The Washington Press Corps - the New Age Idols and Idol Makers

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Have you ever heard the expression "you've lost your compass", meaning you have lost your way? Well when it comes to the news media corps in our nation's capitol it seems their compass is hopelessly lost in the Bermuda Triangle. That's where the needle of the compass just starts spinning.



I've worked in Washington for the Office of the President and for Congress and spent some time with different federal agencies. Then I worked in Washington with private corporations and not as a lobbyist which means I've lost a lot of potential revenue.

For the past couple of years I have been observing Washington and my focus has been on the news media and whether they really fulfill their role as the eyes and ears of America. Such a romantic thought, that the journalists in the news media were protecting the nation from the crooks in Washington and on Wall Street.

Let me tell you my conclusions. First, there are a few good journalists there who really try to act like the news media of the old days, seeking out truth and reporting objectively. Unfortunately they are few and far between.



There is a new standard for news media in our capitol just as there are new standards for politicians, Wall Street executives and special interest groups. Today's media seem to spend more time interviewing each other on the many news, talk and entertainment shows than they spend interviewing real news makers.



What is with that? Since when did the reporters become the stars? At what point did they acquire the audacity to believe they were the news makers? Fox, MSNBC, CNN and even the network news shows have far more so called reporters as guests than real opinion makers.



And speaking of objectivity, when reporters speculate on what is going to happen in the future, like Chuck Todd, White House correspondent for NBC and MSNBC did recently when he said what would happen in the Florida Senate race that is not over until November, it makes you wonder at what point did the news corps become their own source for information.



Just how objective can Chuck Todd be if he is predicting the outcome of a story? Wouldn't that influence him to report the story in a way that makes him look right? Far worse, of course, are the many made for television reporters whose liberal or conservative views dominate anything they report on. If partisanship is bad for politics as Obama likes to say, then ideologically slanted reporting is the death knell for news journalism because almost every reporter who is leaning to the right or left has lost their ability to be objective.



I often wonder if the current courses for journalism in college might not include classes like make up, camera awareness, how to write a book with no experience and nothing to say, battling for the anchor's seat, charisma and charm and of course, finding the right dentist for maximum whiteness. Come to think of it, with the time today's reporters spend on camera they might need acting courses as well.



Then there are the editorial journalists, the self-proclaimed sergeant in arms for discipline of the ranks, the self-perceived "Chosen One" to keep the people's philosophy in line. Truth has little to do with the field of ideological warfare. More entertainer than journalist, at least these types seldom claim objectivity.



While the TV journalist is required to write and possibly sell books, the editorial journalist is expected to crank out books, coffee mugs, do live, stand up on stage appearances, and generally whatever it takes to whip the true believers into a frenzy. They are also required to complete basic evangelizing courses.



Those claiming to be reporters who do television interviews, not of news makers but them being interviewed by the many so called news and opinion shows who can't get quality guests, also seem to belong to the club of "longing to be loved by celebrities and politicians".

As professional name droppers whose standing is measured by whether they are on a first name basis with the White House Chief of Staff, Rahm Emanuel, they are sent into long periods of depression if they aren't invited to the most expensive affairs of the Washington elite. To them success is measured not by winning a Pulitzer prize but by Obama knowing their name or a backstage pass to meet Sting.



If the journalists were doing their jobs the economic collapse would have been known ahead of time, the crooks who caused it would have been exposed, politicians would no longer be able to lie to the press, illegal influence of special interests would have been exposed long ago, and perhaps we would have known the truth. As it is, the only truth we may find is with the citizen journalists blogging their stories while the paid news media is getting smashed at the latest White House gala.

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MSNBC Keith Olbermann Meltdown

One of the more interesting sideshows of the DNC and RNC Conventions has been the on air meltdown of MSNBC Anchor Keith Olbermann. Olberman is a reporter so caught up in the socialist platform that he wants the network to be known as the Obama network, he wants all Republicans banned from the network, and well, NBC better have a room reserved for him at the psycho ward because that will be the next stop on his notorious career.

MSNBC, the 24 hour a day flagship of NBC is rapidly distinguishing itself not for quality reporting but for rampant infighting, over-inflated egos and a new socialist agenda. The people know it as the network that has watched their Nielsen ratings disintegrate in just two weeks. Expecting to lead political coverage of the conventions, it took just two days for the floor to drop out from MSNBC as they finished dead last in convention ratings.

The on air meltdown was led by MSNBC host Keith Olbermann with more than a little help from analyst Chris Matthews. Olbermann and his open warfare tried to stop Republicans from being part of his news show and part of the panel of analysts, and even tried to stop Tom Brokaw, the last ray of objective hope for NBC network from appearing.

Olbermann complained constantly about his lack of security protection in Denver as if anyone had threatened the big mouth. When he got to St. Paul things deteriorated. His paranoia reached a peak when the first day of the convention was cancelled because of the hurricane in Louisiana and Keith fled back to NYC. He then refused to return to the convention saying he would stay in New York and cover hurricane Hanna which never hit NYC.

So there he was, hosting St. Paul convention coverage from NYC, presiding over the greatest collapse in ratings from week to week possibly in history. His ceaseless rantings about the Republicans and raging about Sarah Palin never let up and when he told his national audience that the film honoring the 9-11 victims at the GOP convention was in such poor taste that he had to apologize to the world that his network even allowed it to air, well that about did it.

Now that Sarah has powered the GOP into the lead Olbermann must be in a straight jacket and today NBC finally stopped trying to cover up for the idiot and announced Olbermann and Matthews would no longer be part of network political coverage during the 2008 election.

Good thing too as the network was in danger of being known as the Obama Network and slipping from liberal to socialist to NBC, the National Bureau of Communism? This is exactly what is meant by the elitist liberal media.

Whew!

Sarah Palin New Media Star

Well the elite media may hate her but America has come to her defense as Plain Sarah Palin stunned the elitists by capturing over 37 million viewers on television last night at her coming out party according to the latest Nielsen overnight ratings.

Obama's cornation at the Democratic convention broke all the old records for viewers as Joe Biden drew 24 million viewers, Hillary Clinton drew almost 26 million viewers and Barack's rock concert at the 80,000 seat stadium drew 38 million viewers.

So how in the world did the hockey mom from moose country who emerged from the Alaska frontier just five days ago have just 1 million fewer viewers than the most promoted, visible and exposed (over $150 million has been spent on the Obama campaign) candidate in Democratic party history?

Guess what? The elite media put the Obama lovefest on ten national networks while the country girl was only put on six networks, yet another example of media manipulation and still she nearly toppled the reigning king of political media.

If you believed the media Obama should be running away with the election. Based on spending and exposure he really should be. But what is the truth behind the numbers?

Annie Oakly from moose country nearly equals his record for the largest political television audience in history on four less networks. A week ago no one even knew her.

Obama has captured about 18 million votes while spending hundreds of millions of dollars over 18 months while Sarah has spent a week in the public eye being mauled by the media.

Obama is the darling of the liberal media, yet just 21% of American voters are liberal, 45% are moderate and 34% are conservative.

While Obama captured 18 million primary votes, so did Hillary Clinton. There will be about 125 million votes cast for president this year which means 107 million have not voted for Obama this year.

Registered voters are split about 37% Democrat, 37% Republican and 26% Independent.

In spite of the best efforts of some media to discredit Sarah Palin the country girl managed to become a media star matching the star power of the mighty Obama in her first week of exposure to the American public.

Well now we have a real election. No matter who wins history will be made. For once the media elite will be on the ballot through surrogate Obama. And once again the American voters, Joe Six Pack and Soccer/Hockey Mom, will determine the future of the world.

Oil Hits Seven Week Low - How Low Can It Go?

Last Friday oil continued its two week decline bottoming out at $123.40 for US crude and $124.39 for Brent crude, both down over $2.00 for the day. Oil peaked two weeks ago at a record $147.37 a barrel and has been falling ever since.

So what does this mean to the consumer? The rule of thumb is the price of a gallon of gas should drop 2.5 cents for every one dollar drop in a barrel of oil. Thus gas prices should fall 57.5 cents a gallon based on the decline we have already seen.

It has dropped about 14 cents meaning a true market adjustment should see an additional fall of gas prices of around 43 cents, driving the average price from $3.94 to $3.51. This should conveniently happen before the November election with about 25 cents by September.

Now that is if prices remain as they are today. I expect prices to fall to about $90 a barrel by election day, meaning an additional $34 reduction in oil and an additional 85 cents in gas. By all rights our gas should cost about $2.68 a gallon by the time the next president is settled in at the White House.

Why does it take so long for gas prices to fall? Well the oil refiners and gas retailers benefit the least from high gas prices so they are taking their time lowering prices in order to get a little of the oil profits so greedily grabbed already by the speculators and producers.

So if the market forces cannot explain the high oil prices what is the reason? Read my article on the financial institutions. It may help shed some light.

Obama Conquers Europe - Is America Next?

Over 200,000 Germans watch as Obama walks along the podium on his way to address the world. It was the highlight of his whirlwind trip from Afganistan to Iraq, Israel to Germany to France and England.

Memo to John McCain: Stop whining and start giving us a reason to take you more seriously than Obama. Ever since Obama left for the war zones and Europe McCain has been complaining about the press coverage, complaining about the policies Obama has announced, complaining about being assigned the junior varsity of the news corps since all the media stars were with Obama in Europe and complaining about every word uttered by Obama on the trip.

His "good old boy" approach to the campaign does nothing to tell us why he should be elected as the most powerful person in the world, how he will improve the image of America around the world, or how he will end the wars and stop all the special interests who are running and funding his campaign. We need solutions to problems. We need a leader who can motivate us to do good. We need a president who will go after the crooks in our financial, oil, medical, pharmaceutical, entertainment and media industries.

I thought it was pretty amazing to see an American speaking to over 200,000 Germans in Berlin and being applauded. When I see polls that say two-thirds of Europeans want Obama to be the next president I think the fact the rest of the world is taking such an interest in our election is an indication of the power of the United States and the role they hope to see for America in leading the world.

Think about it, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and England have been around about a thousand years longer than the USA. Yet in all their amazing history they have never had a minority leader, whether president, prime minister, king or queen. Only the USA, the newest kid on the block, has taken such a quantum leap forward to be seriously considering electing the first minority president in world history in a Western democratic or capitalistic society.

The people of the world stand in awe of our political system that practices what it preaches, that all people are free and everyone has an equal opportunity to be president. I happen to think that is quite extraordinary and our founding fathers should be smiling down on the land of freedom and opportunity they helped create.

There are one hundred days until the election. Both candidates have plenty of time and money to make their case to be the next leader of our nation. Let us hope they use that time and money to give us positive reasons to elect them, not negative reasons to not elect their opponent.

The United States is the sole world super power because we can stand united behind a cause for good, be more creative and innovative than any other nation when we set our mind to it, and we are the most compassionate and caring people on Earth. As long as the world is watching with such interest, let us give them an election they will never forget.



Not to be outdone by Obama, McCain is shown here meeting with the Dali Lama while Obama was meeting with the Germans, French and English. He used the occasion with this man of peace to blast Obama for his trip and to challenge the images of the wonderful reception he received in Europe.

Letters to the Editor

I got a letter from Cathe the other day asking why no new articles have been published lately. Letters to the editor are rather rare here at the Coltons Point Times but are greatly appreciated as it is the only indication people are reading and finding the stories to be of value.

So I told her I broke my brain and had to take time for repairs but the break happened at a good time as everything in the news was predictable. Truth is I was taking a break while the world caught up with my previous articles.

We made a number of predictions and suggestions on a variety of issues and it seemed as if the government was never going to get around to doing their job but slowly, often grudgingly, they seem to be getting in gear.

I suspect some of the movement by the bureaucrats might be they realize in a few months they may have a new boss and they better do something to justify their existence. There is also the calls for change by the presidential candidates and the strange policy reversals of late by President Bush that have changed things.

The Race for President
In March we called the Democratic primary and even the general election naming Obama the winner of both. The first already happened and the second is well underway. Of course the news media says the race between Obama and McCain is only a 4 percent lead for Obama. We addressed that in an article on polling stating that polls will not be accurate until after September 1 at which time we expect Obama to surge to a 15% lead and never look back.

The Oil Price Rise
For nearly two years we urged investigation of price manipulation of the futures market and finally, this week, the federal government announced the first of what could be many indictments for illegal price fixing. An expansive investigation is already underway.

The Housing Crisis
Also long ago we pointed out the impending collapse of the housing market because of over priced real estate and the proliferation of Wall street, the banks and investment houses in scam sub-prime mortgages. Well the house of cards did collapse at a cost of well over $300 billion. We urged extensive prosecutions of the mortgage, banking and financial sectors and they have also begun.

The many articles covered a host of sins ranging from medical costs to environmental issues, prescription drugs to vaccines. We pointed out that new born children now receive 26 vaccinations by the time they are two years old. No wonder our immune systems have broken down. The average older American now takes six prescription drugs a day.

We are over regulated, over stimulated, over manipulated and over weight and still we listen to the maniacs every evening on the news singing the praises for the quality of life in America while their networks suck every last advertising dollar from the guilty parties.

Television programs on our 500 channels are the dumbest collective bunch of nonsense in history, video games are the most crass and destructive forces ever inflicted on mankind, violent crime is glorified on local news and corporate crime is covered up on network news.

The price of oil and food goes up every time anything in the world goes wrong even if it has no effect on oil and food prices. Still we send the same people back to congress and our state legislatures as if they have no responsibility for all the corruption and greed that dominates our world.

Well I don't know if President Obama can change things as he will still be stuck with the same congress but he certainly can't do any worse than the last few presidents. I presented a program to Take Back America which starts to address all the freedom, choices and morality we have given up but a positive approach to problem solving has no place in a world that dwells on the negative and glorifies greed.

Still the population of Coltons Point is a couple of hundred and there are over 7,000 readers of the Coltons Point Times, not to mention the many web sites that place my articles on them so at least several thousand people are starting to look for the truth.

In order to serve that purpose and make certain Cathe has something of value to read we are now rested and will not rest again until the crooks have been driven from the capitol, from Wall Street, from television and radio, and even from the pulpits.

We will not rest until you get medical help to heal you, not keep treating you until your insurance runs out. When owning a home means something. When education actually teaches. When speculation in oil and food is stopped because such greedy speculators are threatening our national security. When foreign aid goes to countries that help us lower the cost of oil. And all that other stuff.

THE REVEREND WRIGHT IS DEAD WRONG

There is a curious thing about religion in America. In no other country of the world are there more so called spiritually enlightened reverends, priests, fathers or preachers whose calling got mixed up in the party line to God. Somewhere along the line they got so caught up in their rhetoric, their ability to interpret for the Almighty, and their ill-conceived role as the gateway to salvation that they became bigger than the God they served.

The very God they claim to represent became secondary to their own ego driven need for recognition of their supernatural connections, for the accumulation of wealth, and for the worship by the masses, that their mission was lost in translation. They preach fire and brimstone, right and wrong, blame and judgment as if they were the authors of the Bible. These preachers of earth with their earthly ways in the course of leading the masses jettisoned forgiveness, humility, compassion and caring, all traits inherent in the teachings of Jesus.

So I guess to Reverend Wright we are not all God’s children. The sins of the past cannot be forgiven. Revenge is a more appropriate response than turning the other cheek. The most important reward we can gain is feeding the ego. Humility has no place in the pulpit, and God help anyone who would dare question the holiness of the Omnipotent One and I don’t mean Divine Providence.

What our Jeremiah chose to say from the pulpit in the past caused damage to the historic presidential campaign of one of his very own flock, Barack Obama. Substantial damage control by the Obama campaign reduced the impact but did not put out the flames of doubt Wright’s words planted in Americans. But what he is saying in the present could very well drive a fatal stake into the historic opportunity Barach might have had to give equal rights meaning and equal opportunity significance in our society.

Reverend Wrights’ whirlwind tour and incessant press conferences to “defend” his reputation are ego-driven nonsense that will only hurt the Obama campaign and give Clinton and McCain more ammunition to shoot at Obama. Of course the media is driven to expose every last morsel of nonsense from the preacher man out of loyalty to Hillary or a desire to slam the door shut on equal opportunity.



Perhaps the preacher is confused about his own role and thinks he is the reincarnation of the original Jeremiah, the Biblical prophet. Called by God to speak for him at an early age, Jeremiah was scorned and even tortured by fellow priests and politicians for his prophecies on the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem. When it came true Jeremiah’s own people forcefully took him to Egypt and stoned him to death according to Old Testament teachings although details of his death are not certain. Jeremiah was a prophet of doom but looked beyond this judgment to a day when religion, no longer national, would be individual and spiritual. This new kind of religion would result from God’s "new covenant" with His people.

Our modern day Jeremiah leaves no such lasting legacy nor offers such hope for reconciliation between peoples but chooses to demand attention for his own reputation and teaching. To risk such self-serving actions whose consequences could destroy the first legitimate chance for America to fulfill the promises of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights along with the sacrifices of President Lincoln and many others surely could not be the work of a humble servant of God.

What a shame that healing and forgiveness do not share the same attention from the preacher as protecting his provocative words of the past. What a pity that his concern for his own reputation can override any concern for helping to advance the evolution of the American dream of freedom and equality for all. What a coincidence that this preacher of our people can be the very instrument that can destroy the dreams of those from his own congregation. Are we ever going to hear a discussion of policies to address our problems and concerns?

IT'S OVER - OBAMA 44TH PRESIDENT OF USA

Startling evidence undercovered by The Coltons Point Times and confirmed through a network of proven psychics and intuitives far more accurate than political pollsters and weathermen has verified that Barack Obama will be elected the 44th President of the United States of America, making history as the first African American president of the nation.

Try as she might, Hillary and Bill just could not stop the Harvard graduate from bringing the string of 20 straight years of Yale control of the presidency to an abrupt and stunning end. In the end the political arm-twisting, special interest dollars, and wheeling and dealing could not stop Barack and neither could the Republican candidate, John McCain, who could not convince the public he was the new candidate for change.

I mean come on, McCain will be 72 this year, 25 years older than Obama. Between the US Navy and US House and Senate McCain will have served the US government 49 years, Obama just 4 years. In other words, McCain has worked for the US government longer than Obama has been alive.

Is there any doubt about who represents the new generation? Besides, isn't it about time the old timers, and there are many old timers in politics, step aside and give the new people a chance? Haven't the old boys done about enough (to) for us? So come next January this will be the new president with his kids.

Now what does turn the election in the end. Well the Democratic Underground seemed to have discovered that Obama is holding back on an endorsement certain to turn the tide of the election when released and eliminate all questions about whether the new kid in town (Obama) has the confidence of those that count.

It seems JC has agreed to come back early to endorse Obama and he is quick to assure the public this return has nothing to do with the End Times. Preacher Huckabee lobbied hard for the JC endorsement but JC happens to like the the sound of a harp more than a bass guitar. Some think Oprah might have arranged the endorsement what with her connections.


So now that we know the outcome of the election next November what does it mean? For one no more obnoxious political ads on TV for the next 8 months. Over $100 million in campaign costs will be saved because no more spending is necessary. It will bring an end to the mudslinging and dirty tricks threatening to make this campaign just like all the others before it. The news media will have to manufacture sensational news about something else besides the election. The rest of the world will breathe a sight of relief that gun slingers no longer control the White House.

As the 44th president Obama will have a lot of mysticism behind him as well. For example take the number 44, 4 + 4 = 8. Obama was born in 1961. 1 + 9 + 6 + 1 = 17, 1 + 7 = 8. He was from Illinois which has 8 letters. John Kennedy was 35th president, also equal to 8. The number 8 is a Fibonacci number.

The Jewish religious rite of brit milah is held on a baby boy's eighth day of life. Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day of Kislev. Shemini Atzeret (Hebrew: "Eighth Day of Assembly") is a one-day Jewish holiday immediately following the seven-day holiday of Sukkot.

The Noble Eightfold Path in the Buddhist faith has eight steps. The Eight Immortals are Chinese deities. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints believe that humans are responsible for their actions by the age of 8. The Dharmachakra, a Buddhist symbol, has eight spokes. The Buddha's principal teaching -- the Four Noble Truths -- ramifies as the Eightfold Noble Path. Buddha's birthday falls on the 8th day of the 4th month of the Chinese calendar.

In Christianity it is allegoric to: what is beyond time (because the number 7 refers to the days of the week which repeat themselves), and is the number of Beatitudes. In Islam it is the number of Angels carrying The Holy Throne of Allah in heavens. In Neopaganism there are eight Sabbats, festivals, seasons, or spokes in the Wheel of the Year. In Hinduism its the number of wealth and abundance. The Goddess Lakshmi has eightfold forms. There are eight nidhis - seats of wealth.

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Bloob Tube Battles

I’ve had trouble watching the television lately. Can’t find the programs in all the commercials. Suppose it doesn’t matter since the TV fare was never meant to entertain, inform or educate, just to employ the many relatives of the network show business people.

The network evening news is in a whale of trouble now. Katie Couric has settled back into last place for CBS. It’s hard to take her too serious after all those years of sucking up to the people she interviewed on the Today Show.

The number crunchers for the networks have discovered an interesting fact. It seems that the quality of the local news just before the network news has a great impact on the network news viewers. Dah…

So old, ugly people put out to pasture on the evening news broadcasts are now costing Charles Gibson at ABC, Brian Williams at NBC and Katie Couric at CBS millions of viewers and more millions of ad revenues.

Look for a major overhaul of the local news programs leading into the network news. Every station has used the news for a pre-retirement assignment. They are experimenting with everyone for the time slot.

My personal favorite news announcer is Alison Starling who does the morning news. Her numbers and performance are great so the ABC owned station in DC has tried her at the 5 pm and 6 pm news shows.

Of course the station was too cheap to assign someone to her morning and noon shows so poor Alison was doing the 5 am, noon, and 5 pm news, sometimes the 6 pm news, and doing real reporter stories in between. Whoever thought up that schedule wanted to kill her or must have been a relative of one of the old anchors who might be replaced.

When she did the 6 pm news with three old guys she looked like a cheerleader at a geriatric ward. Before the DC station and network overseers give her the 6 pm news like they should some other network will steal her. Maybe this drag on the ratings by the local evening news anchors is why they call them anchors in the first place.