“Humor was another of the soul’s weapons in the fight for self-preservation.” – Viktor Frankl (Holocaust survivor)
I cut comedians a lot of slack if they are inappropriate or politically incorrect. I tried stand up comedy a long time ago and although I gave up after a year or so, I did learn that it is a tough business to try and be funny, and not offend anyone. Having said that, I also decided many years ago that for a ton of reasons, I could no longer make excuses for the likes of TV/radio celebrities Howard Stern, Jimmy Kimmel, Seth Meyers, Bill Maher and others in the US media landscape. Howard Stern, for example, has close to 20 million listeners, and has called activist and Pink Floyd founder Roger Waters a “f*cking moron” and an anti-Semite for his efforts to boycott Israel and expose the state for its untold number of US backed crimes against Palestinians. The United Nations and Amnesty International have also denounced Israel for years, and have accused it of crimes against humanity as well (click here for Amnesty International’s report which concluded that Israel’s Apartheid against the Palestinians is a “cruel system of domination and crime against humanity”). But I guess Mr. Stern and his powerful/celebrity friends would argue that both the UN & Amnesty International are anti-Semitic too. Unsurprisingly, Howard Stern is also an unabashed supporter of Hillary Clinton (apparently for her love of wars, and blind support of Israel), and he once called for the nuclear annihilation of Iraq (and he was serious, I think). Jimmy Kimmel has yucked it up on his show with George W. Bush, a war criminal, and Hillary Clinton, and you will never hear him say a bad word about Joe Biden (another war criminal) or Barack Obama (ditto, and perhaps the biggest political disappointment in the last 100 years). But mention Donald Trump, who granted, is a criminal too, and Jimmy Kimmel can’t shut up. And it is the same for Seth Meyers, Bill Maher, and well, you get the picture.
“Those who are advantaged by the status quo are continually at work to make us understand that the way things are is the way things should be. And thus, the ways in which we understand the world are very much connected to the ways in which we interact with the world.” ― Noam Chomsky
These celebrities/comedians are normalizing the criminal behavior of countless politicians and industries (see Jimmy Kimmel’s clip on where hot dogs come from as he entirely omits the torture and slaughter of animals but still manages his guffaws as if nothing is wrong). As a result, more atrocities will occur as the people committing these crimes are less likely to be held accountable (see also Barack Obama breaking his campaign promise of investigating the war criminals in the Bush Administration). And rather than calling out these politicians and industries, which is what these egregiously over-paid comedians/celebrities should be doing, they have become a part of the problem as they apparently seek to join the same vomitous clubs (e.g., most of the members of Congress are now millionaires (dems and reps), while Howard Stern’s net worth has risen to over $650 million as well). Is compromising your integrity and being on the wrong side of history worth it for these TV hosts/celebrities? Is access to powerful “leaders” and a bump in rating points that important where they can no longer see the truth? I am flawed in many ways and I was a lousy stand-up comedian, but I do know that truth plays a big role in humor, and whether or not something is funny. Howard Stern’s brutal honesty and hard work are what turned him into a radio legend decades ago, but at some point, he was no longer as funny and authentic. Ironically, he became offensive in a non shock-jock kind of way (for some of his asinine political views), and I was done. It is a bummer too because Howard Stern is not only a talented interviewer who made me laugh for years, but I suspect that he is an otherwise nice person in many ways as well. Cognitive dissonance? Who knows.
Having said that, there is no excuse for normalizing the behavior of war criminals and industries that are causing so much harm and suffering (e.g., Israel’s massacres of Palestinian children (76 kids in 2021), animal factories/agriculture, illegal Israeli settlements, unlawful invasions and occupations of other countries, etc.). According to Nazi Propaganda Chief Joseph Goebells “If you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it, people will eventually come to believe it.” Well, the US corporate media (CNN, FOX, CBS, ABC, MSNBC, NBC, and others) is a master of Goebells’ philosophy and it has been a cheerleader for wars and oppression for decades as their loyalties are only to those in power, and their advertisers, which include weapon manufacturers, Big Ag, and the pharmaceutical industry. Why doesn’t the corporate (mainstream) media expose the behavior and corruption of so many war criminals and harmful industries, like Big Ag? They know that if they were to do that, the money would stop flowing and they would have to look in the mirror and be held accountable too. They have been complicit, and they know it. As a result, the doubling down of the countless lies and misinformation campaigns continue (as does the vilification of whistleblowers).
This past week provided yet another example of how the US corporate media ignores the truth and beats the drums of war. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark A. Milley (in full military regalia) popped up all over mainstream media once again, warning the world of the grave dangers of any country that doesn’t follow US orders, while also expounding the virtues of the US having the biggest and strongest military. Well, not in so many words, but we can read between the lines. And as usual, not once did any of the corporate media “news” outlets say anything about his conflicts of interest, or challenge what he had to say. A quick Google search revealed that in December of last year, the “Yale School of (Business) Management” honored the distinguished General Mark A. Milley with a lifetime leadership award. Yep, you can’t make this stuff up. It turns out that both Goldman Sachs and Honeywell International were sponsors of this special event honoring the military general. Why would a giant financial firm honor a military general, and what exactly does Honeywell International manufacture? Honeywell is one of three labs involved in the design and manufacturing of modernized US nuclear weapons, and it also produces components for the US and UK Trident II missile system. Well, you can do the math. And all of this after the US has killed over 2.5+ million people with its illegal invasions and occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan over the last 20 years. Tragicially, no lessons appear to have been learned, and nothing has changed.
“As long as there are slaughterhouses, there will be battlefields.” – Leo Tolstoy
Okay, so what do former shock-jocks, late night talk show hosts, a corrupt corporate media (state run media) and a military-industrial complex have to do with peace, health, and plant-based diets? Well, everything. As Dr. Martin Luther King once said, “injustice anywhere, is a threat to justice everywhere.” So much of our success hinges on where people get their news and information. We don’t have a Walter Cronkite in the mainstream media anymore to cause a president to say what Lyndon Johnson said in 1968 about the Vietnam War, “If I’ve lost Cronkite, I’ve lost Middle America.” The corporate media hasn’t done its job for decades, and it is no longer a line of defense in our fight for justice and equality. And the same can be said for many of our so called comedians and talk show hosts too. They need to be told enough already, and be held accountable as well. Why? We desperately need their help. All that remains now to protect us from an Orwellian type of future are whistleblowers and independent media. As Noam Chomsky says, “the corporations run everything, and we are a criminal state that is run by corporate power.” Boom.
“The human race has one really effective weapon, and that is laughter.” – Mark Twain
Which is why it was such a pleasant surprise to see a refreshingly honest, and entertaining piece by the UK actor, comedian and radio host Russell Brand on the possibility of Hillary Clinton running for president again in 2024. Mr. Brand has his audience thinking and laughing (no easy task), while also being honest about Hillary Clinton’s abysmal record. Amazingly, Hillary Clinton, the warmonger, now offers an online “Masterclass” too, which apparently shows people how to find the roots of their value system. Can you believe it? Russell Brand even references an excellent article titled “Hillary Clinton, Secretary of War”. Do you think Howard Stern or Jimmy Kimmel will reference such an account the next time they have their friend Hillary Clinton on their show? Right, it will never happen. Anyway, I don’t know too much about Russell Brand, other than he seems like a thoughtful and intelligent man who appreciates a good laugh. And oh yes, he is a vegan too! So kudos to Russell Brand!
Click here for his thoughtful and energetic clip titled “The Truth About Hillary Clinton.”
If you are interested in moving away from the mainstream media, and receiving news that is closer to the truth, please view and support independent media like DemocracyNow.org, TheIntercept.com, TheNation.com, FAIR.org, CodePink.org, JacobinMag.com, and many others. They may not get everything right, but overall, they do a great job.
Cheers! 🙂
Click here for the article, “Hillary Clinton, Secretary of War.”
Click here for a so called “Master Class” by Hillary Clinton.
Click here to learn more about Hillary Clinton’s Hawkish War Policies.
Click here to learn more about how wealthy politicians, become wealthier.
Click here to learn more about wealthy lawmakers.
Click here ro learn more about General Milley’s business leadership award.
Click here to learn more about Israel’s war on kids.
Click here to learn more about the corporate media and ongoing wars.
Click here to learn more about how the mainstream media was complicit in the US invasion and occupation of Afghanistan.
Click here to learn how hot dogs are really made.
Click here for Amnesty International’s 14+ minute video on Israel’s Apartheid against Palestinians.
Click here for a superb report from Democracy Now! on Israeli Apartheid.
Image: Banksy
