Hurricane Sandy brought with it unfathomable destruction. For the past few days we have
endless reports of the suffering that is sure to continue for many weeks to come. As the nation prays for the victims and their lost loved ones and sends whatever support they can muster – I am stricken with the difference I see in the news coverage of Hurricane Sandy when contrasted with what we witnessed with Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans just a few short years ago.
In early September of 2005 and the months, even years that followed, the media mantra was loud and clear – IT’S BUSH’S FAULT! We heard how President Bush was a racist and simply did not care about the people of New Orleans. After all, as then Mayor Ray Nagin explained, New Orleans was a “chocolate city”. But let’s look at the facts. Hurricane Katrina made landfall on Louisiana and the Gulf Coast on August 30, 2005. On August 31, President Bush authorized a draw-down of the strategic oil reserve and authorized the Pentagon to launch the largest search and rescue mission in U.S. history.
On September 1, the President asked his father and former President Clinton to launch a national fund raising campaign for victims. On September 2, less than 72 hours after the Hurricane made landfall, President Bush toured the area – deemed the government response as unacceptable – urged Congress to approve $10.5 Billion for relief efforts – and tapped into U.S. and European gas stockpiles for 2 million barrels a day to stem gas shortages.
On September 3, the President ordered more than 7,000 active duty forces to the gulf coast and the Coast Guard reported they had successfully rescued more than 9,500 people. Having accomplished all of this in just a very few hours, President Bush received nothing but ridicule from the press – ridicule that even today, 7 years later – still rears its ugly head whenever possible to further the media’s cause.
Contrast all of that to what we see today in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. President Obama did show up long enough for a quick photo op before jetting off to Las Vegas for more campaigning. Where is the media outrage? Where are the cries of racism? Where are the media hacks telling America how incompetent Obama is? Not only is Obama getting yet another free pass by the media, believe it or not, I just read an article reporting how the Romney campaign was actually hindering relief efforts.
Is it accurate to even call these people “the media” anymore? Aren’t they really just a privately funded (capitalist) liberal campaign machine? My first thought and natural instinct is to hold the President accountable for his actions – or lack thereof, but the reality is, he’s just a socialist (and I believe a muslim) doing whatever he can to get re-elected. The real culpability here lies with the press as well as the millions of American citizens that still give the press any credibility.
STOP DRINKING THE KOOLAID AND WISE UP, PEOPLE! You’re not going to see reports on MSNBC about union thugs turning back volunteer non-union utility workers who travelled hundreds of miles to help out. You’re not going to hear the network news condemning Obama’s lack of effort to bring relief to those who need it. They won’t even hold him accountable for the deaths of our Ambassador and Navy Seals in Benghazi at the hands of a terrorist attack.
I will make it no secret that I strongly oppose this president. I believe he is the worst, by far, in American history. I believe he has successfully pulled of the biggest scam in American history. I believe he is a muslim, and I DO NOT believe he was born in America – but it is likely, if we rely on the news media, that none of us will ever know the truth. I pray that the voters will take us in a new direction and that the Chicago machine is unable to steal the election through voter fraud, but with equal fervor, I pray that after this election is over, Americans will wake up and begin to hold the news media accountable and demand fair and balanced coverage from all sources of media.
The bias must stop – and it is up to us as American citizens to demand real investigative journalism and fair and balanced reporting of the news. We deserve to know the truth, regardless of who our president is. Hundreds of thousands have died defending our rights – which includes the freedom of the press, but freedom of the press was never intended to mean bias of the press.
montyrainey 