By Tom Kando
Only one thing aggravates me more than the mistakes of the electorate - as exemplified by the Democratic loss in Massachusetts on January 19: The conformity and stupidity of the media chatter afterwards.
The pundits have been Monday-morning-quarter backing ever since. They got it all figured out: Take Michael Gerson, Washington Post, Jan. 22: People are angry at Obama; he must scale back health reform. Or a professor recently interviewed on NPR: People are concerned about the deficit. Or other “experts,” who see the voters’ desire for the country to move more to the center (Republicans are at the center?), or the independent voter’s opposition to more taxes, or anti-government populism; etc.,etc...
The truth is: these pundits know as much as the ancient Roman augurs knew - nothing! The goat’s entrails are dark, this means that Caesar will win the battle tomorrow.
I’ll tell you why the people of Massachusetts voted that way on January 19, and why Obama’s ratings have gone down by 20%. For only one reason: They have been bombarded with misinformation for the past 10-12 months.
In politics, only one thing talks - money. Whoever has the resources to repeat its message - including its lies - the most often to the largest number of people, wins the election. The candidate with the most money and the most sympathetic media coverage wins.
Polls don’t reflect the opinions or the will of the people. They reflect the indoctrination of the people. The people’s votes are based on misinformation.
Here are some illustrations:
1. Many people blame Obama for bailing out Wall Street. They confuse two rescue packages: TARP (the Troubled Asset Relief Program), which was the Bush-Paulson $700 billion bailout program for investment banks. And Obama’s stimulus package, the $787 billion ARRA (American Recovery and Investment Act), aimed at creating jobs and helping people with their mortgages.
2. We can still remember the widely publicized case, last year, of the old geezer who attended one of those town hall meetings with a picket sign saying, “The government should keep its hands off my medicare.”
3. On January 21, NPR had a call-in panel discussion on health care. A fellow called in and said: “I oppose Obama’s health care reform package because I don’t want the government to take on another massive program.”
The NPR panelists could have reminded him and millions of listeners that he was misinformed, and that there was nothing governmental left in the final package being considered by Congress - no single-payer plan, not even a public option. But they didn’t. And so, the lies live on. The Democrats’ near-capitulation to the Insurance Industry got them nothing in return, not even a better informed public, a public which understands that “socialized medicine” has long been off the table.
4. Recently, a college student was quoted in the Sacramento Bee saying that it is “unconstitutional to force someone to buy something he doesn’t want, namely health insurance.” So then, mandatory car insurance, home insurance, fire and flood insurance, clothing in public, motor cycle helmets, etc. these things are all unconstitutional?
5. Pregnancy is a pre-existing condition which can prevent a woman from obtaining health insurance. A few years ago, a young female friend of mine was pregnant. She had no insurance. Delivery and pre- and post-natal care of her baby would cost more than thousand dollars, which she didn’t have. She really wanted the child, but given the situation, she had no choice but to abort. This should please the right-wingers who sank health care reform.
Here is an idea for the insurance companies and for the congressmen in their pockets: Be consistent. Since all fertile women are potentially pregnant, why not declare that they all suffer from a pre-existing condition, and deny all women health insurance?
Well, you get my point: Absurdity. leave comment here
14 comments:
Well since you're essentially repeating the same argument you made in your blog entry "Out of the Frying Pan into the Fire", I'll just repeat my comment to that entry: "Tom,
words cannot describe my enjoyment in watching your growing frustration!"
Anonymous,
The purpose of this blog is to encourage dialogue among citizens in America and Europe, so that we can learn new perspectives. We have all agreed to respectfully agree or disagree. However, your childish entries like these are a waste of everyone's time, including your own. Taunting Tom is neither informative, respectful or interesting. You need to grow up. And if you don't have anything productive to offer, please leave this blog.
Tom
You and Jan Q decry the “ignorant” for watching FOX News. I don’t believe it’s a question of lies; it’s just a question of perspective. We on the right don’t trust the main stream media, so I check both the FOX and CNN web sites during the day for both a left and right perspective. It’s on days like this that you see FOX cover Obama chicanery that CNN and other main stream media won’t touch (check the networks tonight and your newspaper tomorrow to see whether this is covered):
"Obama Administration Steers Lucrative No-Bid Contract for Afghan Work to Dem Donor"
The Obama administration this month awarded a $25 million federal contract for work in Afghanistan to a company owned by a prominent Democratic campaign contributor without entertaining competitive bids, Fox News has learned.
Despite President Obama's long history of criticizing the Bush administration for "sweetheart deals" with favored contractors, the Obama administration this month awarded a $25 million federal contract for work in Afghanistan to a company owned by a Democratic campaign contributor without entertaining competitive bids, Fox News has learned.
The contract, awarded on Jan. 4 to Checchi & Company Consulting, Inc., a Washington-based firm owned by economist and Democratic donor Vincent V. Checchi, will pay the firm $24,673,427 to provide "rule of law stabilization services" in war-torn Afghanistan…"That's kind of weird," said another source, who has worked on "rule of law" issues in both Afghanistan and Iraq, about the no-bid contract to Checchi & Company. "There's lots of companies and non-governmental organizations that do this sort of work."
…
As a candidate for president in 2008, then-Sen. Obama frequently derided the Bush administration for the awarding of federal contracts without competitive bidding.
"I will finally end the abuse of no-bid contracts once and for all," the senator told a Grand Rapids audience on Oct. 2. "The days of sweetheart deals for Halliburton will be over when I'm in the White House."
Less than two months after he was sworn into office, President Obama signed a memorandum that he claimed would "dramatically reform the way we do business on contracts across the entire government."
Tom
You state that people are confusing TARP (Bush/Paulson/Geithner) with ARRA (Obama/Summers/Geithner) and that is contributing to Obama’s falling numbers. In actual fact they don’t like ARRA, from today’s CNN:
Washington (CNN) -- Nearly three out of four Americans think that at least half of the money spent in the federal stimulus plan has been wasted, according to a new national poll.
A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation survey released Monday morning also indicates that 63 percent of the public thinks that projects in the plan were included for purely political reasons and will have no economic benefit, with 36 percent saying those projects will benefit the economy.
Twenty-one percent of people questioned in the poll say nearly all the money in the stimulus has been wasted, with 24 percent feeling that most money has been wasted and an additional 29 percent saying that about half has been wasted. Twenty-one percent say only a little has been wasted and 4 percent think that no stimulus dollars have been wasted.
"One reason why the economic stimulus bill is no longer popular with the American public is the perception that a lot of the money has been wasted. Six in 10 believe that the projects in the stimulus bill were included for purely political reasons," said CNN Polling Director Keating Holland.
"Nearly three-quarters believe that at least half the stimulus money spent so far has been wasted, and one in five say nearly all of it has been a waste," Holland said.
According to a CNN poll released Sunday, 56 percent of the public opposes the stimulus, with 42 percent supportive of the plan. Last March, just weeks after the stimulus bill was signed into law by President Obama, a CNN survey indicated that 54 percent supported the program, with 44 percent opposed.
The program, formally known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, attempts to stimulate the country's economy by increasing federal spending and cutting taxes at a total cost to the government of $787 billion. No Republicans in the House of Representatives and only three in the Senate voted in favor of the bill.
The CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll was conducted January 8-10, with 1,021 adult Americans questioned by telephone. The survey's sampling error is plus or minus 3 percentage points.
Jack Cafferty on CNN posed the question today "Why has Obama become such a polarizing figure?"
One commentator offered the following astute observation:"I never thought Obama was ready for this job and after reading"Game Change," my belief is more firm. Opportunity presented itself and he took advantage of the circumstances. Compare it to Conan taking on "Tonight Show." He just wasn't ready for it and his ratings reflected this."
Anon,.... and so what is it that made GW Bush so ready to lead the nation? He struggled with alcoholism and drug abuse; he simply road on his dad's coattails. Daddy exempted him from military service and provided the campaign funds he needed to get elected Gov of TX. The man couldn't make a single speech without mangling his words. And you think someone who was achieved the position of President of the Harvard Law Review, was a constitutional scholar and law professor, and Senator -- who achieved all this on his OWN merit somehow is LESS prepared for the job of the Presidency? Huh?
"Anonymous",
You reveal the ignorance that we on the left see in FOX News' by your statement that you "don't trust the mainstream media". The belief underlying that statement, and shared with many FOX adherents, is that any source that is not explicitly right wing is left wing. You don't believe in a "center". We on the left certainly don't consider CNN to be left wing. If you think that, you have no idea what the left really has to say.
A group that says to it's believers that all other sources of information are suspect, and that only they reveal the truth is a cult -- like the Jonestown cult. You express pride in your FOXtown cult. I'll admit that this isn't ignorance based on stupidity, it's a willfull ignorance stemming from an unwillingness to live in a democracy.
I love it...this is like ringing Pavlov's bell.
Remember when Lyndon Johnson said "“If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost America.” Take a look at Jimmy Carter 2.0's chief New York Times cheerleader Bob Herbert's editorial today ( http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/26/opinion/26herbert.html ). Starting to come apart at the seams - how sweet.
An excellent piece, in thought and expression.
It is painful that there are so few remedies on the horizon.
Amen, Brother.
I agree with what you are saying. American history is full of episodes of "know nothings" flying off the handle and causing no end of trouble that could have been avoided with only a modicum of rational thinking and behavior.
"I think, therefore I am. . . rational".
P.S. I too love shouting into a vacuum. That's why I blog at http://hangininsac.blogspot.com/.
I don't stay on subject and often I am not serious. I don't proofread as much as I obviously should.
Given that warning, feel free to read.
Steve and Dave:
I posted this same comment on Steve's own blog. We both seem to be shouting into a vacuum. I read somewhere that, "those who quit never win, those who win never quit, and those who never win and never quit are idiots." Mmmmm...
I am in a pessimistic mood, like Dave, but only temporarily.
Tom:
I read your report on the Misinformation Society and thought it good and share your views - as I am a progressive thinker. I give small contributions to the Democratic causes, but I do not attend rallies or meetings any longer. I am not happy with the conservative approach and have lost friends over issues. Thus I stay quiet. At my stage of life I want to keep my stomach from turmoil. Anyway, keep up the good work and I hope you change some minds.
Anonymous,
thank you for your support. This blog gives us something to do,and maybe it makes an educational contribution. We hope for the best.
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