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8/31/2016 5:01 pm |
Its true, you cant fix stupid! Sleep well and have a happy day. The opinions and understanding portrayed in my blog are mainly unfounded, misguided or wrong.
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8/31/2016 10:47 pm |
While I don't doubt that Kerry might have said these words, I have to wonder if they have been plucked out of context, as I can only find them quoted at far-right-leaning "news" organizations like Fox News, Glenn Beck's onerous TheBlaze, CNS news, The Weekly Standard, etc. I did not find any mention of these comments from any reputable news source who covered Kerry's trip (who instead made the bold move of reporting on the less titillating details of a standard State Dept. visit). I'm not saying that the Sec. of State didn't say something stupid; he may certainly have. I'm just saying the reputations of the only sources who are leading with that claim are highly suspect, and the smell of shit is always strongest the closer you get to the cesspool. ~LastGuy "It's great to be here. It's great to be anywhere." -- Keith Richards "There are many spokes on the wheel of life. First, we're here to explore new possibilities." -- Ray Charles
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While I don't doubt that Kerry might have said these words, I have to wonder if they have been plucked out of context, as I can only find them quoted at far-right-leaning "news" organizations like Fox News, Glenn Beck's onerous TheBlaze, CNS news, The Weekly Standard, etc. I did not find any mention of these comments from any reputable news source who covered Kerry's trip (who instead made the bold move of reporting on the less titillating details of a standard State Dept. visit). I'm not saying that the Sec. of State didn't say something stupid; he may certainly have. I'm just saying the reputations of the only sources who are leading with that claim are highly suspect, and the smell of shit is always strongest the closer you get to the cesspool. I remember now.
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It good that there are idiots around; they make me look much smarter than I really am!
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It good that there are idiots around; they make me look much smarter than I really am! Everything in the world is about sex, except sex, sex is about power. - Oscar Wilde
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My thoughts: Often news coverage is NOT balanced, not factual. Terrorism IS a threat, but far less than we are made believe. There is a hype about every terrorist act, while other problems, especially self made ones, are ignored. AND media give those people a "stage", they get more attention than they deserve. B Everything in the world is about sex, except sex, sex is about power. - Oscar Wilde
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9/1/2016 1:42 am |
http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/08/261339.htm None of the conservative-leaning news sources bothered to quote the portions of his address that followed, such as... "Now, just as important, we understand that to defeat terrorists, we have to uphold, not betray, the democratic principles that we cherish and they abhor." and "Now some may argue that it’s more difficult to live up to the core values of democracy when countries face a genuine threat. And I understand that. But guess what? You can go in two directions. I believe that when a country faces those kinds of threats, it’s even more important to uphold the values of democracy. Because if you don’t, you will more quickly feed the frenzy that can come with opposition and panic and hysteria." This surely indicates that he does not support a gag on the press. While I would agree that his words were poorly chosen in that passage because their interpretation requires more nuance than we'll ever get from quote-miners like Faux News, I think it's unfair to label them as idiocy. ~LastGuy "It's great to be here. It's great to be anywhere." -- Keith Richards "There are many spokes on the wheel of life. First, we're here to explore new possibilities." -- Ray Charles
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And the State Department transcript proves my exact point...Kerry's 86 words have been taken out of context, skewing their meaning when considered among the 3000+ other words in his complete address. When read in context, it is clear that he was speaking rhetorically, a lament that the modern global media has become a powerful recruitment tool of the jihadist, but clearly not an endorsement to suspend First Amendment rights as a means to counter terrorism. None of the conservative-leaning news sources bothered to quote the portions of his address that followed, such as... "Now, just as important, we understand that to defeat terrorists, we have to uphold, not betray, the democratic principles that we cherish and they abhor." and "Now some may argue that it’s more difficult to live up to the core values of democracy when countries face a genuine threat. And I understand that. But guess what? You can go in two directions. I believe that when a country faces those kinds of threats, it’s even more important to uphold the values of democracy. Because if you don’t, you will more quickly feed the frenzy that can come with opposition and panic and hysteria." This surely indicates that he does not support a gag on the press. While I would agree that his words were poorly chosen in that passage because their interpretation requires more nuance than we'll ever get from quote-miners like Faux News, I think it's unfair to label them as idiocy. As I have repeatedly stated over the years: I prefer to search for the original document / source rather than to rely on media-filtered characterizations of what someone wrote / said. I realize my approach requires more time and effort than the all-too-common quick search of the Interwebs for news sources aligned with a particular POV. I prefer to leave the partisan talking points and the us-versus-them mentality to the true believers. I read / watch / listen. I follow the evidence. I contemplate. I do not cherry pick data to support a pre-existing conclusion. My goal is to be aware of - and to avoid - confirmation bias. I constantly challenge myself to think rather than to simply react. As always: YMMV. I remember now.
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