Why Mike Malloy? Read "Gate Keepers of the So-Called Left"

[BeHereNow]

You want to know what happened?
It's all explained here:
http://www.newtopiamagazine.net/articles/40

"These decisions are part of a larger pattern of "regulated resistance", a system by which dissent is carefully managed and constrained by self, overt, or covert censorship; denial-based-psychology; fear of personal or professional criticism and reprisal; and pressure from powers above including elected officials and those establishment foundations which flood millions into the not-for-profit activist sector. "

"These "resistance leaders" of the "Left" act as "Gatekeepers"—influential "progressive" figures who use their resources and visibility to regulate the debate, tactics, and rhetoric of the "anti-war" and other "progressive" movements. "

Warning: This essay will upset those who are unaware of Hegel and how the
global elite are employing his work to manage the debate and control the outcome,
as in, there is yet more "everything you though was true" to be reckoned with,
including what you percieve and believe to be the voice of the "left."

Mike obviously didn't play by the rules; therefore he was eliminated.

BHN

[OwnedByFerrets]

1. I am so afraid the same thing

is going to happen to KO. :evilfrown:

[SammyWinstonJack]

8. Is Randi next? nt

[clmbohdem]

14. I think so, along with Sam.

AAR is headed the wrong direction.

[SammyWinstonJack]

15. Oh man, I love Sam.. He is mostly why I tune into AAR...

:-(

[toymachines]

55. I fear he will be done away with

KO, especially with his latest monologue, is speaking power to truth. The system does not like that. He eerily reminds me of the free spoken media personality in V for Vendetta who thinks he is too famous to be done away with, but they kill him and cover it up.

[Cleita]

2. Yep, put into words what I was thinking and gave it a name.

Thanks for the post. I think many won't agree with this but my mind is open to this possibility.

I don't think Mike as been eliminated yet though. He will surface again and will be just as outspoken and popular. The liberal left will not let him die.

[BeHereNow]

3. Actually, I am curious to see how long before this thread

gets disappeared...
Just saying.
I have a friend who is a friend of MM.
I plan to talk to her in a few days and see
what the bottom line is-
I don NOT believe the "official" anouncement
about "finances" being the reason.
I know of another person who was
ousted and silenced by Pacifica radio
for the very same reason.
BHN

[muesa]

4. Prediction

AAR will edge very slightly center (the Al Franken, and the Ed Schultz/Jones Network position -OUR OWN PRIVATELY FUNDED NPR) and a new network will struggle to position itself left of AAR.

There is no reason why the left has to be monolithic - when we are a pretty diverse group of individualists at heart.

One rule: Thou shalt issue ad hominem attacks against another leftie.

[LTR]

6. I'll go further than that

I think AAR will get competition. There's already a few companies out there that are probably positioned well enough to do it. And they'll probably do what AAR should have done in the first place - run it like a real radio business, and not just a propaganda engine or a room full of bickering egos. This is the only way liberal talk will succeed.

[BeHereNow]

9. Welcome to DU- and remember this-

I listened to the MIT (think about THAT for a minute)
Numb Chumsky discredit SY HERSH (Pulitzer award winning journalist)
this morning on my local Pacifica (so-called-left, although receiving funds
form the ROCKA"FELLA" Foundation, which they conveniently always
fail to disclose during their fund drives) as using sources
supplied to him by those in charge of progaganda.

Numb would know, Mr. MIT, wouldn't he?

BHN

[bbgrunt]

22. I was listening to 92.1 AAR affiliate in Madison this

past week when Matt Rothschild (editor of the Progressive) came on with a 2 minute gratuitous spiel about how those who believe the towers were brought down my demolition are totally off base and are detracting from the immediacy of the 2006 elections.

I was stunned since the Progressive has been a bit more open when they backed Nader in 2000. But I see that now they are actively cicling the wagons. Perhaps we will soon have a left as militantly in-step as the fascist right.

[BeHereNow]

27. Go do some research on "Hegel"

BHN

[allemand]

39. Chomsky did NOT criticize or "discredit" Seymour Hersh.

Sorry, but you completely misunderstood what he was trying to say. Perhaps you were still a bit sleepy in the morning?

Here is what he really said:

"Q: What do you think of Hersh's reporting?

Chomsky: He is a terrific reporter and I am sure that he is reporting exactly what was told him, but his sources are intelligence officials and diplomats, unnamed, and their task is not to tell people the truth. Their task is to tell people what they want them to hear, maybe true, may not be true, but you got to understand that any report by any reporter from an unidentified intelligence or diplomatic source is reporting what they want you to believe. OK, maybe what they want you to believe is correct, maybe they have some other reason and so on, but you always have to understand that.
However, I have no sources at all, but I drew pretty much the same conclusions ..."

This is my own transcript, but you can buy the official transcript (or MP3) here:
http://www.alternativeradio.org/programs/CHON188.shtml

[personman]

47. Let's not let facts in the way of all the truthiness now...n/t

[omega minimo]

52. If you understand your own OP, why are you SWIFTBOATING Chomsky?

[lectrobyte]

54. Haven't you been discredited on this about twice today already?

[Irreverend IX]

71. Exactly.

Several progressive radio networks will be a big improvement over one monolithic one. Talk radio networks now consist of dozens of right-wing echo chambers and one progressive voice, and we need to even those numbers up a bit.

[Junkdrawer]

5. The phenomena is real. The chart at the link paints with too broad...

a brush.

Let's put it this way: The Left needs money to get out its message. Money from foundations come with a price.

[JohnyCanuck]

7. Mike obviously didn't play by the rules; therefore he was eliminated

Yup when I heard Mike was having 911 truth activist on his show and allowing them to state their views without attempting a smear job on them, I figured his days on AAR were numbered. I am just surprised he lasted as long as he did.

Kicked and Recommended.

[BeHereNow]

10. Thanks for the K&R-

And you and I are on the same page.
BHN

[earth mom]

11. This is a must read! Recommended! nt

[Nite Owl]

12. Thanks for finding this

This article sure answers a lot of questions that have been floating around in my mind for a while now.

[Tom Joad]

13. I am familiar with C. Shaw, and think he is somewhat of a nut.

I am sorry Malloy was let go, i do not listen to the program, but understand that he critcized US support for Israel, something you will not likely hear from Al Franken.

Still, that doesn't mean that I agree with Shaw's analysis. I think he overplays the conspiricies.

[BeHereNow]

16. Could you elaborate on your assessment of Shaw as a "nut?"

As in, on what facts do you base your conclusion about Charles Shaw?
Links? Other analysts?
BHN

[Tom Joad]

21. I was on a list serve with him...

Just the way he presents himself, really angry person.

I know this is short on factual analysis. but im short of time here.

Just for starters, that he relegates Global Exchange as a tool of george soros. That's just absurd.

[BeHereNow]

23. I'm really angry too- rightfully so.

Have you researched the facts about Soros and Global Exchange?
I never take anyone's word without researching the facts for myself.

I have looked into some of Shaw's research, not Soro's in particular,
but so far, he is infallible in my experience.

I hope being really angry doesn't qualify ME as a "nut."
We have every reason to be really angry as Americans.
Case in point for me today-
Mr. "Funded by MIT" dissing Sy Hersh on Pacifico radio,
Sorry, but "Mr. Funded by MIT" lost ALL credibility with me on that one,
Along with Pacifica radio- who I believe are now being
controlled by the gate keepers of the so called left that
Shaw writes about.
Chumsky's discrediting of a Pulitzer pize winning
journalist made that clear to me today.
BHN

[Tom Joad]

33. You are right, anger in itself is not a vice... However, he seemed

just plain disrespectful and hateful. Not to mention he seemed very focused on what himself. I happen to agree with him in some respects... e.g. that many so-called "liberals" dont want real change... and especially in the Israel/Palestine issue, they shy away from that or even run away from that, and that makes me angry.

So, don't let me stop you. as if it was going to anyway. I was just saying i did not a very high opinion of him.

[Swamp Rat]

17. He may be down, but he's not out.

[BeHereNow]

18. Another friend just called the friend in Atlanta who knows MM.

the friend in Atlanta told her that AAR had recently
been bought out and was no longer aired in Atlanta-
Anyone have any info on that?
Curious that after AAR was "bought out" in Atlanta,
that Malloy is fired. No?
Perhaps some fundies bought it?
Perhaps some neocon think tank?
I'd love to hear your ideas, DU.
Better yet, does one of our better researchers
want to find out who bought AAR in Atlanta and
what their background is?
Hmmm...
BHN

[Swamp Rat]

19. There were some threads in GD last night that discussed this.

More than a few DUers pointed out that it is only a rumor - I have no idea.

[BeHereNow]

20. More than a few Duers...

are suspect in their motives.
Would you not agree?
BHN

[EFerrari]

40. Don't those transactions have to be public record? If you or

someone tells me the asset to track, I'll go fish.

Wasn't AAR about to relocate to NYC?

The thing is, I really do believe this is about money.

[gully]

24. My guess is that Mike Malloy is not the last to go.

:(

I hope I'm wrong.

[Janice325]

26. I live in Atlanta. AAR was bought out by a guy named Joe Weber..

He replaced it with total low budget crap. The transition was a couple of months ago, I think.
Here's info about it in the Georgia forum:
Here's the link (hopefully!)
G'bye, Air America-Atlanta... We hardly knew ya!
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=146&topic_id=3182&mesg_id=3182

[veracity]

30. Mike claimed that....

...Weber eliminated everyone who criticized Israel. That was Mike's statement...saying that Weber kept Al Franken because of his pro Israel stance. Remember that Mike did TWO things that were taboo.... he tried to give a fair and balanced view about the conflicts in the Middle East...about which he knew a tremendous amount. And, he dared raise questions about the official story of 9/11.

No one...repeat...NO one....will stay on the air who violated the taboo on these two topics.

Reg
TvNewsLIES.org

[BeHereNow]

31. Hmmm...

Does that seem vaguely familiar
to any of you, dear readers?

If what you say is true, veracity, than
Charles Shaw's writing on the "Gate keepers
of the so called left" appears even
more vaild, no?
BHN

[EFerrari]

41. Very familiar. n/t

[truedelphi]

49. I've never heard Franken say he considered the election stolen

Whereas Mike, rightly so, trumpets that fact all the time.

In my view, they will get Seder and Rhandi for also being supportive of the fact that
the elections are just staged events to prove the Right Wing has a "mandate"

[MaryRN]

34. You're right, Swamp Rat. You can't silence the truth for long.

[rman]

35. True, but now he has a lot less influence on public opinion

Unfortunately.

[bbgrunt]

25. thanks for that article. It sure explains a lot. K and R

[Overseas]

28. Thanks for the article

It really is mystifying how people can understand that their government has sponsored death squads, created terrorist armies/freedom fighters, and invaded a country under false pretenses initiating three years of torturous warfare, yet will not dare look at the discrepancies in the official theory of what happened on sept eleven. Surely a government that won't even give its own soldiers adequate armor while paying billions to Halliburton has proven itself quite capable of previously unimaginable cruelties. These people brought us Abu Ghraib, but somehow they just never ever could possibly stage a false flag operation ? These merciless war profiteers just could not possibly engineer an operation (or let one happen)in which three thousand of their fellow citizens would be sacrificed to their Greater Goal of the New American Century ? The Bush Team certainly hasn't minded sacrificing tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians at the altar of their Maginificent Vision of America's True Place in the world. That has always mystified me... That AND how little concern esteemed left gatekeepers showed for their elections being stolen-- in 2004, even as we had people on the scene around the country reporting in to DU about election stealing via multiple techniques-- dropping votes, misdirecting voters, intimidation, supression, allocating too few machines to democratic areas, etc, etc,-- even though we had friends writing in witnessing the stealing by a thousand cuts, many supposedly progressive journalists dismissed all allegations by tieing them together under the "massive computer fraud" banner-- and debunking only that. I stopped my Nation subscription around that time because David Corn slapped me in the face with his --gee guys lets face it we lost-- attitude in an online editorial very soon after the election. I was shocked that the esteemed Nation magazine would allow such a narrow minded person to declare a major fraud unworthy of serious investigation before the provisional ballots had even begun to be shredded.

[BeHereNow]

29. I hear you- What a wake up call it is when so called Leftist media

turns out to be a long arm of the neocons.
Numb Chumsky, of MIT funding, discrediting
Sy Hersh today removed all doubt from my mind
about the fact that, that is exactly what is happening.
Malloy being fired from AAR is just another
pall bearer in the funeral of democracy.
BHN

[personman]

44. Noam Chomsky in league with the neocons?!?!

I'll just say if you think Noam Chomsky is "a gatekeeper of the so-called left", I think you are confused.

[BeHereNow]

69. For Gods' SAKE, will you go do some research???

Will you PLEASE go look at WHO MIT is in BED WITH?
Some of the most POWERFUL multi national corporations
on the PLANET!.

Do you REALLY think THEY let Mr. CHUMPSKY say what ever he wants?

Ask yourself, OBJECTIVELY, if you are able to get
over your swooning notion that Chumpsky is some
sort of truthspeaker, WHY, since he is
part of a faculty that has an actual department in VOTING science,
he has never pontificated on the very clear and present
voter fraud in the last two elections?

Or WHY, given the HUGE Phama Cartel control at MIT,
he never ever whimpered about Bush attaching the protective
legislation for the pharma cartel onto the Homeland Security bill?
Or the experimental vaccines used on our troops?
Depleted Uranium?

As a matter of fact- I challenge you to go find ONE
fucking talk by Chumpsky that addresses any of the
ATROCITIES committed by the administration that MATTERS.
The operative being, MATTERS.

How about Chumpsky on the Universal National Service Act?
Not a fucking whimper from Numb on that either?

Why do YOU think that is?
Maybe because he doesn't KNOW about these things that MATTER?
Right.

BHN

[personman]

72. You can research all you want...

If you research the symptoms and ignore the actual problems it won't take you very far.

"WHY, since he is
part of a faculty that has an actual department in VOTING science,
he has never pontificated on the very clear and present
voter fraud in the last two elections?"

Election fraud is a symptom, not the problem. We are not a democracy and never have been, and that is the bigger issue, more important then if we get the coke president or the pepsi president, anyhow.

When you look at things with that in mind, "Was there election fraud in 2000 or 2004?" becomes sort of an eye-roller, The Fox News version of the issue that matters rather then the issue that REALLY matters.

There are lots of people on the left talking about election fraud, not many talking about how we are not a democracy. The latter is what Chomsky talks about, and why we hear far less from him in the media then Malloy or Hersh. Perhaps Chomsky doesn't talk about the 2000/2004 fraud because he thinks it would detract from getting to the real problem? Who knows. Probably a better question for him then me, but if you wanted my guess about the answer, there you have some possibilities.

You are thinking (relatively)small, "a couple elections, a homeland security bill, depleted uranium", Chomsky is talking big: our entire political/economic system, 98% of our foreign and domestic policies, unprovoked wars of aggression.

You might ask, "But how can you consider DU small?"
DU is the symptom, not the problem, the problem is war, especially unprovoked wars of aggression.

-personman

[BeHereNow]

73. Uh-huh... Next. n/t

bhn

[Warren Stupidity]

64. What is your problem?

Chomsky is indeed a tenured MIT professor in linguistics, and he has used his tenure as a way to maintain almost complete independence with respect to his political theories and his efforts to widely disseminate them. You could not have picked a worse example for proving the case for a controlled subservient left.

In fact, when it comes to the media, Chomsky was the one telling us 20 years ago just what was up with corporate control of the media and the collusion of state and corporate control in general. You might disagree with his views, but claiming that somehow his day job as a professor of linguistics immune from termination (he in fact just about invented the field in addition to being tenured) makes him subservient to our corporate masters is silly.

I left posting on usenet after 20 years to get away from this sort of crap. The firing of Malloy has initiated a feeding frenzy here on DU.

[EFerrari]

42. Wow. I stopped my Nation subscription at the very same point.

Voters were still raging in Ohio and David Corn says there's nothing to see.

We're really on our own. Maybe we always have been.

[doctor_garth]

46. this is a brilliant post

I didn´t think I would read it here, I´ve just saved it.

I´ve always said that the enemies are not only the Repugs but also most on the left (media and Democratic party) who are oblivious to the fact that Bush and his mobsters are capable of much, much worse things than simply planning 9/11.

[BeHereNow]

32. A kick for those who are still delusional about what is going on

BHN

[leftofthedial]

36. we are fucked

we have been fucked for a very long time

the world we "know" is a facade.

[Emit]

37. I wonder how A.N.S.W.E.R. fits into this chart?

Act Now to Stop War & End Racism -- the group that Ramsey Clark is associated with.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ANSWER

I recall in 2004 when there was a huge anti-war protest in NYC and CSPAN, much to our frustration, stayed on with A.N.S.W.E.R. (Remember "Free Mumia!"?) when the major protests were occurring in the streets -- following a few threads on the subject here at DU there was some discussion about A.N.S.W.E.R. being a part of the contrived "left." Do you recall any of that or have any input on that?

[BeHereNow]

70. I don't remember, but I do know the very same tactics

used by the multi national corporates are being employed
by those who want to control the "left" media, which is to say,
it is often impossible to "follow the money."

The structure is so web like, so many subsidiary companies
and such, that finding the actual source ($) is, at best, impossible.

Is it possible that The Nation, AAR, and a myriad of other
so called "Left" media sources are actually manufactured
and therefore regulated by the powers that be?
EXTREMELY...
Ever notice that you hear many of the same
advertising sponsors on BOTH right and left radio stations?

BHN

[jmatthan]

38. Joe Liebermann / Al Franken responsible?

My analysis is at

http://talkshowratings.blogspot.com/2006/09/air-america-radio-stupidity.html

[EFerrari]

43. Okay, I read the essay.

Let me begin by saying, I agree with the premise. I agree that Left in this country has been co-opted. But there are many caveats.

The Left is not the resistance. Those are two different positions and for all I know, they should be.

Two problems with this article.

One: Anytime we engage in political action which necessarily involves the acquisition of liquid assets, i.e., $, we are entering a dialectic. We are at risk of being co-opted. That's just science.

Being at risk is not the same as buying in or as being in the PAY of any entity.


Two: Medea Benjamin and Amy Goodman are rule breakers. Shaw goes after the wrong illustrations. Think MoveOn. MoveOn could have been successful if they didn't seek to compete in a corrupted game but instead tried to change the rules. They didn't. So, they become "gatekeepers" insofar as they don't imagine, let alone act, outside of the rules of a corrupted game.

MoveOn spent how much of our money trying to elect Kerry AND when the election was obviously stolen, they went dark. To a certain extent, they still are.

I've met Medea Benjamin. I meet her in a dank barn of a bar on the wrong side of San Francisco when we were kicking off the re election campaign of our most left County Supervisor. There was no press, no reason for her to be there. She came, she danced, she gave. She talked to me about Andy and about Mike Moore and about her coming action in D.C. Medea is a rule breaker. She is also involved in the exchange of money that we call our political process. So far, I'd say she's done an amazing job of staying on the right side of that negotiation.

I don't know Amy but suspect, since her whole show is about disclosing hidden information that she works in a way similar to Medea. Medea and Amy are not the problem although they, by the intensity of their commitment ARE up to their eyeballs in RISK.

We mustn't make the mistake of thinking that because our best rule breakers are necessarily involved with $ that they are owned. Or, none of us could make any gesture of significance.

It is and likely has always been a negotiation and a very difficult, even dangerous one.

But that's the job.

I hope any of this makes sense.

[bbgrunt]

50. makes a lot of sense........but at the same time

it is the nature of reality. Once you become a part of the culture, you get coopted by it. Just like the music business--anyone that becomes popular becomes a sell-out--at least in the eyes of many fans.

The truly great manage to somehow keep plugging along despite it all. It is up to us to test their honesty. To determine if they are in it for the art or the glory.

Malloy is one true artist.

[EFerrari]

51. Yes, he is. n/t

[Joanne98]

66. I pretty much agree with line of thought.. Don't let the pure be the enemy

of the good. Over the last 25 years the right has sucked up so much of the money. I looked at the chart. Very depressing but not shocking. We have two corrupt parties. We all know that. But how do you play in the game when both teams are owned. The third party idea doesn't work. Although I will say I don't think Nadar mattered in Florida in 2000. We've learned alot since the Diebold software came into focus. I have a theory that nothing will change until we make alliances with the rank and file on the right.(not the freepers) They have gatekeepers too. If we got together and gave the owners on both sides Hell. Maybe we'd have a chance. I'm going to push the Freedom to Fascism doc, enough though it's Libertarian. It's a chance to make common cause. I'm for taxes when they help the people but all I see anymore is money going to wars, prison and contractors. Privatization is staring us in the face and it's the death of everything. I'm ready to trash the whole damn system. But until then the rank and file on the left shouldn't be critized for making money when they can. It's impossible to fight without any.

[grizmaster]

45. The Death of Authentic Resistance??

And who is it that gets to designate what "authentic" resistance is?


My opinion on it is that anybody putting a shoulder against the wheel is part of the resistance. And everybody is going to have a different opinion of when someone or some organization has softened so much that they are tacitly working for the other side.

And I don't think it's any real surprise that some of the more out there speculations about 9/11 would call into question all the judgements of a particular person. The article is right in pointing out that this is used as fodder for straw man arguments, but a sophisticated debater should be smart enough to keep to defendable points and not feign shock when a weak link in their argument is challenged and then beaten on like a kettle drum.

All that being said, I'm glad there are those further left playing a more "authentic" role in the resistance. But let's not act shocked when the other guys don't want to fund your revolution.

So forgive me if I'm suspicious of those to the left (and/or right) of me that want to have me come to them for their stamp of "authenticity".

[tomp]

48. k&r because it's true.

i've been saying it all along: u.s. imperialist foreign policy is a bipartisan policy. dems and repubs differ only on the details and how to sell it to the people.

[SaneInSC]

53. Never forget

Don't forget,when push comes to shove..that WE vastly outnumber them. We just need to organize and mobilize better..and not cede that role to anyone-celebrity or no. Nobody is going to save us. Only John and Jane Q. Public.

Its an information game..they are/have been winning. Get the proper message to the citizenry and we win.

And if they want to turn the National Guard/military, police on us..well then its a free for all anyway.

[JRob]

61. Yup! They're winning... and they're still moving pieces into place

As a matter of fact they are moving on one of the last bastions of free speech and information. See www.savetheinternet.com

[PresidentWar]

56. Oh for God's sake people......

when it comes to Malloy on DU, there is enough tin foil floating around to make a cruise liner.

I GAURANTEE Mike would still be on the air if his arbitrons were higher.

[B Calm]

58. You don't get it do you!

[onenote]

59. Mike Malloy is a coward or a tool of the neo cons!!

That must be why, when interviewed about being dismissed by AAR, he's not telling the truth about the conspiracy against progressive speakers and not disputing the "financial decision" explanation.
:sarcasm:

[PresidentWar]

63. I guess not....got any extra tin foil?

I want to make my hat bigger.

[JRob]

57. That's why they call it political "theater"

I've believed this for years. Why else would our politics reflect the will of the corps and not the people. Throw us a bone (talking points mind you, with little to no definitive action) and we're good for a year or two...

Now they're trying to shut down the internet http://www.savetheinternet.com/ if we do not stop this we'll have lost the war for the soul of our country if not the world.

Our only real weapon is to reduce or stop participating in our economy, hit them where they care. They certainly care little for what we believe. I posted (among other similar) "STRIKE, SLOW DOWN, BOYCOTT!!!" May 2005 http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=1776390&mesg_id=1776390

We MUST stop feeding their war chest.

[StrictlyRockers]

60. I agree. Buy and consume as little as possilbe. Ride your bike!

Mike told the truth, and someone was scared by that.
Mike will be back. He will be bigger than ever.
This firing has already backfired on TPTB.

[Exiled in America]

62. Maybe, but maybe not.

I certainly think this analysis is worth taking seriously. Regardless of whatever a person things about Mike's style (it doesn't have to be to everyone's taste in order to be a liberal) we should all be deeply worried about the agenda's of those seeking to frame the tone of the debate.

But--

Having said that, not all attempts to frame are bad. And not all communication in opposition to tyrannical forces is good. One of the interesting questions when thinking about Mike Malloy is whether or not he helped further a progressive agenda with his tone and style.

I keep trying to think about what kind of decision I might have made if I ran AAR. I am a long time listener to Malloy - since before AAR was even around. But I've always felt really ambivalent about his style. As I said on another thread - some days his angry screaming tirades were just what my tired and frustrated little ol' progressive activist heart wanted to hear. It's cathartic. But other days I really wondered how many persuadable people were totally turned off by his style.

I know my father was incredibly turned off by his style. In the last two years, he's come to believe that he was incredibly misled by republicans on a philosophical level. He's not only become a registered democrat, but also become a really progressive guy. Working with the American poor has become one of his biggest priorities. But at the same time, the admittedly abrasive style of Malloy was a very big turn off to him.

So if I ran AAR I'm not sure what I would do with programming. I might be inclined to replace Mike with someone equally as truth telling but not as volatile. I have Thom Hartman in mind, here. I would also can Al Franken, but that might not be the smartest business choice. I don't know how popular his show is - I don't find him to be a good radio personality and he is too centrist for the kind of radio station I would want to have.

Anyway, my point is - maybe AAR is part of a conspiracy to silence voices deemed "too progressive" or "too honest." But maybe it has more to do with a style that can be an extreme turn off to a huge cross section of potential listeners. I don't think that has anything to do with softening the truth. You can be extremely radical and progressive without frothing at the mouth. Zinn and Chomsky, though neither are suitable for radio personalities, are certainly radical without being hostile and abrasive. Hartman is a radio personality who is also very progressive and speaks the truth plainly without apology. Even Sam Sedar is more inviting in his style than Mike (in my opinion) while remaining very intelligent on the issues and very honest.

Just some thoughts...

[LoZoccolo]

65. Anyone can make up their own self-piteous reasons...

...for why they or their demagogues have no credibility. It isn't a difficult fabrication. The Republicans have been asking us to pity them for their coverage in the media for years, claiming a "liberal bias" for exposing their own lack of credibility.

[ulysses]

67. I feel badly for you sometimes,

having to share your party with so many people you loathe.

[mom cat]

68. This sure explains a lot to me about how it has seemed that certain

groups have routinely pulled their punches. :kick: