Profiting from political road rage

[azurnoir]

<snip>

My theory: Ever since Rush Limbaugh adapted the techniques of drive-time sports radio to politics -- the loudmouth hyperbole, the fake omniscience, the mute button -- the mass-marketing of outrage to people stuck in freeway traffic with blood-pressure levels already approaching the blowout range has coarsened public discourse to the level of road rage.

You want "blood libel"?

Limbaugh, last week: "What (accused assassin) Mr. Loughner knows is that he has the full support of a major political party ... The Democrat party is attempting to find anybody but him to blame. He knows if he plays his cards right, he's just a victim ... plus a local sheriff doing everything that they can to make sure he's not convicted of murder -- but something lesser."

<snip>

See, they compete with each other, these clowns, to set you against an imaginary enemy consisting of your friends and neighbors because conflict pushes ratings, and higher ratings lead to more money.

Are you going to keep helping them do it?

http://www.salon.com/news/politics/war_room/2011/01/19/gene_lyons_road_rage/index.html

[Doctor_J]

1. The country will begin to recover its greatness

when a very significant number of these people are no longer polluting the airwaves. I just can't figure out how to do it. My gut tells me that if a few of them were to be Giffords-ed, a major tone adjustment would take place, but there must be something less drastic.

OTOH, I am old and have little to lose any more. I am hoping to join the revolution soon.