Bigthink - Feature Comments Feed

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:35:56 +0100

Interesting to see some of the comments a few months ago re: Iran. I like revisiting this page because of how little changes. And how scary that is.

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 20:42:32 +0100

David Remnick is letting major media off easy. The question that really needs to be asked is WHY Knight Ridder got it right and the biggies all got it wrong. And until that question is thoroughly and honestly addressed, major media outlets will never learn from their mistakes.

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Mon, 04 Feb 2008 16:01:48 +0100

No, BUT..... Yes Bush and Cheney and his, then, cabinet lied to everyone, including the MEDIA, to drum up support for an unjust attack against IRAQ. What's done is done and must be seen to whatever conclusion the next administration and the UN and the Iraqi government decide upon. Yes the media has a responsibility to dig deeper to uncover deception by any political candidate or elected official. They certainly dropped the ball with Iraq, but the country was still smarting from 911 at the time. I'm still not entirely convinced Cheney or some of his business associates didn't help to orchestrate 911, which would certainly explain why the course-change from Afganistan and Osama Bin Laden, to the distraction of Iraq. Please do not tell me an American could not possibly be that evil. How about the Enron CEO who bilked employees out of their life savings to get even richer. Would killing them have been any more cruel???
Of course, any eveidence has been erased and it is after all, a conspiracy theory, at best. But my point is, the current administration has never had America's best interests in mind when doing anything. They serve themselves and their wealthy well-connected friends and business associates. How many of our honorable American soldiers have fought and died in a war our leaders knew was unjustified?
Don't tell me that isn't evil and heartless of Dick & George. Surrounding themselves with YES Men & Women, who only agree to go
along with any twisted plan they come up with. Why else would so many cabinet members have jumped ship in the middle?? They couldn't sleep at night!!!
But I digress, again.
The media did look the other way, so to speak, but we can forgive them, to a point. Even now, I do not trust the nightly news on any network, especially FoxNews. So slanted, it should be called RushNews!! But that's what we get for having Free Speech.
We all have to do our best to dig for the real facts ourselves. Digg.com is a website that reports on news you may not see on other more mainstream sources.
There are many others, but I usually look at a lot of sources to get an average of what news and opinion is out there. Never rely on only one source to make informed decisions upon!!
I would have hoped the media would have given Dr. Ron Paul more attention by now, but alas!!, it is not the case. No surprise, there.
Big Media panders, too. Fox is owned and run by a very wealthy man, who it seems to like tax cuts for the wealthy and unfair help for Big Business and a "screw the poor" attitude
in his political candidates. I love a lot of Fox shows, like the Simpsons and Family Guy and House, but their News Channel is a joke.
And Fox even makes fun of itself for just that quality, but some people watch their News like it is un-biased. Rose colored glasses, I guess.
Americans needs a wake-up call when it comes to thinking for themselves. Stop letting others do it for you!!

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 12:20:26 +0100

No. The media is not an entity, the people that are responsible for the war in Iraq are Irving Kristol, George Bush, C.L.Rice, Donald Rumsfeld, Paul Wolfowitz, Dick Cheney, John Ashcroft, Colin Powell, Karl Rove and Tony Blair.

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 06:16:57 +0100

These questions are not just the past. The drums of war are now beating against Iran.

The Bush Administration has tied the generation of nuclear power with the development of nuclear weapons. However the degree of enrichment required and thus the technical ability are very different.

The IAEA can tell the difference between enrichment for different purposes. If Iran subjects itself to IAEA scrutiny then there is no case for war.

Despite this the press simply reports the Bush Administration line.

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 06:09:52 +0100

These are not theoretical questions regarding the past. The Drums of war are now beating against Iran.

The Bush Administration irrevocably ties nuclear power generation with the ability to generate nuclear weapons. I understood that the degree of enrichment is much different, requiring very different levels of technical ability. The IAEA claims to be able to tell the difference.

The press seems willing to ignore the role of the IAEA.

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:59:34 +0100

Sorry I meant Paul Krugman not Richard Bransen!

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:55:48 +0100

Found Richard Bransen's comments shed light on what I and many others from the general public suspected was happening in the lead up to Iraq war. But I was most annoyed with our politicians in Australia and those in England who just regurgitated the emotive messages coming from Bush administration. We are not idiots, we need DETAILED INFORMATION if we are to back up our politicians on such an important decision they have made on our behalf. I looked on in disbelief and wondered who our own Australian politicians were listening to, or more to the point NOT listening to say so little at the time.
My questions then and now are, how can I personally make a difference in making a change for the better,and how can we ensure our politicians make more informed decisions>

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 03:22:55 +0100

I believe this argument is effective in getting the point across: the media could have done a better job at informing the readers. However, there are certain things the public don%u2019t want to hear, especially if it means they%u2019re wrong. Another thing is that it isn%u2019t entirely the media%u2019s fault there is war in Iraq, it was the people who chose to believe and are now looking for a scapegoat.
Yes, the media has some responsibility in the war. They were responsible for informing the public of what was going on, instead they downplayed demonstrations against the war and few news organizations came out and said that it was wrong.
As Paul Krugman said, what happened was that after 9-11 people rallied behind the government. The media was pressured to not publicize what was really up because organizations questioned what they did. It%u2019s not the first time in the history of man that the public backs up their government after an emergency, Argentineans rallied around La Junta. Not only was it the people that closed themselves, but Krugman also mentions the White House closing access to media.
Krugman recommends not trusting the press, at least not yet. I can see why, they have given us reason not to. He does say to read critically as there has been a %u201Ccomedown since the case of Watergate and the Pentagon Papers.%u201D

Comment on: Big Think Guests on Iraq

Bigthink — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 00:55:53 +0100

For years, in lectures to journalism students, I mentioned how the Internet might have changed U.S. involvement in Vietnam. I remembered the teach-ins during the early years, and all those Indochina books written in French and ignored in America. Then came the popular Internet, easy worldwide communications, and the Iraq War. A great disappointment to me while observing European and American coverage from Ireland.