The Media Has Failed the American People!

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October 9, 2007 at 00:10:21

The Media Has Failed the American People!

by Timothy V. Gatto Page 1 of 1 page(s)

http://www.opednews.com

What is a representative republic? The United States claims to be one. We also claim to be a democracy according to George Bush who, by his own admission, wants to “export” democracy to other nations of the world. I would ask Mr. Bush this question, how can we export something to other nations that we don’t possess? If democracy were a commodity that we had a surplus of, we could export it. Unhappily that is not the case in this country. The sad truth is that the United States is woefully lacking that commodity. The underpinnings of a true democracy is the free flow of information and the transparency of government. We have no free flow of information and the government shrouds itself in secrecy.

Witness the media of this nation that refuses to tell the American people the truth about anything. The majority of news in this country is centered not on the world situation in which our government is waging wars of aggression against other nations, but on celebrity stories of failed marriages, drunken escapades, and bad parenting. The media refuses to cover anything of real importance.

There are so many examples of the media deliberately refusing to cover issues of the utmost importance to the American people. They refuse to cover the North American Union is which our government has fostered an agreement between Mexico, Canada and the United States that basically incorporates these three nations into one and effectively erases from the Earth the United States of America as a sovereign nation under The Constitution. Why has the media not covered this? Do they believe that it is of no importance to the American people that our nation and form of government is being negotiated away by an administration that hasn’t even reported what they are doing to our own Congress? How can this happen without coverage by the press and the rest of the media?

Our government is supposed to be “by the people and for the people”. The only access we have to our government’s decisions and policies is through the media. When it becomes clear that the media no longer reports on the truth of what our government is doing in the people’s name, we have no representative form of government. Unless the people have access to information on what is happening, the government has no limits on its power. This isn’t the only instance of the media failing to do its job in this country.

When Osama Bin Laden was taken to a hospital in Pakistan on September 10, 2001, the Army of Pakistan guarded his hospital to insure his safety while the next day four airliners were hijacked. The Pakistani secret service, the ISI provided the money to the ringleader of the hijackers Mohammed Atta. It is a documented fact that the head of the ISI in Pakistan, ISI director-general Lt-Gen Mahmud Ahmad, wired $100,000.00 to Atta. That week Ahmad was in Washington meeting with Secretary of State Rice and members of the CIA. This story was reported by The Times of India on October 9, 2001, yet American newspapers and television networks made only casual mention of it on NBC’s Dateline and the story was never followed up by anyone inside the mainstream media. According to the India Times: “Top sources confirmed here on Tuesday, that the general lost his job because of the "evidence" India produced to show his links to one of the suicide bombers that wrecked the World Trade Centre. The US authorities sought his removal after confirming the fact that $100,000 was wired to WTC hijacker Mohammed Atta from Pakistan by Ahmad Umar Sheikh at the instance of Gen Mahumd.”

Why hasn’t there been an independent investigation of this by the so-called “news” media? In other reports dealing with 9/11, Secretary of State Rice was asked if she knew that there were al Qaeda operatives working inside the United States with plans to hijack an airplane and fly it into buildings inside the U.S. She responded, along with the President and Vice-President, that they had no prior knowledge of that type of information. Yet, it was proven that the President in his daily briefing on September 8, 2001 was told exactly that. This briefing has been declassified and released, yet the media never investigated why all three had lied about ever having the information.

There are other things that the media will not cover. Where is the footage of the war in Iraq? The American people are shown snippets of film in and around Baghdad when a member of Congress or other dignitary visits, but where is the footage of the dead that line the streets every morning due to the carnage by rival militias the night before? Why did the story on Haifa Street reported by CBS reporter Lara Logan only appear on their website, and this was only after she begged that it be shown on websites on the internet?

Some other things that the media neglects; Senator Leahy (Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee) declared that President Bush, Vice-President Cheney and Harriet Miers refused to hand over documents and testify in front of the Senate oversight committee about the NSA wiretapping after they had been subpoenaed by the Senate. To deliberately ignore a Senate subpoena is a crime, yet the media refuses to follow the story. If this had been seven years ago and William Jefferson Clinton had ignored a Senate subpoena, it would have made front page news. This is something that all Americans should be thinking about.

Our news media has not done its job for years. Most people that want real news must either turn to the internet or get news from foreign media or from progressive news sites. The majority of people in this country don’t bother and what they learn from the major news networks is criminally short on content, especially when it comes to the truth about what their government does. There was no reporting on the demonstrations in Washington in September against the war. Unless people had been there the majority of people would never know that there were a hundred thousand people demonstrating. The media doesn’t report on the “First Amendment Zones” that keep protestors away from events so that their protests go unnoticed.

How long will the American People continue to let the media trample on their right to know what is really happening in their country? When will the media finally report on the things that matter? Without a free and uncensored media, we have no democracy. Maybe it is time for the networks to stop their senseless babble and do what they are paid to do. Unless the situation changes, we will have no recourse but to behave in a way that they can’t help but cover. There are still enough Americans that value their freedom that they will fight to keep it. One of those freedoms is our right to know the truth.

http://liberalpro.blogspot.com

Tim was banned from the site for posting private email from the publisher to him on his blog, and then attacking the publisher and the site in emails and articles. OEN has no responsibility to publish articles from people who attack the site. Tim's accusations that he was banned for his political positions are untrue. Check his articles. He repetitively wrote about and had published exactly the things he claimed he was banned for doing.

Former Chairman of the Liberal Party of America, Tim is a retired Army Sergeant. He currently lives in South Carolina. A regular contributor to OpEdNews, he is the author of Kimchee Kronicles and is currently at work on a new novel.

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15 comments

An old man wanting to see some thing good happen before I go.
Mr MAn old man wanting to see some thing good happen before I go.

With all due respect ...

Mr. Gotto you have it seems by your bio an accomplished and intelligent man, and it's just dawned on you that the MSM has "failed" us?

Sir, not only have they failed us they are as guilty as Goebbels.

by Mr M (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 873 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 2:08:52 AM

Michael Collins is a writer who focuses on clean elections and voting rights. See this summary of his articles plus Election 2004: The Urban Legend and groundbreaking research and commentary in "" His web site, Election Fraud News & The Money Party, offers a collection of resources and commentary on critical issues facing the country.
Michael CollinsMichael Collins is a writer who focuses on clean elections and voting rights. See this summary of his articles plus Election 2004: The Urban Legend and groundbreaking research and commentary in "" His web site, Election Fraud News & The Money Party, offers a collection of resources and commentary on critical issues facing the country.

How can we count the ways...

You did a very good job. This has to be said again and again...we know it, many know it but it has to be part of the consciousness...everywhere.

I saw a snip of Kathy Couric or whatever her name is, giving a speech about the news. Even she looked like she was about to laugh at the absurdity of the whole thing. But she didn't, pro that she is;)

Somewhere out there is a mass torts lawfirm collecting press clips, video, print, electronic, from the hired guns shilling for "two sides" to the climate change debate. Why? Becasue this firm plans to sue their asses off when the you know what hits the fan; them and their sponsors. Reading this, it occurred to me that they could go after the networks too since the networks surely know these are bogus 'experts.' I lost the link three computers ago but they were big and very serious. Just deserts!

Excellent article.

by Michael Collins (72 articles, 9 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 237 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 7:21:40 AM

Just a person that knows he matters and placing more on acceptance than expectation... And while this explanation is viewed apparently by some as limited, here's some more personal information that those same some believe I "need" to testify that I can post here at OpEdNews.com:
I have an undergraduate degree (BA even - not a foppish BS) in biology/environmental science with an emphasis on environmental/ecological systems (they are, like, um, so complex), a master's degree in public he...

to see more of bio, click on member name
Tom MurphyJust a person that knows he matters and placing more on acceptance than expectation... And while this explanation is viewed apparently by some as limited, here's some more personal information that those same some believe I "need" to testify that I can post here at OpEdNews.com:
I have an undergraduate degree (BA even - not a foppish BS) in biology/environmental science with an emphasis on environmental/ecological systems (they are, like, um, so complex), a master's degree in public he...

to see more of bio, click on member name

We the People - First and Foremost

Call me strange, but the U.S. government is a constitutional republic http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constitutional_republic and not solely a representative republic. As a republic, we do elect others to represent us at the local, state, and Federal levels. However, the constitution or will of the people expressed on paper defines our expectations of not just the elected "others" as a part of government but also ourselves as citizens of a common society, which together form the essence of OUR rights and form of governance.

In the statement, "We also claim to be a democracy according to George Bush who, by his own admission, wants to "export" democracy to other nations of the world," I believe President Bush expressed a desire to support other nations that commit themselves to the democratic process or democracy, similar to the US, in which the concept of self-determination by a nation's people is a commitment of the elected government - http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2003/11/20031106-2.html .

Regardless of my belief is the logical yet important flaw in the sentence structure – "We also claim to be a democracy according to George Bush..." Well, who's doing the claiming – we or W? Of course, it's we or us, although President Bush as an American citizen can certainly also claim that the U.S. is a democracy. To claim that it's a democracy solely according to George Bush is absurd and slavish – not to mention petulant.

I truly believe I have a voice which is a part of our democracy. My voice is my vote. Our collective votes are our collective voice. If we elect others to represent us, then we only have ourselves to blame for their actions or inactions. But shame on us if all we do is whine or complain about the elected others without letting our voices being heard via our votes. This is OUR responsibility and NOT the media's mission.

If you truly believe the exaggerated claim, "We have no free flow of information and the government shrouds itself in secrecy", then act. Oh wait, you have! The fact that the author had the ability to post such silliness is demonstrative of the "free flow" of information. And look, the government or elected others haven't erased your post – sounds like a secrecy shrouded conspiracy to me...

Do we see a problem already with the article in just the first paragraph alone?

The American people have failed the American people. The media has reported to us that which we wanted to know. If papers sell and news sites prosper because the viewers like to see a pop princess fail, then blame the viewers. In this sentence, "Maybe it is time for the networks to stop their senseless babble and do what they are paid to do," the networks ARE doing what they are paid to do - by their advertisers. Rather then pointing blame at who's at fault (e.g., the media or people – don't even mention corporations), a more productive approach to this apparent apathy of interest is to determine why the American people like "gossip above government".

In a word, it's "easier" but as an added bonus it's also "fun"! And why do Americans feel that way? Most of us have been brought up to think that government will take care of us – Medicare/Medicaid, social security, welfare, etc; so... why bother with government UNLESS it's taking away an "entitlement"? Rights can and have been sacrificed for convenience and ease.

Additionally, the concept and perhaps ability of taking responsibility for our own actions have been sacrificed before the altar of political correctness as promoted by liberalism. In the rush to claim that everyone is special, PC (and Barney the Dinosaur) has cast obstacles that further divide us as a people and nation of underachievers. "It's not Mohammed's fault for flying the plane into the tower; it's the nation's fault for not having exposed Mohammed to a caring and nurturing environment. If only the nation understood more so Mohammed's rich and colorful Islamic background..." Yeah, right!

And if some of the PC-fed sheep depart from the collective goal of underachieving and actually succeed at goals that THEY have set, then they are castigated and their successes attributed solely to the village (i.e., tax those that succeed at a higher rate because they...succeeded... uhm... because of the village not their own desires. Yeah, yeah – that's the ticket).

"The only access we have to our government's decisions and policies is through the media." As a rule, I avoid absolutes, unless absolutely necessary, of course! Is this really the only access? Media is but one of the many messengers we may use to access our government, but we could also get off our couches and actually attend legislative sessions, correspond with elected others, or vote on election days. Are these not other and more direct means of accessing government? Indeed, they are also means of CHANGING government – especially if you are unhappy with it.

"Most people that want real news must either turn to the internet or get news from foreign media or from progressive news sites. The majority of people in this country don't bother and what they learn from the major news networks is criminally short on content, especially when it comes to the truth about what their government does." In response, "So what?" Are you mad that your expectations of the American people have not been met? Why are you worrying about others when you have your own issues unless you want to manipulate the others so that their expectations or desires mimic your own (i.e., the media covers up the government's lies)?

You'd be a happier person and more useful (i.e., truthful) citizen if you increased your acceptance of others and worked on changing what is truly yours and NOT that which is others – media notwithstanding, naturally, for it's a failure. "Phew, I'm glad I pinned THAT social responsibility off on another... Hey, where's the remote?!?"

by Tom Murphy (2 articles, 2 quicklinks, 8 diaries, 1175 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 12:29:05 PM

Jim Freeman's op-ed pieces and commentaries have appeared in The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, International Herald-Tribune, CNN, The New York Review, The Jon Stewart Daily Show and a number of magazines.
Jim FreemanJim Freeman's op-ed pieces and commentaries have appeared in The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, International Herald-Tribune, CNN, The New York Review, The Jon Stewart Daily Show and a number of magazines.

Tom Murphy

Who the hell are you to preempt me?

Here I was all primed and ready to take off on the 'don't blame the press for our own laziness' issue, when I read your post and YOU NAILED IT. Nothing more to say.

We will get the government we deserve when we stop deserving and enabling lousy government.

Thanks for the wakeup call.

by Jim Freeman (107 articles, 39 quicklinks, 126 diaries, 297 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 3:18:52 PM

Teresa Simon-Noble is a computer activist for peace. She is a former mental health clinician. A poet and a freelance writer. Her work has been published in several online publications.
teresa simon-nobleTeresa Simon-Noble is a computer activist for peace. She is a former mental health clinician. A poet and a freelance writer. Her work has been published in several online publications.

surely you know ...

surely you know that our government is no longer, "of the people, by the people and for the people." It ceased to be that when the bushes seated themselves, through their mascot, in the oval office ... our government, and surely you know this, is now, "of the bushes, by the bushes and for the bushes."

by teresa simon-noble (56 articles, 17 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 81 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 12:58:02 PM

Author, Exec. Dir. The Center For Balance. Websites: PanditPress.com, OligarchyUSA.com, PublicCentralBank.com, EditorFreedom.com,
FascismUSA.COM & more
Kent WeltonAuthor, Exec. Dir. The Center For Balance. Websites: PanditPress.com, OligarchyUSA.com, PublicCentralBank.com, EditorFreedom.com,
FascismUSA.COM & more

How to Fix the corporate media?

Right on! We need to separate ownership from editorship.

See my prescription for corporate media reform at EditorFreedom.com

Kent Welton,

OligarchyUSA.com

by Kent Welton (46 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 37 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 2:19:32 PM

Surely, we know there are needs...

"We need to separate ownership from editorship."

We need to exercise personal responsibility, not add another layer of rules to the already thick strata of liberal and social bureaucracy via political correctness - a bureaucracy that already mandates my seatbelt wear and mobile phone use – not to mention who I can call an idiot or a** without being labeled "insensitive". Please note that the use of the word a** is considered offensive here. How's that for control ;)

"[S]urely you know that our government is no longer, 'of the people, by the people and for the people.'" I surely know that if this is true, then our discussions here are immaterial and a waste of our collective time. That is why I surely know it is not true and that America remains "We the People".

"Turn that frown upside-down and make that smile last awhile!" We need to separate frowning from smiling!

by Tom Murphy (2 articles, 2 quicklinks, 8 diaries, 1175 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 2:53:27 PM

blue collar worker/activist
mike wygantblue collar worker/activist

ANOTHER BLIND SHEEP

.........Has infiltrated these pages. The fact is, you can't deal with the fact that we've lost control of our country. The fact that you think nothing is wrong is proof that we are being mislead and lied to. You're just swallowing it, we're not. Have a nice life, you got a hard slap in the face coming from the neocons if they're allowed to continue, because believe me, they don't care about you either. We're their enemy, you are their suckers.

by mike wygant (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 287 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 4:00:58 PM

'The people are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.' Thomas Jefferson 1787
Munich'The people are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty.' Thomas Jefferson 1787

Re: The Media Has Failed the American People

Mr. Gatto:

I always appreciate your brilliant work.

I have come to the conclusion that the reason why this reticent corporate media, these so called "news journalists" who spoon feed us our daily dose of half- truths each evening are refusing to report the truths regarding the detriment this nefarious administration is causing our once great country, does in-fact have something to do with this Bush junta and the New World Order that's been shoved down our throats. It is something many cannot even begin to fathom. It is an agenda orchestrated by a group of hoodlums who, as I've stated before, I don't see anyone in the United States stopping. Unconscionable crimes have been committed and Impeachment should already have been put back upon the table. I believe Congress is either complicit or they're too afraid to speak out. Perhaps both?

We've also recently seen the administration's plans for yet another permanent military base in Afghanistan, not to mention the ones already built that surround key oil infrastructures in the region. And then there's the behemoth permanent, multi million dollar embassy in Iraq. Neither this administration, or any that may follow has any intentions of ever leaving the Middle East. That is precisely the reason for the tragedy of 911. It was the catalyst for the New World order and the PNAC's agenda. For without it, this evil, evil plan would never of been set into motion. A plan that this feckless lamestream media won't touch with a ten foot pole.

Meanwhile, the American people have beome hostages aboard an out of control train who's maniacal conductors, intoxicated with grandiose plans of Middle East hegemony, are intent on taking us with them on their abysmal journey of turmoil, death and destruction.

This could be quite a long ride!

by Munich (0 articles, 38 quicklinks, 12 diaries, 577 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 3:51:26 PM

I am a Vietnam Vet disabled by MS and other various diseases. On average I am a Moderate with slight Conservative leanings although it truly depends on what issue I am concerned with at the time.
Hayesml47I am a Vietnam Vet disabled by MS and other various diseases. On average I am a Moderate with slight Conservative leanings although it truly depends on what issue I am concerned with at the time.

Free Press?

They like to call themselves the "free press". There is nothing free about them anymore. They are owned and controlled by corporate big business(facism at its best) and we are having to pay for their imprisonment with only lies and half-truths corrupting every piece of news we get. Edward R. Murrow would be puking violently if he had lived to see what we are stuck with for news media. We cannot believe either our government or the media in anything they say. It is the most disgraceful, immoral mess one could ever imagine. Even worse, there seems to be no one capable or even moral enough to begin to fight for our deliverance from this miserable quagmire.

by Hayesml47 (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 200 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 4:34:18 PM

American against War and Violence. Writer, English Teacher, Inventor, Creator of the First Manmade Floating Farm On The Ocean.... My companies name is ACET: Algae Charcoal Ethanol Technicorp. We grow Algae for Oil.
Dom JermanoAmerican against War and Violence. Writer, English Teacher, Inventor, Creator of the First Manmade Floating Farm On The Ocean.... My companies name is ACET: Algae Charcoal Ethanol Technicorp. We grow Algae for Oil.

Commemorate Precept

Commemorate Precept

So you are saying the Media is the power in America; not the process of Democracy. Therewith we can understand that there is good or bad. And so how does Democracy stand upon that scale? I truly think good is good and bad is bad. There is no such distinction that good is bad or bad is good. This is the hypocrisy our current lives are driven by through this Bush administration and the Media liars who drive it. The conclusion is that it is not really about Democracy but about the way the Media has created its own 4th branch of government called the Right to Incite Violence Branch, all neatly packaged according to the precepts of free speech. Mind you free speech in the days of early yore was toward escalating the decency and right to do the good, which was to never put War before the issues of morality and goodness. That goodness is the ability and wants to preach the end to conflicts, the urge to decommission and reduce military perceptions, and show the providence hand with its bounty and wheal. The foregone has accepted that freedom of speech connotes the disregard of law and civility, in order to nurture the carnal desires of the flesh of men...meaning the proverbial clause you've sold your soul to the devil and his profits. A time will come when the people who have caused this great harm to our nation, will seek the capes of retirement as a shelter toward the collapse of their said intended purpose. For what good is it to continue the guise of carnal sanguity when there is never the perception of its goal which is real peace? In fact they fail; and the test of Democracy because of that, and sadly perish with the sins they have claimed. While laws state the books, and books state the men wherewith knowledge is in conflict with the values of society, the society that wanders away from its core of benevolence is and always will be conquered, whether by the use of the gun and its violent intent, or by the absence of mans integrity.

by Dom Jermano (20 articles, 0 quicklinks, 40 diaries, 934 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 7:06:11 PM

i am retired military veteran. i served over 25 years in the Unites States Army. i retired in 1983. i served in the vietnam war. a total of 27 months in that war. i also retired from Boeing aircraft. i am 68 years old. i live in texas. iwork out on my treadmill each day. i am married. i like politics. but i dont like what is going on in our government. we need a better government with politicans that answer to the people of america. after all this is our government. ( we the people) according to...

to see more of bio, click on member name
vincent passiatorei am retired military veteran. i served over 25 years in the Unites States Army. i retired in 1983. i served in the vietnam war. a total of 27 months in that war. i also retired from Boeing aircraft. i am 68 years old. i live in texas. iwork out on my treadmill each day. i am married. i like politics. but i dont like what is going on in our government. we need a better government with politicans that answer to the people of america. after all this is our government. ( we the people) according to...

to see more of bio, click on member name

The Media

The media bought and paid for by corporate america. the same way as our government. there is no suck thing as freedom. may be the government wants you and me to beleave this. OUR GOVERNMENT IS NOW A DICTATORSHIP. RUN BY TWO TYRANTS IN GEORGE BUSH AND DICK CHENEY. i dont know how we the people could have let this happen? now we are stuck by a congress who dont give a dam about america and its people. we have a hoodlum as president and a warmonger ganster as vise president. america is out of control. and beleave me it is dangerous. come one more slip up by these two tyrants and bingo another war. only this one will be the big one.WORLD WAR III. if you dont beleave me see the profit Nostradamus. read his book. see www.end of the world. the Nostradamus code. world war III. FOLLOWING WAR FROM 2008 to 2012. there will not be much left of Europe. now is the time to stop this idiot as president. we can not impeach them? then have a rebellion that is if the american people have it in them to do this?

by vincent passiatore (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 128 comments) on Tuesday, October 9, 2007 at 11:19:14 PM

I think that all people must be held accountable for their actions under the law. Everyone must be treated the same under International Law, National Laws, and Local Laws, NO EXCEPTIONS!

www.CitizenAmendments.org
Anton GrambihlerI think that all people must be held accountable for their actions under the law. Everyone must be treated the same under International Law, National Laws, and Local Laws, NO EXCEPTIONS!

www.CitizenAmendments.org

Citizen Amendment 22 – Media

If you want Congress to Represent YOU instead of Special Interests, Vote YES for the Citizen Amendments.

Get your FREE copy at www.citizenamendments.org

Also Checkout the National Initiative for Democracy and then vote on it.

It will give the people the right to a National Initiative.

http://ni4d.us/

Citizen Amendment 22 – MediaThe ownership of the Media shall be dispersed so that it represents the needs and interests of each community.

There shall be no overlap in media ownership. If you own a Radio Station you shall not own Television Stations or Printed News Media. Like wise if you own a Television Station you shall not own Radio Stations or Printed News Media and if you own a Printed News Media you shall not own a Radio Station or Television Station.

The owners of Radio and TV stations shall be United States Citizens and be residents of the state where the station is located or shall have an independent board of directors who are residents of the state where the station is located.

No media shall be used to promote the benefits or use of a particular drug. The doctors and pharmacists are trained to provide this service.

Children’s program times shall not have ads which are not for children and shall not have ads which promote the buying of anything.

Cable TV shall allow the subscriber the right to purchase only the channels the subscriber wants. The cost of one channel shall not be used to subsidize the cost of another channel. A basic minimum charge shall be allowed, but it shall not be used to subsidize the cost of any of the channels.News articles shall list all the citizenships of the person who wrote the article.

There shall be no fees or restrictions on Internet usage, but content including Email shall have a descriptor which indicates its content. There shall be NO government (Federal, State, or Local) policies which favor or inhibit any one competitor in any Internet industry. The Internet network shall not discriminate among different types of traffic based on the traffic’s source, destination, or content.

Congress shall immediately setup and fund a Television network which provides International news broadcasts. These broadcasts shall not be censored and its content shall be provided in English by each country. In places where the people do not live in a country, they shall also be allowed a news broadcast. Each country or peoples shall be allowed one-half hour to present the news as they see it. The day-of-week and the hour-of-the-day shall be on a rotating basis so that each country or peoples will provide their news at different times of the day and week. No country or peoples shall have more than one allotted time in each rotation. The United Nations shall be allotted one time slot. The United Nations will determine the initial countries and people who qualify. The order of rotation will be in English Alphabetic ascending order.

Congress shall fund at least 85% of the cost of Public Radio and Television to eliminate the influence of business sponsors. The content shall be regulated by the Citizens of each service area. If there is a dispute on content, a vote of the subscribers in each service area shall be used to resolve the dispute. There shall only be one vote per subscriber. Federal, State, and Local government candidates shall be allotted equal time by each Public Station for stating their message or for debates. No other government funding shall be provided to candidates for any office.

by Anton Grambihler (1 articles, 0 quicklinks, 1 diaries, 220 comments) on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 at 1:17:57 AM

Citizen Amendments - a dangerous concept indeed!

With regard to Citizen Amendment 22, I'm supposed to be worried about the actions and proposals of the current Administration?!?

I think the amendment as written SCREAMS "Four legs good, two legs bad". Do these words sound familiar at all, "Congress shall make no law... abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press..." All of these proposals:

(1) Dictating the use of public monies (why only 85% when there's a 100% just waiting);
(2) Dictating the airing of certain content;
(3) Mandating free Internet access (that's a good one - why not free newspapers for those who don't own a computer or radio); and
(4) (I LOVE this one) Children's shows "shall not have ads which promote the buying of anything." C'mon, just say that commercial advertisements are prohibited from children's shows; public service announcements have been determined by the the National Initiative for Democracy to be the only acceptable form of publically-funded social programming.

In speaking about citizenamendments.org and the National Initiative for Democracy, they should check the two means by which an amendment may be introduced to the Constitution http://www.usconstitution.net/constam.html . Neither of the means allows for a private citizen or group thereof to introduce an amendment, and while some may THINK (after the ingestion of controlled or uncontrolled substances) that the Declaration of Independence grants the citizen this right, the U.S. Constituion is the supreme law of the land.

I may think that McDonald's Mission Statement permits ME, a frequent customer and consumer, to alter their menu to reflect a tofu only focus, but it doesn't change the fact I have no grounds telling McDonald's why they can and cannot do with their menu. If you don't like the already-varied menu selection, then pick another restaurant. Don't change the restaurant to reflect the desire of a narrowed minority.

Of course you could always alter your respective state's constitution to reflect that of New Hampshire - the ONLY state that permits the use of force to overthrow a government that has stopped serving the people.

"Government being instituted for the common benefit, protection, and security, of the whole community, and not for the private interest or emolument of any one man, family, or class of men; therefore, whenever the ends of government are perverted, and public liberty manifestly endangered, and all other means of redress are ineffectual, the people may, and of right ought to reform the old, or establish a new government. The doctrine of nonresistance against arbitrary power, and oppression, is absurd, slavish, and destructive of the good and happiness of mankind." -- Article 10 to the Bill of Rights to the New Hampshire Constitution http://www.nh.gov/constitution/billofrights.html .

We should listen to New Hampshire. After all, they espouse the essence of liberty by stating repeatedly, "Live Free or Die".

by Tom Murphy (2 articles, 2 quicklinks, 8 diaries, 1175 comments) on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 at 8:14:24 AM

JUST A CONCERN CITIZEN AND LOVE MY COUNTRY GREW UP IN A SMALL FISHING TOWN IN NJ,BUT THE DAY I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE,SPENT MOST OF MY TIME EXPANSING MY MINE. LEARNED A LOT THE HARD WAY,BUT MOSTLY STREET SMART. AT 65 HAVE PRETTY GOOD IDEA WHO THE SNAKES ARE.
RICHARD SHADEJUST A CONCERN CITIZEN AND LOVE MY COUNTRY GREW UP IN A SMALL FISHING TOWN IN NJ,BUT THE DAY I GOT MY DRIVERS LICENSE,SPENT MOST OF MY TIME EXPANSING MY MINE. LEARNED A LOT THE HARD WAY,BUT MOSTLY STREET SMART. AT 65 HAVE PRETTY GOOD IDEA WHO THE SNAKES ARE.

MASS MEDIA DECEPTION

THE CONTROL OF THE CFR, TC GLOBALISTS OVER THE MEDIA AND OUR GOVERNMENT MUST BE EXPOSED TO THE UNWITTING PUBLIC, UNTIL THIS IS FULLY EXPOSED WE WILL NEVER HAVE A DEMOCRATIC CHOICE TO PICK A CANDIDATE FOR PRESIDENT. ALL THE TOP TIER CANDIDATES FROM BOTH PARTY'S ARE EITHER CFR MEMBERS OR ARE FINANCED BY THE TC GLBALISTS, AND 2/3 OF OUR CONGRESS AND SENATE ARE ALSO MEMBERS OF CFR OR TC.THATS WHY THE AMERICAN PEPOLE HAVE NO VOICE IN GOVERNMENT. JUST LOOK AT JHON EWARDS HE MUST OF PISS OFF THE GLBOLISTS AND THEY CUT OFF HIS FUNDING, AND HE IS A MEMBER OF CFR. PLAY BALL OR LOSE IT ALL THATS THE NAME OF THEIR GAME.

by RICHARD SHADE (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 459 comments) on Sunday, October 14, 2007 at 6:39:57 AM

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