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No Contest Politics
Fox, CNN, MSNBC, C-Span?
Or ESPN?
Politics v. Sports.
A friend of mine -- a life long political junkie -- told me recently that he used to watch more politics than sports.
Now, it's the opposite.
Now, he's given up on politics.
"No competition in politics anymore" he said.
Instead of Fox, CNN, C-Span and MSNBC -- he spends most of his time watching ESPN.
Where there are actually two sides fighting each other to come out on top.
Day in and day out.
Night in and night out.
Jan 06, 2011
Fox, CNN, MSNBC, C-Span?
Or ESPN?
Politics v. Sports.
A friend of mine -- a life long political junkie -- told me recently that he used to watch more politics than sports.
Now, it's the opposite.
Now, he's given up on politics.
"No competition in politics anymore" he said.
Instead of Fox, CNN, C-Span and MSNBC -- he spends most of his time watching ESPN.
Where there are actually two sides fighting each other to come out on top.
Day in and day out.
Night in and night out.
Why is sports more interesting than politics?
Slam dunk answer.
Increasingly, Americans are starting to realize that -- on hard core
economic issues -- both Republicans and Democrats are playing for the
same owner.
Break up the six big too big to fail banks? (Wells Fargo, JP Morgan
Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley.)
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
President Obama is reportedly now considering hiring Bill Daley as his new chief of staff.
Bill Daley -- for the last seven years, a senior executive for JP Morgan Chase -- one of the biggest banks in America.
And you are going to hear the White House advocate for breaking up the too big to fail banks?
No.
Get rid of the private health insurance corporations?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Tax the hyper rich?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Cut the bloated military budget?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
End the war in Afghanistan?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed. (With the Wall Street Journal reporting today
that President Obama is sending 1,400 more combat troops to
Afghanistan.)
So, the only competition is between the American people and the political establishment.
That's the real contest.
But the American people have no team in the playoffs.
We're not on ESPN.
Or Fox.
Or CNN.
Or MSNBC.
It's a rigged game in Washington.
Both teams are playing for the same owners.
Wall Street.
The big banks.
The insurance corporations.
The wealthiest one percent that owns as much as the bottom 90 percent of the American people.
The military industrial complex.
My friend is right.
There is no competition in American politics anymore.
Why watch?
We know the outcome before the kickoff.
So, this weekend, America is going to kick back the barcolounger.
Pop open a beer.
And turn on ESPN.
Politics v. Sports?
No contest.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
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Russell Mokhiber
Russell Mokhiber is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime Reporter. He is also founder of singlepayeraction.org, and editor of the website Morgan County USA.
Fox, CNN, MSNBC, C-Span?
Or ESPN?
Politics v. Sports.
A friend of mine -- a life long political junkie -- told me recently that he used to watch more politics than sports.
Now, it's the opposite.
Now, he's given up on politics.
"No competition in politics anymore" he said.
Instead of Fox, CNN, C-Span and MSNBC -- he spends most of his time watching ESPN.
Where there are actually two sides fighting each other to come out on top.
Day in and day out.
Night in and night out.
Why is sports more interesting than politics?
Slam dunk answer.
Increasingly, Americans are starting to realize that -- on hard core
economic issues -- both Republicans and Democrats are playing for the
same owner.
Break up the six big too big to fail banks? (Wells Fargo, JP Morgan
Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley.)
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
President Obama is reportedly now considering hiring Bill Daley as his new chief of staff.
Bill Daley -- for the last seven years, a senior executive for JP Morgan Chase -- one of the biggest banks in America.
And you are going to hear the White House advocate for breaking up the too big to fail banks?
No.
Get rid of the private health insurance corporations?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Tax the hyper rich?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Cut the bloated military budget?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
End the war in Afghanistan?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed. (With the Wall Street Journal reporting today
that President Obama is sending 1,400 more combat troops to
Afghanistan.)
So, the only competition is between the American people and the political establishment.
That's the real contest.
But the American people have no team in the playoffs.
We're not on ESPN.
Or Fox.
Or CNN.
Or MSNBC.
It's a rigged game in Washington.
Both teams are playing for the same owners.
Wall Street.
The big banks.
The insurance corporations.
The wealthiest one percent that owns as much as the bottom 90 percent of the American people.
The military industrial complex.
My friend is right.
There is no competition in American politics anymore.
Why watch?
We know the outcome before the kickoff.
So, this weekend, America is going to kick back the barcolounger.
Pop open a beer.
And turn on ESPN.
Politics v. Sports?
No contest.
Russell Mokhiber
Russell Mokhiber is editor of the Washington, D.C.-based Corporate Crime Reporter. He is also founder of singlepayeraction.org, and editor of the website Morgan County USA.
Fox, CNN, MSNBC, C-Span?
Or ESPN?
Politics v. Sports.
A friend of mine -- a life long political junkie -- told me recently that he used to watch more politics than sports.
Now, it's the opposite.
Now, he's given up on politics.
"No competition in politics anymore" he said.
Instead of Fox, CNN, C-Span and MSNBC -- he spends most of his time watching ESPN.
Where there are actually two sides fighting each other to come out on top.
Day in and day out.
Night in and night out.
Why is sports more interesting than politics?
Slam dunk answer.
Increasingly, Americans are starting to realize that -- on hard core
economic issues -- both Republicans and Democrats are playing for the
same owner.
Break up the six big too big to fail banks? (Wells Fargo, JP Morgan
Chase, Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley.)
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
President Obama is reportedly now considering hiring Bill Daley as his new chief of staff.
Bill Daley -- for the last seven years, a senior executive for JP Morgan Chase -- one of the biggest banks in America.
And you are going to hear the White House advocate for breaking up the too big to fail banks?
No.
Get rid of the private health insurance corporations?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Tax the hyper rich?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
Cut the bloated military budget?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed.
End the war in Afghanistan?
American people in favor.
Both parties opposed. (With the Wall Street Journal reporting today
that President Obama is sending 1,400 more combat troops to
Afghanistan.)
So, the only competition is between the American people and the political establishment.
That's the real contest.
But the American people have no team in the playoffs.
We're not on ESPN.
Or Fox.
Or CNN.
Or MSNBC.
It's a rigged game in Washington.
Both teams are playing for the same owners.
Wall Street.
The big banks.
The insurance corporations.
The wealthiest one percent that owns as much as the bottom 90 percent of the American people.
The military industrial complex.
My friend is right.
There is no competition in American politics anymore.
Why watch?
We know the outcome before the kickoff.
So, this weekend, America is going to kick back the barcolounger.
Pop open a beer.
And turn on ESPN.
Politics v. Sports?
No contest.
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.