I try to routinely factor in awareness that any reader here has had to make a serious effort to find this back-of-the-bayou. That makes you savvier than most (those are v's, not p's!!), so please forgive if I offer up too-obvious websites and/or direct you to the same sites more than once. You can handle that, right? Filter it out! No condescension intended, believe me.
The
"Top 10 Conservative Idiots" page at Democratic Underground has always in my reading transcended its' title in terms of the insights and education it provides. I commend it to you for bookmarking and regular reading.
Not surprisingly, DU's current list emphasizes the blatent hypocrisy of the bleached-blond House, which first "directed" Newsweek magazine to assume the position due to what might well have been only careless fact-checking and then, still unsatisfied (unrequited?), demanded that the magazine take on the role of propaganda channel. It was worth a try I guess since the administration's earlier repeated uses of taxpayer's dollars to try to sell their propaganda were found to be, shall we say, "not legal." Oh if only the good dog-fearing people of the United Snakes could regain their unquestioning trust (well, yes, "unthinking" is more accurate), and let the president and his devil-squads get back to their gleeful rape-and-pillage mode in the interests of stealing from the poor and middle class to pay back their corporate sponsors and religious fundamentalist handlers! What's with all the nuances and questioning??
However, let us not forget that the former mainstream media (including Newsweek), now more accurately known as the Corporate-Controlled Media (CCM) as consolidation and murdochism continues to take its' toll, seems perfectly comfortable in a sycophantic never-question-power role. (See #2 below.) Risk of former news magazine straining any muscles due to assumption of submissive posture seems miniscule.
Just a taste here, please link and bookmark in the interests of continuing ed (unless you are afraid of learning or otherwise anti-intellectual, and if so, lost soul, get back to your contemplation of the rapture and begone):
The stench of dishonesty was wafting through the streets of Washington D.C. last week after The Bush Administration accused Newsweek of being responsible for anti-American sentiment in the Middle East. Uh, guys - what about that whole "war" thing? But the administration weren't the only ones peddling rank hypocrisy - Rick Santorum (3) made the classic "Hitler Comparison," St. Jude Educational Institute (8) apparently thinks that women get pregnant all by themselves, and Ted Stevens (9) isn't exactly battling government waste. Enjoy, and as usual don't forget the key!
1. The Bush Administration
What does it take to inflame the entire Muslim world? Would it be George W. Bush referring to his Iraq adventure as a "crusade?" Could it be Ann Coulter suggesting that we should "invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity?" Might it be the photos of American soldiers abusing detainees at Abu Ghraib prison? Or is it perhaps the appalling mishandling of the Iraq occupation itself?
Don't be silly! Sure, all those things are a bit of a problem, but they pale in comparison to the evil machinations of Newsweek magazine. Last week Newsweek reported that guards at Guantanamo Bay prison had flushed a Koran down the toilet in order to intimidate detainees. The story came from an anonymous senior government official who told journalist Michael Isikoff that he had seen investigative reports on the matter. Newsweek ran the story past the Pentagon - twice - who corrected part of the article but didn't say anything about the Koran flushing.
The next thing you know, riots are breaking out all over the Muslim world and the White House is putting the blame squarely on... Newsweek. "There has been some lasting damage that has been done to our image... and it's going to take some work to repair that damage," said Scott McClellan, apparently with a straight face. "The report has had serious consequences. People have lost their lives. The image of the United States abroad has been damaged." (But you know, covering prisoners in shit, piling them in naked pyramids, attacking them with dogs, and beating them to death - well, that's just a bit of lighthearted fun.)
Scottie went on: "They can also talk about policies and practices of the United States military. Our United States military goes out of its way to treat the holy Koran with great care and respect." Okay...
Of course, once the White House had moved into full-bore-blame-someone-else mode, conservative organizations geefully pounced on Newsweek. According to Reuters, "A conservative media watchdog group, Accuracy in Media, said in a news release that 'blood is on the hands of Newsweek magazine' for the story. AIM editor Cliff Kincaid expressed incredulity that 'nobody at Newsweek has been fired or even reprimanded.'" Four words for you, AIM: weapons of mass destruction.
[clip]2. Newsweek
Hey Newsweek! Don't think you're getting off easy! Yes, you're on the list too this week, for acting like a bunch of weak-assed Bush appeasers. As soon as Scott McClellan snapped his fingers, Newsweek retracted their story and began bowing and scraping for forgiveness from the White House. Despite Newsweek's peers in the news business begging them to resist, they bent over and took the administration's punishment with a smile on their faces.
Not only that, but Scott McClellan insisted last week that simply apologizing wasn't enough: "It's a good first step," he simpered, but then announced that Newsweek "now has a responsibility to spread the word to the Muslim world that U.S. interrogators 'treat the Quran with great care and respect,'" according to CNN. How d'you like them apples Newsweek? Welcome to Bush's America, where replacing the ugly truth with useful lies is now the definition of "responsible journalism." Game, set, and match.
[clip]Believe me, more fun (and CE) follows.
