We're being inundated by the continuing unraveling of the Obama "image." This guy has more scandals than Desperate Housewives and Dallas combined. Every time we turn around, something new and even more salacious dribbles out and hits the fan.
At this stage of the game, the disgust inevitably settles in. We can't believe what we're seeing and hearing and we can't believe that our country has gone this far off course. Just what in God's name are we going to do now?
The single biggest problem facing this country today is information. There's either none of it, it's misinformation, it's disinformation or it's a toxic combination of all three. Without information, and good information, we're like the blind leading the blind. How can we decide how to react to our current situation unless we have the good information upon which to base our decisions and seek a responsible course of action?
How do we go about achieving this first all-important goal? We must first accept that virtually every news outlet has become politicized to some extent, some more than others. While only news belongs on news pages and opinions need to be offered elsewhere, outlets have allowed opinionated-politicized news to slip into their content in the interest of driving advertising revenues. So, we're stuck with it.
Nevertheless, we all have heads on our shoulders and we do have an acceptable alternative: listen to all sides. Watch CNN, MSNBC, NBC, ABC, CNN, FOX... get a good rounded mix of the news. Digest what you hear and start to narrow your news sources to those that make the most sense. And, with an open mind, discuss what you see and hear and what your conclusions are with other people who have open minds. You're still in the exploration phase here, so don't try to argue, don't try to force your opinions on someone else and don't let them force theirs on you. Don't waste any time with people who can't discuss, who get defensive or who start yelling. No matter what side of the fence they are on, they are too set in their opinions to help you in rationalizing and forming your own.
After this exercise, you are ready to go on to step two, which is letting your editors, news outlets and governmental representatives know how you feel.
Recent polls and interviews reflect that our citizens are less informed about the issues of the day than they ever have been in history. We cannot set about correcting the course our country is on until we know what we're facing and the substance of what we're talking about.
That's MY AMERICAN OPINION, respectfully submitted.
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