If you follow any of the most current political talk, the topic of the "Fairness Doctrine" has come up by the liberals. Without all the hog-wash, it is basically government control over the airwaves, so that all sides have a chance to be heard. Sounds fair to me! Why not?
I just read on a site promoting this action to renew the doctrine, and they are claiming the following (in part) - That there has been an extreme change in the immense volume of unanswered conservative opinion heard on the airwaves, especially on talk radio. Virtually all of the leading political talkshow hosts are said to be right-wingers, i.e. Bill O’Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and Oliver North, to name a few.
Well folks... I ask, How is that? Permit me to provide some thoughts about this.
1. All the stations are privately owned and operated.
2. Unless supported by public funding, they all have to pay for themselves.
3. Paying for themselves is usually by way of "advertisers", promoting themselves and their products during that program.
4. For the most part, the advertisers pay for the air-time, based upon ratings.
5. Ratings, are based on how many people are believed to be watching, listening, or with newspapers and printed media, readership. The more people...eyes and ears...who actually read, watch, or listen, the more that air-time is worth. In that same light, if that time doesn't have the audience, it won't garner the ad dollars. No ad dollars, then the media source has to decide if it wants to support it anyway, or not. RATING POINTS are the key!
So, HOW can the government make the "Fairness Doctrine" work? The way I see it, is that they would force those media outlets to either provide programming that doesn't pay, or force off that which THEY think is too much to be balanced. Either way, it would be THE GOVERNMENT who would decide what you should see, hear, or read!
The way it is now, you DO have a choice. Two in fact - the turner, and the on-off button/dial.
That simple. If there were enough people to turn OFF Rush, O'Reilly, or whomever, then the stations would have to look for ad dollars elsewhere. They're a business. They depend on profit making to stay afloat.
Apparently, there IS an audience, and the advertisers spend their ad dollars to access those consumers.
Okay ... So WHY do I care about this issue in the first place? Because it is just MORE GOVERNMENT CONTROL! And folks, we have far too much control by them now, so adding one more single control over OUR lives, is not what I want. I would hope that you don't want more of the government in your business either.
In the words of Sir William Wallace...... FREEEEEDOMMMMMMM! (Okay, you had to see Braveheart to understand.)
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Monday, February 16, 2009
Is she terminal? II
This is an updated rewrite of my earlier entry.
It saddens me, to see her so sick. She is down, and from the looks of her, she could be terminally ill. She's been through so much in her life. Many have attacked her, wounded her, trampled on her, tried so hard to make her disappear from the planet. Today, she is under such extreme attacks, and this time, from within her own family. If she goes, I just don't know what I'll do, and I am sad at the prospect.
America. Oh, how I love her name. America. Oh, how I love my country. America. Oh, how sad I am of what far too many are trying to do to her, make her become, make her into what she was never meant to be.
Why do I say all this? Because, today, it looks to me like the "government of the people, by the people, and for the people", has been plowed under by the swarm of hungry...power hungry... politicians and bureaucrats. The "government", even on local levels, has become the BIG manager in most all aspects of our lives and businesses. Now, with trillions of dollars of taxpayer money, BIG government has now decided what to do with OUR money...and our future money...and with our very lives.
While I liked George W. Bush, I had a number of disagreements with some of his policies. But today, with this new administration, what I am seeing, frankly, scares the crap out of me. The BIG government of today, is looking to be the GIGANTIC government in the coming few years. And with that, WILL come "socialism". How else can one say it? With the government injecting itself into our personal lives and business, and the government distribution of OUR personal wealth....what IS socialism otherwise? And can anyone count the Czars? And why Czars? Can't the officials who pass congressional scrutiny handle the jobs? Or, is the CONTROL Obama gets with Czars a bigger reason for them? (No congressional scrutiny!)
I am absolutely convinced that our forefathers would be up-in-arms over what they see today. In fact, they WERE up-in-arms some 230+ years ago. And WHY were they up-in-arms? They were fed up with the strong arms tactics and imposition of unfair taxes upon the colonies and the citizens of the New World. Great Britain, at that time, WAS the government. And THAT government wanted to impose its will, and taxes, in every way it saw fit to do. Sound familiar?
Well, TRILLIONS of dollars promised by THIS government, on top of the .7 Trillion before Bush left office, WHO will pay for all that? WHO will be taxed to pay for the sins and mistakes by our own government and big business? And when it comes down to it - just how many, what percent, of our citizens really wanted this, or want to pay for it? The top ten polls were clear - a majority of Americans were against THIS bill. But it didn't matter to those who hold the power.
THIS is NOT America. This is something else, but it is NOT America. Businesses grow. Businesses go under. The natural evolution of capitalism has been circumvented by the rich and powerful. Now, our government will decide who makes it, and who won't. The ever increasing government hand, has now grown to control the direction of business, and us...we, the people.
BTW - Don't get me wrong here. I DO NOT blame the wealthy people who earned their way and are good citizens and stewards of our national interest. But, there are those who will sell all of us down the river, for GREED of money and power. And there is the problem ... unbridled GREED for power.
It seems to me that far too many in America, WANT the government to save us from ourselves, save us from our debt and the personal consequences of bad decisions. As long as the government hands us money, we'll go along with IT (big government). Give me a $600 or $400 tax rebate, and I'll shut up and let you do what ever you want......
I am sick at what we have become. And in November, we (I say we, because WE are all in this together.) voted in the biggest bunch of greedy people in the history of our country. And with that, we are being sold out. I weep for my America. I weep for the country that spread freedom, helped other people and countries in times of natural disaster and pain. I weep for those who came before us, and died in an effort to keep America free, and keep America as a land of "for the people, by the people". The people we have in Washington today, are NOT "the people", but they are there...BECAUSE we let them be there. The personal agendas and greed for power, is limitless. And Americans put them there. Shame on us.
So, I sit by the death bed of the America I love and have believed in. I watch helplessly as she succumbs to the trampling on the long held belief's of a nation of free people and non-intrusive government. Before long, her colors could remain, but the stripes will be removed, the stars gone, and some new "Obama-like" symbol will replace her. Letters and emails have failed, and I know of no cure to help. Good men sit by, and other men want to turn off her life support machine. Freedom of her people is old fashioned, in the eyes of our new power mongers.
Pardon my ramblings, and perhaps lack of delivery in this addition, but my sadness almost over-takes me and the grief I am feeling for what I fear is coming, has a grip on me.
Am I alone? Are there any other voices that share in this feeling?
God Bless America, for as long as we still have her. - Dan
PS. While not exclusive to Veterans, the sound of her name, America, and the songs about her, America, America the Beautiful, God Bless America, The Star Spangled Banner, etc., bring goose bumps to us, as does the raising or passing of our Flag. What is happening to America, is hard to swallow for THIS Veteran.
It saddens me, to see her so sick. She is down, and from the looks of her, she could be terminally ill. She's been through so much in her life. Many have attacked her, wounded her, trampled on her, tried so hard to make her disappear from the planet. Today, she is under such extreme attacks, and this time, from within her own family. If she goes, I just don't know what I'll do, and I am sad at the prospect.
America. Oh, how I love her name. America. Oh, how I love my country. America. Oh, how sad I am of what far too many are trying to do to her, make her become, make her into what she was never meant to be.
Why do I say all this? Because, today, it looks to me like the "government of the people, by the people, and for the people", has been plowed under by the swarm of hungry...power hungry... politicians and bureaucrats. The "government", even on local levels, has become the BIG manager in most all aspects of our lives and businesses. Now, with trillions of dollars of taxpayer money, BIG government has now decided what to do with OUR money...and our future money...and with our very lives.
While I liked George W. Bush, I had a number of disagreements with some of his policies. But today, with this new administration, what I am seeing, frankly, scares the crap out of me. The BIG government of today, is looking to be the GIGANTIC government in the coming few years. And with that, WILL come "socialism". How else can one say it? With the government injecting itself into our personal lives and business, and the government distribution of OUR personal wealth....what IS socialism otherwise? And can anyone count the Czars? And why Czars? Can't the officials who pass congressional scrutiny handle the jobs? Or, is the CONTROL Obama gets with Czars a bigger reason for them? (No congressional scrutiny!)
I am absolutely convinced that our forefathers would be up-in-arms over what they see today. In fact, they WERE up-in-arms some 230+ years ago. And WHY were they up-in-arms? They were fed up with the strong arms tactics and imposition of unfair taxes upon the colonies and the citizens of the New World. Great Britain, at that time, WAS the government. And THAT government wanted to impose its will, and taxes, in every way it saw fit to do. Sound familiar?
Well, TRILLIONS of dollars promised by THIS government, on top of the .7 Trillion before Bush left office, WHO will pay for all that? WHO will be taxed to pay for the sins and mistakes by our own government and big business? And when it comes down to it - just how many, what percent, of our citizens really wanted this, or want to pay for it? The top ten polls were clear - a majority of Americans were against THIS bill. But it didn't matter to those who hold the power.
THIS is NOT America. This is something else, but it is NOT America. Businesses grow. Businesses go under. The natural evolution of capitalism has been circumvented by the rich and powerful. Now, our government will decide who makes it, and who won't. The ever increasing government hand, has now grown to control the direction of business, and us...we, the people.
BTW - Don't get me wrong here. I DO NOT blame the wealthy people who earned their way and are good citizens and stewards of our national interest. But, there are those who will sell all of us down the river, for GREED of money and power. And there is the problem ... unbridled GREED for power.
It seems to me that far too many in America, WANT the government to save us from ourselves, save us from our debt and the personal consequences of bad decisions. As long as the government hands us money, we'll go along with IT (big government). Give me a $600 or $400 tax rebate, and I'll shut up and let you do what ever you want......
I am sick at what we have become. And in November, we (I say we, because WE are all in this together.) voted in the biggest bunch of greedy people in the history of our country. And with that, we are being sold out. I weep for my America. I weep for the country that spread freedom, helped other people and countries in times of natural disaster and pain. I weep for those who came before us, and died in an effort to keep America free, and keep America as a land of "for the people, by the people". The people we have in Washington today, are NOT "the people", but they are there...BECAUSE we let them be there. The personal agendas and greed for power, is limitless. And Americans put them there. Shame on us.
So, I sit by the death bed of the America I love and have believed in. I watch helplessly as she succumbs to the trampling on the long held belief's of a nation of free people and non-intrusive government. Before long, her colors could remain, but the stripes will be removed, the stars gone, and some new "Obama-like" symbol will replace her. Letters and emails have failed, and I know of no cure to help. Good men sit by, and other men want to turn off her life support machine. Freedom of her people is old fashioned, in the eyes of our new power mongers.
Pardon my ramblings, and perhaps lack of delivery in this addition, but my sadness almost over-takes me and the grief I am feeling for what I fear is coming, has a grip on me.
Am I alone? Are there any other voices that share in this feeling?
God Bless America, for as long as we still have her. - Dan
PS. While not exclusive to Veterans, the sound of her name, America, and the songs about her, America, America the Beautiful, God Bless America, The Star Spangled Banner, etc., bring goose bumps to us, as does the raising or passing of our Flag. What is happening to America, is hard to swallow for THIS Veteran.
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