the media only provide what the people WANT to watch. not what they NEED to watch. you can blame the repeal of the fairness doctrine for that.

I agree, for the past two years you go into a store, a baseball game, anywhere, people are buying, spending etc. The media hurt us all big time.

while true, it's not clear where you want to go with this line of argument.

I see two most likely paths.

The first is that americans should be smarter. Accepted as stipulated. What then, where do you take that line of argument?

The second is that the media is innocent, a freemarket automaton guided only by the invisible hand.

now thats a line of argument I'd like to see you try to support. thats where the heart of the beast would be, if it turns out that the media isn't innocent.

all of the major tribes have at times made the argument that the media is NOT innocent, and all have also made arguments that the media IS innocent, depending on wether or not the media is saying something they like.

pretty much everyone agrees americans are stupid fucks who deserve what's happening to them. the spin on this varies a bit tribally but not enough to matter.

is the media innocent? that's the real question.

You'd be surprised. I've been to private parties around here locally and seen Glenn Beck's book on their shelves with my own eyes. People you'd never guess in a million years they'd ever spend one dime on anything GB had to say.

Have you read it ?

LOL I won't even touch it. I've seen his act on tv.

He definitely runs a 'colorful' show :)

Though its a bit thick to bash a book you have never read..

Agreed, but GB is shallow enough to warrant an exception. If there's anything in his book that would sway me IRL, I'd be the first one to admit being completely shocked. Any "message" he thinks he has is watered down & discounted by his extreme antics. I feel the same about Rush. I gave his show a few years of listening so that I could be objective on him. I got nothing out of it. Rush is in it for Rush (money) and nothing else. GB is no different. It's just business. :winkwink:

You got a point. I read once financial magazines sold more copies with bad news on the cover.

Were I to see Glenn Beck's book on a friend of mine's shelf it would be akin to paying that very same friend a surprise visit only to catch him sodomizing his canine.

Good taste and discretion would compel me to tip toe back out the door and never to make mention of the unspeakable.

50 sensationalist news stories!

Why dont you start a "POSITIVE NEWS" website? Oh yeah probably wouldnt get too many hits.

Blame the people that don't vote.
Blame the people that follow the crowd.
Blame the people that want a nanny state.
Blame the people that never demand proof.
Blame the people that don't think for themselves.
Blame the people that strictly vote along party lines.
Blame the people that vote by party and not by issue.
Blame the people that expect government to provide for them.
Blame the people that rely on the media to feed them the truth.
Blame the people that do not do their own research on candidates or issues.
Blame the people that do not hold our elected officials to their words and actions.

I like how you stacked that up there. :thumbsup

see, bt, this is an example of the weaknesses of your original presentation being used against your arguments, with logically weak but emotionally effective strawman and adhominem rhetoric.

by choosing weak rhetorical tactics like the choice of the word "negative" and the line about depression, you make it easy for primitive bagger adhominem and verbal logic counterattacks.

not to mention positioning yourself as a psudofeminine debater using emotional tactics, making an easy target for the psuedomacho emotional tactics of baggers.

since you already know that baggers are psuedomacho, there's really no excuse for offering them easy targets.

Thanks Amp :thumbsup

I've always talked about this.
Why can't all media, get together and say...Lets talk about Housing Pricing going up, lets talk about how strong the banks are now, Lets talk about how easy it is to get financed.

It's all NEGATIVITY and I agree with you 100%.

I remember someone I knew, asked this 95 year old man...How are you so healthy, and he said...I don't watch the news, I don't read the Newspaper, and I don't go to funerals.

Man, so much depression everywhere, we need more Tony Robbins. But they just canceled his first show because he only had 3 Million Viewers.