Sunday, April 29, 2007

How Much Is A Haircut?

What really troubles me about the media hype concerning JRE’s recent “barbergate” incident is where the focus of the reports are leading. The media is trying to marginalize him with charges of being a narcissistic hairball.

These charges would be laughable if they weren’t so diabolical. Let’s review the evidence shall we. Prior to this hoopla the media was reporting that all of the other candidates were trailing Senator Edwards in presenting real solutions and policies to confront the issues facing our country.[1] The frontrunners were big on theory, but short on specifics. Senator Edwards was making real political hay by actually addressing issues. He has come out with specific plans on how to deal with Iraq, global warming, and poverty. So while the other candidates are dancing around the issues, Senator Edwards has been providing the American public with the facts to judge his candidacy.

What better way to derail this momentum than to present him as being a fluff candidate who is only concerned about appearance and without substance. I’m sorry; to me we have bigger issues to deal with in this country besides how much Mr. Edwards pays for a haircut. Does he pay more than I do? Yes he does. But I am sure he pays more for other things than I do as well. It is his money; he can do with it what he chooses. He has earned the right to do so. Does anyone question how Mayor Bloomberg spends his billions? I could care less what he does with his money, what matters to me is what he does with the public money. There has never been any question concerning Senator Edwards and his fiduciary duties as a public servant or as an attorney. This is a smoke screen to try to cloud the issues of this campaign with day time talk television fodder. What I, you, or your father paid for a haircut is irrelevant, what is relevant is where does he stand on the killing field that Iraq has become.

This conversation would have merit were it not for who they are charging. No candidate has articulated the needs of the poor in this country better than John Edwards, not just during this buildup to the election, but throughout his public life. A fluff candidate; you have to be kidding me! Is there some rule against a candidate wanting to look his best? To show you the media is no longer reporting news, but trying to make news the haircut became a discussion of his “sexuality”. Is there no limit to where these people will stoop to sell newspapers or kitty litter?

I, for one, will not allow the media to define what the issues in this campaign will be. I think I know what is important and what is not. Please media stars, let’s go back to reporting the news and not trying to create it. I have got to believe that there some really important issues and decisions this country has to make right now, besides where we will be getting our haircuts.



[1] http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/4/16/111815/544

No comments:

 
HTML stat tracker