American Nedas...

[Taiff Profile]

I still have hope for the USA too. I think most people around the world do too. The country need not become isolationist - it simply needs to stop sending in the military as its first reaction to trouble elsewhere. You get more respect by absorbing hits and staying on your feet than by striking back in anger. WWJD

The American media has conditioned its citizens to be fearful and paranoid. I'll never forget a trip I took to NY State where I got pulled aside at the border and while waiting to see the DHS people (who let me through as they always do - because I'm just a regular guy that ran across one bad apple that entered crap to the database) I was sitting there watching CNN in the waiting-room.

So there I was watching CNN - and the tripe they had to serve that day was "your husband/wife or neighbor could be a murderer - how can you tell?". That just seemed so alien to me. Here these highly-paid talking heads were telling me that I can in no way discern if my (American) wife-to-be will murder me. This is beyond ridiculous and common fodder that Americans are fed from what I can see. Fear, uncertainty, doubt - FUD as IBM marketers branded it long ago, has gone mainstream.

Then I see the media treatment of the N. Korea thing, and it's just a case of SSDD.

Then there's the movies and Hollywood crap that alway seems to be about some guy that has to kill bad guys that do evil (and it always ends in a fist-fight where the good guy wins).

I challenge everyone: disconnect the TV, go for a while (a month or two) just being a natural person, and when you go back and see it, it looks totally alien and weird.

Just try it - you can disagree with me afterwards but not before.

I agree and disagree on a couple of points here

1. you say "it simply needs to stop sending in the military as its first reaction to trouble elsewhere. You get more respect by absorbing hits and staying on your feet than by striking back in anger." If we don't send our military in then who should we send civilians? no offense man but sending civilians into most of this war zones that America is current involved with would be absolute suicide.Now if you mean we should start with diplomacy well we do that already it just usually doesn't work. Also you say we get more respect for absorbing hits and staying on our feet. So should we let our soldiers where they are die and not strike back for being attacked? Every country has its quirks one of Americas is we are usually all in or out there is no half way.

2. Now on this i totally agree with you i Think our media is ridicules and the story's they air are brain rotting trash for the most part. I don't watch tv my self and i know a lot of Americans that do not so we are not all rotting our brains with that nonsense. I find everything i need news wise online where i can compare what is said around the world not just take the word of the talking head on tv.

[Drextin Profile]

Shutting off the tv is a good thing no doubt, but I like to take it all in and process the information my way. I guess really I'm keeping an eye on the media. They have become so warped and biased with each network fighting for an identity based on an ideology that news isn't news anymore it's someone's opinion about the news.

I've worked with some of the local and regional tv stations as contracted producer/consultant and I've noticed that the trick they used to fight for a local audience is now being incorporated into the cable news battle. Just like the "is your neighbor a murderer" thing you saw. That was just a trick locals used now the big boys use them.

Now you have to piece together the news from various sources from both ends of the spectrum to try and gleam the truth.

[Darrylmckay Profile]

Thats the point isnt it, they came up with this idea that if you get people scared enough you can do almost anything to them, including taking any of thier civil liberties that they thought were a garrentee and the media played along with all the way.

There is always going to be someone somewhere in the world that wants to attack you for reasons of thier own, the trick is to not let this control the way your country runs or how you live your life.

I always thought the best response to terrorist after 9/11 was to as quickly as possible rebuild the twin towers, just to show people, stuff you ,you can attack us and we are still here, we can rebuild anything you can knock down, instead 8 years later there is still a big whole in the ground, what message does that send.

[Strider Profile]

I dunno,but I think america got sacred out of afica by those ungretaful little buggers in somalia, you go there to try a feed a nation and od they appreciate it, no, the whole tradegdy in that was that the situation in Rwanda was let go without any intervention what so ever.
As for Bosnia, well the us had to step in after the Un sat by while thousand were slaughtered at Shrebaniza ( sorry about the spelling of that name but I spell those pesky foriegn woods as I hears im)

Hmm - there are wars going on today in Africa that make Bosnia (which Srebinicia is a city in) look like a playground. These are Muslim fundamentalists going against Christians and the other resident religions there. Truth is you don't hear about it so it's "no big deal". You hear about protests in Iran instead - because they have oil that the corporations that own the media want you to know about that, while the Africans can just suffer because there is no profit in it.

I think that that those people in Somalia never asked for help, but got more help than those in New Orleans after Katrina.

Again, I'll say - USA is more interested in playing "global cop" than taking care of its own... That includes putting its men an women in uniform in harm's way to serve corporate profits.

Large corporations bend ears in government far better the you or I do. They hire people to do this full-time, while we can only vote once every 4 or 5 years.

[Darrylmckay Profile]

Hmm - there are wars going on today in Africa that make Bosnia (which Srebinicia is a city in) look like a playground. These are Muslim fundamentalists going against Christians and the other resident religions there. Truth is you don't hear about it so it's "no big deal". You hear about protests in Iran instead - because they have oil that the corporations that own the media want you to know about that, while the Africans can just suffer because there is no profit in it.

I think that that those people in Somalia never asked for help, but got more help than those in New Orleans after Katrina.

Again, I'll say - USA is more interested in playing "global cop" than taking care of its own... That includes putting its men an women in uniform in harm's way to serve corporate profits.

Large corporations bend ears in government far better the you or I do. They hire people to do this full-time, while we can only vote once every 4 or 5 years

Totally agree, however does the vote really count for anything, does a change of govt really change anything, they are still the govt and are still beholden to all those corporations that gave them money for thier campaigns, these corporations see the polls they realise who will win and lose and change thier alligence accordingly. The unelected lobbyists are still there still doing the same job, its just the palms that have to be greesed that change.

Thanks for the spelling, was going to look it up but am just lazy.