I agree that the media is corrupt and too much of an influence but what about all the ways individuals can get news today that by-passes the media completely.
I took a daily newspaper all my life and my parents before me did the same. I haven't taken a paper in two years. Also, I no longer watch the news on television.
And, yet, I somehow have a vague idea of what's going on in the world..
And I don't think I'm alone. So, I'm not sure we have to kill the media ... I think it's dying all by itself.
During my tour in Germany, I was cut off from the outside world. I lived too far from base to get American Forces Network, and the two stations on German TV sucked. During my first two years (77-78), I was working upwards of 90 hours a week, thanks to Staff Duty Officer 2-3 times a week.
I was kicked up to Battalion HQ my last 2 1/2 years, which cut my workload down to about 60 hours/week. Gave me time to take a couple of German courses on base.
German papers back then are as liberal, if not moreso, than the MSM in the US. My German neighbors pleaded with me to vote for Carter, they were convinced that Reagan would start WWIII. The scars from WWII were still present to them, and I was but a 26 YO man. They did not know I had a firm educational foundation, back when California public schools were the best in the world. I tested at college level in reading as a 6th grader, graduated from a Jesuit university, and was an avid reader. The last part was aided by the dearth of entertainment alternatives in my town. Wasn't much to do after eating dinner at the local gasthaus, and engaging in conversation with my neighbors over a few beers.
During the weeks leading up to the election, I stuck to my guns that Reagan would be a far better president than Carter. Peace through strength was my strongest point, i.e. the world is a safer place when America is strong militarily and economically. I also gave my own informal lessons on American civics and history, contrasting it with German history over the previous century. Lastly, I informed them of the oath I took at commissioning, to the Constitution, and not to a person.
And I did it all in German. Checkmate arrived on Inauguration Day, when the Iranian hostages landed at Ramstein AB, about an hour's drive from where I lived.
"Having a conversation" is not something that occurs overnight. It must be nurtured, and you must be able to listen to have a conversation. What we get today is people shouting at each other, or worse yet, tweeting at each other. It took me a lot more than 140 characters or words to get my points across to my neighbors, to answer their questions with sufficient detail to support my views and gently correct them when they weren't right.
I've tried to do the same thing with my three kids, who are now 30, 28, and 15. The youngest is probably the most conservative of the bunch. With him, I spend a lot of time talking about leadership, as he's been the Senior Patrol Leader of his scout troop for four months. Last night, he really didn't want to go to the weekly meeting. Instead of saying, "you're going!", I reminded him of his role with that troop, that he needed to set an example for the 25+ new scouts that joined a month ago. Five minutes later, we were out the door.
Reagan was a great communicator, and he was able to cogently express his views in more than 140 characters, without rancor. I'll never forget his response to a nasty letter I wrote to him as a HS senior:
"NHN, thank you for your letter. I really enjoy hearing from young people, you bring such passion to the issues." One can hardly imagine the impact that letter's had on me over the succeeding 45+ years.
