This is why...
posted by Paul at 4/18/2006 10:11:00 PM
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
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4 Comments:
For all I know, it seems pretty clear that both New Times and the VV's staff are handling the takeover badly, but I have to say that I agree with at least the spirit of the changes New Times wants to make: Less political crap, more local investigative stories (See this New York Observer story). I think if you look at most of the papers New Times already had before the takeover, you'll find a lot of good local reportage. For example, I would much rather read this Phoenix New Times story about houses that are being built on unstable ground than a Village Voice story that assumes anything remotely related to left-wing politics is intelligent and newsworthy. Anyone who's actually gone and talked to protesters knows that most of them do not have anything interesting to say.
For example, a few years ago I wrote a story for my college paper about a guy who got arrested during a two-sided abortion demonstration. I called this (pro-choice) guy, and he proceeded to babble about socialism and capitalism for ten minutes before I could get him to get to the point. For the most part we are not talking about especially smart or effective people.
And Cindy Sheehan is fucking boring. I think clogging up a paper with stories like this is a disservice, no matter what your politics are. Sample question from that story:
Easter is the time for forgiveness. Can you forgive the president for sending your son to Iraq?
Melodramatic horseshit--just as vapid and useless as the horseshit I witnessed during the Terri Schiavo ordeal.
Nice comment.
But the only reason I read alternative weeklies are for: a) like you pointed out, local issues addressed on the grassroots level done outside of the major media complex
and
b) coverage of the arts.
And the Voice just fired two of the finest minds in music journalism. Go fig.
However, I think Cindy Sheehan as she was being covered is too much. Haven't heard too much from her now, have you? She's a great public speaker, though. Not only that, she's a pretty good writer. Either that, or they have good people writing for her. Though I heard that she writes her own shit. Who knows?
Schiavo was a mess. Don't even...
The problem with the left, or far left, today is that there are too many competing interests. At anti-war rallies there are pro-choice and anti-ANWR drilling marchers. What the fuck, right? I was at the March for Women's Lives-- melodramatic for a pro-choice rally, I know, but what do you expect? they're women-- and this ugly hag of a woman is up on stage screaming at the assembled crowd, preaching to the choir and starts going on about "TAX THE CHURCH TAX THE CHURCH!" and I'm like "whoa whoa whoa ho! quit it! you want to alienate every single every church-going (read: Catholic) pro-choicer? are you fucking crazy?" The left gets marches together so it can network and party.
It happened on the right in the '60s and '70s before Nixon and Reagan came in and united the party.
Cindy Sheehan may be eloquent, but nobody can drool on a balloon like Terri Schiavo.
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