The Fools of Spring Available for Comment: a Snapshot of Impressions of Madness at Dawn

Turn on MSNBC at dawn. Invite Babel into your home at six a.m. It's hallucinatory. It might be Pat Buchanan in his last act, to offer a shrill diorama of white rage. It might be Joe Scarborough, a good boy, honest injun', trying for reason, trying for something contemporary, something "now" something hip -- but still, aswirl in the miasma of tit-for-tat politics most of the time.

It might be someone marvelous, like the elegant Jonathan Capehart, or someone totally wiggy and weirdly watchable as John Ridley. Scarborough is oddly sympathetic, posing as buffoon in a fleece sweater thing, but really smart. His honor peeks through in the weirdest way. But it diminishes to keep the very stupidest stories alive. I can't get enough of that show. It's America itself; arguing, bitching, brothers and sisters going at it, always coming back the next day -- leaving their grudges behind. It might be Ms. Brezinski, smarter than anyone in the room, but still endlessly playing tape of the good Reverend Wright. They talk and they talk and they talk and they captivate and guide the national conversation, along with Anderson, and Wolf, et al, but they all remind me of the thing I don't like about Hillary Clinton -- there is a patina of condescension in every last bit of discourse, in every last analysis and in every last precis sentence they offer up for "debate".

And they are stoked, fueled, enlivened by the theatrics of the surrogates for both candidates. Oh the surrogates. Carville as Sancho Panza, Reverend Wright as some sort of Farrakhan manque as it is written. (I've heard the same things he said at the most diverse dinner parties on both coasts, except the speaker wasn't black and wasn't yelling.)

As the day goes on, you start to feel insane, if you keep MSNBC on. Bill Clinton implied or didn't imply that Obama was not a patriot. Discuss. Discuss some more. ( I think "who is getting paid for this debate?") Because the same stuff is rehashed in a sisyphusian cacophony from dawn to midnight, with some breaks for shows about prisoners and their tattoos. On MSNBC I think the vice president of the United States just shrugged again about the dead children of America. You can see the blood slowing and thickening in his arteries, occluding and blocking all the impulses that are responsible for decency.

Everybody has something to say. All of us. Me. You. We yell and fight and roar and score points.

(Pause.)

Okay. There are two candidates for the Democratic nomination. They have to talk about the millions of uninsured, the children of this country who have been bypassed by life itself, by opportunity and by hope. They have to talk about the economy and the war and our absurd financial indiscipline -- but all they can do is take defensive positions on the endless babel spewed out by their surrogates.

By eleven, one is exhausted, and feels poisoned. The commercials alone -- atop the presidential panoply -- make one feel like it's a bad smog day in L.A. No matter where you are.

It's seven p.m. There's Hardball with Chris Matthews, who seems also like the last honorable schoolboy, but somewhat....compromised by the sheer concretizing effort of putting on that show day after day. Everybody wears a tie and has a haircut. The women, passionate and committed, go out and sell it. Whatever it is. Katrina Vanden Huevel is on as I write, promoting Richardson as VP for Obama (of course), while Ron Brownstien (author of a perfect book about Hollywood's intersection with Washington) shrugs and plays cool. Buchanan is back with his inability to ever, ever see the shade of gray.

Chris bemoans the soap opera of the Democratic war, while never mentioning that he's one of the guys stoking it on and on and on.

THERE ARE FOUR THOUSAND SOLDIERS DEAD TODAY. It is used as the anchor for a "discussion of the surge".

Some shit has gone down in Detroit with the mayor and perjury over sex. The distractions are like bubble gum to bad breath; a temporary relief at best. Now it's Olbermann, the bastard love child of Howard Beale and Hamlet, and I watch him tell us about bedbugs(!!!) at Fox-news - I watch, feeling a bit like Jimmy Stewart in Vertigo, when the lens does something unknowable, stretching, elongating, bending...

And yet there is real life. It remains ever present. We can not avoid it. Journalism is insufficient to the task, and art seems to have lost a certain metaphoric elegance -- it doesn't draw people in.
I send money every month to the Children's Defense Fund. I think about the things I can do.
It is no secret that I am madly in love with Obama and everything he stands for. I talk to my shrink about an America that does not elect him. I think it will be the end of some hope, some dream for the realization of everything that Martin Luther King stood for.

If it doesn't happen, I will retreat. Into the small and the quiet. My friends, my family, my work. No public hope. I worry that my anger at Hillary Clinton is muddy, but then I think about the impression of falsity and the condescension she exudes. To me. I know she doesn't hit everybody the same way. I think about my friends who keep asking me not to slam her anymore.

MSNBC in the background. Iraq. In the background? How do we get out? Matthews is speaking to Richardson about Carville and the Clintionian sense of entitlement (only within their staff -- I disagree).

I know I will do anything I can for her if she is the nominee, but my dreams for this country will have died. I wish Senator Clinton and Senator Obama could silence the gutter-sniping and solely talk to the issues of what it means to be an American circa 2008.

I am terribly angry over the Clinton's praise for John McCain; so craven, so vicious, so cynical and so wrong. In the background, Richardson is passionately extolling the virtues of his guy
and the night goes on, the talk goes on, unabated and I watch, I judge, I scribble, my passions agitated. What next?

Comments

[nellie]

You feel insane because the talking heads and guests on MSNBC are talking to themselves, not to us. The more I watch cable news, the more I am certain that the people making that particular machinery go care nothing about the public, care hardly anything about democracy. They are in a continual club room with other club members, congratulating each other on being so smart. That's enough to make anyone feel insane.

[butch5]

Right on Nellie, I agree with you.

[sockman]

When all the other networks were beating the drums for war with Iraq, only Phil Donahue on MSNBC was allowing the anit-war voice to be heard. MSNBC soon fired him beacuse they didn't want to seem passive and unpatriotic while all the other networks were waving the flag and interviewing every retired general possible. It took Olberman a few years in his slot, but still he hasn't grown half the b*lls that Donahue departed the network with.

[JLM1977]

I thought you were writing an article about the lack of substance and objectivity in our mainstream media outlets. Unfortunately, you were just writing another article to throw your support behind the Presidential Candidate that you are in love with. When I got to the 3rd sentence of the 13th paragraph I decided to stop reading your incognito campaign propaganda.

[lifeinfullcolor]

I think I'm going to have a small notebook with me, when I sit and listen to any of these pundits, then send an email with the questions I'd like them to take the time to research, to discuss. For instance, why hasn't any journalist gone and done a program on ministers and what they say, those that are white, black, green, purple? Educate the public, instead of simply using sound bites to stir up the public, dummy down the public! Why isn't anyone asking what went wrong with Hillary's campaign, talking about that, how she ran her campaign, where they went wrong, what their expectations were and why they weren't met? Why don't they have an educated discussion on just what she's done that makes her ready on day one. If I read a book on how the White House operates, would that give me the gravitas to say, I'm ready. Let's discuss the role of First Lady, what she did with the health care reform, how much more she's done than other First Ladies! What about her 15 years with the Rose Law Firm, what about Obama's legislative job, his work in the law firm he worked at. I have alot of questions for these paid "journalists", but not enough answers!

[GREATERSC]

I can answer one of those questions for you. Hillary ran her campaign like George Bush runs his administration. She chose loyalty over competence.

[Torus34]

I'm surprised that intelligent people watch MSNBC -- or smoke, for that matter. I gave both up at about the same time years ago.

[lovethesinner]

Except for the part about working for Hillary if she's the nominee, this post was like reading my thoughts for the last three months. I literally can't vote for someone who puts her political posture in front of people's lives, and for me, at my age, there's no reason to continue to think that "ligitimizing" the worst to "get" some of what's good will ultimately pay off. It won't. This isn't a war (the war between fascism and democracy) that can be won "incrementaly." The reason they call it "revolution" is because when things get this bad in humanity's garden, you have to literally "turn the earth" to get anything to grow again. The Clintons, the DLC, and all who buy into their "mind set" are creatively and politically sterile. If Hillary is the nominee, I'm moving on. Literally. (Finland, Canada, or Argentina) Otherwise, reading this post was like listening to myself think. Only it feels so much better to know I'm not the only one.

[WinceCarter]

I'm from originally from Canada, and always laugh when I hear Americans say they are going to pack up and move there if things don't unfold to their liking here. I can tell you that it's not that easy -- how do you know Canada will take you? It's not like *you* get to decide, a notion which sounds like the kind of arrogance that Canadians often associate with their neighbors to the south. I can also tell you that Canada is, sadly, a VERY anti-American place, so I doubt you'd like it all that much. A friend of mine in grad school came to Toronto with her husband and baby and was shocked at the rude treatment she received, even though she was the nicest person you'd want to meet. You've been warned.

[FredBrighton]

Lovethesinner, when you bail, as I fear you may yet do, don't forget to look into Holland or Iceland. the former is a beautiful country filled with people who seem to actually try to think about things. Plus they have incredible gardens and parks. You can't deal with politics all day and when you go for a walk to clear your mind a stroll along a flower lined canal checking out the outdoor sculptures will let you know that Rotterdam is a great place to be. Iceland, on the other hand seems to have a great deal of artistic people who keep their sense of humor while talking about the state of the world. Yeah, it gets cold and dark for awhile in winter but that's why they make full spectrum lights and chat rooms. You might not guess this, but I get to live in New York, where the leadership likes to employ sex slaves while using the state police as his private army. Yeah, we're thinking about moving after the election too. I really think the darn thing is already "in the bag" and if it pans out the way I think we are all going to be taking out our passports.

[Liverp2]

I have to tell you what your problem is, I had it myself for a while. It is MSNBCitis.

They are the sickest channel on TV, and you caught it. They must have caught it from Fox News, who are suddenly sounding normal.

I found watching MSNBC or BONBC was very painful and especially when Pat Buchanan started sounding like the fairest person on the show.

Instead of just supporting Barak Obama, they go on and on about the wonder of him all day long and do their best to tear down Hillary Clinton and if she has nothing to pick on they will have a go at her husband or even her daughter.

All that after Obama made them fire Imus, while he sat in his pastors racist church for 20 years and they still have not noticed.

Change the Channel and see how good you will feel.

[JLM1977]

You are so right. MSNBC is shoving Obama down our throats...the media has totally lost its way, they are not objective, they lack substance, and they report opinion as fact.
I am so sick of being told that an inexperienced, one term Senator, with very little Diplomatic experience is going to solve the problems that have been piling up for the past eight years. Olberman and Mathews need a refresher course in journalism.

[GREATERSC]

JLM1977

If you actually watch and listen you might figure out that they are not saying that at all. I am a die hard Obama supporter. It pains me to hear them say that he needs to offer the people more than hope. They are the ones who are saying he needs to add substance. But as i see it. Most Americans are only left with hope. And when that is all you have left then hope is a powerful word. If you call talking about Rev wright for a whole week pro Obama, i would hate to see if they did not like him. Hillary lost fair and now she keeps changing the rules. Sounds like that is what we should expect of her if she became president. Just think about it.

[GREATERSC]

Liverp2

Please do not blame Obama for the Imus mess. That was done by the sponsors of MSNBC. The good thing about MSNBC is that you get to hear all sides. If you are a Hillary supporter that is great. But if you crawl into the gutter. People are going to call you on it. The campaign did not go negative until she realized that she could not win. So she is trying to position herself for 2012. Obama has to lose in the general election for her to even be considered then. There is no way possible for her to win this year, so the goal is to tear Obama down now. And if Pat Buchanan sounds fair to you. You ar in la la land right now. The republicans are the only ones who defend Hillary staying in this race. They know that they can beat her. That is why they have been putting her on a pedalstal for the past year. They are doing everything possible to help her tear Obama down so they can beat him.

[MizJ]

Why all the angst at this late date? These are the same morons who pushed Bush down our throats because he seemed like someone we "would rather have a beer with". Remember?? And look what that got us. They are now doing the same with Obama even though he lacks the experience to steer us out of the mess that Bush will be leaving behind. They have created this second coming narrative and dare us to criticize their collective selection. McCain will be the winner in the end because the GOP is just warming up with the patriotism boost and I can see the endless loops of Rev Wright and Michele being played nonstop on MSNBC from 6am to 11pm. We are not getting the "news" from these networks simply propaganda doled out to the masses.

[GREATERSC]

If you are one of the smart ones who know this, then educate the people around you. Show them how to fact check. I watch MSNBC everyday. I sometimes belive that it is the reason that i exist. But i am smart enough to see through the BS. I take it that you support Hillary Clinton since you did not say anything about her. The reason why they are so hard on her has nothing to do with her gender. When you run on so much experience as you claim. You better have you shit together. Hillary has run a very incompetent campaign. She decided not to compete in the states that run caucases. She also tried to use the establishments that were already set up in the states. Obama built his own. He got the people on the ground involved. The helped in some of the decision making as well. They felt like it was their campaign. Hillary inner circle made all of the decisions and blamed others or tried to lesson the importance of what had just happened. Every where she lost she basically said those voters do not count. She changes the rules every other word that comes out of her mouth. I do not and will not support a candidate like that.

[2LaneIA]

I feel your pain. Scarborough is condescending and rude, Brzezinski a doormat. Pat Buchanan and his constant interrupting in that high-pitched voice may be the most annoying man on television. Why can't MSNBC find a conservative who is not an ugly racist. I like Olbermann when he's being serious and covering a serious topic. Matthews is ok in limited doses.

I feel as though they (and CNN, et al) are all trying to keep the race going, maybe for ratings, maybe because their masters want McCain to have a better chance to win. Whatever the reason, the race is tearing the party apart. Clinton is trying to so damage Obama that he will lose even if he is the nominee. I have read comments from people who support one Democratic candidate comparing the other Democratic candidate's supporters to Nazis, while Clinton compares McCain to Obama and thinks McCain is a better candidate. The candidate who has the most delegates may not be the candidate who wins, and our party elders are doing nothing to stop it. I think we may be in the process of losing the general election right now.

It is cold comfort to think that if Clinton continues to savage Obama, and he gets the nomination but loses the election, Democrats will hold her responsible and she will not be filling venues in Iowa in the fall of 2011.

[rudyinbama]

They can't find a decent conservative because the network is filled with blowhards like Oberman and Matthews. Do you think William Weld or Christie Whitman is going to go on there and be mistreated by these sexist goons who get "thrills up their leg" over Obama?
So you get the good old racist homophobe Pat Buchanan and Focus on the Family scumbags like Tony Perkins.
Nobody with any credibility is going to appear on the All-Obama network.

[butch5]

It is so sad that our communications media has degraded to the state that it is in. It appears that it has just turned us all into partisans of one political party or the other. "Progressives" hating "Conservatives" and thinking they're idiots and vice versa. This is so sad because all of us common working folks are getting screwed by the oligarchy while we tear each other down.

[GREATERSC]

2LaneIA

I will answer one of you questions with my personal opinion. Why MSNBC can not find a conservative who is not an ugly racist. Well as i have said all of my life. The republican party is built on racism. How else do you get poor white people to vote against their interest. The republican base is built in the sourthern most racist states in the union. If the poor white people voted with their wallet there would no longer even be a republican party.

[SubparDude]

:

Great & honest post.

I know because I am adicted to the reportage, such as it is.

Between the pap and pomp, there are occasional jewels.

I await them, then pounce. A correct accounting...an honest appraisal....a real issue and a stand taken on it. They are so rewarding.

Perservere.

:

[jeannekhan]

Dan Abrams, indeed--the last bastion when Keith, our former hero from whom I bought 20+
copies each time for friends and family, joined the Hillary Haters Horde led by Mathews who
adored Obama before Gene Robinson did. The News Hour and Bill Moyers Journal are fragrant
contrasts to those boys melting as men and believers for Obama. MSNBC used to be a favorite
before the Obama worship began. Joe is trying, although he is rude to his female co-anchor. Pat
Buchanan seems a beacon in the darkness descending as hating Hillary becomes a full-time
job, alas. Kid from Vegas sums up what I see. I miss Keith the courageous before he drank the
Kool-Aid Gene and Chris have brewed. Hope springs eternal, surely, he will see how he has
hoisted aboard the ship GOP intends to sink when the angry among us refuse to vote for Obama.
As a democrat, I must, alas. But I see the Rovian band smirking out of sight because dumbos
sought a messiah instead of Hillary who has a handle on what works and why consensus matters.

[GREATERSC]

jeannakhan

This is all that I am going to say. Do some research on Hillary. Make sure you learn how she contested certain states and wrote off others. The only states that she has won are the ones that she started off with huge leads in. She ran an incompetent campaign. Just do you fact checks. I am sure that a bunch of you Hillary supporters are going to be voting for John MCcain. You are all for the Democrat as long as it is of the one of your choosing.

[grrrfren]

Mr. Baitz:
You mind-reader, you ! You've flawlessly captured my thoughts. As for MSNBC, I've finally had to turn it off along with CNN and surely FOX. I've finally admitted to myself that I'm just a whole lot smarter than the 24 hours babel-blabbers give me credit for and just listening to them insults my intelligence. Ah, silence....wonderful!

[BubbaC33]

MSNBC is at the point, especially Olberman, shoudl have Obama at the end of every show come on to say "I am Barck Obama and I approve of this message."

[WinceCarter]

Great line, I'm going to steal that one!

[irsslex]

You are spot on with your assessment and you are not nutty to feel that if Obama is not elected, this country will have made a horrible choice to turn away from the future in retreat to the past. Hope will be gone. The talking heads have a commercial stake in keeping the Democrats' gutter-sniping alive; I don't view this as Sysiphean. Sysyphus rolled that boulder up the hill and his curse was that it could never be rolled OVER the hill; it would just come back down, and he would have to start all over again. The people that you see as Sysyphean are not. They have choices to make: they can continue to talk about the same old same old or they can, in line with Obama's challenge of last week, roll that boulder over the hill and discuss real issues that are of real importance to Americans. There is, sadly, more money in dirt than issues. I do not watch MSNBC all day long any more; it was driving me mad, too. I know on a gut level what is right and wrong and what the issues are that are facing America. . We have been through a civil war and we have been through McCarthyism. It seems that the thirst for hate and pettiness knows no bounds in this country any more, so much so that if there is anyone to blame, we need collectively only look in a mirror.

[ditsylilg]

Thank you for articulating what I cannot.

[blair74]

I want to fly to your house and turn the television off for you.