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Showing posts from August, 2012

On the Serious Politics of Lying

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It’s silly season. And it would be laughable if elections weren’t downright serious. We’re about to see the worst of politics. It’s been building all summer, but now the money really flows. So, here we go. “Awash in money” is an understatement as the 1% bids for owning the political winners. The system is drowning in corporate and billionaire’s contributions. As cowboy-comedian Will Rogers, Jr, put it generations ago: “We’ve got the best Congress money can buy.” Not telling the truth has always been a part of politics, but we can expect outright lies from the right-wing to increase to a level never seen before. And when someone points out the lie, we can expect them to continue and do it blatantly. There’s no penalty in the mainstream media. Even if it’s a known lie, when repeated long enough, it becomes just another opinion taken to be equal to fact-based claims. It’s unusual to find anyone in the mainstream media who is any help. If it weren’t for the evening lineup on