Comments Posted By bsjones
Displaying 181 To 190 Of 237 Comments
THEY JUST CAN'T HELP THEMSELVES
check this out:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/19/business/worldbusiness/19ubs.html?_r=3Just curious.....
Anyone willing to defend the tax evaders who put their money in Swiss bank accounts and call what happened to UBS an unwarranted government intrusion on personal freedom?
Recently I have been arguing for more accountability for government and its ruling elites. Sometimes (but, not always) this accountability comes from part the government itself. In this case it came from the Justice Department. I think this is relevant post because it points the way to how, we, ordinary people can start taking back our country. We use the levers of government against those who lie, cheat, and rob from us.
Here is the same story as reported by a moonbat website:
http://crooksandliars.com/susie-madrak/swiss-bank-open-files-us-authoritiesEnjoy!
Comment Posted By bsjones On 20.02.2009 @ 02:24
We are not powerless.
If we refuse to make excuses for those in Washington that are crooks, and then refuse to vote for them, they will not win re-election.Hope is not lost.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 19.02.2009 @ 19:19
Rick
Great post.
James Madison never thought we would have these problems:
If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary. In framing a government which is to be administered by men over men, the great difficulty lies in this: you must first enable the government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.
James MadisonMadison thought the system was perfect. The internal controls on government are the "separation of powers" and "checks and balances". The external controls on government are "We the People" and our ability to vote criminals out of office.
He must be rolling in his grave with disgust.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 19.02.2009 @ 15:13
DID DEMOCRATS COVER UP BURRIS LIES TO GET STIM BILL PASSED?
Just a thought....
The Republican leadership in the Senate wanted to pass the stimulus bill. They also know it is unpopular with the base so, magically, just enough Republicans voted to let it passed. If Burris wasn't there one more Republican vote would have "magically" been found.
I think it's a possibility...
Comment Posted By bsjones On 18.02.2009 @ 22:23
Rick,
You nailed it.
Representative Currie (D) used the "I'm to stupid to do my job" defense to cover up the fact they she was obstructing. Democrats wanted to get the stimulus bill passed and needed the Burris vote.
This is very common in Washington. Pretend you are stupid to cover up your corruption or malfeasance, thus, showing contempt for the American people in the process.
Why? Why does our government operate this way?
They can. No accountability. Ever.
And, yes, this tactic is used by both parties. They both use it whenever they need to and think it will go unpunished.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 18.02.2009 @ 14:58
BURRIS WHINES THAT 'MEDIA AND REPUBLICANS ARE ALMOST DESTROYING MY CHARACTER'
Michael S.
I often don't express my ideas as clearly as I would like. Let me try again.
Many people refer to the MSM as the "liberal" media e.g. the liberal New York Times. I understand people who say this to mean that those in charge have a liberal bias in politics and they then hire reporters who also have this same liberal bias. As a result the news gets reported with a liberal slant as liberal reporters try and please their liberal bosses. In short, the MSM is controlled by Democrats and they attempt to help Democrats with their reporting.
I assumed (wrongly) that you believed the MSM was operating with this type of liberal bias and that this was the reason why Obama was not being investigated properly by the MSM.
I, also, reject this view.
Instead, I believe all the factors I put in list form in post #10 (titillation, laziness, etc..) have more to do with the bias we see in everyday reporting than a reporter or his bosses party affiliation or personal beliefs.
I was then trying to say there are a category of news outlets that are an EXCEPTION to this rule. (see post #10, paragraph 6) These outlets willfully bias their news either to the left or to the right, in my view, to gain market share. As I said, they make their living by preaching to the choir. This category of reporting is on the rise especially in non traditional media.
I do think both parties try to manipulate the press at every opportunity and that they are often successful. My poorly expressed point was that news reporting is not influenced by a reporters INTERNAL biases as much as all of these EXTERNAL factors.
So, yeah, reporting will be influenced by external factors, including politics (left and right), but not so much by reporters own personal political bias.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 19.02.2009 @ 14:46
Michael,
I agree with you that the MSM is completely incompetent, but not (if I understand you) in the way way you suggest.
In my view the bias has little to do with right or left. Here is a list of some things
that influence or bias reporting in general:reporter laziness e.g., wrong facts, relying on same sources
titillating stories e.g., sex, drugs, homosexuality, race
A "strange" or "crazy" or "New" personality e.g., Blago, Palin, Obama
butt kissing the powerful i.e., don't embarrass/contradict the president
don't shake things up i.e., support the status quo
contempt for ordinary people by oversimplifying stories
Don't jeopardize the parent companies interests e.g., housing bubble? what's a housing bubble? What unintended consequences of two wars in Muslim nations at the same time?
conformity (don't get out in front of other reporters. No reporter wants to "break" a real story.)All of these factors and others determine what gets reported and how it is reported in the MSM. What makes the reporter's calculus so dangerous is that very few of them are aware they are making it. The whole process is internalized and happens (with rare exception) outside the reporters conscious awareness.
What makes this even more dangerous is that Both parties understand how the simpletons in the MSM operate and Both parties do the best they can to manipulate All political coverage to their advantage.
Sure there are exceptions. I believe most of Fox news reporting is willfully biased. I believe most of MSNBC reporting is willfully biased. These networks are attempting to fill a niche in the marketplace. They are there to preach to their respective choirs.
We must abandon both Fox And MSNBC to get a clear picture of what is happening in our complex world. We should be checking wingnut and moonbat websites, if we want to form a clear picture of what is happening in the world.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 18.02.2009 @ 14:20
Unfortunately, in the world I live in, this is not classic Chicago politics; it's classic American politics.
Increase Mather,
Your post seems to be based on guilt by association and innuendo. Your logic goes like this:Chicago has a history of corrupt politicians.
Obama is a Chicago politician.
Therefore, Obama is a corrupt politician.
The liberal media will not investigate Obama's Chicago corruption, because the MSM is in the tank for Obama.Just for fun...
Jack Abramoff is a corrupt politician.
Jack Abramoff is a Republican.
Therefore, Republicans are corrupt.I personally do not accept either argument because the logic does not hold in either case. If Obama is a suspected of corruption, he needs to be indicted. If Obama is found guilty of corruption in a court of law, he needs to be impeached. Implying he is dirty simply because he is from Chicago does not wash.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 17.02.2009 @ 23:38
CPAC AGENDA SHOWS CONSERVATIVES STILL IN DENIAL
Rick,
Agreed.
A review of and agreement about Conservative Principles is a must. Then we must look at the real America and the challenges it faces and demonstrably show how these conservative principles address these real problems.
Speaking for myself, saying the only real problem America has are Democrats is not going to cut it.
Bravo! Well said. One of the big problems as I see it is to propose solutions to real world challenges without sounding like liberal lite. I'm sure there's a way that can be accomplished but haven't a clue where to begin.
ed.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 16.02.2009 @ 14:03
NEIWART AND THE LEFT DON'T GET IT
An Elephant in the Room
Sure the NYT has some liberals writing for them, but what about:
THOMAS FRIEDMAN
DAVID BROOKS
BILL KRISTOL (recently not renewed over errors in his columns)
GREG MANKIWThese guys are in every week too.
Comment Posted By bsjones On 15.02.2009 @ 22:57
