Martha and Michael...my rant...

THis is a rant that I just emailed to an assortment of friends and associates.  Would it make a difference if everyone who cared did something like this?

ARRGGHHH!

While I admit to being mildly interested in Martha and (to an even lesser extent) Michael, I am appalled, APPALLED, to the degree with which the news media is abandoning its duty to inform the public.

Last night when I went to bed, the news media had followed Martha from her release from prison, to the airport where she boarded her private jet.  I awoke to footage news cameras had shot of Martha, newly arrived home, IN HER HOUSE, IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT!

All week its been all Martha and Michael, with a little BTK mixed in.

In the meantime, did you know that....

1. As of yesterday, 1502 US soldiers had died in Iraq.

2. Earlier in the week, over 100 iraqi soliers, policemen and civilians were killed in ONE suicide bomb attack.

3. The senate is in the process of passing legislation that will take away much of the bankruptcy protections we have had, rejecting amendments that would protect those who suffer financial hardship due to catastrophic medical bills, loss of a job, etc.

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/national/AP-Bankruptcy.html
http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/vote_menu_109_1.htm

Congress has, in the past, refused to reign in the banks and credit card companies, allowing them to gouge consumers with interest and fees.  Why did they do this? Because they care more about the banking lobbyist who finance their campaigns, then they care about your well being.

4. That fed chairman, Alan Greenspan, prefers to cut the ever increasing federal budget deficit by cutting medicare, medicaid and social security, rather than reversing the rather generous tax cuts given to the wealthy.

Four years ago, Greenspan said the country was in "imminent danger of paying off too much debt".
HUH???

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/04/opinion/04krugman.html?ex=1110603600&en=822ca6e8b5256cdc&e i=5070

5.  A right wing organization, who slimed John Kerry with lies about his military service is now attacking the AARP, saying, essentially, that the AARP is "anti-soldier" and "pro gay marriage".  Why?  Because the AARP has the audacity to disagree with the president's social security plan.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/25/opinion/25krugman.html?ex=1110085200&en=469ddb6e894ddd75&e i=5070

http://www.latimes.com/business/investing/la-na-briefs3.1mar03,1,4561335.story?coll=la-headlines-bus iness-invest

6. Bush has resubmitted 7 previously rejected judicial nominees for confirmation, including one William Myers III, who has a history as a lobbyist for the Cattle and Mining Industries.

If he gets a case involving the mining industries failure to follow environmental laws, how do you think he's going to rule?  If he gets a case involving laws the cattle industry must follow to prevent the spread of "mad cow" disease, how do you think he's going to rule?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A61310-2005Feb28.html

7. The "family values" President has allowed a gay male prostitute using a phony name access to the white house press room for over two years, apparantly because he was willing to spew their propoganda and toss the prez and his press secretary softball questions when they were backed into a corner by the regular media.

Had this happened under Clinton, he would have been impeached AND executed.

Meanwhile, actual members of the media such as Maureen Dowd, have been denied access to the white house press room.

I've been hired several times by news organizations to cover presidential visits to Oklahoma and I always had to submit my social security number for a background check.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/212561_gannon18.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/17/opinion/17dowd.html

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE pay attention to what congress and the president are doing.  

This is just one week's worth of news.(OK, the male prostitute story is older, but you get the idea).  

And, hey, maybe you heard about it because, after all, it involves SEX.  

Congress is passing legislation on a weekly basis that could be to your detriment, or to the detriment of someone you love.  

Unfortunately, you have to go to the NY Times, Washington Post or the LA Times to find out what is going on.  You aren't going to read about it in your local newspaper or see it on your local tv news broadcast.  

Your representatives in congress will continue to pass legislation that benefits their corporate pimps, until the people they serve rise up and demand a stop to it. Your local news providers will not cover it until you demand it.

I know its not as interesting as Martha or Michael, but your quality of life could depend on knowing it.

Thanks, I feel better now.

•  By the media, do you mean CNN

  I'm glad Martha got welcomed after serving an unjust sentence. It didn't rise up to a media stake out but that's how competitive and cloned corporate media is today. News became entertainment a long time ago.

  I don't put much faith in New York Times, WaPo or LA Times.

  I prefer SF Chronicle, Village Voice, The Nation, Raw Story, Salon.com, Democracy Now, Air America Radio, NPR.

  by Agathena on Fri Mar 04, 2005 at 04:53:05 PM PDT

  •  well....

    
    The NYTIMES, LATIMES and WA-PO may not be perfect, but they do cover these stories, that our local Oklahoma papers and network affiliates usually will not.

    My original email was to ordinary people, many who are not polically savvy, and/or are not news junkies, so I mentioned sources that would be familiar and credible to them.  

    by lrhoke on Fri Mar 04, 2005 at 04:59:32 PM PDT

  •  by the way...

    I like Martha also, and feel she was made a scapegoat.  But the fact is, that many of these celebrity stories are dominating news covereage at the expense of stories that, in reality, should be more important to the average person.

    by lrhoke on Fri Mar 04, 2005 at 05:01:21 PM PDT

    •  Of course you are right

      News = entertainment = escapism

      The stories that you say are important, and they are, are stories that many people are trying to escape.

      I used to think that people were ignoring stories about environmental degredation but then I found out they knew about it and they were avoiding the truth. They didn't want to talk about it.

      News media gives them what they want in order to get those commercials aimed at them.

      There are days, when the news gets so bad, that I put on a movie to forget everything. And I'm a news junkie.

      I applaud your attempt to get people on the right track with news priorities though.

      by Agathena on Fri Mar 04, 2005 at 05:31:01 PM PDT

•  Martha, Prison and Drug Policy reform

  Back at Christmas, she sent out a letter, insightfully critical of the Drugwar, the Prisons, and our overall Class and Race based Judicial system, and vowing a continuing advocacy once released.  If she follows through, she will be a powerful voice.
  

  by ben masel on Fri Mar 04, 2005 at 06:46:14 PM PDT