Dakota Beacon

What used to be the fount of solid journalism, the mainstream media or MSM, has degenerated into second rate advocacy for liberal causes, policies and politicians.

Here is a smattering of major headlines from the past week. Who would seek truth from the MSM? What now passes for journalism in the MSM has become a triviality not to be taken seriously. It is little wonder the greater public turns to alternative media sources for their news. Hardworking upstarts now do the job the MSM used to do.

CNN (Dec. 5): Does Smoking Pot Cause Man Boobs? What every thinking person needs: enlightenment from a news “leader.”

MSNBC (Dec. 4): Schultz: God Loves Obamacare: Ed Schultz Attacks Bachmann and Says God Likes the Affordable Care Act. Who would have thought Ed had a hot line to the Almighty?

NBC News (Dec. 5): States Losing Billions in Refusing to Expand Medicaid. This news item advocates that all states should expand Medicaid to get “free” federal money. As the story goes, “Red states may be sticking to their beliefs in small government, but the Commonwealth Fund finds they are passing up billions in federal funding by saying no to the Medicaid expansion.” Get it? The Commonwealth Fund suggests states should buy into the Obama/Medicaid scheme relying on a broke federal government for reimbursement. Does NBC think the public is stupid?

TIME (Dec. 5): President Obama to Government: Triple Your Renewable Energy Use. Conveniently, the next day the Associated Press (AP) reported the following.

AP (Dec. 6): For Wind Power, US Extends Permits for Eagle Deaths. The lead in, “The Obama administration said Friday it will allow some companies to kill or injure bald and golden eagles for up to 30 years without penalty....” Are those companies Obama’s friends receiving federal subsidies for “green” energy?

New York Times (Dec. 5): Congress Nears Modest Accord on the Budget. Modest accord? The House of Representatives has passed several budgets and sent them to the Senate. The Democrat Senate under Harry Reid has not passed a budget since April 29, 2009. In the view of the New York Times, “modest accord” typically means the Republican House is obligated to cave in and do it the Democrat Senate’s way. A real headline might read Senate Breaks Logjam; Agrees to Consider House Budget.

New York Times (Dec. 6): Kerry, Invoking Mandela, Says Peace in Middleast Possible. What? Hezbollah and Hamas have turned pacifist?

NBC affiliate KSNV-TV Las Vegas (Dec. 5): Sen. Reid on Obama’s Promise: ‘What He Said Was True.’ Senator Reid went on TV to continue Obama’s false argument regarding health insurance: If you like your plan you can keep it. Was Reid lying, or covering Obama’s lie?

USA Today (Dec. 6): Obama: ‘Biden will Go Down In History As One Of The Best Vice Presidents Ever.’ So declared Dear Leader to Chris Matthews on MSNBC. Biden’s only claim to fame will be as the Obama administration’s gaff machine.

Reuters (Dec. 4): More Obamacare Enrollees In Two Days Than All of October. Reuters along with NBC News and Politico have eagerly shouted the good news about Obamacare enrollment. Hold on! Enrollees have only been entered into the “shopping cart” so to speak. At this point there is no confirmation they are covered. The software linking applicant to an insurance company through the Obamacare website hasn’t even been written.

AP (Dec. 2): Critical Thinking Hallmark of Common Core Class. This article advocates for Common Core standards. Touted as a creation of the National Governors Association which Obama embraced, the article is less than truthful. The early roots of Common Core are the ideas generated by Obama and fellow community organizer Bill Ayers (terrorist) through the Chicago Annenberg Challenge. Obama and Ayers worked as a team. The MSN never vetted Obama and if they had they would never have reported negatively about their chosen candidate.

If Americans are being sold a bill of goods, chalk it up to the mainstream media and its consumers. What would we expect from a media that spent years covering Ann Romney’s horse and Mitt Romney’s early dog pranks while ignoring the realities of Obama and his proposed health care plan?

Dennis M. Patrick can be contacted at P. O. Box 337, Stanley, ND 58784 or (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).