" response.
Even after two weeks of intense coaching and rehearsals, Gonzales' memory was (ostensibly) still insufficiently jogged to answer the Senate's questions. Gonzo may still enjoy the "full support of the president," but Congress should set an example and show that they will not accept that type of obfuscation by impeaching Gonzales.
The Bush cultists' war isn't so much on terror as it is on reality. Ron Suskind's anonymous Bush aparatchik admitted as much when he referred to their opponents as "the reality-based community."
These bastards make the Soviets look like the embodiment of truth and wisdom.
Can there be any doubt that the *reality* contained in the diary of Pat Tillman (a true American hero), was in such conflict with the fictions promoted by the Bush administration and its slavish devotees that it had to be destroyed along with his bloody uniform?
What worries me is that like any cult (think Jim Jones & David Koresh), when the jig is up and reality threatens the fantasy, the all-powerful cult figure would rather "take everybody with him" than give up that god-like power.
As we all know, there are plenty of kook-aid drinkers ready to do the unthinkable in service to their lord and master.
Joe Biden was on Meet The Press on Sunday and held forth for an hour -- offering a substantive and intellectual monologue on foreign policy issues, focusing on Iraq.
It wasn't a "discussion" since Russert never, not once, responded to any of Biden's well-articulated, well-thought-out points. Instead, Russert engaged in a series of "gotcha" questions, such as on the plagiarism of the Kinnock speech from 20 years ago.
One would have thought that a TV pundit would have been delighted to share a substantive discussion of critical national importance with a "serious" presidential candidate -- as rare as that would be.
Not Russert. He clearly wasn't up for it intellectually.
Washington's neocon cabal should be forced to read GG's latest post on national TV wearing dunce caps.
Our misadventure in Iraq, like the Israelis' in Lebanon, sprang forth from the martial fantasies of those suffering from delusions of omnipotence and an incapacity for rational analysis.
It's all happened before. Barbara Tuchman's "The March of Folly" spells it out in excruciating (yet highly entertaining) detail.
..don't need no stinkin' elections.
You can always tell when Condi is lying: She apparently finds it so funny to spin those whoppers to the rubes that she can't avoid smiling -- even when discussing deadly serious topics. She seems quite amused by her own clever mendacity.
When will national economic self interest become a notion that generates political traction? A country without a strong manufacturing base is doomed to Third World status.
Much of the initial coverage about Fort Hood turned out to be wrong. Is there anything wrong with that?
The accountability imposed by another country for the CIA's kidnapping and torture reveals much about our own.
Fox News' morning show plays to type, talking about whether Muslims in the Army should face "special debriefings"
219 Democrats and one Republican join in favor of the legislation, which passed by a narrow margin
The survivor and author is upset about comparisons some on the right are making to genocide
Salon headlines in your mailbox
