I'm a little sore today. I suppose repeatedly throwing yourself down a hill on top of an inner tube will do that, but I don't think tubing should really take much of a physical toll. I suppose my aches attest to either the surprising physical demands of tubing or just how out of shape I've become. I've got a hunch as to which it is, though...
I was surprised to learn when a group of us went tubing (sledding down a hill on an inner tube, for those unfamiliar with it), that two of my friends had never been sledding. It makes sense I guess -- one grew up in a place without much snow, the other grew up in a very flat state -- but it's always surprising to discover that someone has never experienced something that seems so intrinsic to my own childhood. I'm happy to report that, despite their initial trepidation, they both enjoyed it.
On a completely separate topic, the relationship between some in the media and the government is getting entirely too cozy for comfort. Much of the media was already criticized (and rightly so) for not questioning the government very hard about post-Sept. 11 actions and the lead-up into the war in Iraq. Now it seems that coverage of domestic issues is being driven by the government sometimes as well. A well-known conservative pundit, Armstrong Williams, was recently discovered to have been paid by the government (that would be with your money, taxpayers) to promote the No Child Left Behind law, which he did. (For the story, click here.) The government has also, on at least two occasions, distributed government-created news stories for TV that are intended to look like normal TV news stories and don't include any indication that the source is the government that was promoting what the story was about. Some TV stations even ran this propaganda for reasons I cannot begin to fathom. While these actions are unethical at best and possibly illegal on the government's part, just as much blame falls to Armstrong and any TV stations that decided to broadcast the government's news stories. The media as a whole has enough credibility problems as it is without having our opinions for sale or mindlessly running government propaganda.
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2 comments:
Yeah, the media. A while back I spent my last college semester in Palestine, having piles of really intense experiences. And absolutely without a doubt, the biggest strike of reverse culture shock for me was going home and turning on the TV, opening the newspaper, etc, and wondering where the OTHER half of the news went. It was the same after every international experience: Why haven't I heard about this? Why do we get such an unrecognizable story? The cynical part of me is not surprised when I hear that in certain situations, money was at stake.
Oh my goodness, I am on quite a roll here lately. I am not really this one-sided, people.
(Beautiful headline, by the way, BriGuy!)
I, too, am slightly sore after sliding the other day. And I did it less than everyone else because I spent a lot of time "warming" in the warming hut. Just another reminder of how out of shape I am, as though the flab of stomach that protrudes grotesquely over my trousers isn't enough of a reminder. You know, it hurt ... but it was a good kind of hurt.
R
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