Important media headlines for October 4th:
Bottom Line: These are the stories you don't want to miss (but probably would if I didn't find them for you).
The Tragic Incoherence of the NFL Protests Victor Davis Hanson, American Greatness
Excerpt: It has become a sort of reflex to object to the National Football League’s players’ bended knee/sitting through the National Anthem—while also conceding that their complaints have merit. But do they? White police officers are more than 18 times more likely to be shot by African-Americans than white police officers are to shoot unarmed black suspects. Does anyone care?
This is such an important point. It's one I've advanced as recently as last week. Not only is the NFL protest being carried out in the workplace in front of their customers but it's a bunch of bull crap. Whatever version of the bigoted protesting the merry band of ignorant ingrates attempt to advance. That's not to say that there aren't racist atrocities that on extremely rare occasions occur victimizing a black person. There are, but not only is it not prevalent, the racism and bigotry projected at police officers is demonstrably worse. But that never gets reported because it doesn't fit the leftist narrative. There are racists of every color. There always have been and unfortunately always will be - just as there's good and evil all around us in this world. And there are always two sides to every story but just one side to every fact.
Does Even Mark Zuckerberg Know What Facebook Is Max Read, New York Magazine
Excerpt: Zuckerberg’s promise of transparency assured anxious readers that the company would submit itself to the established structures of offline politics. It was an admirable commitment. But reading through it, I kept getting stuck on one line: “We have been working to ensure the integrity of the German elections this weekend,” Zuckerberg writes. It’s a comforting sentence, a statement that shows Zuckerberg and Facebook are eager to restore trust in their system. But … it’s not the kind of language we expect from media organizations, even the largest ones. It’s the language of governments, or political parties, or NGOs. A private company, working unilaterally to ensure election integrity in a country it’s not even based in?
I'm glad to see more outlets, in this case a leftist outlet, advancing this question. What is Facebook really anymore? What does it mean to you? The largest social network? A place where all of your "friends" can be found? A place to post pictures and keep up with loved ones? A place where you try to impress others? Your "go to" for news?
From theoretically/potentially playing the role of accidental election "king maker" world-wide to whatever it is to you, through it's own success it's become something that's not easily defined. For me I joke that it's the unhappiest place on earth. But like most of my humor there's a purpose pitch behind it. I can't empirically prove it but given the billions of users world-wide and the incredible amount of vanity, bigotry and hatred I see being expressed relentlessly on the platform - it's probably true.
Desperately Seeking A Trump Failure In Puerto Rico Investor's Business Daily
Excerpt: A dashboard operated by the Puerto Rican government notes that as of Monday, 69% of gas stations and 65% of supermarkets were open for business, 63% of the island's ports were fully operational, 40% of telecommunication services had been restored, 27% of ATMs were working again, and 26% of commercial flight service was operational. On Monday, Rossello said that almost half the residents have running water and 10 hospitals have power.
Gov. Ricardo Rossello, for example, said that "the administration has answered and has complied with our petitions in an expedited manner." Federal agencies have been detailing their response efforts.
There was, for example, an immediate and intense focus on complaints by San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz about Trump's response at a news conference set, oddly enough, in front of pallets and pallets full of supplies.
It turns out, however, that Cruz hasn't exactly been on top of the situation herself. FEMA administrator Brock Long points out that she's been a no-show at the FEMA command center coordinating relief efforts, and wasn't "plugged into what's going on."
When the suffering of others is viewed as a political opportunity, you truly have to question the human decency, or lack thereof, of those who attempt to advance the political narratives.