My apologies for slacking.
The media is totally ADD. What's more interesting to me is whether or not there is a way, ANY kind of outlet, that you could avoid the ADD of the press. It seems that it affects all of them, whether it's FOX news or the Wall Street Journal.
Sometimes I've wondered how much stress in the average person's life is based on a simple overabundance of information. In WWII, for example, people's knowledge of world events was limited to radio news broadcasts and newspapers. And when I say newspapers and radio stations, I mean probably one or two that a person had access to. I think we're just overloaded with information. Maybe my argument is that ignorance is bliss. But the way the world communicates today, we know the intimate details of every tragedy, every disaster, every crisis… people can get overwhelmed by the knowledge of that kind of suffering. For me personally, I pick the limited number of things that I can make positive impact on and focus my efforts there. It may sound a bit cold, but for my own stress level I have to kind of block out much of the other stuff.
Weiner is a putz. I'm constantly amazed that there are people at that level of society that don't understand electronic media, its lasting effects, and its traceability. Why, o why, would you text a picture of your junk? Even if you delete it off your own phone, the person who you sent it to has all that is required to make your life miserable in the press!
My question for you guys is this: how do you think the media could portray you if they were privy to ALL of your emails, texts, Facebook messages, etc? It's kind of a scary thought. When the ADD media latches onto something that appears juicy, any explanation of context just looks like you're trying to cover your tracks. So the context is useless. I've often joked that I can never run for political office because I was arrested for trespassing in high school and was charged with underage drinking (twice) my first year in the Navy. That may sound silly, but with the way the media is these days, just think of how they could make it look in a juicy (insert news channel of choice here) news spot. They could interview John McCarty, and he could make it sound like I was a complete alcoholic. They could start digging for the records of my underage drinking arrest in Texas and find that I only completed six hours of my assigned 12 hours of community service. Think about some of the events in your own lives and how the media could reconstruct them if they decided to make it a sensational story.
I think that the press is the most powerful organization in America, and I'm not even kidding. I don't think it's much of a stretch to say that they've played the biggest role in deciding who is our president for the last 20-30 years. What worries the major media outlet moguls is that independent media and "personal" media (like blogs) are taking some of that power as well. Did you see the article about how someone posted a bogus McDonald's sign saying that African-American customers would be charged a $1.50 fee because of higher crime rates? Totally bogus, but it caused a shit storm, and who knows how much money McDonald's has already had to spend to quell a totally bogus event. But hey, the media got a ahold of it.
Now for my usual random thoughts…
Tracy Morgan: Whether or not he's an idiot, he's a comedian. How in the HELL do you figure out what you can or cannot joke about in America?? From what I can tell, as a comedian, you can go on a rant about absolutely anything EXCEPT for these few items, which have designated, super vigilant police ready to write tickets at a moment's notice: (Let me start by saying that even as I'm getting ready to list these items, I have to think about how to "properly" say them) African-Americans, homosexuals, and Jews. Joke about any of those, and you're toast. Mexicans are getting close to the untouchable list, but they aren't quite there yet.
There was a guy walking up and down the street where I work wearing a billboard thing with something about how Asians were stealing all of America's tech jobs. I thought it was funny. Almost every building on the road, with the exception of a hotel, is either 1) an NSA building, or 2) a contractor building for companies that do work for NSA. So the funny thing about it is that almost without exception, everyone who works in those buildings has a Special Intelligence clearance, and in order to get one of those, you have to be an American BORN citizen. So even if they happen to be Asian by ethnicity, they are Americans!! What an idiot.
I watched game six of the Stanley Cup finals and I've been watching game seven tonight. Not sure why I don't watch hockey more… I'm having a blast! Unless Vancouver makes something happen really quickly, the Cup is going to be in Boston.
Ocean City, Maryland, has been okay, but not the best. It's huge, and it's a party town. Not really my speed anymore. We've spent as much time this week at other places like Bethany, Delaware, and Rehoboth Beach, Delaware (just 15 minutes up the road). They have the same beautiful beaches, but they are a lot smaller and feel a lot more family oriented. Also, as big as Ocean City is, you would think there would be a million options for places to eat or things to do, but all of the 130+ blocks look the same. Same restaurants, same stores, etc. The entire city is monopolized. Kind of sad.
My mountain bike looks funny with $10 platform pedals on it, but they are a lot more comfortable when you're riding in flip flops! Have been watching some Tour de Suisse this week and I can't wait to get back on my road bike.
Okay, take a break. I'm sure your eyes hurt.
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