The former Fourth Estate now prefers the controversy and circus atmosphere of the Jerry Springer show instead of providing a vital service to defend and strengthen democracy. It is all about revenue, profit, and return on investment. They should all be paying rent for use of public airwaves -and the rent collected should be directed at actually fulfilling a public purpose.
Ronna would make a terrific guest on Springer or other chair throwing table flipping venues.
Let us put aside the fact that Ronna is a toady for treason. She's just bad at politics. Epically, historically, incontrovertibly bad. She led a party with a ton of advantages into a years-long losing streak on every level, left it with dwindling finances, shambolic organization, and no policy platform at all.
Why would you want someone so bad at something to help analyze that thing on your channel? This would be like HGTV hiring Gallagher. This would be like Reading Rainbow being hosted by the dog from the Begging Strips commercial.
This would be like getting someone who's been bankrupt half a dozen times to host a reality show on creating wealth. Oh, wait...
But it's all about those differing perspectives, amirite? Can't have the liars and failures feeling unrepresented! Why leave those potential viewers on the table? Hey, you know what we should do? Let's give the Chinese Communist Party the Sunday Morning Show! There are LOADS of untapped viewers who live over there! While we're at it, anybody got a couple of those new African military juntas on speed dial? Maybe they have something to say, too... and a captive audience back home! Broadcast TV is bringing the world together again, baby!
Long story short, these people have greenbacks where their grey matter should be.
I will not watch it either.Hiring someone like McDaniel cheapens the work of a whole group of journalists some of whom should be very concerned with this action(Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Chris Hayes to name a few).Shame on MSNBC. That they would even consider bringing some like her on-board is troubling.
I did watch Morning Joe for a few minutes today... they were against the hiring, but said none of the on-air network staff were asked for their opinion beforehand. So this is all on the money-grubbing front office. And they only listen if their numbers are falling. We're each only one, but there are many of us.
Thanks for this information.I cancelled my NYT subscription because of the constant Biden bashing and both-sidesism of their reporting and I can quit watching MSNBC/NBC too.It pisses me off and also disappoints me that the owners of this channel care so little for the many people who support this network by watching their shows.I also wonder if this channel is trying to attract MAGATs with this hiring?
Why in the world would they want someone who will lie? I guess tfffg told fox not to hire her. I also dropped my NYT subscription and told them why. All the news fit to print. NO. the newspaper of record. NO. These magnut people need to be punished not rewarded. What they did was TREASON.
I also ended my subscription to NYT. I quit watching MSNBC pundits because, as Teri Kanefield explains , they (among others) perpetuate the misinformation - outrage cycle. She analyzes that in a quite educated and detailed way. And I feel so much better for it. I now only get news from PBS and NPR, some explanation and analysis from a few Substack writers. And of course, terikanefield.com.
I've had my own "path of cancellation," first with the Times, then the Washington Post, and finally, The Guardian. I guess there are just no national (or international!) news sources that can't both-sides everything. I'm done with it.
As for NBC/MSNBC, I'd sort of given up on that kind of thing years ago. I mean, I like Rachel Maddow but after all that's gone on, I just don't need to see that horse beaten to death anymore. I'll just take these letters every day and maybe sprinkle in some of the music/media/cultural criticism from Ted Gioia. That's enough.
Wasn't the trump townhall scheduled because of bad ratings? It was free publicity for the rude candidate and gave him another opportunity to display his usual disrespect for women.
Many people have emailed Blumenstein and Budoff to express their anger at hiring Ronna McDaniel. I am one. Hopefully, enough people express their outrage and McDaniel is fired. How could you know she was telling the truth? You couldn't.
Excellent points Tim. This is why people need to vote in primaries and media must report the turnout. Bring on the flood!!“Elections are more than a toggle switch for one candidate or the other. If Trump had lost by just a few votes, I suspect his efforts before and after the election to overturn the vote would have been far more effective. As it was, a flood of 7,000,000 votes separated him from the winner. In each of the battleground states, his loss or win was decisive. This matters. Your vote and mine counted. Every vote added to the decision. The lies about the election would have been a little more effective for each missing vote.”
You’re right and that’s key but with all the corporate news bias, nasty availability to spread bias and the knowledge that major big money is and will continue to support the radical, vicious right it can be hard to keep this momentum up. Fortunately here on substack there are voices of encouragement like Simon Rosenberg, posters who remind us we can do this, historians like Heather Cox Richardson and Steve Schmidt who remind us of the price our ancestors paid for our democracy and finally Jeff Tiedrich who makes me laugh, an outrageous much needed laugh.
I have now gained back hours of time each week thanks to the greedy corporate overlords of NBC/MSNBC and their decision to give air time to a fascist and a traitor.
I’ll miss Rachel, Lawrence, and Stephanie. I will not watch this network, nor will I click on the network’s news stories. I’m thankful for the abundance of quality writing based on facts, and the honest perspectives that we have here on substack.
You save a lot of money by not having a cable bill. I quit mine years ago. Haven't missed it at all. I have my trusted news sites (Heather and Meidas Touch on YouTube, mostly). The provide their trusted sites.
MSNBC fired McDaniel almost immediately and both Rachel and Lawrence laid out in clear terms why so many at MSNBC revolted against bringing her on board. Broadcast channel NBC has yet to take that step.
Exactly. I did watch MSNBC tonight to see if they would take on the issue. They did not and I get it’s their job but it’s also their credibility on the line. Done with them as well.
What did you watch on MSNBC. Both Maddow and O'Donnell spoke at length last night about the pushback against hiring McDaniel for MSNBC, resulting in McDaniel no longer to be associated with MSNBC.
NBC, however, is a different kettle of fish, they haven't yet 'fired' her but I'm sure they're being inundated with email complaints.
I'm running short on 'gift' links so here are a couple of headlines/subheadlines from the NY Times:
March 24 "Business
Chuck Todd and ‘Morning Joe’ Hosts Object to NBC’s Hiring of Former R.N.C. Chair
The extraordinary comments on “Meet the Press” revealed tensions in NBC’s news divisions over Ronna McDaniel, who recently stepped down as head of the Republican National Committee."
March 25 "NBC News Faces Rebellion Over Hiring of Former Republican Party Chair
In extraordinary on-air remarks, Mika Brzezinski, Joe Scarborough and Nicolle Wallace questioned their own network’s decision to hire Ronna McDaniel as a political analyst."
There are similar articles in the Washington Post.
I hope you watched Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell last night. They made clear that Ronna McD will not be involved with MSNBC as the result of objections made by them and many other MSNBC personnel. The issue remains (since I've not heard otherwise) that Ronna McD is still contracted with the broadcast channel NBC. At least at MSNBC, pushback worked. Hopefully, the same will soon be true at NBC.
I will be watching both Maddow's show as well as O'Donnell's tonight to see what, if anything, they say about McDaniels' hiring. If they speak against it, or defend it in convincible ways, then I'll continue to watch it. Otherwise, probably not.
The reaction to MSNBC's apparent misstep here is similar to the comments I'm seeing on Threads about the NY Times and its "bothsidesism" editorials and especially headlines.
Just for the record, headlines are not written by reporters. They are written by the copy desk. And, unfortunately, these folks don't always read the whole story.
Yes, I do know that, but headlines are what catches the eye, and most readers also don't read the articles. Headlines, to me, are editorial content.
The articles themselves also show a lot of bothsidesism, but in their attempt to be fair, they often fail to show that there are not equivalent arguments on the left and right. Ex.: Biden's occasional vocal gaffes which they attribute to age, vs Trump's much more frequent memory lapses, mispronunciations, misstatements of facts etc. which are much more significant.
This is incredibly apparent at the NYTimes. You would think after endless criticisms and the need to redo headlines the NYTimes might have someone review them. But no. Instead they publish different headlines as clickbait depending on one's perceived political.
That is correct. MSNBC on air and support personnel immediately pushed back and McDaniel will not be associated with MSNBC. NBC has not, so far, rescinded her contract as of this morning (3/26).
I don't watch NBC but find the hiring fascinating and now curious as to how it'll work. I would bristle every time Rick Santorum would come on, but it gave an opportunity for the left to bash the staunch conservative ideology he represented. And he was of the old guard. Will from Cal said, "Can't have the liars and failures feeling unrepresented!" Well guess what, the liars and failures are what now make up the majority of the GOP. If Ronna wants to come on and get bashed, let her. Jessica Tarlov does a fantastic job promulgating democratic policies on Fox. So you have the liar and conspiracy theorist representing MAGA/GOP on the liberal channel and a sane critical thinker on the conservative hoax Fox "news" channel. This is a snapshot of reality. Let's see how this goes....
Yes, I just cancelled my nightly NBC national news recordings. I'll be letting them know that I have been an NBC news follower for 60 years, but with this move on their part I'm gone! I'll still watch my local NBC station news, they are part of the Hearst Broadcast Group.
Money may talk but it doesn't talk to everybody & it certainly doesn't represent everybody!
Add our household and all the TV and Internet-streaming connections in our companies' and suppliers' networks to the millions who have chosen to leave NBC / MSNBC permanently for their decision to incorporate a person that supported the overthrow of our government into their midst as if it is just something "normal". It is NOT NORMAL.
You chose poorly and underestimated the power of individual Americans.
Yeah it does. But after what happened in NY today lowering that bond I screamed too! I kept it down so my neighbors wouldn't be concerned. But I did scream. If the arthritis in my hands would diminish a bit I'd go to a gym & punch one of those punching bags but my hands are more important. I'll just keep screaming at my tv & scare my poor kitty 🐈!
Putin, along with his sick oligarch co-conspirators, and even even-more-sick, long-skirted, heavily bejeweled, eastern Orthodox priests, turned the Russian working classes back generations. Lost their good health care system. Got epidemics of tuberculosis and alcoholism. Demeaned, cheapened their schools. Drew fights with terror groups. Threw away the lives of several hundred thousand young men in stupid, stupid aggressive war. Gave all Russian natural resources to his co-conspirator fellow thieves.
Dictators, demagogues always incur massive costs for their stupidity. Ditto for the fools you also mention, Will, and the recklessness by which they, too, grabbed power.
The U.S. billionaires and their Republican enablers are costing Americans their formerly good schools, their natural environment, just as they cost millions of Americans the jobs these rich and apes to the rich offshored. Cost the country its AR-15 mass murder epidemic. Cost it its millions of homeless. Its addictions to OxyContin, Fentanyl, and obesity due to bad, bad, intentionally bad food.
Thank you, Phil, for this excellent post. What a great description of the Russian situation. Then in one paragraph, you explained our situation and what the Rs and their billionaires have wrought. Every time I see people wringing their hands about the economy, the gun deaths, the drug deaths, I think you are not holding the right people responsible. And the food. We were recently helping a friend celebrate her 80th. She wanted lobster, so we were at Bag O Crabs. We managed to eat without getting any seafood or anything deep fried. They had robots which brought the food and of course sang happy birthday. The food came out willy nilly. The place was packed and it was surreal watching people with bibs and plastic gloves slurp up crab legs and other things in these bags. Never again, not even for a friend.
Morning all! Robert Hubbell provided the email addresses of two NBC execs today. You can tell them yourselves how impressed you are with their hiring decisions. I am.
Will, I was getting ready to write a Dave Fake News article about NBC backtracking a little without actually Firing Ronna altogether by the creation of a new cooking show featuring Ronna and Sean Spicer
“Ronna’s Kitchen”.
The first episode would include The Infamous SOTU “Kitchen Lady’s” No Bake Vanilla Wafers
Excellent posts, Will and George. Even Chuck Todd who is not my favorite spoke against this move. As for watching NBC, we will continue watching the local NBC news because the other options are so bad and hopefully we will not see her on the national news with Lester Holt who must be vomiting. One of our former local reporters also does segments on the national news as well. Otherwise, our TV is tuned to streaming series and now and then, sports.
Hey Will, you left me with nothing to add. It simply absurd. I would encourage readers to send their comments to msnbc , perhaps at msnbctvinfo@nbkieni,com.
Agreed, which is why I left 'broadcast tv' years ago. I saw where it was headed and wanted nothing to do with it. I've discovered trusted sources like Professor Richardson who knows where the truth can be found. When CBS hired Mick Mulvaney I stopped watching news online and as long as Ronna Daniel is at NBC I won't be watching them either and I've told them so. I also stopped subscribing to The New York Times, they have turned too far to the right like too many others.
Absolutely! McDaniel is an unacceptable fool. Why put her anywhere near a camera when you already have Michael Steele in your stable? He's witty, conservative, and really astute in his political analysis.
Reagan mentor Milton Friedman made a thing out of claiming that the only social responsibility of a company was maximizing profit. But isn't a shared, foundational sense of social responsibility the glue that binds society into an entity, E Pluribus Unum, and enables the maintenance of liberty? After 40 years of Reaganomics, are we better off?
Reagan and his advisers helped establish the fictional frame of "the lone hard-working American cowboy". I built this instead of the more accurate we built this. (Although the reality is we stole this, then built it). This selfish individualistic caricature of an America -is the "Me first" DNA of the Reagan conservative looking to destroy the sense of community (except perhaps of the gated, exclusive variety), our foundational institutions, and our vital systems of governance.
Some are better off. The remaining Koch brother, Steve Wynn, Harlan Crow, Elon Musk, Barre Seid, Larry Ellison, Robert Mercer, and others who have accumulated great wealth during and post-Reagan.
And they use it get more and piss on the rest of us. You left Rupert off, otherwise good start on the perps. Chump is such a loser he couldn’t even make money on a casino, but he did better as a carnival barker…
Spot on, Jeri. I've always made that connection in my mind about trickle down. (When asked his opinion about the trickle down theory, trompy replied "Depends.")
The love of money is the root of all evil is, I think the more complete original quote. When love of money supplants love of your neighbor, your enemy, your community, your world, bad stuff ensues.
The late Kevin Phillips wrote several books in the 1990s critical of the Bush era. One of the things Phillips criticized is that he rightly thought people were making money by financializatiom of the economy and not by innovation. Phillips saw financialization as an indication that a society was in decay.
Yes. It's what I think of as wealth transfers. For example, when Walmart historically paid poverty-level wages, Walmart workers had $6.2 billion in taxpayer funded assistance (food stamps, etc.), while Walmart paid $6.6 billion in dividends to investors (and about half of that went to Walton family trusts). So it was externalizing costs to all of us, thus, diminishing our quality of life, while concentrating money to the top.
I'm not anti-wealth -when it is creating societal value. When wealth is used to lobby for eviscerating estate taxes, corporate taxation, and ensures that a teacher or a nurse is paying more as a percentage of income than Elon Musk -to me it is mass fraud perpetrated by the wealthy through their GOP shills (like Reagan, Bush, Trump) stealing from all of us (and future generations).
Financialization is just another business - it just needed to be regulated. The financial disaster of 2008 would have been avoided had the players been regulated.
If you read the Communist Manifesto, pretty much all of modern capitalism is exploitation, just almost sheer chance i'm reading it now - via reading on Oppenheimer Prometheus and Heather's How the South Won the Civil war, Titan - life of John Rockefeller. I see there was a healthy discussion on the matter. Much of that 1% wealth is tied up in capital investment, though the free cash flow by my meagre standards feels obscene. I'd suggest tapping much of that retained wealth through cash / holding taxes then cash on some not break the business basis. Corporate and other business is hugely subsidized by government one way or the other, as is the general population. This kind of taxation is the only way you'll significantly change the wealth distribution equation. Of course, "good luck with that'.
This is neither here nor there, but in fact there are 2 remaining Koch brothers -- you may be forgetting Bill Koch of sailing fame. His family's wealth supported his expensive hobby, but I don't believe he has or had any direct involvement with the running of Koch Industries. I'd like to think his politics are anathema to his brothers, but that's just me being hopeful rather than knowledgeable.
My partner and I started a consulting firm in 1990. We paid every employee more than they could have made in the insurance industry by 10-20% and provided a better benefit package than any insurance company. Our first five years in business we grew the company from the two of us to over 60 consultants. Our turnover rate for each of the first five years was ZERO. Our annual turnover rate was never over 5%. No one left. We sold the company after 10 years because my partner wanted to retire and I couldn't get the money (like Trump) to buy him out. When people left, they left usually it was because they went out on their own. We never tied them up with 401-k vesting or non-competes but we did tie them up with annual bonus's which always came a month after the busy season.
It's much easier to maximize profits when people don't leave for a better job in the middle of a project.
I’m old. I have watched it decimate our government, social structure and turn my mama’s religion of “love thy neighbor,” into prosperity gospel. The importation of Rupert kicked off the “rich buying the government they wanted” trend. As Jack Kemp said in WaPo article in Jan 1981, “Rupert Murdoch used the front page, the editorial page, and every other page necessary to get Ronald Reagan elected president.” Hats off to you Rupert, you epitome of evil.
Unfortunately not, and the concentration of wealth and deterioration of the middle class has.enabled a demagogue and charlatan like Trump to get attention. Friedman didn live to se the worst results of his policies take hold.
Not disagreeing, but even as a kid in the 50s i remember partisanship was a hallmark of American journalism, a miasma of one side trying to outshrill the other. That was the onset of civil rights era, anti establishment movement, McCarthyism, anti Vietnam, assassinations, nothing calm about the Eve of Destruction.... recurrent race riots
Fair enough, beauty being in the eye of the beholder. What was needed was political organization, a real economic and educational uplift, however managed - not burning down Watts, Detroit. In and of itself, it only led to more repression. Providing real answers in that history though is far beyond my competence.
Companies such as Patagonia with its founder Yves Chouinard and his family are turning profits into social and environmental/climate benefit instead of self-enrichment. There are many others that do as well.
Hiring McDaniel is like hiring the robber to be a cashier. She is a criminal and should be prosecuted not work for major media network. NBC's decision is one more example of people's ability to rationalize ANYTHING.
I felt compelled to register my own complaint about this horribly tone deaf hire…
Dear Ms. Blumenstein,
I must object to NBC decision to hire Ronna McDaniel for, ostensibly, her insight into contemporary conservative politics. I find that hard to believe given what a colossal failure she was. That would be like hiring the captain of the Titanic, had he survived, to enlighten your audience about why there weren’t enough lifeboats.
She caved to the MAGA wing of the former GOP party leaving it strapped for cash and credibility and without a platform. She falsely promoted Trump’s lies about election fraud and had the unmitigated gall to characterize the January 6th attack on the Capital as “…legitimate political discourse “ I wonder what her opinion is on the use of letter bombs to advance one’s political agenda?
Given the event was televised for all to see, even by NBC, and several unnecessary deaths and injuries resulted during the assault, should I assume that NBC agrees with Ronna that January 6th was “… legitimate political discourse “ ?
A disappointed and now former viewer,
Larry
We should all leave them a good-bye letter so get idea that this might not be a money making scheme!
It is unfair and inaccurate to smear 'the Fourth Estate' in totality. Your assertion is easily disproved right here where HCR routinely cites the reporting and analyses of those working in the press. It is truly a frivolous and undeserved dismissal of those people who every day are reporting from conflict zones and war zones, challenging those in power despite a range of threats, and witnessing the most mundane to the most momentous of happenings to bring us news. They and their work deserve a more serious consideration. And where called for critique. And note that the most strong public denunciation of NBC hiring the ousted RNC head came from Chuck Todd - on NBC.
I respectfully disagree. We are a far cry from Bernstein and Woodward and Murrow. My criticism is not those few journalists who diligently continue to report and inform. It is the loss of distribution of the journalistic output, and the lack of investment in news, analysis, and reporting.
There is a good deal to learn about journalism, 'the Fourth Estate' in the US, even by those who, perhaps, think themselves better informed about the subject than they may be, and Woodward is still at it! That doesn't mean that we don't need more of it.
'Solutions Oriented'
'How foundation money is transforming local news'
'OCTOBER 16, 2023'
'By MEGAN GREENWELL'
'Until a few years ago, the Cleveland Foundation had never considered supporting local media. The organization—the oldest community foundation in the world, with $2.8 billion in assets—seeks to “enhance the lives of all residents of Greater Cleveland”; its grants tend to focus on job training, violence prevention, and education in majority-Black neighborhoods. The organization’s staff were well aware that the city’s flagship newspaper, the Plain Dealer, was being stripped for parts by Advance Local, its corporate owner, and that nothing was filling the vacuum. But their aim was to solve problems, not assign articles about them. Besides, even in a more robust age of local news, the neighborhoods targeted by community groups were rarely covered in the press—except, perhaps, in the case of a grisly crime.'
'So in 2020, when the Cleveland Foundation awarded money to an initiative called Cleveland Documenters, it wasn’t classified as a reporting project. Documenters, which started in Chicago and has since expanded into a network of eleven cities, mostly in the Midwest, pays small fees to about six hundred Clevelanders—not experienced reporters, just curious citizens from every zip code—to take notes at local government meetings and post them online. Dale Anglin, the Cleveland Foundation’s vice president for grantmaking and community impact, thought of Documenters primarily as a tool to improve low voting rates.' “We don’t even call it journalism here,” she told me. “We call it information.”
"those few journalists who diligently continue to report and inform."
Your assertion simply does not conform to the facts. Historical or current.
And while remarkable investigative reporters do momentous work. Our democracy also depends on the most local of reporters who attend and report on innumerable town council and school board meetings.
Most of the information you rely on for your opinions comes from the diligent work of those you so easily dismiss.
They are inseparable. When I am critical of the healthcare industry, my frustration is not directed at nurses, doctors, and staff. It is the industry itself that prioritizes profit over patient outcomes. Similarly, when I speak of the erosion of the Fourth Estate in the United States it is not a criticism of actual journalists.
Lin, you’re right. That’s why I continue to support the local newspaper as their rates increase—they still have a few reporters that cover local and state politics.
Admirable. I support The Guardian, Pro Publica, and of course HCR’s LFAA for similar reasons. I gave up on NYT around Judith Miller’s adventures with yellow cake.
'Data and trends about key sectors in the U.S. news media industry'
'Since 2004, Pew Research Center has issued an annual report on key audience and economic indicators for a variety of sectors within the U.S. news media industry. These data speak to the shifting ways in which Americans seek out news and information, how news organizations get their revenue, and the resources available to American journalists as they seek to inform the public about important events of the day. The press is sometimes called the fourth branch of government, but in the U.S., it’s also very much a business – one whose ability to serve the public is dependent on its ability to attract eyeballs and dollars.'
'Over the years, the Center’s approach to these indicators has evolved along with the industry, carefully considering the metrics, sectors and format in which the data appear. Instead of a single summary report, our approach is to roll out a series of fact sheets showcasing the most important current and historical data points for each sector – in an easy-to-digest format – a few at a time. '
Thank you Fern -I have respect for Pew Research. Secondly -therein lies the problem:
The press is sometimes called the fourth branch of government, but in the U.S., it’s also very much a business – one whose ability to serve the public is dependent on its ability to attract eyeballs and dollars.'
George, good for you! I also support The Guardian, Pro Publica, HCR and Jay Kuo on Substack. I did support Steve Schmidt on Substack until he decided to take money for helping Dean in his presidential bid and I questioned both his intelligence and his independence (it appears that I was not alone).
I started my NYT subscription a couple of years ago, so missed Judith Miller and yellow cake (Duncan Hines or uranium?).
Nevertheless, Lin, greed, the quarterly returns obsession and the profit motive conditioning ethics do make for very leaky buckets wherever the provision of essential services is concerned. And we all know who profits and who suffers from the leakages...
My best friend is an emergency room physician whose hospital has been taken over by a hedge fund. I admire her work all the more for her unwavering diligence and care for her patients under these conditions.
Lin, another nail in the coffin is the migration of a substantial number of seniors from regular Medicare to Medicare Advantage plans. There are hospitals closing because the low rates (subst lower than regular Medicare) don’t allow them to make ends meet. We need to pass a law that allows a one-time return from Medicare Advantage to Medicare with Medicare supplement coverage (Medigap) at the same Medigap monthly cost as a new enrollee. Too many people are falling for the Medicare Advantage promise only to experience long waits for “elective” surgeries and emergency room doctors/anesthesiologist bills that aren’t covered (even though the hospital is in-network). Then, when they try to go back, they find that the premiums for the Medigap premiums are triple or quadruple what they were just one year before and they’re stuck because they can’t afford the new premiums.
Gail, this was a sop to the insurance industry to get Medicare passed. A law allowing a one-time return to the original low Medigap rates would allow people to recover from their uninformed choice of Medicare Advantage.
Mary, EXACTLY. I went on Medicare two years ago, and after seeing the problems my elder sister's husband had with Medicare Advantage, there is NO WAY I'd choose it, and I strongly advise my peers that have been turning 65 to avoid it.
Thank you (all that have replied about this)! I am eligible to enroll in Medicare this coming July (gulp, only a little denial going on that I am this old, haha). Had no idea Medicare Advantage was problematic. Thank you so much for the head's up!
Re. Switzerland, where you can reset your watch at the moment when trains or trams stop and social services are superb, in some big cities life is becoming too dear for ordinary Swiss citizens.
Those living near borders cross them to go shopping.
Last night a long conversation with a dear friend whose lung problems have now turned to emphysema about how takeover by hedge funds has made so many health services, previously subsidized by the State in France, too dear for many sick people...
All those services essential to society, including health, education and information, where the profit motive is irrelevant or, at the very most, a secondary, subordinate consideration.
Yesterday on CSpan I heard a Republican (maybe Tom Cotten) denouncing the ACA with examples of constituents' narratives. Then he 'jumped the shark' complaining about his ACA coverage as a member of Congress. 'Deer in the headlights moment' when caught out his own lie. Of course he has platinum level coverage through ... the government Republicans so revile and obstruct.
'Mike Johnson Claims Marjorie Taylor Greene Appears in Book of Revelation'
MAR 25
'WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Widening a rift among House Republicans, Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Sunday that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene “makes a prominent appearance” in the Bible’s most apocalyptic book.'
“I was in church this morning, just kind of flipping through the Bible,” 'Johnson said'. “And as I was reading the Book of Revelation, all of a sudden I was like,' ‘Holy cow, that’s Marge!’”
“I usually like to leave religion out of things, but since Marjorie is ushering in the End Times I felt I had to say something,” 'he said.'
'The Speaker was evasive when asked which character in the Book of Revelation mirrored the Georgia congresswoman, saying only,' “She’s not the seven-headed dragon. To my knowledge Marge has only one head.”
'He stressed that his decision to reveal Rep. Greene’s' “pivotal role” 'in the end of the world had '“absolutely nothing” 'to do with her motion to vacate the Speaker’s chair.' “As long as I am Speaker, the chair is already vacant,” he said. (Satire, borowitzreport@substack.com) Copy and paste address on Google.
I have watched MTG's antics in performative politics get worse and worse. I believe that she is running out of stunts to pull, and no matter how bad they are (like the Hunter Biden photos) since she gets away with it, she goes further.
I am dreading the day that I am certain will come: she either shows up at the Capitol totally nude, or displays such photos of herself.. She'd probably first attempt to borrow that Beetlejuice dress from Boebert, but since they are no longer buddies, that is unlikely to happen.
'The state of journalism in 6 acts. There’s reason to be upbeat'
'The head of Poynter’s Beat Academy sees its lessons reflected in great local news coverage'
'By: Jon Greenberg'
'September 29, 2023'
'If you want to read bad news about journalism, you can find it.'
'The United States is still losing local newspapers. Big outfits like CNN and NPR have cut news staff. The great Texas Tribune had its first ever layoffs. In 2022, the two largest Spanish-language television networks, Univision and Telemundo, saw their audiences drop.'
'But get up close and you start to understand why nearly 60% of journalists are optimistic about their profession. This predates the unveiling of Press Forward, a $500 million effort to bring relief to news deserts and fortify small newsrooms nationwide. The U.S. has an amazing number of good reporters producing stories that connect with people, who then actually read and share that work with friends.'
'From my perch at the Poynter Institute’s Beat Academy, I get to see who’s bringing it home for our team, and for the communities we serve. Beat Academy is Poynter’s new, ultraaffordable virtual training program, where we pick a slice of a big issue and give busy journalists the framework and reporting tools to localize the story for their market. We’ve tackled private equity, crime, climate change, immigration, and more. As project lead, I talk and email with editors and reporters across the country, from the smallest shops, like the tri-weekly Athens Messenger in Ohio, to regional powerhouses, like the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.'
'Six qualities of successful reporters stuck with me. My apologies in advance to the people and newsrooms I left off. '
'Let yourself be intrigued'
'Kenny Cooper'
“I’m a general assignment reporter who covers the suburbs of Philadelphia,” WHYY reporter Kenny Cooper said during one of our sessions on covering private equity. “Health care is not my specialty.”
'Nor was finance. Cooper had to get on that learning curve when a local hospital temporarily shut its emergency room in 2022 and employees told Cooper the managers were cutting back on other key services. The term “private equity” came up.'
“I was fascinated, because you hear these words, you know, private equity, we don’t necessarily always make the connection that this is something that has a real day-to-day impact on people,” Cooper said. “It can be a bit intimidating at first.”
'Cooper connected with ProPublica and the Private Equity Stakeholders Project. He fairly quickly linked what was taking place in suburban Philadelphia to a Los Angeles-based private equity firm that, along with other investors, had pulled $400 million out of a hospital chain. Cooper strapped in and wrote 25 stories about the local impacts.'
'Skip the rhetoric, get pragmatic '
'Makenzie Huber'
'The immigration debate is dominated by what’s happening at the border, but what happens far away in America’s heartland can be just as telling. Makenzie Huber with the South Dakota Searchlight looked at the intersection of immigration and the state’s booming dairy industry. Turns out, the downhome business of milking cows depends on having workers who want to run milking machines.'
'Huber’s piece Lack of action on immigration is ‘holding SD back,’ dairy farmers say lays out how farmers try to make their way through the maze of government rules to get the workers they need. By the way, Poynter offers — for free —an online course on the basics of immigration policy.'
'Be strategic and follow through '
'Adam Willis'
'Adam Willis with the Baltimore Banner will be the first to tell you that it takes some serious pitchwork to get an editor excited about ARPA, the America Rescue Plan Act.'
“These stories might not be obvious to other people, or even to your editors,” Willis said. “They might sort of say, ‘Well, there’s all this other stuff happening.’ ”
'But Willis saw ARPA as a kind of Rorschach Test of what Baltimore’s leaders valued, and whether the bureaucracy was capable of using the $361 million that fell into its lap. Tracking the dozens of streams of funding was a rare experiment to see if people in a city with deep problems could actually come out ahead.'
“That involves trying to get on the ground and figure out who’s benefiting from the money, and seeing if we are starting to see this money change people’s lives,” Willis said.
'He’s been tracking Baltimore’s ARPA saga as it unfolds, sometimes finding points of success, but also helping readers understand why the city has had to retrench on some of its big promises. '
Readers, there is more good news - really! See link below.
Robert Hubbell posted in his letter today: "As of Sunday evening, Ronna McDaniel appears to remain at NBC as a “contributor.” Thanks to a reader (Susan O. S.) for identifying the executives at NBC who oversee the news function at the NBC network (not to be confused with the cable-based MSNBC). The email addresses are:
I, for one, don’t mind having former RNC Chair McDaniel appearing on NBC. I can’t imagine that she will say/reveal anything that would change my mind about her, her tenure at the RNC, or her obvious backing of the former president. On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the pushback administered to her by the Meet the Press panel, etc. Mother Ronna (her terminology, not mine) will spend her entire tenure at NBC attempting to erase her past. Good luck with that, I say.
Wa Po, 3/27 SUCCESS!!!!! "Amid a chorus of on-air protest from some of the network’s biggest stars, NBC announced Tuesday night that former Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel will no longer be joining the network as a paid contributor."
Thanks to everyone here who emailed their outrage. So happy when protest makes a difference!!
Alexandra -indeed it is good news and all who expressed their outrage to NBC and the NBC News Division definitely earned the right to celebrate.
(Warning: There is a 'However' coming) ...
And remember it's NBC who gave us "The Apprentice". It's NBC who added Matt "No follow-up questions for my pal Trump" Lauer.
However, I won't be satisfied until all who continued to act either as co-conspirators or accessories after the fact in the attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters in the attempt to subvert a free and fair election. McDaniel should be under an investigatory microscope along with everyone else who willfully participated. She should be barred from ever holding public office -along with the rest -before she's being inaugurated as the next Governor of Wherever, United States.
I think the example of CNN should be proof. When Trump left office, finally, in Jan of 20, they had to find something else to talk about besides how awful Trump is, they lost money, their CEO and on-air personalities
You have remarkable stamina, Paul, if you are able to watch Ronna and can dismiss her lying. NBC has insulted its viewers with this pretense at fair minded coverage. We may not always agree with the opinions of its reporters, but we have thought that those opinions were honest. To flaunt an obvious deceiver is demeaning to people who seek some truth .
Jean, you missed my point. I do NOT DISMISS her lying. I 1.) look forward to multiple Chuck Todd-like comments that mercilessly tear down her lies, etc. and 2.) look forward to watching/listening to Ronna try to worm out of her lies.
Putting her on this stage places her into a very difficult venue with tons of well-informed counter-voices.
Sorry, if it seemed I misread your comment. I was serious about the stamina bit. I’m not going to watch her squirm, though I think she deserves it. I just fear that my participation in that game would look like approval of the programming. Don’t mean to sound like a goody two shoes, but I am going to do whatever I can to avoid anything that might look like theater of the absurd, and try to push for integrity.
She might prove a very interesting commentator, generally they do follow a network slant, as much Fox as MSNBC. It'd also be very interesting to see a listing of the back and forth of media personnel across all sides of the political spectrum over the years.
LOL I feel you. I'm just sayin' I don't mind someone offering me a lollipop as long as they've made sure I get some actual nutrients first. It's the only-lollipop diet I find unappetizing.
"Speak up. Speak out. Vote. Pray" is not enough. Volunteer to work in swing states and for contested Senate and House races. Most of us live close enough to one or more of these races to make a difference! WORKING is a force multiplier. If for some reason you can't work, send money! Politics is not a spectator sport! And working on campaigns is a wonderful and rewarding experience. I met and worked with many wonderful people. Just as I did in the '60s and '70s in the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago and Cairo, Il. And when I went to these places to work, I was welcomed into the homes and spare bedrooms of local supporters, and made new friends.
He claims a bond of such size is “unprecedented, and practically impossible for ANY Company, including one as successful as mine," and that "[t]he Bonding Companies have never heard of such a bond, of this size, before, nor do they have the ability to post such a bond, even if they wanted to.”
Warren Buffett is sitting on over $150 billion in cash. I wonder if Donnie grovel at his feet for the paltry $500 million.
And Warren is skilled at picking good investments. I think he'd pass. As have all the other people T**** has begged. Chubb will not see any of its millions again. And the rest know it.
The NY Insurance Department makes and enforces the rules for Bonds so there must be collateral otherwise they would have rejected the bond. They are a tight run department.
This is only briefly touched on at the top of today's letter, but I spent time typing this up, eager to hear thoughts, so...
My mind is still on focused on the undecided fate of the security bill, and the inter-party splits with regards to each component. President Biden seems to be correct in ascertaining that controversial is not mutually exclusive from broadly popular. Isn't that what democracy is supposed to result in? The procurement of policy that is broadly popular, regardless of vociferousness of the inevitable opposition, or whether that opposition resides primarily within cohorts you are ostensibly more aligned with?
I feel like I have developed a certain brand in my infrequent appearances here. It's a little sincere, a little spicy, and a whole lotta late night ramble. Somehow - to my surprise - I have found myself the last few months pushing back on the rhetoric of many of my fellow beloved online denizens, somehow attempting to be the voice of grim pragmatism with regards to the most incendiary conflict of recent times. It's been a bit dizzying, and I guess it's my own fault for getting myself into such a position by being such a stickler for consistency.
It occurs to me that if we are to criticize the Republicans for allowing their actions - with regards to Ukraine, China, immigration, or anything else - to be dictated by a faction of their party when popular opinion shows the will of the people prefers the opposite, then we should make sure that we are not being hypocritical in expecting Democratic leaders to follow a particular faction of their party over wider public opinion with regards to Israel (or anything else). Most of Joe Biden's staying power over his inarguably lengthy and resilient career has been a dogged determination to stick towards the reasonable center of public opinion regardless of whatever view is loudest at any given time. We seem to mostly be of the view on this forum that this careful moderation and deal-making with an emphasis on uniting differing factions toward common sense goals is a strength, yes? I think that as intelligent citizens and self-aware consumers of information related to current events, we should be honest with ourselves about how our opinions on a matter compare with that of the median voter. Having passionate or contrary opinions is obviously acceptable or even encouraged, but we cannot put ourselves in a winning position as a pro-democracy community if we refuse to acknowledge where the center currently lies. The median voter decides our direction as a nation, and we cannot keep the median voter close to us by denying or disregarding the legitimacy of their current views. We cannot start a productive conversation when we act like the other persons' starting place is unacceptable in its entirety.
With that in mind, Pew Research surveyed approximately 13,000 Americans a few weeks ago to provide a comprehensive view on their current attitudes toward the war. (Hear that, NYT? 13 THOUSAND. Not 800.) Their findings:
- Despite the wide news coverage and passionate responses among many, the median American does not seem to prioritize the conflict in terms of what they care about issue-wise. Approx. 25-30% of people have an unsure or non-response to almost every question asked, only half know there have been more Palestinian casualties, and less than a quarter have been following the news closely.
- Americans clearly view the Israeli campaign as having a valid justification (58%-15% in favor), and think the opposite of Hamas (22-49).
- Opinion is very split with regards to whether Israel's methods of fighting are acceptable or unacceptable, with neither view close to majority (34% acceptable, 38% not).
- The Israeli government is now viewed negatively by a bare majority (51%), but has only lost a sliver of support since 2022 (currently 41%, down from 47). This negativity pales in comparison to that directed towards the Palestinian Authority (23-68). Hamas is essentially universally condemned.
- American sympathies still lean towards the Israeli people in general, although most have some sympathy for the general population of Palestine as well; 57% of Americans share *some* sympathy for the common people in both groups. Israeli people are viewed overwhelmingly positively (64-27), while Palestinians are also viewed positively but more narrowly (50-41). 31% of Americans express they sympathize *more* with the Israelis, while only 16% say the reverse for the Palestinians.
- With regards to USA involvement, there is majority support for aid to Gazans (50-19), and for the USA to play some diplomatic role (55-27). Support for further military aid to Israel is decidedly mixed (36-34).
- Biden is getting a "wait and see" reaction from most of the public, despite the loud praise or anger from certain quarters. 40% of respondents are reserving judgement while another 20% find his leadership evenly balanced. Only a few percent more express the view he favors Israel too much versus those saying he favors Palestine too much.
- As has been widely noted, opinions diverge notably when comparing age demographics. Respondents under 30 sympathize more with the Palestinians, and a plurality find the Israeli campaign unacceptable. Yet non-responses are also highest among the young, and even among this group Israel has the advantage regarding whose reasons for fighting are more valid. Americans age 50 and over overwhelmingly sympathize with Israel, overwhelmingly find its reasons valid, and deem the campaign acceptable by a 20-point margin.
As an addition, I found immensely sobering this recent piece by David Brooks (I know, I too am surprised). Ignore the simplistic and provocative header, as has become unfortunately du jour at the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/24/opinion/gaza-israel-war.html
The seeming disconnect and hypocrisy is actually two parts of the same problem. We are more siloed than in previous generations because we are less informed about international issues.
Because the far right is willing to use fear and xenophobia, they make up or exaggerate facts. If they were more successful at that they would be winning more but the tactics would produce fewer principled approaches to solving problems. This is the slippery slope that the professor highlighted in this post by mentioning Liz Cheney and others.
The Pew poll is a snapshot. Luckily the Democratic leadership think deeply, often too deeply for the disengaged. Their positions are evolving in real time in a rapidly changing world. In economics, it is similar to leading indicators. The other side is using misinformation. The fact that both happen not to be in lock step with their base is good for disparate reasons.
If the readers here don’t want insight, they should just read polls and skip the analysis and historical context. I suspect that is not the case. If every country had their own Heather Cox Richardson, the world would be a better place!
Sorry, but the Pew Study I recapped is not just a "snapshot," like a random Presidential horse race poll 8 months out. It is massive, comprehensive, and supports what numerous other surveys have have already shown, asked many different ways over several months. The margins of opinion are not close here.
My main gist here is that we are making the argument on this forum that Republican leaders need to "do the right thing," buck the loud faction of their party that doesn't want Ukraine aid and put it to a vote anyway because that action would represent the views and desires of most Americans. We use this argument on everything from taxes to unions to the envirnment to gun control to civil rights, etc. The average voter supports Policy X, so that is what should happen, right?
The progressive side of our political spectrum is used to this argument working for them. But now quite a lot of people seem to have adopted the story that "Israel has been revealed to the world as the bloodthirsty colonial crimminal oppressor that it is, and the US must end its relationship and condemn them as the new Nazis or be complicit in the annihilation of the innocents!" and the median voter in this country is... not... seeing... that... at... all. The median voter still supports Israel, thinks it is totally right to fight back against terror, but *also* thinks what they are seeing is upsetting and would like there to be a pause to get aid and change strategy so it is a bit less ugly. **Using our same logic as before,** the Biden administration is doing their jobs by rejecting calls from their loudest progressive flank and occupying that middle ground: support to Israel, aid to Gaza, and pressure for a change in leadership in the region.
Similarly, the Republican party seems united in viewing the southern border as the invasion of the filthy criminals, while progressives are still viewing it as masses of helpless families coming to our arms for love. The median voter is in between: he/she sees immigrants as non-threatening in and of themselves, but the current number of undocumented as a security crisis. Again, the winning political position here is stronger organizational capacity and security forces at the border, but sans the cruel "deterrents" wanted by many Repubs and with expedited asylum and DACA protections.
We may have our personal feelings, but if we are making the argument that in a democracy leaders should respond to what the MAJORITY view is, rather than just the base of their party, then we need to either be consistent with it or undermine ourselves with a lethal dose of hypocrisy. I intend to avoid that.
Appreciate your words...words that reveal your sincere concern for our country.
Because of Netanyahu, our relationship with Israel must be different. Once more, I will say, he has told us who he is....he is demonstrating who he is and he is pushing to fulfill his goals. He is using those in the USA who without thought or reason support his slaughter of Palestinians....babies, children, the elderly, families.....who have done Israel no harm!!!! In my opinion...from observation and articles I have read, Netanyahu wants to take over Gaza...he has and is making that clear by his actions. If he happens to free a few hostages while he kills a few Hamas members, all the better.
I am a Christian but I will not worship at a place that preaches hatred against our fellow humans. I will also state that I will not support anyone anywhere who lies, muddles the truth...realities about persons or a group of people to sow prejudices, in order to gain power...to plant hatred. I am just one small person ....but I believe in the freedom of people to worship or not. Sincere worship is chosen. It should never be forced on anyone.
Innocent humans should have a safe place to live!!!!
Emily, your words are morally strong and clear. I agree with them.
I think part of the quandary here is thus: what happens when an essential allied nation is headed by a politician we find deeply antagonistic to our values? That is what is happening regarding Israel/Netanyahu. Professor Richardson has covered the unrepentant authoritarianism of Erdogan in Turkiye and especially Orban in Hungary. Those are both NATO allied countries that we are bound by treaty to support militarily in case of attack. Do we really think either of those leaders would take the US's advice or lead a response that we would find acceptable? (Spoiler: they would absolutely not.) Does that mean we renege on NATO in that case? The question is worth asking honestly because our strategic commitment to Israel is no less long-standing or essential to our security. Every President is oath-bound to uphold that. It is truly one of the most difficult situations imaginable.
Agreed. But the fact of the matter is that no matter what route you choose to pursue, someone will always be angry. That is why Repubs claim Obama and Biden are "dividers" people despite the fact that both bent/bend over backwards to be "unifiers." At the end of the day, they perused the popular policies they were elected on, and that made the Repubs with their unpopular stances feel rejected and angry. The best you can do in leadership if you are serious about unifying is make sure more people are satisfied than not, plain and simple. You need to determine what stances will make the median person say "well, that seems somewhat reasonable."
With regards to the Israel-Hamas war, if surveys are anywhere even close to accurate, the median person has some empathy for Palestinians yet most likely to still favors Israel more, thinks the initial Israeli response is justified but is very uneasy with the destruction and wants more humanitarian aid delivered. The White House matching that rhetoric is the best chance at a consensus response. That doesn't mean many people won't still have a problem.
I don't believe in Polls. They changed from a daily basis. You can't even trust the media. The only thing you can trust is, your judgment and independent writers like Heather and other journalists and independent newspapers.
To be blunt, Patricia, I would steer clear of this line of thinking. It sounds exactly similar to MAGA non-reasoning. The proper thing to do is not to turn away from mainstream journalism or media whenever an otherwise reliable source publishes something we find maddening. The proper thing to do is admit not everyone can be pleased with every bit of coverage and use our brains to separate the wheat from the chaff. I'm sure Professor Richardson would say the same. Notice that she diligently cites her sources, most of them from "the media." She is a commentator with a particular bent based on her historical education. She is not a journalist, and "independent" is more often likely to mean "unpublishable lunacy" as "unbiased truth."
Polls are not something you can believe or not believe in. They are what they are. Any given individual one is quite limited, but if a bunch of high quality ones tell you the same thing over and over, months or years on end, you are just covering your eyes to the truth.
Will, I do have thoughts. They are not as well reasoned or as articulate or informed as yours are. I do not believe that either Israel or Hamas is "right" and that both are far more "wrong" in their approaches than they are "right". I do not have any answers or any reasonably articulated beliefs to provide. The only thing I do believe that I know is that there are no winners in this matter.
Oh Ally, I think you are one of the most reasonable people here. Am I articulate or am I just long-winded?
The IDF is definitely a bad actor, frankly there are only very bad actors here, just differing degrees. Some of the survey numbers I shared are validating to me and some are disappointing to me, but I wanted to avoid adding personal comments to them. I think awareness of where our personal feelings stand in relation to the wider spectrum of opinion is important to understand how likely we are to convince our neighbors or what expectations are reasonable to place on our leaders.
Democrats have gotten stronger in recent years because they have been forced to learn how to do this better, while Republicans cultishness has become increasingly apparent. Anti-abortion advocates are the ultimate example: they think it is morally self-evident that abortion is "murder of the unborn." A supermajority of Americans disagree and think that it is a personal choice and basic healthcare, but the anti-choice crowd refuses engage with the fact their stance is unpopular or use any arguments other than passionate denunciations. Despite 50 years of court stacking and propaganda, now that the issue is a live rather than abstract one they are losing very badly.
For some opposing examples, the "defund the police" slogan in the wake of the 2020 protests/riots almost certainly cost Democrats many wins down ballot and made criminal justice reform *less* likely, even though few to no politicians actually endorsed it. Many more people in the center were willing to be open-minded about the issue after the scope of the problem was revealed to them for the first time in their sheltered lives. But upon trying to engage with the issue they were confronted by rhetoric that to them seemed self-evidently crazy and angry and regrouped to their old stance. In the absence of the vociferous sloganeering from the very online crowd, unwilling to register how alienating their posturing was and how much ammo it would give the typical fearmongers, public persuasion would have gone quite differently. I don't know about your experience, but as an LGBT person I see something similar all the time. The median American voter thinks that LGBT people are just fine and we shouldn't make people feel bad or ban books about them or refuse to serve them. However, they also think the idea that gender is a socially constructed spectrum completely irrespective of biology or that intersectional parity is required to abolish the patriarchy or whatever to be... well, absolutely batshit insane. Argue the former and you win, argue the latter and you lose.
I want to win. Human rights are on the line. That's all.
Edit: Crap, that was long again. Sorry, it's my day off lol.
Thanks for your reply, Will. In my experience recently, I notice that my MAGA friends accept me and my sexual orientation/gender presentation just fine (a vey truncated description would be butch lesbian) but when it comes to gender fluidity or transgender people, a wall goes up.
With respect to Gaza, there are no “right” “answers”, I am afraid.
I am glad to hear that we have gotten to the point where basic acceptance is more widespread. People my age owe your generation an incredible debt of gratitude for being the ones to normalize what should have been normal all along by just being brave enough to be yourselves. Thank you.
I don't know the friends or how long they have known you, but I wonder how much having a friend who lives outside typical gender roles played a part. Some people seem to need that first-hand experience to develop comfort with a concept. The more society makes it okay for individuals to be fluid/non-conforming (including trans) if they choose the better imo, but that will be a challenge to people who need to know what group to put someone in in order to feel comfortable. When I get a particularly "concerned person," often I will just get blunt and say "No one is going to make a law making you be friends with someone you think is a weirdo. But it's un-American to make a law saying they can't be a weirdo if they want. If you're nice you get to live your life however, right?" It's not PC but it seems to work. Go figure.
I know from several of them that knowing out gay people did make a difference. I have had several friends whose kids were trans talk with me at length about various components of gender and gender fluidity, even as they recognized that being gay and being trans were two completely different experiences.
When I was in my 20's, the thought of being able to marry never entered my mind. When I was in my 30's, I had a co-worker who was stunned that my wife was not on my medical insurance. A couple years later, there was another who commented (as we both sat at computers writing our respective reports) regarding Oregon's constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between one man and one woman (still on the books I might add) "Let's see. I've been married and divorced three times. You two have been together for 20+ years. Which of us is the threat to marriage?"
Being visible has made a difference. I like your statement at the end. I've always used the criminalization left-handed people as my comparison.
Ally, I have been looking for a place to join the conversation this evening. I always feel comfortable exchanging ideas with you. The dialogue today has been extraordinarily thought-provoking. I was reminded that I think religion, in all of its many variations, is at the heart of much, if not most, of our problems.
I am not religious, at least not conventionally. I earned a BA in philosophy. I view Jesus as a wise man, a philosopher, a progressive politician, a minister, a therapist, a healer. Jesus was Jewish. He was speaking, preaching, to his fellow Jews. His message was, in a word, love. Love our enemies. Love our neighbors. And in the parable of the good Samaritan, go out of your way to render aid to a fellow human. Whether or not we believe in his divinity is irrelevant to the importance, and gravity, of his message about how we should act toward our fellow humans. Stop fighting with each other!
For anyone who thinks I am naive, I would simply say that I spent a year of my life with the First Cav in Vietnam. During that time I decided I would become a pacifist if I lived long enough. I have largely succeeded in that endeavor. I've been a dedicated vegetarian since 1975. I think that many of us are being advocates for the vast majority of people who wish - desperately - to live peaceful lives.
One of our kids earned a BA in Comparative World Religions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. My wife is a reformed evangelical Christian. My training was in philosophy. Our consensus is that every major world religion is an attempt to understand the divine aspect of the universe through the lens of local culture.
My opinion is that the "Divine Eternal Being" did not create the universe -- it became the universe. That approach brings divinity much closer to home. It's out there, but it also inheres in here. I developed my own ideas, but when I read philosophy in school I found much agreement reading Spinoza.
Will, first, thank you for the links. In my opinion, Hamas made the political mistake of “saying the quiet part out loud”—that they want complete annihilation of all Jews. I abhor both the indiscriminate bombing/attacking of Israeli forces as well as the illegal expansion in the West Bank and realize that Bibi (and cohorts) do not desire a two-state solution. I’m glad that I don’t have Blinken’s job of dealing with two bad actors.
That said, I think that we need to limit our help for Israel to only defensive weapons. We’ve done that for allies before.
I'm with you, Mary. I saw Blinken's picture the other day at thought, "this looks like the most stressed and tired man in the whole world." It is quite plausible he really is.
I wish the question about offensive versus strictly defensive provisions would have been asked. I imagine the latter would be far more popular.
Will, if you get a chance, YouTube Blinken playing Muddy Waters. A bass guitarist that I asked said that he’s pretty good. Heard that he speaks French like a native; don’t know how many other languages he speaks.
Over the past few months, I have found myself agreeing with the primary point made by David Brooks. Hamas must be destroyed as an effective military and political force in Gaza. He has outlined the difficulty in doing so, and for the most part I agree with him. What he doesn't include in the list of possible end-game options is a more robust effort by neighboring states to aid in the construction and resettlement of the civilian Gaza population in safe areas inside Gaza, or outside the borders of Gaza (Egypt especially). Behind the headlines, those regimes wanting to see a reduction in Iran's influence in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen are not able to speak out publicly, but none of them will shed any tears if Hamas is defeated or do anything that might help Hamas and Iran.
I recently read a book on Palestinian history going back 100 years. I was surprised to learn other Arab countries did NOT want homeless Palestinians in their countries despite their public “outrage” over their plight.
Will, it appears to me that an American Pox has been placed upon the process of negotiation and compromise, such that it has been mislabeled as a weakness in spirit and id
Hardline positions from far right and left gather attention and that any deviation from the “acid tests” signals ostracization from the small group. Fear of “not belonging” abounds
In reality, we require several qualities from these extremes, that their voices are heard and considered by the more moderate in order to form a more complete overall picture and secondly, that these groups recognize that compromise can bring some of their concerns into the final negotiated result
The real heroes are those individuals skilled in bringing consensus to the table of varied concerns, teaching the extremists that “purity” equals “no progress” in a divided population
There is no shame in compromise, quite the opposite, there is strength in coalition, but this requires an amount of humility and empathy
Those leaders capable of all three are to be valued and revered
In A good negotiation, neither side gets everything want, but gets something of what they need while giving the other side something they need. If one side walks away without that, the negotiation has failed
It all goes back to 2016. What are Party Elders for? The G.O.P. knew the score on Trump. The Elders of my erstwhile Party should have intervened and declared Trump unfit; that the convention would nominate another candidate with a similar set of proposals for a platform. In June or, perhaps, early July Trump drumpfed the Republicans by saying something like his being unable to guarantee no violence were he deprived of the nomination.
The G.O.P. Elders -- people like Presidents Bush; Governors Kasich and Bush; Senators Collins and Murkowski; et many al. -- fell for it and acquiesced. I suspect that the G.O.P. hoped Trump would be whacked in polls to accelerate the convulsion required to rid the Party of the racist / nativist ways brought in by the Tea Party in 2010. Now Trump has control of a Party with no value proposition for the average voter.
The mission? Convince the wavering conservatives that they have a better deal under President Biden, 'woke' policies and all, than under Trump with violent Xian Nationalists spoiling for civil war. Per President Grant, a Republican, “If we are to have another contest in the near future of our national existence, I predict that the dividing line will not be Mason and Dixon's but between patriotism and intelligence on the one side, and superstition, ambition and ignorance on the other.”
Wren suggested that Pence’s public split from Trump is “the latest sign that Trumpism is now permanently and irrevocably divorced from its initial marriage of convenience with…Reaganism.”
Though I don't think the split is as dramatic as it nay appear. Trump is the crude Mafioso, while other Party of Plutocracy "Republicans" have much milder manners but a similar agenda of domination and exploitation, genteel but heavy handed aristocrats. They don't use catsup, let alone fling it at the walls. Reagan may have entertained a bit more noblesse oblige, but still torpedoed "government of the people, by the people, for the people", promoting plutocracy in it's stead. Mobster-like Trump is just a variation of that. Just maximizing profit by any means necessary.
Reagan destroy this country by given the power to the rich corporation's and billionaires and millionaires. That isn't a government for the people by the people. It's a government for the 1% and not your Middle-class who are the foundation of this country. I disagree with your opinion on Trump compared to Reagan. To rule this country under an dictatorship is no comparison.
I am not saying that they are equivalent, but I think that the both demeaned and sabotaged the vision of government of ,by, and for the people and championed a neo-feudal vision of rule by the richest. The rich became richer, companies became more monopolistic , and worker's and voting rights constantly diluted. The middle class has shrunk and the promised benefits for the public are still a long ways off, a faded rose from days gone by. The preponderance of media more than once referred to Reagan as "a nice guy". He was not. He started us descending on a path on which a election of Trump became possible. As the downward momentum grew, the niceties were jettisoned.
We could incorporate into the Constitution President Lincoln's phrase from his Gettysburg Address, which states explicitly that we intended from the inception of our Republic that we would be a self-governing nation, "of the people, by the people, and for the people".
How can the dimwits in charge of NBC be so epically stupid??? They clearly learned nothing from CNN’s similar embarrassment, and felt the need to prove that they can be even more moronic. Sad.
Hopefully someone there will show some sense and not only reverse this idiotic deal, but fire the morons that approved it.
But Joe and Nicole weren't criminals. Ronna is. And should be held criminally liable for her part in January 6. She should be under indictment, not being given money by NBC. The network executives are no better than those wielding flagpoles to beat police at the Capitol.
I'm trying to remember the woman MSNBC hired after Nicolle who crashed and burned. I think she was in a midst of a sexual harassment suit on Fox at the time. I expect the same will happen with Ronna dearest.
It's rewarding criminal behavior which is truly despicable. The moronic "brain trust" at NBC must be clueless cowards that are desperate to suck-up to the MAGA fanatics and are dumb enough to think they would watch NBC just to hear this criminal scum bloviate.
Didn't she also go along with the Cheetolini line that the press is the "enemy"??
Some over-paid executives at NBC need to be fired publicly . . .
George, it must be about the money. If they think people will tune in to listen to her then that's more money in their pocket. But, if more people tune out because of this hire, than tune in, then they lose.
I still think pat of their motivation is they were afraid Fox or Newsmax would pick her up so it was partly a defensive move.
I have lived in 10 different states during my 69 trips around the sun. Oddly enough I have lived in the same neighborhood with Tom Osborne (R-NE), Tom Harkin(D-IA) and Governor Jim Edgar (R-IL). Not only were they good neighbors, but they were also all men of integrity, plus they looked out for the best interests of their constituents. Most of the other Republican and Democrat Senators, Congressmen and Governors have been people of integrity and interested in watching out for the best interests of their constituents.
But the requirement now of almost all Republicans to get elected and re-elected is to worship Trump and hate everyone that isn't a Republican or ever says a bad thing about Trump. This is Fascism pure and simple.I haven't voted for a single Republican, nor will I, since 2010. They are cowards and liars.
What makes you think they are going to pay her and then keep her under some kind of control? They are looking to exploit her for what is unique in her. Her insider knowledge ? What could we need to know except in court?
The leaders of NBC decided McDaniel would add to their un-credibility and provide an opportunity to maybe muscle in on the Fox News audience. Propaganda journalism might be good for the bottom line.
Ralph, the heads of NBC could follow the National Enquirer’s lead on Ronna—Capture and Kill. Apologize to their audience (Lester and Savannah could do this “I was stunned when the brass hired a person who attacked this network and the brave journalists who work here”) and then don’t allow her on air except as a commentator at the Republican convention. That keeps her from spreading more lies.
But the heads of NBC news already hired her! And to respond to an earlier post, of course they are paying her money! She’s already disavowing her beliefs. What kind of person is that??
Annie, yes they hired her. But they can keep her off the air so that she doesn’t spread her beliefs to a vulnerable audience. It’s called “catch and kill”.
I don't think they will actually do that. I believe they are looking for a larger piece of the audience pie, just as CNN did last year. And the controversey will have the NBC news execs rubbing their hands in glee. The catch and kill philosophy generally applies to stories, not people. I will still watch MSNBC although they drive me crazy sometimes with their hyperbole!
Very interesting newsletter. I hope the 1890s shift to honest, in-depth reporting predicts the future. At least two other variables are at play, this time: 1) The internet; 2) “Active measures” propaganda by foreign powers whose first goal is to distract and destabilize the U.S. and the West.
Will they shift, and what will drive them to shift?
Well, I laughed at my cat when he jumped up on the air purifier to get pets, hit the "on" switch, and jumped sideways when he got a blast of air under his tail...
I think the only way I made it through having 3 teenagers was having cats. There was many a time that my thoughts and opinions were apparently so stupid that the only subject we could talk about was our cats.
Every parent should have a cat or dog to help survive the teen years.
For me NBC’s hiring of Ronna McDaniel as a ‘political analyst’ is the nadir of CBS/NBC/ABC ‘news.’
I recall when TV news was CBS, NBC, and ABC [there was no ‘cable news’—and, until, 1946-1947, no television.]
My family would be glued to Edward R. Murrow’s THIS IS LONDON broadcasts on Sundays during WW II. Later, my dad, who met Murrow during the war, had his advertising client—Campbell Soup—sponsor Murrow on a nightly news program.
Murrow was insistent that news should not be interrupted by commercials. A brief Campbell’s ad started and ended his broadcasts, with no mid-broadcast interruptions. I was privileged to know Murrow, his wife Janet, and his son Casey.
Murrow was THE most respected news commentator of his time. His programs on McCarthyism helped break the back of this calumny. His spoke out forthrightly on a diversity of issues, especially in his pioneer SEE IT NOW series.
He was also a co-founder of THIS I BELIEVE, an exceptional program that reached 39 million CBS listeners weekly and was a best selling book.
Murrow, who became director of the United States Information Agency, died in 1963. By then Walter Cronkite was the ‘news voice’ of CBS. It was thought that, after the Tet offensive in Vietnam in January 1968, Cronkite’s assessment that the US wasn’t winning had a significant impact on the American public and President Johnson.
There have been a number of distinguished news casters on CBS, NBC, and ABC over the years. Personally, I am not aware of any in recent years.
McDaniel, who had been chairperson of the Republican National Committee since 2017 until recently kicked out by Trump, was a loyal MAGA supporter. She bought into Trump’s BIG LIE about the 2020 presidential election and was not distressed by January 6th.
Apparently NBC executives thought that by hiring her they might attract some Fox News viewers.
AWWWK! They have further sullied NBC’s integrity. Chuck Todd and others have protested. Earlier on Fox News several commentators have protested the MAGA posture of some Fox front liners.
More of this is essential, if the major news channels seek to be respected for what they spew forth.
Mary I last spoke with Ed Murrow in October 1960. He was the keynote speaker at an Eisenhower Fellows meeting with President Eisenhower.
Murrow gave a marvelous overview of the world situation. I had just published a book on Nasser’s Egypt and asked him why he didn’t express his views in a book. He replied: ‘I have been trained to write in 5-to-10 minute increments. I am unable to write a book.’
True, but his compelling THIS IS LONDON broadcasts were published in a book.
I can barely watch MSNBC now, WTH. With Ronna the traitor on board, maybe it will become Fox lite. Just what the country needs. God, I hope she self-immolates on her first “take one for the team” utterance. But I won’t be watching.
As to a change of mood, if Harlan Crow is behind it, count me more than skeptical. Isn’t he the Texas arse with the world’s largest collection of Nazi memorabilia? And behind the buying of Clarence and Ginni. Project 2025 anyone???
Yes, but can you see Rachel or Lawrence or Lester Holt or Savannah Guthrie or any of the others listening to her? Besides, she can’t be sprouting her lies in a welcoming venue because of her contract. Might be a good thing.
Jeri, please watch (and share) Rachel Maddow’s show from last night in which she points out that there have been wannabe dictators in the US before. The big difference is that they were on the fringes instead of being supported by members of a major political party.
I saw it, I knew it. I have no illusions about the fact that repubs have signed on to treachery and treason. Wish the rest of MSM would share it, especially in Texas. I got banned from Twitter and FB. My small circle these days know the score, but I hope to volunteer in some way before long.
Bless you, Heather. (And I am not at all religious, in any sense.)
The work you are doing, to convey truth to Americans in these perilous times, is nearly without parallel.
You are certainly a heck of a lot braver, and more persuasive, than most of our elected "representatives.".
If the USA survives this Trump madness, someday, there should be statues and streets with your name.
But, first, collectively, let's win the present war, a 2nd Civil War, against ignorance, hate, and tribalism.
The knowledge of American history, its advances and setbacks, that you are providing us, is like providing 155mm to the Ukraine.
Essential ammunition for sincere Americans, to save our country.
I write this as an expat-American, living in NZ for over 30 years. So, temporarily, I am safe from the potential Trump 2.0 fascism.
Only temporarily...WWII should have taught us that such movements have to be stopped at their commencement, otherwise their jackboots arrive everywhere..
Thank you again, and I look forward to renewing my subscription to your lifeline of information, to save our country..
Funny, ¿isn't it? 🤨 Trump screeches that re-electing President Biden will make America a 'banana republic'. 🍌 Self-evident political flatulence. 🤭 ¿Why? 🤔 Because President Biden and the rest of us know that re-electing Trump will make America a republic gone bananas! 😃
Re-electing Trump would end our republic and we would never have free and fair elections again in his lifetime. Trump is dangerous because his financial problems make him a national security risk. No one will give him a bond in the New York tax case because his properties are mortgaged several times, and the lenders would have priority over a bond holder. The bond holder would never see a return and would lose out.
Where to start? I have quit watching CNN in the morning because Poppy Harlow is no longer on. I can't stand to even hear Joe's voice (of Morning Joe on MSNBC). He certainly thinks much too highly of himself. He never shuts up. And now NBC has further tarnished their image. I guess I can watch cartoons on PBS. At least Big Bird is a 'real' cartoon character. We don't need to Bring in the Clowns - our major broadcasting stations has done that for us. Thank you Chuck Todd. And thank you Heather. Living now, as I do, in New Mexico, I do hope you were awed, as I am, by the Southwest. We just need to hold onto our wild country. And you are one of our best bets in helping in that effort.
I see suggestions to "Speak up. Speak out. Vote. Pray." That is not nearly not enough. Volunteer to work in swing states and for contested Senate and House races. Most of us live close enough to one or more of these races to make a difference! WORKING is a force multiplier. Your one vote could be multiplied by 100 that you get to the poles! I And working on campaigns is a wonderful and rewarding experience. I met and worked with many wonderful people. Just as I did in the '60s and '70s in the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago and Cairo, Il. And when I went to these places to work, I was welcomed into the homes and spare bedrooms of local supporters, and made new friends. I've done it twice for Obama and for Hillary; now I'm too old, and we send money. If for some reason you can't work, send money! Politics is not a spectator sport!
You can also write postcards and letters, as many of us here do. It's done on your own dime, but it you have time but lack funds, you can request the supplies and postage.
Again, clearing my head of reactions and distress to historically based relief that we may have been here before, and we will move forward into potentially creative new ground for waking up to the responsibility for our DEMOCRACY. WE Are willing and able to do the WORK of learning how to THINK and SPEAK UP for our AMERICAN way of LIFE. Truth can Win Out.
Thank you Heather.
The former Fourth Estate now prefers the controversy and circus atmosphere of the Jerry Springer show instead of providing a vital service to defend and strengthen democracy. It is all about revenue, profit, and return on investment. They should all be paying rent for use of public airwaves -and the rent collected should be directed at actually fulfilling a public purpose.
Ronna would make a terrific guest on Springer or other chair throwing table flipping venues.
Let us put aside the fact that Ronna is a toady for treason. She's just bad at politics. Epically, historically, incontrovertibly bad. She led a party with a ton of advantages into a years-long losing streak on every level, left it with dwindling finances, shambolic organization, and no policy platform at all.
Why would you want someone so bad at something to help analyze that thing on your channel? This would be like HGTV hiring Gallagher. This would be like Reading Rainbow being hosted by the dog from the Begging Strips commercial.
This would be like getting someone who's been bankrupt half a dozen times to host a reality show on creating wealth. Oh, wait...
But it's all about those differing perspectives, amirite? Can't have the liars and failures feeling unrepresented! Why leave those potential viewers on the table? Hey, you know what we should do? Let's give the Chinese Communist Party the Sunday Morning Show! There are LOADS of untapped viewers who live over there! While we're at it, anybody got a couple of those new African military juntas on speed dial? Maybe they have something to say, too... and a captive audience back home! Broadcast TV is bringing the world together again, baby!
Long story short, these people have greenbacks where their grey matter should be.
Very well put 🙌. I for one will not be watching NBC until Ronald McDonald I mean McDaniel is gone.
I will not watch it either.Hiring someone like McDaniel cheapens the work of a whole group of journalists some of whom should be very concerned with this action(Rachel Maddow, Lawrence O’Donnell, Chris Hayes to name a few).Shame on MSNBC. That they would even consider bringing some like her on-board is troubling.
I did watch Morning Joe for a few minutes today... they were against the hiring, but said none of the on-air network staff were asked for their opinion beforehand. So this is all on the money-grubbing front office. And they only listen if their numbers are falling. We're each only one, but there are many of us.
Thanks for this information.I cancelled my NYT subscription because of the constant Biden bashing and both-sidesism of their reporting and I can quit watching MSNBC/NBC too.It pisses me off and also disappoints me that the owners of this channel care so little for the many people who support this network by watching their shows.I also wonder if this channel is trying to attract MAGATs with this hiring?
Why in the world would they want someone who will lie? I guess tfffg told fox not to hire her. I also dropped my NYT subscription and told them why. All the news fit to print. NO. the newspaper of record. NO. These magnut people need to be punished not rewarded. What they did was TREASON.
I also ended my subscription to NYT. I quit watching MSNBC pundits because, as Teri Kanefield explains , they (among others) perpetuate the misinformation - outrage cycle. She analyzes that in a quite educated and detailed way. And I feel so much better for it. I now only get news from PBS and NPR, some explanation and analysis from a few Substack writers. And of course, terikanefield.com.
I get my news from 1440 and HCR. I’m quite well informed.
I've had my own "path of cancellation," first with the Times, then the Washington Post, and finally, The Guardian. I guess there are just no national (or international!) news sources that can't both-sides everything. I'm done with it.
As for NBC/MSNBC, I'd sort of given up on that kind of thing years ago. I mean, I like Rachel Maddow but after all that's gone on, I just don't need to see that horse beaten to death anymore. I'll just take these letters every day and maybe sprinkle in some of the music/media/cultural criticism from Ted Gioia. That's enough.
Wasn't the trump townhall scheduled because of bad ratings? It was free publicity for the rude candidate and gave him another opportunity to display his usual disrespect for women.
I saw Hannity on MSNBC advertising Prepper supplies 2 evenings ago!!! 3/23 or 24 PM
Many people have emailed Blumenstein and Budoff to express their anger at hiring Ronna McDaniel. I am one. Hopefully, enough people express their outrage and McDaniel is fired. How could you know she was telling the truth? You couldn't.
Me too. Here are the addresses:
President, NBC: Rebecca.Blumenstein@nbcuni.com
NBC SVP of Politics: carrie.budoff@nbcuni.com
And everyone counts. And can be counted if we vote.
https://yadontknow.blogspot.com/2021/01/by-people.html
Excellent points Tim. This is why people need to vote in primaries and media must report the turnout. Bring on the flood!!“Elections are more than a toggle switch for one candidate or the other. If Trump had lost by just a few votes, I suspect his efforts before and after the election to overturn the vote would have been far more effective. As it was, a flood of 7,000,000 votes separated him from the winner. In each of the battleground states, his loss or win was decisive. This matters. Your vote and mine counted. Every vote added to the decision. The lies about the election would have been a little more effective for each missing vote.”
You’re right and that’s key but with all the corporate news bias, nasty availability to spread bias and the knowledge that major big money is and will continue to support the radical, vicious right it can be hard to keep this momentum up. Fortunately here on substack there are voices of encouragement like Simon Rosenberg, posters who remind us we can do this, historians like Heather Cox Richardson and Steve Schmidt who remind us of the price our ancestors paid for our democracy and finally Jeff Tiedrich who makes me laugh, an outrageous much needed laugh.
Very well written and important message, I'm going to use in the future if I may (of course giving you credit).
I have now gained back hours of time each week thanks to the greedy corporate overlords of NBC/MSNBC and their decision to give air time to a fascist and a traitor.
I’ll miss Rachel, Lawrence, and Stephanie. I will not watch this network, nor will I click on the network’s news stories. I’m thankful for the abundance of quality writing based on facts, and the honest perspectives that we have here on substack.
You save a lot of money by not having a cable bill. I quit mine years ago. Haven't missed it at all. I have my trusted news sites (Heather and Meidas Touch on YouTube, mostly). The provide their trusted sites.
MSNBC fired McDaniel almost immediately and both Rachel and Lawrence laid out in clear terms why so many at MSNBC revolted against bringing her on board. Broadcast channel NBC has yet to take that step.
I canceled my Peacock subscription.
Exactly. I did watch MSNBC tonight to see if they would take on the issue. They did not and I get it’s their job but it’s also their credibility on the line. Done with them as well.
What did you watch on MSNBC. Both Maddow and O'Donnell spoke at length last night about the pushback against hiring McDaniel for MSNBC, resulting in McDaniel no longer to be associated with MSNBC.
NBC, however, is a different kettle of fish, they haven't yet 'fired' her but I'm sure they're being inundated with email complaints.
I'm running short on 'gift' links so here are a couple of headlines/subheadlines from the NY Times:
March 24 "Business
Chuck Todd and ‘Morning Joe’ Hosts Object to NBC’s Hiring of Former R.N.C. Chair
The extraordinary comments on “Meet the Press” revealed tensions in NBC’s news divisions over Ronna McDaniel, who recently stepped down as head of the Republican National Committee."
March 25 "NBC News Faces Rebellion Over Hiring of Former Republican Party Chair
In extraordinary on-air remarks, Mika Brzezinski, Joe Scarborough and Nicolle Wallace questioned their own network’s decision to hire Ronna McDaniel as a political analyst."
There are similar articles in the Washington Post.
"So this is all on the money-grubbing front office."
Ah, the famous line from Sherlock Homes last investigation: "The Strange Case of Disappearing Decency". ; )
I hope you watched Rachel Maddow and Lawrence O'Donnell last night. They made clear that Ronna McD will not be involved with MSNBC as the result of objections made by them and many other MSNBC personnel. The issue remains (since I've not heard otherwise) that Ronna McD is still contracted with the broadcast channel NBC. At least at MSNBC, pushback worked. Hopefully, the same will soon be true at NBC.
Caught them both... and was pleased by their commentary. Hoping NBC gets its executive head out in the sunshine.
I will be watching both Maddow's show as well as O'Donnell's tonight to see what, if anything, they say about McDaniels' hiring. If they speak against it, or defend it in convincible ways, then I'll continue to watch it. Otherwise, probably not.
The reaction to MSNBC's apparent misstep here is similar to the comments I'm seeing on Threads about the NY Times and its "bothsidesism" editorials and especially headlines.
Just for the record, headlines are not written by reporters. They are written by the copy desk. And, unfortunately, these folks don't always read the whole story.
Yes, I do know that, but headlines are what catches the eye, and most readers also don't read the articles. Headlines, to me, are editorial content.
The articles themselves also show a lot of bothsidesism, but in their attempt to be fair, they often fail to show that there are not equivalent arguments on the left and right. Ex.: Biden's occasional vocal gaffes which they attribute to age, vs Trump's much more frequent memory lapses, mispronunciations, misstatements of facts etc. which are much more significant.
This is incredibly apparent at the NYTimes. You would think after endless criticisms and the need to redo headlines the NYTimes might have someone review them. But no. Instead they publish different headlines as clickbait depending on one's perceived political.
I will not be watching anything on NBC! I would suggest that we all do the same!
I think MSNBC has already said they won’t be a part of nbc’s ploy.
I also hope you’re right, but if the SNL writers are smart, they could get a strong point across in Saturday’s cold open. 🤞🤞
A Must Watch!
Definitely!
Hope you are right
That is correct. MSNBC on air and support personnel immediately pushed back and McDaniel will not be associated with MSNBC. NBC has not, so far, rescinded her contract as of this morning (3/26).
I hope they do rescind ! She should NOT be paid 300,000 as a pundit after all that she has done to hurt the country.
I don't watch NBC but find the hiring fascinating and now curious as to how it'll work. I would bristle every time Rick Santorum would come on, but it gave an opportunity for the left to bash the staunch conservative ideology he represented. And he was of the old guard. Will from Cal said, "Can't have the liars and failures feeling unrepresented!" Well guess what, the liars and failures are what now make up the majority of the GOP. If Ronna wants to come on and get bashed, let her. Jessica Tarlov does a fantastic job promulgating democratic policies on Fox. So you have the liar and conspiracy theorist representing MAGA/GOP on the liberal channel and a sane critical thinker on the conservative hoax Fox "news" channel. This is a snapshot of reality. Let's see how this goes....
Yes, I just cancelled my nightly NBC national news recordings. I'll be letting them know that I have been an NBC news follower for 60 years, but with this move on their part I'm gone! I'll still watch my local NBC station news, they are part of the Hearst Broadcast Group.
Money may talk but it doesn't talk to everybody & it certainly doesn't represent everybody!
I just did. Courtesy of Robert Hubbell Carrie.budoff@nbcuni.com and Rebecca.blumenstein@nbcuni.com
What we just sent:
Add our household and all the TV and Internet-streaming connections in our companies' and suppliers' networks to the millions who have chosen to leave NBC / MSNBC permanently for their decision to incorporate a person that supported the overthrow of our government into their midst as if it is just something "normal". It is NOT NORMAL.
You chose poorly and underestimated the power of individual Americans.
Adios NBC
Thanks for the e-mail links. I just forwarded my earlier e-mail to NBC News to them.
Thanks for the email links! I used them!!
Money doesn't talk it:
SCREAMS!!!!!!
Yeah it does. But after what happened in NY today lowering that bond I screamed too! I kept it down so my neighbors wouldn't be concerned. But I did scream. If the arthritis in my hands would diminish a bit I'd go to a gym & punch one of those punching bags but my hands are more important. I'll just keep screaming at my tv & scare my poor kitty 🐈!
Agreed and I actually sent an email to that effect.
Yes , I with you 100%
NBC News: The “He’s so old and he yelled at his staff a couple months ago” outfit.
Or, Will, they have deficit in greenbacks.
Putin, along with his sick oligarch co-conspirators, and even even-more-sick, long-skirted, heavily bejeweled, eastern Orthodox priests, turned the Russian working classes back generations. Lost their good health care system. Got epidemics of tuberculosis and alcoholism. Demeaned, cheapened their schools. Drew fights with terror groups. Threw away the lives of several hundred thousand young men in stupid, stupid aggressive war. Gave all Russian natural resources to his co-conspirator fellow thieves.
Dictators, demagogues always incur massive costs for their stupidity. Ditto for the fools you also mention, Will, and the recklessness by which they, too, grabbed power.
The U.S. billionaires and their Republican enablers are costing Americans their formerly good schools, their natural environment, just as they cost millions of Americans the jobs these rich and apes to the rich offshored. Cost the country its AR-15 mass murder epidemic. Cost it its millions of homeless. Its addictions to OxyContin, Fentanyl, and obesity due to bad, bad, intentionally bad food.
Yes, Will deficits, deficits, deficits.
Thank you, Phil, for this excellent post. What a great description of the Russian situation. Then in one paragraph, you explained our situation and what the Rs and their billionaires have wrought. Every time I see people wringing their hands about the economy, the gun deaths, the drug deaths, I think you are not holding the right people responsible. And the food. We were recently helping a friend celebrate her 80th. She wanted lobster, so we were at Bag O Crabs. We managed to eat without getting any seafood or anything deep fried. They had robots which brought the food and of course sang happy birthday. The food came out willy nilly. The place was packed and it was surreal watching people with bibs and plastic gloves slurp up crab legs and other things in these bags. Never again, not even for a friend.
Well said!
Morning all! Robert Hubbell provided the email addresses of two NBC execs today. You can tell them yourselves how impressed you are with their hiring decisions. I am.
I just did.
Me too!
Sending an email. right now also.
Can you share those addresses please?
Collection of NBC contacts to voice your concerns:
Rebecca.Blumenstein@nbcuni.com
carrie.budoff@nbcuni.com
NBCNewsMediaRelations@nbcuni.com
Rashida.Jones@msnbc.com
Comcast:
audit_committee_chair@comcast.com
Thank you!!!
Done all sent.
I did as well!
I just did as well!
I read my first LFAA 21May2022. Don’t own a TV and feel somewhat sane and informed.
you made me smile - almost laugh this morning. I'm not big on sarcasm - but you touched a nerve. All I can say is 'out damn spot' May she be gone!
Will, I was getting ready to write a Dave Fake News article about NBC backtracking a little without actually Firing Ronna altogether by the creation of a new cooking show featuring Ronna and Sean Spicer
“Ronna’s Kitchen”.
The first episode would include The Infamous SOTU “Kitchen Lady’s” No Bake Vanilla Wafers
Love this Dave. I need a good laugh this am.
I was also considering “Ronna’s Truth” but figured a documentary series based on Lizzy Bordan had a limited audience
LOL. That's too funny.
Featuring a segment called “What’s Behind The Stove?”
Classic!
Excellent posts, Will and George. Even Chuck Todd who is not my favorite spoke against this move. As for watching NBC, we will continue watching the local NBC news because the other options are so bad and hopefully we will not see her on the national news with Lester Holt who must be vomiting. One of our former local reporters also does segments on the national news as well. Otherwise, our TV is tuned to streaming series and now and then, sports.
Wow, Will, you captured it brilliantly. And you did it with skillful spelling out of actions - and not a snarky name-calling in sight. Thank you!
Does anyone know what Ronna's contract with NBC includes as far as severance is concerned?
Oh Will, you marry me?!?!🤗😂🤣
Great synopsis! Thank you and I am married and we both loved your writing!💕👏🏻🤗
😂 😂 🤣
Hey Will, you left me with nothing to add. It simply absurd. I would encourage readers to send their comments to msnbc , perhaps at msnbctvinfo@nbkieni,com.
Agreed, which is why I left 'broadcast tv' years ago. I saw where it was headed and wanted nothing to do with it. I've discovered trusted sources like Professor Richardson who knows where the truth can be found. When CBS hired Mick Mulvaney I stopped watching news online and as long as Ronna Daniel is at NBC I won't be watching them either and I've told them so. I also stopped subscribing to The New York Times, they have turned too far to the right like too many others.
Absolutely! McDaniel is an unacceptable fool. Why put her anywhere near a camera when you already have Michael Steele in your stable? He's witty, conservative, and really astute in his political analysis.
Will, your last line is perfection! Thank you.
Nebraska Senator Roman Hruska might argue that people who lie should be represented?
Reagan mentor Milton Friedman made a thing out of claiming that the only social responsibility of a company was maximizing profit. But isn't a shared, foundational sense of social responsibility the glue that binds society into an entity, E Pluribus Unum, and enables the maintenance of liberty? After 40 years of Reaganomics, are we better off?
Reagan and his advisers helped establish the fictional frame of "the lone hard-working American cowboy". I built this instead of the more accurate we built this. (Although the reality is we stole this, then built it). This selfish individualistic caricature of an America -is the "Me first" DNA of the Reagan conservative looking to destroy the sense of community (except perhaps of the gated, exclusive variety), our foundational institutions, and our vital systems of governance.
Some are better off. The remaining Koch brother, Steve Wynn, Harlan Crow, Elon Musk, Barre Seid, Larry Ellison, Robert Mercer, and others who have accumulated great wealth during and post-Reagan.
The rest of us? Not so much.
And they use it get more and piss on the rest of us. You left Rupert off, otherwise good start on the perps. Chump is such a loser he couldn’t even make money on a casino, but he did better as a carnival barker…
You know Jeri, "Piss on the rest of us" can be shortened to its MAGA/GOP preferred "trickle down." And yes, Rupert. Now I've thrown up a little.
Trickle down = piss on the rest of us.
More than a trickle these days, it seems
Yes - equating Trickle Down to Piss on the rest of us
Would make a great “meme” for anti-MAGA/GOP marketing
Men I know would finally understand the concept.
Jeri, thanks to you, I will forever think “piss on us” whenever I hear “trickle down”—thank you!
Sure fits, doesn’t it
Jeri, again, thank you!
Selling fear and hate - always an easy sale.
And from religion these days,
Churches have been selling fear and hate since at least St. Paul...
Spot on, Jeri. I've always made that connection in my mind about trickle down. (When asked his opinion about the trickle down theory, trompy replied "Depends.")
LOL!
Love it
George I remember the ‘American cowboy’ as the Marlboro Man—he regretted this role before he died of lung cancer.
Myths we live and die by.
POP = profits over people. Everywhere we see a problem greed is at the core. Trite is right; money is the root of all evil.
The love of money is the root of all evil is, I think the more complete original quote. When love of money supplants love of your neighbor, your enemy, your community, your world, bad stuff ensues.
George Polisner,
Well said..."Me first." .....was not the leadership skill I observed within my family.
Isnt wealth accumulation to property owners inherent to how capitalism works, and consciously aspired to?
Wealth accumulation through putting capital at risk, innovation, value creation -yes.
Wealth accumulation through privatization, externalities, wealth transfers, and eroding necessary safeguards against abuse -no.
The late Kevin Phillips wrote several books in the 1990s critical of the Bush era. One of the things Phillips criticized is that he rightly thought people were making money by financializatiom of the economy and not by innovation. Phillips saw financialization as an indication that a society was in decay.
Yes. It's what I think of as wealth transfers. For example, when Walmart historically paid poverty-level wages, Walmart workers had $6.2 billion in taxpayer funded assistance (food stamps, etc.), while Walmart paid $6.6 billion in dividends to investors (and about half of that went to Walton family trusts). So it was externalizing costs to all of us, thus, diminishing our quality of life, while concentrating money to the top.
I'm not anti-wealth -when it is creating societal value. When wealth is used to lobby for eviscerating estate taxes, corporate taxation, and ensures that a teacher or a nurse is paying more as a percentage of income than Elon Musk -to me it is mass fraud perpetrated by the wealthy through their GOP shills (like Reagan, Bush, Trump) stealing from all of us (and future generations).
Financialization is just another business - it just needed to be regulated. The financial disaster of 2008 would have been avoided had the players been regulated.
Are you talking about Mnuchin here. Isn’t he the master of the latter…
Milton Friedman. I get enjoyment moving his books (as well as books on Reagan) to the "True Crime" section of bookstores.
Jeri Mnuchin is vastly different than the Munchkins of Wizard of Oz. I yearn for the return of the Wizard—an affable, well-intentioned Frank Morgan.
… inherent to how "Unregulated" capitalism works…?
Econ 101: Capitalism can only survive if the wealth is redistributed. (evidence, trickle-down BS)
There's nothing wrong with acquiring wealth or property; there is something very wrong with doing so by exploitation and influence peddling.
If you read the Communist Manifesto, pretty much all of modern capitalism is exploitation, just almost sheer chance i'm reading it now - via reading on Oppenheimer Prometheus and Heather's How the South Won the Civil war, Titan - life of John Rockefeller. I see there was a healthy discussion on the matter. Much of that 1% wealth is tied up in capital investment, though the free cash flow by my meagre standards feels obscene. I'd suggest tapping much of that retained wealth through cash / holding taxes then cash on some not break the business basis. Corporate and other business is hugely subsidized by government one way or the other, as is the general population. This kind of taxation is the only way you'll significantly change the wealth distribution equation. Of course, "good luck with that'.
This is neither here nor there, but in fact there are 2 remaining Koch brothers -- you may be forgetting Bill Koch of sailing fame. His family's wealth supported his expensive hobby, but I don't believe he has or had any direct involvement with the running of Koch Industries. I'd like to think his politics are anathema to his brothers, but that's just me being hopeful rather than knowledgeable.
My partner and I started a consulting firm in 1990. We paid every employee more than they could have made in the insurance industry by 10-20% and provided a better benefit package than any insurance company. Our first five years in business we grew the company from the two of us to over 60 consultants. Our turnover rate for each of the first five years was ZERO. Our annual turnover rate was never over 5%. No one left. We sold the company after 10 years because my partner wanted to retire and I couldn't get the money (like Trump) to buy him out. When people left, they left usually it was because they went out on their own. We never tied them up with 401-k vesting or non-competes but we did tie them up with annual bonus's which always came a month after the busy season.
It's much easier to maximize profits when people don't leave for a better job in the middle of a project.
I’m old. I have watched it decimate our government, social structure and turn my mama’s religion of “love thy neighbor,” into prosperity gospel. The importation of Rupert kicked off the “rich buying the government they wanted” trend. As Jack Kemp said in WaPo article in Jan 1981, “Rupert Murdoch used the front page, the editorial page, and every other page necessary to get Ronald Reagan elected president.” Hats off to you Rupert, you epitome of evil.
Well said, Jeri.
Jack Kemp said it best.
Using the front page as the editorial page has a history, but I was told in school we had moved beyond that.
Rupert has never thought so, in my opinion. Sort of like NY Post
Unfortunately not, and the concentration of wealth and deterioration of the middle class has.enabled a demagogue and charlatan like Trump to get attention. Friedman didn live to se the worst results of his policies take hold.
I think a lot of right wing policy makers expect to bow out one way or the other before the excrement impacts the impeller.
Not disagreeing, but even as a kid in the 50s i remember partisanship was a hallmark of American journalism, a miasma of one side trying to outshrill the other. That was the onset of civil rights era, anti establishment movement, McCarthyism, anti Vietnam, assassinations, nothing calm about the Eve of Destruction.... recurrent race riots
Where your people saw "race riots" my people saw Revolution.
Fair enough, beauty being in the eye of the beholder. What was needed was political organization, a real economic and educational uplift, however managed - not burning down Watts, Detroit. In and of itself, it only led to more repression. Providing real answers in that history though is far beyond my competence.
Companies such as Patagonia with its founder Yves Chouinard and his family are turning profits into social and environmental/climate benefit instead of self-enrichment. There are many others that do as well.
NO! NO! NO!
Hiring McDaniel is like hiring the robber to be a cashier. She is a criminal and should be prosecuted not work for major media network. NBC's decision is one more example of people's ability to rationalize ANYTHING.
If Sarah Huckabee Sanders can be Governor of Arkansas I suppose we are fortunate Ronna isn’t running (yet).
Ugh. I can’t even listen to clips of her voice.
Ronna wouldn’t have a prayer of winning electoral office. Trump turned on her, and threw her under the bus.
I agree!!I see Chuck Todd is not happy with them hiring McDaniel!!Was a stupid thing to do!!
I felt compelled to register my own complaint about this horribly tone deaf hire…
Dear Ms. Blumenstein,
I must object to NBC decision to hire Ronna McDaniel for, ostensibly, her insight into contemporary conservative politics. I find that hard to believe given what a colossal failure she was. That would be like hiring the captain of the Titanic, had he survived, to enlighten your audience about why there weren’t enough lifeboats.
She caved to the MAGA wing of the former GOP party leaving it strapped for cash and credibility and without a platform. She falsely promoted Trump’s lies about election fraud and had the unmitigated gall to characterize the January 6th attack on the Capital as “…legitimate political discourse “ I wonder what her opinion is on the use of letter bombs to advance one’s political agenda?
Given the event was televised for all to see, even by NBC, and several unnecessary deaths and injuries resulted during the assault, should I assume that NBC agrees with Ronna that January 6th was “… legitimate political discourse “ ?
A disappointed and now former viewer,
Larry
We should all leave them a good-bye letter so get idea that this might not be a money making scheme!
Apparently the ceo from NBC must be a Trump supporter.
It is unfair and inaccurate to smear 'the Fourth Estate' in totality. Your assertion is easily disproved right here where HCR routinely cites the reporting and analyses of those working in the press. It is truly a frivolous and undeserved dismissal of those people who every day are reporting from conflict zones and war zones, challenging those in power despite a range of threats, and witnessing the most mundane to the most momentous of happenings to bring us news. They and their work deserve a more serious consideration. And where called for critique. And note that the most strong public denunciation of NBC hiring the ousted RNC head came from Chuck Todd - on NBC.
I respectfully disagree. We are a far cry from Bernstein and Woodward and Murrow. My criticism is not those few journalists who diligently continue to report and inform. It is the loss of distribution of the journalistic output, and the lack of investment in news, analysis, and reporting.
There is a good deal to learn about journalism, 'the Fourth Estate' in the US, even by those who, perhaps, think themselves better informed about the subject than they may be, and Woodward is still at it! That doesn't mean that we don't need more of it.
'Solutions Oriented'
'How foundation money is transforming local news'
'OCTOBER 16, 2023'
'By MEGAN GREENWELL'
'Until a few years ago, the Cleveland Foundation had never considered supporting local media. The organization—the oldest community foundation in the world, with $2.8 billion in assets—seeks to “enhance the lives of all residents of Greater Cleveland”; its grants tend to focus on job training, violence prevention, and education in majority-Black neighborhoods. The organization’s staff were well aware that the city’s flagship newspaper, the Plain Dealer, was being stripped for parts by Advance Local, its corporate owner, and that nothing was filling the vacuum. But their aim was to solve problems, not assign articles about them. Besides, even in a more robust age of local news, the neighborhoods targeted by community groups were rarely covered in the press—except, perhaps, in the case of a grisly crime.'
'So in 2020, when the Cleveland Foundation awarded money to an initiative called Cleveland Documenters, it wasn’t classified as a reporting project. Documenters, which started in Chicago and has since expanded into a network of eleven cities, mostly in the Midwest, pays small fees to about six hundred Clevelanders—not experienced reporters, just curious citizens from every zip code—to take notes at local government meetings and post them online. Dale Anglin, the Cleveland Foundation’s vice president for grantmaking and community impact, thought of Documenters primarily as a tool to improve low voting rates.' “We don’t even call it journalism here,” she told me. “We call it information.”
https://www.cjr.org/local_news/solutions-oriented-cleveland-documentars-community-foundation.php
Thank you Fern.
"those few journalists who diligently continue to report and inform."
Your assertion simply does not conform to the facts. Historical or current.
And while remarkable investigative reporters do momentous work. Our democracy also depends on the most local of reporters who attend and report on innumerable town council and school board meetings.
Most of the information you rely on for your opinions comes from the diligent work of those you so easily dismiss.
The decline of investment in local news, the closure of news bureau’s, and the loss of newspapers is pretty well-known.
https://citap.unc.edu/news/local-news-platforms-mis-disinformation/
I don't see how news of news bureau closures supports your dismissal of the press and hard working journalists.
Why not direct your ire to those who create the economic and political conditions which threaten the press.
They are inseparable. When I am critical of the healthcare industry, my frustration is not directed at nurses, doctors, and staff. It is the industry itself that prioritizes profit over patient outcomes. Similarly, when I speak of the erosion of the Fourth Estate in the United States it is not a criticism of actual journalists.
Lin, you’re right. That’s why I continue to support the local newspaper as their rates increase—they still have a few reporters that cover local and state politics.
George, I keep my NYT subscription and Washington Post subscription to support those diligent reporters. If they leave, all bets are off.
Admirable. I support The Guardian, Pro Publica, and of course HCR’s LFAA for similar reasons. I gave up on NYT around Judith Miller’s adventures with yellow cake.
'State of the News Media (Project)'
'Data and trends about key sectors in the U.S. news media industry'
'Since 2004, Pew Research Center has issued an annual report on key audience and economic indicators for a variety of sectors within the U.S. news media industry. These data speak to the shifting ways in which Americans seek out news and information, how news organizations get their revenue, and the resources available to American journalists as they seek to inform the public about important events of the day. The press is sometimes called the fourth branch of government, but in the U.S., it’s also very much a business – one whose ability to serve the public is dependent on its ability to attract eyeballs and dollars.'
'Over the years, the Center’s approach to these indicators has evolved along with the industry, carefully considering the metrics, sectors and format in which the data appear. Instead of a single summary report, our approach is to roll out a series of fact sheets showcasing the most important current and historical data points for each sector – in an easy-to-digest format – a few at a time. '
https://www.pewresearch.org/topic/news-habits-media/news-media-trends/state-of-the-news-media-project/
Thank you Fern -I have respect for Pew Research. Secondly -therein lies the problem:
The press is sometimes called the fourth branch of government, but in the U.S., it’s also very much a business – one whose ability to serve the public is dependent on its ability to attract eyeballs and dollars.'
George, good for you! I also support The Guardian, Pro Publica, HCR and Jay Kuo on Substack. I did support Steve Schmidt on Substack until he decided to take money for helping Dean in his presidential bid and I questioned both his intelligence and his independence (it appears that I was not alone).
I started my NYT subscription a couple of years ago, so missed Judith Miller and yellow cake (Duncan Hines or uranium?).
Her lack of specificity as to the type of cake was another boost in the race to invade the wrong country. In retrospect we know it was Duncan Hines. 🤓
Nevertheless, Lin, greed, the quarterly returns obsession and the profit motive conditioning ethics do make for very leaky buckets wherever the provision of essential services is concerned. And we all know who profits and who suffers from the leakages...
My best friend is an emergency room physician whose hospital has been taken over by a hedge fund. I admire her work all the more for her unwavering diligence and care for her patients under these conditions.
The same goes for journalists.
Lin, another nail in the coffin is the migration of a substantial number of seniors from regular Medicare to Medicare Advantage plans. There are hospitals closing because the low rates (subst lower than regular Medicare) don’t allow them to make ends meet. We need to pass a law that allows a one-time return from Medicare Advantage to Medicare with Medicare supplement coverage (Medigap) at the same Medigap monthly cost as a new enrollee. Too many people are falling for the Medicare Advantage promise only to experience long waits for “elective” surgeries and emergency room doctors/anesthesiologist bills that aren’t covered (even though the hospital is in-network). Then, when they try to go back, they find that the premiums for the Medigap premiums are triple or quadruple what they were just one year before and they’re stuck because they can’t afford the new premiums.
https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/half-rural-hospitals-red-pressured-high-medicare-advantage-enrollment
Those premiums rise as they require underwriting after the initial Medicare enrollment period. Medicare advantage policies need to be dissolved.
Gail, this was a sop to the insurance industry to get Medicare passed. A law allowing a one-time return to the original low Medigap rates would allow people to recover from their uninformed choice of Medicare Advantage.
Mary, EXACTLY. I went on Medicare two years ago, and after seeing the problems my elder sister's husband had with Medicare Advantage, there is NO WAY I'd choose it, and I strongly advise my peers that have been turning 65 to avoid it.
Thank you (all that have replied about this)! I am eligible to enroll in Medicare this coming July (gulp, only a little denial going on that I am this old, haha). Had no idea Medicare Advantage was problematic. Thank you so much for the head's up!
Here we come up against the hard, hard realities of American exceptionalism.
Cain's am-I-my-brother's-keeper approach to life: solving social problems by causing them.
Of course, the Swiss are just Commies.
Peter, I hate to hear that. I hope that it’s not a trend.
Re. Switzerland, where you can reset your watch at the moment when trains or trams stop and social services are superb, in some big cities life is becoming too dear for ordinary Swiss citizens.
Those living near borders cross them to go shopping.
Good investigative reporting comment.
Yes. Medicare 'Advantage' is predatory, wasteful, and as you describe, harms everyone and as well as the entire system.
Medical care is rapidly declining and hedge fund take overs of hospitals is likely just putting the final nail in the coffin.
And nursing homes. Heartbreaking to see community-built facilities being bought and robbed, both financially and philosophically. First, Do Harm.
OMG. That won’t go well.
Literally the same reaction as MLMinET.
Last night a long conversation with a dear friend whose lung problems have now turned to emphysema about how takeover by hedge funds has made so many health services, previously subsidized by the State in France, too dear for many sick people...
All those services essential to society, including health, education and information, where the profit motive is irrelevant or, at the very most, a secondary, subordinate consideration.
Yesterday on CSpan I heard a Republican (maybe Tom Cotten) denouncing the ACA with examples of constituents' narratives. Then he 'jumped the shark' complaining about his ACA coverage as a member of Congress. 'Deer in the headlights moment' when caught out his own lie. Of course he has platinum level coverage through ... the government Republicans so revile and obstruct.
That live-and-let-die attitude. Sabotage the system, then complain it doesn't work.
As a cop from their favorite Hungary put it, criminals are doing fine, and none better than The Big Criminal.
'Mike Johnson Claims Marjorie Taylor Greene Appears in Book of Revelation'
MAR 25
'WASHINGTON (The Borowitz Report)—Widening a rift among House Republicans, Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters on Sunday that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene “makes a prominent appearance” in the Bible’s most apocalyptic book.'
“I was in church this morning, just kind of flipping through the Bible,” 'Johnson said'. “And as I was reading the Book of Revelation, all of a sudden I was like,' ‘Holy cow, that’s Marge!’”
“I usually like to leave religion out of things, but since Marjorie is ushering in the End Times I felt I had to say something,” 'he said.'
'The Speaker was evasive when asked which character in the Book of Revelation mirrored the Georgia congresswoman, saying only,' “She’s not the seven-headed dragon. To my knowledge Marge has only one head.”
'He stressed that his decision to reveal Rep. Greene’s' “pivotal role” 'in the end of the world had '“absolutely nothing” 'to do with her motion to vacate the Speaker’s chair.' “As long as I am Speaker, the chair is already vacant,” he said. (Satire, borowitzreport@substack.com) Copy and paste address on Google.
Fern, that is rich!
Thanks, Fern!
I have watched MTG's antics in performative politics get worse and worse. I believe that she is running out of stunts to pull, and no matter how bad they are (like the Hunter Biden photos) since she gets away with it, she goes further.
I am dreading the day that I am certain will come: she either shows up at the Capitol totally nude, or displays such photos of herself.. She'd probably first attempt to borrow that Beetlejuice dress from Boebert, but since they are no longer buddies, that is unlikely to happen.
LORD HELP US.
I love it fern!!Thanks for sharing this!!!!😀
'The state of journalism in 6 acts. There’s reason to be upbeat'
'The head of Poynter’s Beat Academy sees its lessons reflected in great local news coverage'
'By: Jon Greenberg'
'September 29, 2023'
'If you want to read bad news about journalism, you can find it.'
'The United States is still losing local newspapers. Big outfits like CNN and NPR have cut news staff. The great Texas Tribune had its first ever layoffs. In 2022, the two largest Spanish-language television networks, Univision and Telemundo, saw their audiences drop.'
'But get up close and you start to understand why nearly 60% of journalists are optimistic about their profession. This predates the unveiling of Press Forward, a $500 million effort to bring relief to news deserts and fortify small newsrooms nationwide. The U.S. has an amazing number of good reporters producing stories that connect with people, who then actually read and share that work with friends.'
'From my perch at the Poynter Institute’s Beat Academy, I get to see who’s bringing it home for our team, and for the communities we serve. Beat Academy is Poynter’s new, ultraaffordable virtual training program, where we pick a slice of a big issue and give busy journalists the framework and reporting tools to localize the story for their market. We’ve tackled private equity, crime, climate change, immigration, and more. As project lead, I talk and email with editors and reporters across the country, from the smallest shops, like the tri-weekly Athens Messenger in Ohio, to regional powerhouses, like the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.'
'Six qualities of successful reporters stuck with me. My apologies in advance to the people and newsrooms I left off. '
'Let yourself be intrigued'
'Kenny Cooper'
“I’m a general assignment reporter who covers the suburbs of Philadelphia,” WHYY reporter Kenny Cooper said during one of our sessions on covering private equity. “Health care is not my specialty.”
'Nor was finance. Cooper had to get on that learning curve when a local hospital temporarily shut its emergency room in 2022 and employees told Cooper the managers were cutting back on other key services. The term “private equity” came up.'
“I was fascinated, because you hear these words, you know, private equity, we don’t necessarily always make the connection that this is something that has a real day-to-day impact on people,” Cooper said. “It can be a bit intimidating at first.”
'Cooper connected with ProPublica and the Private Equity Stakeholders Project. He fairly quickly linked what was taking place in suburban Philadelphia to a Los Angeles-based private equity firm that, along with other investors, had pulled $400 million out of a hospital chain. Cooper strapped in and wrote 25 stories about the local impacts.'
'Skip the rhetoric, get pragmatic '
'Makenzie Huber'
'The immigration debate is dominated by what’s happening at the border, but what happens far away in America’s heartland can be just as telling. Makenzie Huber with the South Dakota Searchlight looked at the intersection of immigration and the state’s booming dairy industry. Turns out, the downhome business of milking cows depends on having workers who want to run milking machines.'
'Huber’s piece Lack of action on immigration is ‘holding SD back,’ dairy farmers say lays out how farmers try to make their way through the maze of government rules to get the workers they need. By the way, Poynter offers — for free —an online course on the basics of immigration policy.'
'Be strategic and follow through '
'Adam Willis'
'Adam Willis with the Baltimore Banner will be the first to tell you that it takes some serious pitchwork to get an editor excited about ARPA, the America Rescue Plan Act.'
“These stories might not be obvious to other people, or even to your editors,” Willis said. “They might sort of say, ‘Well, there’s all this other stuff happening.’ ”
'But Willis saw ARPA as a kind of Rorschach Test of what Baltimore’s leaders valued, and whether the bureaucracy was capable of using the $361 million that fell into its lap. Tracking the dozens of streams of funding was a rare experiment to see if people in a city with deep problems could actually come out ahead.'
“That involves trying to get on the ground and figure out who’s benefiting from the money, and seeing if we are starting to see this money change people’s lives,” Willis said.
'He’s been tracking Baltimore’s ARPA saga as it unfolds, sometimes finding points of success, but also helping readers understand why the city has had to retrench on some of its big promises. '
Readers, there is more good news - really! See link below.
https://www.poynter.org/from-the-institute/2023/the-state-of-journalism-in-six-acts-theres-reason-to-be-upbeat/
Robert Hubbell posted in his letter today: "As of Sunday evening, Ronna McDaniel appears to remain at NBC as a “contributor.” Thanks to a reader (Susan O. S.) for identifying the executives at NBC who oversee the news function at the NBC network (not to be confused with the cable-based MSNBC). The email addresses are:
President, NBC: Rebecca.Blumenstein@nbcuni.com
SVP of Politics: carrie.budoff@nbcuni.com
I wrote to both execs expressing my outrage over NBC giving lying, election denying McDaniel a platform of ANY kind.
Very very true George!!Ronna would make a perfect guest on Springer!!!
I, for one, don’t mind having former RNC Chair McDaniel appearing on NBC. I can’t imagine that she will say/reveal anything that would change my mind about her, her tenure at the RNC, or her obvious backing of the former president. On the other hand, I thoroughly enjoyed the pushback administered to her by the Meet the Press panel, etc. Mother Ronna (her terminology, not mine) will spend her entire tenure at NBC attempting to erase her past. Good luck with that, I say.
Wa Po, 3/27 SUCCESS!!!!! "Amid a chorus of on-air protest from some of the network’s biggest stars, NBC announced Tuesday night that former Republican National Committee chair Ronna McDaniel will no longer be joining the network as a paid contributor."
Thanks to everyone here who emailed their outrage. So happy when protest makes a difference!!
Alexandra -indeed it is good news and all who expressed their outrage to NBC and the NBC News Division definitely earned the right to celebrate.
(Warning: There is a 'However' coming) ...
And remember it's NBC who gave us "The Apprentice". It's NBC who added Matt "No follow-up questions for my pal Trump" Lauer.
However, I won't be satisfied until all who continued to act either as co-conspirators or accessories after the fact in the attempt to disenfranchise millions of voters in the attempt to subvert a free and fair election. McDaniel should be under an investigatory microscope along with everyone else who willfully participated. She should be barred from ever holding public office -along with the rest -before she's being inaugurated as the next Governor of Wherever, United States.
I think the example of CNN should be proof. When Trump left office, finally, in Jan of 20, they had to find something else to talk about besides how awful Trump is, they lost money, their CEO and on-air personalities
LIVE, from the Colosseum in Rome, Italy....
From glad-handing to gladiator, this lady must be versatile. 😉
One network, one bad decision. Let’s see how this works out.
Thank you and welcome back Heather.
“MAGA Republicans appear to be in trouble.”
Be still my beating heart.
Need a Lol on this.
You have remarkable stamina, Paul, if you are able to watch Ronna and can dismiss her lying. NBC has insulted its viewers with this pretense at fair minded coverage. We may not always agree with the opinions of its reporters, but we have thought that those opinions were honest. To flaunt an obvious deceiver is demeaning to people who seek some truth .
Jean, you missed my point. I do NOT DISMISS her lying. I 1.) look forward to multiple Chuck Todd-like comments that mercilessly tear down her lies, etc. and 2.) look forward to watching/listening to Ronna try to worm out of her lies.
Putting her on this stage places her into a very difficult venue with tons of well-informed counter-voices.
Sorry, if it seemed I misread your comment. I was serious about the stamina bit. I’m not going to watch her squirm, though I think she deserves it. I just fear that my participation in that game would look like approval of the programming. Don’t mean to sound like a goody two shoes, but I am going to do whatever I can to avoid anything that might look like theater of the absurd, and try to push for integrity.
She might prove a very interesting commentator, generally they do follow a network slant, as much Fox as MSNBC. It'd also be very interesting to see a listing of the back and forth of media personnel across all sides of the political spectrum over the years.
And “the national mood had changed.” May it be so.
Thank you, Heather.
''MAGA Republicans appear to be in trouble.''
And since many do judge by appearances, enough said (for now).
Speak up. Speak out. Vote. Pray.
Hold the prayer. Act.
I think Michael's "Speak up. Speak out. Vote." counts perfectly well as an Act. I'm not religious, but I'll take the prayer as a fun little extra.
Will, I'll take it as a dessert, and pass on it (like I should do far more often).
LOL I feel you. I'm just sayin' I don't mind someone offering me a lollipop as long as they've made sure I get some actual nutrients first. It's the only-lollipop diet I find unappetizing.
Prayer is laser directed energy. Think I'll send a few beams to Joe Biden!
Pray AND act.
"Speak up. Speak out. Vote. Pray" is not enough. Volunteer to work in swing states and for contested Senate and House races. Most of us live close enough to one or more of these races to make a difference! WORKING is a force multiplier. If for some reason you can't work, send money! Politics is not a spectator sport! And working on campaigns is a wonderful and rewarding experience. I met and worked with many wonderful people. Just as I did in the '60s and '70s in the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago and Cairo, Il. And when I went to these places to work, I was welcomed into the homes and spare bedrooms of local supporters, and made new friends.
He claims a bond of such size is “unprecedented, and practically impossible for ANY Company, including one as successful as mine," and that "[t]he Bonding Companies have never heard of such a bond, of this size, before, nor do they have the ability to post such a bond, even if they wanted to.”
Warren Buffett is sitting on over $150 billion in cash. I wonder if Donnie grovel at his feet for the paltry $500 million.
And Warren is skilled at picking good investments. I think he'd pass. As have all the other people T**** has begged. Chubb will not see any of its millions again. And the rest know it.
I read that Chubb holds Trump’s investment accounts as collateral. Wonder if that’s part of the $500 million he bragged about.
The NY Insurance Department makes and enforces the rules for Bonds so there must be collateral otherwise they would have rejected the bond. They are a tight run department.
This is only briefly touched on at the top of today's letter, but I spent time typing this up, eager to hear thoughts, so...
My mind is still on focused on the undecided fate of the security bill, and the inter-party splits with regards to each component. President Biden seems to be correct in ascertaining that controversial is not mutually exclusive from broadly popular. Isn't that what democracy is supposed to result in? The procurement of policy that is broadly popular, regardless of vociferousness of the inevitable opposition, or whether that opposition resides primarily within cohorts you are ostensibly more aligned with?
I feel like I have developed a certain brand in my infrequent appearances here. It's a little sincere, a little spicy, and a whole lotta late night ramble. Somehow - to my surprise - I have found myself the last few months pushing back on the rhetoric of many of my fellow beloved online denizens, somehow attempting to be the voice of grim pragmatism with regards to the most incendiary conflict of recent times. It's been a bit dizzying, and I guess it's my own fault for getting myself into such a position by being such a stickler for consistency.
It occurs to me that if we are to criticize the Republicans for allowing their actions - with regards to Ukraine, China, immigration, or anything else - to be dictated by a faction of their party when popular opinion shows the will of the people prefers the opposite, then we should make sure that we are not being hypocritical in expecting Democratic leaders to follow a particular faction of their party over wider public opinion with regards to Israel (or anything else). Most of Joe Biden's staying power over his inarguably lengthy and resilient career has been a dogged determination to stick towards the reasonable center of public opinion regardless of whatever view is loudest at any given time. We seem to mostly be of the view on this forum that this careful moderation and deal-making with an emphasis on uniting differing factions toward common sense goals is a strength, yes? I think that as intelligent citizens and self-aware consumers of information related to current events, we should be honest with ourselves about how our opinions on a matter compare with that of the median voter. Having passionate or contrary opinions is obviously acceptable or even encouraged, but we cannot put ourselves in a winning position as a pro-democracy community if we refuse to acknowledge where the center currently lies. The median voter decides our direction as a nation, and we cannot keep the median voter close to us by denying or disregarding the legitimacy of their current views. We cannot start a productive conversation when we act like the other persons' starting place is unacceptable in its entirety.
With that in mind, Pew Research surveyed approximately 13,000 Americans a few weeks ago to provide a comprehensive view on their current attitudes toward the war. (Hear that, NYT? 13 THOUSAND. Not 800.) Their findings:
- Despite the wide news coverage and passionate responses among many, the median American does not seem to prioritize the conflict in terms of what they care about issue-wise. Approx. 25-30% of people have an unsure or non-response to almost every question asked, only half know there have been more Palestinian casualties, and less than a quarter have been following the news closely.
- Americans clearly view the Israeli campaign as having a valid justification (58%-15% in favor), and think the opposite of Hamas (22-49).
- Opinion is very split with regards to whether Israel's methods of fighting are acceptable or unacceptable, with neither view close to majority (34% acceptable, 38% not).
- The Israeli government is now viewed negatively by a bare majority (51%), but has only lost a sliver of support since 2022 (currently 41%, down from 47). This negativity pales in comparison to that directed towards the Palestinian Authority (23-68). Hamas is essentially universally condemned.
- American sympathies still lean towards the Israeli people in general, although most have some sympathy for the general population of Palestine as well; 57% of Americans share *some* sympathy for the common people in both groups. Israeli people are viewed overwhelmingly positively (64-27), while Palestinians are also viewed positively but more narrowly (50-41). 31% of Americans express they sympathize *more* with the Israelis, while only 16% say the reverse for the Palestinians.
- With regards to USA involvement, there is majority support for aid to Gazans (50-19), and for the USA to play some diplomatic role (55-27). Support for further military aid to Israel is decidedly mixed (36-34).
- Biden is getting a "wait and see" reaction from most of the public, despite the loud praise or anger from certain quarters. 40% of respondents are reserving judgement while another 20% find his leadership evenly balanced. Only a few percent more express the view he favors Israel too much versus those saying he favors Palestine too much.
- As has been widely noted, opinions diverge notably when comparing age demographics. Respondents under 30 sympathize more with the Palestinians, and a plurality find the Israeli campaign unacceptable. Yet non-responses are also highest among the young, and even among this group Israel has the advantage regarding whose reasons for fighting are more valid. Americans age 50 and over overwhelmingly sympathize with Israel, overwhelmingly find its reasons valid, and deem the campaign acceptable by a 20-point margin.
Read the full details here: https://www.pewresearch.org/2024/03/21/majority-in-u-s-say-israel-has-valid-reasons-for-fighting-fewer-say-the-same-about-hamas/
As an addition, I found immensely sobering this recent piece by David Brooks (I know, I too am surprised). Ignore the simplistic and provocative header, as has become unfortunately du jour at the NYT: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/24/opinion/gaza-israel-war.html
Thoughts?
The seeming disconnect and hypocrisy is actually two parts of the same problem. We are more siloed than in previous generations because we are less informed about international issues.
Because the far right is willing to use fear and xenophobia, they make up or exaggerate facts. If they were more successful at that they would be winning more but the tactics would produce fewer principled approaches to solving problems. This is the slippery slope that the professor highlighted in this post by mentioning Liz Cheney and others.
The Pew poll is a snapshot. Luckily the Democratic leadership think deeply, often too deeply for the disengaged. Their positions are evolving in real time in a rapidly changing world. In economics, it is similar to leading indicators. The other side is using misinformation. The fact that both happen not to be in lock step with their base is good for disparate reasons.
If the readers here don’t want insight, they should just read polls and skip the analysis and historical context. I suspect that is not the case. If every country had their own Heather Cox Richardson, the world would be a better place!
Sorry, but the Pew Study I recapped is not just a "snapshot," like a random Presidential horse race poll 8 months out. It is massive, comprehensive, and supports what numerous other surveys have have already shown, asked many different ways over several months. The margins of opinion are not close here.
My main gist here is that we are making the argument on this forum that Republican leaders need to "do the right thing," buck the loud faction of their party that doesn't want Ukraine aid and put it to a vote anyway because that action would represent the views and desires of most Americans. We use this argument on everything from taxes to unions to the envirnment to gun control to civil rights, etc. The average voter supports Policy X, so that is what should happen, right?
The progressive side of our political spectrum is used to this argument working for them. But now quite a lot of people seem to have adopted the story that "Israel has been revealed to the world as the bloodthirsty colonial crimminal oppressor that it is, and the US must end its relationship and condemn them as the new Nazis or be complicit in the annihilation of the innocents!" and the median voter in this country is... not... seeing... that... at... all. The median voter still supports Israel, thinks it is totally right to fight back against terror, but *also* thinks what they are seeing is upsetting and would like there to be a pause to get aid and change strategy so it is a bit less ugly. **Using our same logic as before,** the Biden administration is doing their jobs by rejecting calls from their loudest progressive flank and occupying that middle ground: support to Israel, aid to Gaza, and pressure for a change in leadership in the region.
Similarly, the Republican party seems united in viewing the southern border as the invasion of the filthy criminals, while progressives are still viewing it as masses of helpless families coming to our arms for love. The median voter is in between: he/she sees immigrants as non-threatening in and of themselves, but the current number of undocumented as a security crisis. Again, the winning political position here is stronger organizational capacity and security forces at the border, but sans the cruel "deterrents" wanted by many Repubs and with expedited asylum and DACA protections.
We may have our personal feelings, but if we are making the argument that in a democracy leaders should respond to what the MAJORITY view is, rather than just the base of their party, then we need to either be consistent with it or undermine ourselves with a lethal dose of hypocrisy. I intend to avoid that.
Will from Cal,
Appreciate your words...words that reveal your sincere concern for our country.
Because of Netanyahu, our relationship with Israel must be different. Once more, I will say, he has told us who he is....he is demonstrating who he is and he is pushing to fulfill his goals. He is using those in the USA who without thought or reason support his slaughter of Palestinians....babies, children, the elderly, families.....who have done Israel no harm!!!! In my opinion...from observation and articles I have read, Netanyahu wants to take over Gaza...he has and is making that clear by his actions. If he happens to free a few hostages while he kills a few Hamas members, all the better.
I am a Christian but I will not worship at a place that preaches hatred against our fellow humans. I will also state that I will not support anyone anywhere who lies, muddles the truth...realities about persons or a group of people to sow prejudices, in order to gain power...to plant hatred. I am just one small person ....but I believe in the freedom of people to worship or not. Sincere worship is chosen. It should never be forced on anyone.
Innocent humans should have a safe place to live!!!!
It’s reported Jared Kushner commented the Gaza shore is great waterfront property.
He's a repulsive lizard, but we knew that already.
Emily, your words are morally strong and clear. I agree with them.
I think part of the quandary here is thus: what happens when an essential allied nation is headed by a politician we find deeply antagonistic to our values? That is what is happening regarding Israel/Netanyahu. Professor Richardson has covered the unrepentant authoritarianism of Erdogan in Turkiye and especially Orban in Hungary. Those are both NATO allied countries that we are bound by treaty to support militarily in case of attack. Do we really think either of those leaders would take the US's advice or lead a response that we would find acceptable? (Spoiler: they would absolutely not.) Does that mean we renege on NATO in that case? The question is worth asking honestly because our strategic commitment to Israel is no less long-standing or essential to our security. Every President is oath-bound to uphold that. It is truly one of the most difficult situations imaginable.
A good leader should not only take the pulse of the public, but also try to build consensus... find some common ground... be a unifier, not a divider.
Agreed. But the fact of the matter is that no matter what route you choose to pursue, someone will always be angry. That is why Repubs claim Obama and Biden are "dividers" people despite the fact that both bent/bend over backwards to be "unifiers." At the end of the day, they perused the popular policies they were elected on, and that made the Repubs with their unpopular stances feel rejected and angry. The best you can do in leadership if you are serious about unifying is make sure more people are satisfied than not, plain and simple. You need to determine what stances will make the median person say "well, that seems somewhat reasonable."
With regards to the Israel-Hamas war, if surveys are anywhere even close to accurate, the median person has some empathy for Palestinians yet most likely to still favors Israel more, thinks the initial Israeli response is justified but is very uneasy with the destruction and wants more humanitarian aid delivered. The White House matching that rhetoric is the best chance at a consensus response. That doesn't mean many people won't still have a problem.
I don't believe in Polls. They changed from a daily basis. You can't even trust the media. The only thing you can trust is, your judgment and independent writers like Heather and other journalists and independent newspapers.
To be blunt, Patricia, I would steer clear of this line of thinking. It sounds exactly similar to MAGA non-reasoning. The proper thing to do is not to turn away from mainstream journalism or media whenever an otherwise reliable source publishes something we find maddening. The proper thing to do is admit not everyone can be pleased with every bit of coverage and use our brains to separate the wheat from the chaff. I'm sure Professor Richardson would say the same. Notice that she diligently cites her sources, most of them from "the media." She is a commentator with a particular bent based on her historical education. She is not a journalist, and "independent" is more often likely to mean "unpublishable lunacy" as "unbiased truth."
Polls are not something you can believe or not believe in. They are what they are. Any given individual one is quite limited, but if a bunch of high quality ones tell you the same thing over and over, months or years on end, you are just covering your eyes to the truth.
Will, I do have thoughts. They are not as well reasoned or as articulate or informed as yours are. I do not believe that either Israel or Hamas is "right" and that both are far more "wrong" in their approaches than they are "right". I do not have any answers or any reasonably articulated beliefs to provide. The only thing I do believe that I know is that there are no winners in this matter.
Oh Ally, I think you are one of the most reasonable people here. Am I articulate or am I just long-winded?
The IDF is definitely a bad actor, frankly there are only very bad actors here, just differing degrees. Some of the survey numbers I shared are validating to me and some are disappointing to me, but I wanted to avoid adding personal comments to them. I think awareness of where our personal feelings stand in relation to the wider spectrum of opinion is important to understand how likely we are to convince our neighbors or what expectations are reasonable to place on our leaders.
Democrats have gotten stronger in recent years because they have been forced to learn how to do this better, while Republicans cultishness has become increasingly apparent. Anti-abortion advocates are the ultimate example: they think it is morally self-evident that abortion is "murder of the unborn." A supermajority of Americans disagree and think that it is a personal choice and basic healthcare, but the anti-choice crowd refuses engage with the fact their stance is unpopular or use any arguments other than passionate denunciations. Despite 50 years of court stacking and propaganda, now that the issue is a live rather than abstract one they are losing very badly.
For some opposing examples, the "defund the police" slogan in the wake of the 2020 protests/riots almost certainly cost Democrats many wins down ballot and made criminal justice reform *less* likely, even though few to no politicians actually endorsed it. Many more people in the center were willing to be open-minded about the issue after the scope of the problem was revealed to them for the first time in their sheltered lives. But upon trying to engage with the issue they were confronted by rhetoric that to them seemed self-evidently crazy and angry and regrouped to their old stance. In the absence of the vociferous sloganeering from the very online crowd, unwilling to register how alienating their posturing was and how much ammo it would give the typical fearmongers, public persuasion would have gone quite differently. I don't know about your experience, but as an LGBT person I see something similar all the time. The median American voter thinks that LGBT people are just fine and we shouldn't make people feel bad or ban books about them or refuse to serve them. However, they also think the idea that gender is a socially constructed spectrum completely irrespective of biology or that intersectional parity is required to abolish the patriarchy or whatever to be... well, absolutely batshit insane. Argue the former and you win, argue the latter and you lose.
I want to win. Human rights are on the line. That's all.
Edit: Crap, that was long again. Sorry, it's my day off lol.
Thanks for your reply, Will. In my experience recently, I notice that my MAGA friends accept me and my sexual orientation/gender presentation just fine (a vey truncated description would be butch lesbian) but when it comes to gender fluidity or transgender people, a wall goes up.
With respect to Gaza, there are no “right” “answers”, I am afraid.
I am glad to hear that we have gotten to the point where basic acceptance is more widespread. People my age owe your generation an incredible debt of gratitude for being the ones to normalize what should have been normal all along by just being brave enough to be yourselves. Thank you.
I don't know the friends or how long they have known you, but I wonder how much having a friend who lives outside typical gender roles played a part. Some people seem to need that first-hand experience to develop comfort with a concept. The more society makes it okay for individuals to be fluid/non-conforming (including trans) if they choose the better imo, but that will be a challenge to people who need to know what group to put someone in in order to feel comfortable. When I get a particularly "concerned person," often I will just get blunt and say "No one is going to make a law making you be friends with someone you think is a weirdo. But it's un-American to make a law saying they can't be a weirdo if they want. If you're nice you get to live your life however, right?" It's not PC but it seems to work. Go figure.
I know from several of them that knowing out gay people did make a difference. I have had several friends whose kids were trans talk with me at length about various components of gender and gender fluidity, even as they recognized that being gay and being trans were two completely different experiences.
When I was in my 20's, the thought of being able to marry never entered my mind. When I was in my 30's, I had a co-worker who was stunned that my wife was not on my medical insurance. A couple years later, there was another who commented (as we both sat at computers writing our respective reports) regarding Oregon's constitutional amendment defining marriage as being between one man and one woman (still on the books I might add) "Let's see. I've been married and divorced three times. You two have been together for 20+ years. Which of us is the threat to marriage?"
Being visible has made a difference. I like your statement at the end. I've always used the criminalization left-handed people as my comparison.
Ally, I have been looking for a place to join the conversation this evening. I always feel comfortable exchanging ideas with you. The dialogue today has been extraordinarily thought-provoking. I was reminded that I think religion, in all of its many variations, is at the heart of much, if not most, of our problems.
I am not religious, at least not conventionally. I earned a BA in philosophy. I view Jesus as a wise man, a philosopher, a progressive politician, a minister, a therapist, a healer. Jesus was Jewish. He was speaking, preaching, to his fellow Jews. His message was, in a word, love. Love our enemies. Love our neighbors. And in the parable of the good Samaritan, go out of your way to render aid to a fellow human. Whether or not we believe in his divinity is irrelevant to the importance, and gravity, of his message about how we should act toward our fellow humans. Stop fighting with each other!
For anyone who thinks I am naive, I would simply say that I spent a year of my life with the First Cav in Vietnam. During that time I decided I would become a pacifist if I lived long enough. I have largely succeeded in that endeavor. I've been a dedicated vegetarian since 1975. I think that many of us are being advocates for the vast majority of people who wish - desperately - to live peaceful lives.
Thanks for joining; what you said (paraphrased) is you don’t have to “believe” to be good/kind etc. is how I’ve lived my life.
I’m a non-theist whose opinion is that “god” is too big for one religion.
I appreciate your comment.
One of our kids earned a BA in Comparative World Religions at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. My wife is a reformed evangelical Christian. My training was in philosophy. Our consensus is that every major world religion is an attempt to understand the divine aspect of the universe through the lens of local culture.
My opinion is that the "Divine Eternal Being" did not create the universe -- it became the universe. That approach brings divinity much closer to home. It's out there, but it also inheres in here. I developed my own ideas, but when I read philosophy in school I found much agreement reading Spinoza.
Will, first, thank you for the links. In my opinion, Hamas made the political mistake of “saying the quiet part out loud”—that they want complete annihilation of all Jews. I abhor both the indiscriminate bombing/attacking of Israeli forces as well as the illegal expansion in the West Bank and realize that Bibi (and cohorts) do not desire a two-state solution. I’m glad that I don’t have Blinken’s job of dealing with two bad actors.
That said, I think that we need to limit our help for Israel to only defensive weapons. We’ve done that for allies before.
I'm with you, Mary. I saw Blinken's picture the other day at thought, "this looks like the most stressed and tired man in the whole world." It is quite plausible he really is.
I wish the question about offensive versus strictly defensive provisions would have been asked. I imagine the latter would be far more popular.
Will, if you get a chance, YouTube Blinken playing Muddy Waters. A bass guitarist that I asked said that he’s pretty good. Heard that he speaks French like a native; don’t know how many other languages he speaks.
Oh, I've seen that! So fun to see someone so official letting loose. Itxs like spotting a rare bird in the wild.
Will, interestingly, Dr. Jim Allison of cancer immunotherapy fame is also a member of a local jazz band.
https://www.google.com/gasearch?q=jim%20allison%20jazz%20musician&tbm=&source=sh/x/gs/m2/5#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:89cb4d9c,vid:pnQ7cPPO0i0,st:0
https://www.google.com/gasearch?q=jim%20allison%20jazz%20musician&tbm=&source=sh/x/gs/m2/5#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:55b4466b,vid:wjZeyCIkSQY,st:0
Poor Joe, whiplash from every direction. Sorry, it’s 4 am, need more zzz
Over the past few months, I have found myself agreeing with the primary point made by David Brooks. Hamas must be destroyed as an effective military and political force in Gaza. He has outlined the difficulty in doing so, and for the most part I agree with him. What he doesn't include in the list of possible end-game options is a more robust effort by neighboring states to aid in the construction and resettlement of the civilian Gaza population in safe areas inside Gaza, or outside the borders of Gaza (Egypt especially). Behind the headlines, those regimes wanting to see a reduction in Iran's influence in Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen are not able to speak out publicly, but none of them will shed any tears if Hamas is defeated or do anything that might help Hamas and Iran.
I recently read a book on Palestinian history going back 100 years. I was surprised to learn other Arab countries did NOT want homeless Palestinians in their countries despite their public “outrage” over their plight.
I am not surprised. This is (in part) a long-term manufactured crisis, certainly since Israel became a recognized state in 1948.
What book?
"The hundred years' war on Palestine: a history of settler colonialism and resistance, 1917-2017" by Rashid Khalidi
Thanks
Will, it appears to me that an American Pox has been placed upon the process of negotiation and compromise, such that it has been mislabeled as a weakness in spirit and id
Hardline positions from far right and left gather attention and that any deviation from the “acid tests” signals ostracization from the small group. Fear of “not belonging” abounds
In reality, we require several qualities from these extremes, that their voices are heard and considered by the more moderate in order to form a more complete overall picture and secondly, that these groups recognize that compromise can bring some of their concerns into the final negotiated result
The real heroes are those individuals skilled in bringing consensus to the table of varied concerns, teaching the extremists that “purity” equals “no progress” in a divided population
There is no shame in compromise, quite the opposite, there is strength in coalition, but this requires an amount of humility and empathy
Those leaders capable of all three are to be valued and revered
In A good negotiation, neither side gets everything want, but gets something of what they need while giving the other side something they need. If one side walks away without that, the negotiation has failed
It all goes back to 2016. What are Party Elders for? The G.O.P. knew the score on Trump. The Elders of my erstwhile Party should have intervened and declared Trump unfit; that the convention would nominate another candidate with a similar set of proposals for a platform. In June or, perhaps, early July Trump drumpfed the Republicans by saying something like his being unable to guarantee no violence were he deprived of the nomination.
The G.O.P. Elders -- people like Presidents Bush; Governors Kasich and Bush; Senators Collins and Murkowski; et many al. -- fell for it and acquiesced. I suspect that the G.O.P. hoped Trump would be whacked in polls to accelerate the convulsion required to rid the Party of the racist / nativist ways brought in by the Tea Party in 2010. Now Trump has control of a Party with no value proposition for the average voter.
The mission? Convince the wavering conservatives that they have a better deal under President Biden, 'woke' policies and all, than under Trump with violent Xian Nationalists spoiling for civil war. Per President Grant, a Republican, “If we are to have another contest in the near future of our national existence, I predict that the dividing line will not be Mason and Dixon's but between patriotism and intelligence on the one side, and superstition, ambition and ignorance on the other.”
Good, pertinent information! Thanks!!
Wren suggested that Pence’s public split from Trump is “the latest sign that Trumpism is now permanently and irrevocably divorced from its initial marriage of convenience with…Reaganism.”
Though I don't think the split is as dramatic as it nay appear. Trump is the crude Mafioso, while other Party of Plutocracy "Republicans" have much milder manners but a similar agenda of domination and exploitation, genteel but heavy handed aristocrats. They don't use catsup, let alone fling it at the walls. Reagan may have entertained a bit more noblesse oblige, but still torpedoed "government of the people, by the people, for the people", promoting plutocracy in it's stead. Mobster-like Trump is just a variation of that. Just maximizing profit by any means necessary.
Agreed. No (R)eagan : No TFG (w/ Bush the Lesser in between as segue).
Much milder manners but a similar agenda, yep. Very well said
Reagan destroy this country by given the power to the rich corporation's and billionaires and millionaires. That isn't a government for the people by the people. It's a government for the 1% and not your Middle-class who are the foundation of this country. I disagree with your opinion on Trump compared to Reagan. To rule this country under an dictatorship is no comparison.
I am not saying that they are equivalent, but I think that the both demeaned and sabotaged the vision of government of ,by, and for the people and championed a neo-feudal vision of rule by the richest. The rich became richer, companies became more monopolistic , and worker's and voting rights constantly diluted. The middle class has shrunk and the promised benefits for the public are still a long ways off, a faded rose from days gone by. The preponderance of media more than once referred to Reagan as "a nice guy". He was not. He started us descending on a path on which a election of Trump became possible. As the downward momentum grew, the niceties were jettisoned.
[Edit: 9:50 am CDT, 26 Mar 2024]
We could incorporate into the Constitution President Lincoln's phrase from his Gettysburg Address, which states explicitly that we intended from the inception of our Republic that we would be a self-governing nation, "of the people, by the people, and for the people".
Thank you.
How can the dimwits in charge of NBC be so epically stupid??? They clearly learned nothing from CNN’s similar embarrassment, and felt the need to prove that they can be even more moronic. Sad.
Hopefully someone there will show some sense and not only reverse this idiotic deal, but fire the morons that approved it.
NBC is in business to make money - as much as possible. They eyeball Faux Nooz' juicy revenue stream and want some for themselves.
I expect one day, perhaps 5 or 6 years from now to see Trump as a political commentator on one of these networks.
If he's not Galactic Emperor or victim of a Big Mac Attack.
Or we get a lot smarter about reality and solidarity.
Maybe it's about keeping your "enemies closer."
Look at the damage she would do at Fox or Breitbart or Newsmax. This way they have her under her thumb--like Karen McDougal and the National Enquirer.
Nicole Wallace and Morning Joe were Republicans before they came to MSNBC. You never know. I'm actually going to give her a chance to pass or fail.
But Joe and Nicole weren't criminals. Ronna is. And should be held criminally liable for her part in January 6. She should be under indictment, not being given money by NBC. The network executives are no better than those wielding flagpoles to beat police at the Capitol.
Networks have no credibility. It's all about ratings, greed and power.
Is the Trojan horse “keeping the enemies close.”
I'm trying to remember the woman MSNBC hired after Nicolle who crashed and burned. I think she was in a midst of a sexual harassment suit on Fox at the time. I expect the same will happen with Ronna dearest.
Megyn Kelly maybe?
It's rewarding criminal behavior which is truly despicable. The moronic "brain trust" at NBC must be clueless cowards that are desperate to suck-up to the MAGA fanatics and are dumb enough to think they would watch NBC just to hear this criminal scum bloviate.
Didn't she also go along with the Cheetolini line that the press is the "enemy"??
Some over-paid executives at NBC need to be fired publicly . . .
George, it must be about the money. If they think people will tune in to listen to her then that's more money in their pocket. But, if more people tune out because of this hire, than tune in, then they lose.
I still think pat of their motivation is they were afraid Fox or Newsmax would pick her up so it was partly a defensive move.
Time will tell.
Didn't she also go along with the Cheetolini line that the press is the "enemy"??
Yahbut is there money in it?
Nicole and Joe were honest Republicans, like Adam Kinzinger ("Renegade").
I have lived in 10 different states during my 69 trips around the sun. Oddly enough I have lived in the same neighborhood with Tom Osborne (R-NE), Tom Harkin(D-IA) and Governor Jim Edgar (R-IL). Not only were they good neighbors, but they were also all men of integrity, plus they looked out for the best interests of their constituents. Most of the other Republican and Democrat Senators, Congressmen and Governors have been people of integrity and interested in watching out for the best interests of their constituents.
But the requirement now of almost all Republicans to get elected and re-elected is to worship Trump and hate everyone that isn't a Republican or ever says a bad thing about Trump. This is Fascism pure and simple.I haven't voted for a single Republican, nor will I, since 2010. They are cowards and liars.
That must have been before the Constitution OKed Free $peech.
What makes you think they are going to pay her and then keep her under some kind of control? They are looking to exploit her for what is unique in her. Her insider knowledge ? What could we need to know except in court?
It's hard to fire ceo's and corporations who owned the media.
Therein lies the key problem. The grossly overpaid bozos have zero accountability . . .
McDaniel; “I vas oonly followink oordahs!”
But TFG chucked her out anyway. Not loyal enough.
The leaders of NBC decided McDaniel would add to their un-credibility and provide an opportunity to maybe muscle in on the Fox News audience. Propaganda journalism might be good for the bottom line.
Oops! Or maybe not.
They made a poor decision to hire Ronna McDaniel. She is totally without any credibility at all.
Morning Joe and Mika were not happy about it this morning.
They played several Ronna clips. She is a bootlicker for sure.
As if I needed another reason to avoid NBC News and the Today show. <eye roll> Pass.
Ralph, the heads of NBC could follow the National Enquirer’s lead on Ronna—Capture and Kill. Apologize to their audience (Lester and Savannah could do this “I was stunned when the brass hired a person who attacked this network and the brave journalists who work here”) and then don’t allow her on air except as a commentator at the Republican convention. That keeps her from spreading more lies.
But the heads of NBC news already hired her! And to respond to an earlier post, of course they are paying her money! She’s already disavowing her beliefs. What kind of person is that??
Annie, yes they hired her. But they can keep her off the air so that she doesn’t spread her beliefs to a vulnerable audience. It’s called “catch and kill”.
I don't think they will actually do that. I believe they are looking for a larger piece of the audience pie, just as CNN did last year. And the controversey will have the NBC news execs rubbing their hands in glee. The catch and kill philosophy generally applies to stories, not people. I will still watch MSNBC although they drive me crazy sometimes with their hyperbole!
Very interesting newsletter. I hope the 1890s shift to honest, in-depth reporting predicts the future. At least two other variables are at play, this time: 1) The internet; 2) “Active measures” propaganda by foreign powers whose first goal is to distract and destabilize the U.S. and the West.
Will they shift, and what will drive them to shift?
Make telling the truth respectable again.
First laugh of the day J.L. -- thank you!
Mine too
Well, I laughed at my cat when he jumped up on the air purifier to get pets, hit the "on" switch, and jumped sideways when he got a blast of air under his tail...
Your story made me laugh, Ally!
I think the only way I made it through having 3 teenagers was having cats. There was many a time that my thoughts and opinions were apparently so stupid that the only subject we could talk about was our cats.
Every parent should have a cat or dog to help survive the teen years.
My folks sure did with me and my sister. I only went through a "phase" of about 14 months before (in my Mom's words) "became a human again".
For me NBC’s hiring of Ronna McDaniel as a ‘political analyst’ is the nadir of CBS/NBC/ABC ‘news.’
I recall when TV news was CBS, NBC, and ABC [there was no ‘cable news’—and, until, 1946-1947, no television.]
My family would be glued to Edward R. Murrow’s THIS IS LONDON broadcasts on Sundays during WW II. Later, my dad, who met Murrow during the war, had his advertising client—Campbell Soup—sponsor Murrow on a nightly news program.
Murrow was insistent that news should not be interrupted by commercials. A brief Campbell’s ad started and ended his broadcasts, with no mid-broadcast interruptions. I was privileged to know Murrow, his wife Janet, and his son Casey.
Murrow was THE most respected news commentator of his time. His programs on McCarthyism helped break the back of this calumny. His spoke out forthrightly on a diversity of issues, especially in his pioneer SEE IT NOW series.
He was also a co-founder of THIS I BELIEVE, an exceptional program that reached 39 million CBS listeners weekly and was a best selling book.
Murrow, who became director of the United States Information Agency, died in 1963. By then Walter Cronkite was the ‘news voice’ of CBS. It was thought that, after the Tet offensive in Vietnam in January 1968, Cronkite’s assessment that the US wasn’t winning had a significant impact on the American public and President Johnson.
There have been a number of distinguished news casters on CBS, NBC, and ABC over the years. Personally, I am not aware of any in recent years.
McDaniel, who had been chairperson of the Republican National Committee since 2017 until recently kicked out by Trump, was a loyal MAGA supporter. She bought into Trump’s BIG LIE about the 2020 presidential election and was not distressed by January 6th.
Apparently NBC executives thought that by hiring her they might attract some Fox News viewers.
AWWWK! They have further sullied NBC’s integrity. Chuck Todd and others have protested. Earlier on Fox News several commentators have protested the MAGA posture of some Fox front liners.
More of this is essential, if the major news channels seek to be respected for what they spew forth.
Thank you for your comments, Keith. You are always enlightening to the forum and I enjoy reading your posts.
Wow! You knew Ed Murrow and his family! Wish a few of the current NBC executives had.
Mary I last spoke with Ed Murrow in October 1960. He was the keynote speaker at an Eisenhower Fellows meeting with President Eisenhower.
Murrow gave a marvelous overview of the world situation. I had just published a book on Nasser’s Egypt and asked him why he didn’t express his views in a book. He replied: ‘I have been trained to write in 5-to-10 minute increments. I am unable to write a book.’
True, but his compelling THIS IS LONDON broadcasts were published in a book.
And WOW!!
This one?
This is London https://g.co/kgs/KdF6wTC
Mary If you are interested in purchasing this a ebooks.com is is good source for used books.
Mary Typo correction: abebooks.com
Thanks!
Yes!
I can barely watch MSNBC now, WTH. With Ronna the traitor on board, maybe it will become Fox lite. Just what the country needs. God, I hope she self-immolates on her first “take one for the team” utterance. But I won’t be watching.
As to a change of mood, if Harlan Crow is behind it, count me more than skeptical. Isn’t he the Texas arse with the world’s largest collection of Nazi memorabilia? And behind the buying of Clarence and Ginni. Project 2025 anyone???
Jeri, Ronna will not appear on MSNBC because of the backlash from viewers (and maybe popular hosts?).
But will she be lurking around "consulting."
Yes, but can you see Rachel or Lawrence or Lester Holt or Savannah Guthrie or any of the others listening to her? Besides, she can’t be sprouting her lies in a welcoming venue because of her contract. Might be a good thing.
I watch snippets here and there. After so many years of political trash pawned off as “news,” my tolerance is about zip…
Jeri, please watch (and share) Rachel Maddow’s show from last night in which she points out that there have been wannabe dictators in the US before. The big difference is that they were on the fringes instead of being supported by members of a major political party.
https://youtu.be/gCHM_2tnNYg?si=RopujEJottcjCRs1
I saw it, I knew it. I have no illusions about the fact that repubs have signed on to treachery and treason. Wish the rest of MSM would share it, especially in Texas. I got banned from Twitter and FB. My small circle these days know the score, but I hope to volunteer in some way before long.
I dropped cable so I can only listen to MSNBC when I'm in the car. Short blasts are fine.
They are my favs, but sometimes they have chump pics way too much.
Bless you, Heather. (And I am not at all religious, in any sense.)
The work you are doing, to convey truth to Americans in these perilous times, is nearly without parallel.
You are certainly a heck of a lot braver, and more persuasive, than most of our elected "representatives.".
If the USA survives this Trump madness, someday, there should be statues and streets with your name.
But, first, collectively, let's win the present war, a 2nd Civil War, against ignorance, hate, and tribalism.
The knowledge of American history, its advances and setbacks, that you are providing us, is like providing 155mm to the Ukraine.
Essential ammunition for sincere Americans, to save our country.
I write this as an expat-American, living in NZ for over 30 years. So, temporarily, I am safe from the potential Trump 2.0 fascism.
Only temporarily...WWII should have taught us that such movements have to be stopped at their commencement, otherwise their jackboots arrive everywhere..
Thank you again, and I look forward to renewing my subscription to your lifeline of information, to save our country..
Funny, ¿isn't it? 🤨 Trump screeches that re-electing President Biden will make America a 'banana republic'. 🍌 Self-evident political flatulence. 🤭 ¿Why? 🤔 Because President Biden and the rest of us know that re-electing Trump will make America a republic gone bananas! 😃
Re-electing Trump would end our republic and we would never have free and fair elections again in his lifetime. Trump is dangerous because his financial problems make him a national security risk. No one will give him a bond in the New York tax case because his properties are mortgaged several times, and the lenders would have priority over a bond holder. The bond holder would never see a return and would lose out.
Thank you Heather! We continually need your perspective. Bless you for taking the time to sort through this.
Where to start? I have quit watching CNN in the morning because Poppy Harlow is no longer on. I can't stand to even hear Joe's voice (of Morning Joe on MSNBC). He certainly thinks much too highly of himself. He never shuts up. And now NBC has further tarnished their image. I guess I can watch cartoons on PBS. At least Big Bird is a 'real' cartoon character. We don't need to Bring in the Clowns - our major broadcasting stations has done that for us. Thank you Chuck Todd. And thank you Heather. Living now, as I do, in New Mexico, I do hope you were awed, as I am, by the Southwest. We just need to hold onto our wild country. And you are one of our best bets in helping in that effort.
Penny, at least MSNBC will be free of her stench.
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/ronna-mcdaniel-msnbc-report#
I unsubscribed to cable tv, NYT and WAPO. I get my news from trusted journalists and digging around the internet.
I watch PBS newshour at 6pm while doing other stuff. I do not often learn anything new though bc I have already dug up the important news myself.
It really does not take much time if you know where to look.
I see suggestions to "Speak up. Speak out. Vote. Pray." That is not nearly not enough. Volunteer to work in swing states and for contested Senate and House races. Most of us live close enough to one or more of these races to make a difference! WORKING is a force multiplier. Your one vote could be multiplied by 100 that you get to the poles! I And working on campaigns is a wonderful and rewarding experience. I met and worked with many wonderful people. Just as I did in the '60s and '70s in the Civil Rights Movement in Chicago and Cairo, Il. And when I went to these places to work, I was welcomed into the homes and spare bedrooms of local supporters, and made new friends. I've done it twice for Obama and for Hillary; now I'm too old, and we send money. If for some reason you can't work, send money! Politics is not a spectator sport!
You can also write postcards and letters, as many of us here do. It's done on your own dime, but it you have time but lack funds, you can request the supplies and postage.
Check out votefwd.org
Again, clearing my head of reactions and distress to historically based relief that we may have been here before, and we will move forward into potentially creative new ground for waking up to the responsibility for our DEMOCRACY. WE Are willing and able to do the WORK of learning how to THINK and SPEAK UP for our AMERICAN way of LIFE. Truth can Win Out.