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McTosh
Anyone who thinks they know anything about US politics based on the coverage given by the US mainstream media should urgently read this article. Jamison Foser is always excellent in his media analysis, and nowhere more so than here.
One campaign is talking bilgewater (e.g., and from a long long list, Iran is accused of aiding Sunnis), and much of the mainstream media is basically stenographing this crap. The other campaign is trying to make this a proper debate about the future the US -- and the world -- should have. The first campaign is whingeing about unfair media treatment, despite the facts on the ground. The second is saying little on the subject.
See? I'm not biased. I'm not saying which campaign is which.
no subject
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/07/26/mccain-feeling-a-little-left-out/
Well, boo hoo.
You are right about the American media being completely useless. Time Magazine sometimes offers a worthwhile article, but mostly it's all a wasteland. One way to get accurate information is to watch Fox News, then just assume the opposite of evertyhing they say is true. This technique is surprisingly effective, though there are side effects, including, but not limited to: nausea, headaches, impotency, depression, despair, and fits of uncontrollable rage. Not really worth it.
I tend to get most of my news from comedians these days; Daily Show, Colbert Report, various youtube satires -- you can actually find some interesting truth kernels through these outlets. But yes, I should really get into the habit of watching the BBC.
You are completely right in your assessment of "freedom" in American. It's not just an illusion, it's a sales pitch. It's how they get the downtrodden and poor to vote against their own best interests again and again.
We love to delcare ourselves the "most free" country on earth, knowing full well that the nation was built on the back of slaves. In America;
Freedom = not currently enslaved or incarcerated.
The American dream still exists, but most misinterpret its meaning or are too meek and fearful to try.
Everything about America's corporate driven reality discourages any attempt at the American dream. If you don't get in line with the rest of the corporate drones, you will not be able to afford healthcare for you and your family. Your credit score will be ruined, preventing you from buying a house. It's extortion.
Our national slogan might as well be:
The American Dream: I dare you to even try, motherfuckers!
The nation has been brainwashed to value convenience above all else. There is a great desire to avoid looking directly at whatever unpleasant truth that may interrupt our collective bovine complacency.
People don't want improvement, they want sameness. They don't mind if their basic human rights are slowly stripped from them, as long as it's done slowly enough that they hardly notice, and that it doesn't obviously interfere with their daily routines.
This country is standing on a precipice and doesn't seem to notice. It's fucking astounding.
no subject
"This country is standing on a precipice and doesn't seem to notice."
This amazes me, too. (See my second note in reply to sci_o_biscuits, above.) Even most of those who're desperate to see the back of Il Buce and despise his near-clone Il McBuce seem to think the current disaster is just, like, well, sort of a bump in the road: nothing too much to get worried about. There's no appreciation of the potentially historic -- or end-of-historic -- nature of the times we're living in. This may be the end for decades or centuries of the "democratic experiment" so far as the US is concerned. Of course, even that apprehension could be a trivium alongside what climate change may do to human civilization as a whole.
The biggest lesson of history is probably: There's no going back. There must have been imperial Romans who thought the Barbarians at the gate were nothing more than a temporary misfortune, easy enough to sort out, normal service will soon be resumed . . .