MARCH MEDIA MADNESS

The shameless political exploitation of that poor Florida woman and her family is only the most recent example of how the politicians are feeding the media circus. In an unconstitutional power play to trample the clearly defined line between the judicial and legislative branches of our government, congress has declared that a person’s life and/or death is a matter for them to decide.

They can’t agree on how to fund Social Security or Medicare, how to bring our soldiers back from Iraq, how to solve the energy problem or how to reverse downward spiral of the economy, but somehow this very personal matter comes to the top of the agenda.

Note to Congress: IT’S NONE OF YOUR DAMN BUSINESS!

Note to the corporate media: IT’S NONE OF OUR DAMN BUSINESS!

Time was when the news was provided as a public service from those who were issued licenses to use “the public airwaves”. I vaguely remember hearing somewhere that we, the people owned the airwaves. Whatever happened to that idea?

Here’s what I think the problem is: The big corporate media conglomerations bought up all the little guys. Now a handful of giants own everything, including the FCC. “News” programs have become just another branch of the entertainment industry and must sell products and compete for ratings, just like the sitcoms and the so-called “reality”shows. (If that’s reality, I’ll stick with my hallucinations, thank you).

We share some of the blame. No news is good news and nobody wants to hear that Joe Blow made it home from the office without incident. It’s a fact – murder and mayhem sells newspapers and boosts ratings. Nobody watches NASCAR to see rednecks driving around in circles. They want to see spectacular accidents. I confess a guilty pleasure in watching “World’s Wildest Police Videos” for the sheer joy of seeing some drunk kiss a tree at high speed. We can’t help it. The Romans had nothing on us for spectator sports.

So, here’s my solution: News broadcasts should not be sponsored or rated. That way, there may not be the media stampede to be there first with the most disgusting story. Maybe we wouldn’t have to hear about Michael Jackson or Scott Peterson or Robert Blake or that poor Florida woman every five minutes for weeks and weeks. (I refuse to use that poor woman’s name – we shouldn’t even know it).

There is enough depressing real news out there about things that matter: world politics, war, economy, environment, natural disasters, etc. Can’t we stay out of people’s lives while they struggle with very personal problems?

I repeat: IT’S NONE OF OUR DAMN BUSINESS!

SOCIAL INSECURITY

I must be a socialist. I didn’t know I was one until quite recently. Maybe it was when the Bush administration started cutting veterans benefits. Or maybe it was when they handed the Medicare program to the drug industry and insurance companies. Perhaps it was when they made it harder for people to file for bankruptcy. Now they want to gut the Social Security program. I should have seen this coming.

In this “through the looking glass” black-is-white world of reverse Robin Hood, where stealing from the poor and giving to the rich is standard procedure, nothing should surprise me. How these people can sit there in front of the TV cameras with a straight face and say the outrageous things they are saying is just unbelievable! They must be laughing their asses off like fraternity brothers at a hazing in private. Like the old Soviet Union, they want to erase FDR’s new deal from the history books. It never happened, folks! There never was a time when we cared about those less fortunate or tried to give a hand up to the people at the bottom of the ladder. The ladder has been pulled up to the boys-only tree house of the Bush gang. All others need not apply.

Tax breaks are only for the wealthy and the mega-corporations that line the pockets of those in power. Health care is only for those who can afford it. A good education is only for those who can send their children to private schools. Retirement is only for those who have screwed the shareholders out of their hard-earned money. It’s the good-old-boy club – back with a vengeance. Back to the days of the robber barons and the sweatshops, of unregulated greed and rampant disregard for the people who do the real work and make the money for the corporations who then raid the pension and move offshore, where they pay no taxes but get tax breaks nonetheless.

It just pisses me off! Why are there not people in the streets, demanding some kind of accounting for these injustices? Where are our elected representatives? Who are they representing? Where is the press? Have they been bought out by the powers that be? I’m not one of these paranoid people who see conspiracies behind every tree. I’m not moving to Idaho and stocking up on weapons. I don’t see black helicopters over my house. I’m just a blue-collar union guy who worked in an auto plant for over thirty years and wants to live out my retirement in peace without worrying if my pension or insurance will still be there when I need it. I completed my part of the deal and now it’s time to collect the benefits. What about those just entering the workforce? What will be there for them? I wonder….

Politics and Religion

There’s an old saying that you should never discuss politics or religion. Actually, I find both subjects interesting topics for discussion. But not together. Like meat and dairy in a kosher diet, the two should never be allowed to touch each other.

I come from a vaguely Christian background. I was subjected to endless hours of Sunday school, Bible school, etc. and have a general idea of the religion and its beliefs. I have friends who are Christian, good people who believe and live their lives in accordance. I respect them and their beliefs. I also respect Islam, Buddhism and any other belief system that teaches people to be nice to each other. I just do not share them.

Having said that, I must now address the problem of religious fanatics attempt to impose their beliefs on the rest of us. Whether they are the Taliban, the Vatican or the Christian Coalition, it’s a bad idea . I believe in freedom of religion. I also believe in the freedom FROM religion. Some things should be voluntary.

This country was founded by people escaping persecution by government-sponsored religion. It would be ironic if we ended up right back where we started. If you don’t like gay marriage, don’t marry anyone of your gender. If you think abortion is wrong, don’t get one, but you have no right to tell everyone else what not to do based on your personal beliefs.

So, go to your church or temple or mosque and pray to your god – whatever gets you through the night. Just leave me the hell alone!

Hunter S Thompson

Hunter S Thompson

My introduction to Thompson was through articles in Rolling Stone back in the 70's. A couple of his books were excerpted, including "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" and "Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail 1972", my personal favorite. I had never read anything like it. A mix of fact and the fertile drug-induced imagination of Thompson, the reader never quite knew what was real. I believe this was the desired effect, but that is just a guess on my part. When interviewed, Thompson proved as elusive and confusing as Bob Dylan about his style and substance.

His campaign for Sheriff of Pitkin County, Colorado was also a highlight. Home of Aspen and of Thompson, the "freak" vote almost elected him. Among other platform planks, he suggested changing Aspen's name to "Fat City".

His writing and his personal life were outrageous. He was the inspiration for the "Uncle Duke" character in the Doonesbury comic strip. Although somewhat a shadow of his former self in recent years, he still had the sharp satirical wit whenever discussing politicians. An avowed Nixon-hater, some of his best quotes are about Tricky Dick:

"Richard Nixon has never been one of my favorite people anyway. For years I've regarded his existence as a monument to all the rancid genes and broken chromosones that corrupt the possibilities of the American Dream; he was a foul caricature of himself, a man with no soul, no inner convictions, with the integrity of a hyena and the style of a poison toad. The Nixon I remembered was absolutely humorless; I couldn't imagine him laughing at anything except maybe a paraplegic who wanted to vote Democratic but couldn't quite reach the lever on the voting machine."

However, he compared GWB to Nixon this way:"Richard Nixon looks like a flaming liberal today, compared to a golem like George Bush. Indeed. Where is Richard Nixon now that we finally need him?" "Nixon was a professional politician, and I despised everything he stood for -- but if he were running for president this year against the evil Bush-Cheney gang, I would happily vote for him."

For whatever reason, Thompson decided to end his life with a bullet to the brain. Rest in peace, Hunter. We'll not see the likes of you again.