So where was all this lovy-dovy, kissy crying shit when Molly Ivins died???????

[happydreams]

In the MSM that is.

Or when Paul Wellstone died; here was somebody who dedicated his life to helping people and fighting the fascist bastards. He and his whole family died under the most suspicious of circumstances (I, and alot of others think it was murder). His death recieved very little attention from a Press cowering under the strong arm of the Bushies. Poppy once called Wellstone "a chickenshit", while GW said:"All that loved him will miss him". The typical double meaning psycho-talk the fascists use to hurt those they hate.

Or how much covereage would there be if someone like Congressman Dennis Kucinich passed away? About as much as is given to him and what he says when he was living. Not very goddamn much.

This crap about Russert reminds me alot of the old "Don't you support the troops" crap used to divide those in opposition to the war. "Oh, you can support the troops and be opposed to the war", they argue.

"Tell me how I am suppose to support them?" I ask. Of course support is never defined, just like "success" in Iraq has never been defined. "Do I go down to the docks or the tarmac when they come home and wave and pat em' on the back?" Well, no, I won't. I don't want them to get the impression that I support what they are doing. When was the last time you fascist ditto heads waved and patted a group of war protesters on the back after they came back from getting battered by some cops? Answer me that one!"
No, don't tell me when to feel sad or happy or anything else. You never have such fanfare when a political opponent dies. You are the same people who remain silent when one of your own, in this case Micheal Reagan, calls for the execution of 9/11 Truthseekers as he recently did on Fox News. Your silence means you condone Reagan's behavior.

I don't give a damn what you think about my lack of sympathy when one of you dies. It's all a cathode ray crock of shit similar to the weeping and wailing when Princess Di died. Why do the privileged, ones alot of us don't give a shit about anyway, get attention, and not the commoner or those who fight for the common people? Your demands at such times are little more than demanding fealty to your type, your class, while your silence when we are abused shows your contempt for us.

I say: FUCK YOU!


Russert was a tool of the Bushies and his death means nothing to me. My death wouldn't have meant anything to him. So we are equal. People die all the time, its natural. Maybe he would have lived longer if he had the good sense to quit the bullshit life he was living.

Sometimes a persons passing makes me sad, but only if I had some respect for them while they were living. If Hugo Chavez passed away, or Fidel Castro, I would be sad. Ditto for the above mentioned who I respect. That is because they are people who fought the good fight.


Edit: "In the MSM that is"

[BlooInBloo]

1. You're clearly an inhuman monster for even asking the question.

[DS1]

2. That's going a bit far

and it's a valid point.


How about Peter Jennings, twice the reporter that Russert was.

[BlooInBloo]

4. Sarcasm tags are for idiots.

[DS1]

5. Ahh, I see

In this case, I was expecting to see that posted with utmost sincerity and basement-contained rage

[TomInTib]

7. Oh, man.....

:rofl:

"basement-controlled rage"

You kill me, DS1.

[kath]

33. Kills me, too. Thought I'd die laughing last night over his

Cookie Monster posts. Hilarious. "simplistic codswallopers" :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[tavalon]

22. Sarcasm tags are for people like you

who happens to be using sarcasm and wants to be understood as such.

[The Doctor.]

24. Then what are grammar tags for?

Just felt like playin' :evilgrin:

[tavalon]

35. Yep, I went back and read my post

Great grammar, sheesh.:blush:

[The Doctor.]

37. Surry... couln'a help it.

But the set-up were too sweet. :blush:

[tavalon]

38. Yup, I woulda done it too.

Poor poofreading!!! Lol.

[hedgehog]

10. People had time to prepare for Peter Jennings death, and there

were tributes before and after he died.

[donco]

6. The Democratic Party has a rather large tent, all kinds can enter and feel welcome, but

I truly think that there should be a separate tent for those that like to dance on graves.

[Vickers]

8. Please post a link to the grave-dancing.

:eyes:

P.S. Don't confuse realistic criticism with dancing.

[BlooInBloo]

11. Anyone who doesn't GRIEVE MORE THAN ME is a grave-dancer!!!

:rofl:

[Raster]

52. Yes. Another thing I am sick-to-fucking-death of is the allusion to "grave dancing" threads.

I spend a lot of time on DU, and I have yet to actually see a true grave dancing post, much less an entire thread. I call Bullshit! Just more celebrity mortality hyperbole.

And here's a final parting bon mot... Tim Russert was a main cheerleader for the theft of Selection 2000 from Al Gore. If not THE main cheerleader in MSM corporate news-land. And no, I'm not including Faux in this discussion. They are for all purposes the cheney*/bush* Ministry of Propaganda. But don't take my word for it. We have magic things like the Google and the Internets. Please do a little digging. It becomes painfully obvious where Russerts loyalties were placed. Hint: it wasn't Al Gore.

And finally, to all of the media types that sift through the blogs like DU and are taken aback at some of the hostility focused toward Russert. It's not personal and this isn't just about Russert. This is about the main stream corporate media's complete and total sellout to slimedogs like cheney*/bush*. You see, we've trusted you and believed you and now we realize what shameless shills you've been for the Evil Empire. You may expect more of this. Lots more.

[BlooInBloo]

9. Indeed - there should be GD:IH forum!

:rofl:

[Bucky]

23. You want a *separate* tent, but I assume you still want it to be an *equal* tent, too, right?

[The Doctor.]

25. "Separate but InHuman"

:evilgrin:

[Tesha]

53. Russert *WASN'T* our friend.

Russert was a loyal "troop" in the Vast Right Wing
Conspiracy to distort the Democrats' message and
destroy our partisans. And now his friends in the
Corporate Media are mourning the loss of an ally
as well as a valuable weapon in their arsenal: the
guy who fooled so many into thinking that he was
"moderate" and "balanced" but in this guise,
successfully did the work of the VRWC for years.

Dance on his grave? No thanks, but I will consider
spitting on it should I ever encounter it. Go to
Hell, Tim Russert. And take the rest of your allies
in the media with you!

Tesha

[baldguy]

3. Molly told the truth

So, of course a lot of people hated her.

[Bluerthanblue]

12. well HELL- let's not do anything

different-
Especially if that means doing something that makes some people uncomfortable!

I don't know where the "all this" was for Molly Ivins- And I'm sad to say, I didn't know much about Molly- though what I did, I liked- I don't get cable TV- and she wasn't accessable to our limited viewing. Meet the Press was though- It was a show I remember my Dad watching when I was a kid- It was a sunday AM tradition. Like Disney was on sunday night, along with Gunsmoke and "Branded"-

People seem so fucking outraged everywhere. All the anger and resentment is enough to destroy anyone. I wonder if we are responding to some inner subconsious stimulus-

What is the matter with this stupid world????


peacE~

[The Doctor.]

26. You've put your finger square on it...

It's not nearly as 'subconscious' as you might think though...

It's the accumulation of very real unalleviated outrage over the past several years. If I didn't know better, I'd suspect a great social/behavioral experiment were going on here. Actually, I do know better... and it is.

[Elidor]

13. Heroes like Molly shine no less brightly for being overlooked by the corporate media

Those of us who read her work will never forget her. I'm still kicking myself for missing a chance to hear her speak. I got quite an earful afterward from my parents. She rocked the house with ribald stories about various politicians she had covered. The crowd loved her here in allegedly red Tennessee.

[eppur_se_muova]

14. What did Molly ever do for Cheney?

Tit for tat, dear.

[stray cat]

15. I never watched Molly Ivans so I can't tell you

[kath]

21. (gently) she wasn't on the tee-vee (except for the occasional interview, perhaps)

She was a writer. You know, books, magazines (she wrote some kickass stuff in The Progressive), newspapers, stuff like that? She gave some lectures -- which were said to have been wonderful. She *might* have been a panelist on some show or other at one point - I'm not much of a tee-vee watcher, so not sure. But, primarily, she was a writer.

If only more people read, we wouldn't be in the shit we're in. So much more reflection and thinking happens when one reads, as opposed to watching something on the boob tube. See Neil Postman's "Amusing Ourselves to Death".

Came across this while Googling Molly:

Media Concentration is a Totalitarian Tool
by Molly Ivins

AUSTIN, Texas — Now here's a dandy example of the kind of thing that never makes it to the front page or the top of the news broadcast, but that affects absolutely everyone. The Federal Communications Commission, led by Michael ("my religions is the market") Powell, is fixing to remove the last remaining barriers against concentration of media.
This means one company can own all the radio stations, television stations, newspapers and cable systems in any given area. Presently, 10 companies own over 90 percent of the media outlets. Bill Kovach of the Committee of Concerned Journalists and Tom Rosenstiel of the Project for Excellence in Journalism say these are the most sweeping changes in the rules that govern ownership of American media since the 1940s. The ownership rules were put in place after we had seen how totalitarian governments use domination of the media to goad their countries into war.
We already know what happens when the free-market zealots remove restrictions on ownership. In 1996, the FCC eliminated its rules on radio ownership. Conglomerates now own hundreds of stations around the country. One company, Clear Channel, owns more than 1,200 stations, and there are 30 percent fewer station owners than there were before 1996. The result is less local news and local programming, since the formats are programmed at headquarters. Clear Channel owns as many as six or seven stations in a market, broadcasting generic country, generic pop, generic oldies, etc.
The fearless investigative television journalism we have all come to expect (an hour-long special on Michael Jackson's face in the works) will not be improved by this move. The FCC is doing this in an almost covert way. FCC Commissioner Michael Copps reports that only under pressure did the commission agree to hold one lone public hearing on it, in Richmond, Va.
A coalition of consumer and media advocacy groups presented a 140-page filing that shows joint ownership of newspaper and broadcast outlets fails to meet the constitutional requirement, set out by the Supreme Court in 1945, that "the widest possible dissemination of information from diverse and antagonistic sources is essential to the welfare of the people."
In 1987, FCC commissioners appointed by Ronald Reagan repealed the Fairness Doctrine, and that has already had a stunning effect on political debate in this country. That same year, Congress put the Fairness Doctrine into law, but Reagan vetoed it with this memorable rationalization, "The Fairness Doctrine is inconsistent with the tradition of independent journalism." The Fairness Doctrine had been upheld by the Supreme Court in a 1969 decision that viewed the airwaves as a "public trust" and said fairness required the public trust to accurately reflect opposing views. In a 1986 decision, the D.C. Federal Court of Appeals in a 2-to-1 decision upheld a new FCC rule refusing to apply the Fairness Doctrine to television text. The two prevailing judges were Antonin Scalia and Robert Bork.
Edward Monks, a lawyer in Eugene, Ore., did a report for the newspaper there last year on the prevalence of right-wing hosts on radio talk shows. "The spectrum of opinion on national political commercial talk radio shows ranges from extreme right wing to very extreme right wing — there is virtually nothing else." Monks notes the irony that many of these right-wing hosts spend much of their time complaining about "the liberal media."


http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0131-09.htm

[pnorman]

27. Thanks. Here's another by Molly, and my all time favorite:

"She explained her philosophy in a stinging 1995 article in Mother Jones magazine about Rush Limbaugh. “Satire ... has historically been the weapon of powerless people aimed at the powerful,” she wrote. “When you use satire against powerless people ... it is like kicking a cripple.”"
http://www.commondreams.org/views07/0202-21.htm

pnorman

(I hope THIS doesn't need a "Sarcasm-Tag"!)

[lonestarnot]

51. Oh fuck! Not another one!

:rofl:

[The Doctor.]

28. I love ya.

I love people who can salt a super-pointy response with patience and just a hint of condescension.

Well done.

[kath]

32. doc, I didn't want to sound condescending, which is why I started with "(gently)".

I meant no ill will to the particular poster I responded to, or the earlier one in this thread who said something like something like "gee, I don't have cable, so I don't know Molly".

But I do very firmly think that, overall, the tee-vee is a huge detriment to our society, especially as it exists today. Yes, it can have some positive effects, if the right programs are watched (think PBS), but overall effect is negative. We'd be so much better off if people read more. It's not always their fault, but how they were raised. I'm a huge believer in reading aloud to kids (including older kids), but the statistics re: how many parents read to their children are alarming. Even among families with college-educated parents, the number is WAY too low, IMO. Very sad.

have you read Postman's book? Time for me to look through it again. It's another piece of reading material I'd like to drop from helicopters or hand out on streetcorners and say "Read this, please. Wake up. Realize how you're being manipulated."


I'll take love anywhere I can get it, though. :-)
Nice to see you around these parts tonight.

[The Doctor.]

36. It was so very shy... think nothin' of it dear...

But oh yea... indeed we do not read nearly enough. And thanks much for giving me a lead.

Night.

[catzies]

45. Do you mean Neil Postman's "Amusing Ourselves to Death?"

I know of it and haven't read it but I do plan to.

[UTUSN]

16. K&R #4 for BRILLIANT thread!1 Com-on, BIG #5!1 n/t

[MindMatter]

17. The difference is that Russert is backed by the Mighty Wurlitzer

It is all part of the fascist plan to manipulate public opinion to allow them to remain in power. Tim was their boy. It only stands to reason that they would use all resources at their disposal to paint him as a saint and a true man of the people. That isn't about Tim Russert. it is about the next sockpuppet they will put in this chair, who will no doubt be fair and balanced and a man of the people, don't you know.

[catzies]

46. That's one of the most trenchant comments I've yet read on this subject

IMO you nailed it.

The treatment I've seen on this (what little of it anyway - not a TV watcher) has been more hagiographic than biographic, as if they "needed" to build him up.

[Captain Hilts]

18. GOOD point!

[rdenney]

19. Russert & Rush: Two MSM clowns who need to be held in contempt. Rot in hell Russert!

[scarletwoman]

20. Excellent! Thank you for this post! k&r! (nt)

[Rex]

29. Amazing.

[NashVegas]

30. Right Here On DU

I'm proud to say.

[bluesmail]

31. She played a completely different game-The Truth n/t

[earth mom]

34. I am with you on this 100%! I would cry for Castro or Chavez because they really care about people!

What I'm seeing here on DU since Russert died smells freeperish to me big time.

All this drummed up sympathy for a guy that didn't give a damn for them or anyone other than the rich elite!

And I don't give a fuck what people think about my posts on this subject because I am so damn sick of all the underhanded rethuglican shit! :grr:

[happydreams]

48. I think there is a whole lot of freeper-trash here drumming up this stuff.

[Hekate]

39. Molly's medium was not television, it was print, and that's a big difference...

The LA Times (for instance) does really good obits, very inspirational. But when one of their own dies they often do much more and take up a lot more space.

See, here's the thing. Molly Ivins wasn't a TV anchor or a TV personality. When Molly Ivins died she was eulogized in print media, as I recall, and on the Internet in places like DU she was eulogized and mourned in a really big way. Paul Wellstone was a political figure, and a Democrat in a decade dominated by really evil and mean-spirited Neocons in DC and in the MSM, and in death he paid the price for that -- his very memorial service, a huge event, was misinterpreted and misrepresented by the MSM.

Tim Russert was a TV journalist and personality , and so was Peter Jenkins. When they died, their colleagues in the television world pulled out all the stops, especially for Russert, whose death was sudden and unexpected. NOTE THIS -- THEIR COLLEAGUES IN THE TELEVISION WORLD DID THIS BECAUSE IT IS THEIR MEDIUM.

Neither you nor I will get a television sendoff, but the reason Tim Russert did is because -- let me repeat -- he was a big guy in that world.

It will pass.

Hekate

[kath]

40. oh, man, it's so painful to think about the Wellstone and how the RW hatemongers twisted it.

Al Franken's chapter on it is killer to read.

[happydreams]

49. It's the bozos here at DU trumpeting this crap that gets me. In that sense

it turned into alot more than just the TV community doing it. It spilled over onto the Internet.

[leftofthedial]

41. good damned question

the Timapalooza is sickening.

[jgraz]

42. Sorry, but did this "Molly" person ever make more than $5 million/year like dear Tim did?

No? Then she couldn't have been that important, could she?



(Seriously, if you need the :sarcasm: tag for this post, there's something wrong with you)

[bean fidhleir]

43. It's a function of how much the population at DU has changed

Many more crypto-rightwingers here these days. And not even *very* crypto.

[bvar22]

44. Where did all the TV watchers come from?

The TV Borg has infiltrated DU insisting that I canonize Russert instead of burying him.
No Sale!
His death did nothing to change what he was willing to do for his paycheck.

I challenge anyone to find a Pre-2008 Pro-Russert thread.

[happydreams]

50. They are freeper agent provocateurs.

[Lerkfish]

47. I"m glad you added "in the MSM" because I was going to point out that there was at DU.