Reply #22: Hi Punpirate! You could be right -- people will come to their senses, [View All]

[Radio_Lady]

but only after crushing losses by the middle and lower classes. I think the upper classes are cushioned somewhat, but that may not always be the case.

Essentially, I believe Steve Fleischman remains an optimist. I read his book and spoke with him for about thirty minutes on my program. However, here's a long interview that was posted when his memoir came out in 2004, and I've included some quotes:

From: http://smirkingchimp.com/article.php?sid=20900

Interview by Randolph T. Holhut, a journalist in New England for more than 20 years.

(snipped)

Fleischman hasn't given up on the belief that journalism can make a difference, but he knows from hard experience that it has never been easy.

"There are still a lot of damned good journalists out there," he said. "Unfortunately, if they're in the mainstream media, they're working in an oppressive environment. The editor is the guardian at the gate. He knows what kind of stories he can let through. The reporter soon learns how far he can push the envelope and it isn't very far."

(snipped)

Fleischman's book ends on a mixed note - hopeful that a lefty like him was able to survive 30 years in network TV and tell a few stories that may not have made it on to the screen otherwise, but pessimistic that big media is uniformly dismal and that most Americans are too timid to take on the capitalist system.

Just the same, Fleischman, at age 86, remains hopeful that things can't help but get better.

"Absolutely! That's the dialectics of nature," he said. "All things change. They're in constant change. As Marx said, the material conditions of life determine perception. You've got to take the long view of history. When an economic system no longer meets the needs of the masses, the system will collapse. The old always hangs on with all its might. When it seems strongest, it is usually at its weakest. That's what revolutions are all about. The capitalist system is about ready to go. It could take a few years or decades. Because of technology we are very vulnerable, but also because of technology, the world is closer. Trotsky may be proven right. The socialist revolution can only be successful as world revolution. Where is Trotsky now that we really need him!"

In peace,

Radio_Lady