VIDEO COMPILATION: The Assault On Reason, Paris Hilton Edition
VIDEO COMPILATION: The Assault On Reason, Paris Hilton Edition
The media’s latest “serial obsession” focuses on Paris Hilton’s jail sentence. On Friday, MSNBC abruptly cut away from coverage of Gen. Peter Pace’s replacement (with producers screaming in the background) to return to Paris Hilton. A CNN anchor proudly called the station “the most trusted name in Paris news,” and during Friday’s broadcast of Katie Couric’s CBS Evening News, “the Paris Hilton ‘news’ got more coverage on CBS than a roadside bomb killing a U.S. soldier, the immigration legislation, and passage of the stem-cell bill combined — times two.”
ThinkProgress has compiled some lowlights of the media’s Paris coverage. Watch it:
Even Paris Hilton realizes that the media’s priorities are misplaced. Last night, she issued a statement to the media asking that they stop focusing on her, and start focusing “on more important things”:
I must also say that I was shocked to see all of the attention devoted to the amount of time I would spend in jail for what I had done by the media, public and city officials. I would hope going forward that the public and the media will focus on more important things, like the men and women serving our country in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places around the world.
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Paris Hilton news is a distraction from Bush’s criminal activities in Iraq.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:47 pmThe temperture in hell just dropped — Paris Hilton has a little bit of common sense.
I feel all weird and dizzy…
Let’s move along….like she said.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:48 pmHEY LOOK WE’RE TP,
WE GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THIS STUPID ASS WHORE!!!!
WE CARE SOOOOOOO MUCH, THAT, WE THINK WE’LL WASTE A THREAD ON THE BITCH EVERYDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
June 10th, 2007 at 12:48 pm!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!11
I skipped this story after seeing the subject. Come on people, this is not an important subject in the scheme of current events.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:49 pmThis is the Bread & Circuses of a rotten Empire. Drunken drivers get 45 days all the time and no one in the media takes note. Children go missing all over the USA, but few get any media coverage unless they’re a white debutante partying in Aruba.
This is news without consequences. One doesn’t have to do anything about Paris Hilton, she just is. But the war in Iraq and stemcell research involve politics and in a democracy people can actually do something –indeed, they are obliged to do something.
That’s why you see more and more of these Non Sequitor stories. Lindsey Lohan, how sad! Jen and Jolie –catfight! But don’t ask about Global Warming, or immigration, or poison food from China. We like to cry in our quasi-organic beer, but don’t ask us to do anything about anything.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:53 pmyup.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:55 pmI think that the fact that the media seems to find Paris more important than the men and women who are dying in Iraq is important.
For the first time since I started watching Countdown I almost turned it off when Keith opened his show with Paris. One could tell that he was not doing this willingly and that he was rather pissed. I watched just to see how much time they forced him to devote to Paris. It turned out to be approximately 1/3 of his hour show.
Shame on MSNBC and the rest of the stations who call themselves “news” programs.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:55 pmMy favorite bit was cutting away from their Paris coverage for a couple seconds with news from the pentagon. Pretty much says everything really.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:56 pmAll doubt has now been removed. The news networks are in reality, entertainment networks. The only reason Paris is coming forward and telling the press to leave her alone is because they took pictures of her without her makeup. Get real.
June 10th, 2007 at 12:58 pm“This pretty much ranks right up there as one of the most outrageous scenarios ever. . . ” some moron on, I think, Fox in the clips. The only thing that’s outrageous about it is that you morons on the networks turn a two-paragraph story into hours and hours of media coverage. Bread and circuses.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:00 pm…
…
…
You know your news media is totally in shambles when PARIS HILTON has a valid point against their shamelessness.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:09 pmBREAD AND CIRCUSES!!!! Entertainment for the masses, diverting them from any critical thinking. Time to turn the lions loose upon the Christians.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:11 pmThe temperture in hell just dropped — Paris Hilton has a little bit of common sense.
Comment by Zooey
You know your news media is totally in shambles when PARIS HILTON has a valid point against their shamelessness.
Comment by Kryptik
No kidding…..
And MR. Preznuttroll, please take your meds. Your insanity is showing in your posts today.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:17 pmKeith should run a parallel to his “worse,” “worser,” “worst.” segment and, basing it on stories covered by the nets and cables label it “sick,”
June 10th, 2007 at 1:17 pm“sicker,” “sickest.”
Who, in their right mind (media don’t count) gives a flying rat’s ass about this rich bitch and what happens to her? ENOUGH ALREADY!
When Paris Hilton gives the MSN the smackdown for stupidity, the world as we know it has officially ended.
Lady liberty lost her crown. And we, the people, are just lost in the trivialities of what the media deems important.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:25 pmI don’t understand why the media is getting condemned for this. I mean, it really isn’t their fault. Their job is to attract as many viewers as possible in order to make the maximum profit. Go to any MSM news site (Yahoo news, CNN, MSNBC, etc) and look at what the most viewed or most emailed stories are. That’ll tell you all you need to know…..blame the average uninformed, non prioritizing American
June 10th, 2007 at 1:26 pmParis Hilton & Iraqi Prisoners
The US military is holding 19000 Iraqis, 16000 of them at Bucca. Although most are guerrillas or their helpers, a lot of them were picked up because they were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Once arrested, an inmate often cannot clear himself for months or years. I don’t think they have access to attorneys. No one cares if they are depressed. At Abu Ghraib earlier on, some inmates were systematically tortured. It is unlear if all such practices have ceased.
Some Iraqi women have been held in this way. Some were essentially hostages, taken to make them reveal where their husbands or fathers were or to guarantee their good behavior. Their reputations were shot, since Iraqis think Americans are sex fiends and wouldn’t trust the virtue of a woman who had been in their custody. The unmarried among them are likely doomed to be spinsters.
http://www.juancole.com/
June 10th, 2007 at 1:31 pmAmerican television never mentions that the US has 19000 Iraqis in jail, or that some have been women, or that some are innocent, or how they feel about being in prison.
So is Paris Hilton being given special treatment by our media? We all are, folks.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:32 pmComment by SP — June 10, 2007 @ 1:26 pm
Problem is…the Media’s constant coverage of it feeds, and sometimes even creates the public fervor over these figures, and then uses that coverage and response as justification for covering it MORE.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:34 pmJust like the sad life of Brittany Spears, this brat-rat teen idol’s life is already a “trainwreck”. The sad part is that it is mesmerizing the dummed down american public as it is - or is it? Perhaps it’s mesmerizing the sycophantic whoring press who wants to divert our attention from the “serious conversation” which needs to be happening…..with pressure from the corrupt GOP, that is.
Who gives a flying rat’s a$$ about the drunken life of Paris Hilton? She’ll end up in a perpetual revolving door of booze, drugs, and rehab before she “gets it” - that is, if she’s ever able to mature properly with her family destroying her chances of surviving on her own.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:34 pmOh snap! You know something is wrong in the world when Paris Hilton actually speaks sense!
June 10th, 2007 at 1:34 pmParis Hilton is wrong. The U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan are not serving their country, they are fighting for the lies that are spewed forth by our government. Unfortunately, there are far too many people besides Ms. Hilton who believe the propaganda that is handed out by the media and those who are in charge of this country.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:35 pmBoycott all of the mainstream media! It’s clear that they do not have our best interests at heart and are wholly-owned subsidiaries of our propagandized, corrupt government.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:35 pmBy posting re Paris you are feeding the bastards that use this kind of crap to deflect from much more crucial stories! What the hell is the matter with you folks? Not enough news of importance for us unwashed?
June 10th, 2007 at 1:35 pmOh for the hell of it- lets see what else is out there:
Lieberman calling for war against Iran; rapidly growing Meat recall!; US general stating that Iraqi military won’t be ready to stand alone for a long time; and that was quick!!!!!
Paris who?? Hilton what??? Who gives a crap about this bleach-blonde airhead anyway?
June 10th, 2007 at 1:36 pmFunny, isn’t it, that conservative pundits seem to be the ones most obsessed with the Paris Hilton saga?
June 10th, 2007 at 1:37 pmHey TP buddies: Let’s hijack this thread immediately to something of substance, relevance, and importance to this country! Let’s end this insane, inane and irrlevant conversation about Trainwreck Hilton immediately.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:37 pmLet’s instead discuss the amoral war which is still being perpetuated by Congress. Let’s discuss the unnecessary deaths of our children whose lives are being sacrificed in a Civil War…..why not do that instead and show both the whoring press and the blogs who continue to spin this drivel just how important any of this Paris Hilton jibberish is to us.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:39 pmThis is how we show the world that they should admire who we are and then want to emulate us. We should all be real proud of ourselves and what we have become together as Americans since 911.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:42 pmParis Hilton has more common sense than the powers running the MSM. Just shameful.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:44 pmAfter seeing Paris’s statement, I admit that this is the first time I’ve respected her. When the stupid spoiled whore is the one pointing out the obvious instead of so-called “journalists,” it’s a sad sad day for reporting.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:48 pmI’ll say it again : The Media is Bought and Sold and are Complicit with this Crooked Adminstration.
As long as people focus on Paris Hilton, The Runaway Bride, Don Imus, Michael Jackson, Anna Nicole Smith and
are NOT OUTRAGED at the nefarious activities in The White House — these Criminal NeoCONS will continue at their Pillaging of our Constitution.
June 10th, 2007 at 1:53 pm“I would hope going forward that the public and the media will focus on more important things, like the men and women serving our country in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places around the world.”
And with this, I will have to take back most of the bad things that I have said about Paris. It seems that she “gets it.” Too bad the media won’t listen to her.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:04 pmCome on TP do an Ed and Elaine Brown story
this story is the rage at the moment
June 10th, 2007 at 2:07 pmParis Hilton. Lindsey Lohan. Anna (I’m dead, people!) Nicole-Smith. Michael Jackson. Titney Spheres. Jessica Simpson.
Now I know why I’ve resorted to watching BBC news!
The American media has become one gigantic tabloid. F*cking World War III could be well under way, but the talking heads in this country will continue to blabber on about these rich, spoiled, untalented brats first. The American media is a total joke.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:11 pmhttp://www.liveleak.com/view?i=9aa_1181346435
Ed and Elaine Brown - - come on support them
June 10th, 2007 at 2:14 pm‘I’ll say it again : The Media is Bought and Sold and are Complicit with this Crooked Adminstration.
As long as people focus on Paris Hilton, The Runaway Bride, Don Imus, Michael Jackson, Anna Nicole Smith and
are NOT OUTRAGED at the nefarious activities in The White House — these Criminal NeoCONS will continue at their Pillaging of our Constitution.’
Exactly! After all, (p)resident Chimpy himself described the Constitution as nothing more than “a goddamned piece of paper”.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:15 pmIn fairness to that CNN quote (”most trusted name in Paris news”), the host said it very much tongue-in-cheek.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:24 pmWhat is the problem?
June 10th, 2007 at 2:27 pm#
To think Gore wanted this guy for VP.
Here the wingnuts are recycling stories.
This is classic.
http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/6184.html#comments
Comment by Langx — June 10, 2007 @ 11:42 am
#
Do you think a wingnut would recycle a story as if its todays news?
Will they go to no length to misinform the faithful.
This is a classic
http://www.sadlyno.com/archives/6184.html#comments
Comment by Mike Crotch — June 10, 2007 @ 11:23 am
#
Look - a clear example of the abuse of comments by a troll who is posting under multiple names!
Please ignore Mike Crotch and Langx.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:30 pmUnless other threads are not showing up for me — is this is it for today, TP? C’mon, you don’t want to go home with this thing at the top of your blog….do you?
June 10th, 2007 at 2:32 pmas awful as the msm can be in getting their priorities in order, let’s not gic the Patron Saint of Skank too much credit; Paris didn’t mind the attention when she was a media darling. It’s only now, when people actively cheer her misfortune, that she straddles her high horse and asks if we really don’t have anything better to do.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:33 pmToday I told my boyfriend that 1) Mortgage bonds rated higher than sub-prime are starting to tank & may take the stock market with it 2) An estimated 2 million families are going to be homeless due to foreclosure 3) More than half of the mortgage lenders in Birmingham, AL have gone under 4) 1 in 20 houses in the Atlanta suburb of Clayton County are in some stage of foreclosure, and 5) the nation’s largest home builder D.R.Horton is in such bad financial condition that it may go under. ALL OF THIS IS DUE TO REPUBLICAN DEREGULATION.
His response was ” Why won’t they talk about THAT on the news ??? All they talk about is Paris Hilton. Even I can understand that these things and the War in Iraq are much more important ! Has our news media forgotten that there IS a war ???”
June 10th, 2007 at 2:35 pmBy posting re Paris you are feeding the bastards that use this kind of crap to deflect from much more crucial stories! What the hell is the matter with you folks? Not enough news of importance for us unwashed?
You’re missing the point. Like it or not, Paris Hilton going to jail is news. The problem is that the MSM will cover this story for hours and hours to the exclusion of real news - the exact point of this blog post.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:38 pmMr. President,
Take your meds. You should take your rage out on the media rather than some dimwit. She’s not running the show, she just played it (They used her for ratings. Period.). Hell, she even refused to appeal her sentence.
Everyone: Just watch PBS or listen to NPR. They’re bounds and leaps ahead of the corporate funded “press” corp. I’ve quit all the other “news” outlets. If we were a country that truly gave a damn about serious issues we wouldn’t be in this mess, but Paris (just like Dubya) is a reflection of who we are: messed the hell up.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:43 pmIt seems to me that MSM was ruined by the OJ trial. They had such riches delivered to them by this fiasco that they all grew lazy. They expected good stories to drop in their lap.
And since then, real news has taken a back seat to this kind of tabloid sensationalism.
They’re treating us like mushrooms. Keeping us in the dark and feeding us shite.
—————————————
June 10th, 2007 at 2:45 pm…the mass media. What are they? They’re huge corporations, massive corporations, linked up with even bigger corporations. They sell audiences to other businesses, namely advertisers. So when you turn on the television set, CBS doesn’t make any money. They make money from the advertisers. You’re the product that they’re selling, and the same is true of the daily newspaper. They’re huge corporations, selling audiences, potential consumers, to other businesses, all linked up closely to the government, especially the big media. What picture of the world do you expect them to present? - Noam Chomsky, Sparrow Talks with Noam Chomsky
——————————-
“I deplore… the putrid state into which our newspapers have passed and the malignity, the vulgarity, and mendacious spirit of those who write for them… These ordures are rapidly depraving the public taste and lessening its relish for sound food. As vehicles of information and a curb on our funtionaries, they have rendered themselves useless by forfeiting all title to belief… This has, in a great degree, been produced by the violence and malignity of party spirit.” –Thomas Jefferson to Walter Jones, 1814. ME 14:46
Tell me how you CAN’T feel sorry for this sad face??… http://parishilton.snagapic.com
June 10th, 2007 at 2:46 pmBlame it on her parents. Don’t feel sorry because the kid broke the law. Feel sorry for her for the parents that she has!!!
TP? C’mon, you don’t want to go home with this thing at the top of your blog….do you?
Comment by Zooey
Guess they do, LOL
June 10th, 2007 at 2:54 pm#44 Comment by Namtillaku — June 10, 2007 @ 2:38 pm
You said:
You’re missing the point. Like it or not, Paris Hilton going to jail is news. The problem is that the MSM will cover this story for hours and hours to the exclusion of real news - the exact point of this blog post.
Actually, I agree with his point. That the media was and is doing this crap is reeealy old news. That point has been the focus of other articles on TP. Although you are correct in what you say, the point of this blog is beating a dead horse. The MSM is now controlled by something like 5 corporations, down from 50 in 1980. Our ability to affect them is nil and preaching to the quoir here is moot.
June 10th, 2007 at 2:57 pmMuch better to cover other breaking stories so we can stay abreast through discussion of them.
Blame it on her parents. Don’t feel sorry because the kid broke the law. Feel sorry for her for the parents that she has!!!
Comment by CB
Paris is all grown up now, CB. Sure, her parents created that monster, but she’s in charge now. She has every resource in the world to help herself rise above her upbringing.
June 10th, 2007 at 3:02 pmI LOVE Think Progress. I love the ideals it advocates and stands for. However, I can’t help seeing the hypocracy of condemming MSNBC for its choice of news stories while at the same time putting the Paris story at the top of ITS coverage this morning… and (as of now) 47 (including me, so shame on me) people who felt compelled to comment.
This is all about ego… but then what isn’t? What most of us have not learned is that ANY publicity is good for the ego… even negative, such as this story. What the ego fears most is being ignored.
We all give this ridiculous story juice when we give it attention. Ignore it. Ignore Hilton, fer Chrissakes. She and her ilk FEED on nothing but media attention, and provide sustenance for all the other ills of society, such as American Idol, etc., ad infiintum.
I say ignore the fantasies, focus on the REAL ills, such as Bush and all that follows… Paris is a distraction. Don’t you realize this is all part of the neo-conservatives’ plot to distract right-thinking individuals from addressing the real problem, which is HAVEs vs. HAVENOTs? That 1 out of 5 American children live in poverty with no end in sight? That the separation in property ownership has NEVER in the history of civilization been so wide? Paris is doing nothing more than taking one for the team, her team, the very rich.
Watch the DVD “Maxed Out.”
We have become a two-tiered society, and most of us don’t even know it. So keep watching TV, it will continue to lull all of us to sleep.
Or…
Make a change. It’ll cost a little, but not much. Support the candidates you believe agree with you — yeah, you gotta give ‘em some money, until we elect them and THEN change campaign financing.
Overthrow the government. Take back America.
Start by ignoring Paris Hilton. Spread the word.
Personally, I find solace in Eckhart Tolle.
CB
June 10th, 2007 at 3:08 pm#47 Comment by CB — June 10, 2007 @ 2:46 pm
Blame it on her parents. Don’t feel sorry because the kid broke the law. Feel sorry for her for the parents that she has!!!
Are you projecting your own problem here? No other rational reason for you saying this makes sense to me. Hmmm. Or are you being a troll?
June 10th, 2007 at 3:11 pmGet real.
She doesn’t give a sh*t about anybody but herself. She’s merely trying to draw attention away from her debacle.
June 10th, 2007 at 3:12 pmAhem, aren’t you guys playing the same game by covering the coverage?
June 10th, 2007 at 3:36 pmThis has to be a tipping point, doesn’t it?
How can it be clearer that the blogoshpere is correct in its criticism of corporate media news decisions?
This is the seminal issue of my own personal reading of the blogs, since the days of Media Whores Online, may it rest in peace and glory. After MWO, there came Atrios. And TPM, and TP. How our mass media has covered the news of the last 15 years is essentially the reason for being, for almost all of the blogs I read. From Bill and Hillary in the early 90s to OJ to Monica to Prince George the Minor and his Pet War. It’s the stupidity, the shallowness, unfairness and lack of curiosity in the mainstream news companies.
And now CNN is the most trusted name in Paris Hilton news. OTT, jump the shark, tipping point — this has to be the nadir.
I thought I heard a hint of sarcasm in that clip, and the one before it might be viewed as someone trying to explain that SHE wasn’t making the decisions, it was someone else, the news director or whoever. I mean, even the very vapid can be shown the light, right?
Cutting back and forth between Paris and Gates is, I think, the tipping point past which the MSM will lose its grip. Somebody somewhere in some news department is going to be thinking “enough’s enough” and we might see an improvement. Or, beyond this point, we all give up. Viewers quit viewing, CNN and Faux and MSNBC etal, they perform a collective cave-in to inanity and triviality and the sideshow. It simply can’t be any more obvious that this is the prime example, right in front of our eyes.
Either these news organizations shape up and exert their fourth estate power on important issues, or they simply give up, internally. The workers, the editors and reporters and writers — they’ll just move on to another aspect of the entertainment industry, maybe even “news” jobs. It’s that choice, or succumb and keep their jobs and insurance and boat in the driveway.
This is why I don’t have a TV.
June 10th, 2007 at 3:37 pmin other news largely ignored:
Leahy states his committee announced (Friday) that it planned to “authorize subpoenas in connection with investigation of legal basis for warrantless wiretap program.”, on june14th
Senate Judiciary website:
June 10th, 2007 at 3:38 pmhttp://judiciary.senate.gov/meeting_notice.cfm?id=2827
Dean: If we don’t end war, Democrats could lose power
“The American people hired Democrats last November to ensure that we end this war,” Dean said during the weekly Democratic radio address. “So let me be clear, we know that if we don’t keep our promise, we may find ourselves the minority again.”
June 10th, 2007 at 3:59 pmCome on guys. Think about this for a moment.
You’re smart. Do you really, REALLY want to involve people who are not smart enough to understand what is good for both them and the human race in particular? Do you really want to involve people who are not at least in the top 3 percentile in the decision making? I think not.
You know, below a certain IQ all you care about is your miserable existence (which we all know is pretty much pointless since death is the end of it all) and that of your offsprings who are equally doomed.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:08 pmComment by BottomBoy — June 10, 2007 @ 4:08 pm
Just what the H are you talking about?
June 10th, 2007 at 4:14 pmIt’s why I don’t watch television news. Don’t even have a television feed coming into the house. I can watch whatever I want on DVD’s and leave the stupidity of the herd mentallity to others.
the white women news channels, all white women and their trials and tribulations all the time.
How much of this crap can people take?
June 10th, 2007 at 4:26 pmI read an interesting book some years ago that had a few paragraphs about how humans are the only animals who don’t know how to be what they are (human), so that we are always watching other humans (our predisposition for learning species behavior in other mammals), but to a level of obessession because we don’t know who has it “figured out”.
The book blamed our strange cultural habits for why humans are perpetually caught in this trap in which they need to watch other humans to see what they are doing, because most cultures ignore basic human behavior and try to replace it with ideals that aren’t normally human.
It gives us an understanding for why reality television is so popular, why people care more about George Clooney than George Bush, and why Paris Hilton is more interesting than day 12,000 of the occupation of Iraq.
If I were Paris Hilton, I’d want people watching Iraq instead of my shenanigans as well… But as long as she demonstrates her culturally defiant behavior, and we live in a culture that accepts “war” as culturally compliant behavior, Ms. Hilton will continue to rank higher.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:27 pmTo all the people complaining that TP is “covering the Paris Hilton story.” You are entirely missing the point.
They are not covering Paris Hilton, they are covering the fact that the media in our country is not doing its job. While most of us already know this, it is still important to point out, especially in this example, just how bad the media really is.
That is an important issue. We should be complaining to all the mainstream media networks, and using this as a way to embarrass them and generate some public outrage, not at Paris, but at the media itself for covering her.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:27 pmDo you really want to involve people who are not at least in the top 3 percentile in the decision making? I think not.
Comment by BottomBoy — June 10, 2007 @ 4:08 pm
Yes. That is the point of a Democracy, it’s also why the Founding Fathers established one which watched the leaders actions closely.
It has nothing to do with stupid - there really are very few stupid people. It has to do with ignorant, of which there are too many. If we educate the population, then the strength of vigilance in numbers will also apply to our national well-being.
But you conservatives like to pretend ignorance = stupidity so you can feel better about the fact that you yourself aren’t all that bright, no matter how much you’re taught.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:32 pmDean said during the weekly Democratic radio address. “So let me be clear, we know that if we don’t keep our promise, we may find ourselves the minority again.â€
Comment by Wayne — June 10, 2007 @ 3:59 pm
Solving problems begins with recognizing they exist.
Glad to hear he has that covered.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:34 pm#56 Hooray! It’s about time that subpoenas are issued against this illegal program. As for Dean’s comment about the Dems winning in 08 and basing it on ending this war, he’s (once again) 100% correcto-mundo! If the Dems continue to dangle their feet and play footsie with the White House on this war, that’s precisely what will “tank” their chances of a Dem in the White House.
It goes without saying that the people are disgusted with the war and totally rejecting the GOP and the White House at this point; however, the “ray of hope” the people had was the midterms and the promises of the Dems to bring the war to a conclusion and to stop the corruption in the administration.
Round One of this new Congress (clearly!) goes to the GOP! The people were given el shafto by the Dems. The people are unhappy and will take their anger out at the polls if the Dems don’t grow some balls and mighty quickly.
Round One could have been the closing of the purse strings and a swift end to the war; instead, the whimpy Dems knucked under. This was a Death Nell for the Democrats in 08. It’s one thing to elect someone you believe to be honest and then find out that they’re great con men…..who are not parading themselves to be anything but con men as these investigations drone on; however, it’s entirely another thing to promise to be the “savior” of the people and then give the people the shaft. The anger will be foist upon the Dems with a vengeance and probably will be with just this one strike of caving on the Iraq war spending. It’s playing into the Rethugs hands quite beautifully and the Dems have handily lost “round one”.
Some folks may not give a “shapeshifter” (one who prentends to be a savior and then betrays another) another round; I know some independents will are turning against the Democrats because of this first opportunity to “walk the talk” and they blew it.
For those who still have faith (myself not included) time will tell that tale but it’s safe to say that if the Dems don’t bring about impeachment proceedings now that they’ve already blown the end to the Iraq war via the pursestrings, then all dem candidates had better not waste their precious time and energy on a campaign.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:40 pmThis is precisely why people do not trust Hillary Clinton - her stance on her mistaken vote to proceed with this war, her inability to flatly admit having made a mistake in so doing, coupled with her aggressive imperialistic attitude will not allow her candidacy to get off the ground with some dems and Independents. They simply “don’t trust Hillary”.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:41 pmWhy do you think Cindy Sheehan finally threw in the sponge? Lack of faith is the answer. And, perhaps the realization that she’s dealing with Dem con men as well??
June 10th, 2007 at 4:43 pm#62 Comment by ShamRockNRoll — June 10, 2007 @ 4:27 pm
You said:
To all the people complaining that TP is “covering the Paris Hilton story.†You are entirely missing the point.
No, you are missing the complainer’s point.
And said further:
They are not covering Paris Hilton, they are covering the fact that the media in our country is not doing its job. While most of us already know this, it is still important to point out, especially in this example, just how bad the media really is.
No it is not important to point it out again here. The issue of MSM malfeasance is well known, and covered here and all the other progressive blogs. This topic is preaching to the quoir. It is beating a dead horse that nothing can be done about.
And finally:
That is an important issue. We should be complaining to all the mainstream media networks, and using this as a way to embarrass them and generate some public outrage, not at Paris, but at the media itself for covering her.
The MSM is big-corporation owned and driven. You are living a fantasy if you believe that you can influence the likes of Rupert Murdoch by complaining and trying to embarrass them. Our emphasis should be on the internet and other means necessary to counter the MSM not influence it. This involves the whole structure of Progressive politics from the ideas of George Lakoff to creating a think tank system that rivals that of the radical right.
However, on TP we would be better served if we had other more revalent topics to discuss, such as Lieberman’s comments today.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:50 pmchoir, that is, choir.
And Merlin is correct.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:54 pmWow, when a complete moron tells the press to get your sh*t together then you know we are all ph*cked…
CBS sucks!!
NBC sucks!!
ABC sucks!!
Fox sucks squared!!
No wonder the American public is so ph*cking stupid 24 X 7!!!
June 10th, 2007 at 4:55 pm#66 Comment by veritas — June 10, 2007 @ 4:41 pm
This is precisely why people do not trust Hillary Clinton - her stance on her mistaken vote to proceed with this war, her inability to flatly admit having made a mistake in so doing, coupled with her aggressive imperialistic attitude will not allow her candidacy to get off the ground with some dems and Independents. They simply “don’t trust Hillaryâ€.
Nice description of the DLC ideology in action. The DLC, long the “voice” of the Democratic party, by their own charter is right of center. (They are BushCo light.) Pro war and corporate driven.
June 10th, 2007 at 4:58 pm#67 Comment by veritas — June 10, 2007 @ 4:43 pm
Why do you think Cindy Sheehan finally threw in the sponge? Lack of faith is the answer. And, perhaps the realization that she’s dealing with Dem con men as well??
Totally wrong conclusion!
June 10th, 2007 at 5:11 pmThat is a right wing talking point that she threw in the sponge! She suffers from “burn out.” It is common amongst burn out victims to rail against the world. The frustration of not being able to change the world (the way they thought they could, i.e. unrealistic expectations) added to the tremendous stress they are under trying to do that, often makes them snap. After R & R they more often come back with renewed energy.
If you had read Cindy’s comments on the Daily Kos blog in response to the hundreds of well wishers, you would know that this wingnut talking point is only that.
She plans to return to the fight in a different way when she has recuperated.
Comment by Mr. President — June 10, 2007 @ 4:54 pm
choir, that is, choir.
And Merlin is correct.
June 10th, 2007 at 5:14 pmThanks for the correction. Knew it was wrong, believed it was right, and didn’t look it up.
Thanks for the correction. Knew it was wrong, believed it was right, and didn’t look it up.
Comment by Merlin — June 10, 2007 @ 5:14 pm
No problem Merlin.
(By the way, others would be called “Trolls” for being off topic in a thread of such serious subject matter, so if anyone messes with you, don’t take it personally. Some think that the media covering this brat is TP worthy. Not me though.)
June 10th, 2007 at 5:36 pm-Test-
June 10th, 2007 at 6:12 pm#59 — Merlin, I am baffled too. Maybe bboy is on the wrong site.
For another view of what we’re being fed on TV, see Juan Cole’s Informed Comment today:
http://www.juancole.com/ 2007/ 06/ paris-hilton-iraqi-prisoners-american.html
“Is Paris Hilton being given special treatment by our media? We all are, folks.”
Thanks for the folks in this thread who understand it isn’t about Paris, it’s about CNN et al.
June 10th, 2007 at 6:26 pmAdmin: I see that you issued a “TP migrated servers and we’re still experiencing a few technical issues, including delays in comments showing up. We hope to have everything fixed shortly. Thanks for your patience. 5:39 pm†Yah. Bullshiit. So the comments that I posted three days ago, they’re going to be posted when? How about before the server migration started? When will those comments be posted? Stop censoring TP!
June 10th, 2007 at 6:42 pmHoly Scheiss! I agree with Ms Hilton, even though she is a no talent sl*t.
June 10th, 2007 at 7:26 pmthere is no f*ing way she actually wrote that
June 10th, 2007 at 8:52 pmThat’s hot!
June 11th, 2007 at 12:10 amFrom World News Central:
” Last night, she issued a statement to the media asking that they stop focusing on her, and start focusing “on more important things.â€
Someone needs to tell Paris that there is nothing more important than her, to us, the entertainment-starved dimwits of America. Up until now, we were dependent upon George Dubya Bush for real-life comedy. Having someone else take over the spotlight for awhile is a relief to Dubya, and us.
So don’t try and put yourself down by thinking we have more important things to think about than you. We don’t.
Live with it, sweetheart.
Jail’s not such a bad place.
Just don’t ask us to stop loving you, or caring about you, or demanding all the news we can get of you.
President,
June 11th, 2007 at 2:18 amEx-Jailbirds of America
#2 Zooey:
The temperture in hell just dropped — Paris Hilton has a little bit of common sense.
Well, more than the maladministration. But that’s setting the bar low. Nonetheless, hat’s off to Ms. Hilton for at least using her fame/notoriety/visibility to intrude an ounce of common sense.
D’ya think the media will report this comment? D’ya think they’ll think about it for more than a millisecond?
Cheers,
June 11th, 2007 at 7:30 amJust another argument against the free enterprise system.
June 11th, 2007 at 7:47 amTabloid media at its finest. Heaven forbid they actually report on real news!
June 11th, 2007 at 8:04 am[Test]
June 11th, 2007 at 8:46 amSo this is what “Progresive” people talk about!
ROTFL
June 11th, 2007 at 9:11 amGod…what has American journalism become?
June 11th, 2007 at 9:39 amParis Hilton news is a distraction from Bush’s criminal activities in Iraq.
Rove you evil genius!
June 11th, 2007 at 12:16 pm