How About Independence Day from Corporations Controlling Our Government? Now That Would be Change We Could Believe In.

BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG

By Mark Karlin

Our hearts and spirits soared as Barack Obama was swept into the White House in a landslide on election day in 2008.

It was one of those historic moments of hope, of the dark cloud of the Bush-Cheney years being lifted from our shoulders, of a desire for a restored democracy being fulfilled, of a candidate worthy of our great nation being elected.

During the days leading to the Inauguration and the cherished ceremony itself, we soared with the elation of a great experiment in governance, innovation, and freedom being vindicated and restored.

But then we were disgusted and horrified by how Wall Street was paid ransom welfare to keep an economy from entirely collapsing that they had gambled away.  We saw President Obama surround himself not with populist economic advisors that would restore financial power to Main Street, but rather with the very architects of America's riverboat gambler financial swindles and collapse, many of them from Goldman Sachs which Matt Taibbi just definitively revealed as a predator financial institution.

And if there is any doubt that the multi-national "globalist" corporations -- who have left the American worker to rot -- control Congress, just look at how much Obama's "audacity of hope" has turned into the mush of "compromise."  Ironically, the audacity and hope have definitely been on the side of the "K Street" lobbyists representing the wealth that controls our Congress and our national domestic economic policies for the most part.

Christopher Hedges wrote a remarkably insightful article, "The Corporate Media State Has Deformed American Culture -- Time to Fight," the other day about how corporations -- through advertising, media and branding --control the "frame" through which far too many Americans see the issues facing us.  Corporate "mainstream media" basically positions critical issues in their interests and their "take" becomes the mindset of the D.C. elite, advanced by propaganda news "reporting," advertising and lobbying.

In the face of this onslaught, Barack Obama's rhetoric and strategy -- except for some relatively minor social changes in regulations and laws -- have relatively wilted.  Obama too is now the vassal of the greater powers than those of the Presidency: the control of the majority of Congressional members by corporate contributions and influence.  The President is the second most powerful force in the nation: the corporations are first.  The people are distant also-rans who only count in the next-election vote mathematics of any elected official -- and elected officials figure they can win them over with slick commercials and empty promises.

That brings me to my "mad as Hell" day editor's blog.  I had to lay off a senior editor at BuzzFlash who is a fantastic writer, editor and brought so much to the progressive cause because we otherwise would have shut down due to lack of funds.

Over the years, literally thousands of members of our BuzzFlash community have supported the growth of our site -- and the exciting unique model of progressive commerce (changing the way we consume), supporting progressive and populist journalism.  It's not just talking about change and writing meaningless "petitions" to compromised congressional representatives and senators; it's also about creating change through the very financial model of synergistically supporting small progressive companies that are eco- or economically justice minded through their start ups, as well as celebrating our progressive culture through books and other premiums from larger companies.

It's a self-sustaining and completely independent, advertising free, model of journalism that doesn't pull any punches.

But lately we've had a recession.  Moreover, we've heard from a lot of progressives who think advertising doesn't affect them or the culture -- and that BuzzFlash should just go corporate and accept ads.  Such people can't see the forest through the trees and are already captives of the corporate culture.  They are the same people who spend $500.00 on cable TV a year to yell at Bill O'Reilly, watch the show's advertising, and think that they are getting it all for free -- and accomplishing something politically!

Criticizing the right wing media has its place -- and we do it with glee -- but it, in the end, only enhances them by creating "an enemy" for them to denounce.  The only real change comes with media ownership, from closed economic financing systems for progressive and populist media such as BuzzFlash, for example.

Already the news on the Internet is becoming corporatized, and some of the progressive sites that are making money off of advertising will one day sell out, and what was once the beachhead of progressivism (the Internet) will become like cable TV.

So to those who think that progressive news isn't worth supporting, you'll get what you ("don't") pay for, which is what you got on TV and in the newspapers.  And don't think for a moment that GE won't one day dump its progressive MSNBC programs if the corporate world starts to lose control of Congress (not that that appears in any way imminent, alas).  Heck, there were three or four commercials against a government option on Rachel Maddow the other night. GE knows what it's doing.

So, yes, after more than 9 years of editing BuzzFlash every single day -- including holidays -- I am endlessly uplifted by those who have bought progressively all these years and contributed so generously, and I am "democratically" pissed at those progressives who are too wimpy and freeloading and satisfied with our corporate-managed government and culture to help support a completely independent model for a journalism that is progressive, populist and creates the new "frames" we need to emancipate ourselves from Wall Street and return democracy to Americans -- and helps make our commerce more progressive by supporting incubator companies that heal the earth rather than scar it, as well as offer premiums that celebrate who and what we are.

And as for the wealthiest of Dems -- as I sit here under a mountain of debt -- many of them talk the talk, but are really quite satisfied with the current tax structure that favors them and their companies.  That's why virtually none of them will invest in media.  They don't really want their wealth reduced at all.  And as long as 99% of the media "frames" issues to benefit the wealthy, it's just fine with them.

The wealthiest Dems like to think well of themselves and their "social concerns," as long as it doesn't touch their bank accounts.

BUZZFLASH EDITOR'S BLOG

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