Wipe your News!

Bon Giorno!


So I was on the toilet the other day and thought to myself: "You know, energy transference is pretty cool." For example: let's say there's an object falling into a pool of water; energy from a falling object is transferred from the object to the water resulting in relative degrees of turbulence; at times producing a "kerplunk." The degree of turbulence is linearly related to the mass and velocity of the object entering the water. Technically, I would argue that it's more appropriate to think of the energy transference described above as a manifestation of gravitational energy... For without gravity, there would be no "falling object" nor would there be a cohesive collective of water to observe turbulence and make that cool "kerplunk" sound. Physics is an amazing discipline.

Anyway, it's awareness that is the issue today. I'm not talking about Freud, formal education, or the fact that the fucking Pistons have let LeBron James even the Eastern Conference Series to 2-2!!! No sir or madam, I'm talking about being aware and informed of the current events in our towns, states, country, and world.


"Extra, Extra!" - A Dying Breed

Traditionally, the newspapers that have held the torch and payrolls of those responsible for investigating and reporting the news that's fit to print. However, newspapers are also a business. Yes folks, ask any CEO why they're in business, and if they don't tell you it's to make money, they probably aren't going to be CEO for very long. The problem here is that it's pretty damn pricey to pay some chump's travel expenses to investigate and write up a story, then you got to have another person edit, format, print, distribute, and sell the damn paper for $0.25. Advertising Space? Sure it pays; but not that much...




Mergers, acquisitions & RIFs; oh my!

The advent of the internet and television, coupled with impatient and short attention-spanned generations, has devastated newspapers.


Now I love the internet as much as the next porn-hungry, price-savvy, bored civil servant, but regardless of the sources of news you read on the internet, it's all pretty much recycled and repackaged from a newspaper. If you've ever watched the evening news on your local TV. station and vomited, don't worry it's a common reaction to newscasters. (hey, if you can't act or write, but you're moderately good looking and can read out loud well; you should be a local newscaster!) Regardless, the majority of news comes from newspapers.



CNN & MSNBC are starting to take matters into their own hands by having reporters out in the field, but they also still rely on the associated press for information. Your local paper probably has a few "local" writers; however, your local paper is probably owned by a large paper that takes care of the national and international news.


My point here is that although we all love the immediacy and diversity of the news we access online or on TV., newspaper companies are the big dawgs of news reporting. Unfortunately, newspapers are going bankrupt and are consuming each other to maintain profitability.




"Yo man, my paper broke down, can I get a dollar?"

For very obvious reasons the government can't subsidize the newspapers; so that's out! (if you're nodding your head, yet have no idea what I'm talking about; I want you to turn towards the nearest wall and pound your thick Neanderthal head against it...)




This begs the questions for the peoples:


Should we be concerned that there are fewer reporters and investigators bringing us the news? Wouldn't that lead to a fewer perspectives? Anyone see a problem with having a central "Wallmart" of news?


We've worked so hard for freedom of press, but what about the potential for abusing the power that the media has over the mindless lemmings of American society? How do we enforce a code of un-biased reporting? Is "un-biased" reporting even possible?


What's next? How can the newspaper companies evolve their business plans to not only adapt to new technology and attention spans, but still bring high quality information to the people?




Read, think, respond, and enjoy! Do it....no seriously, do it...


All right, click the "comments" link below to read the responses of others, as well as share your own responses. "NO" you don't have to be a member of Blogger to put in your $0.02; Just select "Other" for your identity, type in your name, and post your comments... that's it.... it's as easy as pooping!

Drugs: beyond Good and Evil...

Howdy!

Let me begin by saying: "Damn those Red Wings!!" With all of the perpetually depressing attention targeted at the Motor City, Detroit needs all of the positive spin it can scrounge up, even if it is via professional sports; oh well, there's still hope for the Pistons...

I'm willing to bet that every one of you who is reading this (all two or three of you...) has some degree of prejudice influencing your perceptions of drugs. When I even mention the term "drugs," some of you may cringe, some may "whoop," and others may think "well, what kind?" That's just my point.

Attitudes have been groomed by a conflicting mix of information regarding the Social Acceptability and Impact of drugs. Today, I'm interested in exploring the nature of your attitudes towards drugs.

He said, she said....
Pharmaceutical Companies love drugs because they love money! Churches frown upon drugs because they're competition to the greatest drug of all: religion! The government decides what drugs are legal & illegal depending upon the number of votes and contributions of the aforementioned two groups!

In America, there's always three sides of the coin; two sides to oppose each other, and a third to profit from the struggle (can you guess which side the government plays for?)

Medicine
Pharmaceutical companies invest millions in the development of solutions to address the most marketable diseases and conditions so they can in turn market those solutions to both you and your doctor.

If we can make Bob Dole's penis hard, why can't we cure cancer?

Well my dear Watson, the solution is simple: cancer doesn't pay as much as a bunch of horny rich old men (that, and cancer is a bit more complicated... see, I'm a fair journalist...) Either way, I hate to break it to you, but the majority of medicinal drugs have the purpose of treating symptoms, NOT fixing the problems themselves.

Recreation.. NO RVs please...
People like to feel good. Nobody likes to feel bad; well, except for artists, and that's usually for purposes of creativity... People enjoy interacting with other people and having a nice buzz to boot; particularly if they don't really care for the people they're interacting with. Alcohol (legal) is the most prevalent social drug in the USA, immediately followed by marijuana (illegal). I'm not going to bother to try and cover the science that supports the fact that marijuana is less damaging to the human body than alcohol; if you don't believe me, try doing some research instead of listening to your high-school dropout guidance counselor. Noting the differences in legality between the top two drugs used for recreational purposes leads us to the third issue: government policy.

The political side of the coin...
Pharmaceutical companies give garbage trucks of money to lobby policy change in the United States. The stench of cheap wine from the right wing has influenced politicians with votes and spread "scientific" propaganda from monkeys who still debate the probability of evolution and existence of gravity. In turn, this has led to the ironic conflict between promoting "medicinal drugs" while waging a "war on drugs." America seems to have a knack for hypocrisy and ridiculous wars that can never be won.


My questions for you monkeys:

Should drug policy be based on practical analyses of the health/social benefits versus detriments associated with a particular drug, instead of dirty money & biased information from pharmaceuticals & collection baskets?

With all the money that the government pisses down the toilet on fighting the "war on drugs," wouldn't it make more sense to legalize and tax non-life-threatening drugs? We tax cigarettes, even though they have killed more people than Al Qaeda...

Is it really a good thing that we have returned erectile power to a bunch of old horny old men? I mean really.... come on.... that just scares the hell out of me above all else...

Do what y'all do and speak your mind...


All right, click the "comments" link below to read the responses of others, as well as share your own responses. "NO" you don't have to be a member of Blogger to put in your $0.02; Just select "Other" for your identity, type in your name, and post your comments... that's it.... it's as easy as avoiding taxes!