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BruiserKC

FCC Chairman Gets My Blood Flowing

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I'm a libertarian politically. The less government in my life, the better. I understand you have to have government in some capacity for the basics, but it seems over the last 70 years or so government gets bigger and bigger. Even less-government pundits like Reagan and the Dubya have led to the largest growth of government in these last 25 years alone.

 

But to me the biggest problem comes to light when FCC Chairman Kevin Martin recently talked about forcing over-the-air and cable networks to clean up their programming before the government steps in and does it for them. My philosophy is simple...vote with your remote. I find something that I find objectionable, offensive, or sucks...I change the channel or turn off the TV and do something else. Simple...something everyone can do, right?

 

This quote really floored me...Martin said, "Of course you could turn off the TV or block all the unwanted channels, but why should you have to?" This floored me because it says to me, "You shouldn't have to take personal responsibility, let us do it for you."

 

Are we to that point in the US of A that we have to let our government decide what to watch on the boob tube and what not to watch? I've come to the conclusion that groups like the PTC and folks like the Rev. Wildmon are just plain fucking lazy. Apparently some people are so tired of having to actually police what their kids watch so they want someone else to do it for them. To them I say..."It's your kids...THEREFORE IT'S YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM TO DECIDE WHAT TO WATCH!" Yes, I know that we have parents who just throw their kids in front of the TV and it becomes the babysitter, but that's on their head, not mine.

 

And it goes back to the personal responsibility issue, especially for those of us who are parents. We don't want to teach our kids moral values, so we shuffle them off to school and let the teachers do it for us. Unless, of course...the teacher comes down hard on your child for actually misbehaving in class. Then they want to sue the school and get the teacher fired. No one seems to want to shoulder the load anymore...we pass the buck onto someone else. Now the TV folks are supposed to be the ones to make these decisions for us? And now that some people don't like the decisions of the TV folk, they want that changed as well.

 

I don't expect the government to raise my family, I'll do it myself. I have no problem with monitoring what my kids watch and making sure of its content. I'll teach my family what's right and wrong so when they go to school the teachers can show them reading, writing, and all the stuff needed to make it in the world. Let the government run its business, and let me handle my own. If you have a parent who can't figure it out...tough shit on them. Don't make it my problem.

 

We've replaced the liberal nanny state from the '90s with a "conservative" nanny state today...I really don't like either option.

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People like bitching and complaining too much. Its more fun to whine and complain to the FCC than it is to hit "BLOCK Channel" on your tv.

 

And remember of course that this is all for the poor helpless little children with parents who aren't doing such a hot job at parenting.

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"Of course you could turn off the TV or block all the unwanted channels, but why should you have to?"

 

I'd love to see a link to this. No offense, but I have a hard time believing he'd say something this incredibly stupid.

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Link!

 

Second to last line

 

As I said elsewhere, I thought they had eased off in the wake of she-who-can-not-be-named, but apparently I was wrong

 

So what exactly were the V-chips and ratings systems for, anyway?

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Although there's always the possibility that Fox's corporate masters are against this, and thus Fox News is spinning the story in a way to make the guy look like a tool, the fact remains that the guy is a tool.

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Are we to that point in the US of A that we have to let our government decide what to watch on the boob tube and what not to watch?

Well, actually, they've ALWAYS been in charge of what's on TV.

 

If they stay off of the cable channels, I don't really care. But cable channels do not use public frequencies, therefore they should have no say.

 

Plus they may make grandiose statements, but Arrested D and Family Guy have gotten away with some wonderfully filthy jokes. I'm not getting upset until they DO something.

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As probably one of the few, if not the lone Republican on here. I can't say that I don't disagree with everyone's thoughts on this idea by the head of the FCC. I think when you let government decide what you can and can't watch you start down the slippery slope to state run tv just like in China, North Korea, and all those either Communist, Fundamentalist, and Totalitarian states. The truth is that TV shouldn't be seen as a babysitter so that children's self-absorbed parents can continue to conduct their own self-absorbed business. Unfortunately, over the last 40 plus years we have been conditioned through the left's control of the media, Congress, and academia that one should not work for themselves or make the decisions in the minutia of everyday life but to let the government do it for you.

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As probably one of the few, if not the lone Republican on here. I can't say that I don't disagree with everyone's thoughts on this idea by the head of the FCC. I think when you let government decide what you can and can't watch you start down the slippery slope to state run tv just like in China, North Korea, and all those either Communist, Fundamentalist, and Totalitarian states. The truth is that TV shouldn't be seen as a babysitter so that children's self-absorbed parents can continue to conduct their own self-absorbed business. Unfortunately, over the last 40 plus years we have been conditioned through the left's control of the media, Congress, and academia that one should not work for themselves or make the decisions in the minutia of everyday life but to let the government do it for you.

 

 

NoCalMike is going to attack you at the next ppv.

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As probably one of the few, if not the lone Republican on here. I can't say that I don't disagree with everyone's thoughts on this idea by the head of the FCC. I think when you let government decide what you can and can't watch you start down the slippery slope to state run tv just like in China, North Korea, and all those either Communist, Fundamentalist, and Totalitarian states. The truth is that TV shouldn't be seen as a babysitter so that children's self-absorbed parents can continue to conduct their own self-absorbed business. Unfortunately, over the last 40 plus years we have been conditioned through the left's control of the media, Congress, and academia that one should not work for themselves or make the decisions in the minutia of everyday life but to let the government do it for you.

 

 

NoCalMike is going to attack you at the next ppv.

 

Yeah, I know. Then again at least I'm not so far right-wing that I'm making really crackpot incoherent responses ala Warrior. However, I am right that the left controlled Congress for at least 30 of the 40 years.

Edited by Darthtiki

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The truth is that TV shouldn't be seen as a babysitter so that children's self-absorbed parents can continue to conduct their own self-absorbed business. Unfortunately, over the last 40 plus years we have been conditioned through the left's control of the media, Congress, and academia that one should not work for themselves or make the decisions in the minutia of everyday life but to let the government do it for you.

 

You realize that this a Republican FCC and that the leading proponents of such measures are the PTC and other right-wing/evangelical-esque censorship groups?

 

Liberals, like conservatives, don't like what's on TV for the most part, but we tend to be viciously anti-censorship. We much prefer boycott to censorship (we also have a bigger problem with violence on TV than, say, boobies).

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The truth is that TV shouldn't be seen as a babysitter so that children's self-absorbed parents can continue to conduct their own self-absorbed business. Unfortunately, over the last 40 plus years we have been conditioned through the left's control of the media, Congress, and academia that one should not work for themselves or make the decisions in the minutia of everyday life but to let the government do it for you.

 

You realize that this a Republican FCC and that the leading proponents of such measures are the PTC and other right-wing/evangelical-esque censorship groups?

 

Liberals, like conservatives, don't like what's on TV for the most part, but we tend to be viciously anti-censorship. We much prefer boycott to censorship (we also have a bigger problem with violence on TV than, say, boobies).

 

Yes I am aware, and it's one of the few things I don't agree with my party on and I'm with you in voting with your remote i.e. boycott if there is something you don't agree with. As I've gotten older I've decided that the further you are to one side of the aisle and rooted in those fundamentalist values you actually end up meeting your opposite who wants the same goal as you the destruction of the ideas that dissent yours.

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I don't really understand how you relate a welfare state to paternalism. Even in a welfare state, it's not that we want the "government to do it for us", we want the government to give us money. Fundamentally, you're misinterpreting the mincing liberals of the 60's to early 90's. We were all about handouts, not government control. We've NEVER been about government control and authoritarianism. I suppose paternalism could be considered the next logical step, but we've never taken that step and never will. The FCC has little support in this matter or any matter, for that matter (and this matters!). The PTC doesn't count.

Edited by Dr. Tyler; Captain America

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I don't really understand how you relate a welfare state to paternalism. Even in a welfare state, it's not that we want the "government to do it for us", we want the government to give us money. Fundamentally, you're misinterpreting the mincing liberals of the 60's to early 90's. We were all about handouts, not government control. We've NEVER been about government control and authoritarianism. I suppose paternalism could be considered the next logical step, but we've never taken that step and never will. The FCC has little support in this matter or any matter, for that matter (and this matters!). The PTC doesn't count.

 

 

I find the welfare state as basically though "the government needs to do it for us, we're too lazy to do it ourselves." The paternalistic state is "the government needs to do it for you, you're too incompetent to do it yourself." Only difference is paternalism takes the choice out of our hands in a more forceful way then the welfare state. Both alternatives don't fly with me.

 

The funny thing for the evangelists and their ilk, from what I've read, is that many of them are also against "a la carte" programming choices...since the majority of cable and satellite customers would probably not be selecting their channels to be on their package. For example...I subscribe to DirecTV and have about 165 channels...only about half of them I really watch. I don't watch Lifetime, I don't watch the shopping networks, don't watch the religious channels, etc. That would put the Robertsons, the Falwells, and the Crouches out of some serious $.

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That would put the Robertsons, the Falwells, and the Crouches out of some serious $.

If this happens they won't have the funds to build that star cruiser to prevent the Ethiopians from going to Marklar

 

Strangely, I'm very comfortable with this, however the Rev. Dangerous A should start a religion show and ask for money.

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In this day and age, the FCC should be more worried about bringing back the Fairness in Media Act(or whatever it was called), that Ronald Regan and his cronies amptly destroyed, basically leaving media to the highest bidder, rather then a fucking tittie, nipple, or cuss word. What we have now is a nation full of 'tards that consider Rush Limbaugh THE NEWS, rather then a commentary guy to be listened to for purely entertainment purposes. You also have mass media conglomerates allowed to own more and more broadcast stations, again limiting the diversity in opinions expressed.

 

Also, as far as the "lefts control of the media goes" That is an entire different debate that we can have in it's own thread, that I would be happy to dispute, but we will leave this thread to the FCC Shenanigans.

Edited by NoCalMike

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Guest wildpegasus
I'm a libertarian politically. The less government in my life, the better. I understand you have to have government in some capacity for the basics, but it seems over the last 70 years or so government gets bigger and bigger. Even less-government pundits like Reagan and the Dubya have led to the largest growth of government in these last 25 years alone.

 

But to me the biggest problem comes to light when FCC Chairman Kevin Martin recently talked about forcing over-the-air and cable networks to clean up their programming before the government steps in and does it for them. My philosophy is simple...vote with your remote. I find something that I find objectionable, offensive, or sucks...I change the channel or turn off the TV and do something else. Simple...something everyone can do, right?

 

This quote really floored me...Martin said, "Of course you could turn off the TV or block all the unwanted channels, but why should you have to?" This floored me because it says to me, "You shouldn't have to take personal responsibility, let us do it for you."

 

Are we to that point in the US of A that we have to let our government decide what to watch on the boob tube and what not to watch? I've come to the conclusion that groups like the PTC and folks like the Rev. Wildmon are just plain fucking lazy. Apparently some people are so tired of having to actually police what their kids watch so they want someone else to do it for them. To them I say..."It's your kids...THEREFORE IT'S YOUR FUCKING PROBLEM TO DECIDE WHAT TO WATCH!" Yes, I know that we have parents who just throw their kids in front of the TV and it becomes the babysitter, but that's on their head, not mine.

 

And it goes back to the personal responsibility issue, especially for those of us who are parents. We don't want to teach our kids moral values, so we shuffle them off to school and let the teachers do it for us. Unless, of course...the teacher comes down hard on your child for actually misbehaving in class. Then they want to sue the school and get the teacher fired. No one seems to want to shoulder the load anymore...we pass the buck onto someone else. Now the TV folks are supposed to be the ones to make these decisions for us? And now that some people don't like the decisions of the TV folk, they want that changed as well.

 

I don't expect the government to raise my family, I'll do it myself. I have no problem with monitoring what my kids watch and making sure of its content. I'll teach my family what's right and wrong so when they go to school the teachers can show them reading, writing, and all the stuff needed to make it in the world. Let the government run its business, and let me handle my own. If you have a parent who can't figure it out...tough shit on them. Don't make it my problem.

 

We've replaced the liberal nanny state from the '90s with a "conservative" nanny state today...I really don't like either option.

 

Cry me a river

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No offense, but I have a hard time believing he'd say something this incredibly stupid.

 

You were talking about someone in OUR government, right?

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Guest wildpegasus

Actually, the quote that people are making fun of makes sense when you think about it.

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Yes, it makes sense in the obvious, this-has-been-the-solution-the-whole-time way.

 

I'm more worried about educational channels failing as a result of this also. Not like it's actually going to happen, this sort of pick-and-choose cable BS happens every few years.

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