#83 Sep/Oct 2006
The Washington Free Press Washington's Independent Journal of News, Ideas & Culture
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TOP STORIES

Fidel Decides US Presidential Elections
Election by popular vote would ensure that the Florida Cuban vote doesn't have undue influence
by Steven Hill

Five Years on
opinion by Todd Huffman, MD

Mothers Day at the Bangor Trident Base
personal account by Jan Prichard-Cohen

Pierce County to Vote on IRV
editor

FREE THOUGHTS

READER MAIL
Liberal in Religion (Except for Catholics?); Impeach Bush Now

A Violent & Hopeless Course
Seattle shooting ought to trigger questions about American foreign policy
opinion by Joel Hanson

Today's 'Bad' Immigrant is Tomorrow's 'Good' Immigrant
by Domenico Maceri

Can you fill in the blanks in these headlines?
by Doug Collins

FOOD

The Cholesterol Myth Part 2: The dangers of low blood cholesterol
by Barry Groves, PhD

CHOLESTEROL THEORY WIPES OUT HUMAN RACE
'Regret at the waste of a fine planet'
from the Weston A. Price Foundation

MEDIA

MEDIA BEAT
Digital Hype: A Dazzling Smokescreen?
by Norman Solomon

Remodel at the Seattle Weekly
by Doug Collins

Just Looking For Something Fun To Do On Saturday Night?
from the editor

CIVIL RIGHTS

Judge: No Ban on Apartment Door Signs
Housing agency appeals verdict
opinion and photos by Keith Gormezano

Defending Free Speech Rights of Lt. Ehren Watada
Brief filed for Fort Lewis officer facing court martial for opposition to Iraq War
from the ACLU of WA

POLITICS

Fishing for a Good Candidate
opinion by Doug Collins

Thank Republican Congressmen Ron Paul and Walter Jones for Speaking Truth
by David Swanson

Republicans, Please Stand Up
opinion by Jim Sullivan

BOOKS

BOOK NOTICES
Tire Grabbers; The Revenge of Gaia; This is Burning Man

What's your favorite book?
Write about it!
from the editor

LAW

BOB'S RANDOM LEGAL WISDOM
The Long Road to Justice: One Client's Story
by Bob Anderton
plus Bob's Random Lawyer Joke

HEALTH

Charity at the Wrong End
Drugstores charity and pharmaceutical solutions
by Doug Collins

Vaccination Update
Pharmaceutical companies might lose out if common sense held sway
by Doug Collins

Disposing the Diaper
Part 2: How my wife and I potty-trained pretty darn early. Our kids, I mean.
by Doug Collins

CONTACTS & ACTIVISM

DO SOMETHING CALENDAR

NORTHWEST NEIGHBORS

ENVIRONMENT

Bush Fiddles While the World Burns
As global warming sets new and dangerous records, the US sets new records in pollution
by Don Monkerud

RIGHT BRAIN

Some Thoughts
by Styx Mundstock

THE WANDERINGS AND THOUGHTS OF KIPP KELLOG
by Vincent Spada #7

PUMPKIN EDDIE'S LIGHTNING POEMS
by Vincent Spada

Mourning and Moving On
poem by Robert Pavlik

WORLD RECORDS DEPT.
Transcendental Poem
by Vincent Spada

MEDIA BEAT
Digital Hype: A Dazzling Smokescreen?

by Norman Solomon

As each new season brings more waves of higher-tech digital products, I often think of Mark Twain. Along with being a brilliant writer, he was also an ill-fated investor-fascinated with the latest technical innovations, including the strides toward functional typewriters and typesetting equipment as the 19th century neared its close.

Twain would have marveled at the standard PC that we take for granted now. But what would he have made of the intrusiveness of present-day media technology-let alone its recurring content?

It's getting harder and harder to drive out of cell-phone range-that is, if you really want to. And judging from scenes at countless remote locations, many people would rather not forfeit 24/7 phone access for conversations that involuntary eavesdroppers hear half of. (Virtually always, it seems, the more boring half.)

These days, mainstream media fascination with blogs and the bloggers who love them often seems to assume that the very use of the Internet enhances the content or style of what has been written. It's a seductive cyber-fantasy. Speed is useful, and so are hyperlinks and visuals-on-demand, but-fortunately or not, depending on your point of view-there's no digital invisible hand that can move any piece of writing very far along the road to worthwhile reading.

A central paradox of the rapid advances in media technologies is that the quantum leaps in computer hard drives and software have been accompanied by an approximately zero boost in human mental capacity-or in what we refer to with such words as "insight," "wisdom" and "compassion."

You can't visit a local mall or an online site and pull out a credit card to purchase an upgrade in gray matter or human connection.

The momentum of digital communications has conveyed a sense of inevitability. As last year's cutting-edge gizmos become old hat, resistance appears to be futile. But the question is not whether we're "pro" or "anti" technology. More pertinent are inquiries like: What's the point of all this hyper-computerized stuff? How does it relate to the most important meanings of life?

To explore the answers to such questions, even the finest desktops and search engines are unlikely to be much help. Mega-outfits like Microsoft and Google offer incredible ease and speed. When we're seeking information or images, they can do almost everything better and faster than we can-except think and reflect, feel and create, love and mourn...

A half-century ago, there was much talk about the fear that machines would replace people in the workplace. Now, "automation" has an almost quaint ring to it. But the high premium put on speedily moving a business agenda goes back many decades. "In an age of advanced technology," Aldous Huxley foresaw, "inefficiency is the sin against the Holy Ghost."

In recent years, the corporate emphasis on the efficient use-and, let's face it, exploitation-of human beings has become more overbearing. By now, no one expects a big company to exhibit much loyalty to employees in the long run. And the ubiquitous presence of media technologies in the workaday world, from computer to cell phone to BlackBerry, has facilitated chronic employer demands for greater "productivity." While a new digital gizmo may serve the worker, that worker is still expected to serve management's often-insatiable drive for profits-more efficiently than ever.

News outlets routinely provide breathless accounts of the latest digital dazzles. But precious little media attention focuses on the deeper qualities of the human experience, the content of the lightning-fast communications or the ultimate end-product. Data streams move faster than the eye can see. Information doesn't flow, it rockets. But what's it all for?

Even the most wondrous media technologies can't supply an iota of meaning. Yet the prevalent media discourse keeps equating digital breakthroughs with human breakthroughs. But that's a very dubious proposition.

Norman Solomon's latest book is "War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death." For information, go to: www.WarMadeEasy.com


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