Wisconsin we all know about. Rachel Maddow had a stomach-churning segment recently about Michigan. I urge you to watch it. I'm trying mobile blogging so I can't post the video just yet, but you can find it easily.
Full-blown corporate feudalism, fascism, whatever you want to call it. It's on the march. Democratic governance is on the endangered-species list down south, and you'd have to be on Fantasy Island not to think it's in the crosshairs up here as well.
More to come.
Hi OB - For the benefit of your other readers, I think this is the RMS segment you're referring to (from Thursday night).
ReplyDeleteThe Japan disaster has sort of eclipsed all other news for the moment, but I'm sure Rachel will continue to cover the labour news in the coming days.
Thanks JJ, that's the one.
ReplyDeleteThey've declared war not only on unions, but on the entire middle class. One really wants to think they're approaching the point Michael Moore was talking about, where people finally realize what's going on and stand up and say 'enough,' and start fighting back, but ... not holding my breath.
I'd have more hope for a positive outcome if this was getting covered by more networks than just MSNBC. There's something very ominous about the way the MSM is flat-out refusing to give this issue any attention.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the protesters should all pin teabags to their hats. That seems to get the media's attention.
JJ:
ReplyDeleteAgreed. The media know what their job is, though. They're there to propagate a certain narrative, and to serve as the mouthpiece for the owners.
Perhaps we should stop referring to the MSM and start calling them the corporate media, both to make their allegiances clear and as a way of reclaiming the discursive turf.
On the upside, the stories that media outlets choose to cover (or not) tell us in no uncertain terms who's bought & paid for and who isn't, or at least, is less so (and by higher-quality human beings). (Cue shrieks of "George Soros!" from the Blue Corner... yawn.)
ReplyDelete"They're there to propagate a certain narrative, and to serve as the mouthpiece for the owners."
You know... I know what you mean, but no, they're not. Their purpose, supposedly, is to inform, not to shape narratives. If they want to be in the narrative-shaping business, as it appears they do, they need to stop referring to themselves as "news" and start calling themselves "entertainment" or "advertising". Or at the very least, "biased, bought & paid for political commentary".
Edward R. Murrow must be spinning at redline in his grave.
"Perhaps we should stop referring to the MSM and start calling them the corporate media." or the steno pool for corporate and political interests.
ReplyDeleteThe media are in the entertainment business. They've generally not been in the journalism business for a long time. Real journalism takes time and costs real money. Spouting off opinions and regurgitating press releases fills space/air time and it's cheap to do.
So sad.