Spencer's Super-Happy Fun-Time Right-Wing Word Pit

It's interesting when you consider the about face that the press has pulled over the last 9 months. As I was driving to the job yesterday I had plenty of time (8 hours) to listen to coverage and consider.

The conservative talking heads began to talk about the press ignorance of impending international doom. Afghanistan is falling apart, Iran proved the Bush administration right by unveiling its REAL nuclear program, and Israel is pleading for help. Obama finds all of these issues so important that he is ignoring them.

The most important agenda item for Obama is the Olympics in Chicago.

The outrage? well, it's not there. In fact, as I am typing this, I am staring at the front page of USA Today wherein the greatest thing ever is that Obama is trying to get the Olympics in Chicago; huge front page spread. Those other pesky national security issues are either not there or deep inside.

We all have known that the press is infatuated with Obama and his change, but they are really starting to be brazen about the whole thing. On thing that was brought to my attention this morning was a Fox report on the coverage of fallen soldiers. They speculate that since Obama lifted the press restriction on coverage where it pertains to bringing the bodies home has been waning due to respect issues. Sorry, Fox, but since when has the press ever cared about respect? The real reason (and also the reason that the anti-war movement is losing ground) is that Bush is no longer in office and is therefore not a target. Plus, if Obama says the war is necessary, then well, by gum it's necessary!

I think everyone is getting it wrong. It's more about persecuting the powers that be if applicable. Right now, you would expect the media to be going after Obama the way they went after Bush or Clinton. (yeah, that's right... Clinton) but they just aren't.

The intellectual dishonesty is shocking. Once it was an outrage for Bush Sr. to talk to school kids but not for Obama. It has gone beyond just letting stories disappear, when Obama is out there, everything he does is either:

1. Newsworthy - ...from picking out a puppy to vacations to fashion - all the way to Chicago's Olympic bid. The only thing newsworthy is that he is ignoring the real issues but no one is really discussing that aspect of things.
- or -
2. Ignorable - Anyone interested in why he is ignoring his commanders in Afghanistan or why he is giving Israel the cold shoulder? Anyone want to guess if he means what he says to Iran or why he removed key security from Poland despite his campaign promises?

Thomas Jefferson once said that "The only security of all is in a free press." I am sure that he never dreamed that free press today was agendized (is that a word?). Don't get me wrong - I don't believe that there is one organized conspiracy regarding the dissemination of liberal ideas through the press. What I do however believe is that the journalists in the press are allowed to get away with this practice through either the complacency or through a management system that believes so strongly in these ideals that he/she either forgets or decides not to remain objective.

It's not that I think that opinion has no place in press. It does, but not under the guise of fact or ignorance.

If you made it this far, you are awesome. If you managed to even understand any of that, congratulations.