WHEN DID FREE PRESS BECOME FRANKENSTEIN?

It's funny how the face of G. Gordon Liddy reminds me of everything that seemed to ruin the US at a specific point in time. Liddy's bald head and his SUPER MARIO BROTHERS mustache makes me think that he in a way was part of the reason why the press went from being selective to being almost completely merciless and destructive. 

If you think back to the old days you learned about in the history classes you hated there is a distinctive difference between press from the 30's to "modern times press" from the late 60's forward. Politics was limited to whatever the press was allowed to publish and expose whatever the the White House allowed. 

So now we come back to Gordon our resident plumber. How exactly did everything go from being black and white to a kaleidoscope of color?  Watergate is really the best answer and with good reason. The White House really did have the power to repress information and to keep people in the dark about everything from our involvement in Vietnam to sanction covert operations aimed at destroying what we considered enemies. 

Watergate in many ways gave new power to "Freedom of the Press." I think that during that period freedom of the press was necessary in order to expose a serious issue with the US and its leader and show the people that everyone was liable when breaking the law. Now by contrast the press has become rapacious and is constantly looking for the next big stumble.  

Today the media has the real power and it's the media that controls who becomes our next leader. Every election no matter the position usually ends up in some bitter smear campaign that exposes every personal difficulty of aspiring leaders. Look at a 50's add stating "We Like Ike" and one now stating "Obama No Bama." The rhetoric has changed and the press and media no longer have a noble agenda but rather a selfish one based on special interest. Thank you Watergate for creating a special kind of monster that William Randolph Hearst would be proud of. 

THE HOME STRETCH

So we are now officially in the home stretch of the election. In a matter of days we will elect a new POTUS. I know I should use the whole word but POTUS just sounds so awesome. So what does this really mean?

To an uneducated mass it means very little and to pseudo intelligent self styled die hards it means that their view of what's best for the country is going to materialize. To a few it means that a change in the cyclical world and domestic economy may actually occur. The next few days are going to be a whirlwind of differing opinions, hurt feelings, and major misunderstandings.

Pro Obama teams will collide with members of Team Romney and news outlets will make ratings come to life with election coverage and an eventual retrospective of the last four years. One political party will likely go into a massive search for its next superstar while the other will find itself bathing in the glory of what has become the biggest trophy in the country. Every minor, moderate and large political booster organization will then focus on pushing their respective agendas and moving forward with a NO MORE 4 plan.

Every home stretch means something different for the country, the world and every individual breathing. Let's all remember to do our part as we too can make real change.