Category Archives: Media

Fairness Doctrine, Media, Pensacola

Atheism Programming On Air America Radio

Air America has always said that there is a sound following for what they call progressive talk radio. That’s why I find it amusing that they will have a religious program for Atheists. Well, that’s what their religion is, Atheism. Yeah, that’s a great way to expand your listening audience. Go for that 1 percent.

Air America Radio is broadcast somewhere, is on the internet, and some short wave frequencies. But soon, with the help of Henry Waxman and the Fairness Doctrine, they are hoping to expand their audience beyond friends and family. Now is your chance to get in at the ground level, potential investors are welcome to contact radio host Mike Papantonio at Ring of Fire Radio, an Air America Program, if they wish to help him finance their continued success.

Media, Pensacola, Politics, Uncategorized

Newspaper “Outs” Anonymous Forum Poster

2 Comments

I really don’t see the point in ‘outing‘ the identity of a poster in any forum on any topic when that forum permits the use of an alias. Use of an alias offers an anonymous opinion, which is just that, an opinion. Forums are meant to encourage dialog and the forum is where that dialog belongs, with one possible exception below.

IMHO, there is only one exception, and that is if any laws are broken, then the authorities (that wouldn’t be the newspaper) should be notified. Then, the newspaper has an obligation to report whatever ‘news’ is generated by the authorities. That’s journalism. This forum flap is not journalism. Despite what Pensacola News Journal editor Richard A. Schneider says . . .

You have the right to know that and we have the obligation to tell you.

I couldn’t disagree more. In the context of anonymous posting, should the newspaper take on the role of bully toward posters who they don’t particularly like or who carry some amount of notoriety or their occupation? Should they publish the poster’s email address? Of course not. If an editor has something to say about a post, the forum is the place to respond, with or without an alias. To strip the anonymity and take it to the editorial page where the unwashed might see a huge and (to borrow a recently overused word) “phony” scandal is something more than irresponsible.

If you want to stifle debate then change the rules to not allow aliases. It certainly will trim the tripe.

The irony of a newspaper (which has special first amendment protection) actively attacking free speech might be considered an abuse of that protection, and is just a bit hypocritical if not unethical in an of itself.

Pensacola News Journal: Paper holds officials accountable, even Godzilla

2008 Election, Media, Politics

Hillary Clinton’s ‘Karl Rove’ Puts Her On Defense

1 Comment

Funny what comes up around the Blackwater USA inquisition on Capitol Hill. Hillary Clinton According to John Edwards, Mark Penn’s company helped prepare Blackwater’s chief to prepare for his congressional testimony. Mark Penn is Hillary Clinton’s political adviser “who is like her Karl Rove,” Edwards said.  Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Hillary Clinton found herself defending her chief strategist Friday after The Associated Press reported that the public relations company Mark Penn runs had helped prepare the chief of the controversial military contractor Blackwater USA for his congressional testimony.

“Mark Penn did no work on the Blackwater account,” Clinton spokesman Howard Wolfson said Friday afternoon.

I’m sure the billing records would corroborate that. Who would even ask for them? I don’t see this as any big deal really. Ironic, yes, but nothing illegal or even improper. Private companies have clients that want their services. That’s what they do. I felt the same way about Armstrong Williams too.

If there is no double standard, ahem, then I suppose the mainstream media will jump on the ‘dump Mark Penn’ bandwagon like they did with Armstrong Williams. What are the chances?

Media, Politics, Uncategorized

Arctic National Wildlife Refuge 101

Some things are worth repeating, and debunking the myths about ANWR is one of them. The media and the environmentalists will show you the prettiest pictures of the reserve, then actually tell you that this is where BIG OIL wants to drill.

This is the coastal plain, the place designated for oil exploration. ANWR Coastal Plain

And this is the coastal plain in the spring.

Coastal Plain in ANWR

And this is representative of pictures that the media and environmentalists will show you and why we need to save the planet.

ANWR protected wilderness

Any questions?

Media, Uncategorized

CNN Reports Of Meaningless Test

A CNN Headline news babe just spent about 15 seconds announcing the news of a successful test of a missile defense system. It included a video showing the hit. Then she sums up her story by saying that ‘critics’ of the system say the test was meaningless because the attack missile didn’t have any anti-missile or decoy tactics built in. OK, now we’re fully informed on this subject right? Well, according to the Missile Defense Agency . . .

The exercise was designed to evaluate the performance of several elements of the Ballistic Missile Defense System (BMDS). Mission objectives included demonstrating the ability of the Upgraded Early Warning Radar at Beale Air Force Base, Calif., to acquire, track and report on objects. The test also evaluated the performance of the interceptor missile’s rocket motor system and exoatmospheric kill vehicle, which is the component that collides directly with the target warhead in space to perform a “hit to kill” intercept using only the force of the collision to totally destroy the target warhead. Initial indications are that the rocket motor system and kill vehicle performed as designed. Program officials will evaluate system performance based upon telemetry and other data obtained during the test.

CNN needs to come up with a new slogan. How about ‘the least trusted name in news.’ Video link and pictures link.

Media, Politics, Uncategorized

Earmark, “Congressionally Directed Spending.”

Earmark smearmark, where is the will to forbid them? Not in Washington DC that’s for sure. Washington’s fix regarding earmarks works as good as their answer to campaign financing. It still goes on but it now has a different name, “congressionally directed spending.” Take Rahm Emanuel for example. He is chairman of the House Democratic Caucus and has been a major proponent of making earmarks in spending bills more transparent. Rahm speaks with forked tongue.

Rep. Rahm Emanuel was extremely proud when the House passed a major spending billRahm Emanuel, who is chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, has been a major proponent of making earmarks in spending bills more transparent. early this year that contained not a single special-interest project. “This is an earmark-free bill,” the Illinois Democrat jubilantly declared on Feb. 1.

A week later, however, he and 18 other Illinois lawmakers signed a letter to the Energy Department to “express our strong support” for a bio-energy project at the University of Illinois. Emanuel also sent his own letter to the department seeking “support and assistance in securing” $500,000 for Children’s Memorial Hospital in Chicago and $750,000 for the Illinois Institute of Technology.

Such requests for specific institutions are commonly known as earmarks. But Emanuel, a member of the Democratic House leadership, declines to call them that. “Letter-writing is not an earmark,” he said in an interview.

What perfect Clinton-speak. Letter-writing for earmarks is not an earmark. That and, it depends on what the definition of is is. Pelosi and Reid are doing a bang-up job on their ethics reform campaign, beginning with William (Dollar Bill) Jefferson (D-LA). And it goes downhill from there.

Washington Post link: Pet Projects’ Veil Is Only Partly Lifted

2008 Election, Media, Politics, Uncategorized, War On Terror

CNN, Bin Laden Is Right

The CNN take on “Osama bin Laden’s Message to Americans” is pretty much what bin Laden said. And by its content could have passed for something out of the DNC. No, I’m not saying it was from the DNC, I’m saying the message is the same as that of the DNC.

Aside from the part where he wants to kill us all unless we submit to cavemen, he says if we would just quit fighting the war in Iraq, then he would stop fighting us. That is the same thing that every democrat candidate running for president is saying. Only difference is, the democrats really believe it. Both he and these democrats forgot the part about we were not in Iraq on 9/11/2001. But I digress.

Michael Scheuer, the former chief of a CIA bin Laden unit, said that the war with bin Laden is a result of our policies in the US. And, that the administration has misled us about the motivations of this enemy. IE. They don’t want to kill us because we are not Islamofascists, they want to kill us because of the way we live and the laws we make. So just change the law (and our way of life) and then we won’t be attacked any more. Now I know why he is a former chief. Well, aside from the fact that he didn’t find bin Laden. Scheuer says . . .

We continue to hear that it’s about freedom and liberty, and they hate women in the workplace, or the fact that I might have a beer after work, and that has nothing to do with it. What we’re at war about is the impact of our policy in the Islamic world. That — that’s what motivates al Qaeda and its allies. And that is what gives al Qaeda and its allies unity.

Help me, I’m having trouble understanding how the way we live in the United States, policies and all, have any effect whatsoever on cavemen on the other side of the world that Scheuer calls ‘the Islamic world?’ The only thing he has right is the scope of the Islamofascists, they are all over the “world.”

Curiously enough, bin Laden is apparently a fan of Michael Scheuer, and why wouldn’t he be? Scheuer believes bin Laden’s propaganda. In his speech, bin Laden said . . .

“If you would like to get to know some of the reasons for your losing of your war against us, then read the book of Michael Scheuer in this regard.”

This is an ideological war for us. For the enemy it is a religious war. And according to Michael Scheuer, its just that lying Bush.

CNN transcript

Fairness Doctrine, Media, Politics, Uncategorized

Air America Radio Exits Memphis

Air America Radio loses Memphis WSMB 680 AM, to be replaced with sports talk. I’m still waiting for that swell of demand for the ‘progressive’ message. WSMB is going from this to this. That should tell them something.

Frustrated by the fact that they can’t get any traction with their brand of rabid radio, they don’t see it as a loss, but rather as justification to whine for the Fairness Doctrine.

To liberals, free markets are fine as long as they are not on the losing side. Imagine for a moment that the popularity of talk radio is overwhelmingly liberal, and conservative talkers just couldn’t cut the mustard. Do you see the liberals calling for the Fairness Doctrine then?

Media, War On Terror

Egyptian Students Indicted On Terrorism Charges

Remember those two Egyptian ‘students’ from the University of South Florida in the news back on August 4th? They were stopped for speeding in South Carolina and were not heading in the direction they said they were going. They were headed in the direction of two sensitive areas of national security, a Navy base where nuclear warheads are loaded onto submarines and another military base where some former Guantanamo prisoners are being held.

Well, surprise surprise, they were indicted on terrorism-related charges relating to explosives and explosive training.

So much for the FBI warnings that University of Sami’s (Al-Arian) Friends a/k/a University of South Florida students Ahmed Abda Sherf Mohamed and Yousef Samir Megahed–the Smiling Mugshot “Just Fireworks” Muslim terrorists–were not terrorists.

A Federal Grand Jury says they are, and indicted them:

ahmedmohamedyousefmegahed.jpg
Mohamed and Megahed: Smiling Terrorists Indicted

Two Egyptian students at the University of South Florida who were arrested in South Carolina have been indicted on federal charges for carrying explosives across states lines. One of the men also is charged with teaching the other how to use the material for violent reasons.

H/T Debbie Schlussel for the update.

They claimed the explosives found in their car were fireworks. They were not fireworks in the trunk. Their names are Ahmed Abdellatif Sherif Mohamed, 24, and Youssef Samir Megahed, 21. If you are into profiling, one might guess that these two are Muslim, not that there’s anything wrong with that. And you would be right. According to Megahed’s mother, Muslims are not into terrorism. She is obviously among the 69% of Muslims in America that reject terrorism. Unfortunately for her, and us, her son is among the 31% of Muslims that don’t.

Mariam Megahed read a prepared statement, “We have a high regard for honor, so breaking the law or bringing harm to anyone is not something that we as Muslims support.”

Note: Pensacola, FL, Pensacola News Journal link.

Update: 09/04/07, State of South Carolina drops charges on the two, deferring to a federal prosecution on their federal indictment.

Belly up to the counter. Politics are on the menu and Ross is on the grill.