Early Presidents hated press?!

"Said Thomas Jefferson: "I do not take a newspaper, nor read one a month, and I feel myself infinitely happier for it."

Are you sure that wasn't Chimpy who said that cos Spud coulda swore...

Be Well.

The more things change, the more they stay the same....

Once upon a time, the press was a thorn in the side of presidents; they were ornery, combative, and had their own interests.

Fox News has fixed all that, what with it being Bush's official mouthpiece. The New York Times writes most of their Iraq stories based on "official" sources, so, in truth, there's not as great a difference between the two as some would like to think.

Bush may bitch about the press, but in reality, they write pretty much within the parameters of what he dictates.

It figures the Reichwingers are rummaging up stories from the 1800s, since they want to take our country all the way back there.

Sorry, Republifundies. This is the 21st century. It's not our fault you guys aren't equipped to live in it.

We have in fact become entirely too tolerant of the press. Contrary to what Sag woud have us believe, I am sure Bush did not want the existance of the "black" prisons known, I am sure that he did not want the domestic eavesdropping program to be common knowledge, etc. If anything the press prints exactly what Bin Laden would like to read.

As to JSG, it appears that the Rupiblicans can live jsut fine in the 21st century...and in fact thrive. But I suspect that is only until the Democrats learn to steal elections electronically as well as they did when the ballots where paper, their constituents where white, voting was not a one time per voter per election event and dead people could still vote.

Freedom of the press is a good thing. In this day of technology any idiot can open a web site and tell the world how stupid he is. (See Moveon.org, democratic underground, etc.) It is the media that I fear is out of control and needs to be reigned in a tad...or in the alternative, at least exported so the enemy can have the same handicap we do.

Just think, if Osama had our press, we would know where he is, we would have known about his secret plans to attack, and we would know what is future plans are. If his press was as good as ours, we would also know that the majority of the arab world hates him and I am sure they could create some documents to show he really didn't serve in the military. Wishful thinking I guess.

We know the press has become ineffective when it takes a comedian like Steve Colbert to speak truth, while all journalists shake their heads in dismay.

Moder8,

"We know the press has become ineffective when it takes a comedian like Steve Colbert to speak truth, while all journalists shake their heads in dismay"

Strewth. They is toothless paper tigers.

Spud remembers fondly the looks of dismay and discomfort on the faces of the elite gathered on that night.

It wasn't until they realised that Dumbya was too dense to get the jokes that they relaxed at all.

Is funny and sad all at once.

Made even funnier when here @ the Tort some raving wingnut pops up like some greasy whack-a-mole every 5 minutes trying to tell us wot a vast left wing conspiracy Western MSM really is.

Couldn't be further from the truth if they tried.

Be Well.

It makes you realize how intelligent Jefferson was. @#$%&^ the Press!