Earth to Gore...

Speaking to the the We Media conference on Wednesday in New York, Gore made some truly idiotic remarks.

I know there is nothing unusual about that. Nevertheless, I think it's worth noting, if for no other reason than to illustrate that the man's political future is bleak, very, VERY bleak.


Text of speech

(Excerpts)

I came here today because I believe that American democracy is in grave danger. It is no longer possible to ignore the strangeness of our public discourse . I know that I am not the only one who feels that something has gone basically and badly wrong in the way America's fabled "marketplace of ideas" now functions.

How many of you, I wonder, have heard a friend or a family member in the last few years remark that it's almost as if America has entered "an alternate universe"?

Gore is partially right. Most of America is grounded in reality; but he and the libs definitely occupy a baseless alternate universe, one that puts politics ahead of principle and prefers distortions to truth.
Are we still routinely torturing helpless prisoners, and if so, does it feel right that we as American citizens are not outraged by the practice? And does it feel right to have no ongoing discussion of whether or not this abhorrent, medieval behavior is being carried out in the name of the American people?

Gore has truly lost it. It sounds like he's been spending time with Dick Durbin.

First, he attacks our military personnel for "routinely torturing helpless prisoners." Any abuses were aberrations, not routine. The brave men and women of our military deserve far better from a former senator and vice president of the United States.

Second, there has been plenty of discussion about the treatment of prisoners. Where has he been? Popping out hanging chads somewhere?
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, there was - at least for a short time - a quality of vividness and clarity of focus in our public discourse that reminded some Americans - including some journalists - that vividness and clarity used to be more common in the way we talk with one another about the problems and choices that we face. But then, like a passing summer storm, the moment faded.

What is he talking about?

The "vividness" was based on rumors and false reports fueled by the reckless media outlets hoping to do damage to the Bush administration.

Now, weeks after Hurricane Katrina, we know:

THE MEDIA LIED. PEOPLE DIED.
It is not that we no longer share ideas with one another about public matters; of course we do. But the "Public Forum" in which our Founders searched for general agreement and applied the Rule of Reason has been grossly distorted and "restructured" beyond all recognition.

And here is my point: it is the destruction of that marketplace of ideas that accounts for the "strangeness" that now continually haunts our efforts to reason together about the choices we must make as a nation.

Whether it is called a Public Forum, or a "Public Sphere" , or a marketplace of ideas, the reality of open and free public discussion and debate was considered central to the operation of our democracy in America's earliest decades.

In fact, our first self-expression as a nation - "We the People" - made it clear where the ultimate source of authority lay. It was universally understood that the ultimate check and balance for American government was its accountability to the people. And the public forum was the place where the people held the government accountable. That is why it was so important that the marketplace of ideas operated independent from and beyond the authority of government.

WHAT?

How has the "Public Forum" been restructured? Does Gore mean that there no longer is a liberal media monopoly on information?

A few talking heads and propaganda publications no longer have a chokehold on the thoughts of the American people. There are alternative sources for information, providing balance.

The rise of the New Media is a victory for Democracy and our nation, not a danger as Gore suggests.
Among the other factors damaging our public discourse in the media, the imposition by management of entertainment values on the journalism profession has resulted in scandals, fabricated sources, fictional events and the tabloidization of mainstream news. As recently stated by Dan Rather - who was, of course, forced out of his anchor job after angering the White House - television news has been "dumbed down and tarted up."

The coverage of political campaigns focuses on the "horse race" and little else. And the well-known axiom that guides most local television news is "if it bleeds, it leads." (To which some disheartened journalists add, "If it thinks, it stinks.")

In fact, one of the few things that Red state and Blue state America agree on is that they don't trust the news media anymore.

Why don't Americans trust the news media?

Could the fact that CBS used forged documents to trash George W. Bush in hopes of influencing the outcome of the presidential election just a month before Americans went to the polls have something to do with it?

Could the fact that the media gave FALSE reports on the condition of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina have had some influence on how Americans view news outlets?

Could Jayson Blair, Paul Krugman, and Maureen Dowd have something to do with Americans' lack of trust in the media?

I can't believe that Gore quoted Dan Rather, the poster boy for all that's wrong with the Old Media.

If Gore is truly concerned about America's democracy, he should be trumpeting the ousting of Rather instead of depicting him as a victim.

Rather was not forced out of his anchor chair because he angered the White House. His own network forced him to step aside in disgrace after the credibility of CBS News was shot to hell because he and producers fabricated a story.

Maybe Gore feels a kinship with Rather. They both appear to be in denial about their failures.