FOX News Asks If Obama Has Waged "War On Success" In America
Reported by Ellen - March 10, 2009 -
People may be out of work, losing their homes, their retirement funds and their health insurance but from watching FOX News' Saturday business shows, it's easy to think that the only people in trouble are the wealthy who might see their tax rates rolled back to the Clinton era (you know, when we had lots of prosperity). Funny how those guys weren't shrieking, "IT'S SOCIALISM!" then. But now you can hardly turn on FOX News without seeing someone yelling about this imminent disaster. Meanwhile, those whom have already been visited by disaster never seem to get a voice.
A good case in point was Saturday's (3/7/09) Cashin' In which "asked" whether Obama's "Tax Hike Plan" represented a "War on Success" in America.
Panelist Tracy Byrnes said, "This is like kicking somebody who has been down for months and months... It is the whole psyche that kills people, knowing that if I do well, you are going to take it from me and give it to someone who is not working as hard as me. That is the worst time for that psyche."
I suspect there are plenty of people out of work who worked just as hard as Byrne but without the good fortune of working for a company that pays as well or happens to be in a troubled field or sector. But, as usual, the "those who've got deserve it, those who don't, don't" meme went almost completely unchallenged and unbalanced by an opposing perspective.
Guest Jonathan Hoenig, of The Capitalist Pig, said, "We are in a culture where earning money doesn't entitle you to it, but needing money does entitle you to it."
It's not just poor people or laid off individuals but plenty of business owners and states are also in trouble and suffering. Currently, 46 states are dealing with budget shortfalls. But I have yet to see those sectors of the economy represented on "fair and balanced" FOX News' business shows (they're pretty scarce elsewhere on the network, too). Instead, we get some other well-fed pundit/Wall Streeter who may have a differing opinion but not much of a different vantage point. In this case, Jonas Max Ferris said, "This country can handle the tax rates we had in the 90's, both on capital and income. Look, I am for the tax increases and capital gains rates. You have to cut spending to show the people you are actually using the money to pay down debt, not redistributing the income. If they say we are going to close the deficit, people may feel good about it. But if you raise taxes and don't cut spending, it doesn't make you feel good."
I'm sure Mr. Ferris is a smart guy and a decent one, too. But he's hardly an outside voice or representative of any real diversity.
This post was prepared with the assistance of guest blogger Brian.
