Susan Bruce [03/27/2009]

By Susan Bruce

In a time when many Americans are losing their jobs and homes, the one safe place to be employed seems to be cable TV news. There is no shortage of talking heads to rehash the same issues over and over. There is seldom any news, and certainly no actual reporting just news models, repeating the same things, endlessly. In fact, CNN and Fox News have even given new life to commentators like the virtuous Bill Bennett, and the toe-sucking Dick Morris. Anyone with an intellect higher than that of a sea sponge doesnt have any expectations of intelligent commentary from Fox, but when did CNN become a Fox clone? Night after night, a parade of privileged beltway handwringers holds forth on the economy in particular, the Wall Street economy. They have no interest in whats happening to real working people. They dont cover the tent cities that are springing up in warmer climates, or the shocking increase in homeless children. Ali Velshi, with his ooompa-looompa orange makeup pontificates nightly on the fate of Wall Street, AIG, and the incomes of the wealthy, or at least the still employed with the assumption that all Americans are heavily invested in Wall Street. The real world does not intrude. The 24-hour cable news cycle creates a sense of dishonest urgency. We hear them screaming about the economy for weeks, and wonder, why hasnt Obama fixed it yet? None of the banshees are honest enough to point out that what is wrong with the economy actually has its roots in the Reagan administration 30 years ago. This isnt going to be fixed overnight. Well be digging ourselves out of this mess for decades. Speaking of St. Ronnie a reminder. Ronald Reagan doubled the national debt and tripled the deficit while he was in office. The recession/depression has certainly brought about an amazing transformation Republicans are suddenly talking about fiscal responsibility! For eight long years, they were silent while the Bush Administration did its best to destroy the U.S. economy. In fact, they stood by and applauded while Bush borrowed close to a trillion dollars to pay for the war he shouldnt have started in the first place. There was no pious talk of the debt we would be saddling our children and grandchildren with coming from them not then, anyhow. New Hampshires own senior U.S. Senator, Judd Gregg, is determined to stay in the limelight, after his abortive cabinet nomination. A few weeks ago, he published an op-ed in the Washington Times where he spoke of the proposed Obama budget, In other words, the president's proposal is a massive and breathtaking document, and it should not be called a budget. Rather, it should be called a blueprint for the France-ification of America, a notebook for nationalization, or a memo for massive debt creation. Where was Judd for the last eight years, while Bush poured taxpayer dollars into Iraq without even getting a receipt? Oh, thats right Sen. Gregg was busy waving pom-poms in his cheerleader uniform as he worked hard to pass every single Bush budget. Senator Gregg was happy to borrow enormous sums and hand them over to the Pentagon. This is the same Pentagon that cant pass an audit, or account for some $2.6 trillion in cash and assets. A look at the federal discretionary budget pie chart reveals that more than half of the pie goes to the Pentagon. A little tiny sliver goes to education. This illustrates our national spending priorities very clearly. Were more interested in killing people than educating them. Still, one has to admire Judd Greggs audacity. He can opine about France-ification knowing that the media certainly wont be holding him accountable, in Washington or New Hampshire. Its even almost understandable. Gregg doesnt want to make changes to the U.S. health care system. He has excellent health insurance, and thats all that matters! Those silly Frenchies, those cheese-eating surrender monkeys why they have the best health care system in the world! France has the healthiest people. You can see why Bootstrap Judd would hate the French. According to GOP gospel, health care is reserved for the deserving and the wealthy. Those socialists in France think everyone should have equally good care. By all means, lets issue a collective national sneer against that idea. In looking through statistics to find out what it is that the United States is number one in, these days, I found interesting statistics. Finland is No. 1 in education; Sweden is No. 1 in literacy. The United States ranks 45th in public spending on education. The Netherlands is No. 1 in civil and political liberties, followed by Australia, Sweden, Canada, New Zealand, Denmark, and the United States in seventh place. Iceland is No. 1 in DSL access, while the United States is 21st. Norway is No. 1 in gender empowerment, while the United States ranks No. 11. This was all kind of depressing, so I dug deeper, to find a couple of areas where the United States is doing very well. Were No. 2 in child poverty! Mexico is No. 1, but the increase in joblessness and homelessness may well push us over into first place. We can all go forth and trumpet our pride at being Number One in teen pregnancies! Abstinence-only sex ed has been a success after all. WE'RE NUMBER ONE!The United States spends more on defense than all other countries in the world, combined. As a result of that kind of prioritizing, we are increasingly less healthy, less educated, less literate, and less free. It would be worth discussing that, as we attempt to rebuild the U.S. economy. Probably, no nation is rich enough to pay for both war and civilization. We must make our choice; we cannot have both. Abraham Flexner Susan Bruce is a writer and activist who lives in Jackson. Visit her blog at susanthebruce.blogspot.com