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The Newsroom Opening Scene (Wow!)


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2012 Jul 30, 3:46am   21,023 views  55 comments

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19   freak80   2012 Aug 1, 3:16am  


Promoting the agenda of the 1% by dividing Americans with wedge issues like Fox News does?

The "wedge issues" would be there with or w/o Fox News. Yeah, Fox News is a joke but they only fan the flames of existing bitterness.

I won't vote Democrat because they promote the idea that "traditional marriage" is another word for "discrimination." I won't vote Republican because they promise to fix all of the "social issues" (pandering) and then just give the top 0.1% even more power.

Romney is a perfect example. He's "liberal" on social issues but "conservative" (i.e. neocon) on economic & military issues. Obama is another perfect example. He does the bidding of powerful special interests (like the homosexual pressure groups and Planned Parenthood) but won't go really go after the top 0.1%. Do we have anything like Glass-Stegall in place? No.

20   PockyClipsNow   2012 Aug 1, 3:19am  

The take away from the above hitler story is this:

Get a government job NOW NOW NOW!

21   freak80   2012 Aug 1, 3:39am  

taxee,

The above script is probably a hoax. Where did you find it?

It looks like "bait" to me.

22   Tenpoundbass   2012 Aug 1, 3:50am  


CaptainShuddup says

Where moral obligation to report the facts and the truth trumps all else.

So you're saying the news has some higher moral obligation than to report the facts and the truth?

Oh no, who in the hell am I to make such assertions?
That marching order came down from Edward R. Murrow, Walter Cronckite, Mike Wallace, and countless others...

John Hersey: “Hiroshima,” The New Yorker, 1946
Rachel Carson: Silent Spring, book, 1962
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein: Investigation of the Watergate break-in, The Washington Post, 1972
Edward R. Murrow: Battle of Britain, CBS radio, 1940
Ida Tarbell: “The History of the Standard Oil Company,” McClure's, 1902–1904
Lincoln Steffens: “The Shame of the Cities,” McClure's, 1902–1904
John Reed: Ten Days That Shook the World, book, 1919
H. L. Mencken: Scopes “Monkey” trial, The Sun of Baltimore, 1925
Ernie Pyle: Reports from Europe and the Pacific during World War II, Scripps-Howard newspapers, 1940–1945
Edward R. Murrow and Fred Friendly: Investigation of Sen. Joseph McCarthy, CBS, 1954
Edward R. Murrow, David Lowe, and Fred Friendly: “Harvest of Shame,” documentary, CBS television, 1960
Seymour Hersh: Investigation of massacre by American soldiers at My Lai in Vietnam, Dispatch News Service, 1969
The New York Times: Publication of the Pentagon Papers, 1971
James Agee and Walker Evans: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men, book, 1941
W.E.B. Du Bois: The Souls of Black Folk, collected articles, 1903
I. F. Stone: I. F. Stone's Weekly, 1953–1967
Henry Hampton: “Eyes on the Prize,” documentary, 1987
Tom Wolfe: The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test, book, 1968
Norman Mailer: The Armies of the Night, book, 1968
Hannah Arendt: Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil, collected articles, 1963
William Shirer: Berlin Diary: The Journal of a Foreign Correspondent, 1939–1941, collected articles, 1941
Truman Capote: In Cold Blood, book, 1965
Joan Didion: Slouching Towards Bethlehem, collected articles, 1968
Tom Wolfe: The Kandy-Kolored Tangerine-Flake Streamline Baby, collected articles, 1965
Michael Herr: Dispatches, book, 1977
Theodore White: The Making of the President: 1960, book, 1961
Robert Capa: Ten photographs from D-Day, 1944
J. Anthony Lukas: Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families, book, 1985
Richard Harding Davis: Coverage of German march into Belgium, Wheeler Syndicate and magazines, 1914
Dorothy Thompson: Reports on the rise of Hitler, Cosmopolitan and Saturday Evening Post, 1931–1934
John Steinbeck: Reports on Okie migrant camp life, The San Francisco News, 1936
A. J. Liebling: The Road Back to Paris, collected articles, 1944
Ernest Hemingway: Reports on the Spanish Civil War, The New Republic, 1937–1938
Martha Gellhorn: The Face of War, collected articles, 1959
James Baldwin: The Fire Next Time, book, 1963
Joseph Mitchell: Up in the Old Hotel and Other Stories, collection of much older articles, 1992
Betty Friedan: The Feminine Mystique, book, 1963
Ralph Nader: Unsafe at Any Speed: The Designed-In Dangers of the American Automobile, book, 1965
Herblock (Herbert Block): Cartoons on McCarthyism, The Washington Post, 1950
James Baldwin: “Letter from the South: Nobody Knows My Name,” The Partisan Review, 1959
Nick Ut: Photograph of a burning girl running from a napalm attack, The Associated Press, 1972
Pauline Kael: “Trash, Art, and the Movies,” Harper's, 1969
Gay Talese: Fame and Obscurity: Portraits by Gay Talese, collected articles, 1970
Randy Shilts: Reports on AIDS, The San Francisco Chronicle, 1981–1985
Janet Flanner (Genet): Paris Journals chronicling Paris's emergence from the Occupation, The New Yorker, 1944–1945
Neil Sheehan: A Bright Shining Lie: John Paul Vann and America in Vietnam, book, 1988
A. J. Liebling: The Wayward Pressman, collected articles, 1947
Tom Wolfe: The Right Stuff, book, 1979
Murray Kempton: America Comes of Middle Age: Columns 1950–1962, collected articles, 1963
Murray Kempton: Part of Our Time: Some Ruins and Monuments of the Thirties, book, 1955
Donald L. Barlett and James B. Steele: “America: What Went Wrong?,” The Philadelphia Inquirer, 1991
Taylor Branch: Parting the Waters: America in the King Years, 1954–1963, book, 1988
Harrison Salisbury: Reporting from the Soviet Union, The New York Times, 1949–1954
John McPhee: The John McPhee Reader, collected articles, 1976
ABC: Live television broadcast of Army-McCarthy hearings, 1954
Frederick Wiseman: Titicut Follies, documentary, 1967
David Remnick: Lenin's Tomb: The Last Days of the Soviet Empire, book, 1993
Richard Ben Cramer: What It Takes: The Way to the White House, book, 1992
Jonathan Schell: The Fate of the Earth, book, 1982
Russell Baker: “Francs and Beans,” The New York Times, 1975
Homer Bigart: Account of being over Japan in a bomber when World War II came to an end, The New York Herald-Tribune, 1945
Ben Hecht: 1,001 Afternoons in Chicago, collected articles, 1922
Walter Cronkite: Documentary on Vietnam, CBS television, 1968
Walter Lippmann: Early essays, The New Republic, 1914
Margaret Bourke-White: Photographs following the defeat of Germany, Life magazine, 1945
Lillian Ross: Reporting, collected articles, 1964
Nicholas Lemann: The Promised Land: The Great Black Migration and How It Changed America, book, 1991
Joe Rosenthal: Photograph of Marines raising an American flag on Mount Suribachi on the island of Iwo Jima, The Associated Press, 1945
Hodding Carter Jr.: “Go for Broke,” editorial, Carter's Delta Democrat-Times (Greenville, Miss.), 1945
The New Yorker: The New Yorker Book of War Pieces, collected articles, 1947
Meyer Berger: Report on the murderer Howard Unruh, The New York Times, 1949
Norman Mailer: The Executioner's Song, book, 1979
Robert Capa: Spanish Civil War photos, Life magazine, 1936
Susan Sontag: “Notes on ‘Camp,’” The Partisan Review, 1964
Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein: All the President's Men, book, 1974
John Hersey: Here to Stay, collected articles, 1963
A. J. Liebling: The Earl of Louisiana, book, 1961
Mike Davis: City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles, book, 1990
Melissa Fay Greene: Praying for Sheetrock, book, 1991
J. Anthony Lukas: “The Two Worlds of Linda Fitzpatrick,” The New York Times, 1967
Herbert Bayard Swope: “Klan Exposed,” The New York World, 1921
William Allen White: “To an Anxious Friend,” The Emporia (Kan.) Gazette, 1922
Edward R. Murrow: Report of the liberation of Buchenwald, CBS radio, 1945
Joseph Mitchell: McSorley's Wonderful Saloon, collected articles, 1943
Lillian Ross: Picture, book, 1952
Earl Brown: Series of articles on race, Harper's and Life magazines, 1942–1944
Greil Marcus: Mystery Train: Images of America in Rock 'n' Roll Music, book, 1975
Morley Safer: Atrocities committed by American soldiers on the hamlet of Cam Ne in Vietnam, CBS television, 1965
Ted Poston: Coverage of the “Little Scottsboro” trial, The New York Post, 1949
Leon Dash: “Rosa Lee's Story,” The Washington Post, 1994
Jane Kramer: Europeans, collected articles, 1988
Eddie Adams and Vo Suu: Associated Press photograph and NBC television footage of a Saigon execution, 1968
Grantland Rice: “Notre Dame's ‘Four Horsemen,’” The New York Herald-Tribune, 1924
Jane Kramer: The Politics of Memory: Looking for Germany in the New Germany, collected articles, 1996
Frank McCourt: Angela's Ashes, book, 1996
Vincent Sheean: Personal History, book, 1935
W.E.B. Du Bois: Columns on race during his tenure as editor of The Crisis, 1910–1934
Damon Runyon: Crime reporting, The New York American, 1926
Joe McGinniss: The Selling of the President 1968, book, 1969
Hunter S. Thompson: Fear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail, book, 1973


Like what? Promoting the agenda of the 1% by dividing Americans with wedge issues like Fox News does?

Now see there, Liberal news is so worked up and worried about the lack of integrity in the Conservative news agency. (That has a limited philosophical following btw) That they forgo their own integrity in reporting the facts. White washing shit, with more crap.

That and the lack of respect they have for their intended audience. They assume that the masses are too STUPID to comprehend the honesty of afair laid out in concise facts, that they opt to counterspin, conservative reports. Ignoring news that's really important.

What happens, is most people are disgusted by both factions of the American media. That is the only way on earth you can possibly explain the 24/7 parade of reality shows, and the droves of mindless asses that sit and watch it. They hope, or maybe suspect, that somewhere nestled in Catfish noodling, Mama's diamond ring pawning, an Amish parishioner surfing the web on an iPhone, or grown people fighting over defaulted storage lockers, they will find the truth, of where in the fuck we as a society are headed.

23   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 1, 3:58am  

Dan8267 says

Sure, there's no chance of a violent revolution, but the situation that the common American finds himself in today has a lot of similarities to the everyday Frenchman right before the French Revolution.

Any country is just 3 meals away from a revolution.
In France, they said "Let them eat cake!" (meaning cheap bread) and in America, we say "Let them eat corn syrup."

The question is: "Can they continue to provide the corn syrup?"

Hitler was supported by American 'Interests' for far too long, and it was entirely too easy to justify fascism as "efficient". Corporations loved it, because the state stepped in, put a gun to people's heads, and told them what to buy and how much to pay, according to the prices set by the corporations.
"Affordable Health Care Act" ? Who thinks any of those words are true? When was the last time you saw the name of a bill reflect the reality of what it does? It has nothing to do with health, or caring, or affordability, or action. It is about health insurance corporation revenue, and should be called the "Health Insurance Corporation Revenue Guarantee".

I'm all for socialized medicine (if it's good enough for the troops, it's good enough for the country), but not this crap.
I simply feel sorry for Obama. He's like the contractor that was just working on remodeling our bathroom: way over his head in an anachronistic system architecture.

24   Tenpoundbass   2012 Aug 1, 4:09am  

Auntiegrav says

"Health Insurance Corporation Revenue Guarantee".

Auntiegrav says

I'm all for socialized medicine (if it's good enough for the troops, it's good enough for the country), but not this crap.

The Affordable Healthcare Act, was all about political feathers. Winning at any cost. The emphasis was dropping to the floor, and scooping up as much candy in their shirt fold from the Federal piñata, that the Liberals didn't even stop to see the quality of the candy they had until it was passed. What they ended up with, was anything but "Affordable Healthcare" or any system that resembles a system that would benefit the masses.

But they were so busy, doing the "We won, we're number one" happy jig, they didn't even notice the Republicans popping champagne bottles.

Hey Nancy it's passed and we see what's in it, and I'd like to thank you on behalf of Karl Rove, Dick Chenny, Mitt Romney. You hit the ball out of the fucking park, you did such a bang up job. Chief Justice Roberts reckoned it a sheer brilliant master piece.

Bravo young lady, bravo, (yeah I know just trying to make the old girl feel good, her make up is horrendous, geesh!)

25   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 1, 4:13am  

CaptainShuddup says

Oh no, who in the hell am I to make such assertions?

A thinking human being.
I add:
"The Imperial Cruise" by James Bradley
"Crossing the Rubicon" by Michael Ruppert
"Everything I Want to do is Illegal" by Joel Salatin
"We Don't Need Them" by Joe Carpenter
"You Are Being Lied To" by Russ Kick
"The Hunt for Zero Point" by Nick Cook
"The Conspirators" by Al Martin
"Lies My Teacher Told Me" by James Loewen
"Fair Game" by Valerie Wilson Plame (avoid the movie)
Then there's this:
http://www.prwatch.org/prwissues/1998Q2/foxbgh.html

26   freak80   2012 Aug 1, 4:30am  

Auntiegrav says

Any country is just 3 meals away from a revolution.
In France, they said "Let them eat cake!" (meaning cheap bread) and in America, we say "Let them eat corn syrup."
The question is: "Can they continue to provide the corn syrup?"

Maybe not:

27   johnnicinco   2012 Aug 1, 4:42am  

I believe he said we only led three categories, didn't he forget about gross domestic product, even if it has been gross lately in some categories like fast food, prescription drugs, and some of the recent music and entertainment. I think we lead in food production as well, even if we use some of it to make ethanol which is totally insane overall, but if the government subsidizes its production then I can't blame the ones who produce it. I think we may have the lowest ratio of pollution to GNP, and I think we are leaders in the ratio of the area of really cool places for recreation and travel to the area of slums and unappealing places. You can say we didn't make the really cool places, but you also have to say we preserved them pretty good. I think when I see us be obviously defeated in any technologically based short term conflict....at that point I will not continue to claim we are one of the leading contributers of technological advances. We're not all that bad, but we really should stop buying so much imported stuff or we're going to strangle the research and development, not to mention the people.

28   hrhjuliet   2012 Aug 1, 4:48am  


Like what? Promoting the agenda of the 1% by dividing Americans with wedge issues like Fox News does?

People quickly forget that people who join the media world are just people; people with agendas and they have the same percent of immoral and selfish people as the rest of the population. Fox news is propaganda, and it works.

Great opening clip. I was stunned. Regardless of what went on in the show later, it was still refreshing to hear someone lay out a bunch of raw truths, without doing a politically correct apology.

29   HEY YOU   2012 Aug 1, 8:06am  

I worship the Trinity. Fox news, Limbaugh, Beck.

30   Dan8267   2012 Aug 1, 12:30pm  

Auntiegrav says

To read between the lines of what we are forced to talk about only through humor is quite enlightening.

So true. My favorite lines:

Facebook actually saves the CIA money.

That's how they got my brother.

400 billion tweets and not one useful bit of data was ever transmitted.

31   Dan8267   2012 Aug 1, 12:33pm  

HEY YOU says

I worship the Trinity. Fox news, Limbaugh, Beck.

I like Lolcat News. It's the news read you can has.

32   Dan8267   2012 Aug 1, 12:35pm  

Ruki says

Uh..I think that meant 'public sector labor unions', not 'rich and powerful'.

Yeah, it's just like the French Revolution when the population rose up and chopped off the heads of the public sector labor unions. Just think about all those fireman and teachers who died during the French Revolution.

33   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 1, 12:45pm  

Dan8267 says

HEY YOU says

I worship the Trinity. Fox news, Limbaugh, Beck.

I like Lolcat News. It's the news read you can has.

You can back up everything in it with the LoLcat bible.
http://www.lolcatbible.com/index.php?title=Proverbs_1

34   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 1, 12:54pm  

Dan8267 says

Ruki says

Uh..I think that meant 'public sector labor unions', not 'rich and powerful'.

Yeah, it's just like the French Revolution when the population rose up and chopped off the heads of the public sector labor unions. Just think about all those fireman and teachers who died during the French Revolution.

Well, except there wasn't anything left to keep from burning and nobody really wanted to learn French anyway.....
Just think of all those Bugs Bunny cartoons with guillotines in them.

Srsly, the issue in all of these cases is the bully factor. One bunch of bullies takes advantage until another bunch fights back (or things collapse and all new mobs are formed). The lack of human moderation is really pissing off Ceiling Cat, who wants tummy rubs and some tuna.

35   mell   2012 Aug 1, 1:17pm  

freak80 says

Romney is a perfect example. He's "liberal" on social issues but "conservative" (i.e. neocon) on economic & military issues. Obama is another perfect example. He does the bidding of powerful special interests (like the homosexual pressure groups and Planned Parenthood) but won't go really go after the top 0.1%. Do we have anything like Glass-Stegall in place? No.

Well said. Gay marriage is a perfect example - one the one side we have religious zealots trying to seize the opportunity to bring back religion-based politics and on the other side you have a herd of Pavlov's dogs conditioned to bark "discrimination!" if somebody just expresses their personal views (clearly separated from their business), and "human rights issue!" when it is clearly not. If one really strongly feels about reducing favoritism they would stand for abolishing government backed marriage, incl. all the perks and duties, as well as removing the ban on poligamy and let marriage return to a purely religion-of-choice event/journey if desired and a fusion of families/civil union based on contracts agreed by the involved parties only which can easily be enforced by courts without the government's interpretation, so that the people who simply don't want to marry don't get left out.

36   hrhjuliet   2012 Aug 1, 1:18pm  

HEY YOU says

I worship the Trinity. Fox news, Limbaugh, Beck.

Nazi Germany did it, countries like Iran still do it...works for them, works for us! Why not? Nothing spells propaganda like nationalism and fascism. It always works on the ignorant and makes them feel smart, powerful and warm and fuzzy. Heil Fox!

37   Dan8267   2012 Aug 1, 1:22pm  

Auntiegrav says

The lack of human moderation is really pissing off Ceiling Cat, who wants tummy rubs and some tuna.

Fuck Ceiling Cat. He's always watching me masturbate.

38   freak80   2012 Aug 1, 3:34pm  

mell says

If one really strongly feels about reducing favoritism they would stand for abolishing government backed marriage, incl. all the perks and duties, as well as removing the ban on poligamy and let marriage return to a purely religion-of-choice

I could go for that, yes. Why is gummint involved in marriage at all? Isn't marriage an inherently religious idea?

39   Buster   2012 Aug 1, 4:03pm  

CaptainShuddup says

That being said, it's a great performance by all, and it IS a damn shame that there's not a single news organization left in the world with 1/10th of the integrity the CHARACTERS in that show have.

The only newscast that even comes close is Comedy Central's, John Stewart's "The Daily Show". Sad that a comedy news hour is the most serious and best news program out there. This alone sums up the state of the msm today. I gave away my TV 10 years ago and my brain thanks me everyday.

40   Tenpoundbass   2012 Aug 2, 12:12am  

Buster says

The only newscast that even comes close is Comedy Central's, John Stewart's "The Daily Show".

Someone hit him...

41   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 2, 12:35am  

Buster says

my brain thanks me everyday.

The voices in my head told me to stay home and clean my guns today.

42   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 2, 12:41am  

mell says

If one really strongly feels about reducing favoritism they would stand for abolishing government backed marriage, incl. all the perks and duties, as well as removing the ban on poligamy and let marriage return to a purely religion-of-choice event/journey if desired and a fusion of families/civil union based on contracts agreed by the involved parties only which can easily be enforced by courts without the government's interpretation, so that the people who simply don't want to marry don't get left out.

Yes. My first choice would be to eliminate the income tax and replace it with sales taxes. That eliminates the government involvement through tax breaks and paperwork that marriage brings to the table. Sans that, then we have to think of the quid pro quo aspect of why government is involved in marriage. That is because marriage in general provides the government with canon fodder in the form of children and also reduces the costs of social care because joined families have more resources to care for the elderly or indigent (when they aren't working 3 jobs at minimum wage). In the current context of this, then, the idea of a government marriage license should be replaced with a 'family' license, where any two people can form a union with the intent of caring for a third person (raising children, etc). Otherwise, just two people getting married is of little benefit to the government. Religions can still play the God card and people can still bring sausages for Offler.

43   elliemae   2012 Aug 2, 12:42am  

Aaron Sorkin sure likes to write some self-serving, pompous stuff:

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/andrea-mann/the-newsroom-aaron-sorkins-the-newsroo_b_1717071.html?utm_hp_ref=uk

Sports Night was the best but he dumped it for the West Wing. Loved the West Wing, but the pompous meter was off the chart. This appears to be West Wing in a newsroom.

Anyone notice there aren't too many original shows out there? They're all remakes of something or another, and we eat the shit because it's fed to us. Easier than having to forage for something better.

We watch the news that says what we want; Faux News feeds the conservatives, MSNBC feeds the libs, Daily Show satirizes both with an admittedly liberal slant... it's a parody/comedy show, but it does point out the craziness that we call news.

I keep a purge bucket by the couch when I watch the news because it's so damn hard to swallow - and harder to keep down.

44   Randy H   2012 Aug 2, 1:02am  

Buster says

CaptainShuddup says

That being said, it's a great performance by all, and it IS a damn shame that there's not a single news organization left in the world with 1/10th of the integrity the CHARACTERS in that show have.

The only newscast that even comes close is Comedy Central's, John Stewart's "The Daily Show". Sad that a comedy news hour is the most serious and best news program out there. This alone sums up the state of the msm today. I gave away my TV 10 years ago and my brain thanks me everyday.

Maher > Stewart. Stewart is bold, but also incapable of conclusive reason when it disagrees with his punchline.

45   MisdemeanorRebel   2012 Aug 2, 3:14am  

Dan8267 says

It's amazing how much that image still resonates with people.

THE Model for Revolution against Corrupt Elites. Everywhere in the world, the Marseillaise is heard when the corrupt 1% get the boot. Here it is in China:

http://www.youtube.com/embed/Z14rBlZNgMY

The Koumintang - which was an alliance between Generals, Warlords, and the Shanghai Mafia (his wife, Madame Chang, was a Mafioso's Daughter; her "Family" was called the Green Gang in English). The reason the Koumintang got beat by the Communists is because the Warlords and 1% stole all the equipment meant for the Army and sold it to line their pockets, and treated their soldiers like slaves or worse.

46   MisdemeanorRebel   2012 Aug 2, 3:17am  

taxee says

After America , There is No Place to Go"

There are plenty of places to go where you can be free - even freer in many respects than America - and prosper.

Hong Kong, Singapore, most of South America, etc.

47   hrhjuliet   2012 Aug 2, 6:23am  

Buster says

The only newscast that even comes close is Comedy Central's, John Stewart's "The Daily Show". Sad that a comedy news hour is the most serious and best news program out there.

It's sad, but true. At least there is serious news somewhere, even if it's a comedy. (:

48   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 2, 7:49am  

thunderlips11 says

The reason the Koumintang got beat by the Communists is because the Warlords and 1% stole all the equipment meant for the Army and sold it to line their pockets, and treated their soldiers like slaves or worse.

Well, there's also the Chinese version of the Bay of Pigs: we failed to provide support for Chiang Kai-shek at a critical point.
An understatement from Wiki: " Due to concerns about widespread and well-documented corruption in Chiang's government throughout his rule (though not always with his knowledge), the U.S. government limited aid to Chiang for much of the period of 1946 to 1948, in the midst of fighting against the People's Liberation Army led by Mao Zedong. Alleged infiltration of the U.S. government by Chinese Communist agents may have also played a role in the suspension of American aid."

Bottom line was that U.S. corporate interests (probably still hoping to reconnect to the opium trade which made the Delano family so rich) were playing the Communists against Chiang, even as Chiang was picking up weapon support from the U.S.. When the nationalists were in a retreat phase, we pulled materiel support. They almost won anyway, but it is that "almost" that put the Chinese under the Communists. Stilwell blew it. It's been a while since I read more of the details about it, but I remember it as being one critical shipment of weapons that was held back, because Stilwell basically wanted to be a prick to Chiang at a point when Mao was strung out over most of China in a blitz. Chiang's troops lost the chance to reform and cut off the head of the dragon. History is all fiction, though, so I don't know how much validity that story has.... ;-)

49   Auntiegrav   2012 Aug 2, 8:05am  

Randy H says

Maher > Stewart. Stewart is bold, but also incapable of conclusive reason when it disagrees with his punchline.

I lost a lot of respect for Maher when he made "Religulous". Not because I disagreed, but because it was a sad, sad attempt at milking humor out of what could have been a very poignant (and humorous) topic (I thought he was going to skewer religion, but he just followed it around like a starving cat.)
Stewart's show, though it is apparently the best source of news (according to surveys of how much people know about current events who watch The Daily Show vs. regular news programs), that aspect is by accident in the process of making fun of our society. If more people were otherwise better informed, the left-leaning slant of social issue discussions would be less of a contrast with our daily behaviors, and an even larger audience could laugh at humanity's foibles.
Unfortunately, our consumer-oriented culture requires a business-based system to feed shiny, noisy crap to the suburbs, and that makes respect for social mores, natural resources or diversity seem silly if there isn't a profit to be made from them. While there is a need for these things and the vacuum is filled with media discussions instead of real actions, the opposite discussion is absent: what are people making all of the Stuff for? Do we need them to be doing 'jobs' for the sake of having jobs? Is an extraction economic model going to keep growing forever? Instead, the left discussions dominate because they are concerned with the forever plan and the right discussions are short and succinct because they sell the daily stock forecasts without showing the actual logistics required for their projected "free market" solutions.

50   CL   2012 Aug 2, 8:06am  

freak80 says

Romney is a perfect example. He's "liberal" on social issues but "conservative"

Errr..depends on the day you catch him. He is a sniveling smarmy weathervane, after all.

51   REpro   2012 Aug 2, 10:44am  

taxee says

taxee

Great Story. 100% agree with contents.
America is not the same as used to be.
Most professional jobs are licensed by goverment. Can be taken away any time they wants. In Europe now is trend for delicensing, though.

20 years ago, painter could start business by buying brush and a ladder. No way to do this today.

53   jhall   2012 Aug 2, 11:44am  

elliemae says

We watch the news that says what we want; Faux News feeds the conservatives, MSNBC feeds the libs, Daily Show satirizes both with an admittedly liberal slant... it's a parody/comedy show, but it does point out the craziness that we call news.

I keep a purge bucket by the couch when I watch the news because it's so damn hard to swallow - and harder to keep down.

The PBS Newshour does a pretty good job. Their interviews run long, but they do a good job of bringing in more than one point of view. Their Supreme Court commentator is top-notch and Paul Solman's pieces on the economy are always outstanding. Mark Shields and David Brooks on Fridays to comment on the week's political stories -- it's a pretty good news show.

I gave up on network news a long time ago. Peter Jennings is rolling...

54   thomaswong.1986   2012 Aug 2, 3:02pm  

REpro says

How U.S. discourages foreign investors
http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2012/08/02/n-panasonic-manufacturing-jobs.cnnmoney?iid=HP_LN

Difficult to get Mfg back in the US.. but not impossible! The Panasonic CEO was right.

55   Dan8267   2012 Aug 2, 5:23pm  

Auntiegrav says

Any country is just 3 meals away from a revolution.

True, but judging from their waste-lines, Americans aren't missing any meals.

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