NOTEBOOK: Simplistic storytelling on TV news pushing nation to war

By David McElroy · February 23, 2012

Cleaning out the notebook again…

Cable news can rot your brain and make you crazy. A place where I’ve been going a lot recently almost always has a TV on cable news. After being subjected to this garbage for awhile, I sort of understand why so many people favor going to war — or at least “intervening” — in countries with oppressive dictators. The simplistic, emotional and context-free reports from television leave the impression that the obvious right thing to do is to intervene.

It seems that most people have seen so many simplistic television shows and movies — and TV news mirrors that simplicity — that they believe fixing complex problems is simple and easy. It’s maddening, because the solutions aren’t as easy as implied by the narratives laid out on news channels.

Speaking of wars, I’m worry about what’s going on in Iran. I’m not making a prediction about what’s going to happen there, because there are too many possible scenarios. But I can see the very real possibility of it leading to a large war that most people don’t want — all because the small players there are aligned with bigger powers outside the region.

If Israel attacks Iran, there’s a possibility that Russia could try to intervene to defend Iran. The Russians have already been warning Israel not to attack. If Russia gets involved — which might not even happen, of course — there’s going to be a lot of internal pressure here for the United States to get involved on the other side. Wasn’t there some big war nearly a hundred years ago that was triggered by an assassination simply because big powers were aligned with the players in a smaller-scale conflict? The Iran-Israel conflict isn’t exactly the same, but it’s similar enough to bring World War I to mind for me.

Did you watch Wednesday night’s GOP presidential debate? I didn’t. Other than catching a few specific segments on YouTube, I haven’t seen a single debate during this campaign cycle. It keeps me saner not to get frustrated with the idiocy that comes with these things. I like to pretend they don’t exist. Now if I could just pretend that the federal government didn’t exist, that would be a good next step.

Those who oppose manufacturing in China are today’s Luddites. That hit me the other night while I was listening to an economics podcast. The Luddites were those in England in the 19th century who didn’t want the mechanization of the textile industry and went so far as to destroy equipment to try to “save jobs.” Those who are trying to stop international trade just don’t understand economics and don’t understand that the distributed manufacturing process that we see today is good for everybody involved.

On the same subject, those who complain about Chinese manufacturing because they say it’s terrible for the workers need to watch the ABC News report from this week about what it’s like in the Foxconn factory that makes Apple equipment. People are lined up competing for those jobs, because they’re far better jobs than they can get back in their small villages. Take a look at the conditions in the villages they’re escaping from. Would they like easier work and higher pay. Of course. (Wouldn’t we all?) The work they’re doing is making their lives better. It’s making their families’ lives better. And it’s providing those in the West with products for lower prices than we’d otherwise pay. It’s a win for everyone.

If you’re interested in how American companies can successfully compete against Chinese manufacturing, there’s a fascinating discussion of that on this week’s EconTalk podcast. Adam Davidson of NPR’s Planet Money talks about his recent reporting about what makes some U.S. manufacturers successful. I learned a lot from the interview, and I highly recommend it.

Did you happen to notice that the National Enquirer has what it claims is a picture of Whitney Houston in her casket? That sparked a bit of discussion on my Facebook page Wednesday about the propriety of it. At least one person saw it as disrespectful, but someone else objected to the “inherent gnosticism” of being upset about such displays.

I neither object to it nor promote it. I just find it funny. I’m amused that there’s this weird fascination with celebrities that creates a market for it and I’m amused that the tabloids cater to that in ways that make it seem like important news. All around, it’s just self-satirizing.

One of our regulars around here got some very good news on Wednesday. He’s recently returned to full-time ministry and got official word from his denomination that he’s been reinstated to the roster of active, full-time ordained ministers. This is great news for him and for the church he’s recently started serving. We’re proud of you, JB. Keep up the good work.

Share on Social Networks

I’m seeing a lot of simplistic and dishonest explanations right now for the current rioting in France. Those on the populist far right claim it’s all about Muslim immigrants to France disrupting the culture. Their message is that this sort of thing is going to happen in the U.S. unless “we defend the border.” On the far left, socialists and their fellow travelers claim the riots are all about wealthy people in France not paying enough taxes, resulting in cuts to government services. The truth is far more complicated, but it’s rooted in the decline of population growth in Europe. There simply aren’t enough young workers paying into the tax system anymore, so cuts in social services were inevitable. There is genuine cultural tension as more and more people immigrate from other countries, but government cuts to education and other services are even more important to what’s happening. The situation is complicated, so don’t let dishonest people with U.S. political agendas tell you that it happens to support whatever they were already promoting for partisan reasons.

Here’s another reason to appreciate the cats in your life: New research involving 93 countries found that places with more cats per person also tended to have happier people. The researchers say the finding fits with previous evidence that living with pets can reduce loneliness and stress while providing companionship, emotional attachment and social support. The study doesn’t prove that cats cause greater happiness, but it certainly adds to the evidence that sharing your home — and your life — with a cat might be good for you.

The company that owns Facebook and Instagram is heavily promoting its new AI-based software assistant called Muse, but people who are using it as it was designed are incredibly foolish. An early adopter of the software discovered that a few days ago when he advertised an item for sale on Facebook Marketplace — and he inadvertently gave Muse full authority to act on his behalf. The software agreed to a lowball offer made by another Facebook user and then gave that man the home address of the man for whom he was an agent. The software told the buyer that the seller was home and waiting for him. When the buyer showed up and waited angrily, the would-be buyer left an angry review for the man. And this angry man had the seller’s home address. It was only well after that that the software reported what it had done and admitted it had made a mistake. I won’t be putting that much power into the hands of any software. I think anyone who agrees to such terms is a fool. And the software’s user agreement says you’re responsible for purchases the software makes in your name. Nope.

Meet my new girlfriend. Her name is Meg. And she’s my little sweetheart. A couple of months ago, a neighbor across the street told me about a new stray in the neighborhood that she and I were both soon feeding. The cat had been very skittish about contact and she had a lot of scabs and parasites in her fur, but a trip to the vet last week revealed that she was otherwise in good health. The vet estimates her to be 1 to 2 years old. I named her for Meg Murry, the 13-year-old protagonist of Madeleine L’Engle’s wonderful book, “A Wrinkle in Time.” (Please read the book. Don’t watch the horrible movie.) Since we lost Lucy almost a year ago, it seems appropriate that we finally have a new little girl to join the household. She’s already captured my heart, but Alex, Oliver and Sam aren’t there quite yet.

There’s nothing socially acceptable that’s as dangerous as drinking alcohol. Most people grow up being told to “drink responsibly” — and all of us see people abusing this drug in one way or another — but the truth is that drinking alcohol is always a terrible risk. The alcohol in these drinks is toxic and the human liver has to work hard to filter the toxins out. What most people don’t realize is that alcohol is classified as a known carcinogen by the World Health Organization — because of the well-established connection between imbibing and various cancers. Many people have taken refuge behind the idea that light or moderate drinking might be safe, but a new study shows that drinking even one drink a day increases the risks of 10 types of cancer. When I was a teen-ager, I looked around and saw the negative effects that this behavior had on a lot of people and decided not to start drinking, so I’ve never even tried this poison. The evidence keeps piling up that I was lucky to have come to that conclusion early.

Related Posts