Posted on 10/05/2010 12:34:47 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
In trying to understand how so many Americans adore people like Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh I have come to this critical understanding: Poorly educated, terribly informed, intellectually deficient and downright stupid people need idols. They feel angry, frustrated, ignored, cheated and disillusioned by so much going on in American society. They find the emotional, political and philosophical rants by talk show, loud mouth celebrities matching and justifying their feelings. Of course, those celebrities work hard to fan the flames of all that unhappiness and discontent, and also perpetuate ignorance. They sell stupidity to gullible dummies, teaching them who to blame for their misery.
I am no conservative or liberal and I know I sound terribly condescending and will be viewed as an elitist by those dummies, not that they read much by those they do not idolize. However, I have spent considerable time following what these demon idols say and write to seriously investigate whether I might be missing something of value. But all I see are huge quantities of totally incorrect and distorted information, absolute nonsense, outright insanity, abuse of logic, exaggerations, toxic half truths, intentional disinformation, racism and bigotry, and extreme political views that have no connection to reality and offer no workable solutions to the nation's complex problems. Slick sound-bite slogans push propaganda substitutes for verifiable facts.
How to understand how so many people can listen to such celebrities and not feel as nauseous as I and so many other Americans feel when listening to them? Clearly we must accept the disturbing fact that there are many millions of suffering Americans that are mental midgets, a sign of the dumbing-down of America. No surprise really when you remember there are millions of people wasting their money on gambling, lottery tickets, cons and scams, junk products and unhealthy foods, or unable to qualify for decent jobs because of a lack of knowledge and skills. Either they were born stupid (a harsh but true statistical reality) or the many ups and downs of life have robbed them of any critical thinking ability to see through the idiocy that these purveyors of poison peddle while making obscene millions of dollars.
Consider recent Pew Center Research poll results that showed 18 percent of Republicans do not know that the Democrats control the House of Representatives and 35 percent do not know who the Vice President is. Research has found Fox News butchers facts and its devotees are the most ignorant, and in recent years Republicans have overwhelmingly gone to Fox to get their news and information. Note: 80 percent who regularly listen to Rush Limbaugh or watch Sean Hannity are conservative. I'm not saying that "No truth, just spin" should be the Fox motto, but it sure fits.
I can easily relate to the many people treated unfairly, unjustly and even brutally by the political and economic system. But those who have drifted over to the dark side of the right-wing, conservative arena and become addicted to the rhetoric of delusion have nothing in common with those that once made the United States a noble nation worthy of respect. Their idols talk a lot about the Founders and Constitution, but share none of the fine qualities of those that created our republic. They also pick and choose what parts of the Constitution to adore, mocking the rule of law.
As an independent, I too am extremely critical of the political and economic system and how the middle class has been purposefully harmed by a rich and powerful Upper Class that has turned the nation into a plutocracy serving the greed of individuals and corporations. I want revolution and true reforms. I condemn both major political parties and see elections as useless anachronisms.
I too feel disenfranchised, full of dissent and disgust with broken government, broken educational and health care systems, crumbling inadequate infrastructure, widespread corruption and dishonesty, and an economy dispensing inequality and injustice. Yet, try as I have, I cannot see any merit in what these powerful right-wing demigods dish out, all done to pump millions of dollars into their pockets and pump up their egos. They sell themselves as the defenders of the downtrodden and abused, but this is just a con game designed to keep millions of dollars coming to them and their fellow fat cats. When their supporters vote for Republicans they vote against their own economic interests, unless they are rich.
These false populists are fundamentally no different than the evil elite forces that this fraction of the population despises. Perversely, they have become a part of the ruling class they routinely condemn. They are the worst kind of idols, manipulating and soaking their audiences and admirers. They pitch poisonous and addicting fast food rhetoric, words as pleasing as salt, sugar and fat laden foods and as eagerly gulped down. This results in mental capacity becoming as clogged as the arteries in overweight and obese Americans.
What is evil? Right-wing hypocritical hucksters pitching messages of values, morals, freedom and patriotism crafted to sucker the least informed, emotionally stressed and unintelligent Americans for the sake of power and money. These idols live like royalty (for example, Limbaugh makes $60 million a year and Beck $35 million) while their loyal fans treasure fantasy expectations and block out information that would cause too much pain by piercing the delusions they have succumbed to. By putting their faith in false idols they become unknowing victims of the media corpocracy profiting from these idols.
What a culture, where so few can take advantage of so many and make fortunes doing it. The real goal of the demon idols is to further divide the nation, not fix it and make it better. Why? Because divisiveness is what sells and makes them big money. Shame on them. Those who worship them need more worthy heroes if they really love their country and want to make it better for all its citizens. The rest of us need to ignore the false idols and their followers, showing them no respect whatsoever, condemning them at every opportunity.
Looking up the author, I find:
http://www.delusionaldemocracy.com/
DELUSIONAL DEMOCRACY
Fixing the Republic Without Overthrowing the Government
Joel S. Hirschhorn
“Despite what false patriots tell us, we now have a delusional democracy, not one that citizens can trust to serve their interests. We clearly need a Second American Revolution.”
“Part 2 presents details about a number of practical solutions for fixing our republic peacefully - actions and techniques that have been proven to work in states or other countries. Are you willing to suffer some pain and see the truth? Or, like so many Americans, will you remain in a delusional state? This book will convince you that there is no hope as long as the two-party duopoly remains in control. More importantly, it will convince you that a new third party is more than necessary for salvaging American democracy - it is increasingly seen by Americans as the only hope for our future. Eligible voters who do not vote are not to be condemned - they are to be respected and motivated to vote by being offered a new, trustworthy alternative.”
About the author:
Joel S. Hirschhorn has been widely published; his previous book is Sprawl Kills - How Blandburbs Steal Your Time, Health and Money. He has published many articles and oped pieces in major newspapers (Washington Post, New York Times, Baltimore Sun, Chicago Tribune) and on progressive web sites such as CommonDreams, The Progress Report, SmirkingChimp and Opednews; Google Joel S. Hirschhorn to see his writings and achievements and see link below. Before becoming a writer and consultant, he was a senior staffer for the U.S. Congress (Office of Technology Assessment), Director of Environment, Energy and Natural Resources at the National Governors Association, a full professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, and head of an environmental consulting company. He is the Chair of the Independent Party of Maryland and co-founder of Friends of the Article V Convention
Delusional Democracy Does What No Other Book Has Done!
A number of electoral reforms are necessary to rescue American democracy:
1. Expand the use of Clean Money, Clean Election programs.
2. Provide a None of the Above option on ballots.
3. Permit fusion candidates to promote third-party candidates.
4. Reform the Electoral College or its use by states.
5. Provide Instant Runoff Voting.
6. Pass the “Our Democracy, Our Airwaves” federal law.
7. For primary elections, support an open or crossover primary that
favors third-parties.
8. Make voting compulsory after other reforms
“...It is Americans’ major opportunity for civic power through direct democracy. It comes down to ballots or bullets to save our democracy.”
http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_joel_s___070108_open_letter_to_john_.htm
Open Letter to John Edwards
For OpEdNews: Joel S. Hirschhorn - Writer
To: Presidential Candidate John Edwards
Subject: Winning the presidency by defending OUR Constitution
I am intrigued by your clear populist and progressive orientation, particularly your focus on addressing economic inequality that is harming working- and middle-class Americans...
Between being on his knees giving a lewinsky to John Edwards’ “populist progressivism” and his writing for the Smirking Chimp, he’s going to have to make more waves in a different direction to persuade me his is NOT a liberal.
One thing I see missing in this article that Glenn Beck pleads for on a nearly daily basis, is the request that we not take his word for it.
I don't go to Fox and I won't BE going to Fox. That said, I can also point out the outright fabrication of photos and documents and witnesses by the NY Times, Newsweek, Time, LA Times, CBS, Boston Globe, etc etc. (more lies by omission from this idiotorialist).
This is another good example of liberal projection. To understand the psychic bedbugs nibbling at liberals, listen to them on the qualities they project onto conservatives. This was most obvious two years ago, when a liberal meme was that Sarah Palin attracted voters who were “poor, badly educated, and vulnerable to racial messages.” Libs were indeed describing a solid block of the 2008 electorate — but it was the black voters who supported Obama in the upper 90% ranges.
So who's your idol, Joel?
He's most disheartened by those liberals who tune into Rush Limbaugh and have their eyes opened to the lies they'd been told repeatedly by the Left and the dependencies they were being cajoled into demanding.
>> I condemn both major political parties and see elections as useless anachronisms.
The most interesting sentence in that pathetic little tirade.
SnakeDoc
Why is it these idiots never condemn billion dollar marxists like George Soros, Ted Kennedy, Bill Gates, et al or million dollar marxists like Michael Moore and the Hollywood Reds who insist that I am not paying enough in taxes?
If you want to talk about a privileged class, call out the pigs in Animal Farm. The new American Politburo who are exempted from Obamacare.
How about starting with the fact that throughout the writer's long litany of malfeasance, he produces not one single objective (read: verifiable) example of his target's many sin's against the poor benighted masses who idolize them...not one.
What was that:
A Resume for a job at MSNBC?
Meanwhile, a recent poll shows that 42% of dem voters don’t even know that the Dems control the House, and only 45% of black dem voters can name the VP of the US.
Standard Democrat talking point and it has been very much the Party line since the 1990s when the Rats lost Congress to the Republicans. Echoed in 2004 when they again lost the White House to GW Bush.
The Rats "new" strategy in the wake of 2004 was to try to "appeal" to the "religious left" and close the "god gap" (the Rats terms, not mine).
So they stear around issues like abortion and homosexuality while insisting that it is Christian to support socialist agenda items like Obamacare.
Either that, or he's a left of the dial Pacifica socialist who thinks that the Democrats are too right-wing...
Those are the people that listen to, and then beleive, MSNBC -- the new motto over there is Lean Forward -- And Cough.
“terribly informed”
This phrase can also mean extremely well informed, as opposed to not informed at all. It depends on the inference.
As in someone being ‘terribly good looking.’
Don’t think he meant that, but it depends on how you read it. Yutz.
Yep, and isn’t jealousy wonderful.
Oh, and did I miss it, or did he fail to include the results as to how many DEMOCRATS know that they the Dems control Congress or who the VP is? I bet the percentages of IGNORANCE is much, much higher. After all, they were all saying in 2008 before the election how the “Republican” Congress was screwing every up (present tense).
Oh, and duuude - Rush Limbaugh makes way, way WAY more than $60 million a year - that figure isn’t even close to the income he gets from his Rush 24/7 Website.
Why don’t you go back under your rock until it’s time for you to earn another 5 bucks to contaminate the interwebz with your ridiculous rantings.
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