No matter which political stream you find yourself a part of, it's clear to see that most mainstream media outlets lean one way or another. MSNBC leans far left. CNN leans left, but not as far as MSNBC. And Fox News leans right. We Americans often talk about this and make a big deal out of it. (I personally do not prescribe to any of the Big 3 mentioned above.) And because of that, it is easy for me to forget how balanced our media is.
In comparison to Europe. When I was in Israel and Germany these past few years, I watched quite a bit of news. Mainly CNN Europe and Sky News. Although, when in Germany, I did not allow myself to watch TV after PM. If you know what I'm talking about, then you know what I'm talking about. The rest of you, pay no mind to that statement.
It was hilarious. Especially in I was is Israel. CNN Europe made Israel out to be some terrible place where innocent people are being slaughtered, and doom and gloom and that sort of thing. I honestly have never felt more safe in all my life than when I visited Israel. We in the US are told tales of terrorists and suicide bombers. Don't get me wrong. That sort of thing does happen. But what we are not told is that the Israeli government and military, not without its imperfections, is competent. They are effectively combating threats. And we only hear of them when they mess up or invade Gaza or Lebanon or something along those lines.
Enough of that. You get the point. Let's move on to the meat and potatoes of this post.
Russia!
Last week, the Georgian government destroyed a Soviet war memorial on a site they plan on building a new parliamentary building on. Which is kind of odd because the memorial is was located in Kutaisi which, as the Russian media points out, is not the capital of Georgia (Tbilisi is). A women and her daughter also died during the demolition process. The Russian media had a field day with that.
What was even more symbolic and antagonistic, is that Georgia destroyed the monument on Joseph Stalin's and current Georgia Prime Minister Mikheil Saakashvili's birthday.
I read some headlines yesterday on Russian outlet Pravda.ru. The headlines and writing is so biased, it's hilarious. This sort of thing would pass for comedy or parody in the US. I was laughing while reading what they had to say on the issue.
A few excerpts from Pravda:
Happy Birthday Adolph Saakashvili
Kutaisi is not even the capital city, it is Georgia’s second largest city, but has become the site of yet another outrage being perpetrated by MikHEIL Saakashvili. Georgia’s opposition parties are protesting against demolition of the military glory war memorial in Kutaisi. The memorial was erected 25 years ago to remember the Georgian residents killed in the Great Patriotic War. Over 700.000 Georgians fought in the Red Army. Some Georgians also fought on the German side in an attempt to secure Georgian independence in the event of a German victory. They are probably some of Saakashvili’s ancestors.
Yes, Saakashvili sees himself as a conqueror, the new Hitler. Yes, Saakashvili will do something, anything just to spite Russia and make Russians angry. Yes, Saakashvili wants to score points with his masters in Washington, London, Brussels and in the Baltic states. But who is he ultimately responsible to?
He is responsible to the Georgian people. This wanton destruction of the memorial is counter to the will of the Georgian people. It is a total insult to all the Georgians who gave their lives in the fight against fascism. It is an insult to all the veterans who fought.
Hopefully this insult and travesty will be put to an end by the people of Georgia. Too bad Saakashvili cannot be dismantled, beginning with the rocks in his head.
Capitalizing "HEIL" is Mikheil was a nice touch. This type of writing would be viewed as unprofessional if practiced in the US. Actually, this is the sort of thing on sees on The Daily Show.
For some more laughs, check out Pravda's headlines on all things dealing with terrorism.
- USA Spends Trillion Dollars to Make Terrorist War Last Forever
-
Russia boycotts UN meeting on Iran as American empire nears its collapse
- Bush prepares another September 11 terror act to transform America into dictatorship
Of course, this Western critical tone is required in Russian journalism. I am thankful I live in a country where we don't have an on-going list of journalists being killed for not conforming to the right point of view.
Agree or disagree with them, if this started happening in the US, Americans would not idly sit by and let this sort of thing happen. For better or for worse.
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