Politics are great which can be said both seriously and sarcastically simultaneously, and with or without them I am going to enjoy my Cinnamon Toasters.

Haha!  A much more elegant way of saying what I was trying to say.

Evelyn and Justin,

I don't even care anymore whether a particular media outlet agrees with me on my politics.  Right, left, middle--it doesn't matter.  All I know is that the only people right now literally advocating violent uprising and what could be interpreted as seditious acts call themselves "conservatives". 

Seeing as the last guy who I could genuinely respect as a moderate conservative was probably Gerald Ford, they are a far cry from anything respectable I understand as a mainstream American.  My fear is that we have become such a segregated society that people refuse to bring facts and reason into any discourse on these shows anymore, instead choosing to self-select those tv and radio shows that say exactly what they want to hear, true or not.  All these political media "entertainers"--and several like Hannity and Limbaugh and Colter have admitted that they are basically just a-moral entertainers, looking to make a buck the easiest way they know how-

I can't disagree.  I only despair when I consider what sources offer "the truth." 

There is another aspect to this - and some have suggested it is part of a conspiracy of sorts.

Instead of Bread & Circuses we have a world where there is too much to do.  Time is too tightly scheduled, and - in one way or another - most of us spend too much time striving to keep up a standard of living we've been convinced is "normal" and desirable. Some of us are lucky enough to have vocations and avocations we love (and I am grateful to count myself among them) but still - as a middle aged woman who returned to college when my son was first enrolled, and am now a working grad student, I simply don't have the time or mental energy to track down multiple sources about every issue that concerns me.  When I can take a break from mental effort I want to spend that time with family and friends, or walking in the woods with my dog.

There may be something morally weak about that, but life can be overwhelming and I've reluctantly accepted that I have to make my choices and live with the results.

Apr 9, 2009 -- 11:13PM, Ella wrote:

Evelyn and Justin, I don't even care anymore whether a particular media outlet agrees with me on my politics. Right, left, middle--it doesn't matter. All I know is that the only people right now literally advocating violent uprising and what could be interpreted as seditious acts call themselves "conservatives". Seeing as the last guy who I could genuinely respect as a moderate conservative was probably Gerald Ford, they are a far cry from anything respectable I understand as a mainstream American. My fear is that we have become such a segregated society that people refuse to bring facts and reason into any discourse on these shows anymore, instead choosing to self-select those tv and radio shows that say exactly what they want to hear, true or not. All these political media "entertainers"--and several like Hannity and Limbaugh and Colter have admitted that they are basically just a-moral entertainers, looking to make a buck the easiest way they know how--are catering to the basest levels of fear and hatred that the human animal is capable of, and they are determined to cash in on it while they can. Instead of trying to sow seeds of good, justice, love and compassion, they are trying to sow seeds of evil, panic, and anger and I believe that what they sow, they will reap. No decent person should be a conspirator in propagating lies, ignorance and violence simply because it gets them an audience or sponsors or good ratings, or they are just as responsible for the devastation that becomes of it.

Media organisations will always try to sway people to their way of thinking.

Of course if they're fairly influential people will agree, and if they don't make their own investigations or do further reading they're more likely to agree with someone who has the same / similar point of view.

For comedy value I do like to watch Lou Dobbs in the evening just before dinner.

Especially a couple of weeks ago when Dobbs was reporting on a couple of shooting sprees and then followed it up with how the Obama administration is trying to impose tighter restrictions on guns.

Hmmm I wonder why that needs to be done.

Politics are great which can be said both seriously and sarcastically simultaneously, and with or without them I am going to enjoy my Cinnamon Toasters.