Both Sides

So far so good with the Saturday weather. We have a bit of sunshine this morning and that is good. The guys dashed out and purchased the lumber and more supplies for the big Eagle Scout project of the son's scheduled for next weekend. To say it will be a relief when this whole episode is over is an understatement. I realize achieving the rank of Eagle Scout is suppose to be difficult, noteworthy. But,man, I sure understand why such a small amount of boys go through with it. Jump through this hoop, then this one, that one, submit this paperwork, confer with this supervisor, blah, blah, blah.

We teach our children that actions have consequences, don't we? I think that's why most adults have little patience for other adults who seem to have forgotten that lesson. I read an article in the Vail Daily newspaper a couple of days ago. Writer Allen Best was detailing the decline of ski group reservations in Telluride for the upcoming winter season. Why? Seems it is a backlash resulting from a resolution adopted by the Telluride Town Council recently calling for the impeachment of President Bush and VP Cheney. This brought a bit of a chuckle from me as I remembered, just a week or so ago, watching a Houston City Council meeting on local access cable and the Cindy Sheehan folks there to call for impeachment, too. Our city council, however, declined to bite. They rose above petty partisanship and thought of the greater consequences of such actions for the city. The Houston City Council is predominantly liberal Democrat, as is the Mayor, a former Clinton administration deputy secretary of Energy, so it's not like the urge to do such things isn't there. The issue has been brought up before by councilpersons. So far it hasn't gone anywhere.

Do the folks calling for impeachment at city council meetings, many of whom don't even live in the community but are brought in for demonstration purposes, think that only anti-administration people live or visit the city? Do they not even think that such resolutions will offend or anger reasonable citizens?

One commenter, on the subject of ski group cancellations wrote, "Let 'em go to Vail". Telluride's Mayor John Pryor remarked to the newspaper that he found the number of cancellations coming in "unbelievable". "Hundreds of people are bailing. The Web site is flooded with people saying they're canceling their vacations here." He called it a 'silly initiative', yet he voted for it.

There's a growing group of liberal activists, encouraged and organized by MoveOn.org, the Campaign for America's Future and blogs like DailyKos.com, who are compiling a database of advertisers on Fox News. The advertisers are to be targeted by the moonbats demanding they stop advertising on Fox. They plan telephone campaigns, with the first to go to local businesses running ads, then on to the national commercials.

Already Home Depot has been targeted by the moonbats and has held firm. They have stated, "We're not in the business of censoring media," "We need to reach our customer base through all mediums available."

You remember what recently happened to JetBlue, don't you? When corporations succumb to such political grandstanding and censorship, they soon learn that consumers come with all kinds of political beliefs. Those opposing censorship soon simply go elsewhere.

Doesn't it seem that those loudly opposed to the existence of Fox News have never actually watched the channel or not enough to actually analyse the programming? During the daytime programming, the news shows are hourly programs and each anchor is responsibly presenting both sides of each argument. Both conservative and liberal guests argue the issues. In the evening, which get all the headlines, the news shows are commentary/opinion shows, not hard news. First is O'Reilly, with a conservative bent to the events of the day but usually shows both sides, then Hannity and Colmes, one conservative, one liberal and their guests represent both sides, then Greta who usually has crime investigations and not political issues being discussed.

So, what's the problem? Fox News is a lot more balanced that CNN or any of the networks or other cable channels. Any wonder why Fox has twice the ratings of CNN? Triple MSNBC? Do you think there are twice as many conservatives as liberals in this country? No. Viewers from all spots on the political landscape watch.

And, that's the problem for the far left, isn't it? If Fox wasn't successful, they wouldn't waste their time or money to shut them down. The very fact that a network presents a conservative point of view is noticeable to the far left. How dare they? Only our speech is worthy of free speech, they think.

MoveOn and the others even cowed the Dem candidates from appearing on Fox for a debate, co-sponsored by the Congressional Black Caucus, as had been done in 2004. The first to be cowed? John Edwards. If he's afraid of Fox News, how will he be strong enough to run the country? Is that why he plays good cop/bad cop with Elizabeth?

The same goes for talk radio. Back in the 1980's when conservative talk radio began the market was ripe for it. There was no where else for conservatives to turn to hear their point of view. It sure wasn't on network news, back in the pre-cable days of only the three big alphabet networks. Liberal talk radio has mostly failed because the outlet isn't necessary. Liberals get their strokes everywhere. Air America failed because it was full of nothing but anger and hosts not particularly well educated, or so it seemed. No one wants to hear hours of rants. Al Franken? Janeane Garafola? Seriously? Franken is running against Norm Coleman for the Senate in Mn now and that should be interesting. Coleman was once the Dem mayor of Minneapolis and knows how to fight back. Garafola once said in an interview that she became involved in political speech when she got clean and sober. OK then.

So, the haters just don't want to hear it. Too bad. This country remains pretty evenly divided between conservatives and liberals. That's why the atmosphere is so contentious.

Free speech goes both ways.