Polly Ticking
So. How do y’all stay informed about the world and who makes it go ’round? I’ve been living under a rock for a few years. It is a beautiful amethyst rock and it was really comfortable under there for a while. But it is submerged under the sand now and I hate feeling all gritty, so I dragged myself outta there and took a look around. Now, I know who the president is. I know that we’ve been fighting a couple of wars. We have a nephew in Afghanistan. I know that a bunch of greedy old bankers and their cronies drove our country to the brink of a depression. And I know that we are still hanging onto the ledge above that abyss. With our fingernails. I have friends and relatives who are unemployed and having a devil of a time finding decent jobs. When does it end? Still. I’ve been under a rock, licking a few little wounds of my own and trying to get my own little life in order navel gazing. Pretty much untouched by all of this mayhem. Er, knock on wood big-time!
All right. I am upright, sorta. I have dusted most of the sand off. I don’t need my wonderful BFF Sam (archaeologist, not dog) to tell me that it’s *Harry* Reid, not *Henry* Reid (I called him Henry in an entry a year ago or so and she very politely corrected me). I *think* I even remember (without Google) that he’s a senator from Nevada and he just won the election against Sharron Angle. A Tea Partier, roight? I’m trying.
And so, I am off on a quest to learn more about politics. In truth never have been terribly interested in that subject. Except (of course) when something has affected me directly. Liiiike the 1995 gov’t shutdown, maybe? But now — suddenly — I am. Interested in politics, that is. Politics. On. But where to start… I am looking on-line. We don’t get a daily local newspaper any more and, although I miss that, I don’t want to subscribe to the NYT or WSJ or whatever. I have decided I’m not interested in killing any more trees. Because one has to start somewhere, I am starting with iPhone apps that aggregate political information and news. (And the NYT and WSJ.) I’ve downloaded eight apps. I am very slowly getting to know them. I haven’t decided which ones will be keepers for me yet. I am *not* interested in anything that panders to any particular political party.
What sources do you use for political news? Either traditional or on-line? Doesn’t have to be an iPhone app. And how do you keep from getting totally overwhelmed? I am an systems analyst by trade but I feel like I am swinging around in the dark right now.
P.S. to NPJane, I have *finally* added The Ann Arbor Chronicle to my RSS feed!
November 9th, 2010 at 8:35 pm
I read the news on excite.com which pulls from many sources and I also use factcheck a LOT to figure out who is actually telling the truth. It can be tricky. 😉
November 9th, 2010 at 9:09 pm
I have found the Christian Science Monitor to be an interesting source on occassion.
November 9th, 2010 at 10:41 pm
I LOVE the Rachel Maddow Show on MSNBC (9:00 p.m Eastern, but I generally watch her show’s segments on MSNBC.com that are posted about an hour after her show ends). Yes, she’s liberal (and is clear about that), but in this day and age I’ve never known anyone in the journalistic realm who is more reasonable, respectful, and knowledgeable as she is. (She’s a Rhodes Scholar and has a PhD in political science). And she can also be extremely funny. If/when she makes a mistake, she owns up to it. I admire her in so many ways. If one were to consider that she represents the liberal side and you feel you need to balance it with the other side’s take on things, I suppose you could take a peek at Fox. (*Shudder*)
I also appreciate FactCheck.org.
On Twitter, I follow some folks that are (again) liberal, but also very astute, as well as entertaining! A few that I recommend are @OToolefan, @GottaLaff, and @Ebertchicago. These folks are SMART.