MSM purposely misses the point on violence.

[chieftain]

It is true that there have been incidents of intimidation/threat against both Republicans and Democrats. The difference is that GOP leadership is actively involved in stirring up hatred and animosity. I have no doubt that Cantor is telling the truth about threats he has received because of his religion. But there is no nexus between the threats and anything that any Democratic office holder has said. A key part of the RW game plan is to demonize Democrats, to cast them as alien and figures deserving of hate. No Democrat stood on a balcony of the Capitol and slapped a picture of Jean Schmidt as Rep. King did to a pic of Speaker Pelosi.
It is easier and consistent with the media's owners' goals to couch the story in terms of a plague on both their houses. I have reluctantly come to believe that there is a substantial portion of the Tea Party who just don't care what is true or not true. But the sad fact is that for those who might care, the 4th estate fails them time and time again. If future historians chronicle a story of how the American experiment with democracy ended with the rise of a corporate, imperial state, the abject failure of journalists will be assigned a major share of the blame.

[rainy]

1. Your point is right on the mark. thanks for posting n/t

[RonSunn]

17. Bill Hemmer just now geez!

Referring to President Obamas speech yesterday, as he introduced the clip:

"President Obama FIRES first shot at republicans"

Tell me thats not a producer in his ear piece!

[chieftain]

24. They aren't the least bit subtle, are they? n/t

[tom_paine]

2. Extremely well-said.

[FrenchieCat]

3. My kind of rant!

just more succinct.

[chieftain]

6. Thanks FC. BTW, I love your rants. n/t

[Frances]

4. I agree with your assessment, chieftain

I've been thinking that the Dem leadership should have a press conference and explicitly state that they are against threats of all sorts against all people. I would say that a threat to a Republican is a threat to all Americans and a threat to a Democrat is a threat to all Americans.

The rhetoric should be that we are all Americans and that we should resolve our differences at the ballot box because that is what democracy and America are all about.

The Dems need to start talking America, not Dems or Repubs. I think that's the best way to deflect the demonization of Dems. (Of course, that's what Hitler did with the Jews.)

[chieftain]

5. Thanks. I like your approach on how to respond. n/t

[izquierdista]

7. Why just yesterday

I heard on NPR that Alan Grayson made an "outburst" on the House floor, just like Joe Wilson, and What's-his-name Neuffelburger from Texas. See, something that ticks off the Repubs is an "outburst", even if it does follow all the rules of decorum. :silly:

[Whisp]

9. and I've noticed that on CNN 'lashing out' is used when a Dem says something.

outburst, lashing out, I'm sure there are others.

I don't recall this kind of thing to describe those loonie rightwingers and their armageddeon/death panel/end of the free world idiotcy they pop their temple veins over.

[kwolf68]

8. Excellent

Thumbs up...spot ass on too.

[besdayz]

10. ignorance manipulated

nothing is more repulsive than this recent line "its happening on both sides." bullshit. it may be happening to both sides but its being done by your side you POS cantor. he has the gall to repudiate DEms for fund raising over this and playing politics when since the election the repugs use this blatant rhetoric to impugn and incite against the pres.

is anyone surprised cantor and other repugs are getting some friendly fire from their people. when you give a 4th grader a weapon, he will use it on anyone around = tea party.

in the years of bush, dems protested but very rarely if ever did violence occur. if nothing they were tame, weak, timid. our side relies on wit, humor, prank but rarely violence. you can't make fun of liberals for being hippy kumbaya types and then equate them to your violent radicals when convenient. own your own shit.

had to rant....


will be enjoying watching the backdraft hit the GOP....

[FrenchieCat]

11. Welcome to DU.....

Own their own shit is a good one.

I hope the media gets to eat theirs one day...
as they are the most culpable.

[chieftain]

12. All good points.

You never see people brandishing automatic weapons at our protests. You don't see printed posters with the slogan "If Brown can't stop HCR then a Browning will" emblazoned over a picture of a gun. There is absolutely no equivalence between what is happening on the right to what happened on the left. And yet those people and institutions with the solemn responsibility to accurately inform the body politic spout utter bull shit about what is really happening. An informed electorate is a key element in self governance. To a terrifying degree, journalism is failing to perform its vital function.

[wishlist]

13. Police report on Cantor incident says it was just random stray bullet from afar

Just to clarify, Cantor incident was apparently not a deliberate shooting aimed at his office according to police report in news today, but a stray bullet from perhaps a mile away fired with no intention against his office.

[RonSunn]

14. I am hating the way MSM is almost dismissing these acts?

"happened before"
"not unusual"

Etc.

Did anyone catch Chuck Todds idiotic comment yesterday"

Todd: "Well in 1963 Dallas was a lot worse with comments on acts of violence"

The other person "maybe Lawrence O'donnel" not sure commented:

"Yea and we all see how well that went"

[chieftain]

15. Welcome to DU.

I had not seen Todd's comment. How freaking inane can you be. Watching some of these talking heads, you begin to wonder whether you have to fail an intelligence test in order to get the job.

[RonSunn]

16. Thanks for the welcome and..

Todd really looked embarrassed and went into full speed back peddling.

[Bluenorthwest]

18. I say be specific

This phrase 'MSM' does the same thing to media people that many media people are doing, framing all as equal. It seems to me, specific people are doing what you say, and that others are not. There is no way to address 'MSM' but there are ways to address Wolf Blitzer. Why play patsy cake?

When a specific news reader or reporter says something, that specific person said it. Not a vague beast with initials for a name, but a real person who gets numbers on a paycheck. Who needs an audience of any kind to prevail. A vulnerable individual, with needs and weaknesses is so much easier to deal with that a faceless, all powerful delusion such as 'MSM'. It is a form of short hand we can not afford.
Specificity is key to many things, and this is one of them.

[chieftain]

19. I saw it on CBS Evening News yesterday.

Other posters have cited NBC and CNN. David Broder, the Dean of the press corps, routinely lectures Democrats on our need to be civil and bi partisan as if it is we who are the problem. Even MSNBC trivialized the atmosphere of intimidation encouraged by the RW. I would appreciate a specific instance where anyone in the MSM pointed out the connection between GOP cheerleading of teapartiers without including some liberal like Grayson in the condemnation.
There was a time when I believed if we complained when mistakes were made or inaccuracies aired, the MSM would react and correct their ways. I have sent countless, detailed emails to various offenders and logged many a phone call to answering machines.Maybe you get better results from your specific complaints than the form acknowledgments I get.If so, more power to you. But what I have seen is the collective efforts of many DUers, the strong exposes by Media Matters and others have had little to no effect. My point was really a general critique of the 4th Estate and I stand by it.

[chieftain]

20. You can see what I was talking about right now on CNN.

Allie Belshie is interviewing the head of a Teaparty group on the need for civility in politics. It is enough to make you gag and one more example of the MSM failing in its responsibilities to the nation.

[chieftain]

21. CNN's Belshie just congratulated the Tea Party for their stand

against violence and incivility. Then let this guy from the Tea Party blame members of the Black Caucus for trying to provoke his members by walking to the Capitol. CNN just as fair and balanced as Fox. How many more specifics do you need to see that the media is propagating a story line which exonerates the perpetrators and tars everyone with the same brush ?

[FrenchieCat]

22. It goes to show that the media has been orchestrating this shit from the get-go,

growing a movement out of nothing via corporate astrosturf,
and now controlling the damage that they helped create,
by way of false equivalency, which should be a crime
when committed by news organizations.

I can stand the media anymore. They are really a big part of what is wrong in this country!

[chieftain]

23. That's exactly where I come out.

This is not a cases of isolated incidents of inaccurate reporting. The story line of moral equivalence is on every news outlet. It is purposeful. The American people by and large do not like shows of temper and incivility. The result of a plague on both your houses analysis is that it insulates the GOP from any meaningful backlash and alienates more people from the political process. Neither of these results is good for the health of our democracy.