"Values voters" - that was a term tossed around a lot during the 2004 elections, and now its back. All the Republican candidates are flip-flopping like crazy to woo the crucial value voters.
I have just one question - what the @#$!#$% hell are value voters? Since when are bashing gays and forcing women to have children considered "values"?? And what about the other values in life? Like you know, not torturing people, or invading countries for oil? How about not misleading a people into war, or not scaring them into giving up liberties?
I don't even buy the idea that religious people are the "value voters". I mean, doesn't being "Christian" mean having compassion for others? Caring for the poor and the needy? Judging not lest ye be judged?
All I can conclude is that the Republican party has the best PR machine ever. They've convinced the followers of Jesus they belong on the same team as the rich bloodsuckers. And they've convinced the mainstream media to adopt their ridiculous, dishonest characterization of the electorate.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Monday, October 08, 2007
Every age has its heroes
(Despite what it sounds like, this is not a post about Yuvraj or Dhoni!)
I caught a rerun of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) tonight. An episode I'd missed last week. Usually the monologue's the best part, but tonight was different.
The interview was with Chris Matthews from Hardball (MSNBC?) Chris Matthews, who I've never watched, was promoting his new book - "Life's a campaign: What Politics Has Taught Me About Friendship, Rivalry, Reputation, and Success".
Now, I don't know about you - but when I saw that title, it didn't make me warm and fuzzy all over. "Life's a Campaign" is definitely not the moral lesson I want to pass down to my children. So I wasn't surprised when Jon started chaffing Chris about the title.
"It sounds like a recipe for sadness..."
But Chris disagreed vehemently, and it went downhill from there.
Ok, lets face it - went downhill for Chris, not for Jon and certainly not the audience. There was no shouting match, no fist fights, and both of them were laughing copiously throughout. But it was very uncomfortable laughter - Jon was laughing to take the edge off his remarks, while Chris was just laughing in disbelief. Throughout the interview, Jon didn't back off from his main position; he was polite but insistent. The book did not have a moral core. Political campaigns were a series of orchestrated, contrived, fake events. And telling people to treat life that way - to win by lying and pretending and attacking, was shallow and wrong. Chris, on the other hand, couldn't believe what was happening, he felt he'd been ambushed!
"You're trashing my book!"
"No, I'm trashing your philosophy of life"
...
"This is the worst book interview ever... Why don't you come on Hardball, two can play at this game!"
Jon's response? "I don't troll"
Does this remind you of anything? My introduction to Jon Stewart was the Crossfire interview he did a couple of years ago, where he told off Tucker Carlson. And I stumbled upon that while following Stephen Colbert's extremely ballsy act at the White House Correspondent's Dinner.
I could not get over either of those two videos! Here finally, finally, someone was talking sense. I wasn't crazy to hate network news, it wasn't weird when TV felt like an episode from Through the Looking Glass. There were others who felt the same way! And they were up there, saying it - very articulately and even funnily!
Now I'm a cynic, and I've often wondered about the motivation behind Jon's Crossfire interview. It paid off big time and clearly did wonders for his popularity. Was it yet another orchestrated display of insincere emotion? Was he just playing to his core audience? Maybe. Probably. But at the end of the day, I agreed with what he said and I liked the way he said it. What more can I ask for? A window into a stranger's soul?
Colbert's speech was far gutsier - roasting the President of your country when he's sitting five feet away? Performing before a live audience that you're alienating with every word? Of course, he must have hoped it would become a viral video sensation overnight.. But still, those must have been ten terrifying minutes.
Jon Stewart's show is very hit-and-miss in funniness. But his opinions are sound (or atleast, they agree with mine, which is essentially the same thing). Among all the talk shows I've seen, his - paradoxically, the comic one - stands out for its integrity, honesty and penetrating insight. (Remember, insight is not less penetrating because its expressed as a joke.) And it is pretty clear that a lot of young Americans agree with me. You see all these surveys about how the majority of youngsters are getting their news from Comedy Central these days. But you know what? I've watched Jon Stewart's five minute monologue, I've watched CNN's Headline news and I've watched Fox News' Weekend edition on Sundays. They all contain an equal amount of content. So why the hell not??
I know what you guys are thinking... Seriously, Mugdha? You're holding up a late night fake news comedy anchor as a hero? Well, you play with the cards you're dealt. I would much rather idolize a bright eyed young moral statesman or an idealistic resistance fighter. Even a brave athlete, who wins against all odds. But lets face it - all politicians have lost their wide eyed idealism before they get elected, all resistance fighters are corpulent dictators in the making, and most athletes are either doped up on steroids, knee deep in match fixing or just plain stupid.
I can see now why people got so excited about Gandhi - it is so rare to see an honest to goodness good man on the public stage. The last one I can think of is Nelson Mandela.
Maybe there will be another one in my lifetime.
Until then, I will have to settle for a 5'6" guy who does something very very rare. He comes on in front of a camera, and actually talks sense!
Jon Stewart, you're my hero!
(and Stephen Colbert, you too!)
I caught a rerun of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart (Comedy Central) tonight. An episode I'd missed last week. Usually the monologue's the best part, but tonight was different.
The interview was with Chris Matthews from Hardball (MSNBC?) Chris Matthews, who I've never watched, was promoting his new book - "Life's a campaign: What Politics Has Taught Me About Friendship, Rivalry, Reputation, and Success".
Now, I don't know about you - but when I saw that title, it didn't make me warm and fuzzy all over. "Life's a Campaign" is definitely not the moral lesson I want to pass down to my children. So I wasn't surprised when Jon started chaffing Chris about the title.
"It sounds like a recipe for sadness..."
But Chris disagreed vehemently, and it went downhill from there.
Ok, lets face it - went downhill for Chris, not for Jon and certainly not the audience. There was no shouting match, no fist fights, and both of them were laughing copiously throughout. But it was very uncomfortable laughter - Jon was laughing to take the edge off his remarks, while Chris was just laughing in disbelief. Throughout the interview, Jon didn't back off from his main position; he was polite but insistent. The book did not have a moral core. Political campaigns were a series of orchestrated, contrived, fake events. And telling people to treat life that way - to win by lying and pretending and attacking, was shallow and wrong. Chris, on the other hand, couldn't believe what was happening, he felt he'd been ambushed!
"You're trashing my book!"
"No, I'm trashing your philosophy of life"
...
"This is the worst book interview ever... Why don't you come on Hardball, two can play at this game!"
Jon's response? "I don't troll"
Does this remind you of anything? My introduction to Jon Stewart was the Crossfire interview he did a couple of years ago, where he told off Tucker Carlson. And I stumbled upon that while following Stephen Colbert's extremely ballsy act at the White House Correspondent's Dinner.
I could not get over either of those two videos! Here finally, finally, someone was talking sense. I wasn't crazy to hate network news, it wasn't weird when TV felt like an episode from Through the Looking Glass. There were others who felt the same way! And they were up there, saying it - very articulately and even funnily!
Now I'm a cynic, and I've often wondered about the motivation behind Jon's Crossfire interview. It paid off big time and clearly did wonders for his popularity. Was it yet another orchestrated display of insincere emotion? Was he just playing to his core audience? Maybe. Probably. But at the end of the day, I agreed with what he said and I liked the way he said it. What more can I ask for? A window into a stranger's soul?
Colbert's speech was far gutsier - roasting the President of your country when he's sitting five feet away? Performing before a live audience that you're alienating with every word? Of course, he must have hoped it would become a viral video sensation overnight.. But still, those must have been ten terrifying minutes.
Jon Stewart's show is very hit-and-miss in funniness. But his opinions are sound (or atleast, they agree with mine, which is essentially the same thing). Among all the talk shows I've seen, his - paradoxically, the comic one - stands out for its integrity, honesty and penetrating insight. (Remember, insight is not less penetrating because its expressed as a joke.) And it is pretty clear that a lot of young Americans agree with me. You see all these surveys about how the majority of youngsters are getting their news from Comedy Central these days. But you know what? I've watched Jon Stewart's five minute monologue, I've watched CNN's Headline news and I've watched Fox News' Weekend edition on Sundays. They all contain an equal amount of content. So why the hell not??
I know what you guys are thinking... Seriously, Mugdha? You're holding up a late night fake news comedy anchor as a hero? Well, you play with the cards you're dealt. I would much rather idolize a bright eyed young moral statesman or an idealistic resistance fighter. Even a brave athlete, who wins against all odds. But lets face it - all politicians have lost their wide eyed idealism before they get elected, all resistance fighters are corpulent dictators in the making, and most athletes are either doped up on steroids, knee deep in match fixing or just plain stupid.
I can see now why people got so excited about Gandhi - it is so rare to see an honest to goodness good man on the public stage. The last one I can think of is Nelson Mandela.
Maybe there will be another one in my lifetime.
Until then, I will have to settle for a 5'6" guy who does something very very rare. He comes on in front of a camera, and actually talks sense!
Jon Stewart, you're my hero!
(and Stephen Colbert, you too!)
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