Wednesday, March 23, 2005

Culture of Bullies

Laura Flanders, guest hosting on Morning Sedition, just made a very interesting point. She and Mark Riley were discussing the school shootings in Minnesota, and a caller pointed out that the shooter had a history of being bullied.

Laura Flanders on our Shrub-sponsored culture of bullying,
    "The national media are like the kids who stand by and watch someone else being bullied."
Let's extend that a bit. We can also say that the press are enablers, afraid to speak up lest they lose their position of favor with those in power.

The tormenter-in-chief has spent the past four years attempting to bully the world into cowering in fear before US might. We can also reasonably claim that Congress, under the leadership of the second-biggest bully in the country, Tom DeLay, is operating in the same culture. A handful of senators (Kerry, Kennedy, Boxer, Durbin, Reid) are standing up and fighting back. A handful of congressmen (Conyers, Pelosi, and Frank among them) are doing the same.

Under this culture congress pushes ahead with its own agenda and with complete disregard for the opinions - and values - of the people it purports to represent. Where does this story end?

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