Phoney Wars and Real Ones
There's an awful lot of joking, jiving and just plain goof in this election. Sarah Palin alone has attracted an avalanche of spoof... Campaign ads on both sides are so over-the-top as to induce disbelief.
Oct 03, 2008
There's an awful lot of joking, jiving and just plain goof in this election. Sarah Palin alone has attracted an avalanche of spoof... Campaign ads on both sides are so over-the-top as to induce disbelief.
One of the most serious elections in our lifetimes is playing out as entertainment television. But it's not very entertaining if you're watching in Afghanistan or Iraq, where despite claims of success, killing continues and the prospects of enduring peace - after years of intense fighting - are grim. . A 100,000-strong Sunni militia remains loyal to the US so long as the monthly stipends keep on coming. After that, who knows? Discontent in Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, Yemen and even Saudi Arabia threatens to explode, there's so much poverty and corruption. And Israel and the Palestinians seem worlds away from achieving a meaningful peace. Even within his own party, former Israeli prime minister Olmert's call for Israel to relinquish East Jerusalem and the West Bank is likely to fall on deaf ears.
The only war we've been hearing about recently is the phoney one in Congress. The House and Senate have been said to be "battling it out" over the baiiout. That's looking like it'll end with a grand Kum-bay-yah for Wall St. But that doesn't mean the real wars are over. The US invasion of Iraq's cost as much as the $700 billion bailout already, and there's no end in sight.
That's nothing to laugh about.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. Join with us today! |
© 2023 Laura Flanders
Laura Flanders
Laura Flanders interviews forward-thinking people about the key questions of our time on The Laura Flanders Show, a nationally syndicated radio and television program also available as a podcast. A contributing writer to The Nation, Flanders is also the author of six books, including "Bushwomen: How They Won the White House for Their Man" (2005). She is the recipient of a 2019 Izzy Award for excellence in independent journalism, the Pat Mitchell Lifetime Achievement Award for advancing women's and girls' visibility in media, and a 2020 Lannan Cultural Freedom Fellowship for her reporting and advocacy for public media. lauraflanders.org
There's an awful lot of joking, jiving and just plain goof in this election. Sarah Palin alone has attracted an avalanche of spoof... Campaign ads on both sides are so over-the-top as to induce disbelief.
One of the most serious elections in our lifetimes is playing out as entertainment television. But it's not very entertaining if you're watching in Afghanistan or Iraq, where despite claims of success, killing continues and the prospects of enduring peace - after years of intense fighting - are grim. . A 100,000-strong Sunni militia remains loyal to the US so long as the monthly stipends keep on coming. After that, who knows? Discontent in Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, Yemen and even Saudi Arabia threatens to explode, there's so much poverty and corruption. And Israel and the Palestinians seem worlds away from achieving a meaningful peace. Even within his own party, former Israeli prime minister Olmert's call for Israel to relinquish East Jerusalem and the West Bank is likely to fall on deaf ears.
The only war we've been hearing about recently is the phoney one in Congress. The House and Senate have been said to be "battling it out" over the baiiout. That's looking like it'll end with a grand Kum-bay-yah for Wall St. But that doesn't mean the real wars are over. The US invasion of Iraq's cost as much as the $700 billion bailout already, and there's no end in sight.
That's nothing to laugh about.
Laura Flanders
Laura Flanders interviews forward-thinking people about the key questions of our time on The Laura Flanders Show, a nationally syndicated radio and television program also available as a podcast. A contributing writer to The Nation, Flanders is also the author of six books, including "Bushwomen: How They Won the White House for Their Man" (2005). She is the recipient of a 2019 Izzy Award for excellence in independent journalism, the Pat Mitchell Lifetime Achievement Award for advancing women's and girls' visibility in media, and a 2020 Lannan Cultural Freedom Fellowship for her reporting and advocacy for public media. lauraflanders.org
There's an awful lot of joking, jiving and just plain goof in this election. Sarah Palin alone has attracted an avalanche of spoof... Campaign ads on both sides are so over-the-top as to induce disbelief.
One of the most serious elections in our lifetimes is playing out as entertainment television. But it's not very entertaining if you're watching in Afghanistan or Iraq, where despite claims of success, killing continues and the prospects of enduring peace - after years of intense fighting - are grim. . A 100,000-strong Sunni militia remains loyal to the US so long as the monthly stipends keep on coming. After that, who knows? Discontent in Egypt, Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, Yemen and even Saudi Arabia threatens to explode, there's so much poverty and corruption. And Israel and the Palestinians seem worlds away from achieving a meaningful peace. Even within his own party, former Israeli prime minister Olmert's call for Israel to relinquish East Jerusalem and the West Bank is likely to fall on deaf ears.
The only war we've been hearing about recently is the phoney one in Congress. The House and Senate have been said to be "battling it out" over the baiiout. That's looking like it'll end with a grand Kum-bay-yah for Wall St. But that doesn't mean the real wars are over. The US invasion of Iraq's cost as much as the $700 billion bailout already, and there's no end in sight.
That's nothing to laugh about.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.