Homework

Homework

Junior Honors English: The Great Gatsby: read novel, writing marginal notes analyzing Fitzgerald's message/critiqe of the "American Dream"

Senior College Prep English: Raisin in the Sun essay due Tuesday, March 29th.

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

The Lighter Side

The world is amazingly interesting. Politicians debate policies that will mold our civil liberties, businessmen enact decisions that affect our finances, and businesses create products that affect our environment. But sometimes, its just fun to sit back and laugh at the oddity of this world. 

So today, search the news, read whats going on, and post and comment on people and events that seem incredulous, ridiculous, or just plain crazy! 

http://skunkpost.com/news.sp?newsId=3177

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE68C46220100913?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+reuters%2FoddlyEnoughNews+%28News+%2F+US+%2F+Oddly+Enough%29

135 comments:

Anonymous said...

I saw the news on channel 3 a few weeks ago and I was shocked to see that one of the main headlines was of a dog that could skateboard. Is there really nothing more interesting that was happening in the entire world that could have been reported on then a dog skateboarding?

Kimberly Rotter said...

Ian,

I agree with you completely. I watch CNN, Fox, and MSNBC, and they all extensively covered the Lindsay Lohan trial, ignoring such other relevant news topics like the gulf spill or healthcare reform. Is anyone else sick of hearing about celebrities in news? Do you guys care what happens to Paris Hilton, Jennifer Anniston, Brad Pitt, etc?

Unknown said...

I've noticed that if they don't have any major news about deaths or political screw-ups, news stations seem really content with wasting time with stupid stuff about dogs. I just found a whole article abuot a kid who ate 47 burritos in ten minutes. http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/09/11/ap/strange/main6857286.shtml?tag=cbsnewsLeadStoriesAreaMain;cbsnewsLeadStoriesHeadlines

Kimberly Rotter said...

Ginny,

I would argue even when there is relevant news, the news still focuses on irrelevant stuff. Think about what you guys should be aware of, events that affect you, like school budgets, passing of Kyleigh's Law, wars....

Anonymous said...

It's stuff like that nobody cares about. Can't they just report the important news, and just leave the rest of the junk out? Or at least not make the junky stuff a main headline?

Unknown said...

I really don't care about celebrities at all, and even if I did I would feel kind of creepy, constantly checking up on what their lives are like.

Unknown said...

I saw that to Ian, and I thought the same thing. the country is at war, there are people around the world who are starving to death and mass murders running amuck and we are hearing about a skateboarding dog?!?

Unknown said...

I think sometimes it's because mayb they don't want to see too depressing and don't want to upset people, which is fine, except that's their job. Their entire career is based off of being the bearer of bad news, and they shouldn't try to avoid doing so.

meghan said...

Was it meaty from Rob & Big?

Kimberly Rotter said...

Ladies and Gentleman,

Did you know Mexico is in a bad condition? That major politicians are being assassinated, thousands of people murdered, that the police and government is corrupt. That Mexico may become a failed state? Imagine how that will affect our country if that happens!

Unknown said...

I personally think that this silly news is needed in our world today. All of the disasters, murders, and other horrible things are important of course, but some of these crazy stories give us a laugh every once in a while. Everyone could always use good laugh to ease the pain of all of the sad stories of our world.

meghan said...

Usually all the news stations are fixated on the bad things that are happening and even though it may be important I think a dog on a skateboard is actually quite refreshing.

Pilot said...

I agree with Ian and Ginny. The media focuses on all the stupid stuff instead of focusing on what really matters.. Mrs. Rotter, you brought up a good point.

Unknown said...

All the news has to report that even slightly has to do with mexico is some kid in New Mexico eating burritos. Nothing about politics, nothing about poverty or gnag activity. BURRITOS.

Unknown said...

what would that mean for mexico? im confused ive never heard of a failed state?

Unknown said...

Ryan, I don't think it's wrong of them to be reporting pointless stories, but it's when they could be talking about something serious instead that it's bad. If they've honestly already convered all thebad news, by all means, talk about skateboarding dogs.

meghan said...

Im going to have to side with my main man ryan on this one.

Unknown said...

On reuters.com a man is paris is accused of paternty fraud beacuse he register 55 children from 55 differnt mothers so he could get money and a place to live from the government.First of all I have no idea why or how anyone could have 55 kids its irresposible and stupid. The government should have given the money directly to then kids and their mothers and not the father. Its rediculous to have that many childern but everyone whats to no what these peoples lives are like. Thats why show like 19 kids and counting,jon and kate plus 8 and others r stil on the air because people are not being resonsible and having an amount kids that they can handle. Not only is thne guy wrong here the government is supid for not relising this and figuring it out sooner so thye werent wasting up to 7,500 euros a month on this guy.

Anonymous said...

Yes it was meaty. I know that a few fun stories need to be sprinkled thru out the news so that it's not all bad, but making the stories a 5 minute long segment on how a world record was set on most bouncy balls bounced at once, and leaving more important stuff like how troops are going top get out of the war, and clenaing up oil spills to a 30 second clip, it just seems wrong. It's how they underminre the important stuff is just more annoying then anything.

meghan said...

Im going to have to side with my main man ryan on this one.

Kimberly Rotter said...

While I do agree Ryan that humor is necessary, sometime to just be able to stomach the idiocracy seen in the world (Jon Stewart anyone?", I think that unfortunatley younger people never get past the comics to read/view the "real" news. how many of you actually read/watch the news? Read the headlines? Read any of the headlline right there on the right side of this page?


I must admit I did not at your age. I wished I did though. Your age group are the worse voters; most 18-25 year olds don't vote. Any the government doesn't seem to be concerned with your issues....Any connections?

Unknown said...

I watch the Colbert Report every now and then, and just sort of skim through the paper a few times a week, but I don't really get too in-depth about reading articles. And Colbert is too busy making fun of people to get to into a particular story...

Kimberly Rotter said...

Emily,

A failed state means that the government no longer works. It means that a country could fall into anarchy creating a power vacuum for a dictator to rise perhaps.

Pakistan was on the brink of being a failed state. The Taliban was just 30 miles from their capital last year. Anyone wants to take a guess why either state falling would be disasterous for a country and to America?

Unknown said...

i think a good balance of good and bad is good. Because if there was only bad things on the news we would be all walking around depressed. But if there is something funny worth reporting on then maybe it should be done at the end of the program and not as the lead story.

Anonymous said...

i think Ryan is right too. I just think that the news needs more balance on what they report.

Pilot said...

I like to watch the news because I like to be informed about what's happening in the world and how it could affect us as a country. Humour is good at times but the media overdoes it a little bit. No, the government doesn't seem to be concerned with our issues and it's nothing new. I don't know if it'll ever change, but it's really annoying.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Ginny,

I prefer Stewart to Colbert because while Colbert is funny, it really is just a mockery of conservatism. Jon Stewart seems to be the modern day JOhn Swift: he critiques the media for their biases and politicians for their corruption. He tries to keep everyone honest through satire!

Unknown said...

Yeah if I was really serious about watching the news I would most definetely watch Jon Stewart, but alas I am not. But my dad works at a newspaper so he's always talking about what's going on so I feel like I'm still sort of informed about current events.

Stefi said...

The news always has stories that I find to be very pointless. Although people want a good laugh sometimes, most people want to watch the news to find out what is going on with the world and the major issues that we are experiencing. If people want to find out about funny events that occurred they can go on youtube or watch other shows that display these kinds of actions. I feel that the news needs to be talking about the more important issues happening at this very moment that we should be concerned about because there are a lot of predicaments happening today and we want to be aware of what is going on around us and how we can cope witht these issues.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Just a thought one of my high school teachers told me once:

It is a good thing the news reports bad things. The news reports the extraordinary. Imagine the day when the news will report the fact that we all made it to school ok today....

Unknown said...

Honesly,the only time i watch the news is to see what the weather is going to be like. I dont want to hear how many troops died in the war or about a certain murder, it's just too depressing to hear that type of news all the time.

Unknown said...

It would be bad for the united states because then all the criminals from Mexico will com to the United States which would be disastrous.

Stephanie said...

I have to say that I agree with Ginny when she says that some things are just to much to put on the news, but then again that is their job. They are suppose to inform us of what is going on, but it isn't a bad idea to throw in a story about a skateboarding dog. I mean, people need a few laughs here and there.

I understand that the news dosen't say much on world events, which should be spoken. But I don't think the public will react the same. Yes people like to hear what is going on, but I think alot of people also would just rather be left in the dark and choose not to know what is going on about wars or political problems. Even though I disagree, and think people should be told whether they want to hear it or not. It's a surprise that half the people just don't really care what's going on. If it dosen't affect them personally, I don't think they would even bother to pay the news any mind.

Anonymous said...

I kind of like Stephen Colbert. He goes into the thing where he adds some humor to lighten up all the bad news and corruption.

Unknown said...

I second that Jamie.

Anonymous said...

I kind of like Stephen Colbert. He goes into the thing where he adds some humor to lighten up all the bad news and corruption.

Unknown said...

I also enjoy knowing what the weather will be like.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Guys,

The world is turning whether youpay attention or not. I guess, coming from a teacher's perspective, knowledge is power. I want to know what is going on because I believe I can shape it. for example, when I learned they wanted to cut teacher's pensions, I got a meeting with our Assembleman so I could be heard. By the way, there are different types of news: business, sports, foreign affairs, etc. and it all isn't so sad. For instance, I have just started paying attention to the business news because I want to invest in the stock market. You better believe I want to know what is going on there so I can invest my money properly.

Unknown said...

Ian have you ever read Colbert's book? It's hysterical.

Unknown said...

I dont usally have time to watch the news because I'm not home, and I hate reading the news paper. But I do watch good morning america every morning and I feel that even though its not super hard hitting news that will give me atleast a part of whats going on in the world.

Anonymous said...

I watch the news and read the paper, from time to time, but not really in-depth. I actually get most of the news from my grandpa. He always likes to inform me of what going on in the world, so I can make sensible decisions, especially when it comes to voting.

Anonymous said...

Personally, I like the sports news. I think that it is very important to report the big news as much as possible in the major news channels and papers, but sports news is nice becasue nothing that serious happens. If a team loses it's not the end of the world. It never gets to serious.

Stefi said...

I agree with jamie too. I honestly usually don't watch the news unless I want to see what the weather will be like. However, I do watch it on occassion when it just happens to be on that channel and some of the stories are a waste of time. I like hearing about the real events that are occurring.

Unknown said...

sometimes even if its someone funny giving the news its better than nothing atleast ur hearing something thats going on.

Anonymous said...

and ginny i have, i thought it was halarious.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Ginny,

I have read is book. Funny and smart.

Everyone else,

When you watch the news or hear it from others, are you aware of any biases????? That is another thing we need to worry about....Do the people who tell us the news have an agenda themselves?

Pilot said...

Stephanie,
I agree that it's good to put in a few laughs here and there, but there are times when the media will tell us about something stupid like this, a dog on a skateboard, instead of telling us about worl affairs and the news that could affect us.

No matter how the public reacts, they need to know about the world news. They need to know what's going on around them and even in their communities.

Kimberly Rotter said...

You guys are easy to control if you don't know what's going on :)

Unknown said...

Yeah depending onthe news program, it's definetely biased. Most shows about political news are from either a Republican or Democrat point of view so you aren't really able to form your own opinion on the matter due to the biases.

meghan said...

well played ian well played.

Unknown said...

depending on what channl u watch u can hear the same story 2 different ways so u just have to relise who is giving u the info and then make ur own judgment on the topic.

Anonymous said...

I understand what you're saying about news being biased, and I'm careful about what people tell me. I don't believe somthing someone tells me right away.

Anonymous said...

Is the whole telling the news the was the newscaster thinksis right, kind of like the thing in history where the winner gets to right history the way they see fit.

Unknown said...

When I wake up in the morning while I am getting ready for school I watch channel 10 like Katie said it’s not the best source but I know some stuff. Anyway I mostly watch because the time and degrees outside is in the corner but I also like the added factor that I will have some background on what’s going on in the world around me.

Anonymous said...

who watches the news?

Zack said...

I honestly think the news is a bunch of lies to keep the real stories from us that are really are happening. What they tell us is really just to keep us happy.

george said...

the news is so boring , it cant hold my attenton . plusnits always bad news so i just turn it off

Amelia said...

Colbert's book is definitely hilarious, and so is his show, it's basicly my only source of news besides John Stewart, I don't watch that much TV and when I do I'm not really interested in serious news, I think Colbert still reports well despite his main job being a satire of conservatism.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Kevin,

That is the point. You guys don't watch the news, don't know what is going on, so can be taken advantage of. If people want to have power over you, they keep you ignorant. We voluntarily keep ourselves ignorant....

Unknown said...

Msnbc.com has a video about a 10 week old tabby kitten with the word cat "written" on her fur. Its really, really cute. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4429957
Alo, a library in Minnesota got back a library book that was overdue for 35 years. The fine was $1,400.

Anonymous said...

What's the news?

Unknown said...

When it comes to the news most of the things you hear about are deaths, accidents, fires, and other bad things going on. The news would be a lot better if they talked about the good things that people are doing instead of the horrible things that have just occured to people.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Amelia,

I got into the news through those programs. Those shows are really smart, and funnier when you actually watch the news they are satirizing.

Unknown said...

The news also is just a bunch of drama and i dont have any interest in listening to all the bad things happening so i never watch it.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Cara,
The local news might focus on death and bad stuff, but remember there is various types of news: business, sports, entertainment, scientific, etc. Those types don't and are important sources of knowledge.

Iago said...

hello everyone,

I personally agree with Ryan also because everytime I watch the news there is nothing but a bunch of sad stories about crazy things like people getting killed or disasters that are happening around the world. Yes, these things are important to be informed about but its ridiculous to turn on the news and suddenly be upset because of all these sad stories. Sometimes it would be nice if there was something good on the news, like the story about a dog skateboarding, maybe this would make more young adults watch the news because I'm pretty sure now adays many people don't bother turning on the news.

george said...

zach ,
true story , the news is lies .

Kimberly Rotter said...

Briana,
I agree that news can be sad, but guys, unfortunately, the real world has many tragic events. Welcome to the real world I guess.

Unknown said...

I never watch the news because most of the stories don't affect me and none of them interest me. I think it's pointless because not all of the stories are 100% accurate anyway. It's honestly just a waste of time.

Katie said...

i only watch the news if i'm bored and there's nothing else on tv, because most of the time the news stories don't interest me. & i agree with Zack, most of the stories on the news aren't completely true, they announce things on tv when they don't even know all of the real facts.

Anonymous said...

When ever I eat breakfast in the morning the news is always on. I usually just see the weather.. or stupid politics stuff. Sometimes the news is just super depressing. I agree with MEGHAN AND RYAN. Skateboarding dogs FTW!

Unknown said...

Personally i dont like watching the news because they are always focusing on the bad things that are happening and they almost never talk about anything good that is going on. It is good to be informed on what is going on around us but it comes to a certain point that taking in so much bad news gets old. I really only watch the news to find out the weather so i know what to wear to school the next day.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Everyone,

Good points about the biases in the news. It doesn't mean its worthless; sometimes those biases reveal more about society than actually reporting the news. We will be learning this year how to analyze information, uncovering biases. This is important because everyone has something to see you!

Kimberly Rotter said...

Everyone,

Good points about the biases in the news. It doesn't mean its worthless; sometimes those biases reveal more about society than actually reporting the news. We will be learning this year how to analyze information, uncovering biases. This is important because everyone has something to see you!

Anonymous said...

The only time I am ever watching the news is when my dad has it on and I have nothing else to do but watch it. I don't like watching the news becuase it is boring and depressing. I know that I should be interested in news but I am just not and I should be intrested in what is going on the in world but I am not.

Amelia said...

http://www.timeslive.co.za/world/article505813.ece/German-student-attacks-Hell-rsquo-s-Angels-with-puppy

This story just makes me laugh, some kid in Germany attacked a biker gang by throwing a puppy at them and then escaping on a bulldozer. :)

Iago said...

I realize that the real world isn't always "perfect" and "happy" but once in a while the news could show something enjoyable instead of making everyone want to cry when they watch it.

Unknown said...

I agree with everyone else about all the important news being absent from the headlines, but I don't see whats wrong with light hearted news. Everyone who watches the news and worries about healthcare or the war in Iraq deserves a chuckle every now and then. I'm changing the topic here, but why does everyone care so much about the Ground Zero Mosque? Technically, its not even AT Ground Zero, its a few blocks away. Why should we punish those who follow the Islamic faith based on the wrongdoings of a few radical individuals who also follow it? If America wants to estalish peaceful rlations with the Muslims overseas then we need to be more tolerant.

Unknown said...

Briana,
i agree with you,thats why i never turn on the news

Kimberly Rotter said...

Val brings up an interesting point. I would like to hear comments.

Kimberly Rotter said...

I listen to the news and there are lighthearted stories and stories of people's triumphs. But, youguyes are right; most local news focuses on the negative.

Katie said...

I completely agree with Val

Grace said...

I agree with Ginny that Jon Stewart, though he can be biased, gets down to business more so than Steven Colbert does. Granted, I absolutely love the Colbert report, but he does spend a bit too much time making fun of everything and everyone to actually give you details.

Katie said...

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

Amelia said...

Valerie I agree with your whole mosque comment, I forget but I think it was Palin who said that letting them build a mosque there would be like letting Nazis put Nazi propaganda near a Holocaust museum, wich is wrong because all Nazis are affiliated with the Nazi party but not all muslims are terrorists.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Great, guys, keep going. Can someone explain the mosque controversy or find a story about it so we are all on the same page?

george said...

val

its not that we are intolerant of the mosque , its just disrespectful to people who lost family on that day . they should just move the mosque somehwere else.

Iago said...

Thanks for complimenting us Ms, Rotter! Katie thanks for saying who Larry Hoover was I always wondered when I heard boys in our grade singing that song! (;

Unknown said...

Katie,
Thanks for verifying who Larry Hoover is for me. It made me laugh.

Unknown said...

Katie,
Thanks for that link. I was wondering who he was. I hear people say his name all the time and that really helped. Thanks again! :) Your the besstt!

Unknown said...

It’s completely outrageous that there are so many stories out there completely dedicated to celebrities these days. Yes, sometimes it’s interesting but that gossip belongs on VH1 and not the regular news. Ok, we get it, these people are famous but in reality they are just one single person with a boat load of cash. I'm not trying to say that becoming famous and earning all that money is easy, I'm inferring that there are many other events out there that are more important than who’s dating who. The world today needs to wake up. There are so many news stories today on stupid criminals getting caught and people just doing stupid things in general. It's pretty depressing to see that this is what we focus on..

Anonymous said...

does the daily show and colbert report count as the news?

Anonymous said...

RICK RO$$

Kimberly Rotter said...

George,

I would argue it is in a way. There were two mosques in the World Trade Centers. Muslims died in that attack.Everyone has the right to worship as they wish in this country. SO why can't they build a mosques a couple streets away, in a red light district of sorts, hardly a sacred area?

Kimberly Rotter said...

Kevin,

Daily Show and Colbert Report are satires. You can gain valuable information from them as long as you know it is a satire.

Katie said...

Rebecca, i completely agree. I think celebrities belong on the gossip websites and tv channels dedicated to them, rather then on the mainstream news websites and tv channels.

Unknown said...

Rebecca,
I agree with you. There are much more important things going on in the world that we should be focusing on, not what the celebrities are doing right now. I really dont care..

Unknown said...

The news is upseting but it is the truth and we all have to face that is what is going on the in world today, but i do agree that it is good to have some ridiculous things on the news for our humor like the dog skateboarding or the kid eating 47 burritos in 10 minutes.

Iago said...

I agree that everyone should be able to practice their faith where ever they want and I don't think that the muslims should be punished for what other people of their faith did. What everyone needs to understand is that obviously people aren't going to easily respect the Muslim faith. People in this country are very judgemental and they think what they want about who they want, nothing seems to change that. The Muslims should be able to have their mosque near ground zero.

Unknown said...

Rebz,
I also agree with you. 100%

Unknown said...

Rebecca,
I completely agree with you. There are WAY too many stories about celebrities. For example, no one cares that Angelina Jolie adopted another foreign kid, it's annoying and unnecessary to talk about.

Britt said...

The news focus way to much on the negative things that happen. They have more stories that involve celebrities and scandals then they do about murders and things that matter. Also people shouldnt focus too much on the news becasue of the negativity, people already have alot of their own tragedy to to worry about than other peoples problems, whether they are important or not.

Unknown said...

George
We would'nt be where we are today if we tried to appease everyone. I feel horrible for the families of those who perished in 9/11, and I'm not trying to tell them to suck it up, but its wrong for the news to be telling them that all Muslims are evil. They need to be taught that they aren't.

Unknown said...

^ At all those mosque posts..
I'm completely against it. It's pretty much a slap to the face to America. To me I see it as they can do what ever they want due to freedom of religion but yes I understand that not all Muslims are extreme terrorists but they had other places to choose from. I feel that this event is driven off of fear. As I heard people saying on the news, in general: If we build it it’s a disgrace to our country due to the events of 9/11 but if we don’t they will get upset and maybe another ridiculous attack on our country.
Overall, it shouldn’t be built there and they need to get over it.

Anonymous said...

i think the news just seems to boring to actually sit and watch the daily show makes you actually think about what is happening then think about how is funny too.

Maria said...

Regarding the mosque issue, I saw on the news last week that there is already a mosque not too far away from the proposed site. Being that there is already a mosque nearby, why would there be the need for an additional mosque near Ground Zero? That is what I don't understand. Let the religion practice their own beliefs, but I don't believe that the additional mosque should be placed so close to ground zero.

Anonymous said...

Val, but it's a kind of slap in the face to everyone. I understand religious freedom and recognizing that not all muslims are terrorists, but we gave them other options. They don't have to bulid a mosque two blocks away from Ground Zero.

And I completley agree with Rebecca.

Grace said...

To Rebecca's Mosque post:
We weren't attacked by a religion, we were attacked by Al-Qaeda. So the Islamic people putting up a Mosque has nothing to do with that...

Anonymous said...

Amelia, That story about the biker gang was to funny. Thankyou for posting it~

Kimberly Rotter said...

I agree with Grace. Remember Muslims did not attatack us. A group of extremist, terrorists did. It would be like condemning all catholics for the priest child molestation cases.

Anonymous said...

Well, most of the terrorists were Muslims, and by putting a mosque so close to ground zero would be a reminder of what happened on 9/11, which isn't really a good thing.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Anna, I find fault with your logic. Should I punish the whole class for the misbehavior of a few?

Anonymous said...

No, but I see where you're coming from. I understand that only a few thousand Muslims are terrorists, and it would be unfair to punish all of them, but it would also be unfair to the victims of the attacks. I'm not saying that I don't want the mosque because I'm intolerant or hate all Muslims, it's just not fair to the victims of the attacks. Many people feel that ground zero is a war memorial, and to put a mosque there would be offensive.

I just don't understand why they have to build it so close to ground zero. They could have put it somewhere else, we gave them options.

Unknown said...

Maybe the mosque was put there for a reason. Maybe the builders or whoever are trying to tell the American people that we need to get away from this 9/11-terrorist mindset we all seem to be stuck on. We can mourn the losses, but we also need to look forward to the future with optimism, and that starts with making sure everyone has a place. American Muslims have been looked down upon, scrutinized, and judged for almost 9 years now. They need assurance that they deserve to live here, and one step toward that goal is building a mosque near Ground Zero.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Wow val. Verym thought provokung. any responses?

Brittanee said...

i think that the mosque is a bad idea. i think that since there is already one so close there is no need for another one. i also agree with anna it wouldnt be right putting it there because of 9/11. Nothing against muslims but it would just be disrespectful. Even though i agree with anna i think val has a point in saying we dont need to blame all muslims for what a group of them did.

will said...

i have heard that we are sending teams of paid mercinaries from black water to look for high ranking insergens....Good or Bad idea

Unknown said...

Terrible, they have no respect or boundries at all, and they know the government wont actually press charges on any of them.

Anonymous said...

Glenn Beck is one of the most idiotic people alive it physically hurts me that he can have hes on show and spread his radcal veiws. but its america what are you gona do

Kimberly Rotter said...

Tyler,

I agree. They have been caught killing civilians, but since they are outide the military, they do not fall under any code of law. They can and do whatever they want. What do you think we should do?

Kimberly Rotter said...

I agree with the Glenn Beck comment. DId you watch his march and speech in Washington? Did you hear what Jon Stewart is doing in response to it?

Soren 86 said...

Paying Black Water, or just about any PMC(Private Military Company) would be a waste of money and time. They have no regard for for civilian lives or property. They may have better equipment then us but they do not care how they use it or how they go about getting the job done.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Roger,

And ultimately, I think we are doing more harm turning the civilians against us and our cause....

Unknown said...

First of all, Black Water members shouldn't be paid such a ridiculous ammount of money.. if I recall correctly the starting wage of a BW mercenary is a little over 100 grand a year. These mercs don't give a crap about what happens in the war, all they want is their paychecks.

dan said...

no i didnt i was lookin foward to seeing how john stewart was going to respond but i havent been able to catch the daily show since before the speech, what is he doing ?

Kimberly Rotter said...

Dan,

Jon Stewart's reponse:

http://www.idsnews.com/news/story.aspx?id=77008

Dan said...

"One of his protest signs reads, “I disagree with you, but, I’m pretty sure you’re not Hitler.”" haha i think thats a great way of summing up how crazy glenn beck is and I think that going to this rally would make a great field trip

Unknown said...

For an unbiased, no nonsense, reliable news source, I'll state the obvious and direct you toward BBC America. If you don't get the station, if I'm not mistaken, there's a shortened version of it on either WHYY or PBS.
For those who'd like to choose willful ignorance, there's always Fox.

Kimberly Rotter said...

Karl Marx,

you make an intriguing point. I believe that Fox News is biased, more that most, but if you watch MSNBC, it too is biases. It is actually interesting to watch both in conjunction to see how both sides spin the news abd issues.

NPR is good to listen too.

Do you read any political magazines, blogs, or websites?

Unknown said...

You're right. Any newscast is bound to have a conservative/liberal biases, but that's one thing. It's understandable. Filling a two hour news program with nothing but weather, traffic, and fluff is another thing entirely and unacceptable.

dan said...

tyler i domt think 100 k is too much for any one to risk their lives at war if it was up to me i would pay all U.S soliders that

Unknown said...

i agree with dan, these man and women put their lives on the line everyday so we can be free.they deserve 100k.People who do much easier jobs with less risk make more money that U.S. soilders.

Unknown said...

No one is saying that the common US military person should be paid less, we're specifically talking mercenaries. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercenary)

Kimberly Rotter said...

Marx is right. Do not confuse our military, people who volunteer to serve our country and protect our freedom, with Black water and paid mercenaries in Iraq. These people make lost of money and have been in so many scandals involving butchering civilians.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/usa/news/article_1361598.php/Blackwater_scandal_deepens

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704065404574636170633783890.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=6254508&page=1

Kimberly Rotter said...

Marx is right. Do not confuse our military, people who volunteer to serve our country and protect our freedom, with Black water and paid mercenaries in Iraq. These people make lost of money and have been in so many scandals involving butchering civilians.

http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/usa/news/article_1361598.php/Blackwater_scandal_deepens

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704065404574636170633783890.html

http://abcnews.go.com/Blotter/story?id=6254508&page=1