Despair
By Michael J.W. Stickings
According to Rasmussen, voters now trust Republicans more than Democrats on health care, 44% to 41%.
I realize that Rasmussen tends to lean right, and so this poll may not accurately reflect reality, but, I must admit, I'm despairing more and more about the state of American democracy.
Part of the problem, in the case of health-care reform, is that the Republican propaganda machine is extremely effective, more so than anything on the Democratic side. Also, Republican activists, as they have been proving from town hall to town hall, are insane and loud and capable, simply by virtue of their screaming, of dominating public discourse -- who can hear the rational when the irrational drowns everything else out?
Part of the problem is also the media, which tend both to regurgitate Republican talking points and to endorse Republican lies simply by given them equal time, without much scrutiny. A Republican asserts that the reform bill includes a provision that would establish "death panels" for the elderly and disabled. A Democrat correctly notes that the bill contains no such provision and that there wouldn't be any "death panels," that the whole thing is just Republican fearmongering. The Republican lies, while the Democrat speaks the truth. But who wins? Surely the Democrat, right? Wrong. Given the media's enforced emphasis on equivalence -- except at Fox News, where the right-wing bias is always on full display -- it's a draw, the lies of the Republican equal in value to the truth of the Democrat. This is how it works. Republican lies are given a platform and legitimated. In the end, the whole arrangement benefits the Republicans, who back up their lies with effective propaganda.
But part of the problem is also the American people, I fear, who are getting what they deserve, which is, even with a Democratic president and Congress, obstructionism to reform at a time when the country -- an economy that can no longer sustain growing health-care burdens, the millions and millions of people without care, without adequate coverage, and without hope -- so desperately needs it. No, not all Americans, of course. So many of them, I know, are fighting the good fight against these Republican (and some Democratic) opponents of reform. But what does it say that, if this poll is to be believed, voters trust Republicans more than Democrats on this key issue? Or that so many Americans believe that Obama wasn't born in the U.S. despite the conclusive evidence that he was? Or that the likes of Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber have become national celebrities with massive public support? Or that Fox News is the #1 cable news network? Not good things, I assure you.
No, I know, it isn't fair to blame the American people en masse. It's just frustrating that the Republican narrative is doing so well, that Republican lies have gained such traction with the public. Obama and the Democrats, to be sure, can do better, and they must. But, in a democracy, the people must also take some responsibility, too, and it is essential that they take the time to sift through the spin in order to make rational decisions about their future.
According to Rasmussen, voters now trust Republicans more than Democrats on health care, 44% to 41%.
I realize that Rasmussen tends to lean right, and so this poll may not accurately reflect reality, but, I must admit, I'm despairing more and more about the state of American democracy.
Part of the problem, in the case of health-care reform, is that the Republican propaganda machine is extremely effective, more so than anything on the Democratic side. Also, Republican activists, as they have been proving from town hall to town hall, are insane and loud and capable, simply by virtue of their screaming, of dominating public discourse -- who can hear the rational when the irrational drowns everything else out?
Part of the problem is also the media, which tend both to regurgitate Republican talking points and to endorse Republican lies simply by given them equal time, without much scrutiny. A Republican asserts that the reform bill includes a provision that would establish "death panels" for the elderly and disabled. A Democrat correctly notes that the bill contains no such provision and that there wouldn't be any "death panels," that the whole thing is just Republican fearmongering. The Republican lies, while the Democrat speaks the truth. But who wins? Surely the Democrat, right? Wrong. Given the media's enforced emphasis on equivalence -- except at Fox News, where the right-wing bias is always on full display -- it's a draw, the lies of the Republican equal in value to the truth of the Democrat. This is how it works. Republican lies are given a platform and legitimated. In the end, the whole arrangement benefits the Republicans, who back up their lies with effective propaganda.
But part of the problem is also the American people, I fear, who are getting what they deserve, which is, even with a Democratic president and Congress, obstructionism to reform at a time when the country -- an economy that can no longer sustain growing health-care burdens, the millions and millions of people without care, without adequate coverage, and without hope -- so desperately needs it. No, not all Americans, of course. So many of them, I know, are fighting the good fight against these Republican (and some Democratic) opponents of reform. But what does it say that, if this poll is to be believed, voters trust Republicans more than Democrats on this key issue? Or that so many Americans believe that Obama wasn't born in the U.S. despite the conclusive evidence that he was? Or that the likes of Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber have become national celebrities with massive public support? Or that Fox News is the #1 cable news network? Not good things, I assure you.
No, I know, it isn't fair to blame the American people en masse. It's just frustrating that the Republican narrative is doing so well, that Republican lies have gained such traction with the public. Obama and the Democrats, to be sure, can do better, and they must. But, in a democracy, the people must also take some responsibility, too, and it is essential that they take the time to sift through the spin in order to make rational decisions about their future.
Labels: democracy, health care reform, lies, news media, propaganda, Republicans
posted by Michael J.W. Stickings at
7:55 PM
1 Comments:
With all due respect. How can you even think of posting something like this?
The Democrats, as we all know, have full control of the Congress and are more than willing to rubber stamp any Obama agenda. Save the Blue Dogs, who have in the past, been whipped back into line by Nancy Pelosi quite easily.
Secondly people on the Right can prattle on about Death Panels and you on the Left banter about Republican lies while purporting your own. All this displays is how out of touch most hardline partisans on either side are with normal Americans. Everyday people don't care about or believe this thing will bring about Death Panels anymore than they believed in FEMA Death Squads or government sponsored concentration camps.
For them, "It's the cost, stupid." (No disrespect intended for you this was a reference to James Carville's Clinton campaign statement.) That is the political hot potato(s)the Left will be dealing with and the Republicans will eventually capitalize on, when they figure it out.
Anyways, nice blog and take care.
By
Mike, at 12:30 AM
Post a Comment
<< Home