FCC Tries “Bail-Out” of the Newspaper Industry! WHY???

FCC Tries “Bail-Out” of the Newspaper Industry! WHY???

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On Tuesday, December 18th, 2007, the Federal Communications Commission, managed to screw-up the broadcasting industry with a move to “ease the reins on media companies seeking to own newspaper and broadcast properties in the same market in the nation's 20 biggest markets”.

Granted, the proposal is intended to affect the top 20 broadcast markets, but, rest assured… it will, as these things always seem to do, eventually affect the entire US. This is truly a case of “the camel’s nose under the tent”. Eventually the entire camel will be under the tent!

Under (FCC chairman Kevin) Martin's proposal, one entity would be permitted to own a newspaper and one broadcast station in the same market. But it must be among the 20 largest media markets in the nation, and following the transaction, at least eight independently owned-and-operated media voices must remain. In addition, the television station might not be among the top four in the market.

There is an excellent article over at: "RADIO ONLINE".

We recommend you read the entire article at:

http://news.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/$rol.exe/headline_id=b10489

Take it from a fellow who spent his working life, all thirty years of it, in the broadcasting Industry… this is , indeed, a bad move by the FCC… and you, as a consumer of “news”, would be well advised to contact your Congressperson, and your Senators, and ask them to block this “BlockHead” move by the FCC.

Look, the LAST thing we need is less diversity in the way news is gathered, edited, and dispensed, or disseminated to the public. If this move is allowed to become law it will create a “Giant” press machine in all the top 20 Broadcast Markets in America. Even with eight independent operations remaining on the air, "The Giant" will immediately become the “leader of the pack” and... all the others will follow. The Giant will set the standard for that market. Top stories will be decided by The Giant. News cycles will be decided by The Giant. Basically, The Giant will decide what news consumers in that market see, hear, and read. THIS is NOT a good thing.

Now, from a business point of view, I can readily see how this would be desirable, especially for newspapers, which seem to be sinking like rocks in quicksand. What this ruling by the FCC actually is… is a bailout for large newspaper companies who already find themselves in that watery quicksand.

Here’s the thing: This is (Industrial) evolution at work. Newspapers are on the way out. It is the way of dinosaurs! Consumers of news, in the future, (even today, for that matter!) will be getting that news from their electronic devices such as this computer screen from which you are reading this article, or from the screen on their cell phone, or other electronic device. Even if Newspapers continue to print hard copy versions, it has become entirely too expensive to deliver the papers to the consumer’s home. I’m experiencing that very thing in my newspaper market today. One major daily has stopped home delivery in my market... and another cannot get enough carriers because it cost too much for the carrier to drive a gas operated vehicle , deliver the papers, and make a decent profit.

The point is, no matter what the government does to bail out the newspaper industry, it is doomed to failure. But then, there is simply no reason to drag the broadcast industry into the newspaper industry’s problems , or use the broadcasting industry as a “life preserver” for the newspaper industry and, at the same time, deprive the public of diversity in the “news” business. And that is what the FCC has done… if… the Congress doesn’t stop them.

Longstreet

Filed under:

conservative+FCC+NEWSPAPERS+BROADCASTING+NEWS+DIVERSITY

Saying “No” When Everyone Else Is Saying “Yes” ... by Alan Caruba

Saying “No” When Everyone Else Is Saying “Yes”
By Alan Caruba
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I have been witness to the complete subversion of science in the service of an utterly corrupt new religion called environmentalism.

In the Middle Ages the Church determined what “truth” was. Today the Green Church seeks the same power. From the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century to the beginning of the Renaissance in the 15th century, civilization experienced a period of ignorance and superstition. Globally, via the media and the classroom, a distorted and debased science is being used to advance the fraud of global warming.

The challenge is to say “no” when everyone else is saying “yes” to global warming.

There is no dramatic warming of the earth. There is no indication of a near-future warming. Carbon dioxide (CO2) plays such a minimal role in the atmosphere that an increase would have no effect beyond the very beneficial boost in the growth of forests, crops, and everything else that is truly green. Indeed, climatologists will tell you that CO2 increases follow, not precede, warming cycles. They are not a trigger. They are a response.

During the United Nations’ Bali climate conference, a hundred prominent international scientists released an open letter warning that any attempt to control the Earth’s climate is “ultimately futile” and would constitute “a tragic misallocation of resources that would be better spent on humanity’s real and pressing problems.”

“It is not possible to stop climate change, a natural phenomenon that has affected humanity through the ages.” The notion that mankind has any impact on climate or weather is absurd.

In November, in Valencia, Spain, delegates from more than 140 nations agreed to what they and the media echo chamber that disseminates the global warming lie, called “an ‘instant guide’ for policy makers stating more forcefully than ever that climate change has begun and threatens to irreversibly alter the planet.”

A science that can barely predict the weather next week is being perverted for purely political purposes.

Having followed the IPCC since its inception and the environmental movement in general for decades, I can tell you that what we are hearing is a shrill message of desperation coming from those who fear that people around the world may yet reject the global warming lie. An Associated Press report said that the draft and coming IPCC report “is intended to launch a political process on international cooperation to control global warming.”

How do you control something that is not happening?

Why is everything the IPCC proposes lead to “cap and trade” laws that would impose limits on carbon dioxide emissions, something that reflects human activity, from exhaling to the making of steel, the harvesting of crops, the heating of one’s home, and virtually all forms transportation except bicycles.

Why do all of the proposed controls aim at crippling the industrial advances that underwrite the success of Western nations in particular and improvement of human civilization everywhere?

In Bali, there are voices calling for a global “carbon tax.” It would be collected by the United Nations and we know how well they handle such funding. The Oil-for-Food fiasco is but one example. The funding of the Bali conference is another.

Wouldn’t limits put on the United States and European nations be instantly cancelled by emissions from nations such as China and India that are exempt from the Kyoto agreement? The answer, of course, is yes. Doesn’t the failure of the current agreement and the billions in fines it portends for signature nations suggest still more failure?

Despite this, there is legislation making its way through the U.S. Congress that would impose cap-and-trade limits on every industry and business in America. At a time when the U.S. dollar is falling in value and our national deficit has skyrocketed, why would Congress even consider anything that would harm the economic engine of the nation?

This is, however, the same U.S. Congress that refuses to permit exploration and access to our national energy reserves, leaving us dependent on imported oil and natural gas while at the same time calling for “energy independence.”

If I were to devise a plan to destroy the greatest economy, creator of wealth, center of innovation, and exemplar of individual liberty that has ever existed in human history, I would patiently create fear of a global disaster involving the one thing over which humans never had and never will have control, the earth’s climate. I would then propose a “solution” that would cost that economy billions in “carbon credits” to keep it from occurring.

What the former Soviet Union and its failed Communist system could not achieve in some 45 years of the Cold War, the environmental movement is seeking to achieve in its place. By undermining the economy of the United States and Western nations with draconian limits on CO2 emissions, those behind this effort will create a world ripe for a single ruling government composed of unelected bureaucrats whose only purpose will be to feed at its trough.

The single greatest determinant of the Earth’s climate, the Sun, will continue to shine, but the world will be plunged yet again into the darkness of ignorance and submission to the false religion of environmentalism if the global warming lie succeeds.

Alan Caruba writes a weekly column, “Warning Signs”, posted on the Internet site of The National Anxiety Center, http://www.anxietycenter.com/.

© Alan Caruba, December 2007

Filed under:

conservative+Global+Warming+Religion+Pagan+Socialism+hoax

Being Slapped in the Face by the Obvious!

Being Slapped in the Face by the Obvious!

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With sincere apologies to Mr. Limbaugh: “I TOLD YOU SO!”

Just a few days ago we postulated on this site that the NIE report, which declared that Iran had stopped attempts to make an Atom bomb as far back as 2003, was wrong and that this kind of erroneous information was likely to start a war in the Middle East. Some thought that was a stretch on my part. Others knew exactly what I was saying. Well now, the Israelis have confirmed what we warned about on this very site last week. The article is entitled:

“Israel: US report on Iran may spark war”

We recommend you go over and read the entire article. You’ll find it at:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/2007
1215/ap_on_re_mi_ea/israel_us_iran
Look, the NIE report is the kind of dumb mistake rookies make! Any “fool” would know that the release of that kind of intelligence assessment could very well light the fuse between the Israelis and the Iranians… unless… that is exactly what the intention was from the very beginning! NAHHH, I don’t believe our intelligence community is that James “Bond-esque”.

The fact of the matter is… I’m not that smart. I’m just your average Carolina County Boy, who makes an effort to stay abreast of the happenings in the world. My point is… if this ole country boy can look far enough ahead to see and predict the reaction of a country when confronted with, what amounts to their “back-up” being withdrawn, the surely the guys and gals in US intelligence, with all their degrees, and training, and electronics, and “humint” (Human intelligence…. meaning spies on the ground in enemy territory) should have seen this one coming ten miles out! I think they did!

I am convinced this entire fiasco with the NIE report was a rigged attack on the Bush Administration…. nothing more… and nothing less. It would appear that forces, within our government, hate Mr. Bush so much they are willing to sacrifice the security of the country to damage his reputation, or his legacy, or his current administration, just a year ahead of the 2008 elections.

I try, very hard, not to use profanity on this site. But, I must tell you … what the US intelligence community has done with the NIE report is a “profane” way to do business. It may wind up costing thousands of lives, US lives included.

Have we Americans come to hate each other, so much, that we will destroy each other even if it causes bloodshed? Look, we’ve done it before! So, do not think it can’t happen again! Because it can!

The scriptures tell us “A house divided cannot stand” … another truth from that old book of wisdom. Has it not occurred to Americans that we are destroying ourselves? We are nearly as divided now, as we were during the War Between the States. In some ways, we are MORE divided. Those of us who have studied that period in American history see parallels that are frightening in today’s America.

The Left has waged a war beginning with the election of George Bush, right on up to the current day, to destroy him and his party. Already, the Right is planning similar warfare against the Left in anticipation of their winning the Presidency in 2008, including the impeachment of the Democratic President.

Where does it stop? Does it stop? If not… this nation is doomed.

We close with this reminder from a fellow who was decidedly NOT stupid: "The wise are instructed by reason, average minds by experience, the stupid by necessity and the brute by instinct." — Cicero

Longstreet

Filed under:

conservative+Israel+NIE+Iran+STUPID+DOPEY+DIMWITTED+DUMB

Feel Guilty Yet?... UPDATE!!!!

(There is an update on this story posted at Texas Fred's site, of which, we want to make you aware. There have been some developments in this ongoing story. You can follow the excellent reporting at:
http://texasfred.net/archives/845 )
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Feel Guilty yet?

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We are all used to getting a ton of “begging calls” and “begging letters” from various charities this time of year. Some will send you a calendar or some of those little sticky return address labels, in hope that enough guilt heaped upon your head will motivate you to send them money. I have a “guilt drawer” in an end table in my den where goes all this “stuff”

So call me a Scrooge, a Grinch, whatever, I don’t send ‘em any money. Why? Follow through. Do your own research and you will soon find out.

Now, let me be clear… if I were to participate in this transfer of wealth, I’d most likely donate to veteran’s groups. Most veterans seem to lean toward that persuasion as well. And there are a host of veteran’s charities out there.

Ever wonder how they did in distributing the funds they received from people with kinder hearts than me? Ever wondered how well they did at it?

Well the Washington Post has an article you may want o to see. It’s entitled: “How they fared”. You’ll find it at:

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/12/AR2007121202439.html

The article presents a list of veteran’s organizations and how they fared: they are graded with a letter grade. You might want to see if your favorite veteran’s charity is on the list and how they fared.

For more on this and the reaction of another veteran, we suggest you make you way over to Texas Fred’s Blog site at:

http://texasfred.net/

Fred is seething about this and it shows. We admire his zeal!

Longstreet



Filed under:

conservative+Disabled+Veterans+charities

Why THIS Republican Will NOT Vote for Mike Huckabee

Why THIS Republican Will NOT Vote for Mike Huckabee

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I am a Republican and I will not be voting for Mike Huckabee.

Why?

Simple.

Because of Jimmy Carter.

I am convinced Mike Huckabee and Jimmy Carter are cut from the same cloth. I was bitterly opposed to Jimmy Carter when he was running for President, while he was President, and, even today I find him a meddling, “busy body do-gooder” interfering in the affairs of the world. Most of the conflict in the Middle East today, especially Iran, can be traced directly back to the Carter Administration. The seeds of today’s war in Iraq, the coming war with Iran (and between Israel and Iran) ALL can be traced back to the Carter Administration.

Religion is a wonderful thing. I endorse it. But, by all means, in moderation, please! Huckabee has said he is defined by his religion, his faith. That being the case, and he says, openly, that it is, then, in my opinion, he has no place in the White House.

There used to be an old expression, the exact words of which escape me, but the jist of it went something like this… “When you need a lawyer, get the crookedest lawyer you can find.”

When we elect a President, we are hiring a Commander-in-Chief of the US military. We are hiring someone to defend this country, first and foremost. I want a “junkyard dog” defending me! If our President wishes to carry a bible in his hand, then he ought to carry a cannonball in the other! Remember the expression: “Praise the Lord and pass the ammunition… and we’ll all stay free!”? THAT’S the sort of MODERATION I’m speaking of here.
I don’t trust Mike Huckabee to have that sort of sternness, that sort of steel, the sort of unflinching grit to order men to give up their lives in defense of this country, and the willingness to TAKE the lives of hundreds of thousands of this country’s enemies, personally, and then go to bed and sleep like a baby. I just do not think he has that quality about him. Jimmy Carter didn’t either. We are still paying for Carter’s lack of will today.

The person we elect to the office of President will be shadowed, day and night, by a member of the US military with “The Football”. Everything the President needs to order a nuclear holocaust on our enemies is always within a few steps of wherever the President is at any given moment. Our enemies, indeed the world, MUST know that the President of the United States of America has the will, the determination, the guts, if you will, to press “the button” and rain down death and destruction upon the heads of those who would do this country harm.

Nobody feared Jimmy Carter. Not our friends, and certainly not our enemies! I am very afraid things would be much the same with Huckabee in office.

Whoever the next president is, he/she, will inherit a war. Why? Because this nation is at war! Deny it, if you must, but the plain truth is… we are at war… and… we are going to be at war for at least a half century. Bringing the troops home will do nothing to ease the war on America by the Islamofacists. None whatsoever. They are resigned to a never-ending war until either they are all dead… or… the US is no more. Whoever the next president is, he/she must understand that fact, going in, and prepare for all hell to break loose from both the Peaceniks, the flower children in the Congress, and... the war hawks. Then, of course, there is the “declared” enemy, the Islamofacists.

The next president will be a wartime president. If doesn’t matter what he or she wants, it will be thrust upon him, or her. Actually, the next president will assume that mantle from George Bush. Not a single one of the candidates, from either party, is admitting that in public, even though it IS a fact. They all know they cannot bring the troops home from the Middle East. But they’re not telling the American public that. Both parties fear the Peaceniks. They are all old enough to remember the peace riots in the 1960’s and 1970’s and they have nightmares about that happening on their watch.

Let’s face it: the next President will, of necessity, have to be one tough SOB. I do not see that toughness in Mike Huckabee. I did not see it in Jimmy Carter and time proved my intuition correct.

No, I cannot support Mike Huckabee for President of the US. Why? Because of Jimmy Carter.

Longstreet

Filed under:

conservative+Huckabee+Carter+President