My son says on his Facebook page that he attended a large pro health care event in New York City yesterday, which as far as I can see went unmentioned in the Times today. The sad fact is that without mention in the press these events may as well not take place, since if they are not covered they can safely be ignored by all the major actors in the debate.
I’m reminded of the many anti-Bush demonstrations that were ignored, despite substantial numbers of participants. There were demonstrations at both of his inaugurations, which were ignored. There were massive demonstrations against the war in Iraq, which were trivialized, with the numbers attending obviously minimized.
Nowadays, 10 anti-health care people at a forum are news, and if they do something totally outrageous, like comparing Obama to Hitler, intimidating people with guns, or chanting Heil Hitler to a Jewish health care supporter, they get on national television. The entire Democratic Party felt the need to condemn Moveon because one person posted a video that compared Bush to Hitler, but the Republican party floats unscathed above an ocean of such comparisons, to which Republican Congressmen and Senators give tacit and sometimes near explicit condonation.
This sort of asymmetry is interesting. A crowd of progressives or millions of anti-war protesters get less coverage, and less respect, than a few militia types or a handful of uninformed, Limbaugh manipulated racists.
Democrats don’t help, since they make no attempt to shape the debate. Still, it’s amazing how easily the right can dominate the conversation with lies and cries of victimhood.
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