Tuesday, April 26, 2016

So Long, Fox News Channel

For many years, I had been a pretty loyal viewer of Fox News Channel. I found it to be fair and balanced as promised, and the only channel that actually offered a different perspective on news stories. It was refreshing to hear my voice represented on television. To put that in context, when watching every other network on broadcast or cable, their bias against Republicans or conservative thought was frustrating. So it was comforting to know that one network had the courage to do something different.

And then Donald Trump became a candidate for president. I am not a fan of his, which is what has created this tension for me, as well as for many other viewers. The frequent coverage of him, at first, was understandable; after all, he is a colorful character who says things in ways other candidates do not. Got it. But as time went on, it became apparent that the coverage was over the top.

Wherever he went there were cameras. His rallies became 'newsworthy' in the minds of the decision makers, his remarks, however inane, were repeated and analyzed. Once Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush dropped out of the race, Fox zeroed in on Trump as the guy they were going to get behind with all their resources. (It has been reported that Trump has gotten 2 billion dollars in free airtime, no doubt most of it from FNC.) This attention was heaped on him by their lineup of hosts: from Fox & Friends in the morning, to The Five, to Greta, to The Oreillyfactor, to Hannity, and more. Before long, it was obvious that Fox was actively promoting Trump while actively denigrating the other candidates. Not only was Ted Cruz given far less exposure, the interviews with him were often contentious. The conversation about him was not flattering.

Not the story, of course, with Donald Trump. One only needs to watch Hannity interviewing Trump (if you want to call it that) to see that Hannity finishes his sentences for him and articulates his positions for him. Sometimes all that is required for Trump is to agree with Hannity and say "yes, that's right." And let's not negate the fact that many Fox personalities are personal friends with Trump, so, standing by their friend is natural for them. Even Megyn Kelly, who was the only one on the network to stand up to Trump and actually challenge him on a few things, is now starting to cave in to the network pressure. She announced recently that she will be doing a one on one interview with Trump, which I guess is supposed to excite the viewers. All that accomplishes, is that she, as the last holdout for drinking the Trump kool-aid, will now fall into the trap set up by the network brass. She too, will now start covering Trump like the others; softball questions and praise. She has already softened in how she talks about him. She comes to his defense when a guest criticizes him, and she now mocks the other candidates like the good little host she's supposed to be. It is truly pathetic to watch someone who once had integrity, just lose it.

I am done with Fox News Channel. It has become unwatchable for non-Trump fans. I stopped watching it a couple of months ago, (with the exception of Kellyfile), when their bias was overwhelmingly obvious. Now, sad to say, the Kellyfile will join the scrap heap of once-watched shows. CNN, for now, has become the cable alternative, but they too, can be frustrating to watch at times. The difference with CNN though, is that I expect to see bias, so the disappointment isn't too great.

I am not alone in this boycott of FNC. But, rest assured we will find a home elsewhere. I have been a fan of TheBlazeTV for a few years now and LevinTV which has just launched, are great alternatives. My voice is represented on those internet networks. And I don't have to tolerate the insanity that has gripped the Fox News Channel, aka the Trump News Channel.

So long Fox. You have outlived your usefulness. You have turned from "We Report, You Decide" to "We Report, We Decide." And that just isn't fair and balanced.

Sunday, April 3, 2016

I'm Angry Too

I, too, am one of the angry voters. I am angry at the GOP for allowing Barack Obama to fundamentally transform this country. I am angry that when given the chance to stand up and defund Obamacare, or vote down yet another stimulus package which increases our debt, or secure our border once and for all while they had a majority in Congress, they have opted to take the road that they weren't elected (in massive numbers) to take. They have demonstrated time and time again, they do not have the political courage to do what we asked them to do.

Donald Trump has seized on this anger and run with it. He speaks plainly and boldly and repeats his messages of building a wall, changing trade rules with China and Japan, and bringing manufacturing back to America. He has tapped into the desire for America to be the best again. And what makes it more attractive, he is not a politician.

However....many things have become quite obvious over the past nine months since Donald Trump started running for office. It is obvious his depth of knowledge on most issues is shallow. One need only listen to his answers in a one-on-one interview that exposes a lack of understanding on important topics. Since day one it has become obvious this man is a loose cannon. It is obvious his character is lacking a certain civility we have come to expect from our presidential candidates. He has stumbled over himself too many times to count. His retractions on any given day, for what he said the previous day (sometimes even the same day), have become all too routine. His obsession with himself via the non-stop talking about his winning in the polls, or how great he is, or how much money he's made, has become the great comedy routine we expect from comics who replay their jokes to an eager audience wanting to hear the same bit; only it's not funny. His frenzied tweeting, which mock his opponents, or the wife of an opponent, or hurls insults at various people who oppose him, seems to land him in perpetual hot water. His refusal to apologize to anyone for anything, also demonstrates some psychological disturbances. And yet he continues. His tone at rallies, in which he yells to his supporters and to security to "get him out of here" or to offer to pay legal fees to someone who pummeled a protester, or to throw someone out in the freezing cold without his coat. His constant claims about being treated unfairly by the media which has given him billions of dollars in free air time or his griping about a particular host on Fox when many other hosts on the network have demonstrated their support for him, just rings hollow. He has shown us he is a petulant child, a schoolyard bully who constantly reassures us 'I'll be good, you'll see, I can be very presidential.'

I'm still waiting.

No matter though. I've got my candidate in Ted Cruz who has shown traits quite the opposite to what I've ascribed to Trump. Cruz is a thoughtful, knowledgeable and politically courageous man who understands America's problems and how to fix them. He has repeatedly shown he has the political courage to stand up to Democrats and Republicans alike to do what the voters asked. That is a fact. With Cruz, I don't worry about things that might spit out of his mouth without forethought. I don't worry about any deep psychological problems he might be carrying around. I don't worry that the world will continue to spiral out of control with him at the helm. I don't worry about what his mood might be on a given day which may negatively alter world events. Cruz is a solid, stable person, with whom, whether you agree or disagree, you can count on to listen to the will of the people and do what he promises.

I'm angry too. But I don't have to back Trump to prove it. Cruz will do just fine.