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A few things to consider this week...
1.There is a place where the government controls the media, constantly force feeding its populace vague sound bytes and ambiguous doublespeak. There is a place where the government watches its people and where privacy is no longer a right. There is a place where self-education and independent thought is frowned upon, where people are encouraged to fall into step and all believe the same thing. There is a place where an "endless war" wages with unclear objectives, and any hard hitting discussion results in questioning a person's patriotism. No, it's not the United States. It's Orwell's 1984. But thinking about these things, as I do from time to time, made me think about how very close we are to this harsh reality.
2.Why does Rupert Murdoch (multi-billionaire, naturalized U.S. citizen in order to own American television companies, and longtime supporter of the Republican party) own media giants like News Corp, MySpace, and Fox News... and no one questions the power one man has to control social perception?
According to Businessweek, "his satellites deliver TV programs in five continents, all but dominating Britain, Italy, and wide swaths of Asia and the Middle East. He publishes 175 newspapers, including the New York Post and The Times of London. In the U.S., he owns the Twentieth Century Fox Studio, Fox Network, and 35 TV stations that reach more than 40% of the country...His cable channels include fast-growing Fox News, and 19 regional sports channels. In all, as many as one in five American homes at any given time will be tuned into a show News Corp. either produced or delivered."
~AmericanProgress.Org
3.Why do the top 10 hedge fund managers in this country make more in a year than most U.S. cities in taxes, and all they do is move money from one place to another? They create nothing actual, just more money. Don't believe me? Check it out. It's what inspired this blog post.
1. James Simons, Renaissance Technologies, $1.7 billion
2. Ken Griffin, Citadel Investment, $1.4 billion
3. Edward Lampert, ESL Investment, $1.3 billion
4. George Soros, Soros Fund Management, $950 million
5. Steven Cohen, SAC Capital, $900 million
6. Bruce Kovner, Caxton Associates, $715 million
7. Paul Tudor Jones, Tudor Investment, $690 million
8. Tim Barakett, Atticus Capital, $675 million
9. David Tepper, Appaloosa Management, $670 million
10. Carl Icahn, Icahn Partners, $600 million.
Of course, those figures are not totally accurate. Those are their personal salaries for 2006.
Give me your thoughts, why don't you? I'm sure things aren't as bleak as they seem. After all, we still have Mojo.
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Elle