The Downfall of the Real News Division

Nothing like starting out a serious, thought provoking blog, by skewering the very medium of which I am communicating that thought. Don't understand? Do not worry I will hopefully try to clear this all up very shortly.

Now, one would think that the most important news item of this week would be, the rising hostilities that are occurring in Iraq; the President's visit with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, or any other world events that affect us, this country, and the world in profound ways. However, that was not the case. The huge headlines to rock the nation: NBC deciding to call the Iraqi conflict a civil war. Brittany Spears showing her crotch all over town,and Pamela Anderson divorce from Kid Rock (aka Bob Ritchie).

Now I don't make any qualms about how much I hate entertainment news, every time Entertainment Tonight comes on the television. I can feel my body break out in convulsions and want to go into a coma. However, it is not Mary Hart trying to act 90 years younger than she really is that has me pissed off. It is how the country as a whole seems to get fixated on these people and seem to forget that there is shit going down outside our borders. Just this past elections, news outlets said that the 2006 Elections would be a referendum on the Iraq War. And you know what, yeah...that could be true. But for how long? How long will the American people be interested in a war before the next glamor news headline item distracts them and places them back into a state numbness we had found ourselves earlier this year.

Now on to about NBC deciding to call the Iraqi conflict a civil war. I have no problem whatsoever, calling the conflict a civil war. I guess my problem with the whole thing is when did the news divisions become news. Did they really need to come out with fanfare and confetti and announce to the nation that, "we are taking a stand against the other networks and call this conflict a civil war first!" Honestly, there was a time, when Network news did not make the news, they just reported it. That is the reason I have Walter Cronkite picture on this days blog entry. Back then the news in this country carried weight. It was the voice of the people and was not afraid to ask the questions that needed to be asked. President Lyndon Johnson once said of Cronkite, " If I've lost Cronkite, I've lost the country." You would be hard press to find any president saying that about any of the Network news outlets now.
I guess, what I'm trying to get at is that we become to easily distracted with news items that don't really need to be news items. If it be a white girl from an upper middle class home who has gone missing for weeks, or a celebrity who just committed double murder. Yes they are news worthy, but not to the point they need to be headline news for three straight weeks. In this country many people go missing, and many people are murdered, however where is their media coverage.

I think I'm gonna bring this blog entry to an end now before it becomes a full blown essay. Plus after re-reading it seems my thoughts are all over the place. Next time, I think I'm going to actually pre-write my ideas before attempting to write it out from scratch.

Well until next time...

Gators 'Cock Block Entry into BCS Title Game!

Wow! what a game. If there was ever a time when everything in the world seemed to stop for a few seconds, it happened on Saturday when the University of South Carolina (headed by former UF coach Steve Spurrier) enter the SWAP to take on 8-1 Florida Gators. To say the game was an ugly one, is an understatement. I do not think there was one person in the city of Gainesville, who did not think we were going to lose that game, and it almost did in the last eight seconds of the game when USC tried to go for a field goal to win the game. A field goal that was ultimately blocked by the UF Gators.

However, I guess my only criticism of what happened Saturday are the effects that carried over onto Sunday evening. Where for some weird reason the UF Gators remain at #4 on the BCS standings, while USC~Southern California jumped from #7 to #3. The whispers that is going around the sporting community as of right now is that the whomever the winner of Ohio State/ Michigan will be going against the winner of the USC/ Notre Dame game. Meaning that even if the Florida Gators where to go all out and win it's last three games, that we would still have no chance to make it to the National Championship game in January.

I guess you don't hate the BCS until it comes around and screws your team.

So, here are some upsets and outcomes that are needed this weekend in order for the Gators to have a chance to play for the National Championship:

• Florida Gators will need to win against Western Carolina (a blowout of a score would be even better...no more close games guys!).
• Michigan needs to beat Ohio State
• Mississippi State needs to defeat Arkansas
• Cal needs to beat USC (by double digits)
• After being beaten by Cal, USC needs to come around and defeat Notre Dame. I don't see Notre Dame losing to Army this weekend.

...so this upcoming Saturday, we will see what teams falls and which one will rise to the top, but I have a feeling that Ohio State vs. Michigan game is going to be a great tight shootout.

Until Next Time,

And So It Begins...

For some time now I have been mulling over the thought of starting a blog. Seems like everyone has a blog site, blogging on everything and anything (not dissing them, just saying that's all). I wouldn't be surprised if people have blog sites for the pets. I am not going to write and proclaim that my blogs will be the greatest thing since slice bead, but hopefully it shines some light on the inner working that is my mind.

Well, on to the thoughts for today...

It has been three days since Democrats have taken control of the House away from the Republicans and two days since the Democrats took control of the Senate. And you better believe that I was sitting and watching each race closely (sad I know). In the aftermath, Bush and Cheney were both left in shock after their "thumpin'" on Election night, because both men had felt confident that Republicans would keep control of both House of Congress. Apparently looking at polls and other indicators are not a strong point in this administration. So where does that leave the us, "the people", now that the dust have settled? Well we are going to atleast have a Congress that worries about real issues rather than focusing energy on changing french fries to freedom fries. Hopefully now that we have some balance back in government issues likes Minimum wage, prescription drugs, health care, and correcting our standing in the world will finally be addressed. The only one thing I am worried are those rogue democrats who wants revenge for all the years the Republican party kept them down in the muck. If both sides can take an important lesson from the 2006 Mid-term Elections, is that people, constituents, voters, everybody is starting to get sick of the childish partisan fights and bickering that's been plaguing our institutions for the past couple of years. However, as one professor told me a while back, the House of Representatives is not really an effective institution because as soon as they are elected to office they spend the next 2 years working on their re-election campaign, well see if they prove my old professor wrong.

In another surprise this week, both Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfield and RNC Chairman Ken Mehlman handed in their resignation. Even though rumors of Rumsfield being ousted were being whispered through the grapevine for a while now, the stepping down of Ken Mehlman is by the far the one that seems the most odd and shocking (even though he claims to say that his decision to leave was made before the results of the 2006 elections---yeah, okay!). What can most people take from this, well one can take that the President former rhetoric of staying the course, in his eyes is not working and that is time to infuse the remaining years of his presidency with something positive. I do have to say this, for a man worried about his legacy, he really needs to start focusing on the here and now. I doubt you'll find any historian who said that George Washington did the things he did because he was worried about this legacy and how history would view him 40 years down the road.


Well it's time to end this blog. Instead of ending on something happy and positive, I want to end it on a sad note. On November 9, 2006, CBS 60-minute reporter Ed Bradley, passed away after losing his fight with leukemia. Now, I did not know the man personally and I never met him, but he was a model of what a real educated African-American person should be in today's time. Too many times have I seen young African-Americans focus wealth rather than getting an education. Have we as a race of people gone that far down the ladder that the lessons of Frederick Douglass, W.E.B. Dubois, George Washington Carver, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr. are forgotten to the likes Li'l Jon and the Ying Yang Twins. To Mr. Bradley, you will be greatly missed, but you will never be forgotten!

Until next time,
GreG