What did you think of 20/20's Bailouts and Bull?

H Roark

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Libertarian Gatekeepers

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tda0-cDyD0U

John Stossel needs to stop pussy footing around the subject of the Fed. I so hyped watching the intro to the show, but by the time it was over I was completely deflated. The only segments I thought they did a good job with was the free pre-k education and marijuana issues, besides that it was weak.

To start with the second segment on privatizing state roads... I live in LA so I have first hand experience with the traffic gridlock they’re referring to in this segment. They assume that the reason there is so much traffic is due to the fact that state agencies are slow and unresponsive to accidents and blockages - that is not the case.

I’m sure that a private company can do a faster job clearing and monitoring roads when accidents do arise, but I can tell you that there is bumper-to-bumper traffic REGARDLESS if there is an accident or not. It is simply a matter of the sheer number of people on the road!

They also make a hard push for private companies to take over already existing public roads. I have a problem with that, are these companies going to pay back the tax payers who have already paid into the construction of these roads? Can the aforementioned taxpayers vote on the matter? Some important questions I wish they had addressed. Maybe we can all own a helicopter like Drew Carey and just fly over it all…

Moving on, I have to admit the series did a good job of convincing me of the futility of a border fence. Although Drew Carey welcomes all illegals who want to work a chance to work, but fails to mention anything about cutting the government subsidies for which attract them over here in the first place!

Then as if they had run out of topics to cover, they go and attempt to debunk the perception that the middle class is shrinking. They go on to feature several families living it up on jobs that can’t possibly support such lifestyles. They attempt to show the relatively better living these families have in comparison to their 60’s counterparts based on the amount of material wealth they’ve accrued. They forgot to mention how much debt these families have which is no doubt much more than the average middle class family of the 60s.
 
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Good review.

But try not to blame Stossel. From what I've read and heard from Stossel, it's the producers that pretty much tell him what can and cannot be covered on the show.

For example, remember the Stossel/Ron Paul interview? Stossel said he tried to get it aired, but the 20/20 producers said no because they didn't think it was entirely appropriate for the audience, or something to that effect.

So I bet Stossel has pitched a ton of better/greater ideas for 20/20 segments, but the producers said no.

That said though, you should be happy with this. 20/20 is the only show that at least occasionally has full hour-long Liberty segments to a huge audience. And when they don't have those, they more frequently have shorter Stossel segments.
 
Didn't know of his attempts to air the interview, thats too bad.

Yeah, I guess these segments are at least better than the unsolved murder cases these "investigative" shows like 20/20 have been airing as of late.
 
Way better than nothing! As said he cannot give a full Ron Paul/Peter Schiff description of the situation on Prime Time ABC News =)
 
I agree with the OP. Was a little dissapointed with those segments. They should have stuck with the bailout and financial issues.
 
Has anyone offered Stossel his own show? He would be a great alternative to O'Reilly and Olbermann.
 
tonight on 20/20
"If i only had a gun"

starts in bout 20 minutes...i wonder what kind of slant they're gonna give it:rolleyes:
When it comes to protecting yourself, you may think “if I only had a gun.” But if you had a gun, could you protect yourself in a crisis? How easy is it to obtain a gun? And what explains the nearly irresistible attraction of young people to firearms? Diane Sawyer investigates, with reporting by David Muir, on “If I Only Had a Gun,” airing on “20/20,” FRIDAY, APRIL 10 (10:00-11:00 p.m., ET) on the ABC Television Network. The hour also features hidden camera experiments and expert analysis.
 
I was a bit disappointed by it, starting with the switch in titles from "Bulls**t in America." I didn't think it was gonna stick, but still a load of crap.

Of course the producers (and the execs at ABC for sure) would limit Stossel's range. Why would they let him talk about the very thing that they promote privately on the corporate level. THAT is the real bullshit. John did the best he could I'm sure.
 
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