Not much attention was given to these insightful posts, which caught me off guard! So to speak, I moved them to my collection as a reminder: the mass got a sharp eye, spot-on.
据主流媒体报道新冠疫情期间美国的贫富差距进一步加大,极富的财富有了天文数字的增加,老生重谈解决这个顽疾的最佳方案是政府给穷人发钱。媒体却没有任何研究探讨贫富差距的根源在哪里。俺猜测政府给穷人发钱才是罪魁祸首。极富的财富多和股市相关,而政府给穷人发的钱最终去了哪里了?俺以为是消费和炒股,而这两种去处分别间接和直接的抬升了股市,自然肥了极富的腰包。虽然穷人的投资,如果真的去投资了,也可能会以和富人同样的百分比去增长,可是极富的基数是远远大于穷人的,所有差距的绝对值只会因为股市的飙升而进一步地加大。缩小贫富差距的办法是什么呢?俺以为该是教会穷人如何致富,和政府的制度和法律利于穷人致富,而不是发钱。当今的极富几十年前都是从 garage 和 home office 开始,比方贝索斯和盖茨,美国那时有对 small business 友好的环境,政府的条条框框都比如今小很多。如今的大政府,税收和各种奇葩的法规都在扼杀 small business ,American Dream 终将成为 DAYDREAM 。
媒体也是生意,怎么赚钱怎么来,包括拉赞助,拉广告,拉捐款。美国的主流媒体也得这么做,不然关门大吉。媒体人相应地要搏眼球拉听众和观众,宣扬正义和揭露阴暗是博眼球的副产品。这部电影开始让我对媒体产生了疑问。DUSTIN HOFFMAN 主演的 MAD CITY。Its plot from wiki:
After being sacked from his job at a museum, former security guard Sam Baily returns to the place with a shotgun and dynamite and takes his former boss Mrs. Banks and a number of children (at the museum on a school field trip) as hostages. Local television journalist Max Brackett is in the museum using the restroom after an interview with the curator about financial difficulties. He becomes directly involved in the hostage situation, acting as Baily's intermediary to the outside world and the police.
Baily accidentally shoots a friend of his, Cliff, who's still working there as a security guard, sending him to the hospital. He later fires the weapon again, frightening the children and becoming increasingly unstable as he takes caffeine pills to stay awake. Along with the young intern coworker Laurie among the growing media circus outside, Brackett reports the inside story exclusively on television, reviving his career. By being free to come and go, he negotiates with a national network and its star news anchorman, Kevin Hollander, with whom Brackett has an unhappy history.
Baily wants the police to let him return home to his wife and kids, refusing to accept that he's going to jail. Brackett, on the other hand, makes a deal rather than let Hollander have the story, prompting Hollander to publicly accuse Brackett of prolonging the crisis and endangering the children. Laurie then betrays Brackett, proving that, like him, she's willing to do whatever it takes to further her own career.
When his friend Cliff dies, Baily starts to realize he's lost everything. Baily and Brackett allow the situation to worsen until the police finally have had enough, issuing a five-minute ultimatum to Baily for release of the hostages. Baily lets the children and Mrs. Banks go. He also sends out Brackett to try to convince the police to put down their guns so he could personally usher out Baily. But rather than face prison and his wife Baily locks the museum doors on Brackett, who's outside trying to get the police to listen.
Brackett tries to get him to come out, but Baily ignores him. Brackett is unaware that Baily has decided to set off his explosives, committing suicide. The blast knocks Brackett off his feet and into the parking lot, sending debris everywhere. As reporters surround Brackett to ask about Baily, all he can say is, "We killed him," referring to how the media handled the situation.