Stern suspended!

[Ramo]

Republicans tend to mind overwhelming market power in the media (as represented by organizations like Clear Channel) less than Democrats. And Lieberman is in the Republican wing of the Democratic Party.

[Shogun Gunner]

Ned, there are lot of reasons why I'm not voting for Bush. He's not a republican the way I define Republican.

1. Small Government. Bush is expanding the payroll, spending and scope of the government. Republicanism has always sought to shift work from the government to the private sector.

2. Foreign Policy. Past Republican presidents have tended to strongly leverage our foreign relations to reach our goals. Bush and co. have alienated just about everyone. Kyoto. Iraq. Our NATO allies after 9/11 (invoking chapter 5 of the treaty to fight common foe). Even Bush's old friend in Mexico, V. Fox, is not happy with the relationship due to immigration, trade, and other policy issues that Bush won't negotiate.

We are stalled on North Korea. Progress with Iran seems to be largely due to British, French and UN efforts. And forget about Africa, I doubt Bush can find the continent on the map.

"For or Against us" in the war on terrorism. This phrase is still eliciting giggles from leaders around the world.

3. Fiscal Responsibility I'm all for tax cuts, but fiscal responsibility would include having a meaningful spending plan. Bush can't have it both ways.

4. Laissez Fair This one blows my mind. Republicans are supposed to be for free trade. Bush put trade barriers up to protect industries in key swing states in 2000 election. Of course Europe responded with trade barriers of their own to hurt industries in those same states. Enough said.

5. Seperation of Church and State Republicans have traditionally been pro business and hands off with social issues (sometimes to their detriment on the latter). Now, we have the Republican party hijacked by the Religous Right. I personally can't stand this group.

The Religous Right wants to control what we read; what is taught in school; they want prayer in school; they want to stop women's choice in abortion; limiting stem cell research which could help millions, maybe billions, of people; and stop gay couples from getting married - like that issue is so important. And for the point of this thread, they want to impose strict censorship on our media. Well, who gives them the authority?

I for one will not vote for any candidate that has an affilation with this group. This is from me, a long time Republican and a Christian that can't stand what "republicans" and "christians" have become. In fact, don't even call me a christian any more because apparently they must be reading a different book than I am.

I could go on. This is the biggest disappointment for a Republican President since Gerald Ford. Why couldn't the Republicans get behind Guiliani or McCain...even Warren Rudman - he was a great leader.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Shogun Gunner

Exactly the reasons I'm voting for Kerry and a Republican Congress!

[Ben Kenobi]

Shogun:

The Religous Right wants to control what we read;

No, they don't.

what is taught in school;

Not anymore than the liberals want control over the curriculum.

they want prayer in school;

And what is wrong with that?

they want to stop women's choice in abortion;

Yeah, the choice to kill. Government has an obligation to protect people.

limiting stem cell research which could help millions, maybe billions,

Same benefits can be derived ethically, through other sources than embryos. No need to kill children in order to help others.

and stop gay couples from getting married - like that issue is so important.

If the issue means nothing, why do you care if the so-called religious right opposes gay marriage?

And for the point of this thread, they want to impose strict censorship on our media. Well, who gives them the authority?

No, they don't. Sorry. You have not made the leap from this organisation to the 'right-wing conspiracy' that is supposed to exist. Religious conservatives do not want censorship.

[Ned]

Bush imposed tarriffs to help the steel industry through a rough patch. He was forced to back off due to the Euro complaint in the WTO. Still, I think Bush may have been right on this issue. I am surprised that steel unions do not support the only politician willing to stick up for them.

The deficit is caused primarily by the recession. If one wanted to balance the budget during a recession, the recession would have been a lot worse. Look at the lesson of Herbert Hoover.

The leaders of both parties are against gay marriage while favoring alternative arrangements like Kalifornia's domestic partner legislation. I have no friggin' idea why this is a partisan issue at this point in time until and unless Kerry changes his position to being in favor of gay marriage.

Bush gave senior prescrition medicine coverage and allowed seniors the right to use private alternatives. I know no Democrat would ever have given seniors any flexibility at all on this issue.

Kerry is an arrogant snob. He treats the common folk like trash. I have no idea why anyone would vote for this *****.

[Ned]

More from Stern today:

"Asked by a caller yesterday (3/4) if a jump to satellite radio was in his future, Stern said he has two years left on his contract and "can’t entertain something like that" until it expires. He later added, "I guarantee you if I go to satellite radio I will revolutionize satellite radio and make this kind of radio extinct. I guarantee you I will do it single handily. I will sell more radios than ever in the history of this country."

The satellite radio theme continued today, with Stern pledging to embrace the medium. "I will love it and I will see it as the future. I will not stop until every car is equipped. I will go on shows and start showing people how to hook it up. I will take down the very industry I created."

Stern stopped for a second and then pointed out that satellite radio might not be the Promised Land either. "Guess who owns [a percentage] of XM radio? Clear Channel."

"Mel Gibson is getting better treatment than I am," Stern said, trying to put in perspective how he's feeling. "Mel Gibson just put together a hate-filled passion play to incite people to hate Jews like you wouldn’t believe. By the way, I’m not helping myself by talking about the FCC so much. That makes them crazy when you talk about them and criticize them and talk about [FCC Chairman] Michael Powell's website."

Feeling that the end is near, Stern says he is "a lone friggin wolf. Once I’m gone, it’s going to send a chill through the industry. It already has."

"Every company has a right to decide what they want to do," he said, not letting Clear Channel escape his wrath. "What this company is doing however is buying up every radio station, then they sign someone like me for five years at a time and renew my contracts and then wake up one day and have a whole new attitude. Now why do they have a new attitude with me, but not with the guy Savage who sits there and talks about infesting people with AIDS and all that stuff? He’s just as controversial, but he backs Bush. They’re being intellectually dishonest."

http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=20414

[Ned]

NEW YORK -- Amid a widening and increasingly politicized campaign to clean up the nation's airwaves, regulators are proposing fines against many of the nation's major radio companies for carrying well-known "shock jocks," Federal Communications Commission (news - web sites) officials told The Wall Street Journal.

About a dozen cases are being finalized, these officials said, and one target is Howard Stern, one of the nation's most popular and controversial radio hosts. The FCC (news - web sites) is deciding on penalties against his employer, Viacom Inc. (NYSE:VIA - News)'s Infinity Broadcasting. Also facing further scrutiny are Emmis Communications Inc. and Clear Channel Communications Inc. (NYSE:CCU - News) , the nation's largest radio owner, which last week took Mr. Stern's show off six of its radio stations and fired a controversial -- and oft-fined -- Tampa, Fla., radio host, Todd Clem, known as "Bubba the Love Sponge."

Bowing to public pressure, the agency also plans to reverse its earlier finding that singer Bono's use of a vulgarity on live television during the 2003 Golden Globes broadcast wasn't indecent, possibly as soon as next week, officials said. However, it won't impose what could have been a multimillion- dollar fine against General Electric Co. (NYSE:GE - News)'s NBC network, which carried the event, or its affiliates.

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=808&u=/dowjones/20040305/bs_dowjones/200403050405000148&printer=1

[DinoDoc]

That's the bad part about putting an ass like Stern through the ringer after letting him slide for so long. It allows the dirty old man to act like a self-important martyr.

[Verto]

He is so full of himself.

Stern, not DD.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Yep... He'll replace radio with satellite radio by himself?

[Shogun Gunner]

Well Ben, you have your opinion and you are entitled to it.

I certainly don't agree with it.

Posting some contradictory comments doesn't change my mind or the facts to what is happening in our country.

[Shogun Gunner]

Well some people love Stern, some people hate him. I listen to him and to be honest, I don't think the stuff that he gets in trouble for is very entertaining. He just has to push the envelope, it must be in his personality.

However, I don't question anyone who says the don't like him. He's very polarizing and I can understand why some people would be offended by him. Also, he's not the "end all" or the "King of all Media" like he sets himself up as.

That being said, he does have funny moments, but that's just my opinion.