Some of the podcasts I listen to discuss politics and current events – along with more intellectual discussions so I am unfortunately exposed to the “news” on a regular basis. I put up with hearing some news because I enjoy listening to podcasts when driving, mowing the lawn and vacuuming.
When podcasters start quoting headlines, I often fast forward. After all, most headlines are gross exaggerations, if not downright misrepresentations, of the facts.
Here are some of my observations based on recent headlines. My comments are in italics. :
- We should be outraged by… everything. Not really – most of what’s reported doesn’t impact me at all.
- Biden’s approval rating is in the toilet… it’s a disaster for the midterm elections. Midterm elections aren’t until Nov 2022. A lot will happen in a year.
- Vaccine hesitancy is rampant – especially in the south and red states. Here in NC, where at least half the people vote republican, 92% of people over 65 are vaccinated.
- Firemen, police, EMS and local government employees are fighting mandatory vaccinations en masse. Any data I look at shows that 70-90% are vaccinated. The protests being reported represent a minority of people.
So once again, I call bullshit.
When I was in first grade, I had a good friend who lied all the time. At first, I believed his lies. But after catching him lying too many times, I learned not to trust him. After that, we still hung out together, but I never believed anything he said – even when it was true.
In high school, I had another friend who was so competitive that he would cheat whenever we played any sport or game. After a while, I stopped hanging out with him because it wasn’t fun to play with a serial cheater.
The news has gotten so bad with misrepresentation, exaggeration, speculation and hyperbole, that I cancelled all my subscriptions years ago. I don’t watch it on TV. I try to avoid even scanning headlines. I no longer follow local news at all because it focuses on high school sports and sensationalizing any crime (especially murder).
When I was really little, my Aunt Essie read the “Boy Who Cried Wolf” to me. I never forgot the lessons from this story.
But apparently many others have.