Only Money Has Free Speech

As it is now, advertisers make the decisions about the media, not the people, because the media exist for the purpose of making money. . . .

The fact that people with money can hire lobbyists to represent them in Washington limits equity in the political system. Poor people don’t have the money for this—if they spent everything they had, they couldn’t get enough money together to equal the lobbying power of the rich. After an election, people don’t have access to government, because lack of money prevents them from having equal access to the people in power. That’s an inequity that’s built into the system. That’s where money is more powerful than people.

People do have a right to vote. But whom do they have a right to vote for? They have a right to vote for whoever is chosen. That’s our dilemma right now. It starts with how much it costs to run for office—it now costs $3 million to run for governor in Tennessee. That rules out a lot of people. So the choice is between two people who are willing to spend $3 million, which is not a democratic choice. You can say that the people have a right to vote, but they only have the right to choose between two millionaires or people whom other people with money are willing to back.

—Myles Horton, The Long Haul, © 1990, pp. 169-170

Class Warfare and Flying Pigs

Tom and I have turned off the television. I know. Crazy, isn't it? Veritably un-American. But hey, I'm happy to announce that it's entirely possible to live without watching the boob tube. Not only did we cancel the cable, but we quit watching the networks as well. Can't say we miss it much, especially because our friends share much of what's worthwhile online. (And how else do you think I'd have so much time to prowl the Internet to figure out what's actually going on in the world?) And given yesterday's post, in which I tallied up the class warfare battles taking place in Wisconsin, at Verizon, and at the United States Postal Service, count the following clips from the Daily Show as the next installment on the war on the poor and the middle class.

Although these clips have way more of Fox Noose than I can watch without gagging, it's revelatory to hear what the propaganda machine is churning out these days. Jon Stewart handily pillories the FN talking heads.

[If you're reading this on Facebook (which doesn't let the automatic blog importer import video), the links to the videos are here and here.] Sorry about the commercial at the beginning of each clip. Enjoy!

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
World of Class Warfare - Warren Buffett vs. Wealthy Conservatives
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog The Daily Show on Facebook

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
World of Class Warfare - The Poor's Free Ride Is Over
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog The Daily Show on Facebook

The part about not assuming that all rich people are billionaires made me giggle. I suppose we shouldn't assume that all billionaires are billionaires either. And I love the bit about Warren Buffet's billionaire cleaning lady.

One of the most galling comments is the one about "the moocher class" as opposed to the "productive class." That actually made me gasp out loud. I mean, really? The people who watch their portfolios are the "productive class"? And the people who actually work for a living (or want to) are the "moocher class"? Unbe-fricking-lievable! Do people actually believe this stuff? If they do, it's because they have deluded themselves into identifying with the billionaire class, even when they themselves are struggling economically and are watching their piece of the pie shrink to a pile of crumbs. After all, they might hit pay dirt someday and become billionaires themselves, right? Sure! When pigs fly.

Tom was carrying his "Tax the Rich" sign downtown one day during the Wisconsin Winter (as opposed to the Arab Spring), and a panhandler—a panhandler!—told him, "Don't say that! Don't you want to be rich?" Tom pointed out the unlikelihood of that eventuality. The panhandler just wasn't buying it. As a matter of fact, he wasn't buying much. . . . With that, I leave you for today with this lovely thought from John Steinbeck (who knew some things about class warfare). And many thanks again to the creative wits at Armchair Patriots!

What Ailes Us

Many of us find ourselves wondering how U.S. politics got into such a sorry state—sorry enough to produce the Tea Party downgrade and the radical extremism rampant in the Republican party. Certainly one answer to our puzzlement can be found in the 24/7 propaganda machine that calls itself Fox News. The paranoia, fearmongering, manipulation, and distortion that beleaguer us all emanate from the twisted vision of one man: Roger Ailes, the chairman of Fox News. He peddles his influence on a staggering scale. His "dear friend" Rush Limbaugh "is a reflection of him." And Ailes is not content that Fox News and the Republican Party should be made in his image. He is determined to remake the United States in his image as well, and he is doing a damned good job of it.

As nauseating as it is, it's worthwhile to bone up on the Ailes juggernaut. Tim Dickinson has a thorough piece that first appeared in Rolling Stone as "How Roger Ailes Built the Fox News Fear Factory." I don't even know how to begin to fight such extraordinary power, but I do know that fight we must. And one of the first steps is knowing the enemy.