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When did I become so interested in politics?
If the art of politics were honest and open, I wouldn't feel so puzzled by this. The truth is, politics at the national level is something of a blood sport now (how did President Clinton phrase it? "Politics of personal destruction?").
To some extent, my interest is that of a fan of a soap-opera. There are good guys and bad guys, stunningly bad acts and apparently honest souls doing their best. Of course, politics is something of a moral pursuit, a collective discussion of what's right and what's best. I suppose it's the latter element that one should pursue.
Writing this makes me sorrowful, for politics is hardly meeting the needs of our nation and our world. At the national level, we have a dominant major party that has all the depth, substance and sincerity of a toothpaste ad. That actually makes them more effective than the minority party's effort to communicate has been.
The primary cause of this is probably the voters who ignore substantive debate. They fall into two groups: the lazy and ignorant; and the close-minded. The former isn't willing or able to pursue the complexities of today's policy discussions (listen to President Bush repeat his five-word arguments like a cave man whilst his lackeys parrot some brand-name for an argeument so distorted by simplification that it's unrecognizable). The latter have decided that one party or the other serves their interests and ignores all arguments to the contrary. Think anti-abortion types, who would never consider any political idea espoused by someone who supports a woman's right to choose. Or think the knee-jerk leftist who will ignore or oppose any idea supported by, say, someone who supports the war in Iraq.
Sadly, the apathetic and the close-minded seem to be the audience most easily swayed by today's political discourse. Meanwhile, the news media sells tickets to the fight rather than encourage or enforce rigorous debate. I suppose the soap-opera fan in me is as guilty as any.
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
AWFUL WEB PAGE ALERT!
Okay, you need to see this. Some web sites are just too bad not to share: CuteOverload.com. Go there now and acquire diabetes...
And if that doesn't do the trick, a little poking around that site leads to a link for a site devoted to Kitten War. Think Pick the Hottie, but for kittens...
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
With the beginning of the new television season last fall, the three largest networks each tried a new "alien invasion" series. Fox, having already been down that road with "The X-Files," declined to follow along. ABC launched "Invasion," CBS tried "Threshold," and NBC worked with "Surface."
Aside from titles that show symptoms of monophasia, two of the shows are pretty much in the vein of "The X-files" with the usual government insiders, paranoid vibes and heroic outsiders. I suspect the only thing that will keep "Surface" on the air is if the lovely Lake Bell continues to oblige the producers with swimsuit and underwear scenes--the other main story is like a really bad knock-off of "ET." "Invasion" really isn't too bad, although any viewer who enjoyed the original "American Gothic" from the same production team is likely to remember that series with fondness by comparison.
The series that broke this mold is "Threshold." The government insiders are the good guys for a change and the real enemy is a kind of combined computer/biological virus of apparently alien origin. Humans overtaken by the pernicious virus are reasonably scary with enhanced abilities and an implacable pursuit of their goal: spreading the virus.
Naturally, CBS cancelled "Threshold." I don't know whether the viewers who don't watch it or the network who wouldn't give the show a chance frustrate me more.
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CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
CDs listened to today:
