Letters to the Editor
Published Letters: 238 Editor's Choice: 14
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The "post party" gong show, what about the money?
[Read the article: David Halberstam on today's American press]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]Quite scathing and sharp--yummy. And, in case you were curious, Digby had the goods on the post-party reveling that is, in a word, disgusting. And these and their ilk claim to represent "journalism?"
- http://digbysblog.blogspot.com/2007/04/lil-polskas-by-digby-awww.html
I'm wondering, Mr. G, about the implications of this shift from journalism of responsibility to simply following the all-mighty dollar--how that plays out. I'm thinking it basically boils down to two choices: We are either an entertainment/money oriented society, or we are a real republic/representative democracy. In light of this scathing illumination of the state of the media, there doesn't seem to be much middle ground. It's looking to me like we need, collectively, to blow up our televisions. The ratings game rots away journalistic integrity, does it not?
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The Case for Bush "hearts" Bin Laden is even stronger than that...
[Read the article: The Pat Tillman and Jessica Lynch frauds]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]nlacy,
When I took the time to read the full text of Bin Laden's Letter to America I was struck at how complicit Bush has been in giving Bin Laden exactly what he prayed for--far more than anyone would suppose.
The letter starts out with rants against US corruption, dishonesty, decadent lifestyle, blah, blah. But after that, the meat of the letter is Bin Laden trying to provoke a war of religion between Islam and the USA. He mentions how fighting Islam on "native" soil would cause the world to join against the USA in brining about our demise. This is, incredibly, precisely what has happened, is it not?
All of Mr. Marshalls points are certainly valid, but in the context of Bin Laden's own words, they take on additional weight.
- http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,845724,00.html
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a star for booourns & roxannewalker
[Read the article: The Bill Moyers documentary on our failed and barren press]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]You both eloquently describe the same thing, from refreshinly distant perspectives. The corporate wolves leading the sheep out of the watchful realm of Tom Paine's "free & fair press..."
from the age of reason to a new dark age of media charlatans, self-righteous, well-connected baboons, suckling pigs on the teat of all-mighty bongo buck...wolves in pig clothing
I realize now that both parties (certainly the GOP to a more transparent extent) have been complicit. After all, they were the first to drink the kool-aide (in the war-on-drugs run-up to the war-on-terr). The irony here being that the lack of "nuance" exhibited by currant occupant more rapidly exposed all this, or at least gives us urgent motive to do so....
Lord help us,
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Roughly the same percentage believe in UFOs
[Read the article: Various items]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]About 20% or 24% of the population believes in UFOs. The answers vary from about 8% "definitely believing in UFOs being manned by extra-terrertrials" to 24% believing "UFOs are probably spaceships from other worlds."
Hmmm. That has me wondering if there might be a litmus test question, where we could ask "do you believe the earth might be flat" and get a strong correlation to "are you a Bushie?"
How about "do you breath thru sand for a substantial amount of time every day?" or "have you successfully managed to restrict the amount of oxygen-flow to your brain?"
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@NotOrbit
[Read the article: Last refuge of the scoundrel]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]How many Iraqis will die? Probably 100K the day after we pull out, probably 500K within the next 3 months. After that, it's anyone's guess, with lots of options for peace-keeping, by nations like India and Pakistan. We will, of course, have to foot the bill--it is, after all, our mess now.
And it makes not one bit of difference if we pull out tomorrow, August 31st or February of 2009. We are in the midst of an insurrection of attrition between two (or 3) religious factions, both well funded, well supplied and highly motivated. Our presence there over-shadows their common interests and gives them a common enemy, but does nothing to stabalize the situation.
So, back at you, why are we there. What is your point?
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anyone who thinks Mr. Kurth deserved what he got
[Read the article: At her majesty's pleasure]
[Read more letters about this article: Here]should be willing to place yourself in his position.
These reactions remind me of how far we have fallen. It really doesn't seem all that long ago when aribitrary detention, torture, murder, etc. were universally considered illegal and immoral. Today our "government" actively conspires to commit these crimes in the name of some stupid "war," and we build black prisons and facilities in which to carry out these crimes with tax-payer's money. Would that my taxes go to tearing down such dark structures.
- http://www.nybooks.com/articles/20056
What we have in US prisons today is a total nightmare. We have over 2 million citizens incarcerated today, close to 5 million in the "judicial" system. We have industries and political lobbies devoted to funding/building more prisons. The "war on drugs" is a warm up for the "war on terr," a war against an abstract enemy of ourselves, a war of attrition, an unwinnable war. The most profitable business is the business of war (which is where the Nobel Peace Prize originates).
It sickens me what happened to Mr. Kurth. I applaud him for speaking out about this horrific episode. God knows, there, but for the grace of God go I, and any of you who think he deserved it need to realize you are part of the problem, part of the disease.
Does that self-righteous feeling really work for you? What else are you willing to make a war over? How about your religion? your money? your political party?
This sounds like something out of the dark ages.