FOX NEWS viewers: Dumb and staying that way

The recent study showing the FOX NEWS viewers are more misinformed than those who don’t watch any news is not surprising. That evidence has been available for years.

What the poll can’t show is how FOX also removes the ability of it’s viewers to actually learn anything. Talking or trying to have an intelligent debate with a Conservative is an impossible task. They ignore facts, cling to easily disproven myths, have no ability to make valid comparisons and have cannot rationally think out a problem or issue. That is the real crime and real damage that the Right Wing media does. Beyond making their consumers dumb, they also make sure they can never rise beyond their ignorance.

GOP FOREIGN POLICY DEBATE ANALYSIS

Tonight’s G.O.P. debate was about foreign policy and hosted by the National Journal and CBS News. It was marked by some sharp disagreements between the candidates, another gaffe by Rick Perry and an easy win by the undermatched debate champ Mitt Romney.

First of all, how many times can Rick Perry kill his campaign? In an attempt at a dramatic statement of philosophy he blundered again, this time by misquoting the prophet Ronald Reagan. Perry said that Reagan crushed “Russia” to dust when it was the USSR that collapsed for many reasons after Reagan left office. A huge mistake by Perry not only because it’s historically dodgy but worse, it’s needlessly antagonizing to a nation that is easily agitated. Russia wasn’t and isn’t crushed, thank you very much, and I bet they don’t appreciate you saying that.

But Perry wasn’t done yet. Somehow it got much worse. He followed that up by threatening to do the same to China. I think even the audience was stunned. Another nation there is no reason to pointlessly threaten. For the first time in this campaign, I was having Bush flashbacks. I’m really surprised at how he’s handling himself.

Huntsman didn’t get much time but did get an opportunity to slap down Perry’s plans to destroy China. That guy is dangerous to Obama. I think he is the only one who would be certain beat him in a general election.

It’s exhausting listening to Newt Gingrich. He always seems mad and yelling. Whenever he’s challenged, like when he doesn’t have a good answer for a question, he’ll go on the attack: against the media, the questioners, some philosophers in the 18th century. Give it a rest man. When asked how would he think ‘out of the box’, Gingrich replied that he would follow Reagan, Thatcher and the Pope. Oh yeah – that’s the kind of creative new thinking we need.

Romney was Romney. He was focused on attacking Obama. He had a watered-down version of talk radio trash. Arguing that Obama appears weak to the rest of the world. [so much of the Right's forgiven policy is about appearance - watch and notice] His arguments were pretty exaggerated and many not valid at all. If this is his best stuff then it will be a tough go if he gets to the general election.

Foreign policy is one of the topics I find myself in some agreement with Ron Paul. Many things he said, especially about Iraq and Iran, we’re spot on. His argument against water boarding / torture were stirring and should be required listening for everyone.

The rest of the crew were just background noise. Cain looked like a defeated man. Santorum was as peppy as ever and believes with all his heart he’s gonna be President. As far as Michelle Bachman, I don’t mind saying, that if there was one time I might welcome Herman Cain’s firm hand with women, it would have been to shut that woman up!

Little Liar Putin

I’m not shy to criticize the USA and the recent Tea flavoring that made us look like shhht- but little Vladimir Putin better STFU! We are many things – but not a ‘parasite’ as he claimed and certainly not to eastern Europe. It’s also very troubling that Putin would choose that specific way to lie about the US to a pro-Kremlin youth group.

Falsely accusing someone of feeding off your people doesn’t seem like the beginning of anything good at all. In fact, it sounds like the little guy is up to no good. Putin’s tone smacks of dictatorial desires and his history holds nothing to assuage those fears. 

The former KGB agent is cultivating a very young following and is now using the recent US debt tea’saster to plant the seed of vengeance in Russia’s next generation. I do not look forward to the prospect of his returning to the Russian Presidency in 2012.

Chris Christie abuses “Woman on the Street” questioner!

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie bullied this poor woman on a local TV show who asked him a perfectly reasonable question about education. He even stopped to make sure she had her name right so he could call her out by that name. BREAKING VIDEO!

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Flocking Sheep

When a regular guy like me says something big like “The Conservative Movement is really a manifestation of mental illness” read this before you brush me off.  Soon, it will be too late to do anything about it. When hateful and dishonest people manipulate a fearful and uninformed public- this is what you get. Already about 1/3 of Americans are lost to this – we have to nip it in the bud NOW if we are to save our nation.

This is not an anti- religion rap.  Faith in a Supreme Being is almost universal and has a positive influence on millions around the world.  However, when Religious leaders, whose currency and influence is not based on fact but faith; who do not present evidence but only speculation, exploit their flock for political purposes, the United States is in as much trouble as Iran was when the Ayatollah ran things.

 

Why Republicans Want To Deny Unemployment Insurance

Last week Congressional Republicans blocked an extension of unemployment insurance for Americans out of work. They claim it was because of budgetary concerns but of course that’s nonsense. Unemployment insurance is a miniscule part of the budget and actually, it can be helpful to the economy! But, frustratingly, this is once again just the Republican Party saying something – not because it’s true, but because they think it will sound good.  As they play their cruel little games, Americans suffer.

Have you noticed that Republicans only seem to care about the budget when they don’t have control of it?  All they really want now is their political power back and they are more than willing to do anything to poison the political climate to such an extent that people just throw up their hands and say “throw all the bums out”.  Since Democrats are in the majority, Republicans feel they will win by default. They don’t want America to rebound – quite the contrary, a rebound will mean that people would not dare risk giving the GOP the levers of power once again.

The real reasons Republicans want to stop unemployment insurance:

They believe that sinking the nation deeper into misery will help their 2010 and 2012 election chances. Conservatives have never been shy about wanting Obama and the Democrats to fail.  They have been nothing but obstructionists since being booted from power.  They hope that if people are jobless AND hungry, the Democratic incumbents will be thrown out.

They want people to work harder for less money. This is a staple of the Conservative Ideology. Strengthen the advantage to those doing the hiring over job seekers; of those running the companies over the employees. Since there are not as many jobs as there are people needing to feed their kids, people will have to do much more for much less. Remember, these are the folks who consistently oppose the minimum wage.

They want owners to increase their profits. There’s no point in screwing the average guy if the big boys don’t profit.  Redistributing wealth upwards has always been the ultimate goal of the Conservative movement. Ending unemployment insurance assures that while so many will suffer, the wealthy few will still own the leverage that allows them to expand their empires.

The Right’s Desperate Smears

Here is President Obama laying a wreath for Memorial Day. With Conservatives having no luck fueling a political resurgence on the strengths of their beliefs, they have returned to their 1990′s strategy of constantly throwing out baseless smears and hoping something sticks. Much as they handled Clinton’s popularity, the right-wing is counting on the mainstream media to promote each of the false controversies they send out there in the (likely futile) hope of knocking his approval numbers down. This one, the old song called “Democrats hate the Military” went out last week.

There is nothing sacred to some on the Right – including Memorial Day. While Conservatives organized last week to attack President Obama, I want to publicly thank the President for recognizing our troops this weekend and meeting with the families who came to hear him speak on Monday. For Conservatives, who treated the military so recklessly when they had power, to now try to use them for this partisan purpose is truly disgusting and illustrates to me how little they really think of our men and women in uniform.

For those interested in substance over symbolism and results over political spin … check this out. I have a feeling killing the #3 guy in Al Qaida will do more good for the troops than laying a wreath in Washington for the cameras. Some may prefer a Commander In Chief who struts on aircraft carriers with banners but I prefer the someone who actually get the job done. That’s just me though.

The next false controversy involves the Senatorial candidate Joe Sestak. Republicans tried to say that Sestak was illegally “bribed” by the Obama Administration to not run for Senate in Pennsylvania. In fact, that nothing even close to illegal happened – at all – nothing! In a shocking blow to the argument Ron Kaufman, former George W. Bush political director even said “Tell me a White House that didn’t do this, back to George Washington.” Look for FOX and talk radio to keep repeating this nonsense to their flock and to drum up another march to Impeachment because, as even the most causal political observer knows, it’s what Republicans do when they lose elections.

Next up we see again how standing up to the Right too often leads to threats of violence. Joe McGiness is a well-respected author who is writing a book on Sarah Palin.  She refused to give him an interview, much as she does with everyone except FOX. So McGinness moved to Wasilla, Alaska talk to her friends and acquaintances.  Palin immediately called him a “creep” and a “stalker” and incited her nut case followers into threatening violence against this man!  Just because his house is next to hers.  I wish I could do that to a neighbor I don’t like but I live in America where you can live where you want. (Only, apparently, if Palin and her mob approves). Anyone, like myself, who has dared to stand up to the Conservative Movement, knows that threats of violence comes with the territory so Joe McGinness shouldn’t be surprised. Naturally, Sarah Palin has taken this to a new low.

NASA Time Lapse of the BP Oil Leak