Political discourse in America: Who’s to blame???!!!
Is Fox News to blame? Is MSNBC to blame? Is Beck to blame? Is Palin to blame? On and on and on and on.
First of all, we should be asking ourselves, are WE to blame for political discourse going south? We’re the ones who elect officials. We’re the ones who give TV show ratings. We’re the ones who drive to work every morning and listen to talk radio.
Fox News leans conservative, we know this, but why are they getting ALL the ratings? It’s not just because conservatives are watching it. liberals, moderates, and conservatives watch Fox News. Liberals watch it to get fodder for their blogs. Moderates, like me, watch it for the entertainment value. And conservatives watch it, cause watching Glenn Beck cry is, to conservatives, the equivalent of a 12 year old boy finding free internet porn on his parent’s computer. They can’t get enough.
What is the real draw to conservative stations? In a word: entertainment. If it wasn’t entertaining, we wouldn’t be watching or listening. Even liberals have to admit, you would rather listen to Sean Hannity than Al Franken. Now, Al may have something interesting to say, but Sean is gonna get you angry about something and push a few buttons.
On a side note, It’s funny that liberals watch Fox News and listen to conservative talk radio, so they can have a rebuttal. Conservatives used to be called the “Reactionaries”, but not today. Now conservatives call the shots, and liberals just back down and whine: “oh, if I were there, I’d give you such a pinch!!!”.
Politics is like sports, and the “talking heads” in the media are like sports commentators. Fox News and conservative talk radio understand that notion.
Let me give you an example, here are two morning stories that aired the same time in 2010: CNN is having a special interest story about rescued Chilean miners, oh, but on Fox news, they are having a dance expo, starring the Jet Girl cheerleaders. Which channel would YOU watch? Really? Don’t give me a “political” answer. Thank you, I thought so. Whether you’re as conservative as Rush Limbaugh or as liberal as Michael Moore, let’s face it: BOOBS are the GREAT EQUALIZER!!! As Confucius once said: “Where there is cleavage, there is balance.”* And I, as a moderate, would be right there with ya, fellas.
But let's get back to our discussion. We are adding to the distraction in the media today. To quote Shakespeare’s Cassius, “The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, But in ourselves.”** And I would agree, although, instead of Brutus blaming astrology, I would say, “The fault, dear America, is not in our celebrity stars or political pundits, but in ourselves”. Why do celebrities get away with it? Why do political ideologues get away with it? Because, we are letting them.
We have freedom of speech in this country, but we also have a freedom just as invaluable: it’s called FREEDOM OF SWITCH!!!
JUST TURN IT OFF!!!!
If you don’t like what they say, turn it off. But we can’t turn it off. It’s human nature to be drawn towards competition, aggression, conflict, and silliness.
And it’s also a guy’s nature to be drawn to attractive news anchors. Does Rupert Murdoch really own Fox News or is it Hugh Hefner? I forget sometimes.
It’s all show business folks. So, before we start trying to have everyone retract their statements, lets not even give them a chance to speak into our ears. Out of sight, out of mind. Just turn it off.
Change the channel, turn that radio dial, erase that news internet page from your “favorites” list.
If John Lennon was around today, he would probably add another verse to his classic song, Imagine: “Imagine no 24-hour news stations…I wonder if you can”.
Amen, Mr. Lennon, amen.
Notes:
*I don’t think Confucius said that—don’t quote me on it!
**From Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Don’t Google it, go out and read it!!!
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