Fantasy Land

Have you heard the one about the stimulus bill paying for that speed train from Disney Land to Sin City Las Vegas? I sure have. Every time I listen to a call in program or stumble on the right wing media, I hear people all up in arms about this part of the bill. Of course, it's a complete fabrication designed to lead the ditto heads by the nose. This story, about a Republican US Congressman no less, is just delicious.

"I met with Republican Rep. Mary Bono Mack from Riverside County's Coachella Valley. While a social moderate, Sonny Bono's widow is a solid conservative. Talked to her about Obama's $780 billion stimulus legislation. She's outraged that the plan has "$1 billion wasted on a magnetic-levitation train from L.A. to Sin City" - all at Nevada Sen. Harry Reid's doing.

After expressing my doubt that the Las Vegas line was actually in the bill's language, Bono Mack directs her staff to "get him the bill, it's right there, show him." A few minutes later, a staffer emerges with a copy and quietly says "it's not in the bill."

This is a theme I just cannot stop coming back to. The reason is that the right wing have an elaborate system of building myths and spreading rumors which keep otherwise smart and good people in line. When I tune into CSPAN in the morning hoping to hear useful dialog, half the callers (from their Republican line) almost always regurgitate the myth of the day. Therefore, much time has to be spent debunking this rather than coming up with good ideas and discussion. If a political movement relies almost entirely on a web of lies, it need to be exposed every single day. For them to get power again would be catastrophic and as much as I would like to ignore this ongoing propaganda machine, for the good of our nation I just cannot.
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