“Heartland:” A Glimpse
Travelling is my time to do things I wouldn’t normally do, like drink a lot of soda, or today, watch some Fox News, to hear what’s going on in the mind of “Red America.” What is going on, apparently, is a whole lot of whining. They are running the country, the economy is doing well, and Iraq seems like it just might work out, and they are whining in outrage about the evils of the world.
He’s got his panties in a bunch, the Bill O’Reilly wannabe of Fox’s “Heartland.” The show bills itself as a discussion, but the discussions mostly take the form of “I think this is outrageous! Let’s ask a guest who agrees with me! Okay, now for someone with a different point of view. Well, that’s interesting and I respect you but we don’t have time to actually discuss anything, because I have twenty other things to crab about before my show ends.” Every perceived outrage, anywhere in the world, and he manages to rave about it for two or three minutes, before cutting to the next whine, or commercial.
One object of his frustration: a kid was told by the school principal that he couldn’t bring his Bible to school to read during recess. As an Atheist, even I tend to figure that if a kid wants to read to himself that he ought to be free to do that. “Now, are we gonna SUE SOMEONE!?” On the other hand, I understand that in France schools are intentionally secular – the idea is that public school should be a place for children to grow free of any religious influence. I can see that side of the argument too. I think … reasonable people can disagree and then argue and work something out.
“Are we gonna SUE SOMEONE!?”
The truth? Cathy Summa of Karns Elementary School, in Knox County, Tennessee, says there is no prohibition regarding Bible-reading at recess, but when asked by a child if he could lead a Bible discussion during recess, she responded that such activities were supposed to happen outside of the school day. Before or after …
Meanwhile, in Oklahoma, some evil Federal judge, I think the term used was “Dictator,” overturned a popular amendment to the Oklahoma constitution that banned any recognition for same-sex couples. A guest, defending the judge’s ruling, explained that the amendment had been so broadly written that when a legislator tried to bring a bill forward regarding the rights of gay couples to determine the disposition of their lovers’ remains, the bill was nixed outright, because the constitution prohibited any recognition for gay couples … you can’t consider a bill for something that doesn’t exist!
“But they voted 70%!! This is a Dictatorship of the Judiciary!!” (Or words to that effect.) Where’s the check on power!? Does this mean we have more ammunition to destroy the filibuster? (We did not hear one mention of the “tyranny of the majority.” The “tyranny” was square on some old guy in a black robe. “Fair and Balanced” by ass.)
It reminded me of something my friend mentioned at dinner on Friday, that the Islamic world has been so troubled for so long that all they know how to do is whine and blame others for their predicament. It is my hope, because really it is the only non-awful choice, that the Iraqis will successfully take responsibility for themselves, and serve as a roll model to other Muslims, and we’ll all be a lot better off. But it is sad, really sad, and just a bit scary, when we see Americans wallowing in the same aversive mentality.
[Flickr]
America’s Beauty
And then there’s a commercial for a purple pill for those who are at risk for stomach ulcers. If you ask me, if you are at risk for stomach ulcers, you shouldn’t watch exciteable twits on television, who make an outrage of every potential insult. For me it was switching off the TV and watching the snow-capped mountains of the real Heartland out the window. Even with all the whining “conservative” men on TV, this country is still beautiful.
Though, if you want beauty and conservative ranting, Michelle Malkin is hot. You can’t tell it from the “alien head” picture on her blog, but she looked very nice on “Heartland.” They should give her her own show, because if you’re going to be a nattering ideologue, better to trade trade “yet another chubby pasty white man” with someone whose visage is enhanced by lip gloss. Though, that may dent the audience’s marketability for stomach ulcer and erectile dysfunction remedies.
