I Still Don't Sleep At Night

ANOTHER BIG BOMB IN IRAQ

I HOPE GEORGIE IS PAYING ATTENTION TO HOW WELL HIS BIG TV SHOW WENT OVER IN IRAQ. HIS PRODUCING DAYS ARE OVER. HE BETTER PUT HIS FCC VETO PEN AWAY DEMOCRACIES DEMAND CONFIDENCE IN A MEDIA THAT REFLECTS THE DIVERSE VOICES OF THE PEOPLE IT SERVES. THEY DEMAND MEDIA THAT TELLS THE TRUTH. AND BTW, WOULD IT BE A SIN TO BE ENTERTAINING? IT ISN'T LIKE HE HAD A HARD ACT TO FOLLOW. SADDAM HUSSEIN OFFERED 25 YEARS OF OF ALL PROPAGANDA ALL THE TIME. THESE PEOPLE COULD HAVE USED A BREAK.

WOULDN'T YOU THINK IF THERE'S ONE THING OUR COUNTRY COULD MAYBE GET RIGHT IT WOULD BE TV? IT'S AN EMBARRASSMENT. GET THIS--THE BUDGET IS SO LIMITED THAT THE CLOTHING ALLOWANCE FOR NEWSREADERS ONLY COVERED FROM THE WAIST UP. (NO OIL, NO MONEY.) OF COURSE THE EQUIPMENT IS A JOKE. AND OF COURSE THERE'S THAT PROBLEM IN THAT WE BOMBED THE HELL OUT OF ALL THE TV AND RADIO STATIONS AND TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS. OH WELL. NEXT TIME WE'LL THINK OF THAT.

THE MUCH FANFARED IRAQI TV HEAD JUST QUIT. IT LOOKED GOOD TO HAVE AN IRAQI EVEN IF THOUGH HE'D NEVER STEPPED A FOOT IN THE COUNTRY BEFORE. FORR RIKABI IS BACK IN LONDON AFTER ONLY THREE MONTHS IN BAGHDAD. HE HAD ONE THING TO SAY, "THE UNITED STATES NEEDS TO LISTEN TO IRAQIS MORE, AND NOT JUST IN THE MEDIA SECTOR." SOMEBODY HEARD THE QUOTE AND PUT IN THE NEWS AMAZING THAT HE GOT QUOTED. BUT THEN HE'S BRITISH, ISN'T HE?


YOU GO AHEAD DEAR. I'LL JUST WATCH WHERE THIS WALL USED TO BE
THE IRAQI PEOPLE ARE CHOOSING STARING IN SPACE, LOTS OF SPACE UNFORTUNATELY, ABOVE LOOKING AT THE REPETITIVE, OLD, AMERICAN PROGRAMMING TRANSLATED INTO ARABIC, WHICH IS NOW ON FOR ABOUT TWO HOURS A NIGHT IF THE ELECTRICITY IS ON. THEN THERE WAS THE CENSORSHIP. ANYTHING WITH RELIGION WAS NOT ALLOWED, NOT EVEN VERSES FROM THE KORAN. THERE ARE THERE ARE THE CONSTANT PROPAGANDA MESSAGES AND PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENTS. (SINGING THE NEW BOSS IS THE SAME AS THE OLD BOSS.) THEY CAN'T GET THE REAL NEWS EITHER. ALL THEY HAD WAS JENNINGS, RATHER AND BROKAW TRANSLATED INTO ARABIC. WE ALL KNOW HOW FRUSTRATING THAT IS. STILL, I THINK THEY KNEW MORE OF THE TRUTH THAN WE DID, DON'T YOU?


A CAUTIONARY TALE FOR TODAY: FCC GET ON IT.
BUT DOUBLESPEAK NAMED "TOWARDS FREEDOM TV, " NOW JUST CALLED IRAQI MEDIA NETWORK, WAS A GRAND BUSH DREAM ALONG WITH THE REST OF THIS UNSPEAKABLE WAR. "THE IDEA ALL ALONG WAS 'TO GIVE THE IMPRESSION THAT IT WAS CONVEYING THE VIEWS OF ORDINARY IRAQIS WHILE BEING HEAVILY WEIGHTED IN FAVOUR OF THE OFFICIAL US LINE.' VETERAN NEWS BOSS STEPHEN CLAYPOLE CITED IN GUARADIAN UNLIMITEDARTICLE IN JULY (A GOOD TIME TO ASK, HAVE YOU SIGNED THE PETITIONTO ROLL BACK MEDIA OWNERSHIP RULES?)


DISNEYWORLD, MC DONALDS, MICHAEL JORDAN & GEORGE BUSH

THE BIG INAUGURAL BROADCAST DAY BROUGHT THE FRIENDLY BOMBERS, NOW THE GEORGIE AND TONY SHOW, TELLING THE IRAQIS THAT THEY WANTED THEM TO HAVE THEIR OWN COUNTRY. UNDERLYING THE GEORGIE AND TONY SHOW WAS THE DEEPLY ROOTED CONVICTION SOME SAY, THAT TO SEE THEM ON THE AIR, PRACTICALLY IN PERSON, WAS TO GET TO KNOW THEM AND, OF COURSE, THEN LIKE THEM MAYBE LOVE THEM AS THEIR PERSONAL SAVIORS. BECAUSE EVERYONE LIKES WESTERNERS, OH WHO ARE WE KIDDING? WE MEAN AMERICANS, RIGHT? THEY WANT TO WATCH OUR TV AND MOVIES BECAUSE THEY LIKE US. THEY LIKE DISNEY WORLD, MICHAEL JORDAN. MC DONALDS, AND GEORGE BUSH, BESIDES WE LIBERATED THEM. LET'S SEE SOME APPLAUSE AND GRATITUDE PEOPLE. DICK, WHERE'S THE APPLAUSE SIGN? TOO BAD THEY DON'T HAVE PROSTHESES TO BANG ON WOOD. WELL, THEY CAN USE THEIR FEET IF THEY'VE GOT THEM.

ONLY 10% OF THE IRAQIS OWN A TV ANYHOW. AND THE IRAQIS STILL HAVE AL-JAZEERA AND AL-ARABLYA CHANNELS, UNLESS OF COURSE U.S. FORCES CONTINUE TO ROUND UP AND DETAIN AND ARREST THEIR EMPLOYEES, SUBJECT THEM TO DEATH THREATS, RAKE THE GROUND THEY STAND ON WITH MACHINE GUN FIRE, CONFISCATE THEIR NEWS MATERIAL AND BREAK INTO THEIR OFFICES AND TRASH THEM ALL BY U.S. SOLDIERS WHO HAVE NEVER ACTUALLY WATCHED AL-JAZEERA.

THE VOICE OF FREE IRAQ WALKS OUT ON U.S.
ONE FINAL NOTE BEFORE WE TURN THE CHANNEL--OH WAIT--IT'S A MONOPOLY. THERE'S NO POINT (COULD GET LIKE THAT HERE--WHICH CRAZY FUNDAMENTALIST MINISTER YOU WANT TO WATCH TONIGHT HONEY?) A BROADCASTER WHO BECAME KNOWN AS "THE VOICE OF FREE IRAQ" JUST WALKED OFF THE JOB. HE SAYS THE U.S. IS LOSING THE PROPAGANDA WAR. THIS IS BECAUSE THE U.S. DOESN'T INVEST IN THE IRAQ BROADCASTING SERVICE. (OIL MEN KNOW HOW TO SMELL OIL AND THERE'S NO OIL THERE.) "FAILURE TO INVEST IN THE NEW IRAQI BROADCASTING SERVICE MEANS FOREIGN CHANNELS ARE GAINING POPULARITY AT THE EXPENSE OF THE U.S.," AHMED al-RIKABI SAID. "SADDAM IS DOING BETTER AT MARKETING HIMSELF THROUGH AL-JAZEERA AND AL-ARABLYYA CHANNELS."

DO YOU THINK SADDAM JUST GOT A NEW MANAGER AND A NEW AGENT? THAT WOULD EXPLAIN A LOT. AT LEAST IT WOULD TO THE PEOPLE IN CALIFORNIA AND POSSIBLY NEW YORK.

HIDE BARBIE BEFORE THEY MAKE HER A REPUBLICAN

I LEARNED FROM YEARS OF SWAP MEETS, YARD SALES, FLEA MARKETS AND THRIFT STORES THAT YOU JUST NEVER CAN TELL WHERE YOU ARE GOING TO HIT THE GUSHER. YOU COULD BE IN SOME DIVE AND FIND A BRAND NEW DESIGNER OUTFIT JUST YOUR SIZE. INCONGRUOUS SURROUNDINGS IN ANY SITUATION MAKE FOR INTERESTING FINDS. SOMETIMES THIS WORKS IN REVERSE AND ISN'T SO GOOD.

I WAS TAKING A LOVELY STROLL TODAY OVER IN THAT PART OF VIRGINIA, WHERE FRED FIRST PUTS OUT FRAGMENTS FROM FLOYD GETTING VERY NEARLY DRUNK ON THE BEAUTY AS USUAL. THERE WERE CLOUDS YOU COULD HAVE JUMPED ON, ROLLED IN OR JUST DREAMED ON. THERE WERE BIG GREEN TOMATOES SO ALIVE YOU COULD SMELL THEM. THERE WAS A DREAMSICLE OR SHERBERT COLORED MOTH THAT WAS TOO LOVELY FOR THIS WORLD BUT GOD DIDN'T THINK SO. AND THEN I SAW SOMETHING CHEAP, UGLY, TAWDRY. IT COULDN'T BE. WAS IT JUST A BAD JOKE? THE HEADLINE READS "SAY IT ISN'T SO." THAT'S WHAT I WAS SAYING. BECAUSE IT WAS:

"GEORGE W. BUSH U. S. PRESIDENT AND NAVAL AVIATOR." THE ELITE FORCE AVIATOR. A 12" ACTION FIGURE. $39.99. AVAILABLE 9/15/03. GO SEE IT NOW. IT MADE ME SICK. IT MIGHT MAKE YOU SICK TOO!

WHEN YOU GET THERE YOU'LL FIND A LINK ON THE AD FOR KB TOYS. THEY WANTS TO KNOW WHAT YOU THINK OF THE IT. THAT MIGHT BE FUN.

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