Silence Speaks Volumes

The Big Shun

Several weeks ago, President Barack Obama agreed to go on all the major news networks—plus one (Univision)—to be interviewed and, of course, endorse Health Care Reform. They would all air on sunday. Except, . . . he left one out: The highest rated/most watched news station in the country . . . Fox News. Why? Well, before your assumptions run amuck with thoughts of opinion shows such as Glenn Beck, Hannity or O’Reily, don’t forget Chris Wallace’s show, “Fox News Sunday” which is every bit as credible as the other news shows. For those of you who may recognize this name, that is because Chris Wallace has been in the business for thirty years and has worked for ABC News for eleven of those. He’s a recognized name in the biz.

So, what is the problem here? Well, I won’t throw out a blanket statement like, “Oh, it’s the Democrats.” No! It has more to do with the new class of Liberals (a group that I have referred to before, in my first post “A Letter to the President of the Free World”), that I will refer to from now on as Liberals ’09. This group has every bit to do with all the radicals we see surfacing around Obama’s administration: the Van Jones’, the Cass Sunsteens’, and etc.

They are always right; they view anyone who disagrees with them as, “small-minded” and “stupid”; they’ll fit “racist” and “Nazi” in there anywhere that they can find the wiggle room. They will belittle you as being an “angry mob”, “uneducated rednecks”, all the while never expecting you to even flinch, because now is their time, and they will “show” you how to get it right, as they force you to it.

Librals ’09 do not see socialized Health Care as bad. Allowing the government to run things isn’t wrong because they’re the ones at the helm. Why should we trust them? “Because we’re not Republicans” is their clarion call, “we’re different”. But “different” does not translate directly to “better”; sometimes it’s simply means . . . different. Have we seen yet the “Change We Can Believe In” or is it simply “change” from one misbegotten scheme to another?

The point is, that Liberals 09″ will not be hassled with things like “the other side of the story.”

Their message and momentum will not be deterred by what you or I think—unless we agree with them. The only ones who have a say in the matter are those who are on board.

“Either get on the train, or get out of the way!”

But they don’t stop to think that in our country, it is the majority who rules. You don’t get to tell me what to think or how it will be. I am allowed to hear all sides and choose for myself, and if my group is larger than yours, then common sense dictates that the majority will decide, thereby, serving the most good.

Look, whether or not it is deemed right by Liberals 09, “We the People” is still valid.

Deafening Silence

It’s not just the blacklisting that concerns me; it’s the tactics: Nothing was addressed, at the time, in regards to the station; they were simply “phased out”. No reason given, nothing spoken. And yet, this should cause any conscientious citizen to give pause: not because Fox News is “so great”, but because they are the highest rated and most watched. One could make a very strong case that they reflect how the American people think, right now. Even if you don’t believe that, it still seems reckless to avoid the largest sounding board one has in America right now, on the basis of “principle”. Or is there more to it?   note

What about ignoring one of your generals in the field? General McKrystal, Obama’s own self appointed General over the war in Afghanistan, put in his report for more troops over eight months ago. This report stated that “We will fail” in Afghanistan, if reinforcements are not sent. This is Obama’s own General, telling him that the war will be lost, if we stay with the current number of troops, period—no suggestion, no “it would be nice”, flat out “we need them,”—or it’s over.

And how did the President respond? He didn’t. Instead he waited over six months and turned his attention to campaigning for the Olympics to be held in his hometown of Chicago. In fact, to add insult to injury, he declared that he was willing to take time out of his busy schedule to show up and petition for the Olympics.

“Oh, the people of Chicago must be so honored”. . . not really. Actually, many of them protested. The Olympics has proven for decades to be a cash guzzler, not a cash maker. With corruption running rampant in the city, the last thing that they want is yet another irresponsible move on the part of the city’s leaders.

I’m still waiting for a reasonable explanation as to why Obama waited so long to address his General. It never really was explained; it just sort of “happened.” In fact, it didn’t seem he cared at all until General McKrystal went to Great Britain to plead for reinforcements from them. It seems the British Prime Minister listens to McKrystal more than the President does. Though Obama has finally spoken to his General, a decision still hasn’t been made. Meanwhile, more American troops die and are put in perilous situations, while the President focuses on the Olympic bid, Obamacare, and gaining the praise of dictators (see Chavez’s praise of Obama at the U.N. Senate). I’m not going to mention the Nobel Peace Prize, at this time.

Follow the Trail of “Misinformation”

I’ll mention just one more example of this “silence”. Early on in the Healthcare debate, the White House launched a section on its website, dedicated to “misinformation” regarding the Senate’s Healthcare Bill. There was a lot of controversy surrounding this move, and . . . well, then the webpage simply went away. It was no more. Nothing was said; it simply disappeared.

I actually have another concern here, as well. While Townhall meeting after Townhall meeting were chanting, “Read the bill, read the bill,” one particular Democratic Senator, Sen. John Conyers, said in response to these chants, “Well, what good is reading the bill if it’s a thousand pages and you don’t have two days and two lawyers to find out what it means after you read the bill.”

. . . but . . . he is a lawyer. Wait, I’m confused. It almost seems like the only ones that really know what was in the bill were average, diligent, american citizens. Ya know, the ones commisioned with catching and reporting “misinformation”? It seems that even the White House was acknowledging that you know more about what’s going on out there than they do. But don’t lose sight of the real issue here; that, of controlling the message. This is not “clarifying” or protecting the “integrity” of the message; but “controlling” the message. This is a crucial distinction to make, here. Notice that Liberals ’09 will not, “will not” lose control, of their message.

Silence is control. The silent treatment is a disingenuous mode of communication; it is a tactic which one deploys in order to gain the upper hand in an argument; to let the other party know, “I disapprove of your behavior, your opinion, or your posture with me.” No one seeking sincere discourse and genuine communication would employ such a tactic. It is juvenile; it is passive aggressive; it is not beneficial to cultivating an environment of equality. But, then, that’s not their aim. They don’t view you as equal, if you disagree with them. It is the highest form of aggression: belittling the other party; diminishing their faculties of reason; ignoring their concerns; and whatever you do, don’t acknowledge their equality.

Wow, if I didn’t know any better, I would swear that that sounds like slavery.

Note: Fox News is not only the highest rated, but any one of their primetime shows has higher ratings than all of the network stations ratings, if combined. Bottom line: “Mainstream news” is floundering, while Fox News is setting records. That should tell you something.   go back