House votes to sharply cut funding for Public Television

[tenguzero]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...060902283.html

Yup. Here we go again. This administration officially sucks. It's kind of funny when you read into the whole thing. I actually couldn't believe it when I read into the details. I said to people, from the beginning that, it would be interesting if this was a move to curtail what this administration deems to be a challenge to its official stance on things. People bitch all the time that "media is liberal, and it's anti-government..." etc., but you know what? It doesn't take a smart person to realize that the news media is in league with the government. Think about it: when the Homeland Security dept. issues it's little threat warning levels, whos the first to jump all over it -- the media. When some schmuck from the FDA (or which ever department spokesperson issues that BS about "threats to the school lunch system from terrorism") the media was pasting it across the TV screens. Terrorist threat here, nuclear tensions there a scared population is a controllable one. Now, along comes Public Broadcasting stations airing BBC pieces or whatnot -- generally shows that don't paint the picture the administrations want. And what happens? Funding cut. DRASTIC funding cut. This means that, if Public TV were to no longer be able to support itself, then the only source of information and "education" on broadcast TV would be the alphabet soup channels -- with their nightly "scare the crap out of the population" news casts.

All this aside, I'll look at it from just a basic viewpoint -- what will happen to Nova, Sesame Street, Mr. Rogers, Chef Ming, This Old House, history and anthropological specials, and of course differing viewpoints from the crap the alphabet channels spew at us nightly.

Oh well, what the hell. We're drilling for oil in Alaskan preserves, letting illegal aliens waltz over the borders, and all but tipping our hats to big oil and corporate interests. Ridiculous bankruptcy bills anyone? What's the strangulation of a half-century old public broadcast service to these idiots? I can't wait until this sad excuse for an administration is the hell out of here.

[drewh4386]

Originally Posted by tenguzero

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...060902283.html

I can't wait until this sad excuse for an administration is the hell out of here.

It never will. For centuries it will probably continue. I guess they figure that the picture being painted was not horrible enough to keep viewers guessing about what the world is really like. We all should know that the world is ot full of ruins and left over bombed buildings.

[fredjacksonsan]

Idiots; again they're taking the short view.

Of course now we'll start seeing commercials on Sesame Street.

[tenguzero]

Selling more advertising time will probably be the only working answer, but then it makes it a little more tricky to utilize PBS in the classroom, now doesn't it?

I just can't stand it when people bitch about public broadcasting having some sort of bias, whining that they're foistering things like gay acceptance and viewpoints from different angles on people. I mean REALLY, who wants to be subjected to ideas like open-mindedness and free thought? Why, that's utter blasphemy! How dare I turn on my TV and watch a show about Sigmund Freud vs. C.S. Lewis, or the Medici family, or a BBC special, or Nova, or an oversized bird and a puppet in vampire garb educating me on such wonders as the numbers 1,2,3 and the letter G. NOOOOO, I'm expected to turn on the TV, and flip over to Fox or ABC or NBC or CBS or CNN or whatnot, and subject myself to the latest stories of abducted/raped/murdered children, terrorist threat levels, what goes into fictional doomsday devices like "dirty bombs", and the current status of Michael Jackson.

Oh yeah. I don't want to think for myself -- it's better to have some talking head in Washington or ignorant loudmouth in a suit do that for me. Bias in public television they say? Fine, I can play that game too: I'm calling for an end to the bias carried by nearly every government-approved media outlet in the country -- the bias toward keeping people scared silly.

[Broke_as_****]

God knows the last thing we need to think for ourselves, might decide that the office of the President serves the people and not the other way around.

I always like Frontline, especially stories on the war on terror and anything else that is a sore point with the Bush administration. PBS is probably the only broadcasting available without some sort of corporate/government bullshit attached. Now I feel bad for watching so much of it without donating a dime.

On a unrelated topic, anyone watch the Red Green show?

[fredjacksonsan]

I think that perhaps the funding was cut just for the reason that the government can't control PBS like it does the networks. If you think about it, there is a hell of a difference between say, "ABC World News Tonight", which really only says what the US is doing in the world, and "BBC World News", which really does report from around the globe.

The ABC program is basically a rehash of local news, without the local.

BBC on the other hand, delves into what other governments around the world are doing, and actually talks about things OTHER than what the US is doing for part of the show.

Since PBS isn't a network subject to restrictions and advertising, the best way for the government to start controlling is to take away the funding so they will have to accept advertising.

I'm ranting, but this pisses me right off. Combine it with the government taking property, Congress removing presidential term limits, the possible re-ratification of the Patriot Act, and it paints a gloomy picture here in the US for the future, IMO.

[YogsVR4]

Its about time the government started to get out of the supporting news/entertainment outlets. If you want to support PBS - give them a call. They're always on a pledge drive. Get their hands out of the public money machine.

Now there are a huge number of other tax suckers out there that need to be cut off.

[fredjacksonsan]

I know of one tax sucker that should be cut off soon - the financial hemorrhage that is the war in Iraq.

[thrasher]

Originally Posted by fredjacksonsan

I know of one tax sucker that should be cut off soon - the financial hemorrhage that is the war in Iraq.

No way man...let's keep cutting funding to all programs besides "defense". Then, let's go and bomb the shit out of the rest of the world. It'll be great.

[tenguzero]

Whoa now, they ARE proposing cuts in funding to parts of the defense branch... except that by "cuts in funding to parts of the defense branch" I'm referring to the closure of domestic naval bases. But then again, what's the potential loss of 9,000+ jobs to a bunch of suits in Washington?

[drewh4386]

Originally Posted by tenguzero

Whoa now, they ARE proposing cuts in funding to parts of the defense branch... except that by "cuts in funding to parts of the defense branch" I'm referring to the closure of domestic naval bases. But then again, what's the potential loss of 9,000+ jobs to a bunch of suits in Washington?

I mean really? what purpose does some of jobs anyway? As I learned, some money cuts are made so the top 3 chairs can keep making $234960764 (random number) a year.

[Broke_as_****]

Originally Posted by drewh4386

I mean really? what purpose does some of jobs anyway? As I learned, some money cuts are made so the top 3 chairs can keep making $234960764 (random number) a year.

People need to start bringing in facts and hard numbers before this goes much farther.

As for jobs lost?

Welders, A/C techs, draftsmen, electricians, mechanics, machinists, plumbers, cooks, drivers, security guards etc etc etc...a shipyard is a big operation that brings alot of money to a community. Many times when a base or port closes the surrounding communites whither.

[drewh4386]

Originally Posted by Broke_as_****

People need to start bringing in facts and hard numbers before this goes much farther.

As for jobs lost?

Welders, A/C techs, draftsmen, electricians, mechanics, machinists, plumbers, cooks, drivers, security guards etc etc etc...a shipyard is a big operation that brings alot of money to a community. Many times when a base or port closes the surrounding communites whither.

yeah yeah yeah I know that. Im in the navy also. I meant NON military jobs....as in civilians

[2strokebloke]

Totally, with the money saved from PBS, we can build even more nukes we'll never use! Money well spent I say!

[Broke_as_****]

Originally Posted by drewh4386

yeah yeah yeah I know that. Im in the navy also. I meant NON military jobs....as in civilians

I was talking about civilian jobs.

What port are you at? Most military posts I've seen are staffed largely by civilians.